Derek Lam Launches 10 Fragrances and You'll Want Them All!
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Derek Lam was gazing out of a window at his office on 10 Crosby St. in NYC's bustling SoHo neighborhood when he dreamed up the 10 scents that would star in his debut fragrance brand.
"You know Crosby Street is just that real New York place — it's local, but it's creative," he said. Derek and I were sitting on a cozy-chic camel couch at his NYC apartment drinking black coffee. "It's just a cool street. I was seeing all of these young women and [observing] how they were dressing. They were going to work, but they were presenting themselves in an unconventional manner. I was like, 'I want to design for her. I want to make a brand for her.' I felt I couldn't reach that audience through Derek Lam, the main collection. So that was how 10 Crosby came about. I really looked out the window and desired to be part of that conversation."
That conversation is continuing with the next piece of his label: a fragrance wardrobe. The 10 scents not only pay homage to his brand's name, but they also represent unique stories — many that he, again, discovered studying the city via a window.
He explained his storytelling process: "I didn't want it only to be centered on, 'Oh she's meeting a guy' or 'she has a new puppy' or whatever." Instead, he was influenced by organic New York moments. (And as a native to the Big Apple, I can attest that these do feel like authentic tales.)
Derek didn't want the notes to be a cliché, either, so he was extremely hands-on with the perfumers from IFF, the company responsible for Elizabeth & James. To create a thoughtful, sensual experience, he avoided updating anything familiar (there won't be new versions of something your mother or grandmother wears, he confirmed). So he brought in novel perceptions, such as a partially salty scent or distilling the idea of "white calm."
"The expectation is that a designer will eventually go into fragrance, and I didn't want to be the obvious choice," he explained. "It would be only interesting to me if I could be very involved and find a voice within a category that's also very, very cluttered while doing it in an impactful way. Also, we got personal: first with the fragrance, then the names and the stories. I think that's what people are most intrigued by: what a designer, his team, and his posse put together; and what their point of view is."
Of course each aroma drew some inspiration from his design house, as well. "They started off as fabric swatches," he explained. "For me, the fabrics have a nuance." Choosing a particular red, white, or lavender shade for the formula helped Derek express the mood of the fragrance.
He continued, "I wanted people to recognize a scent or note, but I also wanted to modernize it and make it a little bit twisted. Because that's exactly what I do with the clothing side. I take something familiar that captures your eye. [You think,] 'Oh I need that. I want that. Where do I get it?' Then, when you get closer you see the twists and turns that have gone into the design."
Though layering is a trend in fragrance right now, Derek didn't have that in mind when developing this line. "Each one was supposed to be a standalone fragrance," he confirmed. "What we found was — I think because people noticed the sophistication of the fragrances — that they felt it was possible to layer. That's what I like, too: there's a continuity between all 10, but each one can really be your scent. You don't need to layer."
While the full-size bottles ($95-$175) aren't available until Jan. 28 on sephora.com and dereklam.com, the preview set just launched ($95). It features 0.25-ounce sizes of each, so you can try them all and easily get through security during your holiday travels.
Keep reading to learn more about each!
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Meet the Scents
Discover the stories behind all of the new Derek Lam 10 Crosby scents!
The Fragrance: Silent St.
The Notes: White musk
Derek's Description: "It was inspired by that moment in New York after the snow has fallen. It’s just like a blanket."
The Fragrance: Looking Glass
The Notes: Chinese magnolia and tonka bean
Derek's Description: "I love that moment when a woman checks herself out before going into a meeting or going into a restaurant. She has this moment of self-recognition. It’s a little bit more ethereal and complex."
The Fragrance: Hi-Fi
The Notes: Pink peony and French narcisse
Derek's Description: "This has a little more energy — a little poppy. It’s the idea that when you're walking down the street and someone is blasting music, and you recognize the song. [You think,] 'Oh my God, I love that song!' And you get into on the street. . . .When I lived down in SoHo and someone was playing music, it reverberated through the whole street, because of all the cast iron buildings. It felt like your own personal rave."
The Fragrance: Rain Day
The Notes: Neroli tunisia and vetiver haiti
Derek's Description: "It’s a rainy day when you get to play hooky. . . . You get that [scent] during the rain — freshness. It’s also a little bit earthy, but it's not too granola-y earthy."
The Fragrance: Drunk on Youth
The Notes: Crisp apple and honeysuckle
Derek's Description: "[It's] sexy. There’s a crisp apple in it. It’s really about friendship and friends. This idea that when you’re at the age — it’s like the perfect moment when you’re hanging out. . . . I imagine they’re coming out of a club, and they’re all entangled — boys and girls. Just loving the moment of being drunk on youth.
The Fragrance: Afloat
The Notes: White mimosa and orris
Derek's Description: "This is [inspired by] kind of hovering above New York or daydreaming or just imagining getting above the bustle."
The Fragrance: Something Wild
The Notes: Cedarwood and vanilla bean
Derek's Description: "It's definitely more playful, a little bit more mysterious, and kind of on the edge of stepping into the void. You don’t know what’s going to happen next! You get the lusciousness of the vanilla, but then the cedar gives you that twist."
The Fragrance: Ellipsis
The Notes: Australian sandalwood and jasmine
Derek's Description: "It’s about that moment of, 'What if?' It is really ethereal and poetic. The name lends itself to this strangely complex fragrance."
The Fragrance: Blackout
The Notes: Osmanthus and chai tea essence
Derek's Description: "It was inspired by those blackouts we had in New York, when you’re a little bit fearful but also there seems to be a big mystery in the dark. This is one of my favorites because of the chai tea. It’s smoky and darey."
The Fragrance: 2am Kiss
The Notes: Salty wood and crystalized amber
Derek's Description: "It's sexy and sultry. We didn’t even associate the romantic quality of the red with the 2am Kiss, we were thinking more of the mystery and the sultriness." (Fun fact: the fragrance was originally called 4am Kiss, but then Derek and his team realized that not everyone lives in New York where bars stay open past 2 a.m.!)
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Derek on Entering the Fragrance Market
"When we started Derek Lam and Crosby, I really understood it as creating a brand about a lifestyle," he said. "But I was like, 'it can’t just be one-dimensional; it can’t just be about clothing.' I don’t think people fall in love with brands just because of one thing. We can provide different vehicles for experiencing a point of view. It’s a continuation of that concept, the fragrance. It’s not lesser or more than what I already do for ready-to-wear. It’s rounding out what we have."
Watch this space for more updates on Derek's foray into fragrance when the full-size bottles launch in 2016!
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