The Emilio Pucci brand, currently owned by Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy, is celebrating its 60th anniversary (see articles in the International Herald Tribune and The Telegraph) and as part of the festivities, is reviving a 1966 Pucci perfume called Vivara. The chypre fragrance has been updated by perfumer Francois Demachy:
But the new Vivara is a more modern chypre, said Demachy…
Indeed, far from downplaying their feminine side, some of the new men's colognes flaunt it. Promotional materials for Viktor & Rolf's Antidote, which is made with jasmine, call it a "dandy fragrance" for men who appreciate fine tailoring and sartorial wit. The name of Jean Paul Gaultier's new cologne includes the French word for flower: It's called Fleur du Male.
— from The scent of a woman, sold to men, in today's Spokesman Review.
Much of the surge in men’s fragrances has been driven by Acqua di Gio, a 10-year-old Armani cologne that was the top-selling fragrance for eight months in 2006. One clue to its success was that Acqua di Gio seemed to be more popular than other colognes among women, who buy more than half of all cologne as gifts.
— from The Scent of a Man, Bought by a Woman, in today's New York Times.
Before I could even try the Spider Lily Body Cream from Crabtree & Evelyn’s India Hicks Island Living collection, I had to figure out why the name “India Hicks” sounded so familiar to me. Ah, yes: if you’re old enough to recall the Royal Wedding of 1981, as I am, you may also remember her as one of Princess Diana’s bridesmaids at that “fairytale” event.
At the time, I was mesmerized by the entire spectacle of the Charles-and-Diana wedding, including the sight of a girl only a few years older than myself who held such a romantic and important duty. How had she been granted that honor? Apparently, it’s an advantage to be a goddaughter of Prince Charles and the granddaughter of Lord Mountbatten, the last Viceroy to India (hence her name), as well as a descendant of Queen Victoria. Now, thanks to some research, I also know that India Hicks has been busy with other stylish occupations over the past two decades: she has been a model (for Ralph Lauren and others), an interior designer (following in the celebrated footsteps of her father, David Hicks), a hotelier, and the author of two books that share her lifestyle in the Caribbean, Island Life and Island Beauty…
In my review of Constance Classen's book Aroma (February 2006) I wrote about the growing academic interest for the culture of smell. Not long after that, a wonderful anthology entitled The Smell Culture Reader was published, with excerpts and essays from various renowned (and some lesser known) authors. This massive book (442 pages, 36 articles) brings together some of the finest contemporary writings on smell and its philosophical and cultural implications. Divided into seven sections, it covers a number of frequently recurring topics in this genre, such as scent and sexuality, smell psychology, and fragrance aesthetics. But it tackles less common themes as well, like the fear of foreign smells in the urban domain, or how odors define the ambiance of a space.
Among the contributors you'll find several authors we've discussed previously on these pages. There's an interesting article by Mandy Aftel on technical aspects of perfumery…
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