chaneldrip

Chaneldrip is a series of customized iconic Chanel No 5 perfume bottles by Dutch artist/designer Pepe Heykoop. Commissioned by Majed Al Sabah for Al Sabah Art + Design Gallery in Kuwait, the bottles “wear” a coat dripped with foam.

la belle et la bête

My love for Diptyque is already well-known and now I have another sweet-smelling indulgence to capture my heart. Beauty and the Beast is a scent set that must be burned together to be properly appreciated. French artists and couple Olivier Kuntzel and Florence Deygas added their own playful twist to the classic tale: Beauty detects a whiff of violet in Beast’s chambers and thinks he’s with another woman, when in fact his scent is just matching hers because he loves her so much.

Beauty contains notes of blackcurrant, tea rose, rhubarb, and Egyptian geranium; Beast has notes of Indonesian patchouli, java vetiver, and woodiness. Both share a heart of violet leaf and are meant to be burned simultaneously.  $78 for the pair at Bergdorf Goodman and Diptyque.

merchants of everything

Diptyque founders Christiane Gautrot, Desmond Knox-Leet, and Yves Coueslant – an interior decorator, painter, and set designer, respectively – got off to an auspicious start in 1961 when they opened a store full of unexpected items garnered from their travels around the world. Known as “the merchants of everything,” they eventually set their sights on fragrances, and the rest is history.

I have long been a fan of Diptyque candles (summer scent scheme: Figuier + Pink Roses, winter scent scheme: Feu de Bois + Foin Coupe) but had never ventured into the realm of Diptyque fragrances. A few whiffs of a London coworker’s Do Son this summer utterly transformed me into a believer. A Chloe/Coco Mademoiselle girl, I’m always in search of that one amazing smell that will be my signature forever (I always end up changing my mind). For now I am hooked on Olene, narcissus and jasmine. I even copied my Indian Beauty’s spray method: four spritzes on each arm so the smell wafts out pleasantly as you move but never overpowers.

Perfume from Diptyque is so obvious and yet so overlooked. Wear your sophistication on your inner wrists and stand out with some favorites: Do Son, a simple but deep tuberose scent inspired by Coueslant’s childhood memories of the fragrant banks of the Red River in Tonkin; L’Eau, a spicy and surprising mix of rose, geraniums, and sandalwood based on a 16th century recipe; and L’Eau de Neroli, a musky scent evoking the sun, siestas, sex, and everything la dolce vita.

see the full range here or visit www.diptyqueparis.com