For her
Designer Yves Saint Laurent is celebrating four decades in fashion this year and one of the ways with which he has chosen to mark the occasion is the release of a limited edition fragrance called In Love Again. A combination of floral and fruit notes, the perfume contains the scent of the tulip tree and water lily as well as blackberry and grapefruit. The bottle itself is heart-shaped with an enamel cap carrying Saint Laurent's signature vibrant colours of red, blue and green - the same shades which have consistently appeared in his collections over many years. In Love Again is joined by a make-up collection with equally dazzling colours. Both will only be on sale for a limited time, with the 100 ml fragrance selling for £37.50 while stocks last.
After producing two perfumes for both men and women, Calvin Klein has decided to issue a feminine fragrance which still hints at ambiguity through its name, Contradiction. Since florals are particularly popular at the moment, this scent contains a strong element of jasmine, rose, peony, syringa and orchid; the last of these provides the primary inspiration for Contradiction. The result has been described as "a joyful oriental," contained in a flacon which shares the same cool understatement as Calvin Klein's flagship store on Madison Avenue in New York. Contradiction is now available nationwide priced at £37 for a 50 ml spray.
For Him
It comes as no surprise that a scent from Paris-based designer Kenzo should be exotic, but Africa rather than the far east appears the natural home for his new Jungle Pour Homme. The bottle's design echoes a zebra's stripes, topped by a stopper containing striped boar brush. The contents come from a voyage around the planet, since they include mate from the Brazilian Pampas, Benzoin of Siam, Cedar, Guaiac wood, musk mallow seeds and sweet lime. The resulting hybrid, like Kenzo's clothes, is a mixture of oriental and western, thanks to the blend of citrus and wood. Now on sale at selective retailers, Kenzo's Jungle Pour Homme costs £26.75 for a 50 ml eau de toilette spray.
If florals are the new favourites for women, wood notes are their male equivalent. So, these dominate Rocabar, due to be released in June by Hermes. Taking its name from the company's famous saffron/ red/blue striped rug ("Rug a barres"), the fragrance smells like a well-planted forest, containing such diverse elements as juniper, cypress, cedar and pine. Together, they produce a lively, warm scent with a vigorous top note. Each bottle is wrapped in its own Hermes mini blanket bound with a leather thong. The range of Rocabar items includes all-over shampoo and after-shave balm with prices starting at £29.50 for a 50 ml eau de toilette spray.
For Both
The popularity of unisex perfumes shows no signs of abating as Bulgari debuts Black, a scent for both men and women. Described as a "metropolitan fragrance," Black certainly looks wonderfully stylish coming in a cylindrical glass bottle encased in rubber, with a rubber and steel cap. This sleek packaging is matched by the contents, which have a rich depth based around black tea. Everything from the olfactory origin to the presentation is equally simple and clean. Black ought to appeal to minimalists of both sexes. £35 for a 75 ml eau de toilette from next month.