Florabotanica Eau de Parfum by Balenciaga

I am not impressed with Kristen Stewart, the face of Florabotanica Eau de Parfum ($125), but I am impressed with the fragrance. Regarding Stewart, I am unimpressed with her acting skills, unimpressed with her appearance (I don't understand why anyone finds her unusually attractive), and extremely unimpressed by her recent infidelity. I don't understand why she is amazingly popular. From my perspective, she has little going for her.

Clearly, the ads for Florabotanica are aimed at a younger audience. Witness Kristen Stewart. She is not the "face" that would attract my generation. Fortunately, Florabotanica speaks for itself. The bottle is modern, but the fragrance isn't. It's a classic in the making.

Balenciaga, in collaboration with Coty, Prestige, and International  Flavors and Fragrances created this new fragrance that attracts attention with its modern, attractive flacon. It certainly got my attention at Neiman Marcus and jumped right onto my pre-sale list. It's beautiful.

The scent was developed by perfumers of the well-known IFF. Olivier Polge and Jean-Christophe Hérault created it, using accords of vetiver, amber, and caladium leaf to create a resonance of mossy and mysterious dark wood. The rose, carnation, and mint accords add an exhilarating note of freshness. The unique rose is a hybrid, expressing the olfactory imagination of the two perfumers.

Balenciaga says, "We cannot reveal all the secrets of these two floral alchemists, but the Experimental Rose finds its origins in opulent Turkey. To give it a fairytale air, the two perfumers have added a formula of psychosensory plants, making it particularly enchanting. This Experimental Rose has the power to endlessly charm.  At first glance, it is a very floral, almost romantic composition. But on closer inspection, a stronger and more obscure character can be discerned. It is a perfume that we like to think of as tender and dangerous. An enchanting and provocative scent.”

How does that marketing blurb translate into reality? The fragrance is gorgeous. It's a powdery floral. Some "fragrance insiders" consider "powdery" bad. I don't. I like the softness and sensuality of Florabotanica.

The unfortunate advertising campaign is decorated with three metal sculptures resembling a Ghesquière floral print. Photos for the campaign were taken by Steven Meisel. Stewart is wearing a dress from a floral collection and holding her hands in the pockets. Even the dress and the pose are wrong in my eyes. Why try to make Florabotanica something it's not?

I'd recommend you stop to sniff next time you're shopping. Florabotanica is beautiful and has extraordinary longevity for a floral. I'm going to wear it to work today and see if it attracts any compliments.

Florabotanica Eau de Parfum is available in 30, 50, and 100 ml bottles, as well perfumed body care products – body lotion and shower gel. I purchased the largest bottle. I'm going to be wearing it often. You can find it at Balenciaga's Web site, Neiman Marcus, and Bergdorf Goodman this month. Availability will expand in October to Nordstrom, Saks Fifth Avenue, and Bloomingdale’s.

Photos by Balenciaga

Balenciaga Paris Eau De Parfum

Balenciaga Paris Eau de Parfum ($95 for 1.7 oz) is the brand's first fragrance in 12 years. It is described as a "demure violet with airy blossom and delicate peppery notes - a fragrance that is mysterious and fragile, yet leaves a lasting trail."

I find the scent familiar, pretty, and old fashioned. It reminds me of something from long ago. Maybe a fragrance someone wore while I was growing up? I was "gifted" with a bunch of samples, and I have been wearing the fragrance to work. It's a safe scent - it won't offend your coworkers or elevator mates. It's powdery and floral with green notes and a touch of woodiness. It's lovely - really - it's just not noteworthy. There is nothing about this new fragrance that shouts, "Wear me today instead of one of the others!" I'm not sure I would buy it, but I wouldn't turn it down. Does that sound crazy? It's comfortable, like a favorite sweater. I like it, but I don't love it.

I sprayed it on a colleague who is in her 20s. She thought it was "pretty," but she couldn't come up with another adjective to describe it - and she's a smart gal. She also turned down a second spray after the first wore off - about six hours later. It didn't move her. Her ho-hum reaction reinforced my impression that the fragrance has an old-fashioned air about it. That's not necessarily bad. After I wrote up my impressions, I read Gaia's review at The Non-Blonde and chuckled at her remark that Balenciaga Paris was "thoughtfully conceived and doesn't smell like another perfume for a focus group of 19 year-olds who never bought a perfume outside of a BBW body spray." I agree.

The new fragrance is Balenciaga's first under artistic director Nicolas Ghesquière, and it was developed by Olivier Polge. Ghesquière's muse, Charlotte Gainsbourg, is the "face" of Balenciaga. Now that's the crazy part! In the advertising photo above, she looks demure and sexy all at once - and very French. But the adjectives that come to mind when I think about her are "gritty," "edgy," and "confident." She doesn't match Balenciaga Paris. My problem - not hers.

The notes include bergamot, violet, carnation, cedar wood, vetiver, patchouli, moss, and labdanum. That doesn't tell its story. Go take a whiff when you are Neiman Marcus or Bergdorf Goodman. Let me know what you think!

Photo courtesy of Balenciaga