The Most beautiful Perfume Bottles

Those are some of the most beautiful perfume bottles launched in the last past years...
And the "WHAT WERE THEY THINKING?"  perfume bottles launched in the past years.

  

Green Gardens, Perfume Trends, Culinary Treats - PART II

Photo credit: Un Coeur en Provence

As we continue to enjoy a relaxing moment in the garden...

Cologne Royale EDC by Dior - very fresh, very citrusy, it will bring hummingbirds to your life, looking for neroli nectars!

Notes for this fragrance are: Sicilian lemon, Bergamot and neroli of Calabria, mint and gentle notes.

In the past: it does have an Escale aux de Marquises (also Dior) aura. Twin sisters I must add...

L 12.12 Vert EDP by Lacoste - Simple, playful, zen...all these words described by the brand can be relocated to a relaxing day in the garden with people you enjoy. A deliciously fruity sweet opening with a green aura.

This fragrance presents notes of: bergamot, melon, verbena, lavender, fig, birch, bamboo wood, aqueous and woody notes.

Not so long ago: Gucci launched Gucci Sport, a clean, greeny fruity fragrance for sportive men, with notes of mandarin, grapefruit, cypress, cardamom, juniper berries, fig, patchouli, vetiver and ambrette seeds.

Daisy Eau so Fresh EDP by Marc Jacobs - the newest Marc Jacobs launch has the very essence of a spring garden. Pastel hued daisies are beautifully displayed over the pink flacon. Very delicate, very girlie. It is fun, it is playful, and focus on well being. Not to mention the amazing advertising in a very flowery wild landscape.
This flowery fragrance brings notes of grapefruit, raspberry, violet blossom, rose, apple blossom, jasmine, lychee, atlas cedar and white musk.

Flora by Gucci Eau Fraîche EDT - this 2011 Flora franchise is in the green trend, more subtle, more green and more fresh. Watery and kumquat notes were added.
Notes for this fragrance are: bergamot, kumquat, citrus, peony, osmanthus, rose, green notes, watery notes, sandalwood and patchouli.

In the past: Flora by Gucci is the fragrance with the most fantastic flower blooming in the history of perfume adverting!


To incorporate this garden trend to your meals, I suggest the following:

A delicious fruity-green salad with fresh aragulas, figs, olive oil and goat cheese - see recipe HERE
I usually make my own version with an olive oil + balsamic vinegar dressing. If you like your salad with a more incorporated flavor - you can add a few bites of blue cheese.

Or a less sweet option -  a Greek style zucchini, mint and black olive oils salad - click HERE for the recipe.

An asparagus risotto - a green-crunchy risotto, with an earthy touch of mushrooms and delicious cheeses. Click HERE for the recipe. I love to add rosemary to my risotto.

You can make bruschetta  and focaccia with herbs and green...Jamie Oliver has some recipes to share - click HERE

A delicious and aromatic pasta al pesto - click HERE for the recipe. Use in this case a very good cheese such as Parmigiano Reggiano, and always toast your pine nuts before adding to the pesto. 

Be adventurous in the kitchen, take more time to prepare something chic, such as stuffed, fried or au gratin  zucchini flowers! Click HERE and HERE for the recipes.

Bring a bit of the French gardens of the Provence by making your own Herbes de Provence mix. The typical recipe is a combination of the following dried herbs: savory, fennel, thyme, basil, rosemary, bay leafs, chervil, tarragon, marjoram and mint.

Make a delicious gren lemonade with lime, basil and mint leafs - blend all and serve with ice. I always blend it with a large quantity of ice so it becomes a ice lemon crush - children love it when it is very hot!


Use these recipes as an excuse to invite people to have lunch with you - outside in your garden. If you don't have one...it is time to move my friend!

Green Gardens, Perfume Trends, Culinary Treats - PART I

Photo credit: un coeur en Provence

Dutch trend forecaster Li Edelkoort, one of the most influential person in fashion, has already presented the trends for 2011/2012. In her presentation Li predicted a series of trends for fashion, art, design, architecture and beauty. Some of her trends were literally developed by perfume brands, such as Hermés. Li predicted (In the Landscape Interiors) "The green roofs - it is to become an icon of our time"/"rocks are everywhere in our environment and culture"/"camping colors will prevail and green will be very important"/"grass is going to be used inside as well as outside - grass will be very important".

+ Q Perfume Blog translated this trend to fragrances as "bring the garden into your home" kind of fragrances. Green, aromatic, fresh, herb-y, aquatic, delicate, flowery fragrances have been launched by many brands, after all, when Lady L predicts, it is a sure thing!

Photo credit: un coeur en Provence

So, take off your sandals and let's enter to these magical green gardens. Lets sit under a tree, or lie and relax in a woven network hammock. Let's plant new aromatic herbs to use in our culinary treats. Let's invite friends for a picnic, or for a roof garden party! Let's smell the flowers, savor the crunchiness and freshness of vegetables, the aromatic scent of the herbs...and the amazing "garden-like" fragrances!

Un Jardin Sur le Toit EDT By Hermès - as mentioned before,  Hermès perfumery staff must have sited on the front row, and listened very well to Li Edelkoort's lecture. They literally planted a garden on the top of a roof in Paris, and Jean Claude Ellena, the in-house perfumer of the Maison, wanted to recreate the fresh flowery joy of apple and pear trees. A secret vegetal garden that was presented on a roof, and given to you in a bottle.

One more perfume to be added to the "Le Jardins" collection, including olfactive notes of: apple, pear, grass, peppery note, magnolia, rose, green herbs, damp earth, oakmoss.

The Past: Kenzo has already brought beautiful Lika Minamot and poppy flowers to the top of buildings in his 2010 Flower Fragrance advertising:

Trèfle Pure by Atelier Cologne Cologne Absolue 18% - freshly cut grass, combined with dewy earth and violet flowers. A luminous fragrance that capture the moment that the grass smells fresher - after the rain.

Notes of this fragrance are: Bitter orange, cardamom, basilic, clove absolute, violets leafs, Tunisian neroli, patchouli, moss and musk.


The past: Margiela's first fragrance Untitled EDP by Margiela/Ninfeo Mio EDT by Annick Goutal/Un Jardin aprés la Mousson by Hermès

L'Eau Par Kenzo Wild Edition EDT pour Homme by Kenzo - Kenzo brought the freshness of water casts and blue pebbles - straight from Li's trend book. His garden has pounds and water fountains. It is aquatic, overflowing with life.

Notes of this fragrance are: citron, coriander, ginger, mint, sage, cardamom seeds, atlas cedar and white musks.

The past: Serge Luten's L'Eau/Voyage d'Hermès/DKNY Pure. Many fragrances from 2010 had water as a theme or inspiration - very easy to find!
As per pebbles...Kenzo had already used Karim Rashid's colorful pebbles in Ryoko. Also Lolita Lempicka in her fragrance L ... you can say that Comme de Garçons have a pebble like flacons too.




TO BE CONTINUED...

Vive La Gourmandise! Gourmet Perfumes!

In 1992 Thierry Mugler launched Angel, the iconic perfume that was created to evoke the tenderness of the momories of a childhood. The notes were sweet as a childhood memory must be. Caramels, chocolate, vanilla, honey, coumarine, associated with dewberries, red berries, bergamot, helional, hedione and patchouli opened a new olfactive family in perfumery - the oriental gourmets. The success can only be explained by the fact that we all have a sweet teeth and an uncontrolable urge now and than...

Truth is, we don´t need a fragrance to bring back our child memories, all it takes is to open a family album and take a look at the pictures, but Angel brought a warm sensation to fragrances that was broad and new. Mature ladies felt young wearing Angel. It had a emotional "botox" effect on them, and teenagers related to the fragrance as they relate to straberry scented gloss.

Since the early ages men used the nose as a tool for survival as  they smelled things to check for safety. Also looking into the history of perfumery, we acknowledge that the first colognes were composed by oils extracted from oranges, lemons, bergamots, citrons, aromatic herbs, and spices that were also found in the kitchen or in the perfumer's backyard. It is a fact that flavor (taste) and aroma (smells) are always complementing each other.
As gourmet fragrances became a must have in every woman's wardrobe, the fragrance houses began to produce more and more raw material to satisfy our "taste buds", such as pop corn, cotton candy, caramelized apples, marzipans, marmalades, etc...

This year Serge Lutens presents JEUX DE PEAU EDP, a daring gourmet note of toasts and butter. If you are surprised, I am not. As my new facebook friend and blogger, La gardenia nello ochiello, reminded me the other day that French cuisine is about 3 things: butter, butter and butter. We laughed about it, but in fact, Lutens gave French people what they love the most - buttery notes - an olfactive gourmandise that does not increase cholesterol levels!

Notes of this perfume are: roasted bread, licorice, immortelle, spices, apricot, sandalwood, amber, woody notes, incense, osmanthus.

A rich creamy buttery mouth watering fragrance that evokes brunches, French boulangeries and warm skin. 

You will find this fragrance at Essenza Nobile by clicking on the name of the fragrance above displayed.

Shalimar is a classic perfume launched in 1925 and it is a success until today. This timeless fragrance became a reference to oriental fragrances. By being the first fragrance composed by vanillin ethyl, the artificial molecule that smells like vanilla, I chose to add here also as a gourmet fragrance. Benzoin, Peru Balsam and opoponax reinforced the vanilla scent of the fragrance. There is a modern version of this perfume, Shalimar Parfum Initial, with the same spirit of the original, with vanilla, rose, iris, tonak beans, but fresher, with notes of bergamot (Less syrupy than the original).

Notes of this fragrance are: bergamot, mandarine, cedar, lemon, patchouli, jasmine, rose, orris, vanilla, benzoin, Peru Balsam and leather.

You will find this sensual gourmet fragrance at Guerlain.com

A sweet pinkish macaroon-y fragrance with raspberry, grapefruit, pear and plum, combined with delicate flower blooms and the candy like smell of violets. Very youthful, to the public who enjoys the strawberry scent and taste of lip gloss and The Gossip Girls (and the same preppy public of Chanel's Chance Eau Tendre).

Notes of this fragrance are: Grapefruit, raspberry, pear, plum, violets, apple bloom, jasmine, lychee (?), atlas cedar, clean white musk.

A promised happy pill. The same happiness you get by having Laudurée Macarrons!

You can fin this fragrance at your local perfume shop or MARC JACOBS.

It is so sweet that it is almost unbearable, and yet a very successful gourmet fragrance.

Lemons, limes, apple caramels, vanilla

Caramelized temptation, sticky fruity perfume. for very young ladies or more mature suffering from a nasty PMS. It is the sister of Angel - they both walked hand-in-hand to the nearest amusement park.

It contains a milky base that is quite strange.

Notes for this fragrance: Calabrese lemon, lime, red toffee apple, vanilla infusion, moonflower, peony petal, apple tree wood, cotton musk.

You will find this perfume at Nina Ricci website or the nearest perfume shop.

Paris Premières Roses by YSL is a spring version of the original Paris, launched this year. A rosy syrupy perfume. Another modernization of a classic, for ladies with an urge to sin in the kitchen.

Notes for this fragrance are: Peonies, Little Dog rose, freesia, orange flowers, muguet, musk, sandalwood.

This is a limited YSL spring Edition, so check YSL website for availability.

It is endorsed now by the newest America's sweetheart and oscar winner, Miss Nathalie Portman. The fragrance is classic, sweet, fruity, sensual, gourmet and pink. For anyone who loves caramelized popcorn, this is definitely the treat!
The notes for this fragrance are: Mandarin, strawberry leafs, violet, jasmine, caramel popcorn, wild strawberry sorbet, musk and patchouli.
If Natalie has a Frenchie sensual look by being naked and wearing a ribbon, maybe this is what Dior is promising - another gourmet, girlie, pretty fragrance... I think I liked the advertising with the balloons better...
Find this fragrance at your nearest perfume store or at DIOR's website.


I do like gourmet fragrances, but I think they have to be very sophisticated, or else it is just one more get-cavity-perfume.


My ideal gourmet fragrance are mostly fruity chypres, like Coco Mademoiselle by Chanel.
I also enjoy A*Men Pure Coffee by Thierry Mugler - with coffee, chocolate and plum notes. Also Bond Nº9 So New York with Mirabelle, expresso and chocolate notes.
Iris Ganache by Guerlain - the most beautiful combination of notes of iris and gourmet notes chocolate and vanilla.
Tarty fragrances such as Poopoopidoo by Ego Facto and Scale aux Marquise by Dior,  or almond-y fragrances such as Scale a Portofino by Dior.


What is your favorite sweet treat? 

Blogger technical problems - again...

I did not desable the comments in my blog - blogger did and somehow I am not succeeding to able them again....sorry ...I hope it is temporary!

Eu não desativei a ferramenta comentários do blog, o blogger desabilitou e eu não estou conseguindo trazer de volta...desculpa...espero que seja temporário!