Naomi Campbell raises a stink?

The famous supermodel is accused of cutting her longtime associates out of their profits share in her eponymous celebrity scents brand.

"Moodform Mission is a partnership of Campbell's former London modeling agents and a cosmetics outfit based in Miami Beach, Fla. The firm worked for years _ even designing the perfume bottles _ to line up a 1998 fragrance deal for Campbell with a German company that later became part of Procter & Gamble Co., said Moodform Mission lawyer Daniel R. Bright.[..]The lawsuit, filed late Monday, said Campbell violated a 1998 contract with Moodform Mission by inking a new fragrance-licensing agreement, costing the company a portion of the proceeds from such scents as Naomi Campbell, Cat Deluxe and Seductive Elixir." [source and reproduced] The reputation of Naomi Campbell for fiesty episodes enters the equation in both articles, despite it having nothing to do with legal actions. Campbell herself is confident of winning the case. It remains to be seen.

Pic of Naomi Campbell via blog.singersroom.com

Chanel No.46: fragrance review & history

Amidst the fragrances that Gabrielle Bonheur (Coco) Chanel commisioned, No.46 stands as something of a largely unknown enigma. When Ernest Beaux had presented samples to Coco for her choosing for her first perfume launch, he had prepared 10 of them in total, numbered from 1 to 5 and from 20 to 24. Among them, No.5 and No.22 were the winning contestants, issued on 1921 and 1922 respectively. Fragrances so elevated by the diffusion of their aldehydic pitch that they became synonymous with the genre forever after. A little on their left, the refined, gracefully soft aldehydic floral which was released much later; in 1946, at the end of the war. No.46 recalls most vividly the ambience of the classic No.5 that cemented the popularity of futuristic, "frozen" bouquets, while remaining surrounded by other obscure scents with digits on them like fairy godmothers: No.11, No.14, No.20, No.21 and No.55...



The timing for the release of No.46 is crucial in its critical appraisal and its positioning in fragrance history. Despite the fashion genius of Chanel being “incorruptibly sober and pure”, as per her biographer Edmonde Charles-Roux, her life presented certain disputable facets that cast a shadow on the image of the "women's liberator from fashion's oppression" and Evangelist of Style. (Even today, Audrey Tautou who impersonated her in the 2009 film Coco avant Chanel mentioned this early feminist "manifesto" as grounds for accepting the role.) Coco had been self-exiled in Switzerland since 1945, her perfume royalties into exile with her for a decade as well, following the tempestuous reception that accompanied her affair with Hans Gunther von Dincklage; a German officer 13 years her junior ~she was 56 at the time~ and alleged Nazi spy by the nickname "the sparrow", who had arranged for her to remain at the famous Ritz Hotel suite which Coco had made into her wartime abode (and her "real" home for 3 decades, as opposed to her Rue Cambon appartment where she received guests). Additionally, the dubious Operation Modelhut, in which she was implicated, was based on the idea that one of Chanel's friends would pass a letter from her, suggesting secret negotiations furthering the end of war, to Winston Churchill.

“This woman was referred to as a person Churchill knew sufficiently to undertake political negations with him, as an enemy of Russia and as desirous of helping France and Germany whose destinies she believed to be closely linked together.” [according to the Schellenberg interrogation transcripts]

Yet unlike women collaborators who had had their hair shorn in public humiliations or Diana Mitford, Lady Mosley (Hitler's Angel) and Unity (Valkyrie) Mitford, forever associated with the Third Reich, Coco Chanel remained untarnished by repercussions (she was arrested but soon released). No doubt she had taken advantage of her connections, as was her custom: It was a rich boyfriend who helped her open her own clothing boutique in 1913; it was Vera Bate Lombardi who established her name amongst European royalty and through which she met ~her almost husband~ the Duke of Westminster and who possibly served as the connection to Churchill; and it was one of her unnamed powerful liaisons who made if possible for her to escape punishment or humiliation for her past.
The cool reception that the French reserved for her 1956 runway comeback terming it obsolete neverthless was testament to how they hadn't forgotten... Luckily for her, however, it was the Anglosaxons (in the guise of Americans mostly) who loved her little black dresses (they still do!) and thus helped her progressively obliterate the bad memories.

It was during those troubled years of WWII that Chanel had tried to wrest control of her fragrances from the Jewish manufacturers ~the Wertheimer family who own them to this day and also controlled Bourjois~ exploiting the pro-Aryan laws to her benefit. (The Wertheimers owned 70% of the house, Theodile Bader of Galleries Lafayette who introduced Coco to them was rewarded with 20% and Chanel herself only held 10%). As a result, the perfumes conceived in the time frame surrounding WWII are rumoured to generally have a striking resemblance to her already successful 20s and 30s creations, probably in an attempt to reposition herself in the fragrance producing pantheon as an independent entity. Little is known of them, but the time framing bears significance as in 1954 the Wetheimers came to an agreement with Chanel for her to reliquinsh all control to them in exchange for having her personal expenses taken care of for life (It took 17 years).

The way that a little No.46 came into my hands is episodic and worthy of recounting à la Lafontaine: Once upon a time, (then) Florentine-bound Liisa Wennervirta had come across and purchased a full stoppered bottle of said perfume on an auction site, about which she asked my opinion and info after the fact. Certain details had been negatively indicative to its authenticity (or so I thought at the time) and the cynical/distrustful in me sighed a bit inwardly (I repeat this was after the fact) because I really like Liisa, had followed the scandals by Polkadot Patty a couple of years ago and would really flinch if she had been scammed. On the other hand, if it was a fake I would be supremely curious to see how someone would venture into even attempting it and would admire his/her serious cojones despite my disgust at the practice. Liisa sent me some to try out and it transpired that it was against all odds seriously delightful juice!
As Liisa herself said: "It's not that grandma-style rose like Penhaligon's Elizabethan Rose, nor that sweet, slightly sickening rose of Nahema or Mahora in extrait version, it's warm, spicy, carnation-y and slightly reminds me of Fleur de Feu but after a while it mellows to sweet musky calmness. Something that I badly miss among Les Exclusifs."

The opening of Chanel No.46 boldly reveals the penchant of the brand into producing abstractions of an arresting grace. It is redolent of the ambience of No.5 quite vividly, to the point that a lover of one might instantly recognise sub-themes in the structure of the other, like a student of baroque fugues recognising the intermingling motifs across several bars of music. At the time however No.5 hadn't acquired the cult status it has today being instantly recognisable across continents. The basic chord which echoes throughout No.46 seems to be the rose, ylang-ylang, carnation/lily (a hint of spice) and musks (two parts of this harmony form the main basso continuo of No.5, anyway, especially in vintage parfum form and the defunct Eau de Cologne version). This is underscored by a soapy-mossy feeling that recalls retro grooming products to my memory. The musks are especially rich and radiant, emitting warmth and a subtle come-hither.

In its way, Chanel No.46 is firmly placed in the tradition of its times too, while echoing an established success: Smelling it alongside L'Air du Temps (1948) (its carnation tinge plus aldehydic-salicylate facets), the more orientalised Fath de Fath (the original 1953 version, not the 1993 reformulation) with its intensely musky base, or the delicate bouquet of Coeur Joie by Nina Ricci (1946), one is not hard-pressed to understand the greater need for fragrances that presented a refined and genteel ambience of ladies who eased back into their feminine endeavours after the more androgynous occupations of the war days. All without eschewing their animal instincts...

Notes for Chanel No.46:
Top: bergamot, orange and neroli
Heart: rose, lily of the valey, ylang-ylang and jasmine
Base: vetiver, orris, sandalwood, coumarine, vanilla and musk

Needless to say, it's a very rare fragrance and your only chance for a bottle would be buying off a collector.

Related reading on Perfume Shrine: Chanel reviews & news, Vintage scents

Pic of No.46 by Liisa Werenvita used with permission by Perfume Shrine. Photo of Gabrielle Chanel in 1909 scanned from Edmonde Charles Roux book 2004, p.62. Photo of Diana and Unity Mitford saluting the Nazi way via wikimedia commons.

Le Cherche Midi: fragrance reviews & Gift Set giveaway

Le Cherche Midi, a niche brand that provides Eaux de Toilette alongside matching candles and fragrant "cubes" for home fragrancing, translates as "found moments" and its origins echo the welcome respite that the tucked-away Rue du Cherche Midi in the Left Bank of Paris offered to the wanderers of its cosmopolitan alleyways. The desire to capture that serene ambience and translate it into something tangible motivated Nathan Motylinski and Alex Mehfar, who bought the original Parisian brand and re-branded Le Cherche Midi in 2006 into what it is today. (an interesting video on Candles Off Main TV is here).

I humbly admit that I was oblivious to their very existence till very recently. They were a finalist for the 2008 Fifi Awards for Interior Scent and won the 2008 Best Off Main Awards for Most Luxurious Candle Line and Best Gift over $50, so I should have known, shouldn't I? Therefore I got a real kick out of testing their entire portfolio and photographing their glorious candles set. (Depicted is the Les Voyages gift set which retails for $150 and includes six 25+ hour candles, one in each fragrance in the current collection, which I am giving away to one lucky reader, along with a full set of samples for another reader, so comment if you'd like to be included in the drawing!) It's needless to say how rustically and yet elegantly luxurious the reusable wooden box feels and how pleasing to the eye, you can feast yours on it: a picture speaks a thousand words! The Eaux de Toilette are austere, spartan glass bottles similarly encased in wooden packaging, very vintage-wine-style. Personally I'm a sucker for such presentations (and an oenophiliac), so half the game is won simply because of the lovely visuals. But the great thing is the fragrances ~with their numerical "names" and colour coding~ are very nice too! Complex, deep, evocative and multi-dimensional, they can be used as the beautiful soundtrack of your home existence or can be portable forms of intelligence for when you want to take them on a journey on your skin.

From the selection I was pleasantly surprised by the unexpected beauty of No.9, a rich and addictive floriental with a noticeable (and delectable) soft note of lavender on top and a vanillic base, which manages to smell both soothing like a baby cologne and enticing like something meant for adults. It makes for a sexy fragrance to scent your bedsheets before some romping à deux, which I guess is not really antithetical to the cocooning idea; on the contrary! Also wonderful is No.20, a peppery and mossy-leathery alloy which fits with my autumnal mood that yearns for decaying leaves fallen on muddy puddles and the pungent smell of the earth after a roaring thunderstorm. It would make both a supreme masculine/unisex scent (with just a touch of sweetness and lemon zest to balance things out) and a home surrounding aroma, woodies being the par excellence olfactory touch to make even then most mundane little appartment smell like a gentlemen's club study-and-cigars-room out of a James Ivory film. They both lasted exceptionally well too, whiffs caught on skin by morning after an evening application.
Other scents that caught my eye were No.21, a delicious tart, dark berry and evergreens scent underscored by rich spices which brings the atmosphere of a winter fête a little closer in season; and No.57, aimed at capturing "a New York state-of-mind" with its soft powdery aroma with limpid tonalities.

No.1 is a pleasant driftwood and lavender scent that started it all (it was the first product of Le Cherche Midi), which will appeal to those who appreciate Preparation Parfumée by Andrée Putman (minus the peppery start of the latter), while No.14 is the only "fruity" in the line, evoking tangerines just out of the bowl and hologramming in front of you in their happy costumes. A little too simple for my taste, but not sugary which is a plus.
The only one I didn't like at all was No.5, its "clean" ambience said to mimic garden parties and fresh laundry relying heavily on the (personally) dreaded hydromyrcenol note and the hydroponic-freesia soapy accent of several detergent-like florals au courant. It has something of the tonality of Sécretions Magnifiques, ( a scent which reminds me of an operating theater), which unfortunately unfolds right after the interesting top redolent of bitter absinth. It was interesting ~and a little scary~ to note that it had tremendous tenacity too. Ah well, we can't like everything...
CT01 was a limited edition which I believe is out of stock now; its hazy, fluffy sage note is an intriguing touch amidst the vetiver-cool backdrop of an early spring morning.

Le Cherche Midi offers each scent in various forms for the home and the skin: same scent, different technology. They explain:

"Application of fragrance plays a vital role in formulating and
fine-tuning the technical aspects of a fragrance formula. Every product requires
a unique fragrance oil formulation, depending on what the fragrance oil will be
mixed with. For example, we have three different formulas and oils for Le
Cherche Midi No 09 - one for each of our products: eau de toilette,
candle and Fragrance Cube. Even though all the oils smell the same, they are
constructed with different materials and solvents to be able to mix and perform
with other chemicals and compounds. Here, the perfumer’s knowledge of chemistry
helps take the creative concept and make practical solutions".

The fragrant cube, for instance, is a new product in which the wooden top soaks up the fragrance to diffuse the scent without spilling or the need for reeds.
The bulk of the fragrances by Le Cherche Midi are created by Cécile Hua, a Marseille-born French perfumer and chemist living in New York, who dreamed of her career in perfumery since she was a child. The first recipient of the Fashion Group International ‘Rising Star Award’ for the Fragrance Design category in 2003, she went on to create several fine fragrances for big houses. The exceptions in the line are 20, composed by Bertrand Dor, and CT01 by Octavia Jordan.

Notes for Le Cherche Midi 01: Sicilian Bergamot, Sage, Lavender, Freesia, Mint, Oakmoss, Driftwood, White Amber, Sand Musk
Notes for Le Cherche Midi 05: Absinthe Flower, Cyclamen, Hyacinth, Fresh Cut Grass, Clean Laundry, White Lilac, Pine, Galbanum, Tonka Beans, White Musk
Notes for Le Cherche Midi 09: Lemon Meringue, Lily of the Valley, Night Blooming Jasmine, Whipped Lavender Crème, Patchouli, Soft Amber, Sandalwood, Vanilla Absolute
Notes for Le Cherche Midi 14: Mandarin Leaves, Blackcurrant, Water Lilies, Rhubarb, Peonies, Rose Buds, Orange Absolute, White Cedar, Musk
Notes for Le Cherche Midi 20: Armoise, Bergamot, Lemon Zest, Black Pepper, Rose Water, Soft Cedarwood, Sandalwood, Dark Amber
Notes for Le Cherche Midi 21: Grapefruit, Blackberry, Golden Saffron, Cardamom, Cinnamon FLower, Carnation, Sandalwood, Leather, Skin Musk
Notes for Le Cherche Midi 57 (a Bergdorf Goodman exclusive): White Tea, Rhubarb Leaves, Pink Laurel, Cherry Blossom, Casablanca Lily, Cyclamen, Vetíver, Amber Crème, White Moss Vanilla.
Notes for Le Cherche Midi CT01 (a collaboration with designer Costello Tagliapietra): Sicilian Bergamot, Sage, Lavender, Freesia, Mint, Oakmoss, Driftwood, White Amber, Sand Musk.

Prices range from 39$ to 50$. You can watch videos with Cécile Hua on the inspiration for the scents on the very well-designed site of Le Cherche Midi where there is also an online boutique and the offer of free swatches.
Enter code SHRINE30 when checking out to gain a 30% discount!!! (non affiliated)

Please enter a comment if you want to be in the drawing for:
1)The luxurious set of candles in its wooden crate pictured (this is heavy stuff, so I'm spoiling you rotten on shipping costs!)
2)A complete set of samples by Le Cherche Midi
Submissions valid till Sunday 1st November midnight and I will draw two random winners shortly thereafter.



All photographs by Elena Vosnaki.
In the interest of disclosure, I was sent the samples as well as the candles for the giveaway directly from the manufacturer.

Germaine Cellier (1909-1976): Innovator and Iconoclast

In the pantheon of great modern perfumers it is not often that we come across women, at least during the first half of the 20th century. Amongst them, one star shines brightest, that of Germaine Cellier; untrammeled by convention, free-spirited in an era that frowned upon most of her customs, but which could not deny her bold, ebullient approach to perfumery. It is no accident that Guy Robert's book, Les Sens du Parfum, himself the stuff of legend, dedicates precious space to her opus.

Her wit wondrously helped her into coming up with stunning compositions: The galbanum-souled Vent Vert by Balmain with its biting verdancy forever changing the visage of florals, the knife-scathing outlaw of Bandit with its intense leathery bitterness of quinolines in 1944, the oriental passport of Visa in 1946, the buttery radiance of tuberose in 1948's Fracas (all three for Robert Piguet), the nostalgic violet chypre Jolie Madame for Balmain (1953) which reworked the Bandit theme in more muted tones, as well as the masculine Monsieur Balmain which proved a success with both sexes.

One of her mysteriously disappearing acts is "Elysées 63.84" for Balmain, the name standing for the telephone number of the couture house, as well as a geranium-based Eau which Pierre Balmain fiercely guarded for his own use. For Nina Ricci she collaborates with Christian Bérard who designed the romantic heart flacon in Coeur Joie, an elegant and uncharacteristically delicate floral aldehydic of great refinement (1946). For Nina Ricci she also composes Fille d'Eve, with its "dirty hair" cistus note. Hers is the lesser known, but none the less majestic, La Fuite des Heures for Balenciaga in 1949, a Provençal herbs and jasmine formula of great radiance and tenacity. Among her portfolio there is also the agrestic Eau d'Herbes (Herbal Water) conceived for Hermès at an unspecified date during the 1950s meant to recreate just cut herbs, which remains an enigma, and several compositions for Elizabeth Arden for distribution in the USA during the 1950s and 1960s. (Click the links for my reviews on the scents) ....

This is part of a fuller article that was published on Fragrantica.com. For a comprehensive glimpse into one of the truly great perfumers of modern perfumery, please read my full article on this permalink.

Photo portrait of Germaine Cellier via xiangshuiblog.cn

Sign of the Times (and a Little Rant)

When reading upon perfume boards one comes across an involved discussion by numerous perfume lovers about fragrances that could be aptly described by the rather ghastly term "fruitchouli", you realise that something is quite rotten in the kingdom of Perfumistadom! You might expect Tina Turner to get out the saxophones and break into "We don't need another hero fruitchouli" (beyond Thunderdom) and if you feel that way I can't blame you; who can? Three quarters of the market (at least the mainstream sector, but not exclusively) are inundated by the plague of fruitchoulis that walked the path that Angel paved and later Narciso Rodriguez diverted a bit. Talk about a snowball. But let's start at the top!

The very term "fruitchouli" was coined by an undentified perfume lover Mbanderson61, exasperated by the abysmall unoriginality that the fragrance market displays for some years now, churning out a flood of releases that mimic each other in a frenzied pace. The two main elements seem to be sweet fruity notes (a sad remnant of the anemic 90s where pastel fruits were left to substantiate "airy" or "watery" notes) and the newly refound note of patchouli, buffed and sanitized out of its hippy references and ready for its close-up, mr. De Mille. Hence the brilliance of the coinage of "fruitchouli"! It's surpemely evocative of the current trend.

Personally I would differentiate between the archetypal Angel and its clones/upstarts/homages (Angel Innocent, CK Euphoria, Coco Mademoiselle, Lolita Lempicka, Flowerbomb, Prada, Cacharel Liberté, Miracle Forever, Hypnôse and Hypnôse Senses, Nuits de Noho, Coromandel, New Haarlem...) and some other popular fragrances with patchouli, a family inaugurated by Narciso For Her (namely Lovely, Midnight Poison, YSL Elle, Gucci by Gucci, Chypre Fatal, Citizen Queen, Lady Vengeance, Perles de Lalique, Agent Provocateur...).
I would classify the former into gourmand orientals ~they're generally quite sweet and the fruitiness is more distinct, often underlined with vanilla/caramel/marshmallow/foody notes etc. The latter I would classify into floral woodies/"nouveau chypres" (technically the "new pink chypre" genre IS a floral woody; patchouli & vetiver base is considered a woody base). Michael Edwards classifies them in a seperate family within chypres (mossy woods) as well.

Making a conscious effort to sample and think about several new releases lately, I found myself bored beyond belief at the sameness encountered and my reluctancy to even bother putting a few words together for the benefit of the casual reader searching for opinions on the latest; such was the disappointment and ennui. From the uniform look, uniform style of the new Anthology line by Dolce & Gabbana to the inoffesive lappings of sweet nothings of Ricci Ricci (pity, the bottle is fabulous!) to the vinyl and "flat" rosechouli of the new Parisienne, all the way through the generic Idole d'Armani, I didn't feel myself moved beyond a cursory spray or two. When you have dedicated a personal site to fragrances and are writing on them professionally as well, this does forebode very gravely...
It's not the lack of artistry or technique in the execution of an idea, as some releases are competent. It's the idea itself that has become mundane, tired, overdone, vulgar; even though it seemed like a nice concept all those years ago! Like waking up in some Heaven where all the girls and boys look like Grace Kelly and David Beckham with a perpetual smile on their faces and delicious macrobiotic 4-course food is served at 12 sharp by white-gloved valets. After a while you just long to bring a scruffy Johny Depp and his Nabisco saltine crackers in bed, don't you!

Perhaps the most brilliant suggestion and new term/classification proposed comes from Perfume of Life's long-time member Mando who exclaims humorously (and expectantly): "I think the next wave should be "bootichouli" - chypres heavy with civet accents". If Beyoncé and Jennifer Lopez have bootylicious down pat and Kim Kardashian is famous for her derrière as well, then let's all pray that "bootichouli" can be the new trend in fragrances. Why not? It does present some technical problems, as civet is not exactly the most easy or ethical essence to harvest, but in an age where everything can be replicated in the lab using nano-technology-this and infra-technology-that, the illusion becomes much more of a reality (And there is already synthetic civetone). But that's besides the point really: The point is enough is enough! There is a ripe audience for a skanky new genre and we're cornering an increasing share of the market. Please hear us roar!

Art: Baloon Dog by Jeff Koons via flavorpill and
photo by Jemima Stelhi via files.list.co.uk