So there’s celebrity scents, and then there’s Elizabeth and James. Just like there’s cool girls, and then there’s Mary-Kate and Ashley. They’re notoriously private, yet you certainly don’t need me to tell you their surname. The former child stars have every excuse in the book for becoming Hollywood train wrecks, but instead The Olsens have a reputation for being incredibly hard working and strategic businesswomen (although they say they work intuitively). Their style is instantly recognizable despite eschewing a social media presence, and they’re more comfortable behind the camera, apparently, than in front of it. And despite their garments for The Row and diffusion line Elizabeth and James boasting impeccable structure and tailoring, they don’t sketch or sew, they ”drape”.
It’s all very contradictory (or complimentary), each facet facing off against another. And so it’s no surprise that when the twins launched the Elizabeth and James Nirvana perfume line, they presented a duo of scents: Black and White, one a pretty floral and one a dark, sweet, woody concoction. And although the name Nirvana, refers to a subjective and emotive idea of seductive memories, evoking happiness, there is a very clear, defined structure to the range– always a pair of releases at a time, each with three evocative notes that play off each other. So next came came Bourban and Rose, and most recently, French Grey and Amethyst. Amethyst is an earthy, sweet, spicy blend of honeysuckle, cedar and a tobacco note redolent of hazy lazy summer festival frolicking, it feels lived-in but luxurious and incredibly cool.