Tag Archives: evan rachel wood

perfume quotes in tv shows, perfumes in tv shows

The Shards S01E04 (Robert’s Party)

15 Aug 2026 Born Unicorn Leave a comment

The opening scene of the episode features Ryan (Daniel Dale) taking the audience through his morning beauty routine. It’s impossible not to notice a parallel with the most famous beauty routine scene in cinema, although comparing the two would be unkind, given the differences between Ryan (a high-school student living in Los Angeles) and Patrick Bateman (a murderous businessman living in New York). In any case, Bret Easton Ellis’ obsession with mentioning brands and listing actions in chronological order emerges again and is given a visual form.

Yves Saint Laurent Kouros is the only product that is mentioned. This aromatic fougère, created by Pierre Bourdon and launched in 1981, is first introduced in the third episode.

Ryan’s comment about Kouros is always the same (“It’s for men”): the fact that it’s a fragrance created and marketed for men, seems to give him validation.

Ryan’s bathroom cabinet speaks about his economic status, too: his family used to be wealthy, but it’s not anymore, due to wrong financial investments. It seems Kouros is the most expensive beauty item he owns.

On the left side of the mirrored cabinet we can see a drugstore after shave: it’s Louis Philippe Patrichs Pour Homme, a woody fragrance launched in 1976.

Another after shave (boxed) is on the opposite side of the cabinet: it’s English Leather Spiced, launched in 1949.

Ryan is a resourceful boy, though, so we learn about his side “hustle”: he works as a porn actor for the production company Erotica Pictures, located in San Fernando Valley, the epicentre of the burgeoning adult entertainment industry. In that working environment he gets to meet the mother of a schoolmate, none other than Liz Schaffer! We don’t know exactly what brought Liz to Erotica Pictures, but she’s set to become a new sensation with the pseudonym Cami Soul.

The Schaffers’ are a dysfunctional family, but they have something in common: an interest in fragrances. Liz commenting on the perfume Ryan is wearing parallels Debbie’s similar comment in the third episode.

Unlike Debbie, Liz knows her fragrances, though: she immediately identifies what Ryan is wearing.

perfumes in tv shows

The Shards S01E03 (Help Me! Rhonda!)

13 Aug 2026 Born Unicorn 1 Comment

We’re back in Liz Schaffer’s bedroom. The woman’s monologue in front of the mirror openly speaks of the existential pain for being treated horribly by her husband and daughter, and for realising that the career opportunities she might have had in the past are now gone.

There’s an interesting mix of historically accurate and inaccurate fragrances on her vanity.

The bulb-like bottles on the left contain the same fragrance – Pierre Cardin Pour Monsieur by Pierre Cardin. This is a woody spicy fragrance launched in 1972. Is this what her husband Terry wears when he’s not wearing Yves Saint Laurent Rive Gauche? It would be interesting to know.

The white and yellow striped box brings back lots of memories! It contains Giorgio Beverly Hills, a floral fragrance by Francis Camail which was launched in 1981. This was the first fragrance I have ever received as a gift. It’s never been my cup of tea, but it still holds a special place in my heart.

The monologue is a sort of role play: Liz (Evan Rachel Wood) pretends to have just won an Oscar, and she’s giving a speech in front of a cheering audience. The statuette sitting on her table is one of the three Oscars won by her husband Terry, who interrupts her.

The blue and gold bottle in front of Liz is Versace Dylan Blue, a floral fruity fragrance created by Calice Becker and Natalie Gracia-Cetto, and launched in 2017.

Another contemporary fragrance is housed in the tall bottle behind the wine glass. It’s Chanel N°5 Eau Premiere, a floral aldehyde fragrance by Jacques Polge launched in 2008.

cosmetics in tv shows, perfumes in tv shows

The Shards S01E02 (Don’t You Want Me)

8 Aug 2026 Born Unicorn Leave a comment

Generational rivalries and half-hidden secrets run deep in the Schaffers’ household. Debbie (Hayes Warner) and her mother Liz (Evan Rachel Wood) mirror each other: they look alike and live in a world where money and appearances matter more than anything else. “You are me,” says Liz [1] to Debbie, when the girl confronts and criticises her questionable life choices.

Whether one likes it or not, the blue and gold bottle on Liz’s vanity is Versace Dylan Blue, a floral fruity fragrance created by Calice Becker and Natalie Gracia-Cetto, and released in 2017. The prop masters of the TV show must have had a great time by planting such a blatant historical inaccuracy in a 1981 context.

Debbie storms into her mother’s bedroom because she wants her Lancôme compact back. The content of the compact is never mentioned, but we can assume it is an eyeshadow palette, because that’s what Liz is applying on her face when Debbie enters her bedroom.

I haven’t found the exact compact seen in this scene, but there’s evidence of Lancôme using red packaging (not the classic glossy black one) in the late 1970s/early 1980s. The advert above features Carol Alt: the American model became testimonial in 1979, when she was 18. She was the face of Lancôme for three years, more or less until 1981; her successor would be Isabella Rossellini. The compact she’s holding doesn’t look like the one seen in the TV show, but let’s just say it’s a realistic detail.

[1] Liz, a former model now trapped into an unhappy marriage, gives Elvira vibes, doesn’t she?

perfumes in movies

Across the Universe (2007)

10 Aug 2015 Born Unicorn Leave a comment

The dressing table in Lucy Carrigan’s bedroom is pretty busy, but one bottle has caught my attention – the third from the left.

The label and the golden bow mean one thing only: Annick Goutal. It’s not the trademark fluted bottle, but the squared one, which I believe can be dated back to the late 1980s. It’s impossible to read the paper label, so we can only assume it could be Gardenia Passion (created by Goutal herself after a trip to Japan and launched in 1989), Eau d’Hadrien (the first fragrance of the French maison, created by Goutal and Francis Camail and launched in 1981) or Eau de Charlotte (created by Goutal for her step-daughter and launched in 1982). I’m not sure if other scents were released in squared bottles, though.