How thrilling it is when an idea manages to survive the journey from thought to creation. At the London launch of Florabellio, perfumer Fabrice Pellegrin explained that the vision he’d…
There’s lots and lots to do whilst life and I try to negotiate the most pain-free way of slipping back into regular routines. For one thing, I seem to have…
It’s all happening at Burlington Arcade! Penhaligon’s have had a branch there for years, of course, but Chanel unveiled a store beneath the elegant, arched ceiling not too long ago,…
Ah, dear old lavender. When it’s misused – as it so often is – it’s a whopping clanger of a cliche, plunging a composition into the depths of the generic,…
Perfume and death. Connections between the two have been made for centuries. Roses are snuffed out so their essence may be captured. White flowers reveal their most seductive odours just…
After a side-step that saw him produce two scents in collaboration with J Crew, Arquiste‘s Carlos Huber returns to his signature range and quells fears that his sensibilities may have…
Health & Safety be damned. The other day, I went to our local hospital to visit the ailing relative I mentioned in a recent post, bearing food for various family…
Oh my goodness! Geek fest! Look at what Basenotes are doing. To celebrate their 15th anniversary, they’ve compiled a list of the “greatest perfumes” – as per various criteria described…
It really is a stultifying cliche, but the power of smells to evoke memories is tremendous. And always surprising. And often difficult to comprehend fully. I mentioned plums and jam…
Although the blue skies outside my window would suggest otherwise, the chill in the night air and my calendar tell me that summer is definitely over. Soon, I hope to…
The J’Adore family welcomes a glamorous new cousin, dubbed Touche De Parfum. With her oil-based constitution, she may well have been brought into the fold to woo the Middle Eastern…
Sigh sigh sigh. There are several springboards from which I could leap into my review of Dior‘s new Sauvage (composed by in-house perfumer, François Demachy), but despite my best efforts…
According to his exhilarating account of the creation of his first scent (click here to read it), Richard E Grant was advised to aim for a polarising composition. Nothing wishy-washy:…
In his engrossing online account of the birth of his perfume Jack (I’d urge you to click here and check it out) Richard E Grant describes a creation process rich…
I’m not sure my attempt at humour was appreciated. A few weeks ago, I was at the Salon De Parfums on the top floor of Harrods, being talked through the…
Here’s part 2 of my round-up of Twitter mini-reviews, from April to June 2015. La Panthère Eau Légère from Cartier (Mathilde Laurent; 2015)* Lighter, more accessible version of the growling…
Here come more mini-reviews from Twitter, covering the period April to June 2015. Modern Muse Chic from Estée Lauder (2014)* Somewhat more intense rendition of original‘s transparent white florals. Not…
Top marks to Amouage for continuing to embrace the stranger territories of olfactory art. After the somewhat underwhelming Sunshine, Creative Director Christopher Chong has returned to the brand’s Library Collection…
In June, Andy Tauer published some thoughts on his blog about the relationship between the media and the perfume world. If any of you are interested in the many ways…
Olivier Polge‘s profile at Chanel continues to rise. A few months ago, the guardians of the double-C logo released his first sole-authored creation, Misia, but that was part of the…
Persolaise