Parisians do that chic-but-edgy rock ‘n roll thing so insouciantly it must be in their very DNA, and the Paris-based fashion house of uber cool Zadig & Voltaire embody the concept of easy luxury every single day. And now you can, too, with the brand’s This is Her! and This is Him! fragrances enticing you to embrace modernity and break the mould – and if all that sounds like a lot of hard work, then we say simply relax while smelling distinctively sublime…
French designer Thierry Gillier was inspired by the iconic revolutionary philosopher of the Enlightenment, Voltaire, and his protagonist hero Zadig, to create his grunge-chic label, and being a scent obsessive it seemed only natural to have that ethos embodied in fragrant form. Explains Gillier:
‘I can’t imagine a life without fragrance. I like when it leaves a trail, asserts a personality. It’s an alchemy between you and someone else…’
Watch the ad campaign right here – read our review (below) and then run to sniff for yourselves. You can thank us later…
With arty looking bottles seemingly hewn from granite, the ‘jagged’ edges actually fit together in perfect harmony. And the scents? This is Her! imagines a free-spirited punk princess dressed in sensuous silk and cashmere, the woody-gourmand notes of chestnut and sandalwood buoyed by a burst of pink pepper in the top notes and sweet jasmine sighing softly at the heart.
We must admit that we swooned quite a bit over This is Him! While perhaps not being the target market of “…a powerful gentleman of rock, complete with a leather look”, we urge other women to try this on their skin, too, as the pepper and grapefruit zip almost immediately into an irresistible swirl of soft incense and salty vanilla – a definite wrist-sniffer, and the boys can go sulk because we’re not sharing this one, either.
Zadig & Voltaire This is Her! from £38 for 30ml eau de parfum
Zadig & Voltaire This is Him! from £36 for 30ml eau de toilette
Buy them at Debenhams
Written by Suzy Nightingale