Carolina Herrera launches "212 VIP" and asks Are You on The List?

Carolina Herrera's name is synonymous with New York luxe. 

The ladies who lunch and who frequent the Upper East Side know a thing or two about luxury and Carolina has wooed them since 1980, delivering on sable, cashmere, swanky wide pants and the Herrera puffed up volume sleeve so becoming to older women whether on shirts, day or evening dresses. 

She's a safe, elegant, refined bet is Carolina.  In the past few seasons, Ms Herrera has ventured into a more artsy take on fashion with bold brush strokes of colour and clashing fabrics.  Those lunching ladies must be on tenterhooks.  Still, this season (A/W 10) a whole bunch of rich, soft, daywear takes centre stage alongside red carpet or, more elegantly, charity season ball evening dresses that reek of sophistication and class.  There's a few ultra thin women breathing a collective sigh of relief already, methinks.

In attempting to move the brand forward but still retaining a doze of New York City pzazz, Caroline Herrera is introducing a whole new mood for the brand via her new fragrance launch, 212 VIP - Are you on the list?   (I know it's a mouthful).  It seems to be a encapsulative gesture to woo the young, hip, New York movas and shakas who are more likely to play and party downtown in the hip hotel bars of SoHo and who are more attuned to Marc Jacobs and Zac Posen.  You go for it, Carolina.  Fortune favours the brave.

This new big, bold , gold phallic fragrance glares at you asking "212 VIP -Are You On The List?". It reeks of NYC's SoHo and Meatpacking districts' where door whores on clubs, restaurants and bars hold court and where the cool, arty, 'in' types congregate with some escapee Upper East Side socialites and Hollywood stars.  The fact that the fragrance captures the verve and dynamism of the city that never sleeps has to be applauded.

Then there's the mutha of a statement bottle that holds it. It weighs a ton. Small demure, sparkly, Judith Leiber clutches are out.  This needs a hefty Marc Jacobs or Fendi tote to carry this haul and to fit the bill.  A large, shiny, gold bullet has '212 VIP' stamped on the bottle and a more fitting, demure Carolina Herrera in gold hidden typeface.

The fragrance bursts with life and vitality and certainly has upstart attitude.  Herrera was inspired by "New York's most creative people, the real VIPs.  The young talents who are writing the future history of the city..." Yada, yada.  You get the drift?

A fresh burst of rum and passion fruit blends with heady musky gardenia floral with a softer, more charming, vanilla and tonka bean base.  That's quite a mix of opposites.  Like the melting pot of NYC itself.

This fragrance is straight off the NY red eye flight into Heathrow and is already ready and willing to party in London.  Who are we to object?  Whether wearing it makes you part of the cool set is up to you.

Carolina Herrera's A/W '10 catwalk pics kindly supplied by http://www.style.com/

Caroline Herrera's "212 VIP - Are You On The List" is on counter from 22nd September 2010.
30ml EDP is £31 and 50ml EDP is £43.50.  A body lotion and bath and shower gel accompany the range.

The CH Carolina Herrera store is situated on 120 Mount Street, London W1K 3NN

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"22 Ways to Wear Black" charity auction in NYC

Never let it be said that I am London centric.  So this one's in New York for all my lovely US of A readers and just in time for New York Fashion Week.  How I wish I could be there.

It appears that the glam dame of France/Italy, first lady of fashion and France, Carla Bruni-Sarkozy is heading the charity auction"22 Ways to Say Black", alongside Nadja Swarovski and Swarovski Elements, all to benefit Breast Cancer research at esteemed acution house, Phillips de Pury & Company.

SWAROVSKI ELEMENTS has commissioned 22 of fashion’s most notable known names and talented newcomers to design one-of-a-kind little black dresses for the initiative "22 Ways To Say Black". On September 20, 2010 at Phillips de Pury & Company in New York City, under the high-patronage of Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, the one-of-a-kind dresses will be auctioned off by Simon de Pury, with 100% of the proceeds to benefit the American Cancer Society and La ligue nationale contre le cancer in France.

Black has often been referred to as 'basic' but in the world of high fashion, the celebrated “little black dress” is anything but. A starting point of haute couture both modern and in times past, the “little black dress” is where creative talent has truly shone.

With this in mind, SWAROVSKI ELEMENTS commissioned Giorgio Armani Privé, Givenchy by Riccardo Tisci, Lanvin by Alber Elbaz, Sonia Rykiel, Vivienne Westwood, among other designers, to explore the aesthetic possibilities of precision cut crystals and the iconic little black dress. These original creations, all embellished with SWAROVSKI ELEMENTS, are now to be auctioned off to benefit the American Cancer Society and La ligue national contre le cancer, two leading cancer charities

Throughout New York Fashion Week, beginning September 7th through September 20th, visitors to the New York Meatpacking District outpost of Phillips de Pury & Company can preview these unique pieces which will be on display prior to the auction on the evening of the September 20th. After the auction there will be an exclusive cocktail event hosted by Nadja Swarovski, Vice President of International Communications.

One hundred percent of the proceeds of the auction and its accompanying catalogue, "22 Ways to Say Black", will benefit the designated charities. Published by Éditions Dilecta, the noted Paris-based art publishing house, the catalogue is available on Amazon.com and at select outlets in the United States and abroad. For a full list of distribution outlets in the United States and abroad, please visit http://www.swarovski-elements.com/black

“We are thrilled to be associated with this exciting event benefiting a worthwhile cause. Swarovski proves with it that it is at the forefront in art, design and fashion. They have enrolled some of today’s greatest fashion designers to give the ultimate edge to the little black dress.” says Simon de Pury, Chairman. of the auction house

AUCTION: 20th September 2010

VIEWING: 7th-20th September 2010

LOCATION: Phillips de Pury & Company, 450 West 15th Street, New York, NY 10011

Go see.  Enjoy and report back my American friends.

Images shown-  Dress Diane von Furstenberg, Photography Scheltens & Abbenes.  
Dress Jean Paul Gaultier, Photography Scheltens & Abbenes.  Dresses made with SWAROVSKI ELEMENTS
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August is a Wicked Month

It's nearly over.   But oh what halcyon times we Londoners had.  ie.  The single, sane, drink fuelled, non child carrying versions, of course.  Not the 4x4, child dropping off at small private school (in my road Goddamit), discussing the nanny and the new kitchen layout ones.  They've gone:  To Puglia or Greece or the Northern part of Majorca or somewhere wherever the middle classes congregate to usurp one another in regaled tales on their return.  No matter. 

Oh but they'll be back, all too soon.  We have but yet 3 days of bliss. 

It's particularly apparent just how much the Capital changes when it's August Bank Holidays.  You know, people do that thing where they ask you if you're going away and look at you pityingly when you say,"'No, not this time", when inside you're screaming, "Yes, but you are", while punching the air in your thoughts. 

For one whole month and for two glorious weekends in August, London actually becomes a workable, pleasant city to live, work and party in.  The streets today looked sparse like a big cosmopolitan town like Munich or Brussels and, while the retailers may cry into their Monday retail figures sheets at lack of trade, this was joy of joy: You get to view New Season in all its glory minus bored children, bustling mothers and daughters and awkward men laden with carrying bags while the wife/girlfriends 'try on something'. 

Even M&S becomes pleasant and the obligatory screaming child allocated to each and every store disappears magically.  Can you believe that the £10 'Dine in for Two' (which, of course, I eat for one, natch) was still available in the afternoon of a Bank Holiday weekend as it was so empty?  Loving it.

Talking of 'Dine in For Two', the couples disappear at Bank Holidays.  Yeah!  No more mooning, arms draping, canoodling in (family/chain) restaurants while you're trying to actually, you know, eat.  They've gone. *dances little jig*

And taxis.  My God.  Taxis are easier to come by than dog crap on the road.  Only last week, my fairly merry friend and I skipped out of a late night club event and literally, the moment we stuck out our hand, a black cab had appeared.  This was on Oxford Street, no less, in the early hours of the morn.  Miraculous.

Tables in restaurants are for the taking.  No longer relegated to the dodgy seating area in 'back-of-beyondsville' as you're eating on your own, a girl can finally pick and choose.  Even the men look better.  Hotter.  I think it's because there's less of them around and the 'family way' ones are all abroad or in the Cotswolds or Cornwall en famille.

Oh yes.  August Bank Holidays means you can swan around on your own on near empty public transport (as much as that can occur in the metropolis), saunter into a wine bar or pub without being crushed at the bar waiting for service or, even drive, and park, without hassle. *swoons*. 

I wish it were always like this.  But life is but a dream and they'll be back.  That's the wicked part.

What do you think of August Bank Holidays, or August generally, in London.  Worth staying at home for?  Please leave a comment in the comment box below or start a conversation n the 'shout mix' box opposite.  It's easy to do.

Jade Jagger: Guerlain's Shalimar and Notting Hill Carnival

Jade Jagger's been a busy bee of late. The archetypal being of hip 'rock & royalty' has two projects on the go at the moment.

The first is a prestigious project where Ms Jagger is redesigning the classic Guerlain Shalimar fragrance bottle for a new edition of the fragrance as follows:

SHALIMAR EXCEPTIONAL EDITION
Two vintage bottles bedecked with sapphires and diamonds. Two unique and sumptuous fine jewellery pieces and...

SHALIMAR PRESTIGE EDITION
182 numbered jewel bottles adorned with a sapphire, created for the 182nd anniversary of the Maison Guerlain. Quelle prestige.

Now, if like me, you regard Shalimar, the wonderful, distinctive, powdery warm 1920's fragrance as a Goddess amongst perfumes and revere its packaging with its distinctive blue topped, exotic Indian 1920's deco styling as untouchable, you may be a trite concerned. When buying fragrance, you fall in love with the tactile nature of the flacon as much as you do the fragrance itself and Shalimar reeks of class and vintage vampism....and just who can resist a vintage vamp? Add to this, the old graphic lettering spelling the name in a bygone age, emblazoned in gold on navy and the fragrance all smacks of a taste of the glorious forbidden.

Designed by Raymond Guerlain for the 1925 World’s Fair, the Shalimar bottle was immediately hailed as an emblematic work of Orientalism, a strong trend at the time. Its shapes, evoking two fans facing each other, recall the Mogul sculptures of northern India. So why alter a classic? I did greet the 'new edition' news as tremulous. However, it appears it is only the bottle as art that's changing...as an post modern update to garner the original fragrance with the esteem it deserves. (Breathes slight sigh of relief). The fragrance itself remains unchanged. It's Guerlain after all. The ultimate fragrance house and they know a thing or too about fragrance heritage and staying true to their brand values.

Jagger has decided to unite the three symbols that recount the legend of Shalimar: blue, India and eternal passion. So far so good. Jagger choose Blue with the sapphire, because it is in India that the most beautiful gems are found. Eternal passion with the diamond, the hardest and oldest precious stone. And, to evoke India, Jade Jagger travelled there to select the sapphires and diamonds that decorate the bottles (nice work if you can get it).

All in all, these are works to showcase the beauty of the fragrance and move the house forward...to give it a talking point. However, the fragrance is the unassailable true star. Nothing can detract from that. And that is, thankfully, affordable without all the diamonds and tasteful bling that money can buy. I'd recommend every girl to try Shalimar. It's a sure sign you've reached an age where transparent trashiness is dispersed and womanliness is embraced.

And so we arrive at the other disparate Jade Jagger project...a link with winemakers, Gallo Rosé and its Beach Blanket Babylon Notting Hill Party at Carnival this Sunday, 29th August.

To promote this link up and to celebrate Notting Hill's massive celebration of diversity, Jade has answered some questions for us on beauty, fashion, music and Notting Hill.

What's your number one beauty tip?
I think organic products are very important, the more simple and natural the better.

What's your beauty trend for this summer?
Gold eye shadow always compliments a healthy tan, and of course lots of jewellery.

When did you last have a shopping splurge? What did you buy?
I was in Paris during couture week and bought myself a gorgeous new Lanvin bag and some new shoes - I just can't help myself in there.

How would you describe your style?
I love to dress up differently every day. I would describe my style as playful.

Who are your favourite designers?
I make a lot of clothes for myself in India, but I also love all the classics; YSL, Lanvin, Chanel and of course a bit of Topshop and Zara.

Where do you get your inspiration for your jewellery and fashion designs?
I have a long-standing love affair with India. We have a beach house in the north of Goa, which is where I am at my happiest. I work there around two months of the year on my jewellery designs, and some of my clothes are embellished and embroidered in India

What’s your idea of the perfect weekend?
There is nothing better to do at the weekend than sleep, cook and watch TV with the family. We are often working on Friday nights doing parties, so Saturday and Sunday I like to get my PJs on.

Which restaurants are you a fan of at the moment?
I live right next to the Dock Kitchen on Kensal Road. The food there is great - so fresh and in season. It’s right on the canal and in the evening they have different themes.

What’s your current soundtrack to the summer?
Tinie Tempah, ‘Pass Out’.

What’s the best music to dance to?
Nu Disco.

Any emerging talent we should listen out for?
I love The Whip’s new album, it will be out soon.

What exciting things do you have planned for the rest of the summer?
I'm doing the Gallo Rosé & Beach Blanket Babylon Notting Hill Party on the Sunday of bank holiday weekend. Then I'll be back hosting nights in Ibiza.

How long have you been going to Carnival for?
I haven't been to carnival for years as have been living in ibiza every summer for the last 13. Before that I used to go every year for many years and always enjoyed the atmosphere that came to Notting Hill.

What does Carnival mean to you?
I haven't been to Carnival for quite a few years so I'm looking forward to seeing if its changed from what I remember. It was always such a great weekend to get together with friends and listen to great music and eat great food in the streets. That sort of occasion doesn't happen nearly enough these days.  Its just a wonderful joyous weekend of freedom in London.

How do you stand out from the crowd at Carnival?
I plan to try and not stand out from the crowd at carnival. Events like this are always so great as the masses of people and your big group of friends allows you lose yourself amongst the crowd a get to
have a lot of fun without being watched.

How does one dress glam for Carnival?
I think everyone looks so great and glamorous at carnival. Its always so vivacious and there's so much colour and its hard for anyone to look less than fabulous.

Where are we most likely to find you at Carnival?
On Sunday I'll be taking my Jezebel Sound System to the Gallo Rosé event at Beach Blanket Babylon Notting Hill, where Ledbury road will be turned into summer beach party.

What’s your favourite Carnival watering hole?
The Pelican on All Saints road will be rocking this year I'm sure. Its right next to my Jade Jagger shop so I can run between the two throughout the day, probably stealing ice from the pub to take to the shop.

Do you have any other insider Carnival tips?
Always handy to know people putting parties on in the pubs! Get your wristbands on before carnival finishes at 7 or you're gonna be queueing!

Jade Jagger and DJ D.R.W will be appearing with their Jezebel Sound System at the Gallo Rosé & Beach Blanket Babylon Notting Hill Party on Sunday 29th August. Info: www.gallorose.co.uk

Jade Jagger for Guerlain - Personal Appearance and Fragrance Signing
Wednesday 8th September 2010, 12.30pm – 2pm. Jagger reveals her interpretation of Guerlain’s legendary Shalimar bottle

Chutzpah's Weekly Barometer

A light hearted look back over the past week’s good, bad and indifferent including the “don’t even go there’s”.


LOVING

New planetary systems being discovered Just mind blowing! Astronomers have discovered a planetary system containing at least five planets that orbit a star much like our own Sun. Only 127 light years away in the southern constellation of Hydrus. We are all so small and yet so vital.

Helena Christensen rocks in Triumph Looking hotter than hell in these Rankin photographed pics, Helena at 41 shows the newbies just who exactly is the sexiest of them all. Helena is pictured in the designs of 27 lingerie designer hopefuls who are each in the running to scoop the Triumph Inspiration Award 2010. Vote for your favourite on this link: http://www.triumph.com/uk/en/3242.html?pro=uk&loc=en&dest=uk/en


Toni and Guy's Touch Control 2000 Watt Digital Hair Dryer (£39.99) This amazingly lightweight hairdryer packs a punch. So powerful that when on full power, it set of my (highly sensitive) smoke alarm. Easy peasy to use, the touch screen speed and heat controls are digital funky. The flash of blue or red alerts you to the speed and temperature. With an extra long cord, I was able to walk and style. It's lightweight too, so doesn't give arm ache with constant re-positioning. I almost felt like a pro.

Harrods Perfume Diaries For the fragrance freaks (and I include myself in that term), this is nothing short of pure heaven. Harrods announce the first significant perfume exhibition of recent times, celebrating the past, present and future of fragrance. (Scream!) From 2nd September to 2nd October, housed in a stylish, contemporary exhibition space on the 4th floor of the dept store, The Perfume Diaries is a comprehensive view of the most significant and influential perfumes to have emerged from the 1800's. From Jicky to J'Adore and everything in between. Not only that, it's curated by one of my heroes, world renowned fragrance authority, Roja Dove, who is *ahem* personally showing the select few around at the preview. Pass the smelling salts, I may faint. Look out for talks from the maestros of fragrance. Not to be missed.

The Robbie Williams and Gary Barlow 'Brokeback Mountain' type video for 'Shame' These guys show just how secure they are and that they have a massive sense of humour. Fabulous. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tv49bC5xGVY

Functionalab The most beautifully designed premium brand of science based supplements which promote a holistic approach to beauty and health. I'm a convert to the Health Drops. Funny how the lovely PR girls singled out the Detox version for me? Hmm. Available at Harvey Nichols. Check out the products on http://www.functionalab.co.uk/home


HATING

The new One Show presenters Jason Manford and 'dead behind the eyes' Alex Jones have made me switch off. Zero chemistry and charisma, clunky, can't 'link' for toffee and with no intelligent one liners, what a pair of chumps. Just awful.

Choo Uggs (Chuggs anyone?) No.

Britney Spears manga treatment by photographer Todd Cole and art directed by Murakami in POP mag Saccharin sweet and reeking of desperation, this is not a good look for the mother of two children. She seemed more real when shaven headed and going off on one. Far too Hannah Montana for me, Brits. Lose it.


DON’T CARE

For X factor Autotune schmoon.


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Press Play for Givenchy's new fragrance

The first thing that strikes you about Play for Her Intense is the bottle and its general swishness and underhand showiness. Its tactile smoothness, its weight, its silver rough hewn edging that allows grip bringing a contrast to the glossy slippery smooth surface– very clever indeed. Designer, Serge Mansau, has departed from the overt feminine feel of his previous incarnations, Organza and Ange ou Demon. Ultra contemporary, this is fragrance for the iPhone 4 generation: Glossy purple, coloured like a 1970’s Raleigh Chopper bike, this is neat to the beat. And, that’s before you realise that Justin Timberlake is going to turn up in the advertising alongside the gorgeous Noot Seer.

A couple run through the avenues of Champ de Mars and then up the Eiffel tower, spurred by their sheer joy of life and its spontaneity. When they reach the top, he dares her to ‘Play’. The lights of Paris pulse to the beat.

Sweet and intense sexiness drools out when you press play. It’s smouldering come hitherness means business. Sandalwood overpowers with a strong edge of Patchouli but then again, I like sandalwood, patchouli and all things hinting of Indian mystique. There’s not a jot of new age hippie here, though. There is a huge droplet of femininity with the floral middle notes of amyris wood, tiare flower and orchid with a pungent hit of pink peppercorns. It may be heavy but there’s a definite energy and rhythm to this. So far so play me.

Play For Her Intense is undoubtedly an evening fragrance, designed to carry its sultry strength in crowded hip bars where the young, louche and downright playas, play. That’s my kind of fragrance. That’s my kind of challenge. I’m pressing play.

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Play for Her and Play for Her Intense (reviewed) are on counter nationwide from 21st August 2010.

30ml EDP and EDP Intense £34.50 / 46.80 euros

50ml EDP and EDP Intense £49.00 / 66.70 euros

75ml EDP and EDP Intense £59.50 / 81.70 euros

Please fee free to leave a comment in the box below or in the 'shout mix' box opposite. 

Superstyle Me!

Are you a stressed-out, slightly weepy, middle-aged mother-of-three with low self-esteem, a sludge-coloured wardrobe, who hyperventilates every time you visit Marks & Spencer or Kew?

Do you harbour a secret desire to have sassy gay men pour you into a cheap tea dress, accessorise you to within an inch of your life, and then throw you down a catwalk in front of adoring family and friends? If so then Gok Wan’s team want to hear from you.....

What has led the UK’s women to line up in their thousands so Gok can grab their “bangers” in a shopping centre, declare their clothes sense the dowdiest in the postal code, and unleash their inner drag queen via the medium of coloured tights? Is the homogenisation of our cities’ high streets dulling their sense of individuality? Uncertainty over disparate sizing policies? A recent survey on British women’s shopping habits, commissioned by low-fat frozen dessert brand 'Skinny Cow', made for depressing reading as 83% admitted that they had experienced remorse after buying clothes and accessories, lied to their partners about the cost, and often felt dissatisfied with their purchases before even getting them back home.

Are Gok and his fellow Superstylists helping, or is the pressure to give each outfit a “Gok twist”, or to steal a certain celebrity’s style, adding unwanted anxiety to an activity that the average women spends 8 years of her life engaged in (and, allegedly, as much time thinking about as men think about sex)?

Economic circumstances don’t seem significant. Witness pop star and Nation’s Sweetheart™ Cheryl Cole during the last series of ‘The X Factor’. Cole, who endured endless reports during filming of a collapsing marriage and an alleged rivalry with fellow judge Dannii Minogue, obviously ran crying into the clothes rail of her stylist, Frank Strachan of gay men’s lifestyle magazine Attitude.

The result was Dressing as Armour – and Cheryl looking increasingly ill at ease, probably aware that the edgy dresses Strachan was choosing were losing out in the sartorial stakes to opponent Dannii’s more demure wardrobe decisions.

Across the Atlantic, American women are hanging off the fashion advice of rake-thin, nonsensical celebrity stylist and media star Rachel Zoe. Zoe, who rose to fame during the early noughties obsession with casual So-Cal brands such as Juicy Couture and skinny, bleached beach-babes, was recently the subject of a 5-page spread by US glossy Harper’s Bazaar, where she poses in the throes of fighting off ingenious attempts on her life by various high-end fashion designers, such as Marc Jacobs.

RACHEL ZOE ‘I DIE’ HARPER’S BAZAAR SEPTEMBER 2010

In the photographs, Jacobs along with Michael Kors and Vera Wang play second fiddle to Zoe, currently celebrating a third series of her reality show ‘The Rachel Zoe Project’. And, you have to wonder how the stylist became more important than the designer?

Maybe it’s time that the Superstylists owned up, admitted that there are simple rules to dressing that everyone can learn, and (most importantly) that a good, well-cut dress and discreet jewellery will always win out over a cheaper piece dipped in Bostik, dragged through a haberdashery, and worn with an armful of bangles?

Maybe then women everywhere will learn to have faith in their own sense of style.

This article was researched, compiled and written by Lee Clatworthy.

What do you think of style over substance? Do you think the stylist as superstar has gone too far? Is there a crisis of confidence in the UK's women? What do you think of Lee's piece? Please leave a comment in the comment box below or start a conversation in the 'shout mix' box opposite.

Release the inner WAG!

Ok. So it happens to the best of us. I'm having a mid life tanorexia crisis. Or, that's what my best gay friend says and you should always trust the opinion of your best A list gayers.

I recently bit the bullet more than half way and decided *shock* I was going to get a St Tropez all ovah body tan and release my inner WAG. I was going to stand there in paper pants doing the crab pose and being wispily sprayed. The streets are full of such fake tan girls and, just for once, I was going to be one of them.

If you know me (peely, wan, white with blue veins, Scottish, auburn hair, Modigliani muse type meets Tori Amos/Kate Bush) you'd realise just how WRONG this seems but oh my Lord, how RIGHT it feels. I'm tired with being pale and interesting and for a full 5 days (count 'em as that's how long it lasts) I will be a Wagabee, a twiglet, a teak temptress. In my head anyway. I'm going from Dita to Evan in one fell swoop. Just as Marilyn Manson did.

Personally,I think it's got more to do with how absolutely stunningly sexy and fabulous Evan Rachel Wood looks in the new Gucci Guilty ad. She's all smooth and glistening and shiny and oh, I think I may have a girl crush purely because I wanna be like that. She gave up her whiteness. I'll add her to the list of Daphne Guinness, Roisin Murphy, Sarah Jessica Parker and Dita von Teese. Talking of whom, I haven't quite given up on. I usually favour that level of alabaster palid.

It's hard to carry a tan with class. I was going for the 'just arrived back from Mustique' look favoured by Liz Hurley, India Hicks and Elle MacPherson types, who seem born to do it but you really need their level of panache (and lifestyle) to do it really well. Deep tan is not so pretty on your club bound, GHD hair straightened to brittle dryness, teak 'bridge n tunnel' types who, ever hopeful for a minor league footballer/gangster/club runner, go henceforth and hunt each weekend armed only with strong perfume and walnut tans. I mean, just think 'The Saturdays' and you'll get my drift.

The tanning process itself was superb. I can absolutely and without doubt recommend St Tropez as the tan of choice. My tanning assistant, Abby, gave clear instructions at every step of the way. "What shade would you like? Are you going for a 1 or 2?" Now, that usually means something else so I refrained from answering until she explained that with my skin tone (the tan naturally adapts to your skin colour to look natural) she'd only recommend either a 1 or 2 shade. "I'll tell you what," she said, "...we'll start with a '1' and see how you feel." I was doused with moisturiser on the right bits, positioned and sprayed. The colour change was instant. "Hell's teeth. Keep going. I'm up for a '2'".

As I sat at dinner then drinks with my friend (@redlegsinsoho) that night, she giggled as I slowly turned darker and darker with each glass of champagne. Lordy. We ended up comparing whether I was the colour of the leather sofa or the table in Hix bar. "I've done a Ross from Friends, haven't I?". "No, but you do look slightly tea stained, " (Oh God!) "...and you smell a bit. Of digestive biscuits". "That'll be the tan till I wash it off", I justified. So much for my new found sexiness.

It's now day 1 of 'tan' me and I still like it. It makes me feel different. Like wearing a wig or having a haircut. Which, incidentally I did and had it straightened, courtesy of the super sexy Andy Uffels at the wonderful Philips press launch. Now there's a man who can run his fingers through your hair.

I may take this up from time to time. Just loving St Tropez. I now have an instant urge to have blonde streaks. Save me from myself!

So, this I've discovered since I took on my golden glow:

Things you can do with a tan:-

- Swagger (quite a lot).
- Wear shorter skirts
- Give in to nude or beige lipstick (Finally after all these years!)
- Wear orange or yellow
- Lose (willingly , for a brief period) a few points from your IQ.
- Wear this season's tan, camel and beige suede and leather as they REALLY look great.

Things you can't do with a tan:-

- Be poetic and ephemeral
- Use my usual No 1 YSL Teint Resist Fluid Foundation
- Wear deep claret/red lipstick. (It just doesn't work)
- Wear Galliano or Lanvin (Again, it just looks wrongity wrong).
- Douse myself in my sparkly vintage.

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To find out more about St Tropez spray tanning and their range of products, please visit http://www.st-tropez.com/preparing-for-salon-treatments

St Tropez have just released Everyday Perfect Legs £35.00 and St Tropez Instant Glow Shimmer Stick £15.00. The St. Tropez range is available across the UK at select retailers and salons. Call 0115 983 6363 for nearest stockist.

Rouge Dior Haute Couleur. Red rules.

Monsieur Christian Dior used to say, "The lipstick that covers my cheeks is the surest sign of a collection's success; besides, red is my lucky colour." And, there was a man who knew women. He extended his rules of fashion to the tenet for his beauty house.

The line often becomes blurred regarding designer cosmetics. At what point to you admit, as a woman, you are buying into only a minor piece of the fashion brand or are you really buying into the fashion house's lifestyle ethos and basis? Depends on the brand, m'dear.

I've found that the closer the links from fashion design through to product development, colour choice and brand execution, the closer the synergy, and none more so than at Dior. Dior has an inevitable charm. Headed by the man who can do no wrong, John Galliano, his attention to detail is legendary. And we all know, colour transcends the history of the House of Dior.

Christian Dior, who was passionate about flowers, art, theatre and culture knew the effect of a stunning gown whose colour illuminates its wearer, giving her a magical glow. "Why deprive fashion and women of the prestige and charms of colour, which have sure appeal for them?" he asked. Red is undeniably the colour of the house and is oft used as an outlet for Monsieur Galliano's fantastical and flamboyant tendencies. As John Galliano says, "Red is the colour of passion and Monsieur Dior's favourite colour." In 2006, red stole the spotlight once again when the radiant Monica Bellucci became the muse for the new Rouge Dior. For one night, the monuments of Paris were bathed in red as a tribute to the ultimate femme fatale and her favourite lipstick.

As a pillar of Dior beauty, Red is swept across the history of the House like a powder trail. In fact, the story of Rouge Dior started with this intense shade, since Monsieur Dior believed that "Red is a very energetic and beneficial colour. It is the colour of life. I love Red and I think it suits almost every complexion."
The black and white images of the couturier's first collections hint at the models' crimson lips, a crucial element in the Dior attitude.

Giving women what they want...a right to feel sexy, powerful and beautiful transcends everything at Dior. Monsieur Dior considered the vivid colour of made up lips as the finishing touch to a fully dressed face, something that Galliano carries on to this day.

Here's to the close connection between truly inspired fashion design and beauty products. Here's to the purity of design. Here's to fiery, dramatic and sexy Red. Red rules. Monsieur Dior would agree.

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The 32 intense colours of Rouge Dior Haute Couleur Voluptuous Care lipstick (including the deep Zinna Red) launch nationwide on 6th September 2010. Recommended Retail Price £22

Catwalk pic of Dior's A/W 10 Couture collection kindly provided by www.style.com

Chutzpah's Weekly Barometer

A light hearted look back over the past week’s good, bad and indifferent including the “don’t even go there’s”.

LOVING

Emma Hardie Rejuvenating Night Cream Luscious, rich dollops of soft white cream soothes and enrichens dry skin. It comes in a huge 100ml pot. Feel it sink in and get to work. Just brilliant. £56 from selected Space.NK stores from September. Find out more about Emma Hardie at http://www.emmahardie.com/


The final send off billboards for Big Brother Brilliantly styled and marketed. It's getting us all nostalgic with a lump in the throat for the loss of the great BBs. Still one of the best and most insightful TV series ever. NB. I didn't even watch it this season.


That the real Supermodels are still Super Lauren Hutton on the cover of LOVE mag, 40 year old Kirsten Owen and Stella Tennant in the new Ferragamo campaign (shot by Bruce Weber) and my fave ever, Big Linda E, rocking it in the Talbots ad. She deserves much better but still does great face.

Coco Mademoiselle Foaming Shower Gel (£30) Indulge yourself with Chanel's Coco Mademoiselle. Makes getting ready for a night out more special. Available from 24th September alongside velvet body oil and moisturising body lotion. Oh lala. The complete Coco Mademoiselle experience.

Drew Barrymore's off-duty military look. Brutally hot.

HATING

The slew of Summer Festival theme type ads. Coke, Activia, various phone companies. Nearly all featuring tuftily bearded badly dressed men for authenticity. Stop it.

Stores that pump fragrances into the air to make you shop Have you recently walked by the big new emporium, The Sting, at Piccadilly Circus? I have and I almost gagged. Normal people can just about cope but if you have a heightened sense of smell this is almost unbearable. Imagine a Lush store and times it by ten. Overwhelming to the nth.

Winter White Difficult at the best of times. With talk of a double dip recession increasing, can anybody actually afford to work it?

DON’T CARE

Re Phil's descent into crack hell in Eastenders Deeply unattractive/uninteresting. Delete as applicable

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One to watch: Katie Eary

There's no getting away from it. Katie Eary's show stopping, dramatic jewellery demands your attention and is as impactful as the white blonde designer herself.

She has already been achieving massive critical acclaim for her menswear line since her launch in 2008. Opulent gold and pearl rib cages sit alongside brass hand and foot pieces. This London-based fashion designer is certainly an unstoppable, inevitable hurricane ripping her own path through fashion. For S/S '11, she is to show at LFW under the umbrella of NEWGEN and has already shown her pre-collection in Paris, so fash pack watch out.

Eary graduated from the RCA in 2008 with an M.A in Menswear and on graduating, Selfridges flagship store commissioned her to create nine body/head pieces for their LFW window display. That same month, Kate Moss donned a number of Katie's designs for Mario Testino's shoot for Vogue UK.

When I asked Eary what is currently inspiring her work, her fearless reply was "Dog fights. Gangs, Drug warfare, Crime and Violence. I think its quite current, very real and really sad. Im emerging myself in it with books, films and personal research for SS'11. It haunts me in my sleep, but I've always been interested in things that are so far from my life... Like an unhealthy interest."

Eary's current work comprises bold, brave, human skeletal masks and hands. This is 'look at me' statement jewellery in all its chic bullish bravado. Not overtly sexy but undoubtedly powerful and beautiful, Eary's designs are made for men but what archetypal strong woman can resist the challenge of that? Anything you can wear we can wear better. This is a woman with refined and specific tastes after all. When asked who are her favourite designers, she replied, "Riccardo Tisci. I feel we have a similar muse. Hedi Slimane also. He designs for perfect youth. Perfect as in 'not at all'... All the kids with issues. The clothes and the understanding of the muse goes hand in hand." And her muses? Her brothers: "They are all quite different but are all similar in their youth. All the issues, all the upset and angst."

This jewellery celebrates your inner warrior but in beatific form, the nearest you can get to wearing art. And Eary should know, as the super styish and avante garde Roisin Murphy wore her Swarovski gold coat on her tour night after night for her opening extravaganza. Fashion peeps, if it's good enough for Roisin.... In fact, other celebrities approaching Katie to design for them or purchase her work include style heavy weights such as Rhianna, Kelis, Gaga, Black Eyed Peas, MIA and oh, Kanye West actually has one of the gold Skeletal hands.

Her gothic metal skull masks with chains, feathers or pearls can be worn as a warrior statement full on and face off funky or swept to the side of the head and worn ironically as a fascinator. I like that. I like the way that this designer plays with form, clashes textures and relays strength throughout her work. This jewellery takes cajones to wear it (whether a man or woman). Not everyone can. Be brave. Release your inner warrior.

Katie Eary's accessory collection will be exclusive at Kabiri from 20th July 2010, and is strictly limited quantity. The skeletal masks and hand pieces will be available online at http://www.kabiri.co.uk/ whereas the large scale body pieces are exclusive at Kabiri’s concession in Selfridges, Oxford Street. Kabiri is one of London’s leading jewellery stores, helping to launch the careers of many independent jewellery designers since their launch in 2004. With carefully curated collections from over 60 designers each season, Kabiri is is the ‘go-to’ store for exclusive jewellery designers.

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New fragrance from Halston. (Hedonism and the Last Days of Disco).

Halston’s new fragrance had piqued my interest before I first smelled it.

The name is everything. Hmm....Halston (like ‘Sister Sledge’s’ Gucci and Fiorucci), the name conjures up an era of hedonism and hip where the truly glam and the effortlessly stylish discoed on down to Gloria Gaynor, First Choice, Van McCoy and Teena Marie at Studio 54 as the world slowly marched towards the ‘80’s, AIDS awareness and ‘greed is good’.

Those were the days of the beautiful people.... Jackie O, Liza Minnelli, Andy Warhol, Bianca Jagger, Liz Taylor, Ali MacGraw, Anjelica Huston, Lauren Bacall, Diana von Furstenberg, living it up and playing nightly like one long David Bailey photo-shoot.

A self-celebrated celebrity so famous he only used one name, Halston was the archetypal designer’s designer. His minimal, glamorous, sleek and impeccably tailored designs not only embraced the times, they represented the era in all its suave, nonchalant yet hedonistic hoo haa. A firm believer that “"You're only as good as the people you dress” Halston had his pick and was dubbed “the premier fashion designer of all America” by Newsweek.

As big as his business empire and almost as out of control, the pressures of perfectionism plus partying wildly to excess led to his demise. In 1988, he was told he had AIDS and two years later it claimed his life. His last act was to donate his white Rolls Royce, a symbol of the times, to be sold for AIDS research. He was as good as the people he dressed.

So Halston now? That’s quite a brand to re-invent and to re-build into a 21st century pedestal. But Miramax boss Harvey Weinstein and shoe empress Tamara Mellon have worked their millionaire magic since 2008 and hey presto, we have a fashion house on the rise with Marios Schwab at the helm and Sarah Jessica Parker as creative director for Halston Heritage and the dresses selling in Harvey Nichols and Net a Porter. And now the big stuff, how to evoke the era of Halston in a fragrance for the 21st Century?

The new Halston woman (fragrance) slides onto your skin as easily as a foot sure, jive talking Tony Manero hip swayed on to the dance floor in ‘Saturday Night Fever’ only with much more chic and substance. Pure amber at his heart, the fragrance delves into a weightless veil of tuberose with golden smooth sparkles of Italian Mandarin as an instant hit.

Too sweet on first application, the fragrance changes shape quickly as the sweet golden amber heart dries down to a white suede and exotic sandalwoods reeking of ‘70’s nostalgia. Yes, the fragrance is sweet but not cloying and will be a sure fire hit with modern disco divas who have never ever danced to ‘Cherchez La Femme’ (more’s the pity) but who no doubt identify with Candi Staton’s ‘Young Hearts Run Free’. It’s meant for night time shenanigans and the density of a crowded bar/club.

This is a modern disco fragrance with a nod to the past but it’s more Diana Ross than Love Unlimited Orchestra and that’s the pity. I don’t think you can ever really truly capture that era in a bottle. Halston was a child of his time.

Halston Man is an altogether different animal and I liked this a lot but it’s certainly more metrosexual than heterosexual if you follow my drift. It’s crisply masculine with bursts of Bergamot and brush strokes of Geranium leaves which expand into the amber heart with Myrrh and Labdanum. At the base, there’s a heavy sedated Oud Wood that rocks with drips of musk. This is pure Barry Gibb Bee Gee meets Mr Manero, all unbuttoned shirt and sexual swagger.

The Halston fragrance bottles are designed to perfection as we’d expect from a deeply stylish house. Designer, Elsa Peretti (she of the Tiffany heart design) fashioned these with an ergonomic, bulbous, sexy twist. Bathed in gold and making a statement, these are too good to hide. They speak for themselves and they should. No label is present. Now that’s chic. That’s Halston.

Halston Woman Amber and Halston Man Amber are available exclusively at Harrods and Harrods.com from 25th July 2010

To relive and to replicate the days of ‘Studio 54’, purchase the newly compiled "Complete Introduction to Disco’”(1970-1980) from Universal Records. Available from August 2010.

Catwalk pics of Halston A/W 10 by kind permission of www.style.com

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Gucci: Guilty as charged.

Gucci's triumph of marketing rides again with the launch of Gucci Guilty and its fronting of the sultry, sexy campaign featuring Marilyn Manson's squeeze, Evan Rachel Wood. And boy, is she seen in a new light.

Golden tan, sleek and reeking of super model fabulousness, she appears to be the very antithesis of all things pale, classic and Dita von T. Evan's upfront sexual prowess is guilty as charged, appealing directly to the target market of daring, sexually liberated WAGabees who will no doubt go gaga over Guilty. It's just a pity the fragrance is not as dynamically va-va-voom.

Oh, yes, its a pleasant oriental floral, ultra modern and looks terribly chunky chic in it's gold square 'look at me' casing with the branded interlocking G, see through logo but what of it's depth, it's character and its lingering effect?

It appears Gulity is directly influenced by it's target demographic: Stand out from the crowd, looks great, bold in its delivery but actually not having 'that' much substance or staying power is how I'd describe it. Pleasantly rounded and sharply sweet notes of mandarin, pink pepper, peach, lilac and geranium blend through to the very now base of choice, amber and patchoulli. It's young sexy not mature sexy so this is a lifestyle choice of fragrance, more defined by brand and advertising than carrying character.

Seek it out if you're a party girl. Moi? I prefer more poise.

Available at The Perfume Shop stores from 25th August 2010, Gucci Guilty can be purchased in a 30ml, 50ml and 75ml EDT, priced at £34.50, £46.50 and £59.50 respectively.

Chutzpah's Weekly Barometer

A light hearted look back over the past week’s good, bad and indifferent including the “don’t even go there’s”.

LOVING

SJP's low key look. Super chic and stylish and I'd love that hair. This lady can do no wrong. See her look at The Huffington Post. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/08/10/sarah-jessica-parkers-lai_n_677052.html

Evan Rachel Wood in Gucci's new 'Guilty' adv. Wow! Super modelicious. Boy, has she grown up.

Alexander Wang's first ever mainline video Take a creative collaboration by all the big names (Supremo art director, Fabien Baron, Craig McDean (photographer du jour), stylist, Karl Templer and model, Abbey Lee Kershaw) and what do you get? This stunning and impactful creative piece. Love it.

The phrase 'North/South of the Park'. As in (quote) "most of my friends live North of the Park". We're not talking Finsbury or Queen's either.

Ojon Hair Products I've only recently discovered these and boy are they heaven in a bottle. Love the Revitalising Mist and the Recovery Cleanser. The best quality, the best smelling,..well. the best everything actually. And now they have a 2 minute hair mask (retailing at £30) to revitalise or volumise. God help my bank balance.

HATING

Katy Perry Girl, I like you but you are reaching new lows in self esteem. Cream spurting out of your breastsicles whilst fellating a popsicle. Hmmm. And we wonder why our kids get sexualised too young? And now a song where you sing, "I wanna see your peacock-cock-cock, your peacock-cock-cock". Just... no.

That God awful Ikea Tree Statue at the Barbican Deeply hideous and not art.

DON’T CARE

For Friday, 13th *shudders*

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Tell me "Quando Quando Quando." Dolce & Gabbana release film.

Following in the footsteps of the great Tom Ford in terms of film making won't be easy for any designer. So, it's with certain trepidation and naturally high expectations that I look forward to Stefano Gabbana and Domenico Dolce's first venture into full length feature film making, "Quando Quando, Quando". Launching September, when the international fashion hub gets together, this is bound to make tongues either wag or loll.

From the clip below it's looks every inch the moody, sexy, Italian characterisation we expect from this esteemed design team. A sexy, lace clad goddess walks the streets of Rome being ogled at by men of all ages....Watch and let me know what you think in the comment box below.

http://www.veoh.com/search/videos/q/dolce+%26+gabbana+quando

Bastyan. Pure feminine fluid covetability.

I know there's currently a fashion infatuation with Jane Sheperdson's revamp of Whistles and everything that is sold therein but I'm going to out myself here in a big way....I preferred the old Whistles. You know, the one created by Lucille Lewin that then was sold on but still managed to capture the Boho professional working woman's wardrobe without going all Sienna Miller on it's ass. I miss it. I shopped there monthly. Forgive me if I say that I'm very far from the stripey/cowl neck t-shirt and Shoreditch type pant wearing that Whistles currently embodies. As we say amongst friends, 'It's not for me'.

I say this as I recently delved into the back rail of the many (I know, I'm brave) and discovered a fabulously Ossie Clark type, slit crepe skirt with embroidery. It can be dressed down and up, it's feminine, it's me and the label read 'Press & Bastyan'. I can't wait to wear it again. Which leads me to Tonia Bastyan.

Tonia Bastyan was originally half of ’90s fashion retail success story, Press & Bastyan, but in recent years she has been working independently on her own designs and has recently launched her label, Bastyan, which currently sells at House of Fraser. I loved this collection for A/W 10. Seriously. It managed to combine fluid draping, modern elements such as asymmetrics, texture clashes and soft to touch fabrics with vintage elements such as beading, ruching and just the right amount of embellishment and embroidery on selected key pieces. Tonia's vision is to allow a woman to extend her wardrobe from season to season and this is right on the money. She goes at design with a woman's sensibility, understanding the demands of a wardrobe but also the need for beauty and key note feminine highlights which add character as surely as the wearer. The A/W 10 collection felt more feminine and modern than many a catwalk show and I'm only sorry that we don't have someone as talented as Tonia Bastyan showing at London Fashion Week where she surely deserves her place.

Says Tonia, "There's a real gap in the market for clothes for working women – those like me who are thirty plus and looking for something a bit different."

The Bastyan collection is a cornucopia of chic separates, all equally covetable with a colour palette that is largely a muted range of hues throughout but predominantly geared around black, navy and varying shades of grey...a nod to fashion’s mood of austerity. Flashes of bottle green and claret have been added to some key statement pieces but it's the clash of texture, the juxtaposition of delicate fabrics with razor sharp tailoring, the fluidity of the knitwear, the ability to easily understand it's reasoning and place and the ability to layer the pieces that makes this collection a joy.

Coats play a huge role in the Bastyan range this season with sharply defined cuts adding a dash of dark winter drama in their chic severity. Balanced against these pieces are a collection of divine dresses perfect for the season of going out — beautiful draped gowns in liquid satins that flow and ebb around the body, accentuated by deep jewel colours.

These are pieces destined to be worn for seasons to come, pieces that define the brand essence of providing a cool, clean, understated vision of urbane luxury to its customer. Someone please give this woman her own range of stores.

The Bastyan collection ranges in price from £60 to £350 and is available from House of Fraser.

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Is No Taste the New Taste?

Now then ladies and gents. It strikes me that the general zeitgeist in fashion at the moment is to do bad taste. And I don't mean ironic, tongue in cheek, let's all have a bit of a laugh Henry Holland bad taste* (*more of him later) but actual real in your face 'am I a bit offended' bad taste?

Fashion and art should always be about pushing the boundaries of creativity but when you push that outer limit to taste itself, then what is acceptable? Is No Taste the New Taste?

Steven Meisel's latest 'Water & Oil' shoot in Vogue Italia is the ultimate example. Incredibly beautifully photographed and certainly making a statement about the world we live in, is it also making a statement about the extremities of taste and acceptability? Kristen McNemany is cast as the protagonist of a news story, the dying seal, the lifeless form, covered in oil her body becomes the symbol of the tragedy. The fact exists that she is also wearing thousands of pounds worth of designer lables and captions highlight product (as it is a fashion magazine, after all). It seems like highlighting oil consumption and the disaster and pairing this with designer fashion and art is a tad like not knowing where the taste barometer is. I'm in two minds about this. Is it all just a bit too raw? What next? The Pakistani flood shoot? While I can applaud the brave decision of Vogue Italia's editor in chief, Franca Sozzani (one of my heroines incidentally) to break boundaries, perhaps the acceptability of this shoot raises too many other questions.

However, this isn't the only incidence of 'No Taste as the New Taste'. Recently beauty bloggers and journalists were in an uproar at the decision by MAC Cosmetics to name a new Rodarte line of products with names that screamed the anguish of the women caught in the poverty plight of the poor Mexican cities where they lived and worked; Of displaced female workers who work dawn to dusk, with many women being raped or murdered in these areas with no reaction from police or authorities. Glamorous, not. Since the furore, MAC have seen sense and saved their brand credentials by agreeing to donate all profits from the Rodarte line to the newly formed "Women and Girls of Juarez Initiative". Excellent. But it begs the question, didn't Kate and Laura Mulleavy from Rodarte think basing a collection on Mexican women's suffering a trite unacceptable? Or, do we only become truly offended when it translates into mass market acceptability with the launch of make up products? (To see more of this story and it's background, click here http://katiechutzpah.blogspot.com/2010/07/new-macrodarte-product-names-causes.html)

Earlier this year, our own Dame Vivienne launched a menswear collection in Museo della Permanente, Milan with some models carrying bedrolls and some emerging from cardboard boxes. The Westwood models were supposed to look like rough sleepers. Homeless chic must surely be the epitome of bad taste? Zoolander come to life.

Then there's Victor & Rolf's early 'Black Hole' collection (from A/W 2001/2) where models faces and hands were blacked out. Making a fashion statement or offending a minority? Certainly the design duo, Victor & Rolf, become more well known following this.

It all leads me to think, are these examples a fashion oversight or a move to shock?

Now back to Mr Holland. It appears he is,once again, furthering his brand remit and launching a line of Hair Care products in the zany House of Holland style with Sebastian Professional. While they look great, the fact they are based on a fashion collection inspired by a 'down-town Harlem ghetto girl' seems a bit off, frankly. It may look fun and upbeat and quirky but is basing a design concept and mass market products around poor black people in the projects of New York now acceptable? Again, I'm rather in two minds with this one.

I'd love to hear your comments. Please leave a comment in the box below or in the 'shout mix' box opposite.


Steven Meisel's 'Water & Oil' pic kindly reproduced from Vogue Italia. To see more of this ground breaking shoot, click on http://www.vogue.it/en/magazine/cover-story/2010/08/water--oil

New Gold Dream. J'Adore L'Or by Dior

Wow! From the moment it dropped onto my skin in gossamer tinged droplets of promise I knew I was hooked. Like the first hello that knocks you off your feet and sets your pulse and imagination racing, J'Adore L'Or has your head in a spin.

Beautifully packaged in a couture gift box with the stamp of Dior to verify its impressive heritage, it's contents not only live up to but exceed expectations. It's the real deal. How could you fail to fall in love with it?

It caresses and kisses your skin like a soft, meaningful touch with implied promise. So powerful yet subtle, I believe heavenly seraphim must have delivered this. In fact, François Demachy, Perfumer-Creator for Dior, delved into the heart of the original J'Adore fragrance to express its quintessence and create the Essence de Parfum. Using only the finest ingredients, M Demachy has created a fragrance that reflects the refinement of Galliano's Dior Couture; Bottled luxury that echoes the ingredients selected for the perfect creation and construction of a Dior Haute Couture gown.

Bound up in a beautiful hand crafted bottle, the fragance is inspired by gold. Sleek, molten, smooth, sexy and glistening, there isn't a hint of harshness. A radiant floral bouquet enriched with oriental notes using only the highest quality raw ingredients, this is a rare find.

Rose de Mai Absolute (Centifolia) and a Jasmine Absolute (Grandiflorum) are used, both collected from harvests in the fields of Grasse and then touched through with deeply sensual oriental notes to add opulence to the fragrance. The sweet, smooth character of Tonka Bean Absolute and the tender sensuousness of Tahiti Vanilla Absolute blossom in the base notes. Patchouli, drops of Labdanum and amber notes give an oriental feel that woos you into deep contentment and provides a more imagined thick stickiness. It's like being enveloped in molten gold with soft, soft amber kisses.

Heavy sweet but not overpowering honeyness delivers exactly the right spoonful of sugar which dives further into a distinctive heady, sophisticated underbelly. It's like being lulled into love. Sexy and impactful, this fragrance is for a woman who has lived. This beauty is meant to be worn for effect - other women's envy and men's enchantment. While steadfastly and seductively modern, it echoes of the past in it's romantic intent and power: Like a 1950's classic that's been fast forwarded to the 21st Century for devastating effect.

This is one off detailed and embellished Haute Couture in a fragrance. A dream you can purchase and the promise of good things to come. Go with your heart not your head.

J'Adore L'Or launches 1st November and is priced £83.

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