Scents of a Cookie-Eating, Sun-Protected Woman
In Southern California, sunscreen products rank in importance with sunglasses and air-conditioning. Despite many attempts, the perfect sunscreen has yet to be made. (They’re all stinky or sticky.) But some companies are moving in the right direction. Ferragamo’s new summer scent collection includes a perfumed body mist with an SPF of 6.
What may be the world’s first scent with a sunscreen presents some intriguing options. You could mist your entire body with it to achieve sun protection and, potentially, an olfactory barrier to potential personal space invaders. Or you could protect your wrists, behind your ears and knees (the best perfume-dousing spots) from sunburn. It’s also alcohol-free, which its maker says makes the scent less volatile when your body heats up. (Did you know that alcohol can make scents change in combo with heat and sweat?)
The $43 bottle is part of a collection that includes a shower gel that foams up in the manner of a shaving cream, and an after-sun gel--sans SPF. They’re available at Macy’s, Bloomingdale’s and other major department stores.
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If all you want your perfume to do is smell good, and perhaps come in a pretty bottle, two new offerings have arrived from very different sources. Los Angeles designer Monah Li has made a fragrance to capture the scents of childhood: chocolate cookies, ripe summer fruit and a heady incense (she was a Bohemian kid back in Vienna).
Just to amplify the associations with home, her mother has hand-painted each bottle, a truncated triangle sunk with a mini test-tube of essential oil. It’s $110 at her Los Feliz boutique at 1756 N. Vermont Ave.
Across the pond, London’s 128-year-old Crown Perfumery Co. is bottling its history. In 1983, the original formulas were uncovered and the company began re-creating scents inspired by or created for King Edward VII, Greta Garbo, Charlie Chaplin and Lawrence of Arabia. Now they’re available in Los Angeles at Fred Segal Apothia or at the Sephora Web site (https://www.sephora.com.). Scents, for men and women, range from $55 to $95.
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Just when you get your look down, either the cosmetics companies or the fashion designers conspire to make your soft brown lipstick look totally out of sync with your bright orange capri pants.
What’s a dedicated fashionologist to do?
Check out Nordstrom’s cosmetics trend show at 8:30 a.m. Saturday at its Topanga Plaza store. The fashion and beauty directors have set up the one-day showcase of three coordinated cosmetic and fashion trends--and you get breakfast, a fashion show and a goody bag.
To make a reservation, call (818) 884-7900 and ask for information on the cosmetic trend show.
Valli Herman-Cohen can be reached at valli.herman-cohen@latimes.com.
