Sandra‘s Closet

What could be more British than London rain? This fact inspired Master Perfumer Christine Nagel to capture the different moods of a downpour, from the soft sparkle of a morning shower to a wild rainstorm at night for Jo Malone‘s upcoming limited edition LONDON RAIN collection.

“The initial concept from Jo Malone London was to create a scented portrait of London to conjure up the romantic and deeply intense rainy days,” says Nagel.

I find the weather inspiration such a great concept and I cannot wait to indulge my nose in those four new scents.

Rain & Angelica
Glassy beads of dew, awakening a London park at dawn. A revitalising scent, enlivened with herbaceous angelica and juicy lime on an earthy base of vetiver. Aqueous and clear.

Wisteria & Violet
A soft morning shower, soaking purple wisteria cascading over London stone walls. Infused with the wet-petal scent of violets and water lily. Rainwashed and intoxicating.

White Jasmine & Mint
An afternoon cloudburst, drenching gardens exuberant with jasmine, lily, orange flower and rose. Eccentric with its dash of scrambling wild mint. Enchanting and refreshing.

Black Cedarwood & Juniper
Midnight rain. Seductive with the carnal touch of cumin, chilli leaves, and aromatic juniper. Dark with cedar wood. Humid with moss. Modern and urban.

LONDON RAIN Limited Edition
In the UK and other countries available from March 2014. Each Cologne 100ml RRP £82 / €100.
In Switzerland available in the beginning of May 2014. Each Cologne 100ml RRP CHF 130.

LoL, Sandra

Photos: Courtesy of Jo Malone

“Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass, it’s about learning to dance in the rain.”

I came back from my amazing road trip through the US this week and left immediately to Munich for a day with Bobbi Brown. Stay tuned, I will tell you all about it very soon.

During the last 5 weeks, I went through 9 states – Illinois, Colorado, Wyoming, South Dakota, Utah, Nevada, California, Hawaii and Texas – and besides the horrible hail storm in South Dakota, I was blessed the whole time with beautiful sunny weather. So I was quite shocked when I got back to Switzerland where there was no sign of summer at all. Surprisingly, I found severe hail damage in my garden, my pool cover looked like shot with a pump gun. What a subtle irony! And when I experienced a mini tornado yesterday at Lake Zurich, I was inspired to this outfit.

Mini Tornado in Zurich on July 21, 2012 (Photo via Tagesanzeiger)

Invest in some great fall key pieces. Bottle green is one of the hottest colours for the season. Peplum hems appeared on many runways and are one of the most flattering trends. A trench coat is a true classic piece that works for so many occasions and definitely belongs in your closet – with Burberry you cannot go wrong. Finally, add a piece of colourful statement jewelry.

Mid-length cotton-gabardine trench coat by Burberry London, fine-knit wool peplum top, bottle-green De Manta leather tote, skull-print modal and cashmere-blend scarf, skull-embellished umbrella, all by Alexander McQueen, stretch-leather skinny pants by Yves Saint Laurent, multi-stone cuff by Emilio Pucci and ‘Original Tall’ Wellington boots by Hunter.

Nars Fall 2012 collection offers for your eyes and nails some icy shades with stormy names:

Vent Glacé (Glacial Wind) Duo Eyeshadow, CHF 59.-

Storm Bird Nail Polish (Limited Edition), CHF 32.-
Both available from August 2012.

Good news: The weather forecast says that the arrival of summer is close in Zurich. Let’s hope that the weather gods will be merciful.

LoL, Sandra

Photos: Courtesy of Nars