Lets Talks About the Future

Fashion designer André Courrèges was particularly known for his streamlined 1960s designs influenced by modernism and futurism, exploiting modern technology and new fabrics. Courrèges defined the go-go boot. The original go-go boots, as defined by André Courrèges in 1964, were white, low-heeled, and mid-calf in height, a specific style which is sometimes called the Courrèges boot. Along with Mary Quant, is one of the designers credited with inventing the miniskirt.

The New York Times described him as ‘The brightest blaze of the year’. to emphasis the change from the little black dress to the white dress. Designers such as Pierre Cardin and Paco Rabanne taking influences towards ‘Future’ fashion looks. With new popularity, his designs trickled down to mass production companies that created affordable designs similar to Courrèges.

He paired his shorter skirts with white or colored leather, iconic calf-high boots that added a confident flair to the ensemble. This look became one of the most important fashion developments of the decade and was widely copied. Accessories were inspired by astronauts equipment such as; goggles, helmets and flat boots. White and metallic colour ways were implemented to emphasise the futuristic collection. He utilised unconventional materials such as metal, plastic and PVC which was unusual for couture ateliers.

 

Already in 1997 Maison Courrèges dreamed up the perfume 2020, which was drawn in floral, fruity and woody lines, revolving around a note of frosted pear. The iconic fashion house of the sixties today renews its futuristic verve, to bring us to a future tinged with audacity and freedom.

With the new line Colognes Imaginaires, Courrèges projects us into the future. True to its avant-garde soul, the French Maison still dares to imagine an optimistic future, through a range of colognes filled with a positive spirit.

Courrèges 2030 Verbena Crush

Created by perfumer Mylène Alran, 2030 Verbena Crush, is undoubtedly the one that fits most in the ‘cologne’ universe, with its citrus and aromatic notes. Zooming in on the green and tart nuances of verbena, whose essential oil inevitably evokes the scent of lemon, the scent brings some herbaceous touches, as well. Alran dreamed of a future tinged with serenity, so she embroidered her composition around a crumpled verbena leaf (whose soothing properties are known). Orange and lemon brighten it with a zesty and luminous effect, and some herbaceous notes stretch the greenness of the plant, carried by hedione to dress it with an aerial transparency. In the background, the musks imbue the perfume with a comfortable and padded suppleness. A scent of soft and sparkling freshness.

 

Courrèges 2040 Nectar Tonka

On the opposite side of the olfactive map, 2040 Nectar Tonka foresees a warm future, with its slightly gourmand oriental notes. Still a ‘light’ fragrance – we stay in the ‘cologne’ style – perfumer Benoist Lapouza put the round and almondy notes of tonka bean center stage, hemmed with vanilla and enriched with some woody and spicy touches (pepper, cinnamon) to complete the picture. A fairly dense and textured feeling emerges from the whole, which will appeal to lovers of enveloping ‘colognes’.

 

Courèges 2050 Berrie Flash

Since the future will have plants, or there won’t be a future at all, perfumer Nicolas Beaulieu portrayed it with green, sparkling, fruity notes. 2050 Berrie Flash reveals itself under a lively, sparkling flight, which gives pride of place to juniper berries. This very uplifting sensation, underlined with some spicy touches of cardamom and nutmeg, is placed around a bay leaf note with vegetal accents. The blackcurrant bud brings up all of its green and fruity nuances, and a few rose and geranium touches are outlined in the background, resting on a wooded bed. An at once powerful and mutinous ‘cologne’.

 

Courrèges 2060 Cedar Pulp

Created by Fanny Bal, the perfumer is hoping to ‘be surprised’ by the omens of a distant future, a feeling she conveys pretty successfully with 2060 Cedar Pulp. Behind the name with a woody and sparkling universe hides a ‘cologne’ that’s rather soft and powdery at first. It has green, herbaceous (basil) nuances that dress up an almond-like opening of heliotropin. The ‘sweet almond’ effect is quite realistic, while being treated with finesse in the balancing of the composition. The cedar brings strength and structure to the whole, while the musks end up rounding the contours with softness and suppleness. This powdery composition, twisted with green and woody notes, arises between classicism and modernity.

The Colognes Imaginaires Collection is ready for the future. Te range is built from organic and recyclable materials (organic beet alcohol, biodegradable wooden covers, resourceable glass, recyclable paper case, etc.), and the ingredients of natural origin that are used in the formulas come from sustainable sources.

Courrèges Colognes Imaginaires are available as 100ml at selected stores worldwide. Come into the beautiful world of Courrèges.

 

 

 

Boucheron Quatre En Rouge

In 1858, Frederic Boucheron set out to create one of the most respected (and oldest) jewellery houses known today. Several of Boucheron codes have been embodied in every collection that has been put forward, and perhaps its most iconic range, the Quatre, represents an iconic code of the French Maison: architecture.

As one of the world’s top jewellers to land at the legendary Place Vendôme well over a century ago, Boucheron’s Quatre collection has become the brand’s most iconic line since its launch in 2004, highlighting different patterns found at the luxury Parisian square that celebrate the Maison’s rich heritage in a unique and timeless form.

A celebration of the maison’s savoir-faire and the skill of sculpting precious materials, the Quatre collection remains different yet, features a unique and classic form. Consisting of four rings – referencing Boucheron’s codes (think Grosgrain, line of Diamonds, Double Godron and Clou de Paris) – the jewels are distinctive, daring and deliver excellence with striking combinations of golds and textures.

The Quatre fragrance collection was started with the women’s fragrance Boucheron Quatre in 2015, inspired by and named after the collection of rings of the French Mainson. The desire to make the design and name of the ring collection closely connected to the fragrance line has resulted in several perfume creations for both women and men.

As the new and already very popular ‘pillar of the Boucheron perfume line, Quatre received several flankers, both female and male editions. In 2019, a new glamorous edition in ruby red bottles and boxes was presented, perfectly matching the ring designed for the Quatre collection, which was decorated with red ceramics set between diamonds and pink gold. The collection includes a ring and a pendant for the quatre-style necklace.

The red and glamorous perfume Boucheron Quatre en Rouge will seduce with its floral-fruity composition, touched with gourmand notes. It is signed by perfumers Michel Almairac and Mylene Alran. The ‘red aromas’ of this creation are embedded and intensified by the passionate perfume notes of the modern composition: red apple in the opening that alludes to love, roses in the heart as the ultimate femininity and raspberry in the base of the composition, enhancing its passionate effect.

In addition to sweet red apples, the opening includes refreshing, sunny notes of tangerine and bergamot, mixed with the juicy, fruity aroma of pears. Roses in the heart are combined with iris butter and black currants, followed by sweet-sour raspberries and a gourmand marshmallow accord. The sophistication of fruits and flowers is highlighted with patchouli and musk, which gives a base of elegance and depth.

 

The flacon of the new fragrance Quatre en Rouge repeats the shape of its predecessors, this time in a challenging red color, with the iconic Quatre ring on the cap adorned with crystals. The fragrance will be available as a 100ml Eau de Parfum.

Come into the beautiful world of Boucheron.

 

 

 

 

Bottega Veneta Eau de Velours

Bottega Veneta Eau de Velours will show up early September as an elegant, refined and acclaimed perfume for women. Bottega Veneta crafts exquisite and luxurious perfumes touched by pure elegance and stylishness. This autumn, Eau de Velours perfume announces to be a soft elegantly leathery/floral fragrance created by perfumers Michel Almairac and Mylene Alran.

Top notes: Bergamot, Pink pepper
Heart notes: Rose, Jasmine, Plume, spices
Base notes: Patchouli, Leather

Bottega Veneta Eau de Velours opens to impress with a nice mixture of fresh bergamot along with pink pepper and spices, calmed with floral accords of jasmine and roses. The base is made of patchouli and leather accords. Eau de Velours by Bottega Veneta is advertised by gorgeous model Nine d’Urso, who is photographed by Bruce Weber.

Bottega Veneta Eau de Velours would be available as 30, 50 and 75ml Eau de Parfum.

 

 

 

 

The Scent of Italy: Bottega Veneta Parco Palladiano

Bottega Veneta unveils Parco Palladiano fragrance collection

Although we may not all be able to experience the vast cultural heritage and lush landscapes of Italy, except probably as a vacation now and then, Italian fashion label Bottega Veneta says it has bottled the experience into the Parco Palladiano fragrance collection. Bottega Veneta aims to convey the pure sense and spirit of the Veneto region in Italy, and especially the scents from the garden of its famed Palladian villas, with its new unisex fragrance collection.

The result of over two years work, the Parco Palladiano collection is numbered by simple Roman numerals – I, II, III, IV, V, VI – to reflect the classical heritage of the Palladian villas. Just like everything created by Bottega Veneta, the Parco Palladiano collection expresses the maison’s four cornerstones: fine quality materials, artisanal craftsmanship, contemporary functionality, timeless yet innovative design.

“Palladio is a source of endless inspiration for me in many ways”, says Tomas Maier, who conceived and oversaw the collection. “My father was an architect who studied the work of Palladio, so his teachings have always been part of my life even before I started as creative director at Bottega Veneta. Palladio was an artisan as well as an architect who sought balance and harmony in everything. The Palladian gardens that inspire this ‘Parco Palladiano’ collection represent a perfection on earth and an agricultural utopia”.

Priced at $296 for a 100ml bottle, the whole collection will come in the form of six scents, each with different ingredient or aroma for the region. These include magnolia, cypress leaves, sun-ripened pear, azalea flowers, aromatic herbs (laurel, rosemary, sage), and, the queen of flowers, rose. These scents were developed from two years of testing and concocting various experiences and moments from the gardens. Maier called on three perfumers for this: Michel Almairac and Daniela Andrier, who have already worked with Bottega Veneta, and Alexis Dadier, who works with the brand for the first time.

 

Michel Almairac has been a part of the Bottega Veneta fragrance story from the beginning, creating the debut signature women’s fragrance Bottega Veneta. He has continued his relationship with Bottega Veneta, also developing Eau Legère and Essence Aromatique.

Daniela Andrier has provided the women’s fragrance Knot as well as collaborated on the first men’s fragrances Bottega Veneta Pour Homme and Pour Homme Extrême.

Alexis Dadier is creating his first fragrances for Bottega Veneta with the Parco Palladiano project. “Tomas Maier is very inspiring to work with,” says Alexis, “because he has a very clear story in his mind about the world he wants to create with the fragrance.”

I am fascinated by their work. With the Parco Palladiano collection, they have created fragrances that extend and tell a new story about the Bottega Veneta world.

Thomas Maier

PARCO PALLADIANO I

This fragrance evokes the early moment at the beginning of the day, when the sun begins to shine on a garden that is still dew-covered, immaculate. “For this scent, I immersed myself in that marvellous orderly world of the Venetian villas, creating a fragrance just as I experience the gardens,” says perfumer Michel Almairac.

The most noble and refined tree of the gardens is the magnolia, and this fragrance captures not just the flower but the full sensory experience of sitting under the magnolia tree: the woodiness of the bark, the cool shade of the leathery leaves, the strong sweetness of the petals.

PARCO PALLADIANO II

“The cypress tree is emblematic of the Venetian landscape, its slender shape a link between Palladian architecture and nature. This scent has all the vitality of spring, very green and fresh,” says Alexis Dadier.

The vertical scent of cypress leaves unfolds with a dual personality: a deep and dark green hand-in-hand with a stimulating bright freshness, further contrasted with the sharpness of pink pepper.

PARCO PALLADIANO III

This scent recreates a moment in fall, passing by a pear tree in a garden’s orchard, the pears nearly overripe and ready for harvest, falling from the branches into the green grass.

The warmth of the sun-ripened pear is heightened by an infusion of fresh mint leaves. “It is an imaginary promenade where the seasons overlap like a labyrinth,” says Daniela Andrier, “and memories of gardens in bloom mingle with those of our childhood.”

PARCO PALLADIANO IV

“In the afternoon, the clouds of azaleas that cover the ground outside a Palladian villa are magical. I wanted to capture the sense of a garden in summer as the scent rises in the sunlight,” says Alexis Dadier.

The colourful azalea flower, rarely used in perfumery, spreads its smooth and solar perfume while an undertone of velvet chestnut brings texture to the fragrance revealing a luxurious landscape.

PARCO PALLADIANO V

This fragrance, created by Daniela Andrier, conjures up a walk towards the aromatic herb gardens near a villa. As the sunlight hits the gardens, the tree path provides brief shadow and adds to the scent of this perfect mid-afternoon moment.

Woody, slightly spicy, the aromatic breeze combines the crispness of laurel with sturdy rosemary and soft sage leaves. “My intention was to bring the elegance of these gardens to life, and also their imperfections, to render them even more romantic”, says Andrier

PARCO PALLADIANO VI

The sixth fragrance, created by Michel Almairac in collaboration with Mylène Alran, centers on a sensual rose that has been in the sun all day long, tasty, spicy, almost ripe.

“The rose is the most elegant of flowers,” says Mylène Alran. “It is the most elegant, the most intense.” The opulent rose bridges the gap between building and nature as it is picked and brought inside the villa for evening, its intensity combining with the warm woodiness of the furnishings.

 

THE FLACONS

Each bottle of Parco Palladiano reflects the traditions of Bottega Veneta and the Veneto region, with the house’s iconic intrecciato at the heart of the design.

Intrecciato is the instantly recognisable signature of Bottega Veneta, the distinctive leather weave design developed and handcrafted by the house’s artisans. It was by focusing on the intrecciato that Tomas Maier started the revival of the Bottega Veneta, celebrating the extraordinary expertise that remains at its core today.

Bottega Veneta’s motto ‘When your own initials are enough’ expresses a philosophy of individuality and confidence, while reflecting the discreet and sophisticated aesthetic of the intrecciato signature design. Intrecciato shows Italian craftsmanship at its highest level and reveals Bottega Veneta’s understated luxury rooted in the quality of materials and artisanal tradition from the Veneto region.

For the Parco Palladiano collection, intrecciato appears all over the flacon, cap and the packaging. The flacon itself is inspired by classic Venetian glasswork, an aesthetic that defines the Bottega Veneta fragrance house.

 

THE ITALIAN WORLD OF FRAGRANCE FROM BOTTEGA VENETA

The fragrances of Bottega Veneta tell the stories of quintessential Italian experiences. From the first scent, creative director Tomas Maier wanted to bring meaning to fragrance, evoking through scent specific Italian moments, capturing the timeless beauty and heritage of the land.

With each new creation a story begins, conjuring to life a distinct aspect of Italy, from the landscape and environment to the life lived in it. The approach is unique in fragrance, typical of the Bottega Veneta commitment to forging its own path.

We have a natural evolution in everything we do at Bottega Veneta, and with fragrances it comes through the stories that we tell through scent. We started out with women’s fragrance, then we moved to men’s. Now we have Parco Palladiano, and with them all we create a world, one that will always work together.

Thomas Maier

With the release of these scents, Bottega Veneta has done well to honor the region that they’ve been a part of since the brand was founded in 1966. The six bottles in the collection will be sold exclusively in Bottega Veneta boutiques.

Lalique – a fragrance by Bentley

The Lalique for Bentley Crystal Flying B paperweight has been adorning the desks of many Bentley enthusiasts. The relationship between the French crystal and glassware manufacturer and the British luxury automaker strengthens with the launch of the Lalique for Bentley Blue Crystal limited edition fragrance. The auto maker already boasts of an impressive fragrance collection for men. And the latest to join the range and an upgrade to the Lalique for Bentley Crystal Edition fragrance is the limited Blue Crystal edition by Lalique, its most expensive fragrance to date.

Described as an ‘overwhelming essence of masculinity’, the Lalique for Bentley Blue Crystal Edition is a follow-up to the brand’s Lalique for Bentley Crystal Edition series that launched last year.

The new Blue Crystal edition costs around $5,700, which, while expensive – is a fraction of Bentley’s most modestly priced Continental GT Coupe. 

And what can you expect for your dollars? An artistic blend of midnight-blue crystal, really quite a sublime fragrance and luxurious design (naturally). Lalique brings the artistic midnight blue bottle to life by expertly playing with the pigments to create shimmering blue reflections in the magnificent crystal. The square shape of the flacon and the iconic Flying B Bentley wings mascot put together deilver unique visual impact. Hand-crafted by the French Maison in gleaming crystal, the dynamic of its wings epitomizes timeless beauty.

 

The Eau de Parfum itself is a combination of fine woody notes and exquisite leather, composed by perfumer Mylène Alran from the French perfume house Robertet, who also created the fragrance for the first edition. The top note is stimulating, with pink peppercorns and juniper berries, accompanied by a hint of fresh pear. In the heart note, Haitian and Javanese vetiver unfold their concentrated power, woody and invigorating. The base note includes essences of harmonious ambergris and musk, partnered with precious cedar wood and frankincense to round off the sensual experience.

 

The bespoke fragrance, perhaps unsurprisingly, is presented in bottle hand made from deep blue crystal. A perfect gift for the man who has it all, the Lalique for Bentley Blue Crystal limited edition fragrance will be available for $5,700. Since only 499 bottles of this nectar in blue falcon will be released this autumn, it is expected to fly off the shelves very soon before Christmas.