From The Straits Times    |
beauty review Fendi L Acquarossa scent THUMBNAIL

WHAT IT IS

beauty review Fendi L Acquarossa scent DECOR AD

Italian luxury brand Fendi’s latest feminine floral scent, L’Acquarossa is inspired by and dedicated to women with a pioneering spirit, who break down barriers, dare to be different, are erudite, elegant, curious and strong. Like all the stories behind the creations in Fendi, whether fashion or beauty related, the Fendi L’Acquarossa fragrance saga is also about the three generations of Fendi sisters: starting from Adele Fendi, to Silvia Venturini Fendi, to the five sisters Paola, Anna, Franca, Carla and Alda, daughters of the founding couple.

As the name L’Acquarossa – meaning red water – suggests, the scent is bold and made so by a wild combination of top notes of Sicilian tangerine, middle notes of Lantana flower and bottom notes of red cedar wood from Texas. The “rossa” or red in the name also refers to the great historical Italian city of Rome.

Fendi’s L’Acquarossa combines old-world Italian glamour with the chic of the brand’s modern designer luxury stance. The result is a fragrance that makes its wearer feel and smell like a woman of the world. Fendi’s L’Acquarossa’s product design parallels this sensibility with its daring red and bold gold packaging in heavy materials that hark back to a precious brand of bygone opulence.

No fragrance is quite complete without a face to front it, and Fendi has certainly chosen well with Italian muse Chiara Mastroianni – daughter of one of Italian cinema’s most famous actors, Marcello Mastroianni, and French cinema royalty Catherine Deneuve – as its ambassador. The sexy and stunning Chiara Mastroianni made her film debut alongside her mother Catherine Deneuve in director Andre Techine’s 1993 film Ma saison preferee, and again 20 years later in the film Les Biens-aimes by director Christophe Honore.

beauty review Fendi L Acquarossa scent DECOR Chiara MastroianniActress Chiara Mastroianni is the ‘face’ of Fendi L’Acquarossa scent

In the ad campaign shot by photographer Jean-Baptiste Mondino, Fendi L’Acquarossa’s face Chiara Mastroianni drapes herself on a manly Romanesque statue; she is barefoot and her toes are painted a red to match the trim on her Fendi dress; her hair is natural and undone, her makeup somewhat minimalist, and she looks wistfully into the distance. The visual speaks of a woman who is confident, at ease and in control.

beauty review Fendi L Acquarossa scent DECOR BATHFendi L’Acquarossa bath and body range

Fendi’s L’Acquarossa also comes in a bath and body range consisting of L’Acquarossa Gel Parfum Pour La Douche, a shower gel, L’Acquarossa Lait De Parfum Pour Le Corps, a moisturising body lotion, and L’Acquarossa Deodorant Spray.

WHAT WE THINK ABOUT …

THE PACKAGING

beauty review Fendi L Acquarossa scent DECOR PACKAGING

My first thought when I took Fendi’s L’Acquarossa out of the carton to use was that the bottle is so gorgeous and expensive-looking. In a sexy-luxe red, black and gold colour combination, it could well be used as an Art Deco inspired paperweight after the scent has been used up. I like its weight and the bold unabashedly luxurious look and feel of it. The fact that the geometrical blockish bottle is luxuriously heavy and chunky in an opulent way makes it a dressing table must. The geometry of the bottle harks back to the architecture of ancient Roman monuments, except with cleaner, more contemporary lines.

THE PRODUCT
The Fendi L’Acquarossa scent is of a sexy-modern ilk. It is strong and distinctive. A grown-up, sophisticated rose-based bouquet that’s more sensuous than sweet. A power scent it may be, but the fragrance is not over-powering in the way that many power scents are wont to be.

I like to use outfits to describe a scent. As such I would say that Fendi’s L’Acquarossa is versatile; it is able to morph from a sharp red pantsuit, into a structured knee-length red shift dress, and then into a backless, black-tie crimson ball gown.

The Fendi L’Acquarossa scent dries down well and lingers the whole day without any touch-ups.

THE RESULTS
The Fendi L’Acquarossa perfume is a good solid fragrance to have in one’s scent wardrobe. Like the standout sexy outfit every cupboard should have, it is confidence boosting and timeless.

Total Score 21/25

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