Solar Flare – Thierry Mugler Alien Eau Extraordinaire Perfume Review

My love of Thierry Mugler’s Alien, and all things Mugler in fact, is widely known. I just cannot help myself when it comes to the weird, wacky and über glamorous creations that come straight from Muglerville – they resonate deep within my soul, awaking the hidden Glamazon inside of me. So I do feel very excited when I hear that the brand is launching a brand new fragrance, especially if aforementioned scent it is to be a close cousin of my most beloved Alien.

Mugler’s latest launch is exactly that – Alien Eau Extraordinaire – a lighter take on the the brashness of Alien, that reportedly “accentuates incandescent freshness” and amps up the scent’s brighter citrus notes. Alien, whilst being a foghorn of a scent (a beautiful foghorn, of course), did display an impressively fresh citrus facet worthy of further exploration, so it is with great interest that I approached this entirely more luminous creation.

Created by perfumer Dominique Ropion who, along with Laurent Bruyere, was responsible for the original, Alien Eau Extraordinaire is a stand alone fragrance described by Mugler as being “charged with a positive energy” and “combining a blend of notes known for their uplifting, energising powers with the unique signature of Alien to convey a feeling of happiness and serenity for all women”. That all sounds rather promising, if you ask me!

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Perfume Pic of the Week No. 8: Thierry Mugler Alien Ad Campaign 2014

Regular readers of The Candy Perfume Boy will know that I am a fully-fledged, card-holding member of the Muglerati. Seriously, I’m a total Mugler fan boy and pretty much adore every fragrance the brand has ever done. Why do I love them so? Well it’s simple really, they are the most daring, fabulous and ‘high-fashion’ of perfume houses and they constantly push the envelope with their olfactory output, creating couture scents that are as unique as they are beautiful.

It’s difficult for me to pick my favourite Mugler perfume as my tastes switch between all of them on a regular basis, but the one I have the most affection for is Alien. This intergalactic jasmine is the fragrance I wore when I first met my soon-to-be husband (I love saying that – 75 days people!) and it is ingrained within my memory as an important perfume both sentimentally and artistically.

This year Thierry Mugler will be launching a new version of this terrestrial perfume – Alien Eau Extraordinaire (review to come soon) – and to coincide with this launch the brand has revitalised their advertising campaign with a new image and TV spot (directed by Floria Sigismondi). The new image can be seen above and displays Alien’s solar goddess bathed in a celestial glow and standing in a great hall like a statuesque monument to the sun.

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Perfume Pic of the Week No.5: Le Tentation de Nina Macarons

I love Ladurée, I love macarons and I most certainly love perfume. So it will come as no surprise that I am quite keen on the above picture, which very quickly become my perfume pic of the week when I stumbled across it, whilst preparing for my upcoming review (due to be up next week) of the latest Nina Ricci fragrance – the macaron inspired ‘Le Tentation de Nina‘.

Nina Ricci (the brand, obv), perfumer Olivier Cresp and Vincent Lemains (the Head Pastry Chef at Ladurée) have teamed up to create a macaron “inspired by a perfume” and a perfume “inspired by a macaron”. The macarons, which are winking at you in the above picture, are a devilishly delicious-sounding blend of lemon, raspberry, Bulgarian rose absolute and almond, all of which is topped off with a dash of gold leaf. The perfume is very much in the same spirit and lists similar notes. Does it perfectly capture the spirit of the most darling of pastries? Well, you’ll have to wait until my review for that little nugget of information…

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New Escentual Post: M is for Mugler

It’s been a little while since I last created an entry for my Escentual A-Z of Fragrance and it felt about the right time to further explore the alphabet of perfume with a look at an iconic perfume house. In the A-Z we’ve taken a look at esteemed perfume brands such as Amouage, Dior and Guerlain, but the one I was really looking forward to sinking my teeth into was the house of Thierry Mugler. I was so excited in fact, that I couldn’t even wait until we got to the letter ‘T’!

In my Escentual column this week the letter of the moment is ‘M’ for Mugler. I take a brief look at the history of the house and talk about the house’s five unique, high-fashion and downright weird perfumes; Angel, A*Men, Cologne, Alien and Womanity. So please hop on your Battlestar Muglactica and head over to the Escentual blog (by simply clicking the image above) to explore the world of Mugler. Don’t forget to tell me which Mugler scent floats your boat whilst you’re there!

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New Escentual Post: A Guide to Orientals

As you may be aware, I do like a good ‘guide to‘, and one of the luxuries bestowed to me by the wonderful people at Escentual, is that I get to not only write my guide to notes series here on the TCPB, but I also get to create a number of guides for a range of perfume genres too. So far we’ve taken a look at the humble Chypre, a genre of perfume that is aloof and mysterious and this week’s post takes a look at another famed style of perfumery.

This week the focus is on the mysterious and exotic world of the Oriental. Much like last time, I have picked three fragrances to represent the evolution of the genre – from the classic to the modern and the contemporary. So, if you are looking for a bite-size guide to the Oriental then all you need to do is simply click on the image above to head on over to Escentual!

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Boozy Fumes – Thierry Mugler Les Liqueurs de Parfums Perfume Review

I make no bones about the fact that Thierry Mugler is one of my all-time favourite perfume brands. Their signature perfumes – Angel, Alien, Womanity, Cologne and A*Men – all have a very special place in my collection and are so befitting of the style of perfume I love, they almost feel as if they were created for me – although I am entirely aware that they were not.

Once a year Mugler treats us all to a special collection of fragrances – four unique takes on their existing signature fragrances. The familiar accords of these perfumes are twisted and remixed to include an ‘enhancer’ that presents them in an entirely new light. Over the last few years the likes of Angel et al have been reshaped by leather and gourmet ingredients to name just a few.

This year’s collection – ‘Les Liqueurs de Parfums‘ – sees the famous Mugler fragrances imbued with equally well-known liqueurs and is a sidestep for the brand, having already released alcohol-inspired versions of Angel, Alien and A*Men in 2009. The difference with this collection, however is that the wooden casks each fragrance has been aged in were warmed up and toasted to add a brand new facet to these boozy ‘fumes.

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Scent a Celebrity Series: ARTSNIFF – Scenting Lady Gaga

“The Scent a Celebrity Series is my vain attempt at picking perfumes for those who don’t know any better, yes I mean celebrities. Let’s face it, most celebrities are incapable of choosing decent clothing, boyfriends, girlfriends, movies, (insert-celebrity-mistake-here) let alone having the ability to make decisions about something as important as their scent – that’s where I come in. Never fear my dear schlebs, I will ensure that you are appropriately scented, all you need to do is listen.”

No celebrity needs more perfume assistance than Lady Gaga, especially after the massive disappointment that was her debut fragrance ‘Fame‘ and it’s safe to say that because of this her taste level perhaps isn’t where it should be. Fame’s crime wasn’t that it was a dreadful fragrance (general consensus was that it’s decidedly ‘meh’) but the fact that it was frightfully generic and captured only the pretentious element of Lady Gaga’s personality without any of the talent.

Love her or hate her it’s hard to deny that Lady Gaga is indeed talented. Yes, a lot of her ideas are derivative and she does have a tendency to bang on about how what she does is ‘art’ (her upcoming album is annoyingly entitled ‘ARTPOP’) but all-in-all she’s an exciting and provocative voice with a brand of pop that is satisfyingly addictive.

With this edition of the Scent a Celebrity Series, I have picked four perfumes that accurately capture the weird and wonderful persona of Lady Gaga – a woman who has sported fashions made from Muppets, beef and bubbles, to name just a few. Amongst them, these scents embody a spirit that seeks out the weirder odours and isn’t afraid of perfume that is challenging, confrontational and darkly beautiful.

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Smelly News: New From Thierry Mugler – ‘Les Liqueurs de Parfums’

It’s that time of year again where Thierry Mugler gets set to launch their annual collection of limited editions. For the past few years the mad hatters over at Mugler have redressed the scents (and bottles) of their iconic fragrances (Angel, A*Men, Alien and Womanity) in a variety of enhancements, namely; booze, food and leather, begging the question of ‘what’s next?’

Well the answer to that question is simple – this year Mugler is covering familiar ground with ‘Les Liqueurs de Parfums’, four fragrances enhanced by the “essence of fine spirits”. The collection includes the ever-popular A*Men Pure Malt as well as the highly respected Angel and Alien Liqueur de Parfums, each accented by a different liqueur.

It it not known whether these are reformulated or new versions but the boxes are stamped with ‘Creation 2013’. There is also an entirely new Liqueur de Parfum edition for 2010’s Womanity. The collection will launch in the UK on 01 October 2013 and further details can be found below the jump.

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Summer Survival Scents

The heatwave is finally here and as we all enjoy (or suffer in) the heat now is a good time to pull out those fragrances that refresh, revitalise & defeat the blazing heat of the sun and stuffy, humid air. It’s a time where perfume can be your greatest weapon when attempting to conquer the unrelenting enthusiasm of the sun.

My Escentual Post last week looked at two new releases that are perfect for summer (Guerlain Nerolia Bianca and Dior Homme Cologne 2013) and it got me thinking about those fragrances that I swear by in the summer – or as i like to call them: ‘my summer survival scents’.

Some days it seems almost too hot to do anything, but these scents can be an essential part of your summer survival kit. All you need is some cooling citrus, a few fresh fancies, a couple of manly mints and a generous dose of flowers and fruit, and you’ll be all set to tackle the heatwave of 2013!

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The Deadly Perfumes of Pride

My lovely perfume sisters and brothers – Persolaise, Eyeliner on a Cat, Fragrant Moments and Olfactoria’s Travels – and I, have yet again clubbed together to bring you an olfactory group project. This time we’re focusing on the seven deadly sins and have cooked up our very best selections of the most sinful perfumes.

“A feeling of deep pleasure or satisfaction derived from one’s own achievements, the achievements of one’s close associates, or from qualities or possessions that are widely admired.”

The Oxford English Dictionary’s
Definition of ‘Pride’

When given the choice of picking a sin for my article I opted for ‘Pride’. The sin of pride focuses on self-adoration and vanity – taking pleasure and satisfaction from our own achievements, looks and attractive qualities. Pride intrigues me because I think it’s the sin that nearly everybody is guilty of at some time in their lives and it can be a key driver for us to continue to succeed in our professional and personal lives.

The perfumes I have picked for this article all display an element of pride – each in a slight different way. Whether it’s vanity, pride in artistry, the pride that precedes a fall or even a faceless pride, these perfumes are subtly sinful in a subversive and utterly compelling way

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