Pretty Simple and Simply Pretty – Stella McCartney L.I.L.Y Perfume Review

“The smell of the English countryside in spring time”

L.I.L.Y is the latest fragrance from British fashion designer Stella McCartney. It very much marks a break from tradition for McCartney, whose other fragrances have all be a variation on a theme, namely that of her eponymous debut fragrance ‘Stella’. I love Stella, as far as designer fragrances go it is pretty well done and my sister wears it religiously so I have a strong connection to it, but I am very glad that McCartney is branching out into new fragrant territory with L.I.L.Y.

Where Stella was an ode to rose, L.I.L.Y is, as the name suggests, an ode to the lily of the valley. Lily of the valley is a flower which yields no scented oil yet so evocatively represents the smell of the English countryside in spring time. It’s both beautiful to look at, and to smell, and it represents all that is innocent and virtuous about the world. Lily of the valley is simply one of the world’s most precious of joys.

L.I.L.Y is described as an “evocative scent made up of Stella’s most treasured moments” [1]. Its name stems from her father’s nickname for her mother; ‘Linda I Love You’, and the Lily of the Valley used in the fragrance is reminiscent of her wedding bouquet. For L.I.L.Y, McCartney has aimed to create a perfume that is personal to her, rather than Stella McCartney ‘the brand’. In this world of hyper-focus-grouped perfumes, I can’t help but find the personal touch applied to L.I.L.Y utterly refreshing.

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Naked in Rome – Juliette Has a Gun Romantina Perfume Review

Juliette Has a Gun is the spunky niche brand from Romano Ricci – great grandson of Nina Ricci. The name is taken from Shakespeare’s most famous heroin and the gun that she brandishes is a metaphor for her perfume, which she uses as her weapon of seduction. Juliette Has a Gun has a kick-ass attitude, she’s a gal with tons of moxie and takes no prisoners.

There are currently 8 perfumes in the line, well 7 if you you decide not to count ‘Not a Perfume’, which I’m not, because it isn’t a perfume and it gets on my nerves. Anyways, Romantina was released last year and is Juliette Has a Gun’s latest perfume. With Romantina, Ricci adds something new to the line – its very first white floral, that at first seems quite out of place amongst the mixed bag of misfit characters that hang around with Juliette and her Gun.

Romantina (I love that name) is described as “an ode to insouciance” [1] and is based on a modern love story. Like the other perfumes in the line, Romantina has a strong character, but rather than being a bad-ass bitch, it exudes a confident innocence that if fallen for, can prove much more deadly. When I received my sample set I immediately reached for Romantina, I am a white floral lover after all, and whilst it may be an ode to insouciance, my feelings for it certainly aren’t indifferent.

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Gone, But Not Forgotten Series Part 7: Flowers Etched in Gold – Fragile EDP by Jean Paul Gaultier

“Perfume is the first garment we wear on our skin.”
Jean Paul Gaultier

Fragile, the Eau de Parfum, was Jean Paul Gaultier’s second feminine fragrance, it was released in 1999 and followed the phenomenally successful Classique. Created by Francis Kurkdjian, Fragile couldn’t be more of a stark contrast to the warm, powdery oriental tones of Classique.

Where Classique is evocative of Gaultier’s loud, abrasive style of couture, Fragile plays on classic French perfumery. There is nothing ‘boudoir’ about it, it is incredibly enigmatic and feels almost unsuitable for everyday wear. Fragile is a perfume of the night.

Like a lot of the other fragrances in the Gone, But Not Forgotten Series, Fragile was a big love for me early on in my perfume journey. It was also my first tuberose, and whilst it may not be the best example of nature’s rawest and most carnal of flowers, it is lovely and it did kick-start my love for the flower.

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A Duo of ‘L’Eaus’ From Guerlain – Guerlain Shalimar Parfum Initial L’Eau & Guerlain Homme L’Eau Boisée Perfume Reviews

Guerlain is one of my favourite perfume houses, heck it may be most people’s favourite perfume house, and they’ve certainly had their up’s and down’s over the years. But despite many blips, discontinuations and the odd controversy, things definitely seem to be looking up over at Maison Guerlain. One of the smartest moves they have made in recent times is snatch-up the very talented Thierry Wasser for their in-house perfumer.

Since joining Guerlain, M. Wasser has created; two new major feminines, one major masculine, a new cologne and several flankers, limited editions and exclusives. He has tinkered with Guerlain’s heritage whilst adding his own contemporary stamp for the future.

February sees the release of two new flankers signed by M. Wasser; Shalimar Parfum Initial L’Eau and Homme L’Eau Boisée, and as with everything he has done since he started with Guerlain (OK maybe not everything) they are top notch. ‘L’Eau’ very much seems to be the fashion at Guerlain at the moment, but to write these two new editions of as simply lighter, watered down versions of the originals would be a grave mistake.

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La Dame Verte – Puredistance Antonia Perfume Review

To put it simply; Antonia is liquid emotion.

Have you ever known that you would love a fragrance before you even tried it? I have on quite a few occasions, the most recent of which was with the second feminine fragrance from ultra-luxe niche line Puredistance. A perfume wonderfully named ‘Antonia’. I had already fallen head-over-heels for the beautifully arresting Puredistance I, and everything about Antonia; the reviews, the description and the very brief sniff I’d had in Harrods, led me to believe that Antonia was a perfume that I would love.

I’ve also been really impressed with the Puredistance line and their ethos. I find it refreshing that they seem to focus all of their attention on the perfumes, there are no gimmicks and they manage to offer exclusivity without snobbery. It’s also very clear that they have a passion for quality, which really translates into their three offerings, all of which are incredibly different, but share an impeccable attention to detail and fit together like three contrasting compositions.

Antonia, or ‘La Dame Verte’ as I call her, is the second feminine in the line and is a Parfum Extrait with a not-to-be-scoffed-at 25% concentration. Antonia is described by Puredistance as “a green floral with a great lushness and warmth of heart, but at the same time pillowy and as gentle as can be” [1]. Like the first feminine in the line ‘Puredistance I’, Antonia was created by Annie Buzantian in New York and shares her name with the mother of Puredistance founder Jan Ewoud Vos.

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Legendary Beauty – Estée Lauder Beautiful Perfume Review

“The fragrance of a thousand flowers”

Launched in 1985 and created by Sophia Grojsman, Beautiful is described by Estée Lauder as “the fragrance of a thousand flowers” [1], and it is an exceptional example of a big floral bouquet, something that the Lauder brand seems to specialise in. I would classify Beautiful as a floral chypre, it’s a wonderful blend of heady florals and rich, mossy base notes.

Beautiful has always been marketed as Estée Lauder’s bridal perfume and I can see why, it is completely romantic and there is a young innocence to it that conjures up images of beautiful brides draped in white. Despite it’s obvious bridal connotations, it isn’t exclusively bridal, it is wonderful enough to be kept only for special occasions but also works perfectly well as an everyday perfume. Beautiful is one of those perfumes that would make a good signature scent, not that I’d EVER dream of having one of those, I’m too greedy!

I always find it hard to review the classics, it’s difficult to do them justice whilst attempting to showcase them in a new and interesting way. . That said, it is a perfume that I appreciate from an olfactory perspective, and I truly believe that it it is more than a classic, it is a legend. It it so legendary in fact that it is rumoured that Andy Warhol was buried with a bottle.

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Bubblegum Chic – Honoré des Prés Vamp À N.Y. Perfume Review

Bubblegum Chic

Tuberose, tuberose, tuberose, the narcotic Queen of the Night. The erotic, sensationalist flower with a reputation for stealing many a heart and corrupting many a virgin. My love of tuberose is pretty well documented (please see The Candy Perfume Boy’s Guide to Tuberose) and I’m pretty much happy to try any fragrance that lists it as a note. I was however, slightly sceptical of Vamp À N.Y., but lots of positive reviews and a sample that was very kindly donated by Ines of All I Am – A Redhead led me to try it.

“This is extreme, never lived before, French couture… addictive, sophisticated and futuristic” [2]

Vamp À N.Y. is part of Honoré des Prés’ ‘We love NY’ collection created by perfumer Olivia Giacobetti. The Honoré des Prés line prides itself on having perfumes that are “100% natural origin – 100% botanical ingredients – 100% engaged.”[1] I don’t know about you but I’m not entirely fussed about whether a perfume is all natural or not, the art of perfumery, in my eyes, requires a large palette of natural and ‘synthetic’ ingredients. But that’s beside the point, Vamp À N.Y., whether it is natural, synthetic or otherwise, is a very interesting take on my favourite flower.

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Dream a Little Dream of Me – Guerlain Idylle Eau De Parfum Perfume Review

“I imagined for Idylle a bouquet of fresh and joyous flowers, a symbol of love” Thierry Wasser [1]

In 2009 the eyes of the perfume-world were firmly fixed on the doors of No 68 Champs-Élysées in Paris. The world awaited the brand new feminine fragrance from the world’s most important (and arguably the greatest) perfume house – Guerlain. In the previous year Guerlain (now owned by the fashion-gargantuan Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessy) had appointed Thierry Wasser as their in-house perfumer and he had already started to create exciting fragrances for the house (see Guerlain Homme), but he was yet to conquer the mammoth task of creating a Guerlain feminine.

A new feminine fragrance from Guerlain is always big news and it can’t be easy creating a fragrance for a house that brought Jicky, L’Heure Bleue, Mitsouko and Shalimar into the world, but with Idylle it felt like the pressure was REALLY on. Thierry Wasser had the huge tasking of creating a contemporary and modern fragrance that wouldn’t betray Guerlain’s age old heritage and for that reason Idylle is a relatively important fragrance, it signifies a shift within the house, and this shift is highlighted in the tag-line on the above advertising image, which presents Idylle as “The New Guerlain”.

Guerlain describes Idylle (‘Love Dream’) as “Like a mist of petals on the skin, a fresh floral bouquet warmed by the sensuality of chypre” [2] and if only to emphasise the ideal of ‘The New Guerlain’, Idylle marks a complete break from the house’s tradition of lavish chypres, big florals and Guerlainade-filled orientals.

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The Candy Perfume Boy’s Party Season Scent Guide

Lady Gaga’s got the drinks, but does she have the right scent to match that party outfit?

Tis the season to be jolly, or completely merry, or if you’re British – absolutely trashed. The best thing about the holiday season is the many soirées, parties (office or otherwise), dinners and gatherings that we all inevitably get invited to, and for me this is the fun part, because after all the holidays are about seeing friends & family and having fun.

I don’t know about you, but when I’m going out I sometimes spend more time thinking about the fragrance I’m going to wear rather than the clothes. I very often find myself trying to match my fragrance to the outfit that I am wearing as well as the occasion. As far as I am concerned, there is nothing worse than not being able to find something that matches , but fear ye not – The Candy Perfume Boys is here to help you pick the perfect scent for the party season.

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A Rose Good Enough to Eat – Tauer Perfumes Une Rose Vermeille Perfume Review

“Macarons – Om, nom, nom.”

Following Andy Tauer’s Rose Master Class at Les Senteurs on Thursday I have had roses on the brain. Well, to be precise I have had Andy Tauer’s rose fragrances on my brain, so this week, it makes sense for me to write about two Tauer fragrances that I have been meaning to review for quite some time – Une Rose Vermeille and Une Rose Chyprée. Seeing as I am renowned for having quite a sweet tooth and being a sucker for anything rose flavoured, I will start with Une Rose Vermeille.

Une Rose Vermeille was released in 2010 and is the second addition to Andy Tauer’s ‘Homages’ line, which also houses Une Rose Chyprée and Carillon Pour un Ange. It is described as a ‘Gourmand Rose’ and is, in my opinion, the most delicious fragrance I have ever tried – it is a rose good enough to eat.

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