June / 30 / 2011
Paris Parfum. The Fragrance Guide to Paris is a little reference book for perfume lovers who visit Paris. The stores are sorted by Paris’ five most important arrondissements for perfume houses. Next to the description of the stores you will find tasty addresses where you can have a coffee and dainties to deepen your olfactory journey.
Of course this guide is not complete and misses the smaller niche brands, but it is a solid base to start your perfume trip. Especially for beginners.
July / 13 / 2010
“If you are ever tempted to think you’ve seen everything, just wait.“ Chandler Burr
Quintessentially Publishing have released a new edition: Quintessentially Perfume. It includes articles by fragrance writers and experts like Roja Dove or Chandler Burr and interviews with creators and perfumers, such as Olivia Giacobetti, Geza Schoen, Bertrand Duchaufour, Camille Goutal and many more. This book is a gift to all perfume lovers.
You can go on a journey through nine chapters such as ‘Human reaction to perfume’, ‘The language of perfume’, ‘The Creatives’, finally concluding with ‘Perfume – the future’. I especially love the essay A perfume wardrobe by Anton Mossa and the interviews with the creative professionals. The chapter ‘The Perfume Houses’ can of course only feature a selection but I miss some great contemporary perfume houses such as Heeley or Parfumerie Générale. But this is highly subjective, I know. One thing I really miss is a unique imagery. It seems as if the publishers have mainly worked with press pictures of the different brands. I am a very aesthetic person so for me visuals are very important. But – and this with exclamation mark – the content of the book is more than inspiring and I read every day something that makes me smile or thoughtful.
It really touches me when Roja Dove says, “How can anyone not love perfumery?“ I always wonder about people who don’t care about perfume. For me it is a passion and an obsession and the most fascinating thing in the world. It can even manage to make me smile when I am sad or make me feel at home when I am away. So, please: more books like this!
The driving force behind this book is Nathalie Grainger, perfume devotee, consultant and editor.
