It doesn't happen very often but sometimes I find myself unable to connect emotionally with a brand. Not because I dislike the house or the fragrances it offers, but it just doesn't push any of my buttons, good or bad. I usually forget what perfume I'm trying even before it hits the dry-down. That's more or less my relationship with Juliette Has A Gun, even though I've been testing their fragrances since they first appeared on the market somewhere around 2007. They're nice. They're OK. They smell good. But there's a wide gap that I could never cross between their marketing and positioning as an exclusive indie brand and the stuff that actually comes out from their bottle. I was never quite sure why, until I read this observation by Persolaise:
"...the brand [Juliette Has A Gun] tries to project niche coolness whilst making itself attractive to younger, more mainstream buyers… the very people, in fact, who are all too frequently cajoled into spending money on timid, celebrity soups."Oh.
They're posers.
This is exactly my problem with Juliette Has A Gun's Romantina. I wear it and I smell Bloomingdale's. Not that it's a bad thing: my local Bloomie's is in a very upscale mall and it offers the top tier of designer and prestige brands. But it's also not exactly original or edgy. It's also redundant. Romantina is something we've already smelled in many variations. It's a white floral over a soft musk base, tastefully sweet and just sexy enough. The composition of rose, jasmine and lily-of-the-valley is very French and romantic. I take a whiff and know exactly what's coming: a little cream, a little powder, a cinched waist and some rose for good measures. Romantina is a great first date fragrance. It exudes femininity but is also somewhat of a cliche about being in love with being in love.
The somewhat artificial facade is even more pronounced when the fluffy musk takes over. It's disarming and safe like Jennifer Aniston's highlights and Reese Witherspoon's wardrobe; and we've smelled it a thousand times before.
Notes: white flowers, orange blossom, jasmine, lily of the valley, rose, iris, osmanthus, patchouli, musk, vetiver and vanilla.
Juliette Has A Gun- Romantina ($85, 50ml) is available from MiN NY, Luckyscent, Parfum1.com, BeautyHabit and Henri Bendel.
Image: Roman Holiday by BelenHepburn on Flickr.
Never heard of 'em. And their name says that they are trying too hard.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoy (and own) JHAG's Lady Vengeance (a dark rose with chypre thorns) and Calamity J. (boozy patchouli). However, their most recent offerings have left me quite cold and I'm sensing that a good beginning is now derailing into pseudo-niche pompousness.
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