Josephine Catapano: 1918- 2012

Joséphine Catapano, a long time perfumer with International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) and one of the few celebrated women perfumers in the business, passed away last Tuesday at the age of 93.

Catapano was given a Lifetime Achievement Award by the American Society of Perfumers in 1993 and the Cosmetic Career Women's Award in 1980. She is considered one of the truly greats and Sophia Grojsman, herself a veteran, considers her her mentor. Among Joséphine Catapano's scented creations is the classic Youth Dew for Estee Lauder (working alongside Ernest Shiftan) and the equally classic if considerably less known Norell (circulating under Revlon for many years), as well as the first Shiseido Zen and Fidji for Guy Laroche. Alas, her name never made headlines like perfumers today; in an era when perfume was shrouded in mystery, the true creator was never revealed...

photo via yesterday's perfume

Frequent Questions: How to Make your Fragrance Last Longer

Many of us don’t fully realize how fragrance creates a lasting first impression, which is difficult to shake; perfume invades a space with each breath and speaks for us in ways no words can express. But many are those worrying about their carefully chosen fragrance not actually withstanding the time lapse it takes from putting it on and actually arriving and meeting those they mean to impress with it. So we turned to international fragrance expert Arnaud Marolleau for suggestions and I supplemented with a few tried & tested tips of my own so as to provide a brief but useful guide into how to make your perfume last longer.

Choose an intense olfactory family to begin with. Olfactory families denote a general classification that gives the character of a fragrance, as in how it translates to others: citrus or floral or woody for instance are three different categories, respectively characterised by the preponderance of citrus fruit essences, scents evoking flowers or aromata deriving from big trees such as cedar, sandalwood etc. Of course they do not only include the above mentioned ingredients, but that's the predominant impression. There are more esoteric fragrance families, such as chypre and fougere for which you will need to consult our Chypre fragrance accord guide or Fougère fragrance accord guide, if you're unfamiliar with those.

According to Marolleau, the purpose of having an intense effect out of your perfume is best served by chypres, woodies or oriental scents. Chypre is a family of perfumes that are characterized by a citrus top note (traditionally bergamot), a floral middle and a mossy-musk base comprised by labdanum and oakmoss in classic perfumes or recently a base of vetiver and patchouli in "nouveau chypres" (these involve perfume releases in the last 10 years or less). “Chypre fragrance has more than 60 percent comprised of base notes; it is a very enveloping, sensual and sophisticated fragrance, while woody is very good for business.”
You can find fragrance reviews of chypre, woody scents  and oriental perfumes on the corresponding links.

Choose a more concentrated form of your favorite fragrance. There are several fragrance concentrations (ratio of aromatic essences in alcohol and water), such as Eau de Toilette, Eau de Parfum and Extrait de Parfum (If you don't know which is which, click on the link). If in doubt opt for the higher concentration vs. the weaker one; such as Eau de Parfum over Eau de Toilette or pure parfum over Eau de Parfum. Usually this technique provides a better anchoring, the more concentrated version being richer in base notes which have a low volatility rate Just beware that some fragrances (for instance some Chanels, Narciso Rodriguez for Her or Dior J'Adore many perfume editions) can be slightly different in formula -and thus in their aesthetic effect- among their different concentrations; sample smartly before you invest!

Outsmart the weather, especially humidity. Cold weather tends to hold some notes, especially lush florals and balsams into check. This is why often some tropical fragrances smell all wrong in the wintertime or in northern climates. But heat and humidity can also alter the evolution of a perfume: heat volatilises essences quicker and as to humidity, “humidity is the vampire of fragrance,” said Marolleau. Humidity also makes you sweat more, which in itself alters the intended scent of any given perfume.
In order for the scent to last, you must wear it in as dry an environmen as possible. This means that if you're working in an air-conditioned office or use the air-condition in your car, you will perceive your scent for longer. Of course this isn't always practical! The best thing to do is to have a little bottle in your handbag and renew your fragrance accordingly, taking in mind the surroundings you're going to be in so as not to overdo it.

Improve your skin condition to make fragrance hold. If your skin is dry, the fragrance will never last as long as you want it to. Why? There is nothing for the scent to stick onto making the fragrance evaporate quicker. The easiest suggestion is to wear body lotion all the time to keep skin moisturized. It doesn't need to be scented in a matching scent as your perfume, though that is a romantic and indulgent idea (called "layering a scent") Unscented moisturizer will mean you can use it with whichever fragrance you plan to wear. You can also make your own: Put a little lotion in the palm of your hand and then spray or pour a tiny bit of your fragrance in that little "pool". Rub your palms together to mix and apply on your skin. Yummy!
I also recommend putting a bit of jojoba oil on still damp skin after your bath/shower, especially on places where you will wear fragrance later on. Jojoba is very simpatico to most skins, even oily ones, and is so close to skin sebum that it doesn't alter the scent profile of your perfume or your own body scent.
Also please consult some of the perfume application tricks in our How to Best Apply your Fragrance guide. Several of them help fragrances radiate better and last longer.


 Ref: http://lifestyle.inquirer.net
Still from Mad Men, Christina Hendricks as Joan Halloway in front of the mirror with her perfumes tray

The Scent of Departure

The new Scent of Departure line —a self-proclaimed “fragrance airline" is based on an exciting concept: a city bottled in a perfume. Created by perfumer Gérald Ghislain (of Histoires de Parfums) and designer Magali Sénéquier, the fragrance line comprises a different scent for 19 top international cities, from Los Angeles to Abu Dabi all the way to Singapore. Named after airport codes (LAX, SIN, etc.), each scent was created with very specific individual ingredients reminiscent of its respective metropolis.

Donors for the Department of the Olfactory Art: An Eclectic Crowd

The Scent exhibit curated by Chandler Burr at the Department of the Olfactory Art at the Museum of Arts & Design in NYC is going strong. Donations form the backbone of any scientific or artistic venture with any hope of distinguishing itself so it's heartening to hear things go well for Burr's project.


For 2012 the lookout looks like this:
The Estée Lauder Companies:  Founding Major Donor
Chanel:  Major Donor (both 2012 and 2013)
P&G Prestige:  Major Donor
Hermès:  Major Donor IFF Major Donor
Guerlain:  Funder
Arcade:    Funder
WFFC:    Friend

The donors of the Department of Olfactory Art fall into the following categories
 Friends: $5,000 to $24,900
Supporters: $25,000 to 49,000
Funders: $50,000 to $99,000
Major Donors: $100,000 and above

 Looks like both the industry has embraced this innovative approach of appreciating the juice itself and that the money is flowing freely to support this venture. All around wishes for the best outcome!

Guerlain Les Deserts d'Orient ~Encens Mythique d'Orient, Rose Nacree du Desert, Songe d'un Bois d'Ete: new fragrances

Guerlain does Middle East. At last! After several companies catered to the affluent and genuinely discerning Middle-East market, an audience intent on appreciating perfumes through a profound familiarity with good ingredients and complex compositions, Guerlain has joined this trend.  
Les Déserts d'Orient (Oriental Deserts) comprises three fragrances, inspired by mythical raw materials of Middle Eastern origin: incense, rose and oud. The fragrances are exclusively destined for the United Arab Emirates with some discussion into expanding distribution into Qatar and Kuwait later on. The Paris flagship boutique will eventually feature them as well.

This new trio of oriental fragrances is a tribute to enchanting Arabia with creations that represent the Orient in all its original splendor. The perfumes are credited to head perfumer Thierry Wasser who focused on every possible nuance of the Arabian Nights for this Middle Eastern opus with exotic names. This is Guerlain and at the same time it's beyond Guerlain, "savage and dark", pettering out into a place of legend and lore.

The Exclusive Collection Les Déserts d'Orient by Guerlain comprises:

Encens Mythique d’Orient : A smoky effect, aromatic waves, a divine emotion. Inspired by frankincense, but given a typical Guerlain treatment, this sweet & bright musky oriental composition fuses aldehydes with neroli, moss, saffron, Persian rose, ambergris and musk to render incense new again.  

Rose Nacrée du Désert : An intense rose, a bold flower, an established mystery. A fragrance built on lush Persian rose, the legendary blossom of the east. Creamy yet dark, rose is given a mysterious air via saffron, patchouli and a hint of agarwood (oud), fanned on rich benzoin resin.  

Songe d’un Bois d’été : A deep leather, sumptuous woods, supreme momentum. Dry, spicy, smoky effect with authentic oud nuances; the woodiness is based on cedar, the jasmine heart gives an individual touch. Saffron and cardamom provide the spiciness, laurel a dry aromatic touch. Oud, myrrh, patchouli and leathery notes complete the base notes of this intriguing composition.

The bottles are adorned with Arab-cript calligraphy down one side, the French names down the other side. They are the tall, architectural style of the collection L'Art et la Matière with the antique gold overlay on the sides holding 75ml of perfume. The concentration of the fragrances is Eau de Parfum for tenacity. Prices are set for 190euros/AED990 per bottle.  

Reviews on all of them coming up soon!!

Donna Karan Gold: fragrance review

Donna Karan strived for a lushly feminine lily effect with her stupendous Gold fragrance for women in 2006. Its mix of vibrant lily with animalic profundity puts Gold on a pedestral of worship, that of a stony goddess who demands the coming of Choephoroi.

The fragrance necessitated no less than 3 perfumers of the caliber of Yann Vasnier, Calice Becker and Rodrigo-Flores Roux. Usually that would be a recipe for disaster (too many opinions and twinkering often lead to an incoherent vision), yet in Gold the result is none the worse for trying. On the contrary.

Scent Description 

The main accord in DK Gold focuses on bright, trembling with life lily, suave woods plus musk, effecting a round and creamy composition accented with discernable jasmine adding its indolic glory. The opening of Donna Karan Gold has the dewy freshness of green tonalities of muguet, vaguely reminiscent of the green overture of Annick Goutal's Des Lys (another floriental focusing on Casablanca lilies) and the sharper start of Lys Mediteranée by F.Malle. Although the floral phase is clearly discernible from the start, the more the scent dries down the more the sensuous aspects reveal themselves beneath the droplets of lucid coolness. Underneath, a camphoreous scent is peeking through, like a riddle on the edge of the screenshot in a Greenaway film : now you see it and now you don't.
The development of Gold in the Eau de Parfum concentration adds a very alluring animalic submantle which hints at ductile leather and ambergris rather than the traditional resinous amber mentioned, yet it doesn't do so with too much rebelliousness, remaining a sensual touch warming the proceedings and adding gravitas. Perhaps Gold, although certainly not ground-breaking, is a knowing wink of Donna Karan to her first perfume, the long discontinued Donna Karan New York in the phallic black bottle, which utilized lily, amber and suede to great effect.

Concentrations & Notes

Please note that Donna Karan Gold comes in Eau de Parfum concentration, which is warmer and much more complex than the more aqueous and linear Eau de Toilette, as well as a Sparkling Eau de Toilette. Between those versions Eau de Parfum is highly recommended as per above, also being much closer to the revered Serge Lutens Un Lys. Parfum amplifies the cistus and incense with more vanilla.
The elegant bottle is created by jewellery designer Robert Lee Morris.

Current distribution of DK Gold is bust; get some while you can on online discounters.

Notes for DK Gold: Casablanca Lily, Amber, Acacia, White Clove, Golden Balsam*, Gold Pollen and Patchouli

 *a mix of Peru tolu balsam, olibanum, benzoin, vanilla, and cistus

Photo of French actress Eva Green via Google (have since forgotten the exact source)