In case you’re new around here: the Marie Claire Beauty Team spent the past few weeks smelling a lot of fragrances. Not five, or 10, or 20. We cumulatively sprayed (and received compliments for) nearly 1,000 fragrances over the course of a few weeks. There were gourmands and spicy scents. Woody perfumes and body mists. We even dipped our testing toes into the body care category, identifying lotions and deodorants with elite fine fragrance profiles.
The purpose: identify the 62 all-time best for Marie Claire’s second annual Fragrance Awards—and throw a little party, of course.
On Wednesday, September 25, Marie Claire invited 200 guests—famous noses, marketing executives, and brand founders—to the Nine Orchard Hotel to celebrate their well-deserved wins. We had attendees from Paris, Miami, Los Angeles, Portugal, and of course, many New Yorkers, all to eat, drink, and of course, talk about fragrance.
It’s hard to compete with the views atop Nine Orchard (photos for proof), but when our guests weren't taking in the skyline, they were kept plenty busy. They could stop and smell the flowers—literally. Gorgeous arrangements designed by Grace Lee (@seeking-floral-arrangements) lined the space. Guests could also grab their custom, engraved trophies and stop for a photo against our step-and-repeat with the amazing photographers from Steck Studios (@steckstudios).
Should they want to figure out the perfume best-suited to their aura? A visit to Susanna Merrick—an incredible aura reader—was effectively scheduled. With just a quick chat, she was able to tell if your fiery, red aura needed to be balanced by a grounding fragrance, like say, Costa Brazil's Aroma Eau de Parfum, our Best Overall Universal Fragrance winner. Or, perhaps you're emanating purple energy—the color of royalty, which calls for an ultra-luxe choice like Guerlain's Vetiver Fauve.
For those more in a party-party mood, we came prepared. Custom drinks were served up with Marie Claire-themed orange peel garnishes. hash browns topped with caviar (yum) were passed as the perfect snacking food, and the dance floor was admittedly packed courtesy of DJ Brandon Hoffman's (@djbhoff) set.
But perhaps the most special part of the evening was jumping into chats, which, naturally, all revolved around fragrance. What I learned: florals are expected to have a renaissance, home fragrance is going to continue to boom, and fine fragrance is merging with body care more than ever before. But honestly, what else did you expect when you put 200 fragrance pros in a room?
To get a peek inside the best-smelling scene in Manhattan, keep scrolling.
Want to find out your aura? Book an appointment with @aurawearnyc.
Guests took full advantage of our incredible photographers.
Beauty Director Hannah Baxter and Executive Editor Andrea Stanley welcomed guests with some opening remarks.
Yes, these look just as good as they tasted.
And because the MC team loves a little hours d'oeuvres, there was no shortage of bites.
All 62 winners were put out on a beautiful display.
Custom MC matchbox, anyone?
Not to brag, but our gift bags were next-level, with thousands of dollars of fragrance samples for lucky attendees.
Beauty Director Hannah Baxter probably gushing about one of her new favorite scents.
MC's resident fragrance astrologist Aliza Kelly even popped by to say hi. Make sure to read up on her On the Nose column!
A polaroid clearly made its rounds.
Every winner was sent home with a custom trophy to commemorate their win.
Fragrance chatter was in full force. That's exactly what happens when you toss a bunch of beauty pros in the same room.
Beauty Director Hannah Baxter and Senior Beauty Editor Samantha Holender stop for a photo.
Can we take a moment to discuss this view—even with the misty skies? Absolutely stunning.
