Get a Whiff of This: L'Eau de Chloé

After its creation in 2008, it didn't take long for L'Eau de Chloé, the house's signature scent, to rocket into classic status. The rosy, instantly recognizable scent now plays favorite to seemingly every girly girl and her entourage.

Still not satisfied, apparently, Chloé's go-to nose Michel Almairac went back to the lab, played around, and tweaked the beloved original—just a little bit. With rose water, a citrus harmony and a hint of patchouli, the new l'eau (available in March) is even fresher, airier and more carefree.

In other words, the perfect fragrance for springtime frolic. And judging by this behind-the-scenes look at Mario Sorrenti's campaign video with model and actress Camille Rowe (the print images were photographed by Camilla Akrans), it might just make you, too, want to scamper through a grassy meadow under a clear blue sky. Go ahead, we won't tell.

• Posted Feb 05, 2012
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Blood Is Thicker than Eau du Parfum

We've all heard of those wackadoodle diets customized to your blood type. Now comes Blood Concept, a new line of perfumes that wants to be very clear what their scents are not made from: flowers (there's no shortage of that on the market). But they're a lot less clear what they do use. Vampire freaks can calm down; we're pretty sure it would be illegal to use blood.

The unisex fragrances come in four familiar types, each packaged in a silver laboratory-like dropper, but all quite different from each other. There's A ("green, nature-inspired"), B ("woody, spicy"), AB ("synthetic, individualist"), and finally O ("visceral, carnal"). Not sure what type you are? Sample them all with their Compatability Test. You won't even have to look at a needle.

Visit Blood Concept

• Posted Jan 29, 2012
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Iris Apfel's New Line with MAC Is For the Birds

Iris Apfel's saucer-like glasses are easily her most recognized trademark, but her bright, bold lips are a close second, making her the natural choice to collaborate with MAC on a limited-edition line of cosmetics. Fondly referred to as a rare bird, Apfel opted for powders, liners and shadows that capture her enduring charm and colorful spirit.

But it's the lipsticks that people have been flocking to: Party Parrot, a bright red-pink; Flamingo, a tamer milky coral; and Pink Pigeon, a true fuchsia. (C'mon, the pigeon is actually a very smart bird, capable of simple math.) And if you're looking to recreate that signature pucker for yourself, then Scarlet Ibis, an orange-red, is the one for you.

$14.50 at MAC locations and online. But don't delay as these lippies are, ahem, flying off shelves. 

• Posted Jan 15, 2012
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Please Sir, I Want Black Nails

Everyone's obsessed with nails lately, from new color crazes to DIY techniques (swirling, anyone?). But if you're loyal to the goth nail, you can put those Sharpies and Black Satins away. Dickensian Volume, from boutique polish line StrangeBeautiful, is an assortment of ten subtly distinct shades of black, inspired by a range of dark things, from a hunk of coal to the Brothers Grimm, as well as the collection's namesake, Charles Dickens. Use a different shade on each finger to pull off ombre. Talk about nailing it.

$85 at Lucky Scent

• Posted Jan 10, 2012
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Wode Warriors

British label Boudicca is a study in contrasts, implied by its very name, taken after the warrior queen who led a revolt against the occupying Romans nearly two millennia ago.

Launched in 2009, Boudicca's art fragrance Wode is no different, blasting from the bottle as ink-blue mist before disappearing into delightful whiffs of the poisonous herb hemlock. Now comes an entirely clear and higher-concentrated version of the eau de toilette, for those who prefer not to tempt fate.

£65-75 for 150 ml at these locations. UK residents can buy online and have it couriered in time for Christmas.

• Posted Dec 20, 2011
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Finding Your Bearings

New men's skincare line Ursa Major spells out its mission pretty bluntly on its website: "The vast majority of skincare products on the market today are loaded with cheap synthetic chemicals—including many known toxins—cranked out in huge vats in some industrial park." No thanks.

By contrast, Ursa Major uses only minerals, vitamins, proteins, essential fatty acids, and other strictly natural ingredients in its new shave cream and its just-launched face wash and face toner—all infused with earth-born goodness like aloe, bamboo, birch, lime, and spearmint. The result is a sobering, invigorating bonding moment with your face. We know, because we tried it.

As for the name Ursa Major, well, when you move to Vermont to seek out a simpler, cleaner life, as the company's founders did, you can actually see constellations in the night sky. Can you bear it?

Available at Ursa Major

• Posted Dec 16, 2011
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Sponsored: Sk:n Clinics

Tis the season for banishing winter skin blues and perking up tired-looking skin. Botox may be the answer. At Sk:n, we're proud to be the first network of clinics added to the IHAS’s 'Treatment You Can Trust' register. With over 20 years experience in treating lines and wrinkles, our experts are trained to inject Botox correctly so that the skin looks relaxed and refreshed, not stiff and expressionless.

Botox prices should not be your only consideration when deciding on where to have the treatment done. As Botox involves the injection of a purified form of the toxin Botulinum, you should only trust a skilled professional, like those at our clinics. For UK readers, Sk:n clinics is offering 25% off Botox procedures.

We also understand that in this financial climate our customers must manage their money smartly. That is why we're offering 0% financing and special Botox pricing through the year. Don’t compromise quality for cost.

Readers outside the UK can find sk:n's range of skincare products in health and beauty stores worldwide.

• Posted Dec 15, 2011
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YSL's Fragrant Stroll Down Memory Lane

To review La Collection—eight iconic Yves Saint Laurent fragrances repackaged in cubical bottles—is to realize what is missing from the house's latest olfactive endeavor: the irresistible smell of scandal.

Indeed, the fragrant stroll down memory lane is a timely reminder of all the headlines, gossip and legal drama that the brand's perfume division has produced since its creation 40 years ago. That notorious Jean Loup Sieff image of Monsieur himself, naked except for his black spectacles, to promote Pour Homme, his first men's fragrance, is etched in our collective memory. Those guys over at Dolce & Gabbana would certainly agree. 

In 1993, Saint Laurent hinted at his hedonistic 1970s with an exquisite mixture of nectarine, litchi and patchouli, fabulously christened Champagne. But then peeved bubbly producers sued, and the fragrance was renamed. But the second moniker expressed anything but repentance. After all, Yvresse sounds like "ivresse," the French word for drunkenness and euphoria.

It wasn't until the arrival of Tom Ford that this tradition of provocation was revived, notably with the oriental Nu, launched in 2002 with an orgiastic party where naked and entwined bodies writhed in giant, see-through urns. And, as for M7, the ad campaign featuring a neo-classical nude of Samuel de Cubber was rejected by several publications on grounds of indecency.

The other fragrances in La Collection—Jazz, In Love Again, Rive Gauche Pour Homme, Y—didn't cause controversy, but they were all part of a golden era.

• Posted Dec 11, 2011
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Viktor & Rolf Drop Another Bomb

Dutch designers Viktor Horsting and Rolf Snoeren, better known as Viktor & Rolf, are no strangers to the beauty counter. After all, their Flowerbomb fragrance has been a mega-hit—many a woman's signature scent. But come March, the boys will have theirs, too.

Meet Spicebomb. Developed by the house's trusted nose, Olivier Polge, the explosive new fragrance bursts with vim, vigor, and virility—and yes, spice. Powerful oriental notes like chili and saffron, as well as traditional masculine notes of leather, tobacco and vetiver, are combined with heady bergamot, elemi and pink pepper to pack serious punch.

To drive the point home, the juice is encased in a grenade-shaped bottle, while a shirtless and super-buff Sean O'Pry serves as the campaign model. Now that's hot.

• Posted Dec 01, 2011
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Chanel Goes Jersey, Sans Shore

Its hard to believe, but there was a time in the not-so-distant past when the word "jersey" didn't bring to mind a plump, perma-tan guidette and an over-confident stud with ripped abs.

In the pre-Snooki fashion world, jersey meant something else. It identified the supple men's fabric Gabrielle Chanel used to craft her little black dresses in the 1920s. This winter, the house of Chanel celebrates that groundbreaking gesture by launching Jersey, a romantic lavender juice tinged with white musk and vanilla. Concocted by legendary in-house perfumer Jacques Polge, the fragrance is part of Chanel's Les Exclusifs collection. Meaning, in order to get a bottle, you'll have to travel to a boutique far, far away from Jersey Shore.

• Posted Nov 27, 2011
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