07 Wednesday Aug 2019
Posted in Oh Really
Photo taken today by me.
Roughly ten times per week, I pass the site of the former 1 and 2 World Trade Center, commonly and fondly known as the “Twin Towers” from 1973 to 2001.
I’ve never entered the new One World Trade Center building (constructed on that spot from 2006 to 2014) — not for business, and certainly not for pleasure. I’ve never been tempted, not even once, to visit its One World Observatory (opened in 2015).
19 Monday Nov 2018
Posted in Oh Really
Tags
ayala moriel, dawn spencer hurwitz, hiram green, natural fragrance, natural perfume, new york times, perfume, providence perfume company, velvet & sweet pea
Flipping through the Sunday New York Times, I came across a short profile of Marie-Lise Jonak and Baptiste Bouygues, the mother-and-son team behind the new perfume brand Ormaie. The full article is available online, as “Brand to Know: A Line of All-Natural Perfumes, Made by a Mother and Son.”
For me, the packaging is the most interesting aspect of Ormaie’s story—see the photo above! The bottles and labels are classic French elegance, while the beechwood tops are fun nods to the work of Ettore Sottsass and other postmodern designers.
However, the Times (especially in the print version) focused on topic of all-natural perfumery…
09 Monday Oct 2017
Tags
I was reading the September issue of Allure magazine while getting a haircut last month and I did a double-take when I read this paragraph. It’s the opening of a column by perfumer Francis Kurkdjian, titled “Fashion Scents.”
“Chanel no. 5 was the first scent to bear the name of a fragrance house, not a perfumery. And it introduced the concept that fragrance can represent a look or a style. (It also paved the way for dozens of other Chanel fragrances, including the brand-new Gabrielle Chanel.)”
Not quite…
31 Monday Jul 2017
Posted in Oh Really, On Blogging, Perfume Reviews
First things first: I’ve been reading Allure magazine since the 1990s. And I’m always happy to see in-depth coverage of perfumery in a mainstream magazine.
However.
When I noticed a feature article titled “The New Fragrance Frontier” by contributor Liana Schaffner in the July issue of Allure, I settled down with anticipation to read it. In keeping with the issue’s “American Beauty” theme, it was a discussion of independent perfumers who create offbeat blends inspired by the American landscape.
26 Wednesday Jul 2017
Posted in Oh Really
Tags
Today a brand called MINE Perfume Lab liked one of my photos on Instagram. Since their name was new to me, I automatically clicked over to their profile and glanced at their photos. And then glanced again.
Something looked more than a little familiar.
Yes, that’s what I thought, too.
27 Monday Mar 2017
Posted in Oh Really
New York-based perfume house Bond No. 9 has begun advertising Nolita, “the world’s first perfume-lisptick [sic] duo,” to be released in April. This is a screen capture from the Bond website.
Okay, I’m being a bit snarky. Let’s try again…
