Thoughts On Frederic Malle Leaving His Own Brand -- And Reviews Of Some Of His Classic Scents

Frederic Malle has announced he's leaving his own brand -- some thoughts from me, followed by reviews of a few his classic releases

— The speculators I alluded to above are theorising about all manner of likely (and less likely) reasons and scenarios. Take your pick from whichever of the following you fancy: i) thwarted creative freedom, ii) clashing and disagreeing with the marketing strategies employed by a multi-national monolith, iii) not wanting to put up any longer with his perfumes being cheapened, iv) the end of the…

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17 giugno … ricordiamo …

17 giugno … ricordiamo … #semprevivineiricordi #nomidaricordare #personaggiimportanti #perfettamentechic

2019: Gloria Vanderbilt, Gloria Laura Vanderbilt, è stata una stilista, scrittrice, attrice ed ereditiera statunitense, membro della ricca famiglia Vanderbilt di New York. (n. 1924) 2017: Anneliese Uhlig, attrice e giornalista tedesca, naturalizzata statunitense. (n. 1918) 2017: Venus Ramey, modella statunitense, eletta Miss Distretto di Columbia ed in seguito Miss America 1944. . (n. 1924) 2016:…

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𝒟𝒾𝑜𝓇𝒾𝓈𝓈𝒾𝓂𝑜, the fragrance that Edmond Roudnitska created for Christian Dior in 1955

🎨.  𝕓𝕪 ℝ𝕖𝕟é 𝔾𝕣𝕦𝕒𝕦

Understanding Men’s Colognes & Fragrances: Top 5 Men’s Best Perfumes

There are few perfumes that are an absolute hit among men for any occasion, but there is no perfume that tickles everyone’s senses. Depending on your personal preferences, love, and the occasions on which you will be wearing the perfume, choose the right one for you.

While you may not be a collector of great perfumes, there are a few that you should keep in hand: two seasonal perfumes (one for spring and summer, one for fall and winter), a regular daytime perfume or cologne, and another deep-night perfume. Having perfumes that will serve these things will get you sorted all year long. Most masculine perfumes have two types of dominant fragrances: fresh notes( aqua, fresh green, and fruity) and woody, spicy notes. Here are some recommendations for different categories of men’s perfumes.

The 5 Best Men’s Perfumes for Different Occasions

The best men’s perfumes here are recommended on the basis of the number of units sold, seasonal preferences, lasting duration, and popularity among the masses. Here are the ones that Canadian men really cherish.

Dior Homme by Dior:

This oriental woody perfume is a classic favorite of men and has fresh opening notes on top of a woody leather base. This is a perfect fall and winter daytime perfume and quite a good choice for going out clubbing and partying. The unique blend of sage, lavender, iris, cocoa, wood, and leather notes sets it apart from other men’s fragrances. It is available as eau de cologne as well as less concentrated eau de toilette.

Sauvage Collection by Dior:

The Eau Sauvage, Sauvage, and Sauvage Elixir are fresh and aromatic perfumes for men. The most fresh and spring-packed Eau Sauvage came out in 1966 and was created by Edmond Roudnitska. The citrusy notes mixed with woody amber notes create an aromatic combination for spring and summer days. This is a great choice for dates, picnics, and daily wear.

Paco Rabbane 1 Million Lucky:

The 1 Million Lucky by Paco Rabbane is one of the luxurious perfumes that showcases your elegant taste. It has a pulsating aroma of woody and gourmand scents. It is the perfect luxurious perfume for meetings, special events, weddings, and other special occasions.

273 Rodeo Drive, Fred Hayman:

Fred Hayman’s 273 Rodeo Drive is one of the most affordable yet aromatic and sensual fragrances for men in Canada. The perfume’s top notes are lavender and bergamot, with oakmoss and amber at its heart, sitting on the base of musk and cheddar. It is a great all-year-round wody perfume for everyday use.

Echt Kolnisch 4711 Cologne:

The Echt Kolnisch 4711 is a one-of-a kind perfume with different types, with top notes of tropical citrus fruits and a heavy wood and oak base. The opening notes are a mix of grape, bergamot, and orange, which, mixed with a middle base of fresh floral scents of rosemary and rose, gives a swirl of sensation. The base is musk, petitgrain, sandalwood, and neroli, which balances all the fruity floral scents while giving a smooth finishing silage.

Conclusion:

It's important to note that fragrances can vary slightly based on batch, formulation changes, and individual skin chemistry. Therefore, it's recommended to try a sample or test the fragrance on your skin to ensure it suits your personal preferences before making a purchase.

Check out this listing I just added to my Poshmark closet: Femme Rochas by Rochas 3.3 OZ EDP for Women.

NISHANE - SUÈDE ET SAFRAN - Signature Collection - Extrait de Parfum - The avid smeller.  SAFFRON SELECTION - PART IV Saffron as a soft armor, a victory omen over the exciting challenge of senses.The fil rouge of a compelling plot where aromas play the everlasting game of love and passion. •••• • SELEZIONE ZAFFERANO - PARTE IV Profumo e identità olfattiva. Il valore dell’unicità. Serena obiezione a chi relega in spazi già vissuti, calpestati, conquistati, un profumo. Un segreto non segreto? Non esistono fragranze simili tra loro. Non esiste il perfetto duplex di un aroma, ma, soprattutto, non ritroveremo mai la replica su pelle dell’evoluzione che la stessa fragranza ottiene su qualsiasi altra pelle. 

Chimica? Magia? Verità! Dal punto di vista compositivo poi un ulteriore dogma. I Nasi sono artisti, interpretano, esprimono, decodificano in modo assolutamente soggettivo il loro istinto, la loro energia creativa. Edmond Roudnitska, per citare un grande, componeva a mente, non davanti all’organo di essenze, difficile quindi supporre che le sue formule, la sua arte, potesse in qualche maniera essere copiata. Storpiata forse. Copiata mai. E così a vincere sarà ancora e sempre il piacere della scoperta, ogni volta in modalità sorpresa! a svettare su ogni possibile considerazione ordinaria, superficiale. In Suède et Safran, apprezzatissimo Extrait della Collezione Signature di Nishane, lo zafferano ha un ruolo primario. È incisivo, potente, una traccia rossa da seguire, un comando ineludibile che porta dritto dentro un universo variegato di spezie, balsami e pellami pregiati. Come una morbida corazza, questi accordi plasmano un’armonia d’aromi eterea eppure imponente, la texture tattile convince dai primi passi fino al compimento estremo della sua sostanza. Suadente al debutto, animata dal fervore dei semi di ambretta, la loro nuance è dry muschiata animalica, accesa nel pigmento infuocato dello zafferano iraniano e nel lucore pungente dello zenzero, raggiunge l’acme aromatico tra le consistenti volute cuoiate, un soffice suede spalmato di lusso speziato.Infine il muschio che tutto guarnisce e innalza, espressione di gioia rara a brillare nel sillage. Un caldo invito a spiccare.

Creata da Jorge Lee. Extrait de Parfum 50 ml.  Da Fragrans in Fabula. ©thebeautycove   @igbeautycove

Notes: plum, cinnamon, peach, apricot, rosewood, bergamot, lemon; cloves, carnation, ylang-ylang, rosemary, rose, iris, jasmine; oakmoss, leather, benzoin, amber, patchouli, musk, vanilla

Ahhh, that’s the stuff.

I’ve been looking for a plummy fragrance — less sweet than Lutens’ spiced-stewed-fruit tropes, less mild than Mitsuoko; a dark, earthy fragrance with real plum flavor. Well, here it is, Edmond Roudniska’s 1944 creation, Rochas Femme. Or, as I might put it, “Femme, Femme, the Slutty Plum.”

It’s got just enough prune-y purple flavor to be delicious, cut with serious, dark oakmoss and leather, warm mulled-wine spices, sticky-brown amber, and savory, skanky animalic notes. It’s got Tabu’s richness and earthiness, plus the lovely poignancy of that plum note.

I love perfumes that feel like a symphony of overlapping but distinguishable voices, all pointing more or less in the same direction. In Femme, everything points to “warmth.” Fruity warmth, spicy warmth, caramelized warmth, earthy or sweaty warmth, boozy warmth...it’s all there, like a full meal and a glass of whiskey in a swank hotel. A seamless, rounded whole, in shades of plum and copper-brown and brandy-golden. Mature. Knowing. Plush and indulgent. This is a perfume to *enjoy*.

The great perfumer and perfume theorist Edmond Roudnitska, creator of Diorissimo and Eau de Hermès, had some wonderful ideas about how to begin smelling and describing as a perfumer:

Try to determine and record the quality and character of the odor (its note, its “form,” what it evokes or suggests); its stability or instability; the evolution of the note, its form in time (several days, several weeks); the duration of perceptibility. All these traits make up the attributes of the odor and give it a personality; they are inseparable and will have to be taken into account as a coherent whole. When introduced to a mixture, the odor ceases to be one entity and interacts freely with other odorous bodies.

Take note of everything that comes to mind, using the words which arise naturally; if they enable a thought to be more precise, if they surround the contours of the odors without ambiguity. Avoid “almost” at any cost. Try to find the words that unequivocally define the impression so that twenty years later, if confronted with the same impression, the same words come to mind.

— Mandy Aftel, Essence and Alchemy: A Natural History of Perfume

Dior Diorella edt (Edmond Roudnitska; 1972) & Higher (Olivier Gillotin & Olivier Pescheux; 2001) vintage Reviews

Look what I found in Italy this summer! #perfume

Last year, a family-owned shop in northern Italy yielded a few vintage treasures (click here for my video on the goodies I bought there). And this summer, the town of Monreale in Sicily (if you ever find yourself there, do not leave without visiting the cathedral!) was the place where I was persuaded to exchange my pennies for a couple of well-preserved old bottles: an edt of Dior Diorella and a…

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Eau Sauvage by Christian Dior (1966)

Perfumer: Edmond Roudnitska

“For the first time in the history of the world perfumery market (31 billion euros in 2021), it is a male product that has risen to the top of sales, all fragrances combined, female and male: "Sauvage ", the latest version of Dior's iconic Eau Sauvage, created in 1966 by Edmond Roudnitska . This perfume, of which actor Johnny Depp is the muse, was launched in 2016. Today, one is sold every three seconds on the planet.”

Johnny Depp is the face of the only male fragrance to ever top the global market. HISTORY MADE ✔️

edmond roudnitska once said that truly great perfumes initially must elicit a shock

Best in House: Hermès

It is generally accepted that the two great designer houses for fragrance are Chanel and Hermès. Of the two, I must admit that I prefer the understated elegance of Hermès to the chic, cut-glass aldehydes I associate with Chanel. Generally, you will be quite safe with any Hermès fragrance, but here are five outstanding fragrances from the house that showcase its range.

Bel Ami - I own both the vintage version by Jean-Louis Sieuzac and Jean-Claude Ellena’s current reformulation of this spicy leather chypre. Both are utterly beautiful. Citrus notes lift up a smoky leather of the isobutyl quinoline variety that’s been infused with spices. The vintage offers a lovely depth with deep, throbbing, animalistic notes while the contemporary version shimmers with a complex hesperidic veil. Easily one of the top five leather fragrances of all time.

Terre d’Hermès - One of my favourite citrus scents, I found Terre d’Hermès arresting at first sniff. Bold and earthy, this fragrance by Ellena exudes confidence, light and angularity, with clean woods and darker green notes crisply shading in the fragrance and grounding it firmly. It has a strong presence, yet is still versatile enough for a variety of settings.

Hermèssence Épice Marine - This is certainly not the most popular of the Hermèssences but it is an excellent example of both Ellena’s minimalist style and the intent to compose olfactory “haikus” wherein two unexpected notes are juxtaposed for a startling effect. Here, Ellena takes the dreaded aquatic genre with cool “marine” notes and pairs that with a spicy warmth, especially cumin. Incredibly, it works.

Galop d’Hermès - I was hesitant to include another leather, but the house is known for its leather goods. This scent is also a good example of the creative flair in Hermès fragrances, as upheld by its latest nose, Christine Nagel. Despite including quince in its notes pyramid, this floral, feminine leather avoids the easy route of fruit or sueded texture by way of Cuir d’Ange or Serge Lutens’ Daim Blonde. This is an intellectual scent, the leather having a sterner, stiffer quality than the aforementioned scents, paired with an austere rose and softened a little with sweetness.

Twilly - This is not a personal favourite but I’ve included it to showcase Hermès’ range. Tuberose is typically either presented as the voluptuous, creamy queen of white florals or she is cleaned up, tucked in and de-clawed into a more demure composition. Either way, there is a maturity to the flower. Nagel takes the latter route but adds a creative, youthful slant, with her tuberose pepped up and shot through with ginger and spice.

I have to add Eau d’Hermès as a runner up. Composed by Edmond Roudnitska, this was the very first perfume by the house remains among one of its best, a citrusy scent with the added depth of cumin. The classic tension between the scent’s clean, aromatic side and its spicy, animal base makes this one of my favourites from the house. I’d include this, but it’s a bit too close to Bel Ami with its citrus-spice vibe.