The winners of the draw...

...for the Harad book are Larie, Marjorie, and Cacio. Congratulations and please email me using Contact with your shipping data so I can arrange getting your prizes in the mail soon.

Thanks everyone and till the next one!

Serge Lutens La Vierge de Fer: the Iron Maiden Referencing New Fragrance

She walks on through the night
Her circumstances slight
Are only helping her to fail
And though she feels she's right
She tries with all her might
And makes the deepest peril pale
Oh, but she is unreal
Oh, but she doesn't feel
Oh, but she is unreal

She chooses who to love
And then unlike a dove
She takes the laughter from their smile
She wears a velvet glove
Her friends may find it rough
It is a gauntlet all the while

via laparousiedejesus

Could Serge Lutens have been listening to the 1970 Iron Maiden song by Barclay James Harvest (one of my long favorites[1]) and thinking of his own mother, who entrusted his keeping to the hands of relatives as a small child? We'll never know.

What we do know is that this hard-as-nails recollection is mixed: the fragrance pays tribute to Serge's own mother, poignant, since the anthropomorphic torture device know to us from the Inquisition days and the heavy metal band replicates the iconography of Mary, mother of Jesus. Aside from any notions (and involuntary misunderstandings) of grandeur, the concept of tending to fragility, to past traumas for the semi-abandonded Serge (much like a device of torture would reference), is at art's core and thus drives creation. And his fixation with 19th century romanticism (De Profundis or Vitriol d'Oeillet) and its darker side (Douce Amere), all the way through to German Expressionism (La Fille de Berlin) continues...

Vierge de Fer, the latest perfume to adorn the sumptuous Lutens line means Iron Maiden (also referenced as "Virgin of Nuremberg") and recalls the Inquisition dungeons we have come to associate with heavy metal bands, gothic tales and heavy SM tones.



The fragrance focuses on lily (a flower highlighted in Lutens's Un Lys previously) with a mineral, hard and cold aspect, that recalls the hardness of iron, and incense. According to Lutens himself: "The lily in Vierge de Fer is more glorious than in Un Lys. That one was fresher, more lily-like actually. It played on the whiteness of lily. This one [Vierge de Fer] plays on the heady aspect. It's a lily whose pollen hasn't been dusted off, it has kept its stamens and anthers. This is a lily which affronts, once again."[2]

Vierge de Fer has just been presented and will be widely available in September at Les Salons du Palais Royal in the beautiful bell jars of 75ml eau de parfum concentration and on the official Lutens e-boutique.

[1] For some reason or other, I first loved it as a teenager. Must have been the glorious bass line, as I loved following songs with strong bass lines.
[2]quote via Nicoals Olczyk translated from the French

Help Support a Niche Line: Join the Kickstarter Campaign for Le Cherche Midi

I had covered Le Charche Midi in the past, noting the attention to detail and no-frills approach of Nathan Motylinski who heads it. Independent entrepreneurs are to be admired for their courage in this highly competitive world where behemoths clash their swords with family-owned houses who try to resist as best as they can. The scents by Le Cherche Midi are good too, so now that they've embarked on a Kickstarter campaign to fund their future plans, I thought it worthwhile to share with you so that you too can put your money where your mouth is and help support an indie.

This is the page on the Kickstarter site and they have 11 days to run till completion. There are clips and information on the new fragrances there and you can see the rewards for the pledges (yes, there is some instant gratification built in too)
As you can see the participation starts extremely low (just 1$!) so everyone can help out. À vous!

Free Perfume Book Giveaway: Coming to my Senses

"Alyssa Harad’s affair with scent begins in secret, late at night, by the glow of her computer screen when she stumbles on a blog devoted to perfume. Candid, elegant, and full of lush description and humor, COMING TO MY SENSES takes readers from a private museum of rare essences in Austin, Texas, to the glamorous fragrance showrooms of Manhattan, and finally to a homecoming in Boise, Idaho, to prepare for Harad’s wedding." She's one of us, guys, need I say more?

Thanks to the kind provision of the publisher, I have three paperback copies for USA residents for the picking. Please leave a comment to be eligible. Draw remains open till Wednesday midnight and winners will be announced on Thursday.

News on the Distribution of Ramon Monegal NM Exclusive Pure Mariposa

The Spanish brand with the catapulting US presence Ramon Monegal had created Pure Mariposa exclusively for Neiman Marcus. With the clients of Neiman Marcus as his muse, Ramon Monegal has created a fruity, green-floral, woody scent that captures the timeless elegance, sophistication, spirit, and modernity of the Neiman Marcus woman. Up till now you could find this fragrance only at Neiman Marcus.

But now the Begdrof Goodman superstore has offered us the chance to own this fragrance on their online boutique. You can find the link here, along with the rest of the Ramon Monegal perfume line.

Notes for Pure Mariposa for Neiman Marcus by Ramon Monegal 
Top Note
Fresh festive colorful: orange, grapefruit, bergamot.
Fruity vital, cheerful: yuzu, black currant, plum.
Ozonic pure, graceful: helional, melonal, calone, ultrazur. (molecules)
Middle Note
Green natural: oakmoss, grass accord, fig.
Floral rich, elegant: Osmanthus, jasmine, lily of the valley, rose wardia, tuberose.
Base Note
Woody powerful, harmonious: sandalwood, cashmeran (m), iris, anchouli (m).
Silky sophisticated, majestic: peach, tonka bean, amber.
Available as 1.7 fl.oz. (50ml) of eau de parfum.