One of the most beautiful things I relate to the time prior holiday season are new holiday releases – they lift up the holiday spirits in a jiffy! I believe that there are perhaps a handful of things (if not even less than a handful) of which can compare to what L'Occitane whips up season after season. I haven't met a single person who would disagree with me and people generally think fondly of L'Occitane – no wonder as the brand has a soul and a heart a very few posses. Another thing that I think is absolutely wonderful is having the opportunity to meet and get to know new, exciting L'Occitane releases on a more personal, intimate level. It's a completely different experience when you're greeted by the loveliest ladies who hug you and offer you yummy cupcakes and rose based drinks! Add swirling ballerinas in the air, burst of pink and everything colorful along with the softest, most romantic of scents – you do get an idea how lovely such an event would be, right? But the art of French seduction doesn't simply stop with all the tangible (or edible!) pleasures – we get more emotional and sensual along the way. We all have a chance to meet a rather different approach to a holiday collection this year – sweet, gourmand notes are replaced by a more refined, elegant and feminine counterparts. We do have something very different on our hands, indeed. I believe that it's for the first time a L'Occitane fragrance is correlated to a specific figure – and a very mysterious, a tad abstract one while we're at it. A muse, an apparition, a unique silhouette – a mysterious woman from Arles, the recognised “second Rome of the south of France”, is the new fragrance line called simply L’Occitane en Provence Arlésienne.
Jedna od najljepsih stvari koje vezem za predpraznicni period su noviteti od meni omiljenih brendova – ne znam da li na vas jednako uticu ali sama pomisao na favorite mi automatski ‘podize’ raspolozenje! Vjerujem da postoji jos eventualno par stvari koje mogu nabrojati na prste jedne ruke (ako i toliko) koje se, barem za moj pojam, mogu mjeriti sa praznicnim edicijama koje nam L'Occitane priprema iz sezone u sezonu. Jos uvijek nisam naisla na osobu koja se nece sloziti sa konstatacijom da stvaraju carobno divne stvari te mislim da uopsteno medju ljudima vlada jedno vise nego pozitivno ozracje spram ovog meni dragog brenda. Nije ni cudo posto posjeduje srce i dusu koji su istinski raritet i kupci to ‘osjete’ kako preko osoblja, tako i putem proizvoda koje stvaraju. Jos nesto sto smatram jako lijepim je pruzena mogucnost da se upoznam poblize sa odredjenim novitetima na jedan intimniji nacin. Takav pristup kupcu pruza jedno potpuno drugacije iskustvo na koje dodajte sarmantne dame koje vas docekaju sa toplim zagrljajem i sirokim osmjehom dok vas obasipaju slasnim kolacicima i picem na bazi ruze – mislim da mozete zamisliti koliko senzornih uzitaka i lijepe atmosfere pokusavam da vam prenesem preko ekrana. No, umjetnost francuskog zavodjenja se ne zaustavlja na culnim ugadjanjima – atmosfera postepeno postaje emotivnija i senzualnija. Imamo priliku da izucimo jedan drugaciji pristup praznicnoj kolekciji ove godine – slatke, gurmanske note su zamijenjene prefinjenim, elegantnim i zenstvenim odabirom. I zaista, pripremljeno je nesto ipak drugacije u odnosu na ono sto bi ocekivali. Vjerujem da je po prvi put odredjeni L'Occitane miris izveden u direktnoj korelaciji sa konkretnom figurom. Radi se o dosta misterioznoj, pomalo apstraktnoj osobi. Muza, prividjenje, unikatna silueta – misteriozna zena iz Arlesa, mjesta poznatog i kao “drugi Rim, lociran na jugu Francuske”, cini bazu za novu kolekciju pod jednostavnim nazivom L’Occitane en Provence Arlésienne.
Arles is a discreet town that upholds the Place de la Major, narrow alleys that lead to the banks of the Rhône, and neighbourhoods of the La Roquette district. It is also a place with the most Roman monuments after Rome itself. And who is this Arlésienne muse, I hear you ask? The l'Arlésienne , of Provence is a muse of poets and painters – it's something more of an ideal rather than a specific person. If, however, you have the need to connect the scent to the figure than look no other than for the Venus of Arles – a Roman statue discovered in 1651 and everything it represents—the woman of Provence, the ideal of female beauty. That ideal is now embodied in the fragrance and mini-collection of L'Occitane. Arlésienne, such a singular woman with a strong personality rooted in the dry earth and stone of Provence is also the muse of artists such as Van Gogh, Picasso, Léo Lele, Mistral, Bizet, Christian Lacroix and many others. Christian Lacroix paid tribute to her as part of the eponymous exhibition at the Rencontres d’ Arles. Expo sponsored by the brand L'Occitane thus forges strong links with the local culture , photography and highlights its roots. I find that classic, feminine and elegant vibe extremely alluring. L'Occitane Arlésienne is a collection that consists of the Arlésienne EDT, beauty milk, shower cream, hand cream, fragrant soap, tinted lip balm, body oil, scented candle and of a retro packaged beautifying powder (shimmery glam!). I've attended a gorgeous presentation and I bring you some photos taken at the scene. You can tell I had a terrific time with all the L'Occitane ladies which are the most amazing hosts ever. They're so passionate about what they do and they are a fab representation when passion, work and love collide. Their excitement and creativity is contagious – so contagious that I've enrolled in a short & sweet workshop during which I've ornated my own Arles woman. How does this muse smell like? Think of a flowery scent dominated by rose, temperament saffron with notes of mandarin, violet and tonka bean on top of a sensual woody base . I'll be reviewing some of these stunning smelling goodies so keep an eye on future MB posts!
Arles je diskretan mali gradic u kojem se nalazi Place de la Major, uske ulicice koje vode do do obala rijeke Rone te interesantne cetvrti La Roquette distrikta. Takodjer je mjesto gdje se nalazi najvise starorimskih spomenika – odmah poslije samog Rima. A cujem vas kako pitate, tko je ta arlezijanka o kojoj stalno citamo? Ona je muza brojnim pjesnicima i slikarima – vise se mozda radi o idealu nego o odredjenoj osobi. Ipak, ukoliko insistirate na povezivanju tog ideala za konkretnu figuru, upucujem vas na Veneru Arlesa – rimsku statuu, otkrivenu 1651. godine. Ona predstavlja provansalsku zenu, ideal zenske ljepote. Taj isti ideal je uhvacen u mirisu i mini popratnoj kolekciji. Zena iz Arlesa je dosta specificna, snaznog je karaktera koji je ustolicen u suhom drvetu i kamenu Provanse. Ona je bila muza umjetnika poput Van Gogha, Picassa, Léo Lele-a, Mistrala, Bizeta, Christian Lacroix-a i mnogih drugih. Upravo je Christian Lacroix napravio arlezijanki posvetu u vidu izlozbe u Rencontres d'Arles-u. Izlozbu je finansirao nas L'Occitane i time dodatno osnazio vezu izmedju lokalne kulture, fotografije i samog porijekla. Mislim da klasika, zenstvenost i elegancija kojima odise kolekcija L'Occitane Arlesienne, cini istu dosta primamljivom. Kolekcija se sastoji od Arlesienne Eau de Toilette, mlijeka za tijelo, kremaste tusiralice. mirisnog sapuna, balzama za usne u boji, ulja za tijelo, mirisne svijece i pudera za uljepsavanje koji je upakovan u retro bocicu i rasprsivac (ostavlja glamurozan shimmerasti trag!). Prisustvovala sam prekrasnoj prezentaciji i pokusati cu prenijeti barem djelic atmosfere putem fotografija koje sam zabiljezila. Mislim i nadam se da mozete vidjeti koliko mi je lijepo i zabavno bilo sa L'Occitane damama koje su divne domacice ovog druzenja. Toliko su strastvene da mi naprosto utjelovljuju momenat kada se spoje ljubav, strast i posao u jednom. Njihova kreativnost i entuzijazam su toliko ‘zarazni’ da sam sa radoscu ucestvovala u maloj radionici tokom koje sam kreirala i ukrasila vlastitu zenu iz Arlesa. A kako mirise takva jedna dama? Zamislite cvijetni miris sa dominantnom ruzom, temperamentnim safranom uz note mandarine, ljubicice i tonke povrh senzualne, drvenaste baze. Uskoro cu recenzirati neke od divnih proizvoda koji sacinjavaju ovu kolekciju i ako ste zainteresovane, drzite MB na oku narednih par dana.
