Showing posts with label ralph lauren. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ralph lauren. Show all posts

Wednesday, May 4, 2011

My Romance doesn't Have to Have a Moon in the Sky


The next chapter in the Romance story, the one inspired by Ralph Lauren's fragrance that is includes real-life husband and wife, Nacho Figueras and Delfina "Delfi" Blaquier, the latest stars of the 2011 Ralph Lauren Romance campaign, featured below. The new commercial film for Ralph Lauren Romance was shot by Bruce Weber. The song is sung by Seal; it's the classic Sinatra "My Romance" song by Hart & Rogers.

Friday, July 3, 2009

Stars & Stripes: 10 Quintessentially American Fragrances

Reminiscing of my United States days now that Independence Day is around the corner, I cannot but admit my amazement instigated by the sheer size of the country and the numerous "pockets" of microvariables I witnessed throughout in all matters: nature, people and culture. Who could believe that the Latino-bursting humid Florida with its Art-Deco pastel houses and stretching highways has any relation to the glass skyscrapers, the bustling sidewalk and the loaded, steely sky of New York City? Or how can the jazzy Louisiana with its succulent Creole kitchen be compared to the barbeque pool parties in Los Angeles or the boxwood trees flanking the streets of San Francisco? In trying to assemble a list of quintessentially American fragrances, for men and women to share, I stumble across this very obstacle: One cannot generalise; especially concerning such a multi-nuanced nation as the US!

Still, there are olfactory elements which fuse together to create something that is perceived as American to my mind. The maritime pines, or the palm trees lining Miami beach which remind me of home; mixed with the bay leaves which lace not only Bay Rum the cologne, but also tangy Southern dishes. The lighter Virginia blond tobacco ~so different from the murkier, richer Balkan varieties which I have loved~ remininding me not of Istanbul-bound vagabondages but of a Marlboro rider, free to roam astride in the immense plains. The yellow trillium with its lemon scented flowers and mottled leaves; as well as the ironically named American Beauty Rose, brought from France in 1875 (where it was bred as "Madame Ferdinand Jamin") and commemorated in the Joseph Lamb ragtime "American Beauty Rag". Accessing the fragrances that represent to me the American classics however I recurr to some constants: The desire for a potent message, no matter if it is a "clean" or more herbal/woody one, the affinity for a certain latheriness in even the most dense oriental, the preponderance for traditional proper values.
All these and more comprise my reminiscences and associations with America the Great and I invite you to augment the list with your suggestions. Here are some of my own:

Florida Water Eau de Cologne
The sweet oranges bursting with sunny warmth and tanginess on the branches of Californian and Florida trees are the shift that took place when the traditional European recipe of Eau de Cologne, like the pilgrims, lay foot on the New World by the brand of Lanman & Kemp Barclay in 1808. The addition of clove and lavender imparts two elements of American significance which converge into one: hygiene!

Caswell-Massey's Number Six cologne
Supposedly worn by George Washington and part of the collection of the USA's oldest perfumery, what could be more American? Citrusy and rosemary-rich in a formal but also country-like way, its introduction in 1789 marked the raw, rugged manliness that was necessary for the times: noble ideals fought with decisive dynamism!

Blue Grass by Elizabeth Arden
The enterpreneur Florence Graham choose a name out of "Elizabeth and her German Garden", or altenatively from Tennyson's poem "Enoch Arden" and her former partner Elizabeth Hubbard, when she opened her first beauty salon in 1910 and became world famous as Elizabeth Arden. George Fuschs, a Fragonard perfumer, was commissioned to compose a scent that would honour the Kentucky Blue Grass horses of Arden's in 1934. The smell is one of the great outdoors: freshly dewy and herbal, old-fashionedly lavender-tinged pettering out to clean woods. Despite one of Arden's managers ominous forecasting ("it would remind people of manure and would be a flop"), it became her best-seller. Today it is forgotten, which is all the more reason to re-explore it as an American classic.

Old Spice by Shulton
There is no more poignant memory than dads and grandfathers smelling of this enduring classic of smooth spiciness and austere woods, with its traditional flowery accent of lavender and geranium. Intoduced in 1937 by William Lightfoot Schultz and composed by Albert Hauck, the cologne came in an identical men's and women's scent packaged differently, tagged"Early American Old Spice." It's now part of the Procter & Gamble brand. No matter how much it has become a cliché in perfumeland and how hard it is to shed the associations, the greatness of the scent cannot be denied. It was meant for the guys who would rather shed an arm than change grooming products (ie. typical male customers of half of the 20th century) and it has won several blind tests as "the most expensive, the sexiest, the most sophisticated" fragrance.

Youth Dew by Estee Lauder
Estee Lauder, a Hungarian-Jewish-hailing enterpreneur who flourished in the US, was responsible for the first American fragrance rivaling the French, putting American perfumery on the map and coming out victorious. Her classic spicy-balsam oriental of 1953 is a perennial: Introduced as a bath oil, it revolutionised the way women could now buy fragrance for themselves, rather than expect it as a gift. Perfumer Josephine Catapano (with Ernest Shiftan) married aldehydes with carnation, clove, cinnamon on a base of Tolu balsam, frankincense and rich amber to great aplomb. Despite being dense Youth Dew surprises me by its absence of animalistic dirtiness so beloved by the French. Headstrong, musty and not meant for wallflowers, Youth Dew is best ~discreetly~ enjoyed in the original bath oil form or the gorgeous body cream version.

Norell by Norell
''We all knew the formula was long,'' said Josephine Catapano, the perfumer of Norell (also of Youth Dew), ''like a treaty.'' It was her proudest creation (1968) with a pow of raspy galbanum and an intense trail of clove-y spice under the iron-starch aroma of aldehydes, which seems to date it; a fate fitting to someone like Norman Norell who nipped in waists before Dior and never paid attention to the vagaries of trends, choosing the timeless Babe Paley and Katherine Hepburn who both wore the scent. Forgotten, grabbed by Revlon in 1971 and later sold to Five Star Fragrances, Norell remains a harken-back to the glamour of cinemascope American images and wears like a rich mink on pampered skin.

Halston by Halston
The American designer Halston was born as Roy Halston Fronwick and in 1975 he embodied the scent of an era in his eponymous fragrance in a flacon famously designed by Elsa Perreti. Halston is that rare American chypre which forewent the classic Mediterrannean and foresty ambience for a minty and soapy warmth that lingered on skin seductively. In many ways it not only represented the disco epoch of Studio 54 but ironically enough also the "cleaner" values of the American ideal of sexiness.

Lauren by Ralph Lauren
Was there a college-dorm or high-school locker in America in the late 70s and early 80s that didn't smell of this 1978 creation? I've heard not! The terrific success of this part old-fashioned floral (violet, rose and carnation notes), part herbal-woody by Bernand Chant (Cabochard, Aramis, Aromatics Elixir) has pre-emptied the rage for designer scents in the following decades. Regretably has been reformulated to its detriment ruining the collective mementos of a whole generation.

Polo by Ralph Lauren
Conteporary to the feminine Lauren, Polo is as densely woody green as its bottle-green flacon ~in the shape of a flask with a gold cap and the rider trademark of Lauren's sports line embossed~ would denote. Its rich bouquet of patchouli and oakmoss composed by Carlos Benaim is accented with bracing notes of juniper, artemisia and pine with a light whiff of tobacco, embodying the very essence of an American forest getting on its legs and glidying past you like creatures out of The Lord of The Rings.

Happy by Clinique
No matter how much part of the olfactory landscape this cheerful little potion has become, its huge commercial success was based on 2 factors: It smells optimistic, a trait very much ingrained in the core of a new nation like the US, and it is a "Get me everywhere" scent that would never offend, another desirable in the increasingly non-tolerant American urban environment. Perfumer Roy Matts employed emollient tonalities of mimosa, melon and "clean" musks to gloss over the zinginess of grapefruit, resulting in a best-seller that still endures, 12 years after its introduction.

Sarah Jessica Parker Lovely
Three years after the introduction ~and terrific success~ of the first contemporary celebrity scent by Jennifer Lopez, Glow (2002), another popular figure, actress Sarah Jessica Parker agreed to launch her own scent under the aegis of Coty. A dedicated perfume lover with a self-admitted predeliction for CDG Avignon, Bonne Bell Skin Musk and Paris by Yves Saint Laurent, SJP was the perfect person to compose a celebrity scent: she's genuinely interested! Her Lovely is nothing short of lovely indeed, a refined, girly musky trail with subtle floral accents of virtual magnolia that can be pictured on every cute lady reserving a table & couch at Hudson Terrace or Terminal 5 roof deck on a balmy summer evening.

Well, 11 rather than 10. But we might as well leave it be!

Please post your own all-American fragrances recommendations!

Pics: Collen Moore The Stars and the Stripes, wikimedia commons, parfums de pub, cinematic passions.wordpress.com

Sunday, February 8, 2009

Romance Always Yours & St.Valentine virtual VMail: new from R.Lauren

Valentine's Day always brings to mind fragrances as the ultimate weapon of love and seduction and if they have an amorous ring to their names, all the better. Romance by Ralph Lauren is perhaps taking things literally and wearing its heart on its sleeve! To celebrate the 10th anniversary of the original fragrance, perfumer Harry Fremont has created Romance Always Yours, a more complex fragrance blend inspired by the deepening of a relationship. Fremont was also the nose behind the original Romance, a popular choice among women after so many years. "Romance Always Yours is classified as a Sensual Floral Chypre with top notes of Sun Goddess Rose, Yellow Freesia & Ginger; mid notes of Lotus Flower, White Violet & Fresh Daylily; and base notes of Patchouli Concentrate, Creamy Sensual Musk & Oak Moss.
To celebrate the release, the fragrance is available not only as an Elixir de Parfum ($60-$75) but also as a very special Limited Edition Parfum ($225), which features a hand-crafted glass faceted dauber, reminiscent of the diamond - a traditional 10th wedding anniversary gift. The Romance Always Yours Elixir de Parfum will become a permanent part of the collection alongside the original Romance". The bottle cap mimicks a large faceted emerald-cut diamond.

Now available at major department stores in the US and at RalphLauren.com.


But I thought the most interesting little innovation is brought via technology and the Internet: Just in time for St.Valentine's Day Ralph Lauren has created the Romance vMAIL, a virtual Valentine to share with the special person in your life. Here's how it works: First, you create a slideshow of images by uploading your own photos from Flickr, your computer or selecting from iconic Romance images shot by photographer Bruce Weber and featuring real-life model couple, Valentina & Luiz. Next, you create a customized soundtrack for your slideshow: You can choose from ten romantic tunes, including an exclusive downloadable track from the new Nat King Cole album of modern remixes, which is free by the way (nice touch!). Finally, the unique Romance vMAIL is shareable so you can email it to your boyfriend or husband or post it to your Facebook page or MySpace page, and other social networks. Romance vMAIL link: http://www.always-yours.com/


Info & pics via press release

Wednesday, December 10, 2008

Polo Modern Reserve by Ralph Lauren: fragrance review & comparison

~by guest writer Mike Perez

Wood. Pine. Evergreen. The Christmas season 2008 has arrived (is it just me, or is the entire fall/winter season just a blur!?) and the green/wood smell of a fresh Christmas tree is one of my favorite smells. In Miami, I can’t walk into a snow covered forest and smell the trees – so the smell of a tree or wreath filling my home is as close as I can get to the real thing.
I’ve looked diligently, for fragrances that smell like this: Fou d’Absinthe by L’Artisan Parfumeur recreates it nicely, alongside a generous helping of boozy absinthe; Aqua Allegoria Winter Delice by Guerlain smells just like a stiff / dried-out Christmas wreath (pine cones, twigs, dried holly berries) folded into a gingerbread cake accord with a resinous incense base.
I asked someone on Basenotes for a recommendation, and they mentioned Polo by Ralph Lauren.
Polo and I never really got along. Maybe because it was so easy to hate. Back in the 80’s I smelled this scent on just about every single male, in my junior high school locker room. Its irreverent wood/pine accord is unmistakably strong and diffuses in the air quickly…I always felt that it’s a ‘male’ Poison.
Now older, I realize how many colognoisseurs respect and admire Polo as a classic men’s masculine. I softened to the idea of owning it and even tracked some vintage (aerosol EdT) bottles of it on Ebay once – but I never bought a bottle.

Now Ralph Lauren has released Polo Modern Reserve, their 30th Anniversary Edition, created by the very same perfumer responsible for original Polo, Carlos Benaim. The original Polo has NOT been discontinued – rather they both are available.
It’s confusing, since both share the same bottle color, shape, cap, gold lettering and logo – the only difference is the new scent says ‘Modern Reserve’ on the front of the bottle.
When I sampled it I noticed a much more spicy (almost soapy) top note that isn’t harsh at all. Less resinous. But not ‘typical’ or ‘fresh’ (thank goodness). The scent evolves quickly through a few stages and one could easily miss them if you’re not paying attention: soapy basil; spice; a hint of leather and/or birch tar; the tiniest bit of smoky resin (myrrh?); and then: the vintage smell of Polo. The sharpness and piercing effect of the notes has been softened (the tobacco is gone). I, personally, prefer this change. The original always smelled less like something in nature (animal, plant) and more like a manufactured ‘smell’ of green foliage, woods and the outdoors. It suffered for this: It was lumped into the bargain fragrance category (along with other outstanding masculines like Paco Rabanne Pour Homme, Aramis and the discontinued [prior to reformulation/ vintage] Brut). When so many other products (hand soap, dishwashing liquid, carpet cleaner) are scented like this too, it’s no surprise many have a knee-jerk aversion to it. Maybe this is why Ralph Lauren decided to re-brand, re-bottle and reformulate it?
Me, I’m impressed: This new edition impresses me without cheapening the quality of the original scent. It highlights all of the lovely facets while it simultaneously plays down those less-than-friendly parts with a more balanced vetiver/leather base. It also, just like the original, lasts hours and hours! Which, I’ve come to learn, is what many men look for in their fragrances. {Stay tuned for a post on longevity, here on Perfume Shrine, soon}.

Does it smell like a Christmas tree? No. But, then again, it doesn’t smell like a polo field either. However a bottle, along with a copy of the scratch-and-sniff book ‘The Smell of Christmas’, underneath my Christmas tree might be just do the trick! :)

Notes for Polo Modern Reserve:
Top: Cardamom C02*, Fresh-cut Basil, Pimento Berry.
Heart: Vetyver-leather, liquid Jasmine, precious Myrrh Incense.
Bottom: Humidor Wood, Patchouli, Sueded Leather.

Prices: $62.50 / 120 ml bottle or $200 for 240 ml (limited edition, only 3,500 gold lettering bottles produced, in a numbered wooden box). Available at major department stores and http://www.ralphlauren.com/



*CO2 extraction or supercritical carbon dioxide is an increasingly popular solvent for extracting volatile oils and fragrance compounds from various raw materials used in perfumery, due to the relatively low critical temperature and reactivity of CO2 which diminishes damage or denaturing (otherwise the materials' odour would be altered).



Clip originally uploaded by Modetopiamodel on Youtube. Pics of bottle and polo player Nacho Figueras provided by MikePerez.

Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Notorious by Ralph Lauren: new fragrance and commercial

“The roles have made me famous, but my life has made me Notorious,” says Laetitia Casta (does she realise the ambivalence of the term, I wonder!), iconic French model and budding actress who stars as the sultry face of Notorious , the new Ralph Lauren fragrance in a new advertising campaign by Michael Thompson that will debut in September 2008. Renowned director Wong Kar Wai (also responsible for the magnificently gothic commercial of Midnight Poison) exhibits his film-noir side in this black & white short film that takes its inspiration from Golden Hollywood heroines such as Lauren Bacall from "The Big Sleep" and even Faye Dunaway from "The Thomas Crown Affair". But the name "notorious" evokes most strongly the eponymous 1946 psychological thriller by Alfred Hitchcock starring Ingrid Bergman and Cary Grant. Then again, the featuring of poison in that film should better have escaped them...the associations with a liquid product could become unfortunate.

Perfumer Olivier Gillotin created Notorious, a sparkling spiced oriental, "of timeless intrigue and boundless desire" as the ad copy claims, to be as provocative and commanding as the woman who wears it.

Notes:Top: Black Currant, Spicy Pink Peppercorn and Italian Bergamot
Middle: Chocolate Cosmos*, White Frost Peonies, Fiery Carnation
Base: Patchouli Musk, Vanilla, Orris

Laeticia, all page-boy hair mysteriously falling over one eye, is wearing -what else?- Ralph Lauren clothes at some of Paris most striking endroits: a cafe beneath the Palais de Tokyo, at the Théâtre des Variétés and on Pont Alexandre III bridge over the Seine. Music score is aptly chosen: Miles Davis' "Maids of Cadiz". We're proud to feature it first. Please enjoy!



And if this has whetted your appetite, here is the "making of" as well:



Notorious will be available in Eau de Parfum spray 75ml/2.5oz.($85), 50ml/1.7oz.($65) and 30ml/1oz ($45), Body Lotion(200ml/6.7oz. for $45), Shower Gel(200ml/6.7oz for $40) and Body Crème(150ml/5.3oz for $70) at ralphlauren.com and major department stores.

*{Chocolate Cosmos, a decadent, chocolate-scented burgundy flower, is said to be used for the first time ever in Notorious, suppossedly evoking floral decadence in the mid-notes}.

Clips originally uploaded by RLTVralphlauren on Youtube.
Pics and info on scent via press release

Friday, November 23, 2007

Optical Scentsibilities: imitation is the sincerest form of flattery

Surely you have heard the above dictum: "imitation is the sincerest form of flattery". It's actually a quote by Charles Caleb Colton (1780 - 1832) Lacon, volume I, no. 183. The man had won a place in my heart for his other quote: "Many books require no thought from those who read them, and for a very simple reason; they made no such demand upon those who wrote them". But perhaps it is irrelevant to perfume advertising, so let's focus on the first one.
Now you might call me wicked and you might call me laborious in search (and I might be both), but don't you get an eerie resemblance between those two images? F by Ferragamo, by the way lauched in 2006 while Femme by Rochas was advertised thus some years ago. And one might argue that the hand on the nape is a classic pose anyway. After all, there are other examples of such images in advertising. But I propose to you that this duo is a bit eye-catching. The position of the hands, the choice of angle, even the dishevelled hair! Don't you think?


And then of course there are the instances in which there is some imagery that, although quite common and classic in positioning, angles, shades and all the paraphernalia of photography and art synthesis, inspires itself another copy.

Directly, I might add and not indirectly, which might be understandable and quite common. We have numerous times stressed the importance of influence here at the Shrine. However, yes, this artwork at the right hand is indeed an actual painting, meant to be hung at somebody's wall. And if you pay a minimal amount of attention you will notice that not only it reproduces the pose, shades and general feel but the people depicted are the spitting image of the models appearing on the Ralph Lauren advertisment of Romance (Lauren's romantic approach to scents for women and for men launched a few years ago).
To me, this is a case of cart leading the horse instead of vice versa...




Many more exciting optical scentsibilities soon and please be tuned in for a review of a smashing sexy scent shortly!


Ads from imagesdesparfum and parfumsdepub. Artwork Insieme I by Escha courtesy of angelart.com

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