Perfumes That Smell Like Vivienne Westwood Boudoir

White is a bright and lively fragrance built around the friction between hot spices and suave florals. The cinnamon, clove and cardamom opening suggests candied red hots, which makes it all the more surprising when the melange of rose de Mai and lily of the valley softly asserts itself. The undertone of tagete, with its bitter herbalness, keeps White from getting too “pretty-pretty”.

September 1757, Casino Venier, Venice

A powdery floral fragrance based on authentic 18th century cosmetic formulas.

A coquettish floral capturing the decadence of 18th century Venice, its rococo interiors and clandestine affairs: a powdery blend of black violet, blush rose, and chamomile nestled on an impossibly soft base of dusty iris and subtle, animalic amber. 

Perfumer: Bertrand Duchaufour

Visual artist: landscape artist/photographer Martin Hill.

The same way in which Martin goes to a sight and rearranges what nature left there into an installation, the perfumer rearranged some molecules and materials to put the beauty of a natural material into focus.

Also Martin aims to let his structures be absorbed back into natural chaos. Perfume evaporates into the environment in a similar fashion, beautiful but transient.

In Vanilla Shot all of the focus is on vanilla (natural, dark and balsamic). The concept of the perfume is inspired by a photo of a piece of Martin Hill's land art shot at dreamy dusk (below). The twigs used in the structure balanced over the lake are reminiscent of vanilla beans. The installation transcends two planes - liquid and ether and in the perfume vanilla spans the sweet and bitter corners of the scented universe. Vanilla Shot is not an ordinary sweet gourmand. In this perfume all nuances of natural vanilla get proper attention: balsamic, fruity, spicy, sweet and even leathery.

Matilde Bonaparte, niece of Napoleon I, was known for her breasts (“le plus beau décolleté”) and her talent as a painter. She also hosted a celebrated 19th-century Parisian salon attended by the greatest artists and writers of her time. This namesake perfume is an olfactory salon of provocative white florals (ylang-ylang, narcissus, jasmine) given tropical succulence with passion fruit and papaya. Mathilde’s heady brightness is softened by iris and sandalwood.

This monster of an “anti-perfume” is simultaneously clean and dense, the olfactory interpretation of the building material. Aptly encased in a grey concrete bottle, this eau de parfum is an astonishingly diffusive blend of sandalwood, rose and spices, with a powerful smoothness that mimics the material's satisfying surface.

Olfactory opulance conjures the Palace of Versailles in its heyday when Louis XIV and his Court would amble the Grand Orangery to delight in the flowering orange trees warmed by bonfires. This is a bright orange blossom with a warm, woody background, with notes of orange blossom absolute, pomegranate, honey and firewood smoke.

Ramune is a traditional Japanese soda pop sold in a pale blue glass bottle sealed with a marble. The drink is evocative of Japanese summer festivals, carefree times illuminated by dreamy paper lanterns. This eau de parfum starts with the clear notes of lemon, aldehydes and mint, followed by gentle rose, muguet and magnolia, before drifting into musk and vanilla.

“Udbaha” means “marriage” in Bangla, and this extrait references the Bangladeshi Holud Night celebration before the wedding. The festival is decorated with marigolds, roses and tuberoses. The aromas of festival sweets and treats fill the air: sugar, nuts, cardamom and saffron, mingling with oranges, pineapple and ripe mangoes. A spicy/earthy paste of turmeric and fenugreek is applied to the bride and groom’s body, enhanced by warm amber. And summoning the ceremonial application of henna, Bengal oud and oakmoss weaves a funky green trail through the proceedings. A deep and joyful perfume.

A modern interpretation of a classic chypre, this is an unapologetic  abundance of statement florals: hyacinth, rose and narcissus. The entrance to this hidden garden is garlanded with the herbal bitterness of galbanum, cushioned by a dark green carpet of vetiver and moss. Like a geisha’s serene beauty that hides her inner power, this extrait de parfum is a statement of mystery and strength.

Perfumer: Ralf Schwieger 

This fragrance is inspired by love, drama and opulence of the famous painting by P. P. Rubens and the legend of Samson and Delilah. Osmanthus Noble is intense and has a strong personality and notes of Osmanthus, Ylang Ylang and Jasmine absolute flowers, spicy tobacco, warm amber and sandalwood.

At opening you can feel fresh, spicy and aldehydic notes blended with bergamot and mandarin that give vividness and intensity.  The noble osmanthus absolute combined with an aromatic clary sage play together to form a soft suede accord. Tobacco absolute, delicious black cherry, saffron and tonka beans play an important role in creating a sensual atmosphere. Floral notes of jasmine sambac and ylang-ylang give vitality and bloom in the heart. In the dry down, oakmoss absolute, labdanum, sandalwood, smoky vetiver and animalic musks bring a spiritual feeling and allow the perfume to linger on the skin.