Thierry Mugler Angel Muse Eau de Toilette: fragrance review

In 2016, the house of Thierry Mugler opened a new chapter in the story of the famous gourmand galaxy of Angel fragrances - the "futuristic-gourmand" Angel Muse. The Muse Eau de Toilette version of this scent came out at the end of 2017. 

 

The sweetness of hazelnut cream at its heart, a repeat from the original Eau de Parfum version, is not overly foody, and it keeps the dignity that a sophisticated gourmand like the original Angel brings along (or I should say, used to bring along, before all the reformulations), with the Akigalawood™ base (a clear patchouli note) made dirtier with vetiver "borrowed from masculine perfumery." It is signed by perfumer Quentin Bisch of Givaudan.

 The great thing with Angel Muse Eau de Toilette is that it seems to have brought back that inexplicable playfulness that the original Angel version from the 1990s possessed and seemed to have lost during a sequence of reformulations in the intervening years. Becoming ever hollower, like cheekbones sucked in too hard and a fake pout posing for an Instagram selfie, the iconoclastic bestseller has slowly become a ghost of itself. An entire generation will never know what we have been talking about regarding its artistic value.

I remember the original formula quite well because what attracts me now in Angel Muse Eau de Toilette is what appalled me when I first smelled the original Angel in the 1990s (and I have written about my mysterious and troubled relationship with Angel before): the blackcurrant juiciness, which was so intense, so sour -and sweet too-  atop the maltol. To be honest, it instantly reminded me of The Body Shop Dewberry. Is this even possible? I wondered at the time, perplexed by the incongruity of a French designer borrowing this rather "cheap" effect for an innovative fragrance that would be his first on the market. I don't wonder anymore; I take things at face value.

In the words of Mugler officials, "Angel Eau de Parfum is the star, while Angel MUSE orbits around the star." (Christophe de Lataillade, Creative Director for MUGLER fragrances).

 The base of patchouli and vetiver, although advertised to sound masculine, as polar opposites to the femininity of the sweet heart notes, is not entirely rugged. It brings a counterpoint, like in a fugue, a motif that returns to underscore and chase the sweet gourmand and the sour-sweet top notes of citruses, and therefore renders it a love/hate for modern audiences who missed the great clashing compositions of the golden age of perfumery. Back then, vetiver violently clashed with vanilla in Habanita, or waxy-citrusy aldehydes were smeared with civet (but not quite!) in Chanel No.5 Eau de Cologne. Ah, what do we know, these scents have been lost on the younger generation. But there's still hope as long as small gems of unexpected pairings such as Angel Muse continue to get launched. If only they weren't chopped off the block so soon...

 

In memoriam: Thierry Mugler (1948-2022)

 Fashion designer Thierry Mugler passed away on January 23rd 2022 as announced on the designer's Instagram account. 

Although he had distanced himself from designing for many years, earned profits from his rights into several products bearing his brand, from sunglasses to Mugler fragrances, and he had completely transformed himself into the hybrid bodybuilder Manfred for a couple of decades now. His face, unrecognisable after several plastic surgeries gone amok, draws a tear from those of us who recall his earlier, smashing work as a young and promising designer in late 1980s and early 1990s Paris.

 

Lean and dynamic, fueled by a relentless energy and a penchant for Amazonian beauties, Mugler put a certain pizazz on the catwalk, promoted drag-queens and pop idols, and made Nadja Auermann an icon in his razor cut, big-shouldered suits and metal bustiers. Much like Helmut Newton, he seemed to really appreciate the power of women.

 I recall it was a real shock when fashion and style discussion boards flooded in the mid-2000s with pictures of him, shot in front of a mirror, stark naked and in slippers (of all things!) posing as a human transformer, all muscle and perverted features. The word was Manfred. We circulated the picture from email account to email account with jaws dropped at the damage he -seemed to have- inflicted on himself. He had retired from designing by then and sold his brand to Clarins in 1997, which was the luxury Group who collaborated with him in the first place to produce his seminal fragrances. Now we know better than to judge or body-shame. Thierry obviously needed the Manfred persona at that point in his life.

 

His seminal project for Angel eau de parfum was life-changing for the industry.  His other perfumes – Cologne, Alien, A*Men, Womanity, and perfume projects such as work with Tom Tykwer for the movie Perfume, and the Mirror Mirror collection were exception contributions to the art of perfumery.

Now that Thierry Mugler is dead, and his brand has changed hands from the original creators of his classics, it's time to reflect and honor that which he has given us. The propensity for boldness, the trust in ourselves not to fear. The confidence to wear what we please. And the realization that even ugliness at times can have a beatific effect in our lives.

Please read my dedicated article on Fragrantica.com 

RIP sweet prince, transported to a big galactic star in blue... 

Thierry Mugler Alien Goddess: fragrance review

The Thierry Mugler news announcement for Alien Goddess, the latest fragrance in the Alien collection, was met with more eyebrows raised on the choice of Willow Smith, daughter of Hollywood actors Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith, than the anticipation for the next chapter in the beste-selling Alien saga by Thierry Mugler. The brand admitted they targeted Generation Z — a younger population yet to meet Mugler as a brand — with their choice. She was asked "to embody this new vision of femininity that is strong, powerful, inclusive, and edgy," as reported by the brand. Nevertheless, smelling the new fragrance and seeing the visuals, I see nothing strong (it's much weaker than usual Mugler fare, which are dynamite), nor powerful, nor edgy.

The expectation of a very impressive fragrance is rather lost on us, although the formula smells OK. I'm sure it will gather compliments; unlike Aura, Mugler's previous pillar launch, which is so divisive that people either love it with a passion or hate its oddly green, sweet tentacles. Alien is also met with opinionated detractors and fervent fans alike. 

The composition based on the ever popular "tropical, sunscreen lotion smelling perfume accord" is built on flowers like tiare gardenia (which contains esters giving a fruity nuance) and possibly a bit of frangipani/plumeria, with the crucial bit being a hint of lactonic perfume notes like coconut (γ-decalactone) or better yet, the effect of coconut milk (Guerlain's Coconut Fizz is spectacular in this one). And this whole notion bears as little relation to Mugler as possible. His Amazons do not sunbathe. They're in the desert of an alien planet.

Mugler's  Alien Goddess is faring better in that tropical department, as it's not at all stifling and stuffy, as some of its category are. It's actually pretty delicate, maybe too delicate, fresh like pineapple slices, and balanced in the sugary department, especially for a representative of Thierry's collection of mega-bombs. I suppose L'Oreal has been somewhat diluting the density, adjusting the standards with the rest of the market aimed at kids brought up on their mothers' fruity-florals during the 2000s.

It's really OK for a tropical composition, with a vanilla embrace that is immersed in clean, creamy musk. Soft really, and very inoffensive — airy, never too much, but in a way this negates the brand ethos. So there you have it: A bit not good in a rather predictable mix. If you awaited Lilith, she's not coming to dinner...

Thierry Mugler Angel: fragrance review

It's hard to bypass Angel by Thierry Mugler in the greater scheme of perfumery's historical progress, as it is truly seminal, a footprint on the path of perfumery as large as the Yeti's.
Olivier Cresp, its perfumer, is as much to credit with its innovation, as is its artistic director at Clarins (the Group that holds the licence for parfums Mugler) Vera Strubi, who envisioned the fragrance as a cult modern classic, and Jacques Courtin, president at Clarins, who insisted on developing the product first and only then seeing to its marketing plan; clearly an anomaly in contemporary perfume launching.

For Angel, Olivier Cresp and Vera Strubi sought into the identity of Thierry Mugler as a fashion brand and they came up with a fusion of childlike playfulness and iconic, haute couture boldness. On the one hand, the cotton candy and sawdust of the fun fair. On the other, the patchouli darkness of a handsome man in drag. The note of ethylmaltol which makes the cotton candy note in Angel, and which spawned like crazy, to the effect of saturating contemporary best-sellers with bucketfuls of it, was until 1992 fairly unused. Historically speaking it had been introduced in Vanilia by L'Artisan Parfumeur back when Jean Laporte directed the niche brand he founded in 1978, but its ice-cream cone girlishness was deemed too cute for proper perfumes; this was the time when perfumes roared with the bombastic spiciness of things like YSL Opium perfume and Estee Lauder Cinnabar.

Olivier Cresp took this discarded idea and flanked it with red berries, a dubious whiff of blackcurrant on top (recalling the success of The Body Shop's Dewberry) and the caramel softness of vanilla bringing out a sort of praline in the facets of natural patchouli oil.

The effect was stunning; warm and cuddly but also chocolate-y and dark, and the formula was painted blue, in mocking defiance of every possible evocation of feminine perfume, which until then was always some shade of hay or gold. Angel became le monstre sacré to dethrone Chanel No.5 in France and the rest is, as they say, history.

Monsieur Cresp, your place in the Pantheon is reserved, thank you very much.

Thierry Mugler Innocent: fragrance review

Mugler's Innocent seems in retrospect to be the perfect alternative for people who like gourmand fragrances, love sugared almonds, love fluffy compositions with a tang of sour-sweet fruit on top, but do not appreciate a masculinity factor, in this case the prominent androgynous quality of the intense patchouli of the original Angel. 

Don't get me wrong; I love Angel for all those reasons and have come to appreciate how a teensy-tiny bit of application from afar (or, better yet, using the gorgeous body products) can enhance my neuron pleasure responses. But Innocent is just easier to wear every day, easier to wear during the warmer weather, and, still with a light hand application, easier to feel less conspicuous wearing it.

The scent itself is a succulent mix of Jordan almonds, egg-whites meringues and praline, floating around an intensely sweet & tart note of blackcurrant, like blackcurrant jam but without the stickiness. Instead the feeling is one of copious amounts of musk underpinning the composition into a cloud-like, duvet feel of goose feathers falling softly on nude skin. 

It's a sensual perfume, no doubt because its original skeleton is one that puts lots of flesh over the handsome bones, but it's a benevolent sensual and with the eerie melancholy of a beautiful anime boy with blue eyes and dark hair...

More musings on Fragrantica.

Thierry Mugler Les Exceptions: new fragrance collection

Launching October 2014, the release of the new haute parfumerie collection celebrates the new modern direction of the MUGLER fashion house under Artistic Director, David Koma, and Director Of Development, Marketing and Communications, Virginie Courtin-Clarins.

Les Exceptions symbolizes the dynamic revamping of MUGLER fashion and fragrances. Blends of original alchemies and inventive, unique ingredients come alive in five exceptional fragrances that characterize the essence of MUGLER: Chyprissime, Supra Floral, Fougere Furieuse, Oeintal  express and Over the Musk.  Created in France by renowned noses Olivier Polge and Jean-Christophe Herault, MUGLER Les Exceptions reinterpret and magnify the great blends of traditional fine perfumery.

Each Art Deco-inspired bottle with its streamlined, faceted design - decorated with a playful metal stirrup clip - showcases the distinctive luxury and provocative architectural design that is the House of MUGLER.

The 80 ml (refillable) EDP sprays will be available nationwide starting October 2014 on www.mugler.com ($225)

Thierry Mugler Alien Essence Absolue: fragrance review

The fragrance lurking inside the intensely yellow container of Alien Essence Absolue, that weird-looking bottle that looks like a pear mutated via the pollination of gold giant insects from outer space, is stimulating and totally unexpected with a softness, deepness and sexiness I didn't think possible.
Or did I?

The best attributes of the original, jasmine-typhoon Alien are kept. Faithfully. The intense longevity on skin, the radiance (minus the projection that extends to a 4-mile radius—this one is a little closer to the skin), the heart of surreal white flowers that seem as they're syphoned through a Space Age desert tent full of all the trappings of Arabia...

And yet Alien Essence Absolue brings on a warm embrace of amber, vanilla and incense that mollify the hard edge of that bright high-tech jasmine core. This newer version highlights the vanilla and bittersweet incense note over the rather more licorice-rich facets of the original Alien bouquet. The vanilla comes as a mysterious inclusion that is removed from the foodie varieties that recall cake batter and cookies; there are all sort of treacly and sticky off notes that resemble booze and tarmac-like gaiacwood. The almost suede-like softness is caressing, soft, a bit medicinal too, like a shaman's kit; the lure of a snake's tongue, dangerous and at the same time mesmerizing, poison and cure at the same time. The animalistic scent in the background has a honeyed facet, musky and lightly powdery, sweet and intimate. There is a precarious balance in this flanker scent that makes it good; you feel as if one tilt given and it might collapse, but oh, it doesn't.

In short, Alien Essence Absolue comes on the foot of Alien as one of the better examples in the Thierry Mugler line-up, which is quite a feat unto itself, bearing in mind Mugler has one of the most eclectic and intriguing fragrance lines within the mainstream sector.

Alien Essence Absolue was developed by (artistic olfactory director of Mugler parfums) Pierre Aulas with official fragrance notes of white jasmine flowers, orris root, black vanilla pod, incense, myrrh, white amber and cashmere wood.
Alien Essence Absolue is available as 30 and 60 ml Eau de Parfum Intense and a refill of 60 ml.

Thierry Mugler Les Parfums de Cuir (The Leather Collection): new fragrance editions

In celebration of the 20th anniversary of French fashion and fragrance house Thierry Mugler, The Clarins Fragrance Group has added a new twist to the brand's classic fragrances with the release of The Fragrances of Leather collection.

The new line-up includes vamped up, leather-ied in fragrance terms (if you're not sure what these are, look it up in our Leather Fragrances directory) special editions in the following best-selling fragrances: Angel (a gourmand with added notes of iris and apricot), A*men (uniting patchouli with leather), Alien (with added amber and dried fruits) and Womanity (highlighting the existing labdanum into a protagonist in the new formula). Leather is a fragrance note that is making a come-back (about time!) as witnessed by the launch of Bottega Veneta eau de parfum (and probably Louis Vuitton  perfume next), catapulted by the niche sector into the mainstream.

 The launch of the new Mugler fragrance editions is set out for October 2012 with a new design for the feminine bottles and the familiar black one for the masculine A*men in ambery juice shades.


[news source]

Eva Mendes Talks on the new Thierry Mugler Angel Eau de Toilette

Sexy Latina actress Eva Mendes is fronting a soaring best-seller in the perfume world, which now comes in an updated concentration, Angel Eau de Toilette, and she reveals to us what she thinks about being the face of Thierry Mugler's Angel fragrance as well as her memories & musings on the actual scent. Enjoy!

How did it feel to be offered to be the muse for Thierry Mugler's Angel?

Eva Mendes: “I was so excited to collaborate with Thierry Mugler, because it’s a scent that I grew up loving. It came out while I was still in school, and both of my sisters and my mother liked to wear the fragrance. It’s really nostalgic for me! Mugler was definitely a big name in our household when I was a kid.”

You know that women who wear Angel don't change perfumes.

EM: "Yes, it's because it's so special! I recall my mother advising that I should choose a perfume that trails, that stays in the room after I have left to make my absence felt. That perfume can only be Angel".

Which do you prefer? The new eau de toilette or the older eau de parfum?

EM: "Both, so I can wear Angel all day long. The lighter concentration in the mornings, the more intense in the evenings".

How do you like to apply fragrance?

EM: "I love to spray it on my wrists, but also on the back of my neck and in my hair, I find it very feminine...".

 Past modeling by Eva Mendes includes fronting the Calvin Klein brand, both in print ads and commercials. The billboards for Calvin Klein were deemed overly sexy at times, while her TV-commercial Secret Obsession was banned in the USA for being too sexually provocative. By contrast, her collaboration with the Clarins Group ~who handle the Thierry Mugler portfolio~ has not had any of the same problems.

And just for the heck of it, here's the original music sung by Noel Harrison from the 1968 classic film The Thomas Crown Affair starring (the ultra cool) Steve McQueen and (the divine) Faye Dunaway.



certain info via Vimadonna & Instyle

Eva Mendes: the new face of Thierry Mugler Angel

French beauty house Thierry Mugler, which is relying on itsaccesories and perfumes (operating under the Clarins Group) is perhaps most famous for Angel: a terrifically strong best-seller and a modern classic created almost 20 years ago, in 1992. The company has often changed its "faces" fronting the controversial love-it-or-hate-it juice, including Jerry Hall and Bianca Balti. Now, after Australian actress Naomi Watts, the brand has signed Eva Mendes to replace her in the new Angel campaign.

Mendes, who created lots of press starring nude in Calvin Klein's Secret Obsession perfume ads, [catch the banned commercial with Eva Mendes on this link] is supposed to add a "sultry" twist to the scent according to the official statements by the Mugler company: "While Naomi Watts' ethereal beauty embodied the angelic aspect of the fragrance, Thierry Mugler chose to reignite the enticing and explosive dimensions of the fragrance with the sultry Mendes," Mugler said in a statement.

The fiery Latina is certainly one of the sexiest actresses on the front row nowadays and is sure to bring on new interest in the brand. More news and the upcoming commercials will be available at the official Thierry Mugler site.
Catch some more news & gossip on celebrities fronting perfume campaigns on the New Face section.

Eva Mendes and Angel ad collage via fashionfoiegras.com,

Thierry Mugler Womanity: fragrance review

All Mugler fragrances create a stir, from the iconic Angel to the stomping woody jasmine in Alien, the metamorphosis-inducing androgyne tuberose of À Travers le Miroir to the surprising Miroir des Envies with its Nutella chord: Womanity, a woody, sweet (fig notes) and salty Eau de Parfum which was advertised with fish references (the caviar accord) alongside the name cannot but conjure images of female genitalia to the fertile imagination. And maybe this was at the back of the mind of Mugler and the creative team at the Clarins group all along!
The designer's house has almost gone bust, kept afloat via perfume & accessories and the man has buffed himself up into a mutilated rendition of a seedy-magazine bodybuilder named Manfred. Something has got to keep the perfumes at the position they are nevertheless and that something is innovation and originality. Womanity is no exception, the definition of a love-it-or-hate-it fragrance, much like all Mugler perfumes are with the possible exception of Cologne.

"Womanity is the quality of being a woman. We differentiate ourselves from the rest of huMANity in biological, social, cultural and spiritual terms" (according to womanity.blogspot) Colour me unimpressed. Yet the composition which perfumers at Mane concocted for Parfums Mugler is nothing short of apocalyptic (in both senses of the word). The overwhelming sweetness (and loudness!) of the fig note is flanked by the austerity of wood and a salty nuance (ever so slight) which manage to create something that doesn't conjure anything concrete, and doesn't recall any other fragrance on the market. In fact if the saltiness was more pronounced (as the woody drydown progresses the arch seems to fall flat and become dull and incongruent) we would be talking about a true classic-to-be.

Smell and compare with other fig fragrances ~such as the two classics, Philosykos by Diptyque and Premier Figuier by L'Artisan Parfumeur with their hint of coconut and bitter leaf note; or the ultra-refined Un Jardin en Mediterranée by Hermès with its herbal aromata~ and you will see how Womanity differs. First of all, there is a watery-sweet note on top which is very unusual: The fruity note passingly resembles that in Un Jardin En Mediterranée or Figue Amère by Miller Harris, but whereas the warmth co-existed with the cool in the Hermès fragrance, laid on thin over the green notes, and it was bitterish-cool in the Miller Harris, in Mugler's Womanity the figs have caramelised. Their succulent flesh id more apparent in the sun than the leaves or the bark of the tree, with a nod to fig cookies as well. And then the salty note, said to evoke caviar!! Its intimate, lightly animalic quality is musky and intriguing. Pierre Aulas, olfactive director of Clarins Fragrance Group, revealed that it was a true challenge to work on Mugler's idea of combining savoury and sweet notes. The ambery-woody drydown is the "weakest" part aesthetically, borrowed as it seems from Alien, and not exciting enough, echoing as it does a base common in other fragrances on the market.

The finished effect though is so powerful that it is worth amassing some of the quotes of people who have sampled Womanity and publicized their impressions on Fragrantica. Those range from the impressionist ("a futuristic scent, or what perfume would be like on an alien planet" and "something a mermaid would wear. Overpoweringly fishy at first as she rises from the sea, but later as she is sitting on a rock combing her tresses, breezes from the nearby fig groves sweeten the air. Perhaps she is on a Greek island somewhere in the Mediterranean") to the programmatic ("I know many people get citrus, fig, salty caviar, nail polish or bad body odour, but I smell spicy cookies" and "Womanity smells like popcorn from a movie theatre, filled with gobs butter"), all the way to the purely dismissive ("It smells dirty, like youd been cutting trees all day and smoking at the same time, but smells even worse than that if you can imagine"). A fragrance which creates strong feelings......but a very strange one!

Thierry Mugler has once again jumped into the deep end with Womanity, proposing a new release which sounds odd but will definitely open up new doors, possibly more refined along the way. If the previous Mugler scents are any indication to the spawn they leave behind, then expect to smell more of this combination in the future. I don't think I would personally wear Womanity, my tastes running to subtler, more intellectual routes concerning personal fragrance, but I cannot deny its risk-taking as the proper stance to take at the moment, even if not entirely successful. If all fragrance houses did this, the world of perfumery would be much more interesting at least, without a doubt!

NB: The review is based on my own sampling at store and at home and NOT on the promotional pre-release "kit" which several other bloggers got in the mail in summer 2010.



Related reading on Perfumeshrine: Thierry Mugler news & reviews

Caviar on Fig photo by Boverthemoon

The first scent opera is here!

"Most high-end perfumers spend months designing a signature scent they hope will stay on the market forever. Christophe Laudamiel, who wants to turn fragrance into high art, has labored for two years on 23 scents that will last for just half an hour. Mr. Laudamiel [..] is collaborating on a "scent opera," a new performance art that pairs music with a carefully orchestrated sequence of smells, some pleasant and some real stinkers. The opera, titled "Green Aria," will test the boundaries of scent art when it opens at the Guggenheim Museum in New York May 31."

Icelandic composer Valgeir Sigurdsson collaborated with Nico Muhly to create music based on the scents, while Matthew Steward wrote the libretto and became the director. Alongside "earth" (moist and musky), "fire" (like campfire remnants on clothes), "crunchy green" (watery green thanks to cis-3-Hexenyl isobutyrate) and "magma" (tarry thanks to limbanol) expect to sniff such smells as vomit, feces, urine, rotten fish and burning trash (I actually have personal associations with burning trash and it's not always that vile; it depends on what trash you're burning I guess)

Alexandra Alter at online Wall Street Journal takes us into the creation of the first scent opera in an engaging article: a dream come true for the many sensorialists around who have always dreamt of a performance that would pair the visual and auditory with the olfactory! Ever since John Waters in the ultra-camp (and perversely very fun) odorama scratch n'sniff of Polyester (1981) popularised the idea, there has been the search for the perfect olfactory accompaniment to visual perfumances. Yet the critical issues of sensory overload (how are you supposed to clean the fog and start again?) and timing (not as easy as it sounds) have provided hurdles along the way. This time Fläkt Woods, a global ventilation company designed a box with pressurized steel canisters that will hold the scented crystals with the different odours because crystals produce more quickly evaporating scent than liquids or oils. (That's good to know when purchasing home fragrance acoutrements). In intervals, fresh air will be released from the special "microphones" so as to clear the nasal passages of the audience, preparing them from the next blast.

Christophe Laudamiel is no stranger to pairings of such a nature, being half of the duo who worked on the Thierry Mugler coffret that was inspired by the atmospherics of the best-selling novel Das Parfum by Patrick Suskind, subsequently filmed. In a no coinicidental string of affairs Thierry Mugler is sponsoring the new venture.

"In a darkened theater, audiences will be bombarded with smells, blasted in six-second sequences by a scent "microphone" attached to each seat. The scents tell the story of an epic struggle between nature and industry. Nearly five years in the making, the opera was conceived by Stewart Matthew, a corporate financier turned entrepreneur who co-founded Aeosphere, a "fragrance media" company, with Mr. Laudamiel in 2008."

Aeosphere opens its Manhattan office next month, while Laudamiel had been a tenant at the offices of Firmenich and a collaborating perfumer with IFF for quite a while.
A brave new world indeed!


Chrstophe Laudamiel via IFF. Pic of Polyester card via Jim Rees/Flickr (some rights reserved)

Thierry Mugler Alien Giant Golden Excess & Initiatory Stone: news & musings

In times of recession one would think that manufacturers and perfume companies would cut back and offer more economical solutions to lure in customers and retain their market share. However, as the -admittedly strange and inconvenient- economic rule for getting out of such as phase is basically continuing to spend (so as to boost the market and keep companies afloat), the practice of luxury brands to actually raise their prices and issue super-expensive products instead is macroeconomically sane but in the short term a little absurd. Yet it happens! And the latest example is brought here today for your appraisal.

The Clarins Group which holds the licence for parfums Thierry Mugler has just issued a very unusual and expensive edition that is aimed at true-blue collectors of fine fragrance with their new Alien Golden Giant Excess: The limited edition holds 1 liter (Whoah! talking about Godzilla size!) in a flacon decorated with real gold and Swarovski crystals! (click the pic, it's really impressive) The juice inside the bottle remains as usual, an "extraterrestrial" mix of jasmine sambac from India, blonde woods and white musks in Eau de Parfum concentration. Thierry Mugler launched Alien in 2005 in a formula devised dy Dominique Ropion and Laurent Bruyere and is considered successful in turnover terms. The price of the Alien Golden Giant Excess is 2000 euros. (Now please gather your jaw from the floor).

This comes on the heels of another limited edition for Alien, the Initiatory Stone which is available as a limited edition of 15ml Eau de Parfum from January 2009 in a bottle cut like an amethyst gem, a carrier of natural energy, topped by a gold cap, symbolising solar power. The scent is once again completely unchanged.

The two limited editions come as a follow up of the spring-summer'08 Alien Eau Luminescente, which was taking the solar theme into an interpretation in warm packaging hues.
Seems like the various editions keep a brand alive and kicking, creating buzz even in difficult times!

News and pic via Fragrantica and sfilate.it

The New Angel by Mugler has Fallen from the Skies

We had announced some months ago that Naomi Watts will be fronting the new campaign for Thierry Mugler's iconic gourmand Angel. The line got renovated with new packaging, new advertising images and a boost in the body products out of which the Perfuming Cream is standing out as an exquisite substitute for the truly potent perfume in a new guise of blue-hued smoothness. The old version was almost perfect as it was so I was skeptical on how they could improve, but trying out the new sample surpassed my memories of the old one. Indeed it manages to aromatize the skin for hours on end and since it has lower sillage than a spray it is an excellent choice for those who love Angel but are afraid to impose that love to others around them. The makers have patented a new Intense Diffusion System (IDS) which supposedly diffuses the scent better on skin. My only gripe is that the new jar looks rather less friendly for travelling, as it is heavy and has stars in crystal relief all around.

The new commercial starring a star-struck Naomi Watts, directed by Bill Condon (of Dreamgirls fame), is airing just now. Although voluptuous was not the first adjective I associated Naomi Watts with despite my admiration for her acting chops which she has displayed in numerous films, I have to admit she did a very credible job ~OK apart from her pronuniation on the French Thierry Mugler name which remains...Anglo-Saxon in intonation. (It can be heard at the the official website). Her waist cinched into a Mugler corset and her long blond hair in dented retro waves she looks radiant and fairy-like.
Thierry Mugler himself seemed very convinced of Naomi's capacities (watch a small interview segment here) so who are we to disagree?






The magical atmosphere of catching a fallen star, like a retrogade into childhood wishes and dreams, is echoing the scent of Angel the fragrance with its fun-fair smells of chocolate, candied apples, cotton candy and sawdust.
I have always been interested from a cinematic point of view on how those commercials get created and so these storyboards for the new commercial with Naomi Watts as face of Angel have provided a much sought-after glimpse into the creative process.

You can visit the new Angel website for lots of info on the products and a look into the making of the new campaign. (choose "A new icon" and then from the drop-down menu choose "The making of" option. It will also give you a chance to hear Debussy's Clair de Lune as they were shooting scenes of the commercial)

In the interests of full disclosure, I got sent the print material and a sample of the new Perfuming Cream as part of the Angel loyalty programme, which I am highly recommending if you buy an Angel product (there is a small pamphlet in the box which you get to fill in and mail).Clip uploaded by ThierryMuglerParfums on Youtube.

The Island of Dr.Muglerstein: what is Thierry Mugler doing now?

Some of us, last time we checked, have singed our retinas with an image of unrecognisable designer Thierry Mugler as Manfred the body-builder (was the name intentionally Byronesque?)in socks, sandals and little else. Everyone is free to do as they see fit with their body and their lives, but it was a strange path to Destructionville.
The Thierry Mugler fragrance line however seemed to have a life of its own, flourising into a multi-million dollar enterprise, creating a progeny of upstart imitators to boot and renewing its own faces fronting the advertisements. Mugler continues with a niche twist: the latest collection of scents was tightly distributed. "Oserez-vous la metamorphose?" (=Will you dare the metamorphosis?) was Mugler's last perfume collection's "Miroir, Miroir"(=looking-glass) motto and this tied in with his own metamorphosis. I am not sure if he envisioned himself as a chrysallis that was waiting to become a butterfly, because that would collide with my own perception, but you know what they say about tastes. Besides, Mugler seems to be after his own personal chimera and there is something painfully romantic about that, if you think about it.

Now, here he comes again with a new online project: The Island of Dr.Muglerstein (L'ile du Dr.Muglerstein), clickable here, brought by the Machinima Association.
The clip is funny in uniting the Moulin Rouge mill with that golden robot from Star Wars, sci-fi and comic books design with Angel and Alien hints. There is also a blog option in which apparently Mugler will be a cosmic storyteller guiding us through his intergalactic mutant adventures, judging by the alien figure emerging at the end of the clip.
And of course the title The Island of Dr.Muglerstein recalls the Island of Dr.No as well as The Island of Dr.Moreau by H.G.Wells (and the hundreds of artwork, novels and films inspired by it). And you do remember what happened in those stories, don't you!

Twisted! What do you think?

Link via POL and PaulJohn. Poster of The Island of Dr.Moreau 1977 film, courtesy of Wikipedia.

New Angel Face

According to the latest news, Naomi Watts will be the new face of Angel by Thierry Mugler, exactly at a time when the brand is repositining itself as to be more exclusive and more niche-oriented with its A travers le Mirroir series.

Source: Sev.prnewswire.com

NEW YORK, May 5 /PRNewswire/ -- In 1992, Thierry Mugler's Angel fragrance sprang from a childhood memory and the dream of a star. It created a great impact in the world of perfumery, representing the first Oriental Gourmand fragrance.

For Angel, the world's most beautiful models have embodied the image of a highly glamorous woman. After 17 successful years, its new incarnation is more star than ever...

The artiste perfumer's new angel, Naomi Watts, is an Academy Award nominated actress, who has appeared in an impressive list of films since her notable debut in David Lynch's "Mulholland Drive." Successfully steering her career and choosing her films with care, she has worked with leading directors: Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu ("21 Grams"), Peter Jackson ("King Kong"), David Cronenberg ("Eastern Promises"). In 2008, she is starring in Michael Haneke's latest film, "Funny Games," and in 2009 she will star in Tom Twyker's film "The International" with Clive Owen.

Naomi Watts was the inspired choice for Thierry Mugler, over and above her beauty and her star image. Displaying a modern touch, the actress projects a personality that blends sensuality, voluptuousness and evanescence to evoke the many facets of Angel. A blond fragility, a natural tenderness, an emotional seductiveness...

Rather appropriately, it was in Los Angeles, city of the angels, and in the Hollywood Center studios, that the commercial was shot, following a scenario by Thierry Mugler and directed by director Bill Condon ("Dreamgirls"). A Hollywood fairy-tale surrounded by a profusion of Angel stars.

To immortalize this mythical moment, Thierry Mugler called on photographer Ali Mahdavi to produce the advertising visuals of his Hollywood dream. A worldwide campaign, glamorous and magical, will begin in October 2008.

Personally I like the choice: modern, expressive, not scandal-monging. Perhaps they went for a cool blonde, and an Aussie as well, the way Chanel did with Nicole Kidman for No.5 with good results in renewing the image of the fragrance. Although Chanel is rumoured of changing its No.5 face too, sometime soon, opting for gamine Audrey Tautou under the direction of enfant formidable Jean Pierre Jeunet.

So: What do you think about Naomi as face of Angel?

Thierry Mugler Angel: fragrance review of a modern classic & the most polarising scent

The French have an adorable phrase for girls who are a little naughty and like to pose like grown-ups: elle fait la coquine! Angel by Thierry Mugler is the olfactory equivalent of the most gorgeous “coquine”, weaving a web of the most appetising scent of them all: Chocolate, vanilla and caramel ~the three prime components of Mugler’s mischievous fragrance~ have been scientifically proven to treat depression and inject a sense of euphoric uplift.