Michel Germain has launched two new fragrances, Sexual Fresh for women and Sexual Nights Pour Homme:
Sexual Fresh for women ~ a fruity floral; "Because you are beautiful. The fragrance that envelops you with a gorgeous, youthful beauty. Sexual Fresh opens with iced ruby grapefruit and cooling cardamom. A pure bouquet of pink peony, white magnolia, and crushed white tea leaves deepens to a sensuous dry down of sensual musk with a hint of precious amber." Additional notes include bergamot, ginger, star jasmine and sandalwood. In 75 and 125 ml Eau de Parfum.
Sexual Nights Pour Homme ~ a fruity green fougere; "Aphrodisiac infused. Raw magnetism meets inescapable, seductive charm. Contemporary, stimulating notes of bergamot, mandarin, and neroli blend with wild basil and crushed geranium. This intensely magnetic fragrance dries to a primal, sensual heart of cedarwood, orris, and tonka bean." Additional notes include sage, jasmine and sandalwood. In 75 or 125 ml Eau de Toilette.
(via michelgermain)
The name of the woman’s fragrance is truly barf-worthy. Can’t he come up with some new perfume names rather than tagging various adjectives to ‘sexual’?
I so agree with the name – really bad.
He also did Tattoo & Sugar Daddy, if that helps
I’m so glad to see Gelatin’s and Karin’s comments—I thought maybe I was in a picky mood today and just didn’t realize it yet!
So I’m not the only one who is a bit annoyed by the names. Is it not enough that the perfume industry is already flailing us with images of various models-slash-actress-slash-spokesperson-slash-gossip rag queens writhing in the throes of sexual ecstasy? or the ever popular “I’m about to take my clothes off and could have sex any second now” type marketing to let us know that something (ie fragrances they want you to buy) is “sexy” ? Now it’s not enough to thrash us with the image? Now they want to make doubly sure we know it by emblazoning it across the bottle? (yes, I’m aware this is no where near the first to name a fragrance thusly) but it is SUCH a turn off to a product (any product) that this rant just sort of bubbled up. Straw….camel’s back….you get the idea.
Well, to be fair, he’s been emblazoning perfume bottles in bad taste for quite a few years now. Sexual Fresh, that pretty much takes the cake though. It sounds like the female fragrance partner to Sex Panther.
Sexual Fresh isn’t new either though…he did one for men some years back
I feel your pain. I have taken to avoiding entire lines of things because I’m tired of being insulted. I didn’t buy Urban Decay or NARS anything for a long time because I’m sick and tired of the faux-edgy assertion that I’m putting on blush because I want to look like I just got laid, or that it’s okay to sell me a lipgloss that calls me a tramp or a pervert. It’s sickening and tired and….
and and and and and. I could go on and on, but I won’t. Misanthropic or curmudgeonly yes, perhaps it is. But some things and labels and tropes richly deserve that type of response.
I never bought Posion, Obsession or Opium, in part, because of the negative connotations of those names. Why not Toxic Substance, Stalker, or Junkie? Perhaps as a result, I have avoided most of the “Big shouldered Disco era” scents.
I have smelled Sexual at a perfume conference; it was pretty awful, and would have been pretty awful no matter how ugly or pretty the name. (A rose may smell as sweet by any other name, but Sexual would smell as bad by any other name.)
LOL! Big shouldered Disco scents would have been my mother (does that mean they’re now old lady perfumes?) but I sooooooo know what you mean!
Ack. Speaking of, some of that stuff is coming back. *blanch* Marc Jacobs (I think, but I’m not sure) even has been calling some of his current collection Disco something or other. *sigh* And the horrid “sharp shoulder/strong shoulder” shape too. Not inherently bad fashion, but come on…when have designers ever not taken things to (all too frequently) hideous extremes?
(only now it’ll all be paired with whispy fruity florals, powerless powders and uber-sythetic fresh/clean scents…)
I think the actual big shoulders of 80’s fashion were derived from the television show Dynasty where the oversized shoulder pads (and hair) of the lead actresses were
1. originally meant as a joke;
2. A clever way to balance the rather wide hips (not fat, just a wide hip size) of one of the lead actresses.
I was feeling particularly grumpy today (too much to do, too little time – big clan meeting on Saturday and lots of food to cook) and I have to say that at first this truly stupid name made me feel even worse. Then I read your rant and felt all was right in the world again!
I just think the name Sexual Fresh sounds like an “intimate cleanser” (to avoid using the more vulgar term). It’s a total turnoff!
just say it–a douche is a douche! I guess ‘Summer’s Eve’ was trademarked.
Karin,
You beat me to it and said it MUCH more tactfully than I!
O_O *LOLOL*
I actually can’t stop laughing about the name. I don’t really find anything about sex ‘fresh’. And icy ruby grapefruit is definitely not something I’d associate with it — unless you’re trying that old myth that grapefruit assists with fertility.
I do not know that myth — now I’m curious!
I don’t really know what it’s allegedly supposed to do but I’ve heard it cited before as ‘assisting w/ fertility’. But yeah, only time I’d ever think grapefruit would be associated with sex.
If I hadn’t read this, I’d think it was a douche for those “not so clean” moments after sex.
ROFL! While I was reading the post, I was thinking that the women’s fragrance could be renamed Summers Eve.
Dawnkana- you nailed it.
The bottle is also sort of “icky” in a sexually suggestive way. Take it from a Bottle Tart. I don’t want that one.
LOL Seriously. If I bought this and I liked it, and someone asked me what I was wearing I’d just HAVE to lie and say, “oh, I bought it from a farmer’s market from an independent perfume maker.” Then they’d ask, “oh! Which farmer’s market? I’d like to check it out!” and I’d respond, “errr… Zimbabwe…”
Actually I think Summer’s Eve would have been a better name than Sexual Fresh. Even with the feminine product association.
Ah yes…I posted my note above before reading this. I avoided saying the word douche – but yes, it totally has that connotation to me! Terrible name!!!!
Absolutely. And I was admonished too many times in junior high school health classes that douching upsets the natural chemical balances and will lead to big, more unpleasantly odoriferous problems! Double, triple yuck!!
Exactly. Oh, if only we could interview the person/panel that gave final approval to the name. Or maybe it was chosen by drawing words out of a hat. Or not. How does something like this even happen?
What are they trying to tell us with the clever use of diacritical marks, that the name is written in Vietnamese?
The macron over the U usually means a long vocal, so it is actually pronounced “sexuuual” or “sexoooal”. Oh how much more alluring it became
Pass, not interested.
I guess i’m holding out for the oriental flanker “Dirty Sexual Nights”
Followed closely by Sexual Jungle Black featuring scent notes from “traditional African perfumery” and Homme Sexual a special edition light and fruity version* for the men’s line. ;p
* Yes, yes, I know. Don’t start screaming at me, it’s just a tasteless joke.
And also “Walk of Shame” with notes of morning breath and regret.
LOL! Morning Breath? That might make it worth a try just for the “no…really?” factor!
Call me crazy but when I think of scents that might be considered sexy, I have to say, fruity-florals do not come to mind.
What note or fragrance family do you think of when you think of a sexy-sounding fragrance? (I’m new to fragrances so I’m asking tons of questions!) I’m thinking spicy oriental?
I’ve actually been trying to figure out when the whole fruity=sexy thing started. It seems fairly new (in the last 5-10 years?) but maybe it started in the 90s. It certainly was not the case in the 80s. Indolic white flowers always bring out my inner Ava Gardner but spicy orientals would work too.
I think spicy oriental is a good thought.
Fragrance is such an individual thing, however, that different people will associate different scents with different emotions. For me, I like spicy but I also am drawn towards “dark” or”mysterious” scents [MJ Bang(spicy), Chanel No. 19(mysterious), vintage Shalimar (dark and mysterious!)] when I want to feel powerful/sexy. And I have a male friend who is completely distracted when I wear Bulgari Omnia, which I consider a rather tame musky tea scent.
As with so many things, I suspect we are all our most alluring when we feel confident and attractive, so we pick whatever gives us that feel. Hope that helps!
Sexual Fresh sounds like a feminine cleanser of some creepy kind ! *LOL*
” Hey you smell good – what are you wearing ? ”
“Sexual Fresh ”
*cringe*
Sexual Fresh? HAHAHAHAhahahahaha no.
The name immediately brings to mind the dreaded Tampax Fresh Accord(tm).
One night stand with a crusty street urchin?? Shower with Sexual Fresh!!
Oh, and by “urchin,” I do mean an adult!
I can’t decide which name is worse his earlier “Sexual Star” or “Sexual Fresh”..
I clicked through on this one specifically for the comment thread.