Linda Pilkington of Ormonde Jayne will be holding a series of “Evenings with Linda Pilkington” at the brand’s new flagship boutique on Pavillion Road off Sloane Square…
Fresh on Marylebone High Street ~ shopping for perfume in London
Getting hold of skincare and scents by Fresh is pretty hard in the UK. The line used to be carried by some John Lewis stores, but even that channel dried up a couple of years ago. At present, anyone in the UK eager to sniff a perfumer’s take on cannabis will have to visit the Fresh store in Marylebone High Street.
The store is in a good location — this is an expensive area, but tending towards boho-chic rather than, say, Royal Family. It’s also the nearest shopping and dining possibility for those visiting Harley Street clinics, and sadly but inevitably, a fair proportion of shoppers consists of people passing time between appointments. With this in mind, the Fresh concept — white decor, slightly clinical, herbal undertones — is probably more than usually attractive.
The shop offers skincare, bath and body products, scents, and a small cosmetics line.
The most striking sight, for perfume lovers, is a group of glass ‘urns’ where scent is dispensed from taps…
Le Labo Synesthetic Series ~ perfume workshops in London
Niche line Le Labo will be holding a series of creative workshops in London with “synesthetic provocateur” Nicola Pozzani:
Le Labo Synesthetic Series is a series of 5 syneshetic workshops about perfume…
Dior Illustrated: Rene Gruau and the Line of Beauty ~ exhibit in London
About the author: Nina is our guest shopper for London. She’s on the road this weekend, so will be slow to respond to comments.
Once upon a time, print ads for Christian Dior perfumes consisted of beautiful illustrations, rather than photos of Jude Law.
If you love those illustrations, then you’re a fan of René Gruau, who drew them all.
Somerset House in London is currently hosting an exhibition of most of Gruau’s original artwork for the House of Dior, including several drawings that were never used. It’s a joyful insight into the shared vision of Gruau and Christian Dior, who were close friends as well as colleagues.
Dior and Gruau (it’s pronounced Grooh-oh) were both illustrators when they met on the fashion desk of Le Figaro in 1936. They seem to have taken to each other at once, coming from similar bourgeois backgrounds, with the same wistful attraction to the memory of Belle Epoque elegance.
When Dior launched his New Look in early 1947, he asked Gruau to illustrate his designs. Launching Miss Dior, his first perfume, later that same year, Dior called on Gruau again. “Do exactly what you want,” he said. “We speak the same language.”
It became one of the most fruitful relationships in the history of illustration. In fact, so successful was Gruau’s work for Dior, he continued to illustrate for Christian Dior Perfumes for over twenty years after Dior’s death in 1957. His last work was the 1984 campaign for Jules, for which the company had originally commissioned photographers; inspired by the challenge, Gruau produced a series of illustrations anyway, and the company were so impressed, they used his work rather than the commissioned photos….
Ormonde Jayne in Chelsea ~ shopping for perfume in London
Ormonde Jayne fans will be pleased to know that there’s a new standalone Ormonde Jayne shop in Chelsea, just off Sloane Square. The new shop is much bigger than the tiny space in the Royal Arcade, which means that more goodies are on display, rather than tucked away in drawers.
The new flagship store, swimming beautifully in smoked mirror glass, offers the chance to sit down and have your Perfume Portrait created for you…