This week’s Latest Launches are full of adventure and promise. From palm fringed beaches to sophisticated soirées, you’ll find a fragrance to suit every whim and fancy. The tricky part is choosing a favourite…
CALVIN KLEIN
ETERNITY FLAME
Eternity’s flame keeps a-flickering, revisited here by talented Laurent Le Guernac, who seeks to capture ‘the symbol of devotion, warmth and affection’ in a solar floral in which juicy fruits and the delicate blooms of sweet peas are hugged by dry, resinous labdanum. If Eternity was a barefoot wedding on a New England beach, this is the passionate second honeymoon, 30 years on – and of course, there’s a male Eternity Flame counterpart, too.
From £35 for 30ml eau de parfum
Superdrug.com
GIVENCHY
L’INTERDIT EDITION COUTURE
All dressed up in silkscreened black lace is this collector’s edition of 2018’s L’Interdit, with a design that pays homage to the couture house of Hubert de Givenchy and Claire Waight Keller, who’s taken up the mantle there. Same juice, different look – so inside, you’ll enjoy the collaboration between Dominique Ropion, Anne Flipo and Fanny Bal, in which white flowers (orange blossom, jasmine and tuberose) contrast with the darkness of patchouli and vetiver.
£72 for 50ml eau de parfum
boots.com
GUERLAIN
AQUA ALLEGORIA COCONUT FIZZ
We normally expect one addition to Guerlain’s Aqua Allegoria portfolio, each year – but this year, our dressing table runneth over with a trio of bee-bottled, sparkling newness from the hand (or rather, nose) of Thierry Wasser. He promises ‘On this one-way trip, you find yourself lying on white sand surrounded by coconut trees with a view over a turquoise sea.’ A transparent coconut water note, flowers and citrus are your means of transportation.
£59 for 75ml
johnlewis.com
LES BAINS GUERBOIS
L’HEURE DE PROUST
Inspired by the greatest literary scent memory of them all, this Proustian plunge into teatime treats encompasses sweetness without straying too far into gourmand territory. Think light-as-air blueberry muffins and hot but slightly sour pomelo tea; a crisp bite of green maté macarons with a pleasingly squidgy centre of violet crème. Over the teacups, sordid gossip spills: talk of vanilla perfume on his leather jacket – his scent, hers, or a scandalous entwining…?
£159 for 140ml eau de parfum
lessenteurs.com
YARDLEY
FLOWERFUL DECADENT MIMOSA
Three A-list perfumers worked on Yardley’s latest flower-powered collection, including rising star Philippe Paparella-Paris, who confected this pure breath-of-spring green floral. Utterly sun-filled, it bursts into life via pear, pink pepper and mandarin, spinning notes of rich sugar around notes of mimosa absolute, powdery iris, lily of the valley, softening further into of vanilla, sandalwood and musk. Delicately sweet – but not overly so – it’s the perfect addition to your mid-season scent wardrobe.
£20 for 50ml eau de toilette
yardleylondon.co.uk
PACO RABANNE
PURE XS NIGHT
Slightly disconcertingly, Paco Rabanne maintain ‘You may never sleep again’, as they reveal this next chapter in the sexy Pure XS scent saga. ‘Unsettling. Exciting. A perfume of peril.’ A trio of talents – Caroline Dumur, Anne Fliipo and Bruno Jovanic – offer up a new ginseng accord for a ‘burning freshness’, with an overdose of ginger further warmed by vanilla, myrrh and cocoa absolute. Our verdict: yes, this is decidedly aphrodisiac – but really wearable, with it.
From £54 for 50ml eau de parfum
boots.c
