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Love It or Hate It? Erykah Badu Teams Up With Tom Ford

BellaSugar — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 06:00:15 PDT

Remember Tom Ford's raunchy cologne ads? (They're borderline NSFW.) This new ad seems downright wholesome in comparison. The immensely talented Erykah Badu is the face of his forthcoming fragrance, White Patchouli.

I think she looks strong, confident, sensuous - in a word, gorgeous. Can't wait to see more pictures, especially since this campaign already seems to revere, not objectify, women in general. What do you think?

Fragrance Review: Tom Ford White Patchouli

BellaSugar — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 11:01:38 PDT

With the breathtaking Erykah Badu in the ads (which you loved) and a devastatingly chic white opal glass bottle with 23K gold accents, Tom Ford White Patchouli ($92) certainly has the bells and whistles that make up a cult classic. But as it turns out, I would still wear this fragrance if it came in a plastic spray bottle sold on the street.

White Patchouli is characterized as a "floral-infused wood fragrance," so the patchouli is surrounded by notes of peony, rose, and jasmine. Because I wear a lot of rose (Stella by Stella McCartney also has rose and peony), something about this fragrance is familiar but still fresh. There's a sexy, musky undertone that's very Tom Ford, but also something vibrant about it. Depending how you spend your days and nights, this may be best for the p.m. hours, though it could also make for a hauntingly sexy signature scent. Of course, I can't stop smelling myself, and that's never a good office look.

Bond No. 9 Releases a New Andy Warhol Scent

Jaime Richards — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 11:31:19 PDT

From Marilyn Monroe to Jackie Kennedy, artist Andy Warhol was inspired by a variety of muses, but sometimes the motive came straight from within. That's just what New York-based perfumer Bond No. 9 wanted to capture when creating its latest Warhol series, Andy Warhol by Bond No. 9 ($180 to $240).

In this sixth scent of the series, the fragrance and packaging are meant to celebrate Warhol's boho-mod life and times. A clean-cut Warhol is depicted on the front and back of the bottle in an old-school photobooth-style photo, paying homage to a Janus-faced design (one looking to the future, and one looking to the past). The '60s-centric brew includes top notes of bergamot zest, peach juice, red rose, and cumin; a heart of honeyed centifolia rose, white patchouli, cistus ambre, jasmine, frankincense, and oud; and a drydown of amber, red sandalwood, mulled plum, vanilla bean, and musk. Get your groove on Dec. 1, when the eau de parfum launches at Saks Fifth Avenue, Bond No. 9 stores in New York, and the perfumer's website.

Cozy Into These Denim-Inspired Beauty Products

Jaime Richards — Tue, 05 Apr 2011 03:10:26 PDT

If you could capture the essence of denim, what would it smell like? For Esprit, it would include notes like pomegranate, tiaré flower, peony, vanilla bean, white patchouli, and crystal musk, as featured in its new scent, Esprit Jeans Style For Her. For Diesel, which plans to launch Fuel For Life Homme Denim in June, it would be a woody citrus juice featuring raspberry, citrus, lavender, and dry wood.

But the denim-inspired beauty trend is not just limited to fragrance. Brands from MAC to Bobbi Brown to Lipstick Queen all have products with jeans as the overlying theme. And for something truly fun, you can even wear your denim on your nails with Sally Hansen's Salon Effects Nail Polish Strips in Skinny Jeans ($10). As always, click on any of the images above for more details.

The Komen Foundation Is Launching a Fragrance

Jaime Richards — Mon, 03 Jan 2011 10:45:55 PST

For nearly 30 years, the Susan G. Komen for the Cure Foundation has been raising funds and awareness to help fight breast cancer. And now, the organization is set to launch a fragrance in April. Promise Me, which will be sold in an eau de parfum ($59) and an eau de toilette ($20-$30), is a floral oriental that will include notes of blood orange, bergamot, mandarin, aldehyde, pink peony, black current, rosewood, wild orchid, white patchouli, and musk.

"My sister was always passionate about fragrance," said Nancy Brinker, sister of the late Susan Komen, founder of the foundation, and author of Promise Me ($10-$32), a book that depicts how the organization came to be. The organization hopes to raise $1 million from sales, but critics are likely to notice that just 13.5 percent of the net sales will go to the foundation.

Look for Promise Me in department stores, drugstores, and on TV in just a few months. The limited-edition fragrance will be sold until October, with plans to launch a different scent next year. Will you check it out?

Kat Von D's New Adora Perfume Is Pretty Sweet

Miriam Lacey — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 06:00:00 PST

The multiply tattooed Kat Von D already has two perfumes out (Sinner and Saint), but now she's bowing a third, called Adora ($55). I checked the bottle out because it's rather pretty and has metallic panels inspired by the art of famed Art Nouveau illustrator Alphonse Mucha.

When I actually got around to spritzing it, I was pleasantly surprised by the scent, too. It's a fruity floral, like most celebrity fragrances, but instead of the weak white musk most stars' scents use as a base, Adora dries down to a sweet, natural-smelling patchouli. While it's still a "blended" floral that's not recognizable as any real flower, it's heady and has none of the metallic undertones many similar fragrances do. If you love sweet, woody scents, consider giving this one a sniff the next time you're in Sephora.

Marc Jacobs Launches New Fragrance With a Huge Bang

BellaSugar — Fri, 21 May 2010 11:00:00 PDT

Oh, good morning, Marc Jacobs. What's that you say? You're launching another fragrance for men? What? Sorry, I was, uh, thinking about all the awesome no clothes - I mean notes - it's going to have. Speaking of those notes, they'll include pink, black, and white peppercorns at the top, primal masculine woods at the middle, and vetiver, patchouli, and white moss at the bottom.

Bang ($55-$75) is a great name for your fragrance, by the way. It really expresses how we all feel about it. "I was in the gym, and the name Bang came to me," Marc told WWD. "As a word, it has so many connotations, including a sexual connotation. And I loved the immediacy and the sound of the word," he added. The spicy new scent, which is marketed to the contemporary set, will launch at the end of July at Bloomingdale's and Marc Jacobs stores.

The juice, which is packaged up in a crumpled-looking silver bottle, will also feature an aftershave balm ($40), deodorant stick ($22), and a hair and body wash ($25) as part of the line. That's not all; Marc also hints that he'd love to expand his empire into the color cosmetics realm. And when it comes to the racy visuals for Bang, Marc fully expects it to be censored in some locations, joking, "I think more people are going to see [the Midwestern] version of the ad." What do you think about Marc's latest venture, dear readers? Are Mr. Jacobs and his Mylar sheeting pictured here having the same effect on you?

Phillip Lim Makes One of Six New Scents to Try Out

BellaSugar — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 14:59:19 PDT

Last night's launch party for the limited-edition fragrance set Six Scents was rather memorable - and not only because I've never before witnessed performance art inspired by perfume. The bash was held to celebrate the collaboration between six designers and perfumers who got together to see what they could come up with by exploring "the relationship between artist and nature." Six was the theme of the evening, with an equal number of films, art pieces, and photographic works scattered about the studio space.

Phillip Lim, Henry Holland, Damir Doma, Henrik Vibskov, Richard Nicoll, and Toga, represented the fashion end. Mr. Holland, fresh from his recent show during London Fashion Week, kept an eye on the proceedings as host. Phillip Lim wasn't there, but I was especially interested in his first foray into the fragrance world.

He partnered with perfumer Natalie Gracia-Cetto, who said she was "inspired by Phillip’s unique and special style: easy to wear to go to work and stylish enough for a night out. It’s a fresh and sensual unisex fragrance that can be worn all day long." It includes notes of both white and black pepper, patchouli, cedarwood, and magnolia for an unusually heavy scent that isn't for the faint of heart. Check out more info at Six-Scents.com.

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The Votes Are In: Best Fragrance Debut of 2008 Is Harajuku Lovers by Gwen Stefani

BellaSugar — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 09:00:17 PST

This year, it was all about the celeb fragrance - whether it was Paris Hilton flinging her Fairy Dust our way or Anne Hathaway being Magnifique in one comment-provoking ad. While there were many worthy fragrances that launched over these past twelve months - both celebrity backed and star-free - the Best Fragrance Debut of 2008 goes to. . .
Harajuku Lovers by Gwen Stefani.

OK, as long-time readers know, I didn't dig these scents, but fragrance is so subjective, eh? For me, I really enjoyed Tom Ford White Patchouli, a hauntingly sexy scent. Need more top choices from 2008? Be sure to take a peek at the rest of favorites across the Sugar network right now.

Coming Soon: Ralph Lauren Notorious

BellaSugar — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 13:00:37 PDT

Busy guy, that Ralph Lauren. Next week, he's launching a new fragrance at Bloomingdale's before rolling it out everywhere else in September. Notorious is an eau de parfum created by perfumier Olivier Gillotin that contains notes of sweet vanilla, black currant, bergamot, white peony, carnation, pink peppercorn, aged patchouli, iris, musk, orris and just wait. . . . chocolate cosmos (sadly, this is a burgundy flower, not a drink). Talk about a sweet and savory treat.

The fragrance was inspired by Alfred Hitchcock's classic films, and Laetitia Casta is the face of the ad campaign. Notorious has an overall sparkling, oriental glamorous essence and will be available in two eaux de parfum ($65-85), a body cream ($70), a body lotion ($45), and a shower gel ($40).

There's just something about the ingredients and the elegance of this square bottle that's giving me tummy flutters. And now I have an excuse to make a special trip over to Bloomingdale's - so you won't hear me complaining.

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