StellaNude

StellaNude, the new scent from Stella McCartney, arrived in the shops this weekend. The name controversy asideI am long time admirer of Stella's original eponymous scent so I have been looking forward to trying this- which doesn't mean I don't sympathise with the naming issue- but I want to stay away from it here.

So. I think the original Stella will probably become a classic scent in years to come- either that or it will come to smell very much of it's time.

I quite admire that Stella McCartney hasn't rushed to bring out another scent and like Narciso Rodgriguez she has allowed her one very good scent to stand alone- albeit with yearly summer special editions and Stella In Two which is a kind of breaking down of the original smell.

I had thought StellaNude would be a truly new scent but having smelt it and then done a little more research I realise it is in the same Stella family. StellaNude to me is basically Stella with grapefruit. Initially in the top notes the grapefruit is very dominant but the amber, rose and peony that are so familiar from Stella are still there- as is a milky note that I couldn't pin down.

In the dry down StellaNude is much closer to the original Stella scent but the grapefruit continues to be present. In the dry down the grapefruit does add a complexity to the perfume and perhaps cutting some of the rose makes this a more universally appealing scent- because rose is quite a love or hate scent. Given how popular Stella is I'm not sure they need to make a more accessible version of it so I suspect the grapefruit is there for difference, freshness and possibly to appeal to younger buyers.

I think it's interesting that the StellaNude bottle is the same as the original scents' flagon. I suppose this may be to reinforce the fact the perfumes share a signature smell, or it may be that they have decided to have uniform bottles for the line- except the Stella in Two scents. I have always thought the Stella bottle to be very pleasing and I think the blush, skin colour of the nude bottle is as covetable as the purple we know so well.

StellaNude is certainly one of the nicest of the mainstream releases I have tried recently- but to be fair perhaps that is because it is so like the tried and trusted original. Still I can see that a bottle of the linen spray might find it's way home with me- and that a whole bottle might follow at some time.

Picture courtesy of Escentual