Monday, September 05, 2011

Perfume Notes: Bvlgari Black


Black was launched by Bvlgari in 1998. It was created by perfumer Annick Menardo, and the fragrance notes are black tea, rosewood, bergamot, cedar, oakmoss, vanilla, amber, sandalwood, and musk.

Black has been brilliantly called "one of those masterpieces of weird that you would expect to come out of an obscure niche design house". Bvlgari calls it a “supreme exponent of the metropolitan concept”, and the fragrance does have an edgy, urban, very modern feel. There is a short lived citrus top note; after that, the focus is on black tea, in this case lapsang souchong, which lends a smoky, almost earthy edge to the dry woods. It is mildly spicy, with hints of burning rubber and leather, and a whisper of something like tobacco leaf. The far dry down is smoother and softer, with an almost comfort-scent blend of vanilla, musk and woods. A tinge of powder lends a velvety finish, but just enough of the smoke and rubber remains to keep it from being dull and pedestrian.

It is marketed as unisex, or shared, how I prefer. Either way, it is an edgy fragrance that requires personality and attitude to pull it off. 
I personally love this fragrance: At the first moments in contact on my skin, it feels edgy and urban, but after some minutes I can smell the smoke and vanilla, how I imagine an opium house in Shanghai would be. 


For a more comprehensive review see Now Smell This.

Sunday, September 04, 2011

Chanel in the 2nd Millenium


So simple and elegant. Chic and edgy. So Chanel.


2009

2010


Vintage Chanel Advertisement



1950s




1960s



1980s



1990s



It is amazing to see how society changed in less than 50 years. Nevertheless, vanity is a constant: women always wanted to feel beautiful and desired.

Saturday, September 03, 2011

Being comfortable in ours own skin: Welcome

Christy Turlington making wave within yoga in the 1990s.  Photo from Michael O'Neill.

Welcome to my blog. 
One of the most important things in life is to achieve happiness. Happiness is a complex and abstract conception, and perhaps the most paramount philosophy in the quest for happiness may be summarized by the French expression "ĂȘtre bien dans sa peau", being comfortable in ours own skin. This is not a state that comes easily to most of us: since childhood, we struggle with our failure to meet cultural standards or even just our own. 


I think we all agree that the woman who is bien dans sa peau is the woman that we would all like to be. My contact information is virginiabiendanssapeau@gmail.comIf  you'd like to contact me, feel free to sent a message.