The winner of the draw...

...for the package of assorted samples is none other than Michael (posting at 11:36). Please email me, using the Contact, with your shipping data so I can have this in the mail for you soon.

Thanks everyone for your enthusiastic participation and the kind words for the work on this site, rest assured I have taken notice of your requests for upcoming articles and please stay tuned for the next giveaway soon!

Perfume Quotes: "You have to feel like it's your own skin sweating perfume"

"There (should be) space between you and your perfume. It shouldn't be obnoxious and it should blend in a way that it almost gives you the feeling that it's your own skin that smells that way. I think that the intimacy between your perfume and your skin is very important. I envision my perfume of being, in a way, a no make-up make-up concept. You have to feel like it's your own skin sweating perfume. I love that idea." [It personally reminds me of concubines being fed raw musk to emit a pleasant scent when caressed in the distant past and of the swallowable perfume pill launched recently]

 Thus describes perfumer Francis Kurkdjian the two-plonged affair between perfume and wearer, a propos his newest perfume duo under Maison Francis Kurkdjian, Amyris for Women and Amyris for Men, disputing another famous perfume quote in the process too: "(Coco) Chanel used to say that you could put perfume wherever you want to be kissed. It doesn't work; I have tried. It gives a nasty taste when you eat perfume and it's the most horrible thing ever. No one wants to be kissed that way. I love to quote her sometimes but not that. Instead, put it next to where you want to be kissed."

Related reading on Perfume Shrine: Perfume Quotes 

[quote source] [pic source]

Robert Piguet Petit Fracas: new fragrance (1st Fracas flanker) & The Pacific Collection trio

The year was 1947. Perfume maverick Germaine Cellier created Fracas, the landmark tuberose perfume against which all others are measured up to till this day. In 1999, Fashion Fragrances & Cosmetics, current owner of the Piguet fragrances liecence, enlisted perfumer Aurelien Guichard to re-introduce Fracas on the modern market after a fallow period, with a slight reformulation, working on the original formula.

The legendary white floral is now accompanied by its first flanker for the first time, Petit Fracas, a lighter, more youthful interpretation of the 1999 reformulation with cocoa. Aurelien Guichard is the nose again.
Notes for Robert Piguet Petit Fracas: Bergamot, mandarin, pear,jasmine, tuberose, gardenia, musk, sandalwood and cocoa.  Petit Fracas will be available in September 2012, 100ml/$150.

The same perfumer also developed a trio of scents called The Pacific Collection according to The Perfume Magazine, named Blossom, Chai and Jeunesse. Please consult the link for more info as well as the official Piguet website (linked through the banner above).

[info via Robert Piguet press, release rephrased by me, first to report was The Perfume Magazine]

 Tuberose plus chocolate? Stuff of dreams or nightmares. We'll see...

Chanel Les Exclusifs Fresh Body Cream: new scented product for layering

"Subtly scented to flatter any fragrance in the LES EXCLUSIFS Collection, this exquisitely soft, light cream envelops the skin with pure luxury. The sumptuous cream is perfect for layering, for the ultimate LES EXCLUSIFS experience. Presented in a beautiful coffret."

This is the official presentation by Chanel of their latest fragrant offering: a Fresh Body Cream to layer with any of the Les Exclusifs fragrances in the Chanel perfumes line. [Available right now on their US site; It's interesting to note the French appellation bypasses the pitfall of calling it Crème fraîche, i.e. culinary "fresh cream". Or perhaps the need for "freshness" in body cosmetics is only necessary for Anglo-Saxon speaking audiences? At any rate, an interesting tidbit observed here, don't you agree?]

The description makes me feel it's a neutral enough body cream ~and thus not particularly scented enough~ to go well with just any of the diverse fragrances in the Chanel boutique line. At 130$ a pop for 150 gr., it's a posh option for layering some moisture and lipids on the epidermis to extend your perfume making it last longer.

Specialized body creams to anchor scent in posh brand exclusive-boutique fragrance lines might become a trend: See last season's Guerlain Delice de Peau reviewed here. 

Related reading on Perfume Shrine: the newest fragrance by Chanel, Coco Noir and Chanel news & reviews

Bex London "Londoner W1X": fragrance review

Londonder W1x is part of a new line in niche fragrances, Bex London, (and by now you know how I feel about hundreds of new lines coming onto the market, yes?), but let me assuage you: its prettiness is convincing "beyond the retro" and it lacks enough dullness for a contemporary release to warrant a separate review on its own merits. Which is to say, if you want a compliment-getter, read on, because I was inundated with those by all ages and all strata when I wore it myself.

via vintagefashionlondon.co.uk

Bex London, under the steady hand of Rebecca Goswell, its founder, apparently took a page off Bond No.9 and their ~exhausted by now~ concept of segmenting New York City into regions with their own scentscape and transposed it to a new, fresh place with more possibilities, the historic city of London that is; this time more exciting and on-the-pulse thanks to the 2012 Olympics. W1X is indeed inspired by West End and its bohemian atmosphere "where things happen" and is the most "feminine" of the lot smell-wise (the line comprises four unisex-aimed fragrances so far), composed by perfumer Francois Robert.

Though presented as a "neo-vintage" in the official press, this is strictly accurate only if you consider as "modern" the fruity florals and fruit-patchoulis miasma of the mall. W1X is quite forward-thinking in fact, with a very appealing contemporary and distinctly musky floral character that is trailing in the wind when on a generous wearer. If I were to assign it an ideal wearer I'd say it suits younger ladies who want something distinctive, with enough indefinable floralcy in it, which wouldn't clobber them down nevertheless. The sort of wearer that would put a cameo on a pashmina scarf worn over her jeans.
The mere fact that the main alliance of ingredients relies on the slightly metallic, sharpish iris-violet accord with a little bit of rose is indicative that we're dealing with something beyond the same old, same old syrupy sweet that we smell coming & going at any social gathering of 20-something year olds.

Antonio Marras, from the SS 2012 collection

 In W1X the powdery fragrance vibe of iris and violet that we have come to expect from "retro" scents ~reminiscent of pancake powder and lipstick~ is refreshed with a smidgen of white flowers (plus the fresh, eletric pepperiness of freesia as well as the clean, green nuance of lily of the valley which help provide the necessary "air" between the notes, giving the lighter, contemporary feel of the fragrance). Small surprises delight the senses when the fragrance is sprayed in the air: it gains a spicy, cinnamic pepperiness with touches of "round" peachy rosiness underneath (a lactonic warmth), hinting at the traditional ladylike femininity of pink satin scalloped undergarments peeking through a modern chemise like in an Antonio Marras fashion show. However don't let that convince you this is a dramatically evolving melody that will have you thinking about it all day long like vintage perfumes; the tune catches the ear from the start and continues unfazed.

But it is perhaps the fact that the sweetish musk peers through, with the support of indefinable woods and a wink of oakmoss to anchor everything down in an autumnal haze that seals the deal, giving new sense to neo-retro, actually having me perplexed as to which season to ascribe the fragrance to: it's pan-seasonal.

I can't say W1X reinvents the wheel, but I can't deny I'm smiling smelling it; it's the Narciso For Her effect.

Bex London has just launched this past June and their site is still under construction (a very European trait!), so I couldn't really find more information on availability and distribution. What I know is that the fragrance is available as eau de toilette in 100ml bottles going for 81GBP at Les Senteurs and Zuneta in the UK for now. 

In the interests of full disclosure, I sampled this thanks to a PR promo.