Honorine Blanc-Hattab: 4 posts

Aerin, the lifestyle brand of Aerin Lauder, recently presented five fragrances: Gardenia Rattan, Amber Musk, Lilac Path, Ikat Jasmine and Evening Rose. So what can you expect from the collection? Each fragrance is built around a distinctive theme and painted with delicate, pastel tones. The word that comes to mind is tasteful.

At first, I was a little disappointed to find such mild-mannered blends, but the more I wore the perfumes, the more the collection made sense as the scent equivalent of pret-a-porter. Wearing these perfumes is like slipping into a cashmere dress or silk camisole, a garment that may not look flamboyant but that makes you feel wonderful. The perfumes are not dramatic, to be sure, but they are a pleasure to wear.

While the perfumes don’t come cheap, Lauder didn’t skimp on high-grade materials when making Aerin’s collection. For instance, Evening Rose contains beautiful rose absolute and Amber Musk features a particularly luscious musk note. Overall, it’s a good fit with Aerin Lauder’s understated aesthetic and emphasis on quality. But if you want haute couture drama and panache, you’ll probably have to look elsewhere.

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After months of media buzz, Lady Gaga Fame has finally been launched.  You probably know by now how this celebrity perfume thing works.  Some celebrities—like Sarah Jessica Parker—get down and dirty in the design process, vetting the concept, going through the mods, arguing for dirtier musk, losing argument for dirtier musk, announcing that next time things are going to be different.  Then there are those under whose noses you presume a scent strip has passed, but who have not attended that endless cycle of developmental-phase meetings.

Lady Gaga appears to be of the assertive former type.  Early reports had it that the singer wanted her perfume to be based on blood and semen.  These notes, which might seem shockingly brave, are not new: Etat Libre d’Orange has already done both in Sécrétions Magnifiques.  But as happened with Parker’s dirtier musk, these notes didn’t make the final cut.  Instead, Fame, billed as “the first ever black eau de parfum,” contains “pulverized apricot, crushed heart of Tiger Orchidea, and tears of belladonna.”

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Star rating: 5 stars–outstanding/potential classic, 4 stars–very good, 3 stars–adequate, 2 stars–disappointing, 1 star–poor.

The combination of sweet amber and flowers is the olfactory equivalent of hot chocolate with whipped cream, where the heavy richness of one component is balanced out against the airy softness of the other. Amber Ylang Ylang, a fragrance from Estée Lauder’s Private Collection, is a great example of how this sumptuous pairing works. Amber Ylang Ylang was created in 2008 by Annie Buzantian and Honorine Blanc-Hattab and it is a comforting, enveloping veil of a fragrance, with a gourmand twist.

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Star rating: 5 stars–outstanding/potential classic, 4 stars–very good, 3 stars–adequate, 2 stars–disappointing, 1 star–poor.

The creativity of the marketing campaign for Yves Saint Laurent Belle d’Opium dramatically contrasts with the banality of the fragrance. If it had even a touch of the originality and mystery possessed by the visuals, in which actress Mélanie Thierry interprets the dance of Salomé, Belle d’Opium would have been much more interesting. Instead, the fresh fruity accord underpinned by the patchouli-cotton candy notes suggests nothing more than a softer amber-oriental take on Chanel Coco Mademoiselle.

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