STYLE Edit: Luxury French parfumerie Henry Jacques releases Les Toupies – new his and hers fragrances bottled in handcrafted crystal spinning tops
Each pair consists of a male and female fragrance designed to complement each other, in subtly different-sized bottles, with the enigmatic names of Mr H and Mrs Y, No 16 and No 81, Fanfan and Galileo
In the highly competitive world of fragrance, perfumeries have to do a lot to stand out from the crowd. Consumers these days are savvy, well educated and have nuanced sensory palates that change seasonally.
In addition, a successful fragrance has as much to do with what is outside, as is inside. A beautiful perfume bottle can create a moment for the wearer; a quiet moment in their day when they pause to participate in an elegant ritual of scent and movement.
Henry Jacques – the luxurious, historied French parfumerie lauded by the famous and elite for decades – has sought to create this complete sensory experience with each of its fragrances, recently introducing a new collection to add to their Masterpieces: Les Toupies, “The Spinning Tops”.
Three years in the making, the series includes three sets of complementary scents, matched to reflect different views of the fragrance’s story, presented in handcrafted crystal. The “spinning tops” concept embodies the spirit of the series, referencing the phases of life, of memories and moments which brought us joy revisited over a lifetime.
Christophe Tollemer, Henry Jacques’ artistic director, oversaw every element of the creation and development of Les Toupies. The challenge went beyond developing the fragrances – to create multifaceted crystal flacons evocative of a childhood toy, suited to and worthy of the fragrances they would hold.
First Couple: Les Toupies I
The first set reflects two signature perfumes in the maison’s collection, Mr H and Mrs Y. These fragrances are awash in the series’ symbolism: a love story coupling feminine and masculine energy with easy elegance and class.
The notes on the pair, “one more assertive, the other more delicate”, emphasise the natural ingredients for which the parfumerie is known. Mr H carries hints of cedar leaf, geranium, sandalwood, tobacco, amber and patchouli, while Mrs Y plays on ylang ylang, rose damascena, jasmine, iris, wild lily of the valley and tonka bean. The otherwise identical bottles slightly differ in size to evoke the balance/imbalance that exists in love and life.