Today marks the beginning of National Fragrance Week, a celebration and promotion of the perfume industry. Over the next seven days you will see companies vying for your attention with events and special offers so, to ease you in gently, I thought that I would take a look back at six of my favourite “Stephan’s Six” interviews from the past two years. I advise you to hold on tight as we revisit Jo Fairley, Lawrence Roullier-White, Liz Moores, Michael Angove, Monsieur Guerlain and Odette Toilette to discover their scented secrets.
It's difficult to imagine having to choose your top five Guerlain fragrances, but that's exactly what Monsieur Guerlain and I were asked to do. We were set the challenge of deciding our favourites from those that are still in production, and hopefully it will inspire you to add one, or possibly two, onto your Christmas list. Fragrances mean different things to different people and, whilst our choices have some similarities, there are some interesting differences. Monsieur Guerlain's five are firmly rooted in the company's classic period, but one of my choices will definitely cause a few raised eyebrows. So, get a stiff drink and let's begin the Guerlain Boys' Top Five.
Fan-sites are nothing new, especially in the realm of perfume, but what is unusual is when one of them takes the trouble to create original artwork. This was one of the unique aspects of Monsieur Guerlain’s website, along with an unstinting appreciation and knowledge of the Guerlain brand. It was disappointing then when it became known that Guerlain had demanded the immediate closure of his Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Vimeo accounts on February 5th. The main website is currently dormant [all of his accounts are now active] so let’s take a moment to look back at some of the amazing images that Monsieur Guerlain has given us over the past few years.
When Monsieur Guerlain started his website back in 2006 it was because there was so little information available about the company. Apart from a few books there was no dedicated site. A lifelong fan, he started to pull together every piece of information that he could find, and his impartiality meant that he has become the unofficial authority on Guerlain. Always writing under his nom de plume, what would we learn about him from "Stephan's Six"?
