Fragrance Junkie Central

[Mochapj]

I know there are a few of us on BT that are fragrance addicts, so I thought it would be nice to have a dedicated place where we can share our thoughts.

This is not to take away from the lovely What Are You Wearing Today, Fragrance Edition thread, but more a place to post longer reviews, chat about new brands or releases, and just shoot the breeze on anything good and smelly 🙂

For me, I recently acquired 2 new decants that I've been anxiously awaiting.  Ever since Lachaton mentioned that MMM was releasing a new scent called By The Fireplace I've been itching to get my hands on it.  My decant arrived yesterday, so I'm looking forward to marinating in it this weekend.  Secondly, I recently picked up a tiny sample of Shiseido Nombre Noir.  Supposedly it is one of the most expensive failures in perfume history - made by Serge Lutens for Shiseido back in the 80s.  Of course, with a backstory like that, I was dying to get a sniff 😄

What's new on your scent radar?  Do tell!

 

[Vmaster]

@Kim888

Really good stuff. So good that I purchased a 100 ml back up bottle just in case.

[blackkitty2014]

Yup!! It will be on my to buy list for sure @Kim888 

[Mochapj]

One is called Vanilla Shot, looks like in a pebbled leather bottle

[Mochapj]

Olfactive Studios has 3 new scents from Bertrand Duchaufour around the theme of Sepia coming out in November

[pocketvenus]

@MochapjThanks for posting! I generally like his fragrances, especially Timbuktu, Dzongkha and Incense Kyoto.

[ZombieMetroAnt]

Badgley Mischka Debuts Signature Fragrance

In tandem with the brand’s 30th anniversary, Badgley Mischka is introducing its first signature scent in over a decade.

Spoiler

With 30 years in business under its belt, Badgley Mischka is reintroducing fragrance to its brand portfolio.

After a decade away from the fragrance market, Badgley Mischka designers Mark Badgley and James Mischka are celebrating their company’s anniversary with a new signature fragrance developed in partnership with TPR Holdings LLC., which signed a beauty license with the brand earlier this year.

This is the first fragrance Badgley and Mischka have created since they bought their brand back from Iconix in 2016. Industry sources estimate the fragrance will earn $20 million during its first year on the market.

The namesake fragrance reflects the glamour and femininity that the brand’s designs have evoked over the past 30 years.

“Our clothes are decorative and romantic, feminine and beautiful and the fragrance encapsulates all of that,” Badgley said. “There’s always this thread of glamour that runs through everything we do, whether it’s a coffee mug or a red carpet gown and there’s nothing to us that’s more glamorous than a fragrance.”

When creating the scent, the designers were inspired by the magnolia trees that grew at their horse farm in Kentucky and looked to perfumer Richard Herpin to create the fresh, floral fragrance. The designers also referenced the finale look from their spring 2018 ready-to-wear collection, a three-dimensional, hand-painted floral embellished gown, as another source of inspiration.

“As a fashion designer and just a visual person, this is a nonvisual version of design, so it was something that was really important to us to get out there,” Mischka said, noting the brand has expanded into different categories, like home collections in February and men’s shoes in May last year. “Fragrance is obviously a logical component of Badgley Mischka as a glamour brand, so it was a reason why we wanted to reintroduce it.”

The designers are leveraging their experience from previously working in fragrance, but they aim to do things differently for this launch by working with TPR Holdings. “The landscape in the U.S. in retail and the world is changing and the previous fragrances were positioned at the very high end,” said Brian Robinson, president of TPR Holdings. “We wanted to make this fragrance a little more accessible and perhaps a little bit younger because the younger consumer is a very attractive consumer.”

The fragrance, which is infused with notes of magnolia, tuberose, peony, amber and musk, will retail for $115 for a 3.4-oz. bottle, $60 for a 1-oz. bottle and $28 for a purse spray. The brand is launching the fragrance on its Web site starting in October and then will introduce it exclusively at Dillard’s stores and online nationwide later this fall.

While the brand’s previous fragrances were geared more toward its couture customers, the new signature fragrance is supposed to be more accessible in terms of price and positioning and is meant to be an entry point into the brand.

“Fragrance is one of those categories where if you want to participate in a brand, but you can’t necessarily afford a $3,500 dress, then you can still be a part of the lifestyle,” Robinson continued. “We wanted to take a lot of time to make sure that the entire fragrance presentation — the packaging, the juice and the visual — was elegant and on brand, but was also more likely to be attractive to a wider audience.”

To attract the younger consumer, Badgley Mischka will build a strong presence on social media by working with influencers, providing visual content and using paid advertising. The brand is also working with Scentbird starting in October to provide sample sizes of the fragrance in order to get feedback from younger consumers.

Going forward, Badgley Mischka has plans to evolve its fragrance portfolio with limited-edition scents, pillars and flankers of the original signature fragrance. A color cosmetics collection, which was announced when the brand signed its beauty license with TPR Holdings, is still in the works; however, the brand could not discuss a launch date.

“Badgley Mischka is sort of a dream for a lot of people, so fragrance is the perfect embodiment of that dream,” Mischka said. Badgley added: “Fragrance creates an aura that not that many other categories can create. It’s so special in that regard."

~ end of WWD article

[pocketvenus]

There's a new Kilian, Do It For Love, which was developed for the Noir shop at Bergdorf Goodman. It's described as a vetiver au feminine, in which vetiver's bold energy is rounded off with a sensual, floral kiss.

Notes include vetiver, neroli, jasmine, bergamot, petitgrain. $325 for 50 ml Eau de Parfum.

[Vmaster]

Famous Nose, Luca Turin reviewed Joy by Dior and I thought to share it, as it is an interesting read:

Joy (Dior)

citrus floral 3/5 stars

First, the obligatory righteous rant: a few months ago LVMH bought Jean Patou, owners of the one and only Joy, an imperishable 1930 marvel due to Henri Alméras. I thought it good news, since P&G had done little with Patou, being clueless about luxury. A few weeks later, it became clear what the intent of the LVMH sludgebuckets had been all along: to bring out their own Joy and make sure they got no lawyer letters. I cannot think of a more craven overdraft on karma in the history of perfumery.

There never was, and never will be another Joy. The very name evokes gold letters on a black glass bottle with a coral-red top as if by synesthesia. It was, is and —unless LVMH does the unthinkable and kills it— always will be the greatest floral bouquet ever. I once visited the production line, saw the enormous steel (or was it silver? the contents would warrant it) barrel with a tap and a riveted curved brass plate that said JOY engraved on it, as if there might be another one somewhere labeled SORROW.

Now we have to grit our teeth and listen to François Demachy pontificate about how "[he] was fortunate to know its name from the beginning. And what a name! Short, and lively yet not affected, it is open to all possibilities". I must say his pronouncements are of such exceptional banality —"What we propose is a perfume that is made up of different ingredients"— that you feel LVMH may be holding a Demachy family member hostage somewhere till the PR is done. Nobody wants a repeat of Lagerfeld saying "Whatever Allure is, it is not a perfume".

We know what Demachy is good at. From his time as overseer of LVMH fragrances, it is clear that Demachy may not have had a really original idea since Antaeus in 1981, but that he is the world's most accomplished polisher of perfumes. Everything he does comes out perfect, whether it was worth perfecting or not.

Now to the fragrance: not bad. And how could it be, when it is made mostly of what Calice Becker brought to the floral, with a touch of Diorissimo zipping by in the first five minutes, a hint of Dioressence some time later, and a slug of Dune in the dry down, all this expertly assembled? What it most definitely is not, is a great Dior fragrance. It has no discernible shape or tune, just a (mostly) pleasant floral- powdery cloud. It is quite a bit better than Gabrielle, if that's any consolation.

[sister13]

Hmm, thanks for sharing the review post @VmasterI personally would put Gabrielle above Joy by Dior. Joy by Dior was really unremarkable to me and just so very similar to everything else on the mass market. Gabrielle is nice and slightly more remarkable, but doesn’t hold its own among othe Chanel,fragrances, in my mind. The new Dior Joy was more on par with the MARC Jacobs Daisy-type fragrances. I like the Dior Joy bottle, though, so pretty!

[pocketvenus]

Thanks for posting the whole review @Vmaster. I think I will still try it when I come across it 🙂

[Mochapj]

New scents from Jardins d’ecrins

[michelleshops]

Oh I want Howl.  They all sound interesting but I can't resist anything Ginsberg inspired. Now I have to go deep dive into this brand, thanks @Mochapj

[Mochapj]

New scent coming from TF: black cherry, cherry liqueur, bitter almond, griotte syrup, turkish rose, jasmine sambac, peru balsam, roasted tonka, sandalwood, vetiver, and cedar.

[ClassicallyFab]

Oooo! I really want to smell this one!

[Vmaster]

A very subtle name with a lot of meaning.

[Mochapj]

Lol @Vmaster I don’t find it subtle at all

in fact I find it like most TF of late, clunkily trying to hit me over the head with innuendo 

[Vmaster]

@Mochapj

I was being facetious. 🙂

[pocketvenus]

Thanks for sharing this @Mochapj! The notes remind me a lot of Guerlain's Petite Robe Noire which also has cherry, almond, tonka and rose.

[LadyStark1]

@Mochapj  I can't wait to try this, it sounds like it's going to be delicious.

[sister13]

Hmm, cant wait! @Mochapj

[keana1]

@Mochapj This new TF fragrance sounds quite interesting 🧐 ! Fruity, floral and woodsy at the same time!