Sandra‘s Closet

Lorenzo Villoresi

As you might already know, I love perfume, especially extraordinary fragrances.
In the beginning of September, I was very lucky to visit one of the most outstanding perfumers worldwide in his studio overlooking the rooftops of Florence: Lorenzo Villoresi.

Me in Mr Villoresi's office

This view is truly inspiring, as well as his laboratory is where you are only guided by your senses. „I wanted to realize a dream. Spices and essences have always fascinated me. Perfumery became my passion and later on my profession“.

In the atelier in front of Villoresi's library of scents with over 2000 essences.

His talent is not the fruit of specialised schools or master perfumers, but one which developed gradually thanks to his university studies in Biblical Philology and Ancient Philosophy, which in turn led him to travel extensively in the Middle East.

The experiences he gained there combined with the natural products  of his native Tuscany make his creations so special.

In 1990, he fulfilled his vision and founded his Maison of Perfume in an ancient palace in Via dei Bardi in Florence where he focuses on the great traditions of Florentine perfumery and the original methods which have been used in this craft for many years.

In 2006, he won as the first Italian and independent creator of fragrances, the prestigious Prix Coty, which can only be awarded once in a perfumer’s lifetime.

Donna and Uomo were the names given to Lorenzo Villoresi’s first collection, after which he focused on the creation of monothematic fragrances which included his own personal interpretations of classic themes such as Musk, Sandalwood, Patchouli, Incenses, Spices, Vetiver and Wild Lavender.  Those classic fragrances come in the blue bottles.

The green packaging stands for the Olea Europaea collection that is based on olive-oil offering products for the body, bath and hair.

His so-called fantasy fragrances currently draw inspiration from actual „olfactory visions“ which conjure up exotic and mystical worlds, moods and settings, including among others:

the suggestive Piper Nigrum (fresh, aromatic, spicy and peppery with reminiscences of oriental and arab markets),

the warm Alamut (rich, opulent and velvety flowers of a Thousand and One Nights, a sensual journey to the Orient),

and my absolut favourite, the sophisticated Teint de Neige, „the colour of snow“.

My Teint de Neige collection

Teint de Neige consists of  powdery and sweet notes of jasmine, rose, ylang-ylang on a base of musk, Tonka beans and heliotrope. The  aroma is delicately permeated by the richness of the natural extracts of precious flowers, recalling the light, images and atmosphere of the belle-époque.

A whole range of products is available from shower gel to body cream, from scented candles to room fragrances featuring this wonderful scent.

Getting to know Villoresi during the process of creating your personalised fragrance.

If you have always dreamt of having your own custom-made fragrance, Lorenzo Villoresi’ s atelier would be the place to go. During your appointment, you are spending 2-3 hours approximately with the artist himself. Your „tailor-made“ fragrance is then the result of a direct exchange between you and him; desires, words and feelings are processed together and transformed into a perfume.
Villoresi becomes a sort of Demiurge who, through his intellectual capacity and technical skills, can translate the essence of an ambition, dream or adventure into a fragrant product.

At the end of your appointment the personalised fragrance will be consigned to you. The price starts from €3600.-.
You have different options to choose from. One could be for example that you get the following:

1 Perfume 30ml in a crystal bottel with sterling silver top and label
1 Perfume 30ml in a glass bottle
1 blown glass funnel
1 velvet pouch
1 Exclusive fragrance certificate
1 Eau de Toilette 100ml in an extra bottle, with silver plated top and label
1 Eau de Toilette 100ml in  a glass bottle

Villoresi describes his Haute Couture of the Senses like this: „ A perfume should provide a privileged insight into your own personal essence, a clue to your innermost thoughts and journeys of the soul; a door which can either be kept locked or left wide open, leading to opportunities, games and seduction.“
The genius could probably use a perfume rather than words to describe how he feels and also mentiones: „Perfumery is an unlimited world. In the creation of a scent it is possible to recall a feeling or a place, to move to an imaginary space or to invent new emotional dimensions“.

Lorenzo Villoresi also offers a wide range of wonderful home products from pot pourris and scented sachets to jars and dishes to exalt the beauty of your chosen fragranced leaves and woods. Scented candles are also available along with aromitizers and room fragrances with reed diffusers (launched last month).

Two new creations were introduced last year: the incense and perfumed crystals. Conceived from a deep knowledge and love for the Orient, they have been created for perfuming living spaces in a sophisticated way.

Interesting to know is that the term “perfume” comes from Per-Fumum: through smoke, referring to the sacred fumigations to offer thanks to the gods. The incense has always been linked to the world of perfume and can create a magical atmosphere in any room.

The maestro is recently in the process of building the Academy of the Art of Perfume, the world’s first interactive atelier, dedicated to essences and perfumes.

In the ancient family Palace in Via dei Bardi, Villoresi realizes his long-life dream: a centre, split on three floors with an internal garden, aromatic terraces and botanical trails, divided according different themes and study areas, where visitors can discover and delve into the ancient secrets of the art of perfumery and spice hunting.

The “wunderkammer” is said to open next year. I cannot wait to go there on a journey to stimulate my inner senses and to indulge in one of my biggest passions: perfumes!

If you are interested, Lorenzo Villoresi products are available through his online shop and in Zurich at Perfumery Osswald.

LoL, Sandra

Photos: Courtesy of Lorenzo Villoresi and © Sandra Bauknecht

I have a lovely subscriber who recently asked me about my favourite make-up look. I have to admit that I change my look every day. That is for me the most fun about fashion, being able to try out something new each morning. If I had to live with one single look, it would definitely be smokey eyes and pale lips.

Please find herewith my personal list and description how to achieve this style:

1 a good concealer: Christian Dior’s Skinflash (I use it also as a eyeshadow base)

2 a moisturizing foundation: Christian Dior’s Diorskin Nude make-up (great for dry skin), I use N° 020 or 030 depending on my tan

3 a complexion enhancer: Benefit’s High Beam (I like to use it over the foundation)

4 cream blush for contouring: Nars Lamu and Orgasm

5 brow lifting: Benefit’s High Brow

6 a brow powder to fill in the gaps: Anastasia in Ash Blonde/ Taupe

7 a brow gel to fix them: Anastasia in Clear

8 a gorgeous eye shadow palette with easy-to-follow step by step instructions: Too Faced’s Smokey Eye (I love blue shades)

9 for glitter: Mac’s Pigment Colour Powders in Frozen White, Cornflower and Dark Soul (they are not easy to handle, so please try them first, but they last forever)

10 a good eyeliner: Bobbi Brown’ s Gel Eyeliner in Granite Ink

11 best eyepencil in the world: Prescriptives, Softlining Pencil in Jet

12 a good mascara (this is very personal): YSL’s Mascara Singulier in Black

13 this blush suits everybody: Helena Rubinstein’s Wanted Blush in Glowing Peach

14 for deeper colour: Burberry’s Natural Blush in Russet N°1

15 best face glow: Bobbi Brown’s Shimmer Brick Compact in Nude

16 one of my favourite lipsticks: Mac’s Sandy B. combined with C-Thru lipgloss

17 for more sparkles: Chanel’s lip definer in Natural and Glossimer N°257

18 camouflage for emergencies: Benefit’s Erase Paste

19 to refresh your look during the day or for a more natural foundation, the new Christian Dior Diorskin Nude Natural Glow Creme-Gel Make-up (amazing product! -available from October 29th, 2010)

20 a good powder: Mac’s Mineralize Skinfinish Natural in LightMedium

21 best brushes: Bobbi Brown

22 please never forget to clean your brushes on a regular basis: I love Bobbi Brown’s Brush Cleaning Spray

Let’s get started: Happy Colouring!

LoL, Sandra

Today, I would like to give you a sneak preview of the make-up holiday 2010 season. The collections always include limited special editions and hit the stores from the end of October until end of November. Herewith you will find my pre-selection of the soon-to-arrive must-haves. The overall trend is lots of gold and silver sparkles. Glitter against the Christmas Tree is the motto! Deep browns and burgundy reds combined with popping fuchsia let you shine during cold gray winter days.

Chanel’s new limited nail polish is so-called Pulsion, a beautiful bright fuchsia shade. Get yourselves on the wait lists now! The matching lip gloss in Pink Pulsion is also a must. The divine blush duo with tweed effect (Les Tissages de Chanel) in Tweed Fuchsia will give you those young rosy cheeks everybody loves.

Les 4 ombres in Tentation Cuivre is an eyeshadow set including copper brown, light beige, shimmering pink and plum copper that will work for every skin type.

Les Ors de Guerlain is a feast for the eyes! The gold theme that features the famous Guerlain bee, will introduce a silky loose powder creating a light-reflecting veil with a subtle golden iridescent finish, in a gold copper shade (Or Imperial Sublime Radiant Powder Face & Body).
The It-lip colour will be a subtle shiny, violet shade: Rouge G Le Brilliant in B64 Bee.

My favourites are the 4 eyeshadows in 410 Velours d’Or, including two shades of violet along with gold and an intense black liner, embossed with a honeycomb Arabesque pattern taken from past imperial Guerlain bottles.

YSL has created a decadent collection for the holiday season, bursting with the beloved cocktail hour shade gold in combination with pink, chocolat and red. Get your hands on the limited Palette Metallic Colorama, a pink-gold face highlighting powder.

If you are more on the wild side and are looking for some crazy colour combinations, Mac will offer you a lot of choices with their Tartan Tale collection. So stunning! I am completely in love with the packaging and how the pattern is for example imprinted into the eyeshadow.
Best Shade: Semi-precious – an aubergine with chocolat Tartan striping.

I am always a big fan of the Dazzleglass Creme colours– lipglosses with a lot of glitter.
Best colour: Lightly Prancing – a light peach with gold pearl.

Nars is this holiday season all about shimmering nail colours, lustrous lipsticks and glistening glosses with gold, rich berry reds and purples leading the way. The limited eyeshadow trio in Okinawa ( silver, deep cobalt blue and black onyx trio) is a must along with the single eyeshadow in Etrusque, an antique gold.
The two nail colours Bad Influence ( a smoky taupe) and Pokerface ( a lilac) are also on top of my list.

Christian Dior Evening Gold

But I saved the best until last: Christian Dior’s Evening Gold collection offers some fabulous products. The perfect gifts for your fashionista girlfriends or the best treats for yourselves:

The Dior Minaudière is the star product for Holiday 2010. The It-accessoire was inspired by the little cosmetic pouches the ladies were carrying at the beginning of the 20th century – the forerunners of the clutches that we know today. It includes 3 eyeshadows and 2 lipglosses that are covered with a gold plated flap to protect them (love that!) and comes in two different colour combinations: 001 Grey Golds and 002 Pink Golds for CHF 120.- each.

992 Noir Lamé

Also divine is the new Dior Addict Ultra-Gloss in 992 Noir Lamé – for your sexy winter moments!

LoL, Sandra

Minaudière 001 Grey Golds

Minaudière 002 Pink Golds

I love the colour combination of ink blue and teal with grey. Those shades just belong together. The outfit above proves my theory perfectly:
The gorgeous grey dress by 3.1 Phillip Lim (€305.-) and ink-blue belted long-length blazer by Elizabeth & James (€430.-) look stunning combined with teal accessories like the velvet ankle boots by Maison Martin Margiela (£455.-) and the cross-body bag by See by Chloé (€305.-).
For daily glamour add a statement necklace like the crystal-embellished one by 3.1. Phillip Lim (€590.-) and a cool leather bracelet by Chan Luu (€175.-).

Indigo eyeshadow by Givenchy (one of my favourites) and the OPI “Ski teal we drop” nail polish will top off your outfit amazingly!

Feeling blue can be fun!

LoL, Sandra

As Chanel is always a big trendsetter for make-up looks, I was eager to have a closer view at what is coming next for S/S 2011.

Since 1994 (the launch of Rouge Noir), Chanel has consistently turned out must-have nail polishes. So what is it going to be next spring?
Et voilà, question answered: It will be all black and white.

But it would not be Chanel if it was an ordinary black. Black Pearl is more a metallic green-gray colour reminding me of an oil-black sheen. On the toes, it was all about Pearl Drop, a milky white, beautiful for summer.

The make-up itself was focused on the eyes, emphasizing them with a smokey look. Peter Philips, Chanel’s gobal creative director of make-up, used an emerald tinged onyx black shade and for the lips and cheeks just a little rosy shimmer. It might seem a little dark for summer but I always like the spot on the eyes. Very pretty!

A total invention was the sleek hair with a liquid eye pencil line down the model’s center part. Who is up for this?

By the way, the show was absolutely amazing, more coming soon…

LoL, Sandra

Ladies, time to go shopping! Tyen, Dior’s creative director for make-up, joins in the nail polish hype. Launching today is Dior’s new Haute Couleur varnish palette. There are 21 shades of gorgeousness with an amazing long-lasting and very shiny texture (CHF 37.-).

The new concept will always include a one shot coulour inspired by the runway collection.

For F/W 2010, Dior showed a blend of browns and black, leather, tweed and knitwear along with chiffons. So this time it will be Bronze Libertine, a deep brownish bronze with golden hints, which is complementing the look. Hurry, this is one of fall’s hottest nail shades!

I was very lucky to try the palette out before the official launch. The brush is much wider so it took me some time getting used to it. Once I had developped my new applying technique, it worked very well. The polish dries super-fast and the shine stays on forever. Use it with Dior’s top coat which is by the way the best one on the market!
Enjoy my favourite shades and the upcoming special edition for Christmas below.

706 Bronze Libertine – One shot

943 – Rouge Garçonne

999 – Rouge Altesse / Red Royalty

903 – Encre de Chine / Black Ink

To keep you ahead of the game, here is a sneak preview of what is coming up for Christmas. Two fantastic special edition shades will hit the beauty counters on October 29th:
Or Tsarine is a mysterious black with gold hints and Timeless Gold is a shiny platinum shade. Below you can see me wearing Timeless Gold.

LoL, Sandra

226 – Timeless Gold

916 – Or Tsarine

The nail polish is back and fashionistas all over the world crave for the newest It-colours. Celebrities even go a little further and wear sparkling glitter stones to leopard prints and striped designs. Arabian princesses might like master manicurist Leigthon Denny, who has an original nail boutique at the Urban Retreat Day Spa & Salon at Harrods in London and offers his Diamond, Sapphire and Ruby Encapsulization manicure for only $32.000.- . For this amount, you will get nine carats of precious gem inlays. O.k., this is totally insane!
But let’s come back to the actual question: Is nail art tacky or chic?

Let’s investigate this. Having the logos of Oreo cookies and Goldfish decorating your fingers is definitely ultra-tacky. Fruits, Hello Kitty and more have also no style factor. Ultra-long and sharp filed nails look more like a witch going to the carnival and who would like to be touched by those?! Ouch!

Short nails up to 2-3mm over the fingertip are very elegant and stylish. With this length all colours look beautiful. The key is to pay attention when applying the nail polish. Better make sure you do it more than perfect. It might seem tacky to match your nails to your dress like the Miu Miu version above but I am in love with this.

Half-moon manicures like Dita van Teese parades them are absolutely the style of the moment due to all the 50s and 60s inspired trends.

I also love my camouflage design. I took the three limited Les Khakis de Chanel for that. Khaki Brun is the base colour, Khaki Rose and Khaki Vert the spots.

For special events, Sephora by OPI offers self-sticking foils in all sort of designs for your nails. I think that they are kind of hard to apply but they can be fun.

So Ladies, experiment a little but keep in mind only well-groomed nails look really good. See your manicure as the crowning touch to a perfect outfit!

LoL, Sandra

While beeing in Los Angeles, I met with the Queen of the Eyebrows, Anastasia Soare, herself.  Being widely referred to as the Beauty Innovator and The Definitive Brow and Eye Expert, the charming lady of Romanian origin developed over the years her own Golden Ratio technique to shape eyebrows and to enhance the overall eye area. Today, she is the CEO of a beauty empire, including two full service beauty salons and exclusive brow, skincare and colour products that are sold at select Nordstrom, Sephora and International locations.

Her success has no end. While I was with Anastasia, Kim Kardashian texted her and David Beckham was scheduled later. Celebrities like Oprah, Madonna, Jennifer Lopez and Sharon Stone, line up to get their eyebrows done by her.
So you can imagine how happy I was when she did mine. She told me that I was tweezing too much and that my shape is the so-called high-arch. After explaining her technique to me and giving me the gorgeous brow kit, I can perfectly do it by myself now. I have been receiving so many compliments since then. The right shape of the eyebrow makes such a big difference to the whole face. It can even make you look so much younger.
Above you will find the most important steps.

I truly recommend her products to you. The brow kit makes the shaping so much easier.

The stencils are included in the kit to find the best eyebrow shape for you.

In case that you are in the L.A. area, here are some insider tips. Try to book a long time in advance. Her technicians are also doing a great job. You will lay flat during the treatment, it is very relaxing, not painful at all.

If you are dreaming of seeing Anastasia herself, she takes walk-ins from 9-10am. On Tuesday, she is in her Brentwood store (11933 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90025) and from Wednesday to Saturdays, she works in her famous Beverly Hills location on 438 North Bedford Drive. But please call the store first, as she is travelling a lot.
The beauty salons offer full service from eyebrows to hair styling to make-up and waxing. See the price list for the complete services.

The walls of her store are plastered with thank you notes of celebrities.

Anastasia with me.

Thank you, Anastasia, for giving my brows the perfect arch! I am loving them!

LoL, Sandra

Being too coordinated with your outfit and make-up has not been on the so-hot-list for a long time. But with all those beautiful berry shades everywhere, it seems all natural to match your lips to your dress. Stick with timeless reds or rich, deep tones for your new style statement.
This winter, the lipstick makes its return and takes over the glossy look.

If you are a lipgloss person, I will recommend Yves Saint Laurent’s fall collection of 6 new Rouge Volupté Perle Lipsticks. This super-creamy texture with a little shimmer will be the perfect transition for you.

In case you are looking for the perfect lipstick, the best is to come this upcoming Friday, September 3rd: Christian Dior’s new collection Rouge Dior Haute Couleur created by Dior’s Creative Director for Make-up Tyen will hit the counters in Switzerland (in some countries already avalaible since last week).

There are 32 amazing shades that each has been inspired  and named after vintage Dior Haute Couture dresses and grouped conveniently into 3 colour families from Red to Coral, Pink to Lilac and finally Beige to Brown.

I was lucky to try them out before the official launch and the new formula is just divine. Two different sizes of Hyaluronic spheres plump and smooth the lips while leaving them perfectly hydrated.

Please enjoy those beautiful photos of the Christian Dior Haute Couture gowns and their matching lipsticks that left me absolutely speechless. To die for!

LoL, Sandra

786 Mauve Mystère / Mysterious Mauve

999 Rouge Ara / Ara Red

644 Rouge Blossom / Rouge Blossom

874 Prune Fantastique / Fantastic Plum

565 Rose Trafalgar / Trafalgar Pink

On September 3rd, a new olfactory chapter in Dior’s Poison saga will be opened: Hypnotic Poison Eau Sensuelle, a floral variation on 1998’s Hypnotic Poison fronted by actress Monica Bellucci.
François Demachy, the nose behind this creation, gave one of my favourite aromatic components vanilla (belonging to the orchid family) the leading part. Those velvety soft petals surrounded by ingredients like jasmine, heliotrope, bitter almond, and caraway offer this new composition a lively frame and a more luminous heart without betraying the original scent. It is still warm, exotic and seductive.

Hypnotic Poison Eau Sensuelle EdT Vapo 50ml CHF 95.-

Hypnotic Poison Eau Sensuelle EdT Vapo 100ml CHF 132.-

Also new: Hypnotic Poison Déodorant parfumé CHF 56.-

The new Eau Sensuelle will work perfectly during the warmer season, Elixir for winter and the classic one in between.

As I am a perfume-junky, I am so happy about my new addition to my favourite poison collection.

The bottle has been revisited in a more translucent way but still deep red. I have found the making of them so beautiful that I want to share the photos with you.

LoL, Sandra