Yeezy | Season 3

This mornings lecture was constructed around collaborations and the collaboration particularly focused on was Adidas X Kanye West - Yeezy season 3. This collection designed by Kanye West for Adidas, made its debut during New York Fashion Week at Madison Square Garden on February 11th. This Thursday afternoon had been highly anticipated, as not only did it mark the unveiling of the third Yeezy collection, this event was also the global premiere for Wests new album 'The Life of Pablo'. As expected the Kardashian clan attended the show in full force to support Kanye and in true Kardashian style they were dressed impeccably, head to toe in a neutral colour palette of fur and embellishment thanks to their dear friend, designer Oliver Rousteing. Of course the Kardashians weren't the only famous faces amongst the audience of 18,000+, celebrities including the likes of Karlie Kloss, Jay Z, Oliver Rousteing and 50 Cent were all present at the show.

The Kardashian clan at the Yeezy Season 3 show 

Back in December last year, West teased his Twitter followers tweeting 'I'm finishing my album and my next collection...' and since then posted a string of tweets regarding the album and collection leaving us on tender hooks patiently waiting the release of his work. West has used social media site Twitter as his main source of advertisement for both his Yeezy Season 3 collection and the 'Life of Pablo' album which I feel has been really effective, by constantly dropping hints and teasers regarding his work, he has been able to keep Twitter users engaged, intrigued and interested which is really important. It would seem West is planning on using Twitter again to promote his Yeezy Season 4 collection, just over a week after the Season 3 show took place West took to Twitter to post an image of a bird along with the caption 'Loving this mood for SEASON 4', does this guy ever rest?

Windbreaker jacket received by press 

Every aspect of this show had been constructed in true Kanye style and the press invites were no disappointment, the package included a vacuum packed windbreaker jacket, which West himself had previously sported at LAX airport. Kanye made sure that there was hype surrounding absolutely everything during the run up to the New York Fashion Week show and he even managed to achieve this through something as simple as a press invite which I think is truly commendable. If you weren't lucky enough to receive a press invite through the post but wanted to get your hands on a Yeezy Season 3 ticket you had to be quick, they completely sold out within just 10 minutes. However fans had the opportunity to live stream the show through an app called Tidal or even watch the show at select cinemas worldwide, so quite frankly you had no need to worry Kanye had all bases covered. It wasn't enough for West to simply unveil his new collection and album during one show, as the event came to a close he announced that he has been working on a video game 'Only One'. He explained 'The idea of the game is, my Mom travelling through the gates of heaven'. This event was far from your average conventional fashion show which I love, by introducing both his video game and new album alongside his collection was innovative, original and on Wests part I feel a very smart move. Cramming in as much as possible into his show, was a great way for West to showcase and promote all of his current work and ensure that the Yeezy Season 3 show is most definitely one to be remembered and talked about.

Yeezy Season 3 show 

I personally feel this collaboration has been really successful. I feel that Kanye West is the perfect celebrity to collaborate with Adidas, he gives an edgier, cooler, more prestigious feel to the brand and his presence, particularly on Twitter can undoubtably not be ignored therefore along with his association with Kardashians he is a truly capable promoter, making him the ideal candidate for a brand to collaborate with. However, having said this I feel that the collaboration should include more reference to Adidas, it's easy to forget that Adidas is even part of this collaboration due to the very little mention of the brand. What are your thoughts is Adidas X Kanye West - Yeezy Season 3 a successful collaboration?

Love, Isabella x

Photo Credits: Google Images 

Decadence By Marc Jacobs | The Narrative

Tuesdays seminar kickstarted this semesters fragrance module and to begin with we were given half an hour to gather together some examples of storytelling and narrative within both fragrance packaging and fragrance ads. This didn't necessarily have to be for a perfume it could be a for a candle, body creme etc however I did choose to focus on a perfume, a favourite of mine Decadence by Marc Jacobs. I was given this fragrance as a present from my Mum last Christmas and I won't lie It was already on my Christmas list before I had even smelt it, so hats off to you Marc Jacobs for creating yet another truly irresistible bottle. Theres no denying that Jacobs produces some of the best fragrance bottles out there and I would personally have to crown Decadence the perfume bottle of 2015.

Adriana Lima | Decadence by Marc Jacobs

On paper the lavish handbag shaped bottle and oversized silky tassel would all seem a little too sweet and sickly however, it does actually work. I feel that the colour palette plays a massive part of the success of this bottle, the deep green, gold and black connote glamour, sensuality, luxury and also a feeling of mystique. If alternatively the bottle was of a baby pink colour palette it wouldn't have this same glamorous yet sexy feel to it, instead it would just seem overly cutesy and barbie-fied. The gold chain and snakeskin both hold similar connotations of fierceness and strength allowing the cuteness of the mini handbag to be overridden by sex appeal, seduction and sensuality. The velour green outer packaging the bottle originally comes in, was for me personally a really nice touch. Velour as a material is associated with being regal, luxurious and glamorous therefore the use of this box adds to the lavish persona of this perfume as a whole.

It is always important that the fragrance bottle is a true reflection of the liquid inside and I feel that Marc Jacobs has definitely achieved this with Decadence. 'The fragrance opens with sultry top notes of Italian plum, iris flower and saffron. The heart opens with luxurious notes of Bulgarian rose, jasmine, and orris. The indulgent dry down reveals the base notes of vetiver, papyrus woods, and liquid amber.' (Marc Jacobs website). If you can start to imagine the scent of Decadence with these ingredients in mind I'm sure you'll agree that this perfume is nothing short of lavish, glamorous and sensual, which I feel is exactly what is read from the bottle.

The commercial for Decadence creates the same vibe as the bottle which is really important. I think that the casting of Adrina Lima is faultless. Being a Victorias Secret angel, Lima is thought of as a glamorous and sexy figure which makes her the perfect candidate for the face of Decadence as this is a fragrance all about sensuality, luxury and glamour. The models striking looks and dark features couldn't be more suited to this perfume, her unkempt hairstyle and dark eye within this commercial give her a sultry look of mystique. Although Lima is frolicking around on the floor clutching the bottle of fragrance as though it's some sort of love interest, which quite frankly we see far too much of within the fragrance world of advertising, there's something unique and innovative about it. Instead of the usual setting of a field of flowers or bedsheets, the ad is located in a slightly dishevelled, inky dark room which again is reflective of the fragrance itself. I really like how Jacobs has steered away from the light and airy, blue skied fragrance commercials we are so used to seeing and has innovated to create something fresh and therefore captivating.

I would highly recommend this perfume not just because it looks gorgeously satisfying sat on your dressing table, but I promise it does also smell divine!

Love, Isabella x

Photo Credits: Google Images

Video Credits: YouTube 

Fragrance Ads Love Flesh

As research for my next module which is based around fragrance, I have been looking into fragrance ads and have been trying to underpin some of the key themes within them. As I have been doing so, I have picked up on quite a few trends, one being the use of flesh within styling. Within both male and female fragrance ads the models featuring are often naked or not far from. I'm sure you'll agree, just by having a browse through some of the ads I have selected below this trend has been taken on by so many brands within their fragrance ads and is possibly becoming a little overdone.

Fragrance ultimately boils down to the desire to feel and smell fresh and clean and bare flesh connotes this craved for purity and freshness. We often associate bare flesh with cleansing and bathing, for example showering or swimming. I feel that within these ads flesh is used to represent the purity and freshness of the fragrance it is advertising, which is what we as consumers yearn for from a fragrance. Many fragrance ads are also based around fluids and liquids, whether that be a pool or the sea and so the use of bare flesh is relevant within these settings, which could be another reason behind why flesh as a styling technique is used time and time again amongst fragrance ads. Fragrance often connotes sensuality, consumers use perfume as a way of satisfying their desire to smell attractive and appealing. Therefore by using flesh within their ads, brands are promoting their fragrances as something the consumer can use to feel sexy and attractive (something along the lines of "If you wear this perfume you can have this figure too"...).

I have also noticed that many fragrances aimed at men use female models within their ads, for example Tom Ford For Men and Obsession by Calvin Klein (please see below). However this idea reversed, a male model used to advertise a female Fragrance I didn't come across. I found it really interesting that within these fragrance ads it is the women who are sexualised and I am yet to come across a female fragrance ad which features an alone male model. Having said this I have picked up on a quite a few female fragrance ads which feature a fleshy male and female together, such as Guilty by Gucci (please see below). However I feel that rather than portraying the models as objects, the mixed gender ads are used to create a feeling of romance and sensuality. 

Tom Ford - For Men

Moschino - Couture! 

Tom Ford - Black Orchid 

Marc Jacobs - Bang

Calvin Klein - Obsession

Prada - Candy Florale

Dolce & Gabbana - Light Blue 

Chanel - N°5

Bvlgari - Jasmin Noir 

Dolce & Gabbana - The Fragrance Collection By D&G

Gucci - Guilty 

DKNY - Be Desired 

Chloé - Chloé 

Dior - Addict

Roberto Cavalli - Just Cavalli

What are your thoughts on this styling trend, has it been overdone within the fragrance industry or could it work if it's revamped and innovated upon? Follow my Pinterest for many fragrance based boards to be created and worked on during the coming months.

Love, Isabella x

Photo Credit: Google images 

BBC Perfume Documentary | Part 3

Today I watched the final episode of the perfume documentary I have been watching as part of my reading week studies. This episode 'The Smell of the Future' predominantly focuses on how our choice of perfume is determined by where we are, when we are and our culture. For example, 5 years ago back when this documentary was filmed the Russians craved rich and heavy scents, the Chinese light and airy, the Brazilians lusted over fruity fragrances and as for the Arabians, they were all for musky oriental scents which were popular back in Victorian England.

Anne Gottlieb

Above is Anne Gottlieb, this episode followed her on a couple of professional jobs, giving viewers an insight into the career of a predictor of global scent. Gottlieb's New York based office is bursting at the seams with perfumes she has been behind the creation of, many have gone on to be some of the most succesful fragrances around such as, Obsession for Calvin Klein and J'adore for Christian Dior. Within this episode, Gottlieb works closely with mens body spray brand, AXE which you or I would know as Lynx. The documentary follows her journey as she attempts to produce a fragrance for the brand, to be aimed at the Brazilian market. 

Brazil 

This episode delves deep into the Brazilian fragrance market which I found particularly interesting as I wasn't aware of just how prominant it is. From car showroom aroma to toilet cleaner and from Tutti Frutti scented footwear to perfume, it became clear to me from watching this episode just how important fragrance is to the Brazilians. It is no surprise that Brazil is the fastest growing fragrance market on earth, which is why within the documentary Lynx as a brand chose Brazil as the country their next body spray would be targeted at. Fragrance is so big over in Brazil due to the simple fact that is the warm climate. Those living in Brazil not only apply more product initially but also take more showers meaning that the product is washed of and needs to be reapplied on a more regular basis, which as you can image causes the countries fragrance market to thrive.

Simon Brooke - Grossmith

During the film viewers are introduced to Simon and Amanda Brooke, a couple who with a helping hand from perfumer, Roja Dove have recreated Victorian perfume company, Grossmith. The couple are direct ascendants of the Grossmith family and have access to the book of fragrance formulae which belonged to John Grossmith, who originally started the perfume house over three decades ago. Recreating the company was risky for the Brooke couple as the Grossmith scents were not at the time popular or in demand like they were back in Victorian England. Having said this, during the summer months women of a middle Eastern clientele who crave the dark, musky scents offered by Grossmith are attracted to the fragrances, one client even ordered a collection of fragrances which equated to a  hefty sum of £6000! 

Hopefully these BBC Perfume documentary posts have been of some interest. There are plenty more fragrance based posts to come in the near future so keep checking up on my blog for these!

Love, Isabella x

Photo Credits: Google images 

BBC Perfume Documentary | Part 2

Today I watched part 2 of the BBC documentary 'Perfume' I am currently working my way through (see previous blog entry for post based on part 1 of this documentary). This episode 'Bottling the Memory' investigates the idea of fragrance and memories, looking into how scent has the strength to take us back to places, times in our lives and therefore make us feel a certain way. I'm sure this is something we can all relate to. I know for me the smell of a Sunday roast evokes feelings of comfort and relaxation, the smell of sea salt triggers memories of Norfolk family holidays, and the perfume 'Lola Rose' by Marc Jacobs takes me back to secondary school when I was taking my GCSE's as this was the perfume I wore at this time.

A collection of fragrances by Christopher Brosius

This episode introduced us to Christopher Brosius, your not so average perfumer who states 'Perfume is too often an ethereal corset trapping everyone in the same unnatural shape'. Brosius does not create fragrances that have a sense of cleanliness or freshness, qualities we would usually expect, but instead captures the scents of 'real things' within his fragrances. 'In the Library' and 'Here Piggy' are a couple of fragrances amongst Brosius' collection, we can only begin to image how they smell. Within the documentary viewers are taken to his gallery 'CB I Hate Perfume' where Brosius meets with clients to discuss what they want from their fragrances. During this episode we have an insight into just how Brosiuis goes about producing his weird but wonderful creations, an American client asked to have a fragrance produced which smells of 'England'. Ingredients Brosius considered using within this particular fragrance included scents such as tobacco, gin and cadbury chocolate. I don't think I'll be trading in my Jimmy Choo or Marc Jacobs perfumes for one of Brosius' creations any time soon, thats for sure.

Jean-Claude Ellena 

Within the documentary viewers are introduced to Jean- Claude Ellena, a French perfumer who creates fragrance inspired by 'fantasy'. As pointed out within this episode fragrance is often a subject difficult to discuss or talk about, so it was interesting to see how Ellena uses texture and colour to talk about and describe fragrance. It was fascinating to have an insight into how the perfumer works, he explains that he doesn't like to be told what to create he would much prefer to work freely. According to this episode Ellena, the nose behind french lifestyle house Hérmes is given this freedom by the company and allegedly is not required to create a fragrance for the brand until he feels inspired. For me, one of the highlights within this episode was Jean-Claude Ellena's visit to the small garden on top of the Hérmes' Paris boutique. I loved seeing how Elena took inspiration from the scents found within this garden to produce the fragrance 'Un Jardin Sur Le Toit'  (Garden On The Roof) for Hérmes.

Givaudan perfumery school

Within this viewers were given an insight into to a perfumery school located just outside of Paris, which is run by the biggest chemical company in the fragrance world, Givaudan. It was fascinating to see just what goes on within this desirable perfumery school. The school is particularly hard to get in to, some years not a single applicant makes the cut. When describing the ideal perfumer the principle of Givaudan perfumery school, master perfumer, Jean Guichard states 'the perfumer should be a mixture between a scientist and a poet'. It was made clear within the film that those who graduate from this school proceed to be very successful perfumers, some have gone on to create many top brand fragrances including 'Poison' for Christian Dior, 'Obsession' for Calvin Klein and 'One Million' for Paco Rabanne. However graduating from this school is no easy process, during the entire three year course at this school, students do not get the chance to actually produce fragrances. Instead a lot of time is spent sitting exams which require students to to undertake challenging tasks such as identifying individual ingredients in solution and being able to state their relative concentrations, which sounds like a painful amount of chemistry to me!

I will be watching part 3 of this documentary over the next couple of days and will make a post regarding the episode ASAP, so keep checking up on my blog!

Love, Isabella x

Photo Credits: Google images 

BBC Perfume Documentary | Part 1

After completing my fist ever module at university, I am now preparing for the next which is based around fragrance. I am currently home from uni for 2 weeks worth of reading weeks and as preparation for this next module, I have been asked to watch a series of episodes from a documentary 'Perfume', which was aired by the BCC back in 2011.

Today I watched part 1 of this series 'Something old something new'. This title seems suitably fitting for the documentary as it focuses on the production and release of a Tommy Hilfiger fragrance (something new) and looked into perfume brand Guerlain, which has been around since 1828 (something old).

Throughout the documentary viewers are given an insight into how Guerlain differs from other fragrance brands. Perfumers are now forced to use fewer, cheaper ingredients in order to maintain profits, however for Guerlain this is not true. Guerlain's perfumes are made to ancient recipes and unlike the many brands that are constantly introducing their newest fragrance, Guerlain very rarely release new perfumes. As I'm sure you're aware, many department stores these days heavily push fragrances, Guerlain is much more dignified 'the ladies of the first floor salon don't do flirting or squirting, they're here to gently shepard'.

The documentary follows the creation and production of a Tommy Hilfiger fragrance 'Loud' which was the most interesting part for me. The fragrance was to have a rock and roll vibe and Hilfiger had made clear that he wanted the bottle to also portray this same rock and roll feel. I found it incrediby intersting that the perfume bottle was created before the perfume itself which really highlights a point made within the documentary 'scent is invisible so the packaging has a lot of work to do'. A lot of work and thought definitely went into the designing and production of the fragrance bottles, from the 'rock and roll' inspired mood board to the LP inspired sleeve packaging.

I've always found it fascinating how perfumes can drop from being in such high demand to being available on the bargain store shelves in such a short space of time, you could be paying a considerable amount of money for an admired perfume one month and the next it's available at Wilko's at less than half of its original price. Within the documentary scent critic, Chandler Burr visits a local bargain store to take a look at the fragrance on offer. He explained that the fragrances found on sale within discount stores have previously been at a prestigious level, but once they have dropped and become unpopular for two years they will often end up here. Burr then pointed out a Calvin Klein fragrance and explained that although having this product available within a discount store could cause a 'slight fall in lustre' of Calvin Klein as a brand, this is outweighed by the money that can be made by doing so, as it allows consumers who wouldn't normally purchase from the brand to do so.

I plan on posting about each of the two remaining episodes I have left to watch of this documentary, these will be up on my blog over the next week or so, so stay tuned!

Love, Isabella x

Photo Credits: Google images