Life is truly a bed of roses with this week’s latest launches. There’s Amouage Rose Incense, Rose & Cuir from Jean Claude Ellena for Éditions de Parfums Frederic Malle and Oscar de la Renta Bella Rose. Add a dash of liberating YSL Libre and a spray of Abercrombie and Fitch and you’re all set for fabulous fragrances.
AMOUAGE
ROSE INCENSE
This Selfridges exclusive weaves ‘an olfactive tale of human emotions inspired by the “Rosebud” enigma in Citizen Kane.’ In fragrance terms, that translates to armfuls of roses, wrapped in the resinous mystery of frankincense and myrrh. Elemi, meanwhile, was chosen to bring a note of serenity to the fragrance – always welcome, in a crazy world. Designed to be shareable and sure enough, this smells as elegant on a masculine skin as a woman’s. Compare and contrast.
£240 for 50ml eau de parfum
selfridges.com
ÉDITIONS DE PARFUMS FRÉDÉRIC MALLE
ROSE & CUIR
Created via an exchange of texts pinging across the globe (read the full story on our Perfume Society website), this marks Jean-Claude Ellena’s return to EDPFM. (He created four scents for the house before his residency at Hermès.) The softest of leathers, it harnesses an animalic ‘forgotten’ molecule called isobutyl quinoline, which Ellena enfolded in the most velvety of roses. A handful of ingredients, brilliantly composed – the kind of genius scent haiku he’s famous for.
From £135 for 50ml eau de parfum
fredericmalle.co.uk
OSCAR DE LA RENTA
BELLA ROSA
There’s something luscious about Bella Rosa. Whether it’s the splash of aqueous freesia with juice-dripping mandarin, or the dew-filled petals of pink roses, we don’t know. What we do know, is that the medley of mouth-watering ingredients leaves us wanting more. Sprinkled with pink pepper in the top, and grounded with patchouli and amber in the base, it adorns the skin as elegantly as an Oscar de la Renta gown would.
£81 for 100ml eau de parfum
theperfumeshop.com
YVES SAINT LAURENT
LIBRE
A new fashion statement rendered in lavender, this is about as far away from ‘granny’s drawer-liner’ as you can imagine. Seamlessly smooth orange blossom borrows effortless masculine style from the fougère fragrance style – think of it as one of YSL’s exquisitely cut jackets thrown nonchalantly over your shoulder, a strong silhouette that shrugs off meaningless rules to make room for your own. We predict a trend for feminine lavenders will soon be soaring.
£56 for 30ml eau de parfum
boots.com
ABERCROMBIE & FITCH
AUTHENTIC MAN
Whispering somewhat nostalgically of recent summer days and warm nights, this is what we like to call in The Perfume Society office a ‘sexy man smell.’ Grapefruit and bergamot drizzle to a spicy pep of pink pepper and freshly grated ginger while a herbaceous waft of aromatic sage and lavender lounge in the shade. The intense, long-lasting yet still transparent note of Clearwood segues to a sensual finale of moss and suede snuggles.
£45 for 50ml eau de toilette
debenhams.com
