With exciting news that Giorgio Armani’s new women’s scent Sì has landed on our shores, bd managed to score exclusive quotes from brand ambassador Cate Blanchett and perfumer Christine Nagel about the fragrance and involvement with the brand.
What is your relationship with Giorgio Armani and how does the Armani world reflect your personality and who you are?
Cate Blanchett: I first met Mr. Armani - it was a high moment in my career - when I was nominated for The Aviator, I think back in 2006. But, my aesthetic relationship with Mr. Armani extends back to when I was a teenager, coveting all those exquisitely tailored men’s suits. When I first emerged from drama school with my very, very first paycheck, I bought an Armani suit which I’ve still got – and still wear! Because I think where I relate to Armani, the Armani universe really, is the timelessness of it. It’s simultaneously modern and effortless but also timeless and classic and eminently chic. I feel like I’ve always aspired to the grace, simplicity and timelessness that Mr. Armani and his designs embody.
The Sì fragrance is all about being a complete woman, with a full life and a life full of emotions. One with the courage to say yes, to say Sì. What does it mean to you to be a Sì woman?
Cate Blanchett: I often wonder if Mr. Armani asked me to be the face of this wonderful perfume, Sì, because my life is so full and so complete. It couldn’t be fuller, actually, as a mother, as a wife, as someone who’s very passionate about her career as well as her children, about her friendships. For me, the fragrance is very much about saying yes to life. It’s incredibly positive about all the aspects of being a woman. You know, those that are potentially dangerous and exciting as well as those that are demure and sensual and personal.
To which olfactory group does the new Giorgio Armani Sì fragrance belong?
Christine Nagel: This fragrance does not correspond to a typical perfume category. We chose a chypre structure, because chypre is the incarnation of Italian chic. It accentuates a style and instantly creates an allure. But this is no ordinary chypre: chypre is often treated in a very baroque fashion, while we crafted it in a minimal way. We stripped down this chypre to discover the very essence of its framework and attain a canvas with only the essential. Like a reflection of Mr. Armani’s ultra-modern cuts. We used just a dash of a very distinctive patchouli, blended with an extremely sophisticated amber note, Orcanox. This combination adds an exceptional vibrant dimension. We also wanted something audacious and innovative so we decided to shake up the chypre with an original blackcurrant. Blackcurrant is often used in perfumes to give them their fruity note. We have recreated and transformed this ingredient like alchemists by giving it a unique texture thanks to a new extract known as Jungle Essence* blackcurrant. It is sensual, dense, intense and addictive.
What is your own essential Sì?
Christine Nagel: I would say Sì A ME STESSA” [Sì to myself] and Sì ALLA FORZA,” [Sì to strength] because women today wear fragrance for themselves, like an affirmation. Women are free and can be whatever they want to be. And I would add: Sì to emotion and Sì to encounters. The creation of a fragrance involves a great deal of personal investment and sensitivity, which can then be shared.
Sì launched exclusively in Myer on October 2, with the fragrance available nationally on October 2.
