Felicia and I have very similar communication methods. Sometimes it is Twitter, texting, or a good old fashion land line (a phone line that comes out of the wall if I'm dating myself). One thing that we have in common is our mutual love of Badgley Mishka Couture. This is how are conversation regarding Couture went down.
JPC: Felicia, don't you just love the Badgley Mishka Couture?
FCS: I usually hate fragrances. Seriously hate most fragrances.
JPC: But you didn't answer my question?
FCS: I love it.
JPC: Come again?
FCS: I love it (I note the slight lowering of the voice at this point). I made several of my friends smell my wrists and they liked it as well. I was pleasantly surprised.
JPC: Do you trust my fragrance opinion now?
FCS: Yes, but there's a first time for everything.
JPC: You win, now it's your job to write the review.
Introducing Badgley Mischka Couture
By Felicia C. Sullivan
When handmade couture gowns crafted in airless Parisian ateliers cost upwards of a hundred thousand, accessories – sunglasses, handbags, wallets, scarves and fragrances –are the consumer’s entrée to this privileged, elite world. Now, the cost-conscious customer can feel, albeit slightly, that magical feeling of slipping into a couture creation when she carries a wallet donning the luxury brand’s logo or dabs perfume from a crystal bottle on her wrists. Ever notice how accessories are always merchandised at front of store? Accessories or ‘accessible luxuries’ are providing a necessary lifeline to a brand’s bottom line during these bleak economic times while also allowing women their minor indulgences. Because when your closet reality is more Target than Vuitton, yet you’re lucky enough to have a few extra dollars squirreled away, perhaps you can envelope yourself in luxury and incorporate a touch of glamour into your life for a fraction of a red-carpet gown’s cost.
Twenty years ago, with a rack of black dresses (and one red), Parsons graduates and designers for some of the world’s prestigious brands, Mark Badgley and James Mischka decided to launch their own eponymous line. Together, they’ve built a heritage of designing exquisite and luxurious gowns as well as dressing some of the world’s most beautiful and fashionable women such as, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Eva Longoria-Parker, Kate Winslet, Jennifer Lopez, Anne Hathaway, and Sarah Jessica Parker. Their glamorous history and heralded collections inspired the team’s newest fragrance, Badgley Mischka Couture. The designers worked with renowned perfumer Caroline Sabas of Givaudan Fragrances to craft the delicious fragrance. On the new perfume, Sabas notes that it is a “journey of intricacies – it is exclusively designed for the sophisticated woman looking for a couture fragrance experience.” And it is indeed luxurious.
At present, I’m married to two perfumes: Marc Jacob’s Daisy and Mistral’s Verbana Flower. Like most women, I’m very particular about my fragrance, as I don’t want to overwhelm (translation: send people fleeing, sleeves covering their face) when I walk into a room, but I’m drawn to scents that are subtle, sensual and evocative. Coupled with my fondness for botanicals, I was instantly smitten when I sampled Badgley Mischka Couture. A floriental woody scent, the perfume is a delicate mix of plums, blackberries, and pears juxtaposed with jasmine, gardenia, violets, and musks. The end result is a fresh, feminine fragrance that is appropriate enough for day and can certainly spice up for cocktails and evening flirtations. You won’t need to deploy gas masks and you won’t send people running for cover. And the packaging is equally luxe. A new interpretation of the iconic Badgley Mischka fragrance bottle, which was inspired by the designers’ affection for fine crystal, this new iteration is accessorized with metallic gold on each panel and with openings at each corner to let the fragrance shine through. Housed in a rich espresso carton embellished in gold, this perfume ($65 for a 1.7oz eau de parfum spray) is the ultimate luxury indulgence for the wallet-watching fashionista.
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