Crystal clear
In the world of cut and faceted crystals, Swarovski reigns supreme. Throughout the company’s existence, its marketing and promoting savvy, its readiness to break with tradition and experiment and collaborate like crazy have meant enduring equity for the brand across a broad cross-section of the populace. And it seems there’s just no stopping how the brand has expanded into new markets and product categories — the latest, being fragrances and makeup! And naturally, the company will do this in inimitable Swarovski fashion! This singular fashion can be seen in the packaging of the various products, whether they be the fragrances, body care line or the makeup products — and naturally, it has to do with crystals embedded in the containers.
Working with the Clarins Fragrance Group — responsible for the scents of Thierry Mugler, Porsche Design, Azzaro and David Yurman — Swarovski’s new ladies’ fragrance is simply known as Aura, and for Swarovksi, it’s crystal transformed to liquid energy. At its heart, it’s a fusion of amber and white musk. The fruity ray comes via soft lychee, while the floral ray has white jasmine and powdery rose. It’s a subtle, floral scent with a hint of fruit, and I loved its simplicity yet classy spirit. There’s a body care bath line; and what really struck me as ingenious marketing, a shimmery makeup line that comes in compacts that are attached to chains and can double as pendants on a necklace. They’re advertised as products that are ready to make your skin luminous, as crystal and pearl are elements of the cosmetic line. And naturally, what would the packaging be without a potent reminder that it carries the Swarovski name!
The group behind that specialty fragrance shop at Resorts World, the Art of Scent, is responsible for bringing the Swarovski line here to the Philippines. The newly-engaged Ken Deswani was proud as can be during the public launch at the store last week. His outfit has certainly brought the concept of a free-standing fragrance specialty store to a new level, and people continue to rave about the kind of service they enjoy at Art of Scent. And if the Swarovski line is an indication, the store is ready to continue to pursue in giving Filipinos varied options in quality fragrances.
Caged heat
Three novels that make our world of imagination that much brighter. The three novels today all take different forms of incarceration — literal to psychological — and turn the situations into page-turners. Whether with humor, as in being trapped in high school, or as a “plant” forced to survive in a high security prison, or as a different kind of heroine, shackled by fate and fortune; these novels provide hours of reading joy.
Elliott Allagash by Simon Rich (available at Powerbooks): Simon Rich is one of the younger writers for Saturday Night Live, so that should give us a good idea of the sensibilities (or lack of them) that will be found in this novel of his. Seymour is the ultimate high school nebbish, the one who’ll be picked 11th, when a five-on-five basketball game is being organized, the one who girls consider as school background and they don’t even realize they share a class with him. Elliott enters the life of Seymour, a rich brat who has been shuffled from one school to another as he has a problem with authority. Elliott takes on Seymour as a social experiment, promising him popularity — and the cynical hilarity ensues! A fun read!
Three Seconds by Roslund and Hellstrom (available at National Bookstore): The authors make for one of the most popular Swedish crime fiction writing teams of this generation, one a journalist, and the other an ex-con. As a result, they write with true insider knowledge about the criminal world and life in prison. This is one hell of a plotline; it involves deep penetration agents who inform to the police while operating at the top levels of the crime syndicates — the Polish mafia in Sweden. The master plan is to sell drugs within the prisons of Sweden, where you have a “captive” clientele, and when they can’t pay, the mafia uses them when they finish their sentences. Taut, visceral and full of twists and turns, this is edge-of-your-seat fiction.
Shadowfever by Karen Marie Moning (available at Fully Booked): With unconventional heroine Mackayla Lane as the central figure of the Fever series of Moning, this is one intricately plotted novel. The genre can best be described as fantasy suspense, but that would only scratch the surface. What makes this an interesting and intriguing read revolves around the depth of the writing, the characters and how layered the world is presented in the book. Mythical beings abound; but what makes them different is how real they all are, filled with angst, menial problems and strong stirrings for sex, relationships and attachments. It may help to have read the previous books, but this is still enjoyable, as a resolution of sorts is reached.
