Product Shout Out

BOND No 9 HOLIDAY LUXURY LINE

Bond No 9 has come out with three ultra-luxurious bottles of their NYC signature scents in time for the holidays. Fa La La La La La La La La!

Bleecker Street Bejeweled
The choice this holiday for our annual “Swarovski treatment” is Bleecker Street (a gourmand oriental mingling of patchouli, cassis, caramel, woods, and musk). The limited-edition 100ml lime green-chartreuse-amethyst-gold starburst watercolor flacon is studded, back and front, with a checkerboard pattern of matching crystals—and for good measure, an extra-large crystal front and center. $395.


The Swarovski All-Stars
But why stop at one new Swarovski-enhanced flacon? We’ve gone overboard and embellished three more of our most coveted scents with the tiniest and most reflective of all the Swarovski stones—five thousand of them per 50ml bottle. The pearlized milk glass Eau de New York bottle (citruses-cyclamen-jasmine-vetiver) is studded with diamond-colored aurora borealis stones. Chelsea Flowers (peonies-magnolia-rose) is decked with emerald-colored stones. Chinatown (peach-gardenia-tuberose-sandalwood) features ruby-colored stones. $650.


The Crystallized Amphora
We’ve saved the show-stopper for last: Our outsized 42 oz amphora vitrine, breathtakingly covered with 16,500 hand-applied platinum Swarovski stones. Not to forget the bottle top—an elliptical mirror with honeycomb base. And while we were at it, we added the Bond No. 9 signature and a handy golden spigot. Contents? Your choice among our 32 scents. This bedazzlement comes in a white patent leather gift case, also adorned with crystals. $3,500.

Hot Guy Alert

A LONG TALL GLASS OF COOL WATER

Cool Water by Davidoff has a new(ish) spoke model - Josh Holloway, also known as Sawyer on Lost. The commercial is downright drool-worthy. If you're a Lost fan and caught the season finale of the show, you'll remember the moment in the episode when Sawyer washes up on the beach, shirtless and dripping wet. Much like the Cool Water commercial. Watch it here.

Juicy Juicy

SMELL THE LOVE

The latest Juicy Couture perfume ad is reminiscent of a certain young Hollywood lesbian couple, no? My friend pointed it out to me and I have to say I agree completely. Wonder if momager, Deanna will try to sue to get some more moolah out of her daughter's name.

Unfortunately, I can't find a picture of the ad online. If anyone can find one, please send it along!

Product Review

ANDY WARHOL'S SHOES SMELL SOOOOO GOOD

If Andy Warhol were alive today, he would have turned 80 years old on August 6. In honor of the pop artist's 80th, the NYC-inspired fragrance line Bond No. 9 (named after its NYC address) introduces its latest Warhol-influenced scent called Andy Warhol Lexington Avenue.


This is the third in the Warhol series (the previous two are called Andy Warhol Silver Factory and Andy Warhol Union Square), which was created from a collaboration with The Warhol Foundation. The latest scent uses Warhol's time living on Lexington Avenue, illustrating shoes. For this reason, the bottle (how cute is it?) is decorated with the artists' whimsical shoe drawings.


Warhol was a fan of perfume, having said: "Another way to take up more space is with perfume. I really love wearing perfume." The company describes the perfume as: "a floral woody chypre (chypre meaning fresh citrus topnotes and a lingering forest-like base) with highly coveted contemporary gourmand notes -- a brew of peony, orris, patchouli, sandalwood, cardamom, fennel, almonds, cumin, and even creme brulee."

I received an advance sample of the perfume, which will be available next month. I definitely smell the creme brulee and the woody base. It smells like a coffee shop in a coniferous forest on a crisp autumn day. Absolutely gorgeous. I cannot stop smelling my wrist where I dabbed the yummy elixir. I almost want to lick it!

The holiday season this year will see limited-edition flacons featuring four Robert Lee Morris sterling silver Warhol shoe pendants. I'm starting my Christmas list early this year.
Dear Santa. . .

Enter-To-Win

NOTHING SWEET ABOUT FALL'S HOTTEST FRAGRANCES

In W's September issue, the magazine takes a look at the fall fragrance trend of earthy, spicy scents. They also give you a chance to win 10 of the most sought-after scents of the season. Sign up for your chance to smell like an earth goddess here.

Product Shout-Out

SKIN SO SOFT

I love Skin So Soft. Love it. Love it. Love it. The smell takes me back to childhood when my mom was an Avon lady and we had the stuff all over the house. I also love it because it repels mosquitoes without the Deet. But most of all it just feels good. I love the spray body oil and the body oil gel. I also just bought the body wash and have yet to try it. Avon has a bunch of other fragrances in their Skin So Soft line now, but I'm a sucker for the original.

On a side note, I recently saw an Avon catalog for the first time in years and found that they still make Sweet Honesty perfume. If that doesn't bring me back, I don't know what will.

Product Review

ORANGE YOU GLAD FOR SULA

You know the smell of an orange as you're peeling it and that slight mist that sprays in your face as you peel the rind away from the flesh? That's exactly the experience I had when I sprayed Sun-Kissed Citrus by Sula yesterday in Ulta.

The description: A bright, zesty citrus scent with notes of tangerine, lemon, orange, grapefruit and bergamot.

Sounds perfect for the dog days of summer. And the bottle is so pretty. . .

Product Review

SPRING CLEANING

I went to Ulta today and found myself gravitating toward the Clean fragrances. This happens every time I go into a store that cells the brand - a line of fragrances inspired by soap. Nothing beats the smell of freshly showered skin and hair and Clean aims to mimic that fresh-out-of-the-shower scent.

They have a myriad of fragrances to choose from including Warm Cotton, Fresh Laundry, and Lather. The one I keep coming back to, however, is called Baby Girl. It's light crisp scent makes me feel really good whenever I spray it on.The website even has airline-friendly sizes of some of the fragrances. Check it out here.

GWEN'S DOLLS AND SCENTS

WWD has reported that Gwen Stefani will be releasing five new scents through her Harajuku Lovers label. The fragrances, which she will produce with Coty, will be based on herself and her four back-up dancers Love, Angel, Music, and Baby.

"I didn't think this project would actually come to life," said Stefani. "The idea that Coty would let me do five different fragrances for Harajuku Lovers was a fantasy. But it really had to be five, because that's what the world is. Each girl has her own personality and sense of style. We're all saying something different with unique personalities."

Each bottle will come in the shape of a doll and each doll will have her own box with interesting facts about her printed on it.

Gwen also revealed that she would like to release a full make-up line one day (yes, please!).

"It makes sense, "she said. "I've always loved doing my hair and makeup and getting all dressed up. When I have a party or an event to go to, getting ready is just as much fun as actually going out."

THAT GIRL IS POISON

Dior has released a limited edition nail polish only available at Sephora. Dior Vernis Long-Wearing Nail Lacquer is now available in "poison blue," which was inspired by his fragrance, Midnight Poison. The color looks gorgeous and like it would work well with almost any skin tone. It's pricey, however, at $19 a bottle.

DAISY by MARC JACOBS
Product Review

Marc Jacob's newish fragrance has been calling me from the shelves of beauty shops everywhere because I love daisies and the bottle is irresistible. I've been spraying it on whenever I find a "sample" bottle, because I'm determined to love it. Initially, the smell is heavenly, but later it takes on that perfumey smell that I can't stand. I don't know how to explain it. It reminds me of my mom's Giorgio perfume. When I was a kid, she would leave clouds of it in her wake and it always smelled acrid and woody.

Check out the fragrance's website. It's one of the coolest little places on the web that I've seen in quite a while. $55 for 1.7 oz.

ON LIKE A LAMB
OUT LIKE A LION

I've been obsessed with Gwen Stefanie's L by L.A.M.B perfume since it emerged on the shelves of beauty counters everywhere. Something about the bottle's earthy tones and the weight of the bottle in my hand when I pick it up really appeals to my senses. And that's not even mentioning the scent, which I have a hard time describing. It's sweet and warm at the same time like a musky pear tart with a hint of lilly dashed on top of it.

Because I'm too cheap to cough up the $50 for it, I take the opportunity to douse myself in it everytime I pass it in a store. Having said all of that, I noticed the other day that unlike a lot of fragrances, this one really sticks to me. I sprayed it on early in the afternoon after a trip to ULTA and realized I was still smelling it around eight p.m. The problem being that it no longer exuded that initial freshness that I like so much and now just smelled heavy.

If you want a sample, you can head over to the fragrance's website and request one. The only problem is you have to enter a bunch of info that will probably be picked up by a gazillion marketing companies who will spam you with junk mail from now until eternity.