BellaSugar

Six Fragrance Types at a Glance

BellaSugar — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 12:00:31 PST

The big trend right now in fragrance is gourmand, or food-based aromas, according to perfume expert Mandy Aftel. So what does it all mean anyway? Are you a floral kind of gal or does chypre do it for you? In case you're uncertain, check out six of some of the more popular fragrance category definitions below. Then, impress your friends with your olfactory group knowledge about the "juice" - 'cuz you know, that's how it's referred to in the biz.

Chypre: fresh, mossy, and leatherish	Gourmand: sweet and food-inspired	Florals: romantic, feminine, and smooth
Fougère: fresh, floral, and herbaceous	Orientals: sensual, exotic, and spicy	Citrus: crisp, light, and energizing

Definition: Chypre

BellaSugar — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 11:00:58 PDT

Chypre - that's French for cyprus - is a family of fragrances featuring fresh notes (usually citrus) blended with herbaceous, woody-animalic notes like patchouli, oakmoss, and/or labdanum. Woody and warm, chypres often have leatherish characteristics, and are often paired with fruity or floral notes.

Since Coty's 1917 perfume called Chypre was so wildly popular, the term chypre (pronounced "sheepra") became the generic word to describe these rich, aromatic blends.

A great example of a chypre fragrance is Estée Lauder Knowing Eau de Parfum Spray ($28 to $63), which has notes of tuberose, mimosa, plum, jasmine, patchouli, orange flower, oakmoss, vetiver, sandalwood, and amber.

Source

Scented Nail Polish Gets Sophisticated

Miriam Lacey — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 11:06:38 PDT

If Revlon's fruit-perfumed nail polishes and Mattese's cocktail-inspired scented lacquers don't agree with your nose, there's a luxe new competitor in the scented polish field. Nail lacquer impresario Jane Schub hired Dawn Spencer Hurwitz, the perfumer responsible for DSH perfumes, to help her create Richly Perverse Perfume Polish ($28) for her line StrangeBeautiful. The polish has a violet leather accord that's "an earthy chypre blend with notes of black leather, tobacco, ylang ylang, tuberose, and sandalwood."

It's slightly more sophisticated than other polish scents like Orange Fizz and Ocean Breeze (to say the least), and the scent lasts up to a day. Unlike other scented polishes, Richly Perverse is also clear, so it's not tied to any particular color. Would you be interested in giving this stuff a sniff?

Sneak a Peek at Rihanna's New Fragrance Campaign

Annie Tomlin — Wed, 22 Dec 2010 10:20:50 PST

Rihanna's first foray into fragrance doesn't launch until next year, but a few images of Reb'l Fleur - a modification of her grammatically wobbly French rebelle fleur neck tattoo - have trickled online. The bottle, reminiscent of an upside-down high heel, feels a little Dynasty, but it's kind of fun. The scent itself is a fruity chypre with notes of tuberose, violet, hibiscus, and coconut water - a nod to Rihanna's childhood in Barbados. But based on the singer's outré style, our fingers are crossed for something out of the ordinary.

Take a sneak peek at the imagery from Rihanna's campaign after the jump.

Say "Happy Smellidays" With This Quirky Gift Set

Jaime Richards — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 10:00:45 PST

Who ever said niche perfume had to be all stuffy and pretentious? Not the folks behind Smell Bent, the LA perfumery that's making quite the name for itself. Recall the outrageous Halloween fragrances they created a few months back. With carefully thought out (and named) fragrance offerings such as Horny Little Devil, Tibet Ur Bottom $, Commando, and Debonair, what's not to love about this cheeky company?

For holiday 2010, Smell Bent's got a whole new line of season-appropriate scents. Most notable is Scrooge the Pooch ($20 to $45), a holiday chypre with notes of blood orange, vanilla resin, patchouli, bay leaf, oakmoss, and musk. For every bottle purchased, 50 percent of the selling price will go to charity: water, a nonprofit that helps bring safe drinking water to those living in developing nations. But that's not all Smell Bent has cooking for the holidays. Find out more in the gallery below.

View 5 Photos ›

Le Labo and Anthropologie's Collaboration Smells Like Old Times

Miriam Lacey — Mon, 15 Nov 2010 07:00:45 PST

By the Creators of Le Labo, the brand's new collaboration with Anthropologie, is the very best kind of atavism. The solid Concrete Parfums ($28) are concealed inside pretty old-fashioned brass weights, and the Spray Parfums ($62) come in faux 18th century poison phials. All the scents in the collection have an antique aspect as well, and they smell old-money luxurious even though they're less costly than other fancy Le Labo brews. I tried all five fragrances, so to see how each rated, just keep reading.

Love It or Hate It? Taylor Momsen's Galliano Ad

BellaSugar — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 11:01:42 PDT

In another move away from her Gossip Girl character, Taylor Momsen has become the new face of John Galliano's latest fragrance. Parlez-Moi d'Amour, a floral and fruity chypre, launches in mid-October; the ads feature the languorous teenage actress lounging backstage.

WWD reports that the ad is meant to portray Taylor as a world-traveling rock star. Isolated in Berlin with no access to the Internet, she has to write an actual letter to her loverboy back home. The concept ties in with the bottle design, which features a stamp with Galliano-designed flowers. Your thoughts?

The V&A Museum Gets Its Scent On

BellaSugar — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 04:00:50 PDT

If you're the kind of person who loves going to museum exhibitions but feels that the average gift shop isn't beauty-centric enough, the famed Victoria & Albert Museum has anticipated your needs. The London spot has begun commissioning fragrances to go with its exhibitions.

To accompany its Autumn 2010 exhibition, Diaghilev and the Golden Age of the Ballets Russes, the V&A had perfumer Roja Dove create a scent named after the great theater's founder. So what does Diaghilev smell like? Apparently a rich, old-fashioned chypre with notes of bergamot, rose de mai, oakmoss, and vetiver. What do you think? Would you buy museum fragrance, or is the concept just too strange?

What's Your Favorite Unexpected Combination?

BellaSugar — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 14:00:00 PST

One of the fragrances that I've tried lately and liked best is an unapologetically odd juxtaposition of incense and bubblegum. The perfume, Encens Et Bubblegum by Etat Libre D'Orange ($69), really does smell like both its namesakes. While I can't say that I would have thought of putting them together on my own, now I'm on the hunt for more divine odd couples. What about you? Do any pickles and ice cream-style scent combos satisfy your nose, or are you a vanilla (or chocolate, or aldehyde, or chypre) girl all the way? Tell us all about it in the comments

What to do When Your Favorite Fragrance Gets Discontinued

BellaSugar — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 11:00:00 PDT

Recently, a fragrance that I've loved for years, Comptoir Sud Pacifique Vanille Peche, disappeared from Sephora and from store shelves in general. I use a ton of different fragrances, and I fall in love with something new every week, but there was something special about this one; it just smelled like me. I was incredibly bummed and almost panicked. Even Mr. Bella was sad. But then I decided to stop freaking out, pull myself up by my bootstraps, and do what anyone who really loves perfume, and a good challenge, would do: go on a quest for a fragrance that either replicated my original scent or smelled just as good on me. Along the way, I picked up some tips to make the journey a little easier. To find out how you can get back to good, too, just read more