Pamela Anderson: just the person to launch another celebo-scent!

I just got sent the most disturbing news. OK, I should probably tone it down because it's not as if I found out having multiple sclerosis or some such debilitating disease or learning that my on-the-side "dough" for a tough day has magically gone up in smoke due to some accountant investement malhandling. No, the news is much more sedate, yet it does still have something of the creepy in it.

The news came in the form of an email by Laurie Pike who writes for the LA Magazine and I am quoting verbatim, because it's perfectly worded: "Malibu is known as an enclave for celebrities, a surf haven, the subject of a Courtney Love song. It's a surprise that the name of the storied town hasn't been used before for a fragrance. Can't you just imagine? Notes of sea air and orange blossoms, perhaps? Maybe a little essential oil of patchouli to reflect the hippie vibe? Now: consider Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. Evocative of spring break and, for old timers, the setting of the Connie Francis film Where the Boys Are. And, um, not much else. So why on earth is Pamela Anderson launching a fragrance called Malibu way the hell down there?
The event takes place November 5 at a club called the Living Room. Whatev!"

I mean, whatev! I'm sure it will be claaaassy (please don't remind me how she must have smelled when she had filmed that little yachting clip with then husband Tommy Lee) and right at the synchronicity when Pamela is looking for scraps of fame in the dustbins of younger, comelier (ooops) contestants.
Just when we were saying that the celebrito-trend is withering and dying, eh? Now, I've seen it all. Oh, wait, the judge of Britain's Got Talent Simon Cowell is issuing one too, perhaps it's "got talent" as well.

For some relentless but witty and creatively hillarious celebo-parody in both prose and imagery, you really shouldn't miss this page on Galley of the Absurd. This is true pop-culture-of-the-moment and Damien Hirst has nothing on it! Really, click on the link, it's unmissable.


pic of Malibu ad via lamag.com and X-ray Pamela Anderson via funslol.com

Guerlain Mouchoir de Monsieur: fragrance review

~by Mike Perez

Some fragrances play the part of the “quiet, silent type”. Let me explain: Strangely, there are fragrances that I’ve sampled that smell like nothing at all. Well…not nothing…but it smells as if a hole has opened up in the air and for a few minutes there is a blank space where the top notes belong. Like pushing PLAY on your IPod and watching the track begin (0:00, 0:01…) and no music plays. This has happened to me several times and I have no idea why. However, most of the time (luckily) scents that start out this way usually turn out to be fragrances that I grow to love. Like Mouchoir de Monsieur by Guerlain.

Before this I sampled the ‘classic’ lavender fougere by Guerlain: Jicky. The Eau de Toilette was too excessively talcum powder prominent, and although I could appreciate the lavender, it felt uncomfortable and slightly matronly on me.. Jicky Eau de Parfum is a shocker: so embarrassingly civet prominent in the top notes, I was instantly repulsed. Waiting for those top notes to calm down took a bit too long and tiresome so I considered sampling the parfum next when I got a sample of MdM.

The first time I sprayed it – I smelled a tiny bit of the Guerlinade, but that was it. Nothing. Sample off? Nose fatigue? A second time, I smelled a bit of the lavender but nothing as spectacular as the Aqua Allegoria Lavande Velours by Guerlain – a gushing lavender / purple violets that’s almost aroma therapeutic . The 3rd time I smelled it I was instantly greeted with a totally different accord – the familiar style of perfumery like Jicky – but swirled together into an entirely different pattern. Jicky remixed into a sturdier more solidly constructed accord. Wonderful! Perfect balance, with all of the parts of Jicky that I wanted: exceedingly high quality lavender, rosemary and bergamot; that unique fern aura; the rich Guerlinade – they are all here, but blended into the civet and woody notes in a richer and luxurious way. The fragrance evolves with a quiet, floral heart giving the patchouli a sophisticated, powdery nuance. Small parts of it remind me of wearing a refreshing eaux cologne, yet it simultaneously retains subtle and important details of Guerlain’s classic feminine fragrances. Not an easy feat.

It doesn’t scream for attention – it is essentially a subtle fragrance, hushed – making its presence known in tiny whiffs here and there, throughout the day, all day. It is, perhaps, for this reason why I couldn’t smell it when I first sampled it. There’s not a blast of aldehydes or synthetic woody ambers to diffuse this scent quickly. And the lavender, sometimes extremely medicinal and sharp, is soft.

I admit – I’m the quiet, silent type myself. At a cocktail party, you’ll find me off in the corner checking out the host’s CD collection instead of socializing and interacting with others. I speak very little but when I speak, I choose my words very carefully…looking you straight in the eyes.

I’m okay being this type of “guy”. It’s who I am. It’s who my father is. Problems come and go. Challenges are thrown my way... I have horrible days, just like everyone else does. I choose to keep all of that inside, most of the time – introspective, reflective and calm to everyone. Only when you get closer to me, do I open up, and only then will I reveal what’s going on underneath the surface.

Just like Mouchoir de Monsieur.

Notes for Guerlain Mouchoir de Monsieur (1904):
Top: lavender, lemon verbena, bergamot
Middle: jasmine, neroli, rose, tonka bean, patchouli, cinnamon
Base: Iris, amber, vanilla, oakmoss

King Juan Carlos I of Spain (depicted) was reputedly one of the few purveyors of Mouchoir de Monsieur before Guerlain decided to re-issue it more widely.


Pics of Cary Grant, Mouchoir de Monsieur bottle and Juan Carlos of Spain via Mike Perez

Travalo Atomisers: Review & Giveaway!

Whether you're someone who enthusiastically likes to carry their perfume everywhere (gym, holidays, strolls etc) but feels a little encumbered by the sheer weight, bulk and risk of a whole bottle in one's purse or a perfumista on a shoestring budget who likes to test lots of scents rather than settling on bigger bottles, you will be thrilled to hear that a new type of refillable atomiser has arrived and I am hosting a giveaway of 5 items for our readers: Travalo Refillable Atomiser doesn't necessitate you end up with climber's fingers (ie.titanium strong!) from spraying directly the nozzle of your bottle into those little glass or plastic vials ~which is usually the practice if one wants to decant from a spray bottle into a smaller purse vial; nor does it end up in wasted precious liquid in the process, which unfortunately happens all too often. Its patented pump fill valve technology makes refills a breeze eliminating any mess or fuss because Travalo refills itself directly from the mechanism of your bottle. (People who have used the resourcante bottles of Angel and Alien are familiar with the concept, it's the same thing in small scale)

Travalo stands 8cm long and weighs 12g, made from durable aircraft grade aluminium, so durable enough to withstand drops and bumps without spillage. It holds 4ml which is the equivalent of 50 sprays (so they say, I haven't actually sprayed as many times myself), so perfect for a weekend getaway. And perhaps of importance these days, it's airflight approved, which means you can carry it with you onboard.



How to Use the Travalo:



Travalo refillable atomisers come with a lifetime warranty for normal use (more at http://www.travalo.com/), they're available in 3 shades (pink, golden and silver) and they all include an integrated fill level window from which you can gauge how much is left in your container. They retail at 9.99£ each in the UK online and for 14.88 euros in Greece. I found them very practical, if a little expensive if you want to have multiples for your whole collection (I guess it all depends on just how vast that collection is!)
So, on to the giveaway: The company has kindly offered to gift 5 Travalo atomisers to our readers in the colour of their choice! You simply need to comment if you'd like one and I will pick 5 winners who will be sent their atomisers by the manufacturer.

In the interests of full disclosure I was sent one Travalo sample. The winners will be mailed theirs directly from the distributor. Both photos by Elena Vosnaki

Autumn Smells

Autumn and smells are entwined, perhaps more than any other season, if only because the cooling of the air leaves us with a newly fangled apprehension of our surroundings after the languor of summer and because autumn signals new beginnings along with a certain wistfulness.

I therefore had proclaimed a little contest the other day in which a winner would get a goody bag with lots of samples that had been accumulating in my drawers. After a difficult elimination process I chose RachelG whose entry was truly transporting and original. Runner-ups (honourable mentions) include NinaZ and Scott, who both expressed their sentiments beautifully! Thanks to everyone participating for the love and sentiment they brought to this, and till next time!

Here is the winning entry:

"To me, autumn is the smell of my cat coming in from the cold. It only lasts a minute, maybe less, but if I can scoop her up before she runs to the dinner bowl, and inhale deeply, there is a fragrance of incomparable beauty, and nearly impossible to describe: it is cold but alive, her fur, yes, but also wisps of the smoke from our chimney, the fresh cut woodpile she nestles in to watch for mice, the sweet brown of decaying leaves on the forest floor. Wandering outside won’t lead you to this smell, it is something unique to her and her kind. Maybe we walk too far from the ground, or maybe we don’t stay long enough in one place, but her autumn is a world truly apart from mine. While I love the rich wine and honey of my autumn, it is nothing compared to her wild and lovely life."

Rachel, please mail me using the email on Profile with a shipping address so I can send the goody bag to you!

Pic of Insomnium's album Across the Dark

Hermes Terre d'Hermes Parfum: fragrance review

In evaluating how Terre d'Hermès has been a resounding commercial success, but also a firm winner on the top lists of best fragrances on discerning consumers boards such as Basenotes for a couple of years consecutively, it is not difficult to understand its appeal and range of qualities that accounted for its popularity, earning it a newly fledged version named Terre d'Hermès Parfum.

The refreshing overture, the unusual, intellectual, mineral facets in its core and the great radiance of its woody bottom (accounted by IsoE Super, more on which on this article) are the cornerstones on which its reputation has been cemented.

Extrait de Parfum pour Homme is not the most usual concentration when one thinks about masculine fragrances. In fact the American generic term "cologne" for masculine scents is not without some sort of reasoning behind it: It seems that most men are accustomed to resort to splashes of scented eau on their neck after a good, close shave or a shower, and additionally they have been conditioned to believe that a men's fragrance should be light and not really perceptible beyond a certain number of paces. The belief has been a remnant of a patriachal code of conduct of the first half of the 20th century, in which men customarily earned the daily bread, read the newspaper while the wife put the babies to sleep and never wore anything remotely removed from lavender water, hesperidic eaux or aromatic concoctions that didn't leave any doubt to which team they were playing for.
Times have changed, new fathers pay more attention to their families, while some opt out of families in the traditional sense altogether, and the market has had to conform. Companies have realised that there is a new sophistication in the air, what with the emergence of the new metrosexual man, but also with the newly rediscovered ~for the Western world~ pleasure of reaping the benefits of aromatics and essences for the benefit oneself: A new audience that laps up niche offerings and ooohs and aaaahs at Pierre Montale's offerings or Amouage's luxurious attars is ready for a proposition that goes against the grain: Namely not an Eau de Parfum (in itself also a rare phenomenon in the universe of masculine fragrances) but an Extrait de Parfum, aka pure parfum! Thus Guerlain is offering their excellent Habit Rouge Extrait, Ormonde Jayne and Clive Christian are not far behind with their own, but it is Hermès that just launched a new version of their best-selling 2006's Terre d'Hermès in parfum concentration which will reign in terms of awareness and recognisability, I bet.

Terre d’Hermès Parfum explores a denser “Terre” (earth) than the original eau de toilette which married the skies above with the earth below. An intense concentration surely, yet not just ‘an intense version of Terre d’Hermès’ specifies Jean-Claude Ellena, but rather a rewriting that ‘amplifies the concept, and ‘heightens the contrasts’. Ellena has intensified the mineral-flint facets, and reinforced benzoin’s role resulting in a more bottom-heavy composition which nevertheless isn't far removed from the original. In the opening, shiso’s green, minty accents awaken the citrus tonalities a bit more perceptively. while the increased cedar allied to mossy notes tilt the composition from the aromatic hesperidic to the woody chypre; one of easy elegance. Still the experimentation in parfum strength seems like a studious exercise in concept more than practice, because the original had plenty of tenacity and diffusion already and its depths did not easily lend into a very intricate fugue treatment but more to a graceful and easy-paced minuet.

The spray bottle design is so similar, almost identical (well, slightly squarer) to the original Terre d'Hermès that one might dismiss it and think it's the standard product: At least I did! It was with the greatest surprise that I was gently guided at the boutique towards it, by a most graceful and passionate assistant who nodded his head sagely, insisting it's indeed the parfum. Its geometrical, graceful contours and big size belie its unusual concentration: At 75ml/2.5oz it's a LOT of parfum to last you through several months even if used every day! Tenacity, sillage and evolution on both blotter and skin are excellent, testament to the great technical merit of the reworked composition. Perhaps the only gripe could be the price which is unusually low for a parfum concentration, about half of what is asked for the similar products in the feminine range at Hermès. But I am hypothesizing that the masterplan behind this marketing move was that men are practical creatures when it comes to their grooming products and don't have the madly voracious eye that women have in view of luxury, so a reasonable approach might work better with them. At any rate, at those prices and for such potency and tenacity, it's a bargain; assuming you already like the original Terre d'Hermès of course and would like to complete your collection.

Notes for Terre d'Hermes Parfum:

Top: Orange, shiso, grapefruit, pepper
Heart: Flint, mineral notes, geranium leaves
Base: Woody Notes, oak Moss, vetiver, patchouli, benzoin

Available at boutique Hermès and soon in stores.

Related reading on Perfume Shrine: Interview with master perfumer Jean Claude Ellena

Photo of Jean Cocteau by irving Penn 1950. Pic of bottle via sfilate.it

The Mystery of Perfume at Barneys

New Yorkers and travelers to the Big Apple sit up and take notice: Barneys will host a fragrance event on Wednesday October the 21st organised by Elle editor-in-chief Roberta Myers, Elle Beauty director Emily Dougherty and with the participation of fragrance experts Antonia Bellanca (of Antonia's Flowers), Frederic Malle (of Editions de Parfums), Ben Gorham (of ByRedo parfums) and Fabrice Penot (of Le Labo).

The Mystery of Perfume panel discussion will take place at Fred's Restaurant at Barneys on Madison and 61st Street in New York City (October 21st, 8:30-10AM) and apart from nibbly bits and coffee served there will be a fabulously fragrant goody bag for those attenting!
Since space is limited a 25$ attendance fee is charged, redeemable in product, and you're required to reserve your place at Barneys.com/Elle.

Ormonde Jayne Giveaway!

Luxury London perfumery, Ormonde Jayne are offering Perfume Shrine readers the chance to win a full size 100ml Essential Bathing Oil (worth £48.00) in celebration of launching their new site. Just send an email at sales@ormondejayne.com with "PerfumeShrine Essential Bathing Oil" in the title stating 3 spicy notes used by the brand! And 3 winners will be picked to get an Essential Bathing Oil in the scent of their choice.
Some of the scents are quite autumnal, like Orris Noir with its dark, orientalised combo of spices, incense and iris or the foresty Ormonde Woman and the warm cashmere-smooth Tolu. (click for reviews) Imagine taking a soak in a warm tub sprinkled with one of those fabulous scents or rubbing your skin at the end of a tough day. Mmmmm.....

The Ormonde Jayne Bathing range is free of parabens, sulphates, petrochemicals, GM ingredients & colourings & contain nourishing botanical ingredients. The 8 scents available for the Essential Bathing Oil are:

Champaca
Frangipani Absolute
Osmanthus
Tolu
Ormonde Woman
Ta’if
Sampaquita
Orris Noir

To find out more about Ormonde Jayne please visit ormondejayne.com, or if in the UK, at 12 The Royal Arcade, 28 Old Bond Street, London, W1 (020 7499 1100).

Related reading on Perfume Shrine: interview with Linda Pilkington of Ormonde Jayne
NB: I have nothing to do with the products and winners will be notified by Ormonde Jayne directly.

Irving Penn is dead...

"Photographing a cake can be art" ~thus said Irving Penn, who is no longer with us.




Photos I am on my Vacation 1944 and Rythm 1950s by Irving Penn.

Disclosure of free stuff for bloggers compulsory

According to an article appearing in the New York Times, which you can read here, bloggers will be soon obliged to divulge the free stuff they get from companies in order to provide them with material to review.

"The new regulations are aimed at the rapidly shifting new-media world and how
advertisers are using bloggers and social media sites like Facebook and Twitter
to pitch their wares.The F.T.C. said that beginning on Dec. 1, bloggers who
review products must disclose any connection with advertisers, including, in
most cases, the receipt of free products and whether or not they were paid in
any way by advertisers, as occurs frequently. The new rules also take aim at
celebrities, who will now need to disclose any ties to companies, should they
promote products on a talk show or on Twitter".

Actual fines are going to be implemented too: "Violating the rules, which take effect Dec. 1, could bring fines up to $11,000 per violation. Bloggers or advertisers also could face injunctions and be ordered to reimburse consumers for financial losses stemming from inappropriate product reviews."

Finally, might we add! Full disclosure has been a constant policy on this blog from the very start for the simple reason I believe that readers have a right to know whether we might be influenced by free stuff or not (Not that we have actually received anything much because offering to share costs seems to deter some offers, but we're not trivialising even mere samples because like George Bernand Shaw knew it's not in the amount but in the spirit of the thing). Please find the disclosure in the end of each relevant post.

Byredo candles & Byredo Blanche: new fragrance

ByRedo Parfums is a Stockholm-based newcomer onto the perfume scene as a brand founded by Ben Gorham, a graduate of the Stockholm Art School and an ex-student of interior design. Acting as creative director for the new line, he has assembled the talents of perfumers Olivia Giacobetti, Jérôme Epinette, and Michel Almairac to compose a collection of eight fine fragrances so far: Gypsy Water, Fantastic Man, Bal d'Afrique, Green, Rose Noir, Chembur and Pulp.

Their new candle collection is comprised of 9 scents which seem just like the stuff to get home to, this autumn.


The 9 ByRedo candles are:
Ambre Japonais (Coriander, sandalwood, vanilla)
Baker's Guild (Bitter orange, star anise, ginger)
Bibliotèque (Peach, prunbe, violet, patchouli, leather, peony)
Candy Darling (Coriander, rosewood, patchouli, benzoin)
Carrousel (Orange, rhubarb, cardamom, vetiver, amber)
Cassis (Cassis, berries, strawberry, cedarwood, cinnamon)
Cotton Poplin (Linen notes, white cedar, blue chamomille, musk)
Loose Lips (Violet, black cherry, rose, rice powder)
Peyote Poem (Tonka bean, hyacinth, fir, vanilla)

Each candle is 225g for 50 Euros.

I am itching to try the Bibliotèque candle: How more perfect ~and Lutensian I might add~ can it get?

Ben Gorham, the creator of parfums By Redo, is also launching a new Eau de Parfum, called Blanche this autumn.

"The idea of Blanche is ~as its name suggests~ constructed around my
perception of the colour white. For the first time I have conceived a perfume
for and with the collaboration of one particular person. I wanted to capture
that innocent and immaculate side, a perfume that is of almost transparent
nature. Blanche also represents a homage to classical beauty. The
fragrance is pure and simple in its formula, but its character is extreme".

~Ben Gorham

Blanche ByRedo opens on notes of white rose, pink pepper and aldehydes, segues to a heart of violet, neroli, and peony and reveals a base of white woods, sandalwood and musk.
Available in Eau de Parfum spray, 100ml

notes & pics via press release

Brioni: new fragrance

On the 14th of October, Brioni, a independent tailoring house dedicated to fine garments for men since 1945, is launching their new fragrance, Brioni, the first one to hit the market since 1958. It was in that decade that the luxury house had issued a limited seris of fragrances for men, including the Eau de Cologne "Good Luck". It seems that the renaissance of fragrance is waking up traditional firms out of hibernation and the new masculine Brioni is further proof to this. Their motto "be one of a kind" (their suits graced James Bond no less) is the goal they are going for with their fragrance as well.

The official launch on October 14th will be fronted by Andrea Perrone and Brian Ferry of Roxy Music, while the masculine «Brioni» will be available for purchase exclusively by boutiques Brioni and luxury distributors in the last week of October.

pic via luxury-gadegets.com

Parfum d'Empire Wazamba: fragrance review

In the words of Canadian psychologist Albert Bandura "most human behaviour is learned observationally through modeling". And nowhere is this more cognitively apparent than in the beauty and sensual business in which perfumery holds an esteemed place. Wazamba by Parfum d'Empire is a prime example of the developmental incline which the niche house established by Corsican Marc-Antoine Corticchiato~assisted to by Elisabeth de Feydeau~ has been for a while now, influenced and influencing through modeling.

The resounding success of Ambre Russe, Cuir Ottoman and Osmanthus Interdite are a small testament to the power of quality materials, conceptual storylines (the recreation of the atmosphere of great empires of the past, influencing the Romea d'Ameor line as well) and an aesthetic focus which diverts from the torpid patcho-syrupy jingles of so many new releases to produce baroque, complex and refined sonatas.

In Wazamba, the name doesn't evoke a peruqued era with fake beauty marks travelling the rosy cheeks of decadent and unwahsed aristocrats, nor Tsardoms of fierce despotism drenched in samovars' inky liquid and potato grain liquor. Instead it is inspired by “a sistrum used in the rituals of West Africa” possessing a “heavy sound, full and deep” which one could imagine played by the regal silhouettes of Modigliani-like figures in the savanna evening bonfires. Perhaps a little imaginatively conceived, as the mysterious instrument is nowhere to be found (there is wazimbo though!), yet the merit of the composition more than surpasses the want of accuracy in the press release. A Lutensian web is weaved around almost every niche release, his pioneer work being the instigator in large part (excluding L'Artisan, Goutal and Diptyque who always travelled their own path). Parfum d'Empire is no exception, yet the familiarity is not contrite nor bellicose, but proud in itself.

Parfum d'Empire Wazamba travels the new route of conifers, surely pre-empting along with Fille en Aiguilles, a revisited appreciation for balsamic notes which I predict we will be seeing more of in the future: fir balsam, pine needles, cypress sap...Lubin's Idole and Black Cashmere by Donna Karan were incorporating some warmth and fir notes with their incense a few years ago and Zagorsk from the Incense series by Comme des Garcons was the first to marry pine with incense. But in Wazamba the synergy is more complicated, very interesting and sweeter. The burning, pyrocaustic frankincense of Serge Noire and Essence de John Galliano appears softly pettering out to ashy-powdery, slightly sweet notes (opoponax and the sensuality of labdanum). Yet the initial impression and one of the predominent notes on my skin is ~surprisingly enough but pleasurably so~ apple; a red, juicy and ripe variety that is miles away from the sanitary, upbeat, acid green and detergent-like apple in shampoos and fine fragrance alike in later years! The combination of this apple note along with long-lasting, delectable myrrh is joined at the hip via the cinnamon nuance that both materials evoke; one through allusion, the other through illusion. Yet Wazamba isn't spicy, nor is it gourmand despite its sweetness. Neither is it fancy, sophisticated, elegant or conventionally sexy and that's perfectly all right. The feeling it evokes is one of unadulterated, raw beauty: It relies on a forest of aromatic pine needles, laid out in an African sunset, when climbing the nearby knoll your hands are almost touching the copper clouds.



Notes for Parfum d'Empire Wazamba: Somalian incense, Kenyan myrrh, Ethiopian opoponax, Indian sandalwood, Moroccan cypress, labdanum, apple, fir balsam

Parfum d'Empire Wazamba is available in Eau de Parfum in 50ml/1.7 and 100ml/3.4oz spray bottles at Luckyscent and Aus Liebe zum Duft, as well as in the men's department of Le Printemps and the Old England store (corner of the rue Scribe and boulevard des Capucines) in Paris.

Related reading on Perfume Shrine: Incense Series, Pine scents

Pics from the postcard book African Ceremonies by Beckwith and Fisher via cas1.elis.ugent.be and salon.com.
Photo of Parfum d'Empire Wazamba bottle © by Elena Vosnaki.