The New York Times described her as "The World’s Most Dedicated All-Natural Perfumer" and she has certainly inspired a generation of independent brands, both independent and commercial. Based in Berkeley, California, Mandy Aftel still creates and blends by hand using a stunning collection of ingredients which have been amassed over her thirty year career. On her recent visit to Britain I asked her "Stephan's Six" so we could learn a little more about the creator of Aftelier Perfumes.
The undisputed Queen Bee of Guerlain, Sylvaine Delacourte joined the company as a makeup artist before becoming their International Makeup Trainer. However, the perfumes fascinated her and, after much hard work, she achieved the coveted role of Director of Fragrance Evaluation and Development. Whilst still a consultant for Guerlain, Sylvaine has now launched her own brand, so what would we learn about her during "Stephan's Six"?
The wait is over! LIGHT & DARK DELIGHTFUL, Leighton Denny’s fourth fragrance, is finally released in its 70ml size on Monday. You probably already know that LIGHT & DARK DESIRE won a coveted Fragrance Foundation award this year, but did you know that his whole perfume range was almost never made? Now, I've known Leighton since 2006, when we were both based in Harrods, but I thought it was time to find out more about his “perfume journey” over a good old-fashioned Sunday roast.
Jim Caruso is best known among the Broadway theatre fraternity for hosting the famous Cast Party at Birdland, which he also brings annually to Brasserie Zédel in London, but his list of other credits is long. Actor, singer, dancer, he even co-starred with Kathie Lee Gifford in Personal Assistant … and survived! As one of Liza Minnelli’s long standing friends he performed with her on Broadway in 2009, but what would we learn about his own scented secrets during “Stephan’s Six”?
With the clocks about to go back an hour, if you live in the United Kingdom, and the nights starting to really draw in, we are right in the middle of Autumn. The leaves beginning to change colour is always the cue to get out the woolly scarf, start preparing to carve your pumpkin and look forward to bonfire night. After that we find ourselves hurtling full speed towards Christmas. So, before we get all festive I thought it would be good to look at two perfumes, decades apart, that are guaranteed to make you want to start kicking those piles of Autumn leaves. Grab your scarf and gloves; we're going for a walk.
When Jo left school at sixteen with six ‘O’ levels she knuckled down, worked hard, and became the youngest-ever UK magazine editor when she joined Look Now at twenty-three. Alongside that she had always had a love of fragrance, and so it seemed inevitable that Jo would go on to co-found The Perfume Society with Lorna McKay. After winning a Jasmine Award for her fragrant writing, I thought it was time that we turned the tables and discovered her scented secrets during “Stephan’s Six”.
"We've got Christmas all wrapped up". It's a phrase that you're going to hear a lot in the coming months, but there is still only one company that can truly can claim it as their own. When Estée Lauder purchased Jo Malone in 1999 they provided the expansion and distribution expertise that was desperately needed, and even after Jo left in 2006 they still held close to her original ethos of producing simple creations that blended effortlessly together to create something bespoke, but there is nothing "simple" about them. They are cleverly created to resonate with the wearer, and that also applies to this year's "Merry Mischief".
On 2nd January 2011 Radio 4's listeners said goodbye to Nigel Pargetter. A long running character in The Archers, he fell off the top of his ancestral pile while removing a New Year banner in icy conditions! It could only happen in a soap opera. A regular since 1983, Graham had already had a successful career with appearances in I Claudius, Bergerac and Brideshead Revisited, but away from Borsetshire what would we find out about the real Graham Seed during "Stephan's Six"?
Everyone talks about scent bringing back memories but this week it was a painting that triggered my recollection of a Guerlain classic. I’ve started renovating part of my house and this included taking out a built-in wardrobe. It was a typical nineties “Changing Rooms” style construction built of four-by-four and MDF, but what was hidden behind it really took me back. The wall was decorated with painted dolphins, so obviously it used to be a child’s room, and straight away I started to think about Petit Guerlain, which was released in 1994. So, let’s go back twenty two years and rediscover Guerlain’s innocence.
