The Different Company has launched De Bachmakov, a new perfume inspired by artistic director Thierry de Baschmakoff’s Russian origins and celebrating the Année France-Russie…
The Different Company Oriental Lounge ~ fragrance review
Oriental Lounge. What an evocative name for The Different Company‘s latest fragrance, an Eau de Parfum by perfumer Celine Ellena. When I think of an “oriental lounge”, I picture a Tretchikoff painting come to life: black enameled wood, cocktail glasses, candles in red glass casting flickering light, sultry women parting beaded doorways.
My first impression on trying Oriental Lounge was that it was Guerlain Shalimar without the best parts. I smelled Oriental Lounge’s citrusy top folded into a tonka-tinged amber, and it felt flat and linear. After trying it a few more times, I figured out Oriental Lounge shouldn’t be experienced by the drop, but that a good half tube of a sample vial — or ideally a spray — is needed to get a full impression of the fragrance. It turns out I was wrong. Oriental Lounge may not be a slenderized Shalimar, but it isn’t exactly the dreamy, complex 1940s Chinese restaurant cocktail lounge of a scent I had hoped, either…
The Different Company Oriental Lounge ~ new fragrance
Oriental Lounge will be the next fragrance from perfumer Celine Ellena at The Different Company. Oriental Lounge is reportedly mysterious and luminous, and is described as a modern interpretation of a classical fragrance family, the oriental, and a modern olfactory take on the classic tale of the Orient, One Thousand and One Nights…
The Different Company ~ shopping for perfume in Paris
The Different Company shop in Paris is in the Jewish quarter of the Marais district, on the same quiet road as the Miller et Bertaux boutique.
The shop sells the full range of The Different Company products — bottles, leather cases, etc. — but also carries other ranges that match the The Different Company aesthetic of beautiful presentation and packaging. At the time of my visit, the ‘guest’ line was Maison Calavas, which offers cosmetics in gorgeous palettes, many of them leather-clad in a similar way to the The Different Company’s leather containers…
The Different Company Sublime Balkiss ~ perfume review
Sublime Balkiss is the lastest from perfumer Celine Ellena at The Different Company. The modern (i.e., oakmoss-free, i.e., not chypre-ish) chypre fragrance was named for the Queen of Sheba, and features two kinds of patchouli: the traditional essence, and a “modified modern patchouli” which emphasizes the cocoa powder notes.
Sublime Balkiss opens on a veritable berry-fest: it's juicy and rich, like a dark berry liqueur with a touch of sparkle (the notes, in addition to the patchouli: bergamot, violet, blueberry, blackberry, blackcurrant, lily of the valley, rose, lilac). The base is dry, earthy-woody and smooth, with hints of spice but only very subtle cocoa…