tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2106815346229702986.post9073332550640697958..comments2024-03-21T00:17:37.281-07:00Comments on sherapop's salon de parfum: The Bottle Controversy: A Philosophical InvestigationUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2106815346229702986.post-52170675265868888842012-10-25T09:54:25.308-07:002012-10-25T09:54:25.308-07:00You are most welcome, Christos. I agree, the analo...You are most welcome, Christos. I agree, the analogy between persons and perfumes works here as well. Sometimes there is a felicitous harmony between the inner content and the outer appearance. It's interesting that people appear to assume that outward comeliness implies inward emptiness. In the case of people, the idea seems to be that no one could have so many good genes: all this beauty, and brains, too?<br /><br />With perfume, I find myself wondering why some houses neglect the packaging of their fantastically gorgeous creations. It seems sloppy and disrespectful. Consider the packaging of Miller Harris solid perfumes, of which I own Noix de Tubéreuse. It comes in a cheap plastic container much worse than what normally contains inexpensive lip gloss. Why? I asked myself upon receiving it. The perfume is so beautiful, surely it deserves a better set of clothes!<br /><br />Another example is the ugly plastic cap on the original La Perla. It must have cost about a penny to produce. Why not triple the investment and use a cap which is a pleasure to hold and behold? Honestly, it makes no sense to me. I suppose that the houses are attempting to uphold this line that what matters is the perfume inside. But there is another way in which to view it: the perfume, being divine, deserves to be housed in a beautiful vessel!<br /><br />Guerlain. Well, what can I say? I am an apostate. Désolée. I must not be alone to have taken note of the low quality of their recent launches and ghastly reformulations, as I continue to see the prices plummet at discounters...<br /><br />Perhaps with their Idylle Baccarat special edition Guerlain is trying to follow Bond no 9's lead in producing these überexpensive vessels to entice a separate market niche comprising people who care more about Swarovski crystals than scent... That's a nice metaphorical touch, to make the perfume inaccessible—no one really wants to smell Idylle anyway! If they did, after all, it would have enjoyed market success such that this sort of last-ditch effort to salvage something from the wreck would not be necessary at all.<br /><br />I'm sure that it's tough to stay in business with the massive proliferation of launches and flankers over the last few years--not to mention houses!—so these extra measures are not that surprising to me. The tourist collection of I Love NY launches seems to be another example of tapping into a separate consumer niche, in this case, of people seeking souvenirs, not perfume...sherapophttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14116821928196122529noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2106815346229702986.post-43354129354727235772012-10-24T10:04:51.788-07:002012-10-24T10:04:51.788-07:00Thank you for this excellent essay. I too believe ...Thank you for this excellent essay. I too believe that bottle and perfume go together. The impact the bottle and packaging make are intertwined with our impression of the scent itself and so it should be. If the bottle design is right it enhances the experience. If the perfume does not live up to the expectations created by the packaging then all the worse for the perfume. Much like with people that is...<br /><br />Guerlain has managed to push the envelope of what the relationship between vessel and contents is with a rather gimmicky but very thoughtful and thought-provoking project: The Idylle Baccarat Edition is a beautiful, although simple, crystal sculpture that encloses a void in the shape of Idylle bottle. The void is filled with the perfume but the only way to get to it is by breaking the crystal vessel. Small detail: it costs $45.000! So by accepting the value of the vessel one negates the value of the fragrance and vive versa. Brilliant idea!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2106815346229702986.post-34725641142148935832012-10-19T06:44:15.961-07:002012-10-19T06:44:15.961-07:00Dear Anonymous, thank you so much for these genero...Dear Anonymous, thank you so much for these generous compliments, and welcome to the salon de parfum! (-;sherapophttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14116821928196122529noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2106815346229702986.post-49543790760075602352012-10-18T11:13:17.084-07:002012-10-18T11:13:17.084-07:00Wonderful essay. I'm an eager collector of per...Wonderful essay. I'm an eager collector of perfume vessels - and hardly ever have I come across such a profound and astute analysis of the subject. Reading you is a pleasure! I'd love to find your thoughts collected between the covers of a BOOK on perfumes some day. For the time boing, thank you for sharing your valuable insights with us on the internet. You're an outstanding expert. BRAVO! Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com