Persolaise Persolaise Review: Oud Noir from Versace (perfumer unknown; 2013)
In the seemingly endless torrent of ‘oud’ scents pumped out by the mainstream, every now and then, something vaguely interesting raises its head above the water. Versace‘s Oud Noir is…
The Things You See At A Perfume Factory – A Visit To Robertet In Grasse
The photo above shows one of the sights that greeted me and Madame Persolaise when we visited Robertet’s Grasse factory in February*. A heap of mimosa, filling the air with…
Aurelien Guichard At London Launch Of Issey Miyake’s Pleats Please
Aurelien Guichard was in London in March to promote Pleats Please, the new feminine scent he’s made for Issey Miyake. Click here for an account of my meeting with him,…
A Very Public Convenience – Etat Libre D’Orange Boutique Opens In London
The latest sign of the continuing trendification of London’s East End is the opening of the Etat Libre D’Orange boutique (61 Redchurch Street, E2 7DJ; tube: Shoreditch High Street or…
Olivier Polge Joins His Father Jacques As Perfumer At Chanel
Big news from the house of the double-C logo. Here’s a press release I received this morning: CHANEL takes great pleasure in announcing the arrival of Olivier Polge as Perfumer…
Persolaise Review: Fate Woman (Dorothée Piot) & Fate Man (Karine Vinchon) from Amouage (2013)
If we’re in the realm of tea leaves, crystal balls and kismet, let me put my tarot cards on the table straight away: I don’t see these two scents in…
Persolaise In British Airways High Life Shop
photo: Andy Barter; set design: Nick Wood Those of you hopping aboard a British Airways flight this summer may be interested to learn that the current issue of High Life…
500th Post + The Winner Of Alyssa Harad’s Book
Just over three years ago, I published Post #1 here on Persolaise.com, and today I reach the 500 mark! Where has the time gone, I ask you? Answer: in a…
Persolaise Review: George from Jardins D’Ecrivains (perfumer unknown; 2012)
The marketing of perfume tends to be an intensely gender-specific business, so it’s always interesting to think about which materials and accords signify ‘feminine’ or ‘masculine’ at any given moment…
Carlos Huber & Rodrigo Flores-Roux On The Magic Behind Arquiste
I’ve already hinted at the fact that Rodrigo Flores-Roux is a great interview subject: he talks at length, but he doesn’t waffle, and he remains focussed on each question he’s…
Persolaise Review: Coming To My Senses by Alyssa Harad (2012) + A Give-Away!
In her Author’s Note at the start of Coming To My Senses, Texas-based Alyssa Harad explains that she decided not to reveal the identity of some of the perfumes she…
Persolaise Review: Ylang 49 (Frank Voelkl) and Lys 41 (Daphné Bugey) from Le Labo (2013)
THIS POST WAS SHORTLISTED IN THE ‘DIGITAL’ CATEGORY OF THE 2013 JASMINE AWARDS Wearing Ylang 49 has reminded me of a claim several perfumers have made about fragrance critics: apparently…
Is Poison On Its Way Back? – A Perfume Trend For Winter 2013
Predicting trends is a dubious business: as long as you do it often enough, a few of your pronouncements will inevitably turn out to be correct. That’s one of the…
Persolaise Review: Angel extrait from Thierry Mugler (Olivier Cresp & Yves De Chiris; 2006)
I don’t really like Angel. There, I’ve said it. I acknowledge that it is a supremely well-made fragrance with an important place in perfume history, but in terms of my…
Wrath In A Bottle – Seven Sinfully Angry Perfumes
This time, I seriously considered throwing in the towel. When Carrie asked us to pick one of the seven deadly sins for our next joint-list project, I immediately claimed ‘wrath’…
Alberto Morillas On Making Amouage’s Opus VII
When I chatted with Alberto Morillas at the London launch of Penhaligon’s Iris Prima (the full interview will appear on Basenotes) I asked him about co-authoring Amouage‘s Opus VII with…
Death By Candy: Eva Wiseman On The Power Of Scent
A few weeks ago, the consistently readable Eva Wiseman addressed the topic of scent in her Observer Magazine column. Here’s an extract: I often think about M&M’s World. It’s a…
Persolaise Review: Eau De Mandarine Ambrée from Hermès (Jean-Claude Ellena; 2013)
You can’t blame me for getting excited by the prospect of two new colognes from Jean-Claude Ellena. If there’s one thing the man knows how to do well, it’s producing…
Rodrigo Flores-Roux On Re-Making Fougère Royale For Houbigant
When I met Rodrigo Flores-Roux at the London launch of the John Varvatos range of scents, I asked him about his work on the reformulated, 2010 version of Fougère Royale,…
Looking For The Light At The End Of The Tunnel
It’s time for me to lock the study door, pull down the blinds and calm my nerves with a sniff of my beloved Habit Rouge. The Invasion Of The Day…