A shoulder catching the last of the sun, the trace of salt water on skin, a guitar chord floating in from the garden next door - Celine's latest fragrance, Un Été Français, opens like a film still from a French New Wave classic. Conceptualised by Hedi Slimane and nestled within the House's Haute Parfumerie collection, this thirteenth addition is no afterthought. Instead, it arrives like an homage to long summers spent in the South of France, where time seems to stretch forever and a carefree spirit lingers in the air. With its youthful, light-hearted, and entirely ephemeral touch, it is a scent built on sensations.
A Riviera Recollection
Complemented by the soft luminosity of bergamot and petitgrain, Un Été Français' heart blooms with neroli and gorse - a wildflower known for its warm coconut scent - and is made all the more sensual with vanilla that settles on the skin with the intimacy of a love letter. All in all, it is an olfactory snapshot of what is means to be carefree and, of course, French.
The House Signature
Like every Celine fragrance, Un Été Français follows the House’s powdery signature - a tactile, intimate drydown that feels like part of your skin rather than layered atop it. It sits comfortably within the day collection of the Haute Parfumerie line, alongside favourites like Parade, Dans Paris, and La Peau Nue.
Slimane’s approach to perfumery resists trend and volume. Here, subtlety is an art form and Un Été Français is for those who wear perfume not for others, but for themselves.
An Object of Ritual
The vessel remains unchanged for the latest launch: rectangular, fluted and heavy with significance. The black lacquered cap is crowned with the House’s Triomphe emblem, echoing the same architectural restraint seen in its Paris flagship. Inside, amber-tinted glass mirrors the hue of honeyed sun on the Riviera.
