There’s nothing like a spray of perfume to help perk up on a sticky, hot summer day (not to mention leave oneself smelling nice amidst torrential downpours of bodily sweat), and the industry has certainly been responding to this demand with a host of new releases. From the conceptual to the classic reimagined, BeautyMatter rounds up the latest batch of products.
Comme Des Garcons
Ever one for conceptual fragrances, the Japanese fashion house has released a new unisex creation, Zero, described as “a radical expression of simplicity; a reset, the antithesis of excess.” The nose behind the fragrance is Fanny Bal, who worked with a restrained palette of rose oxide, cedar, vetiver, bergamot, and musk.
MCM
Launched by Interparfums, the luxury German brand’s new fragrance, MCM Ultra, is a fruity floral fragrance boasting notes of blackcurrant and apple, topped off with a dash of pink pepper, blended into a heart note of tuberose and jasmine resting atop a base of amber, moss, cedarwood, and tonka. The perfumer behind it, Frank Voelkl, describes it as “an unapologetic, full-of-attitude feminine signature.” Furthermore, the fragrance is made with 74% biodegradable and 79% Natural Together ingredients, an initiative by Firmenich that emphasizes social responsibility by making positive impacts on local communities worldwide.
Prada
Prada’s Infusion range has gained two new family members in the form of Infusion de Vanille and Infusion d’Ylang. Perfumer Daniela Andrier blended a smoky vanilla infusion with neroli, bergamot, and angelica seeds for the former perfume, and added a spicy, woody facet to the latter with notes of bergamot, cardamom, and sandalwood.
Gucci
Two new scents have been added to the house’s The Alchemist’s Garden collection. Love at Your Darkest is a woody spicy scent with notes of black pepper, cedarwood, and incense, while Tears from the Moon is white floral fragrance with notes of peony, lily of the valley, and stephanotis, both developed by Alberto Morillas.
Dries van Noten
Following the launch of his beauty line back in February, which included the release of 10 fragrances, the Belgian fashion brand has released two unisex fragrances, Sur Ma Peau and Orange Smoke. Sur Ma Peau is “a big contrast between two strong sensations: bursting freshness versus pure, sensual addiction,” according to its creator, Quentin Bisch.That distinction is created by marrying soft vanilla, benzoin and tonka with zesty citrus and bergamot. Annick Menardo describes her creation, Orange Smoke, as “the pureness of an orange flower with the mineral facet of incense,” with notes of neroli, jasmine, myrrh, musks, mandarin, and petitgrain.
Victoria’s Secret
As far as lingerie brand fragrances go, Bare certainly has a fitting product name. Beyond that, the woody floral scent with notes of sandalwood, mandarin, and violet, created by master perfumers Nathalie Benareau and Carlos Vinals, aims to have a soft, warm profile which melts into the skin, a “you but better” perfume in the flesh. The fragrance is also claimed to use Symrise's Cryptosym technology, which uses a colorless, odorless base to throw off gas chromatography analyses and thereby protect fragrance formulas from duplication.
Viktor & Rolf
Following the immense success of Flowerbomb and Bonbon, the fashion house is launching its first new women’s fragrance (aka not a flanker edition) in seven years: Good Fortune. The fragrance campaign is fronted by singer and artist FKA twigs, who describes the fragrances as “embracing the modern mystic.” In olfactory terms, that translates to notes of jasmine, gentian flower, fennel, and vanilla, crafted by Anne Flipo and Nicolas Beaulieu, captured in a refillable bottle with an amethyst crystal-emulating cap.
YSL
The Le Vestiaire des Parfums collection is an homage to the design creations of the late Yves Saint Laurent himself. Lavallière is derived from the name for a knotted silk scarf that emulates a tie. The eau de parfum contains fig and rose accords alongside notes of blackcurrant, geranium, jasmine, vetiver, and musk—resulting in a green and floral character which, like the accessory, has unisex appeal thanks to its androgynous nature.
Amaffi
With a brand name derived from the last name of the female perfumer to Napoleon, Amaffi’s offerings are guaranteed to have a whiff of opulent luxury: there’s the crystal bottle designs, which contain azure enamel and blue crystal or zircon details, the luxury price tags (bottles retail around the $2,300-$3,000 mark), and its Geneva headquarters. The company also emphasizes the use of “only sustainably grown flowers and plants of the highest quality to reflect the elegance, longevity, and luxury of the brand itself,” with all fragrances created in Grasse. For the summer months, Amaffi has launched 32 July For Women (a fruity floral with iris and berry notes) and Caribs For Men (an orchid and sandalwood scent). The launch also coincides with Amaffi’s US debut, with a boutique opening in New York City.
Amouage
Since 2010, Amouage’s The Library Collection has been a space of olfactory exploration. Now the luxury fragrance brand has added four new fragrances to the lineup: Opus V, Opus VII, Opus XII, and Opus XIII, all housed in Khanjar-inspired bottles as a nod to the Omani symbol which represents divine beauty. Opus V is a woody floral fragrance with orris absolute and concrete, dry woods, rum, jasmine, and rose for a scent that is “dry and mineral while carnal and soothing” in order to represent our concurrent life of humanity and technology. Deemed a “reckless leather,” Opus VII combines the note with spices cardamom, fenugreek, and nutmeg, as well as galbanum for a hint of green. But it wouldn’t be reckless if there wasn’t a heavy dose of opulence in the form of smoky cypriol, as well as animalic costus and ambergris. Opus XII is a marriage of Damascus rose and frankincense hyperabsolute, complemented with vanilla, resinous myrrh, eerie black ink, and citrusy elemi for “an uncompromisingly novel take on an otherwise classic accord.” Last but not least, Opus XIII focuses on oud, paired with woods such as cedar, birch, and guaiac wood, rounding things off with Madagasan vanilla.
Editions de Parfums Frédéric Malle
Before the viral meme of Julia Fox pronouncing the movie title goes off in your head, reconsider the fragrance Uncut Gem, crafted by Maurice Roucel. A master of sensuality with works like Dans Tes Bras (emulating the scent of an embrace) and the opulently sexy Musc Ravageur, Roucel has created a decidedly masculine fragrance with this one, a dry and spicy amber fragrance. Notes include ginger, mandarin, nutmeg, vetiver, leather, and musk.
Gallivant
A fragrance brand inspired by travel, the latest creation from Nick Steward sets its sights on the Polish city of Gdańsk by the Baltic coast. Being a seaside town, naturally there are notes of salty ambergris, but also hints to international trade with leather and tobacco notes for an earthy, smoky fragrance. The gleam of the sun on the shoreline is evoked with warm notes of plum, saffron, and amber.
M.int
The fragrance house of M.int operates under the slogan of “That which triggers emotions,” and their newest launch, Moonglade, hopes to do so with a fruity gourmand fragrance profile: coconut, peach, orange, lemon, vanilla, nutmeg, and anise meet magnolia, cassis, rose, sandalwood, lavender, and moss. The scent was crafted by perfumer Chris Maurice.
Ormonde Jayne
The jazz era represents an enduring sophistication, which served as the inspiration for perfumer Linda Pilkington. A marriage of floral, skin-like, and rugged elements, Gatsby 22 opens with a bergamot, lemon, and pink pepper top before developing into an osmanthus, violet, and orange blossom heart. Rounding off this full-bodied floral composition are a leather accord, vetiver, musk, and tonka bean, presenting a gender-fluid fragrance that shimmies in the same delightful fashion as the flappers of the 1920s.
Parfums Quartana
What do you get when you combine Greek mythology with Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey and concepts of inner ascension? Ierofante, or the Italian name for the character of The Hierophante, is a futuristic industrial gourmand featuring notes of suede, gasoline, styrax, leather, amber, cashmeran, and vetiver for a fragrance that dreams of the stars but manages to be grounded in an immaculate fragrance construction by industry talent Luca Maffei.
Pineward
A fragrant exploration of the enthralling landscape that is the forest. “My goal in crafting these scents is to create the ultimate line of pine and fir perfumes,” states founder Nicholas Nilsson. The latest releases capturing these coniferous dreams are the floral creation Alfiryn, the smokey Funerie, and the woody Gristmill. Alfiryn is focused white florals such as narcissus and plumeria, blended with creamy sandalwood and massoia. Funerie is a dark and bold fragrance inspired by “rites of the dead”—emulated with notes of decayed rose, oud, and morel mushroom paired with tobacco, smoke, dried needles, and incense. Gristmill pays homage to the synonymous building type with woods galore: cedar, sawdust, mahogany, edelwood, and black walnut, rounded off with some amber, labdanum, and light smoky notes.
Santa Maria Novella
The Florentine brand’s first launch in 800 years, L’Iris could very well be deemed a historical event in the fragrance industry. It’s also a clever nod to the precious iris extracted from the region, which can be priced upwards of €50,000 per kilo. This concoction blends the flower with a kick of Timur pepper, the florals of geranium, magnolia, champaca, and jasmine, and the deeper sexuality of musk and ambergris.
The Different Company
What makes The Different Company, well, different? Founded by perfume legend Jean Claude-Ellena and design maverick Thierry de Baschmakoff, the brand describes its mission as being “architects of joy, builders of vertigo, founders of infinity,” or aspirations that cannot be confined to the perfume bottle. The house’s latest creation, Dance of the Dawn, is a ’70s inspired patchouli cologne designed by Emilie Coppermann, set on a beach as the sun rises. Rather than a heavy, earthy fragrance of yesteryear, this creation mixes Sulawesi patchouli with mandarin, driftwood, ambroxan, vanilla, and pink as well as black pepper for a more herbaceous, fresh, and modern take.
To the Fairest
Founded by Rebecca Rose, To the Fairest is a small-batch British fragrance brand. Its debut fragrance, Cécile, is a warm mandarin and rose floral, while its successor, Ordre Cosmique, provides a cool counterpart in the form of a cardamom, water lily, and cedar concoction. Just in time for summer, the house launched a white floral, Aubine, with facets of gardenia, orange blossom, and honey fleuressence, and this autumn will see the release of Élan Vital, an aromatic woody fragrance containing sage, blackberry leaf, vetiver, and orris.
Grace de Monaco
A brand “where Hollywood meets royalty and where the legacy of Princess Grace and the regal aura of the French Riviera become one,” Grace de Monaco certainly has a reputation to live up to, but it does so in style. The first collection, Promenade Sur Le Rocher, features a fragrance by none other than Olivier Cresp, the man behind creations such as Thierry Mugler Angel and Dolce & Gabbana Light Blue, under the creative direction of former Estée Lauder Companies executive Veronique Gabai. The result is an elegant white floral centered around rose, jasmine, and ylang-ylang, complemented by fresh bergamot and sensual vanilla, amber, musk, and woods. The fragrance will be available as an eau de parfum, a ceramic candle, and porcelain diffuser. Mid-July will see the launch of the Danse Étoilée collection (a fruity floral scent with notes of rhubarb, rose, freesia, lily of the valley, vanilla, and moss) with the Silks collection (a range of silk scarves with prints reminiscent of Princess Grace’s flower artwork designs) launching at the end of the month.
Maison Lautier 1795
A heritage brand relaunched by Symrise, Maison Lautier 1795 is a natural perfumery-focused company and evolution of Lautier Fils. The fragrance manufacturer is currently building a factory in Grasse for Maison Lautier 1795 in order to further build on its rich raw material palette, with an emphasis on local procurement. The fragrance brand will launch three product lines: the Supernature Range, the Artisan Range, and the Madagascar Range. While the second and third will focus on craftsmanship and the African island respectively, Supernature is where Symrise will display its prowess in ingredient innovation, from the food byproduct-employing SymTrap method to upcycling. “We are combining the rich heritage and pioneering legacy of Grasse’s Lautier Fils with our own technological innovations—and Madagascar's raw abundant nature. Together, these elements form a new entity: Maison Lautier 1795, a truly modern brand with deep roots in the history of scent-making,” comments Ricardo Omori, Senior VP Global Fine Fragrance at Symrise.
DS & Durga
The Brooklyn fragrance brand expanded its candle collection with an homage to co-founder David Moltz’s hometown in the New England region. Salt Marsh Rose paints an olfactory portrait of the coastal region of the New England swamp rose in green aquatic pastures with notes of mallow, sea lettuce, sweet pepper bush, grass, and lichen moss.
Floral Street
Following the enthusiastic reception to its Sunflower Pop collection, the fragrance brand has released a new scent, Sweet Almond Blossom, as part of its ongoing Fine Art x Home collaboration with the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam. Inspired by the “Almond Blossom” painting, the creation has notes of passionfruit, matcha, vanilla, and tonka bean for a sweet, green, delicate feel. The scent is available as a candle, room fragrance, and reed diffuser option.
Glasshouse Fragrances
What screams summer better than neon-pink and aqua-blue candles? Glasshouse Fragrances has released two ’80s-inspired, limited-edition creations, Pool Party and Pretty in Pink, for the occasion, presented in vessels adorned by Australian artist Sarah Fordham. Pool Party is a gourmand with refreshing notes of pink grapefruit, basil, and spearmint, combined with the sweetness of rhubarb jam and vanilla. Pretty in Pink is all the candy and then some, with facets of almond, cherry, raspberry cupcake, coconut milk, and candy cane.
