Beauty: Variations on a theme

Photo / Babiche Martens

It's easy to feel awash in fragrance if you try to keep up with the seemingly endless new releases out there. If I had a dollar for every fragrance that has crossed my desk described as a fruity floral with woody undertones and a hint of vanilla, I'd be able to buy more than one or two bottles of something more distinctive - if I could find it.

Up for a challenge, I've sampled a lot of the latest offerings and found a few surprises, but also plenty of so-so scents.

Many of the big marketing campaigns (in full swing at this time of the year) are based around keeping strong sellers fresh with new formulas, such as lighter, summer editions. Other attempts to inject excitement into the tried and true are based around packaging, bonus offers and limited edition bottles.

But sometimes little more than the name is recycled, as typified by two new releases, Rose The One and Hypnose Senses, which have satisfyingly veered far from their original namesakes.

This means it's hard to keep tabs on what's going on out there.

Here's a helping hand, but with perfume being such an intensely personal preference, the only way to find your signature scent is to spray away.

1 Giorgio Armani Idole d'Armani 50ml eau de parfum $145

This opulent yet sophisticated new floral comes in an elegant bottle. It's intriguing, with spicy underpinnings amid the orange, pear, rose, jasmine and saffron and a base of patchouli and vetiver. Settles softly and has lasting appeal.

2 Chloe Eau de Parfum Intense, 30ml $175

This version of Chloe is still rose-rich, but rounded with sandalwood and tonka bean, giving an oriental hint to a floral which I find a little light in the eau de toilette. A deep grey hand-tied ribbon on the handsome bottle, marks the steps in intensity compared with the the petal and ivory shades used on the edt and edp.

3 Yves St Laurent Parisienne 50ml eau de parfum $135

Kate Moss, the ultimate London girl, is the delicately made-up face of Parisienne: "She knows how to love, how to live. This is why Paris adopts her." There's a youthful sweetness in this scent, which introduces a little violet to the predominant rose notes. Starts off sparkling, but has a musky end, like a night on the tiles in gay Paris.

4 Dolce & Gabbana Rose The One 50ml eau de parfum $141

The third scent in The One family, and to my nose the best. This is softer than the unabashed original and the fresh L'Eau. Rose, both peony and Bulgarian, is naturally at the heart of the fragrance, with citrus and cassis top notes and a hint of vanilla amid the lingering amber and musk. Scarlett Johansson fronts the campaign.

5 DKNY Be Delicious Art 50ml Limited Edition $125

This apple-inspired eau de toilette, comes with a Pop Art tote bag. See the website www.dknyfragrances.com for the Be Delicious Art Comic strip. (Exclusive to Farmers).

6 Lancome Hypnose Senses 50ml eau de toilette $125

Unusually for a namesake this is quite unlike the original more floriental Hypnose from 2005 and is likely to appeal to different women. Sensual and grownup, this hails from the floral chypre fragrance family, with patchouli, osmanthus and rose and notes of pink peppercorns, honey and mandarin.

7 Jo Malone Vanilla and Anise Cologne 100ml $195

The vanilla in this is nicely cut with anise, so it doesn't cloy or overwhelm, meaning if you automatically avoid strongly vanilla aromas you may want to try this as it's floral and warm, with a hint of clove, inspired by the floral valleys of Madagascar. Also available in a 30ml bottle. (Jo Malone exclusive to Jo Malone, Chancery, or Ph JOMSHOP www.jomalone.co.nz)

8 Stella Nude 125ml Linen Scented Mist $125

For perfuming lingerie and linen with the delicate floral scent new to the Stella family. (Also available as an eau de toilette). The Nude is warmer than the soft original Stella.

9 Cacharel Scarlett 50ml eau de toilette $90

Evocative women's names are what Cacharel's most noted scents are based on, think Anais Anais and Loulou. With Scarlett we're talking more an updated fiery feminine creature a la Gone with the Wind than the star of Lost in Translation. The oriental-flower carvings on the bottle cap are striking, but the white-floral scent is less distinctive, though pretty with a soft finish.

10 Daisy Marc Jacobs Silver Edition $165

The silver bottle takes inspiration from metallic runway trends. This limited edition of the cheerful floral scent comes as a 100ml eau de parfum.

11 Forever Mariah Carey 30ml eau de toilette $75

The bottle design is my favourite part of this heady floral extravaganza, also in a body lotion. On sale from November 11.

12 Jean Paul Gaultier MaDame Rose n Roll 75ml Edition $157

First birthday release of this unusual eau de toilette mix of citrus, rose, grenadine, musk and cedar in a punked-up bottle. (See www.ma-dame.com for a video clip of Martin Solveig's collaboration)

13 Britney Spears Circus Fantasy 30ml $65

Claims to be new, but does rather take up where Fantasy left off, which is no bad thing, for that is one of the better "name" scents. Add layers of candy and the packaging exploits the celebrity circus theme which Britney Spears based her world tour on. (Exclusive to Farmers from November 13).

14 Oscar Summer 100ml eau de toilette $109

Said to recall the classic eau de toilette released by Oscar De La Renta back in 1977, but in an airier, lighter interpretation. Comes with the usual modern fruity accompaniments.

15 Jean Paul Gaultier Classique Love Me Tender $136

A bonus solid perfume accompanies this 50ml eau de toilette version of Classique.

Stockists: Selected pharmacies and department stores, unless otherwise stated.

Yet more choice

D&G Fragrance Anthology $123 per bottle
Not one, not two ... but five separate fragrances in a wardrobe of scents designed for a sense of self that Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana describe as existing in a beguiling state of flux. Luckily if you know who you are, you can buy what appeals individually. If not, there's the provocative you, the irrepressible you, the sensual, the daring and the hypnotising, with each scent fronted by a different model to help personify it. The cast is stellar and Mario Testino has shot the advertising campaign which features Claudia Schiffer, Eva Herzigova, Naomi Campbell, Noah Mills and Tyson Ballou.

Life Threads by La Prairie $245 each
Multi-choice options from Life Threads, in gold, silver or platinum scents, each different and designed to emphasise the ties that intertwine us like the subtle pull of fragrance on memory. The bottles are beautiful and the scents sophisticated as you'd expect from a prestige brand. (Expected at La Prairie counters this month.)