Andy Warhol Silver Factory by Bond No. 9

Andy Warhol comes to life in the latest scent by Bond No. 9, Silver Factory. There is such a rich story behind this scent, it gets me really excited.

First of all, this is just the first of 12 scents that Bond will be launching that are inspired by Andy Warhol, who had many haunts around NYC, the neighborhoods of which Bond has historically focused its perfumery. The first Warhol scent channels his iconic Silver Factory, where silkscreens were made and fashionable people hung out. In the spring, they'll be coming out with Union Square, and Empire State will follow. Apparently, Warhol loved perfume - if only he could sniff the dozen creations he's inspiring!

The brief for the Silver Factory scent was to be "Sex in a Bottle". Quite a tall order for any perfumer, but the woody floriental (with a combination of bergamot, incense, amber, iris and violet) comes pretty close. It's a perfume concetrate, so at 28% (vs. the usual 18-22% concentration), the scent hits hard and lasts a long time, with excellent sillage. It's quite masculine but will appeal to women who like hearty, heady scents. Personally, I liked it better after it dried down for about 30 minutes, when it lost some sharpness and had a muskier aspect.

The bottle is another great story. Its inspiration was one of Warhol's famous Campbells' soup cans, as you can see from the side-by-side image. I love how the "condensed" note on the soup can becomes "perfume concentrate" on the perfume bottle, and the "nYc" motif along the bottle of the perfume mimics the fleur-de-lis pattern on the soup can. A great side note: in honor of this launch, Campbell's is donating 10,000 cans of soup to NY soup kitchens!

Bond No. 9's Andy Warhol's Silver Factory will only be available in 100 ml bottles (that's about 3.3 ounces) for $230. Find it at the company's four boutiques in New York, Bond No 9.com, Saks Fifth Avenue nationwide and Saks.com.