June 2011

Mandy Aftel & Liz Zorn: Letters to a Fellow Perfumer (ep. 4)

June 29, 2011

May 5th, 2011, Cincinnati, OH Hi Mandy, I tested all four of my trials yesterday and felt they would benefit from a greater dilution, so I added 1/3 more alcohol to each blend. Will give them a couple of days and re-test. My biggest issue with these, however, is not the galbanum but the ylang. [...]

Read the full article →

Luxury & Fashion Biz News: June 24th, 2011 (Of Industry Pressure, Prada Clowns and Cheap Sexy)

June 25, 2011

1.) Azzedine Alaïa Says “Thanks, But No Thanks” to Head Designer Position at Dior: “His name was never mentioned when the rumours swirled about who would replace John Galliano at Dior, but according to the Financial Times, Azzedine Alaïa was asked to take over the couture house, and their offer was turned down . . [...]

Read the full article →

The Artisan Series: Dawn Spencer Hurwitz (Part 2)

June 24, 2011

***This is Part 2 of a two-part Artisan Series interview with Boulder, Colorado based indie perfumer and artist Dawn Spencer Hurwitz. You can read Part 1 here: The Artisan Series: Dawn Spencer Hurwitz (Part 1) Q.) I noticed that you’re present on Twitter and Facebook, writing a blog and interacting personally with your customers via [...]

Read the full article →

The Artisan Series: Dawn Spencer Hurwitz (Part 1)

June 22, 2011

What follows is part one of a two-part email interview with independent perfumer Dawn Spencer Hurwitz, owner of The Essense Studio in Boulder, Colorado, as well as the DSH Perfumes online shop. Ms. Hurwitz was a struggling art student in Boston in the 90′s and worked her way into success as an independent perfumer via [...]

Read the full article →

Summer of Patchouli LOVE Perfume Project: Initial Thoughts

June 20, 2011

I’m participating as one of the evaluators behind the Summer of Patchouli LOVE project organized by Monica Miller at Perfume Pharmer, a project showcasing patchouli as the main ingredient in a collection from thirteen indie perfumers (Ms. Miller is an indie herself — a “master herbalist” and founder of Skye Botanicals). There are thirteen different [...]

Read the full article →

Luxury & Fashion Biz News: June 17th, 2011 (Of Louboutin, Social Unrest and Fake Street Cred)

June 17, 2011

1.) Christian Louboutin Sues Over Red-Soled Copycats — YSL Hits Back: “Last month, Christian Louboutin hit Yves Saint Laurent with a $1 million-plus trademark-infringement lawsuit for the use of red soled shoes in the Spring 2011 YSL collection. Now, Saint Laurent has filed court papers, alleging that Louboutin fraudulently claimed ‘exclusive’ use of red soles [...]

Read the full article →

Luxury & Leisure Biz News: June 10, 2011 (Heritage Brand Battles, Bieber Bottles and Dirty Little Glass Ceilings)

June 11, 2011

1.) Clash of the Dowagers – LVMH and Hermes Still Battling It Out: “LVMH countered criticism from Hermes that it is seeking to disrupt the rival French luxury-goods company and said it is seeking to cooperate instead. ‘I challenge those who assert otherwise to produce a shred of evidence’ that LVMH has sought to destabilize [...]

Read the full article →

Luxury & Leisure Biz News: June 3rd, 2011 (Less Titanic, More Deck Chairs)

June 4, 2011

Remember the “Shuffling the Deck Chairs on the Titanic” article from May of 2010, where we looked at the behind the scenes movement that was happening and wondered aloud if it was business, panic or a scary/charming combination of both? Well, the deck chair rearranging just got upped to a whole new level of frenzied [...]

Read the full article →