Sandra‘s Closet

A new addition to Jo Malone London’s Cologne Intense collection: the ravishing Scarlet Poppy. This new floral has been inspired by the extravagant and exotic great scarlet poppy from the wild steppes of Asia. Amplified by velvety iris, notes of barley and tonka bean add a double hit of sweet decadence while a succulent fig accord draws you into this opulent scent.

Jo Malone London’s Cologne Intense collection travels the world, collecting treasured ingredients to create unexpected fragrances. This latest Cologne Intense comes in a rich red bottle design, referencing the flower that inspired it.

«Scarlet Poppy is a grand, ravishing, deep floral, and the volume grows and grows as
you wear it. It’s a larger-than-life fragrance but still very sophisticated and refined.»
Celine Roux, Global Head of Fragrance

Jo Malone London recommends layering Scarlet Poppy with Poppy & Barley. The pairing of the two enhances the poppy note, creating an inviting floral scent.

Scarlet Poppy Cologne Intense 100ml, CHF 171.-
Scarlet Poppy Cologne Intense 50ml, CHF 120.-
Available at all Jo Malone London counters in Switzerland from January 2021.

LoL, Sandra

Photos: © Jo Malone London #CologneIntense

Deep, intense ingredients born in the desert. Musk, amber and oud. Blended with quintessentially English florals. Captured in two mysterious scents.

Jo Malone’s Head of Global Product Development, Céline Roux, and Master Perfumer, Anne Flipo embarked on this journey to create something completely new for the brand.

Left: Anne Flipo – Right: Céline Roux

What inspired the concept of Absolu?

Céline: «It all began with my travels to the Middle East – I’ve visited a few times and have always been inspired by their passion for scent and ritual of layering fragrance. As you walk around all the markets and souks there, you’ll notice the air is infused with rich, deep, warm scents. So, I started to think about how we could interpret this, but with a Jo Malone London signature.»

Anne: «Together we identified the elements that are key in the Middle East – amber, oud and white musk. Not only are they in the air, but people also use them to scent their clothes and their hair. We then created a base around these three ingredients. The result is something truly unique and exclusive to Jo Malone London.»

Céline: «The thought of flowers came naturally after we’d worked on the base. We asked, ‘how could we combine the Middle Eastern air with an imaginary English garden?’ It felt like the perfect way to give each Absolu scent our signature freshness, and that Jo Malone London twist.»

Rose & White Musk Absolu
An English rose. Flowering in the heart of the Arabian desert. Unexpected. Mysterious. Enfolding with petal-fresh sweetness. Rich with oud and amber. Balanced on a powdery clean base of white musk. Soft and sensual. A mesmerising treasure. Brought to life in Jo Malone’s first Cologne Absolu. A bold new innovation in scent that dives straight into the heart note of the cologne, keeping our signature freshness, while leaving a beautiful, lingering trail of scent.

What makes Absolu different to other Jo Malone London Colognes?

Céline: «Absolu combines base and heart notes alone, to exude both warmth and freshness, woods and flowers, earth and air – creating captivating scents that evolve on contact with the skin and continue to inspire the senses after they are applied. We approach an Absolu in a very different way to our classic Colognes. Instead of starting with the top notes and the first olfactive impression, we work from the base up and emphasise one of the ingredients to complement each of the flowers we chose. So for Rose it was White Musk, and for this one we really pushed the amber to complement the elusive aroma of violet. We also eliminated the top notes entirely, so you go straight into the heart of the fragrance.»

Violet & Amber Absolu
In the Arabian night, an ethereal violet mysteriously blooms. Beloved of the British flower bed, its elusive scent of darkly purple petals and violet leaves wraps around oud and white musk, anchored by warm, sophisticated amber.

Why did you decide to work with violet?

Céline: «Violet is one of the most-loved flowers in the British flower garden! It was also a favourite among royals and poets. There are many quotes about violet in Shakespeare – one of my favourites is from Sonnet 99, “The forward violet thus did I chide. Sweet thief, whence didst thou steal thy sweet that smells, if not from my love’s breath?” So, it’s something of a classic.»

How would you layer and combine Violet & Amber Absolu?

Céline: «I recommend pairing it with Bronze Wood & Leather Cologne Intense – it brings even more depth and sensuality to the scent.»

Anne: «I combine it with Wood Sage & Sea Salt – it really amplifies the woody notes in the base and creates a very enthralling fragrance. It’s also intriguing to layer Violet & Amber with Rose & White Musk – the two Absolu scents together have such intensity and a really addictive quality.»

Both are available now ONLINE and in Switzerland at Jelmoli Zurich, Globus Zurich, Globus Glatt, Globus Bellevue, Globus Lucerne, Globus Geneva, Globus Lausanne and at Perfumery Hyazinth in Basel for CHF 280.00 (100ml) each.

LoL, Sandra

Photos: Courtesy of Jo Malone London and © Sandra Bauknecht
@JoMaloneLondon #ScentAbsolu

The wildness of honeysuckle, winding through the English countryside. Climbing. Twisting. Ever more alluring after dark. Fresh with rose and the aromatic, fruity twist of davana. Woody with moss. Warmed by sunshine.

Florescent and sunny – today I would like to introduce JO MALONE‘s happy new floral to you: Honeysuckle & Davana Cologne. A great scent to take a little summer to fall.

Top Note: Davana – A green plant with hints of liquorive, brings vibrancy to the fragrance and a touch of a fruity note.

Middle Note: Honeysuckle – With its radiant floralcy, it brings a rich character to the heart of the fragrance. Imbued with accents of honey.

Base Note: Moss – Evocative of underground damp with fresh rain, the verdancy of moss cushions the base of the fragrance in earthy, woody warmth.

Céline Roux, Head of Fragrance Development, recommends combining Honeysuckle & Davana with the following: «I love it with Oud & Bergamot. It’s great for both men and women – it gives it an elegant woody twist. For women I would say Peony & Blush Suede. It makes it very sensual and feminine at the same time. Pretty and addictive with the freshness of flowers, but totally warm with suede, moss and patchouli.»

Anne Flipo, Master Perfumer, who created Honeysuckle & Davana adds: «I would say Dark Amber & Ginger Lily – the freshness of the honeysuckle makes it even more sensual and warm.»

HONEYSUCKLE & DAVANA
Cologne 30ml / CHF 69.- Cologne 100ml / CHF 130.-
Home Candle 200g / CHF 82.-

In stores now. In Switzerland at Jelmoli Zurich, Globus Zurich, Globus Glatt, Globus Bellevue, Globus Luzern, Globus Genf and Globus Lausanne.

TO SHOP JO MALONE ONLINE, CLICK HERE PLEASE.

LoL, Sandra

Photos: Courtesy of Jo Malone
@JoMaloneLondon #HelloHoney

Dancing through the streets. Soaked in sunshine. Streaked with colour. Surrounded by tropical fruits and flowers.

For the brand’s first fruit-inspired Blossom Cologne, JO MALONE  leaves the English countryside and takes us to the beach with a new limited edition duo: TROPICAL CHERIMOYA Cologne and CATTLEYA FLOWER Body Mist. Together they comprise the HOT BLOSSOMS collection. «The inspiration came when I was travelling around Brazil. We loved the flamboyant vibrancy of the flowers and the sumptuous textures of the fruits there, so we thought why not create two fragrances instead of one?» explains Céline Roux, Jo Malone London Head of Fragrance Development.

TROPICAL CHERIMOYA Cologne
«A sea of green cherimoya fruit. Basking in the heat. Mouth-watering. Tempting. Topped with juicy pear. The sun-filled notes of passion flower. Warmed by Brazilian copahu resin and creamy tonka bean.»
Jo Malone Tropical Cherimoya Cologne 30ml (CHF 72.00) and 100ml (CHF 135.00)

CATTLEYA FLOWER Body Mist
«A delectable beach-side cocktail. Cattleya, queen of the wild. Sumptuous orchid petals. Fresh and exotically floral. Stirred with sparkling citrus fruit. A splash of bitter gentian. Deepened by intoxicating vetiver. A spritz of pure sunshine. Lightweight yet luxurious, Jo Malone Cattleya Flower Body Mist refreshes skin whilst enveloping you in the velvety scent of the Cattleya Flower.»
Jo Malone Cattleya Orchid Body Mist 100ml (CHF 59.00)

Both are designed to be worn alone or layered together. In Switzerland, the limited edition will be exclusively available at Jelmoli Zurich, Globus Glatt, Globus Bellevue, Globus Lucerne, Globus Geneva and Globus Lausanne for a limited time starting from May 2, 2018.

LoL, Sandra

Photo: © Sandra Bauknecht –  Stills: Courtesy of Jo Malone
The fragrances were sent to me as samples.
@JoMaloneLondon #BrilliantBlossoms #HotBlossoms

Jo Malone will launch Incense & Cedrat in February. The new fragrance was inspired by Omani incense and joins the Cologne Intense Collection. Celine Roux, Fragrance Director, says: “It’s the most historic and precious incense in the world. We loved the way it’s so intrinsic to Omani culture, often layered with other scents. This made complete sense to us as the philosophy of Fragrance Combining™ is an intrinsic part of our DNA.“

Omani incense has never before been captured in perfumery before. Marie Salamagne, Master Perfumer, explains the technique behind: “The really special thing about this project is that we used NaturePrint™. We spent months scouring Oman for the finest incense before bringing it back to the laboratory. When I smelt the NaturePrint™ note it was instantly inspiring. It was so close to nature. The traditional smokiness was there but there was also a freshness, something illuminating.“

The Omani incense, which is harvested from the Bowsellia sacra tree, is found in Dhofar, Oman. Incense is extracted by incising the bark. At certain times of year the trees are cut with special knives releasing tears of fresh resin which are left to dry in the sun. At the beginning of April, as soon as the temperatures start to rise, the incense gatherers cut the frankincense trees in many places. The first ‘cut’ consists of paring off the outer bark of the branches and trunk. Then three more follow. The process requires great skill and the same families work on the harvest for centuries.

Incense & Cedrat features a headspace note from the Boswellia sacra (frankincense) tree. Additional notes include lemon, pepper, elemi, labdanum and benzoin. Jo Malone Incense & Cedrat will be available as 100 ml Cologne Intense for CHF 165.00 from February 2, 2015 in Switzerland at Jelmoli Zurich and Globus Geneva.

A great tip regarding Fragrance Combining™ comes from Marie Salamagne: “In combination with another Cologne Intense, Oud & Bergamot, it develops a sophisticated woody note that’s hypnotic and masculine. And for a completely different mood, try layering Incense & Cedrat with Red Roses. It creates a multi-faceted rose fragrance, spicy and sensual with incense.”

LoL, Sandra

Photos: Courtesy of Jo Malone