(Playing) Hard to Get

Agent Provocateur: "... employed with the purpose of inciting an individual to commit acts that will make them liable to punishment"

Does one love more intensely when one's object of affection is elusive, difficult to obtain? In the case of Agent Provocateur, maybe.

Termed "an exotic floral chypre," (and I'm beginning to realize the word "chypre" shows up a lot in the scents I love), this earthy fragrance with the musky undertone has two of my most loved notes in it: rose and saffron (also found in holy grail Ormonde Jayne Ta'if).

Initially, the dry-scented saffron is dominant on me, with a faint undertone of sweetness (the rose, jasmine and magnolia). The coriander then comes in and takes over and I'm ok with that. I think it's the sharpness of the coriander -- playing against the floral sweetness -- that gives it mystery until the final musky drydown.

Official notes are: Moroccan rose oil, Indian saffron, Egyptian jasmin, and French magnolia oil, Russian coriander, Comorean ylang and gardenia, Haitian vetivert, amber, and animalistic musk.

Interestingly, Agent Provocateur is the house fragrance of (and with few exceptions, only available through) the London-based lingerie company from which it takes its name. Boasting "elements of boudoir glamour and punk fetishism ... their store and line features everything frilly and thrilly for today's more adventurous sex-kitten." Heh.

Agent Provocateur owner, Joe Corre (with wife Serena Rees) is the son of Vivienne Westwood, Godmother of Punk and designer of the fragrance, Boudoir. Dad is former Sex Pistols' manager Malcolm McLaren.

It all makes sense now, doesn't it?