Designer Round-Up: Summer's Here
Every year for the past 10 years, I've measured summer as the length of time the summer flankers last on the counter before being removed in time for Christmas - which starts in September (obviously). Every year the number of summer editions seem to increase even more, too. Last year's favourite was Bvlgari's Blv II Eau d'Ete, which smelled like fizzy mint and seaweed. This years are all familiar fixtures on the fragrance scene.
Calvin Klein Summer
The 2011 edition of CK One has probably my favourite bottle this summer. The scent is a bright citrus opening with the a metallic musky floral drydown that reminds me slightly of Secretions Magnifiques.
Notes include: tangerine, water fern, melon, verbena, lemon, sea breeze accord, blue freesia, rhubarb, cedarwood, skin musk, incense, peach skin.
Also from Calvin Klein this year are the Eternity summer editions:
Eternity Summer for him is a loud fruity scent that feels more like Versace Eau Fraiche than the original Eternity.
Notes include: citrus, mind, coriander, ocean air accord, watermelon, star anise, galbanum, muguet, cedarwood, red amber, patchouli.
Eternity Summer for her is a more transparent, grassier take on the original Eternity's floral musk.
Notes include: violet leaves, muguet, cilantro, verbena, gardenia, jasmine sambac, lotus lily, creamy musks, mimosa, fig wood.
Davidoff Cool Water Summer Dive
Cool Water Summer Dive has the similar frothy aquatic feel of the original Cool Water, but here the lavender is more prominent.
Notes include: citrus, juniper, sage
Cool Water Woman Summer Dive has a fizzy opening, and reminds me of inflatables & cocktails around a poolside resort in Benidorm. Cheap but fun.
Notes include: mint leaves, iris, water violet
Joop! Homme
Sexy in Pink is Joop's summer edition this year, with a bright illustration by Jordi Labanta on both the box and bottle. The scent itself is more anisic and fresh, with less rich tobacco & amber than the original.
Notes include: grapefruit, saffron, leather accord.
Paul Smith Sunshine
Paul Smith have relaunched their successful Sunshine scents with new packaging.
Sunshine for men smells like a fruity soap lather, and has surprising tenacity considering how light it is.
Notes include: coriander, grapefruit, black pepper, nutmeg, star fruit, olibanum, moss, cedarwood.
Sunshine for women is a soft citrus floral in the vein of Omnia Crystalline, with a pretty peach & grapefruit combo up top.
Notes include: lime, bergamot, pink grapefruit, peach, watermelon, jasmine, tiare, white peony, bulgarian rose, ginger flower, sandalwood, cashmere woods, transparent musks.
Jean Paul Gaultier Summer
Gaultier's summer versions of Classique and Le Male are in transparent flacons, decorated this year with Maori inspired tattoos.
Classique Summer is a soapy orange blossom and powdery rose, which is much lighter and more wearable than the heady original.
Notes include: rose, citrus zest, jasmine, vanilla, musk, white iris, woody lily
Le Male Summer is a cooler, less ambery take on the traditional Le Male scent. It still has massive presence though, as you'd expect from a Gaultier fragrance.
Notes include: lavender, cardamom, mint, grass, leaves
DKNY Summer & Juiced
DKNY Woman Summer is this years special edition scent, in a tall pink scyscraper inspired bottle. The scent itself is a fizzy, zingy citrus scent with standout tangerine and grapefruit notes.
Notes include: pink grapefruit, passion fruit, goji berries, jasmine, magnolia, lychee, white musk, sandalwood, teak wood.
Be Delicious Juiced: Hold the phones - it's the first of the Be Delicious launches to actually smell like an apple! A superb photorealistic granny smith note really surprised me when I sniffed this one. It still has the melon note from the original, too.
Notes include: new york apple, pear blossom, golden mango nectar, muguet, white peony, violet petals, creamy woods, white amber
Fresh Blossom Juiced (pictured): A pleasant rose and lily-of-the-valley with a jelly bean-like opening.
Notes include: pink grapefruit, bright freesias, cassis, passion flower, apple, lily-of-the-valley, pink rose petals, sweet pea, sweet pea, palisander wood, vetiver mist, white musks.
Armani Summer
Armani have relaunched their summer fragrances again this year.
Armani Code Summer for Women is essentially a lightened up, less honeyed take on the original Code. Slightly soapy with a prettier feeling than the original.
Notes include: neroli, orange, frosted pear sorbet, orange blossom, jasmine, ginger, crystalline cyclamen, vanilla, precious white woods, musk.
Armani Diamonds Summer for Women has a tart apple opening, with a more floral heart. Still maintaining the candy bracelet scent from the Eau de Parfum.
Notes include: raspberry, litchi, apple, rose, peony, musk, amber, dry woods.
Armani Code Summer for Men is a softer, more subtle take on Code, with less sweetness in the base.
Notes include: bergamot, grapefruit, lemon, neroli, olive leaf, aquatic notes, rose, tarragon, moss, cedar, amber, gaiac wood.
Armani Diamonds Summer for Men opens with a soapy anise-mint freshness up top, with the fizzy cedar. I think this works better than the original fragrance.
Notes include: lemon, mint, marine note, floral notes, dry woods, musks, cocoa.
Thierry Mugler Sunessence
Alien Sunessence Or dAmbre
Have you seen that bottle? It's gorgeous! I can't imagine why people wouldn't want to wear the superbly potent Mugler scents every day, but this is ideal. A fruitier take on the original, with a much lower dose of the floral notes.
Notes include: kiwi, stanhopea orchid, white amber, cashmeran.
Angel Sunessence Ocean dArgent
A familiar frosted bottle for the Angel summer edition, which smells like a lightened up, sheerer version of the pre-reformulation Miss Dior Cherie.
Notes include: kumquat, sea salt blossom, patchouli, vanilla.
In the next round up: more new designer launches, including the latest from Hermes, Gucci, and Paul Smith.
About the author
Nick is a Fragrance SA. He loves scent and co-runs @FragrantReviews, a 140 character fragrance review project. Visit the blog for an archive of the reviews.
Calvin Klein Summer
The 2011 edition of CK One has probably my favourite bottle this summer. The scent is a bright citrus opening with the a metallic musky floral drydown that reminds me slightly of Secretions Magnifiques.
Notes include: tangerine, water fern, melon, verbena, lemon, sea breeze accord, blue freesia, rhubarb, cedarwood, skin musk, incense, peach skin.
Also from Calvin Klein this year are the Eternity summer editions:
Eternity Summer for him is a loud fruity scent that feels more like Versace Eau Fraiche than the original Eternity.
Notes include: citrus, mind, coriander, ocean air accord, watermelon, star anise, galbanum, muguet, cedarwood, red amber, patchouli.
Eternity Summer for her is a more transparent, grassier take on the original Eternity's floral musk.
Notes include: violet leaves, muguet, cilantro, verbena, gardenia, jasmine sambac, lotus lily, creamy musks, mimosa, fig wood.
Davidoff Cool Water Summer Dive
Cool Water Summer Dive has the similar frothy aquatic feel of the original Cool Water, but here the lavender is more prominent.
Notes include: citrus, juniper, sage
Cool Water Woman Summer Dive has a fizzy opening, and reminds me of inflatables & cocktails around a poolside resort in Benidorm. Cheap but fun.
Notes include: mint leaves, iris, water violet
Joop! Homme
Sexy in Pink is Joop's summer edition this year, with a bright illustration by Jordi Labanta on both the box and bottle. The scent itself is more anisic and fresh, with less rich tobacco & amber than the original.
Notes include: grapefruit, saffron, leather accord.
Paul Smith Sunshine
Paul Smith have relaunched their successful Sunshine scents with new packaging.
Sunshine for men smells like a fruity soap lather, and has surprising tenacity considering how light it is.
Notes include: coriander, grapefruit, black pepper, nutmeg, star fruit, olibanum, moss, cedarwood.
Sunshine for women is a soft citrus floral in the vein of Omnia Crystalline, with a pretty peach & grapefruit combo up top.
Notes include: lime, bergamot, pink grapefruit, peach, watermelon, jasmine, tiare, white peony, bulgarian rose, ginger flower, sandalwood, cashmere woods, transparent musks.
Jean Paul Gaultier Summer
Gaultier's summer versions of Classique and Le Male are in transparent flacons, decorated this year with Maori inspired tattoos.
Classique Summer is a soapy orange blossom and powdery rose, which is much lighter and more wearable than the heady original.
Notes include: rose, citrus zest, jasmine, vanilla, musk, white iris, woody lily
Le Male Summer is a cooler, less ambery take on the traditional Le Male scent. It still has massive presence though, as you'd expect from a Gaultier fragrance.
Notes include: lavender, cardamom, mint, grass, leaves
DKNY Summer & Juiced
DKNY Woman Summer is this years special edition scent, in a tall pink scyscraper inspired bottle. The scent itself is a fizzy, zingy citrus scent with standout tangerine and grapefruit notes.
Notes include: pink grapefruit, passion fruit, goji berries, jasmine, magnolia, lychee, white musk, sandalwood, teak wood.
Be Delicious Juiced: Hold the phones - it's the first of the Be Delicious launches to actually smell like an apple! A superb photorealistic granny smith note really surprised me when I sniffed this one. It still has the melon note from the original, too.
Notes include: new york apple, pear blossom, golden mango nectar, muguet, white peony, violet petals, creamy woods, white amber
Fresh Blossom Juiced (pictured): A pleasant rose and lily-of-the-valley with a jelly bean-like opening.
Notes include: pink grapefruit, bright freesias, cassis, passion flower, apple, lily-of-the-valley, pink rose petals, sweet pea, sweet pea, palisander wood, vetiver mist, white musks.
Armani Summer
Armani have relaunched their summer fragrances again this year.
Armani Code Summer for Women is essentially a lightened up, less honeyed take on the original Code. Slightly soapy with a prettier feeling than the original.
Notes include: neroli, orange, frosted pear sorbet, orange blossom, jasmine, ginger, crystalline cyclamen, vanilla, precious white woods, musk.
Armani Diamonds Summer for Women has a tart apple opening, with a more floral heart. Still maintaining the candy bracelet scent from the Eau de Parfum.
Notes include: raspberry, litchi, apple, rose, peony, musk, amber, dry woods.
Armani Code Summer for Men is a softer, more subtle take on Code, with less sweetness in the base.
Notes include: bergamot, grapefruit, lemon, neroli, olive leaf, aquatic notes, rose, tarragon, moss, cedar, amber, gaiac wood.
Armani Diamonds Summer for Men opens with a soapy anise-mint freshness up top, with the fizzy cedar. I think this works better than the original fragrance.
Notes include: lemon, mint, marine note, floral notes, dry woods, musks, cocoa.
Thierry Mugler Sunessence
Alien Sunessence Or dAmbre
Have you seen that bottle? It's gorgeous! I can't imagine why people wouldn't want to wear the superbly potent Mugler scents every day, but this is ideal. A fruitier take on the original, with a much lower dose of the floral notes.
Notes include: kiwi, stanhopea orchid, white amber, cashmeran.
Angel Sunessence Ocean dArgent
A familiar frosted bottle for the Angel summer edition, which smells like a lightened up, sheerer version of the pre-reformulation Miss Dior Cherie.
Notes include: kumquat, sea salt blossom, patchouli, vanilla.
In the next round up: more new designer launches, including the latest from Hermes, Gucci, and Paul Smith.
About the author
Nick is a Fragrance SA. He loves scent and co-runs @FragrantReviews, a 140 character fragrance review project. Visit the blog for an archive of the reviews.
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