From a new spin on Marc Jacobs' iconic Daisy to Givenchy's mysterious Ange ou Démon Le Secret to Sarah Jessica Parker's scent-sational interpretation of her "Sex and the City" character Carrie Bradshaw's effervescent spirit, read on for spring's best olfactory offerings.
Springs New Fragrances
Spring is just around the corner! And with warm, sunny days ahead we can't wait to trade out our heavy, winter scents for fun and flirty fragrances.
On a quest to find the best of the season, we sniffed and whiffed around the beauty counter. Read on for spring's latest olfactory offerings.
Touted as "an exotic journey to the Orient," Van Cleef & Arpels Oriens takes a more fruity-floral fragrant route. Packaged in a statement-making bottle inspired by the French jeweler's tourmaline and diamond-studded ring, the scent opens with sweet notes of raspberry, praline and black currant before revealing a heart of jasmine and fresh cut white flowers and then settling into a patchouli base.
Oriens is $150 (100ml) and available at Neiman Marcus, Bergdorf Goodman, and Van Cleef & Arpels boutiques.
Inspired by the silk Flora scarf especially designed for Princess Grace of Monaco in 1966, this warm and sophisticated eau de parfum from Gucci has a timeless allure. With notes of sandalwood, peony, rose, patchouli, and citrus, its seductive scent has the freshness of the original Flora fragrance, but with a new sensuality. "I think it will still appeal to our Flora customer but now she has the choice of whether she wants to keep her scent light and easy or a bit more rich and dramatic for evening," said Frida Giannini, creative director for Gucci. "It is for a different moment in the same woman's life."
Flora by Gucci is $80 (1.7 fl.oz) and available at Bloomingdale's and Saks Fifth Avenue.
"Sex and the City" star Sarah Jessica Parker captures the vivacious and vibrant spirit of the character Carrie Bradshaw in her sixth scent perfectly coined, SJP NYC. Packaged in a wildly printed bottle, this fruity floral is a beautiful, yet bold blend of Italian mandarin, white osmanthus, gardenia, honeysuckle, and creamy musk. But Parker adds a delightful element of surprise with a deliciously sweet accord of wild red strawberries. "Its like when they ring the recess bell, that excitement of the beginning of summer," said Parker of the fragrance's youthful essence.
SJP NYC is $49 (60ml) and available at fine department stores including Macy's.
Beyoncé Knowles has the fever and wants you to catch it with her debut fragrance, Beyoncé Heat. Inspired by her mother, Tina Knowles' cooking, the fragrance is a woody, floral concoction of magnolia, neroli, red vanilla orchid, crème de musk, tonka bead and amber. "My mother's Creole so she cooks with a lot of spices -- her candied yams are so delicious!," said Knowles. "When I walk in the room I can smell the sweetness, but I can also smell the spice. So I wanted a mixture of something that is fiery, sensual but also very feminine."
Beyoncé Heat is $49 (1.7 fl.oz.) and available at Macy's.
Adding to their range of New York City neighborhood-inspired fragrances, Bond No. 9's High Line is an androgynous floral-marine scent that celebrates the aerial walkway that stretches from the Meatpacking District to the 34th Street rail yards. Notes of purple love grass, bergamot, Indian rhubarb, red-leaf rose, Lady Jane tulips, bur oak and musk embody the beauty arising from this section of the concrete jungle.
Bond No. 9 High Line is $220 (100ml) and available at Bon No. 9 New York stores,
Saks Fifth Avenue and at bondno9.com.
With an impressive library of over 250 fragrances inspired by everyday objects and experiences including Dirt, Play-Doh and Snow, Demeter's Pink Grapefruit is a refreshing and uplifting transition into spring. Isolating the citrus scent without the sharpness of the fruit, this cologne spray has a simple, yet full-bodied aroma that can be worn all day.
Demeter Pink Grapefruit is $20 (1 fl.oz.) and available on demeterfragrance.com.
Following in his LVMH family footsteps, Kilian Hennessy sought to make his own imprint in the world of perfumery with a fragrance collection that embodies the "angel's share," -- the percentage that evaporates from cognac cellars, like an offering to the gods. As one of the five olfactory experiences within Kilian's "Arabian Nights" collection, Rose Oud is an extraordinary combination of rose and oud that emits a woody, feminine scent. Believed to worth more than its weight in gold in many Middle Eastern countries, oud is a rare oil found in agarwood, a resinous heartwood of the Aquilaria tree from southeast Asia. This rich and warm fragrance is an alluring invitation from Kilian to escape to the Middle East.
Rose Oud is $395 (1.7 oz.) and available at Bergdorf Goodman, Bergdorf Goodman and bykilian.com.
For lovers of the original Marc Jacobs Daisy, the designer has created a new limited edition fragrance in celebration of spring. Daisy Marc Jacobs Garland Edition is a sparkling floral comprised of violet, wild strawberry, ruby red grapefruit, gardenia, musk, white woods, and vanilla. Packaged in a retro bottle with vinyl, baby blue petals blooming from its cap, Jacobs captures the whimsy of cloudy, spring days.
Daisy Marc Jacobs Garland Edition is $57 (1.7 fl.oz.) and available at fine department stores nationwide including Bloomingdale's, Bloomingdale's, and Saks Fifth Avenue.
The French fashion house of Chloé unveils a new fragrance chapter this spring with a floral scents collection that combines three of the rawest materials in perfumery: Lavande, Capucine, and Neroli. Met with the challenge to "combine romanticism and androgyny to create a cologne signature with the framework of a real perfume," perfumers Domitille Bertier (Lavande), Aliénor Massanet (Neroli), and Lousise Turner (Capucine) perfected a trio "inspired by their own memories of fantasized nature."
Chloé Eau de Fleur Lavande is an ever-evolving mixture of lavender, violet, bergamot leaves, tea, iris, musk, and cedar.
Chloé Eau de Fleur Neroli is a unique citrus-floral-woody concoction of mandarin, orange, rosemary, neroli, sage, amber, musk, and tonka bead.
Chloé Eau de Fleur Capucine is a refreshing citrus blend of bergamot, lemon and neroli, with layered with green notes of sage, rose, jasmine and lily before settling into a musk.
Chloé Eau de Fleurs are $135 each (100ml) and available at Saks Fifth Avenue and
Chloé
