Pandemonium. Apparently it swirls around Erwin Creed when he visits department stores. I walked into Neiman Marcus Tysons Galleria toward the end of his two-hour visit this afternoon, and the crowd of customers waiting to get his signature on their CREED purchases was impressive.
After spending a few minutes observing the polite chaos, I understood the enthusiasm for Erwin. First, he is absolutely charming. Young, talented, and enthusiastic, he is the perfect ambassador for his family and the company.
Second, he was signing very special bottles: the new
Fleurs de Gardenia, along with a special offering for clients: new, unique 8.4 ounce hand-blown
glass decanters hand-painted with their choice of gold (or
gold-and-silver) accents and engraved with their initials. Inside is their choice of CREED’s Royal Exclusive fragrances: Spice and Wood,
Jardin D’Amalfi (as beautiful as it gets),
White Flowers (I am smitten),
Pure White Cologne (adored at my house), or
Sublime Vanille (which I must purchase sometime). Had I not already purchased more than half of these, I would have pre-ordered one. The bottles were gorgeous. I tried to purchase one of those glam gold atomizers, but they were sold out. Wendy will find me one - or I can look online at the CREED Boutique.
In case you haven't tried Fleurs de Gardenia yet, it's a floral blend in which no single flower is dominant - not
gardenia, not roses, not peonies. It's soft and beautiful - and unique.
That's a good thing. A lot of people find gardenia-heavy scents too
sweet or too indolic. Not this one. The top notes are pink berries; fresh, ripe blackcurrant; and engaging
galbanum. The middle notes are First Love gardenias, Double Blush roses,
lavender peonies, lily of the valley, and pink jasmine. The base notes
are soft musk, pink patchouli (no, I cannot smell it at all), and
Virginia Cedar.
The photo at the top of this feature shows Erwin standing between Thomas Saujet, President of CREED North America, and Francesca Camacho, CREED representative at Neiman Marcus. Heaven only knows who Francesca was acknowledging as she pointed. There were so many people waiting to get Erwin's signature, and I was begging forgiveness as I tried to get a few "action" photos without stepping on anyone.
The photo directly above, taken with flash, shows the beautiful Wendy Grigelis (also a CREED representative at Neiman Marcus) standing between Erwin and Thomas. It's so cute that Erwin appears to be surprised by all the attention. I'm sure he understands the popularity of the family's fragrances, but these store events ought to erase any doubts - should they ever cross his mind.
The last photo on my camera disk, taken right before my battery died for the day, shows me with the CREED team. I had slipped into my house on the way from work to Neiman Marcus, taken out my contacts, and replaced them with my granny sunglasses. Had I planned the moment when time stopped for these wonderful men to take time out for me, I would have removed the glasses. From left to right, my photo shows Thomas Saujet, Senior Vice President Dale Lewis, me, and Erwin Creed (once again looking camera-shy, don't you think?).
I would love to have had time to interview Erwin. It wasn't going to happen. The store was crowded with adoring CREED customers, new fans who were making their first CREED purchases, and store employees watching the event. The team's time of departure was near. They were headed in two directions as they left: Erwin and Thomas were flying to Las Vegas, and Dale was meeting up in Los Angeles with Roberto Ferreira, National CREED Educator and Curator of the CREED Collection, another member of the CREED team, who is a fabulous ambassador.
That was my late afternoon. I'm starstruck.
Photo of the Royal Exclusive courtesy of CREED; other photos by Best Things in Beauty, with an assist by Wendy
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