According to Veronique Gabai, “the natural ingredient of rose is to bring you the feeling of love, whatever kind of love you need.”
For her, that love is friendship.
In her latest fragrance launch, the beauty and fashion veteran honors her friend of 15 years, Kelly Rutherford, and their shared love of the South of France. Named Rose Première by Kelly Rutherford, the delicate scent blends notes of bergamot, vanilla and musk with Rose de Mai from the village of Grasse.
“Everything I do is inspired by the South of France or contains an ingredient that comes from the South of France,” said Gabai. “It’s interesting because [Kelly’s] American, obviously, but now she lives in the South of France, and I am from the South of France, and now I live in New York. So, it’s a story around the Côte d’Azur, but the difference here is it’s a true collaboration.”
Kelly Rutherford for the launch of her new scent, Rose Première, with Veronique Gabai.
Samuel AVRIL
Having first met as co-chairs at a gala for Lycée Français De New York in 2011, it was only a matter of time before Rutherford and Gabai teamed up to pay homage to the place they both call home. The inspiration for the rose scent, specifically, stemmed from Rutherford’s own infatuation with the flower.
“Kelly always loved the scent of a simple rose. She always wanted something pure and simple. And I said, ‘Kelly, if you love the rose, why don’t we go together to do the harvest in Grasse in May.’ She’s like, ‘Oh, yes, let’s do this.’ And so it all started there. We went on the harvest. She loved it, we smelled a lot of things together, and from one step to the next, we created the fragrance,” said Gabai.
Rose Première by Kelly Rutherford.
Samuel AVRIL
While Rose de Mai is, indeed, the star of the show, it is not alone. “We married the fragrance with some citrus, so it will give you that feeling of happiness, and then we go immediately into something much more sensual,” she added.
Inhaling the complex aroma, Gabai is immediately transported to the fields in Grasse, when she could feel the sun on her skin in the morning. “It’s a very special moment when the sun is gentle on you, if you feel still the earth and the dew on the flowers, and the flower is fresh, it’s sweet, fresh, bright, joyful, all at once,” she said.
Veronique Gabai and Kelly Rutherford.
Samuel AVRIL
To Rutherford, the scent symbolizes femininity. “Femininity today isn’t about perfection. It’s about authenticity. I love that this scent feels polished but still human, joyful, sensual, alive,” she told WWD.
Before Rose Première by Kelly Rutherford enters Gabai’s permanent maison collection, it will debut with 2,000 limited-edition bottles, featuring Rutherford’s signature and the tag line, “Everything meaningful starts with love.”
This is the second collaboration Rutherford has been involved in recently. Last week she revealed an expanded collaboration with the jewelry brand The Twentyfour Six, which began last year and now has moved into 18-karat gold diamond set earrings and a sterling silver necklace.
