
Laverne Cox, Dapper Dan, and Vera Wang Celebrated the 2025 Fragrance Foundation Awards
Forget the first Monday in May. For perfumeheads, it's all about the first Thursday in June. If you've ever wondered how the noses behind your favorite perfumes celebrate their craft, the answer is a star-studded evening at Lincoln Center. Every year at this time, fragrance founders, celebrities, and unabashed perfume enthusiasts gather to celebrate the annual Fragrance Foundation Awards at the David H. Koch Theater in New York City. Presenters like actress Laverne Cox, beauty influencer Jackie Aina, and designers Vera Wang and Dapper Dan announced awards in categories like Best Indie Fragrance and Perfume Extraordinaire of the Year.
'This is the fragrance industry's biggest night,' Linda G. Levy, president of The Fragrance Foundation, said in a statement. 'It's the one night when the fragrance community—from the big, bold names to the independent creators—come together to celebrate the creativity and craftsmanship of our industry, and the remarkable achievements of the people behind the scents.'
Standout honorees included Kilian Paris Sunkissed Goddess, an amber and vanilla blend with hints of coconut, which took home Women's Luxury Fragrance of the Year; Byredo Desert Dawn, which smells like cardamom, rose, and papyrus, and won for Universal Luxury Fragrance; and the D.S. & Durga Murder Mystery Set, a layering trio designed to help you build a unique scent, awarded for Innovative Fragrance. Ralph Lauren was the evening's Hall of Fame honoree. Fittingly, the awards were scented by Daniela Andrier, who won the Lifetime Achievement Perfumer award. The fragrance, aptly named Lincoln in June, filled the room with vibrant floral notes.
Click through the gallery below to take a peek inside the glamorous evening of fragrance.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles

Elle
3 hours ago
- Elle
Selena Gomez Reveals Her Surprising Dream Wedding Dessert for Upcoming Ceremony
Every item on this page was chosen by an ELLE editor. We may earn commission on some of the items you choose to buy. THE RUNDOWN Selena Gomez and Benny Blanco got engaged in December 2024, but not yet revealed their wedding plan. Fans have been wanting to know more details about the upcoming event, and the Only Murder in the Building star finally shared some this week. On her Rare Beauty brand's TikTok account, Gomez shared some of her thoughts on the reception, saying she had some ideas for the dessert. Traditionally, a big wedding cake is expected, but Gomez has other dreams. 'My preferred dessert would be biscuits and gravy,' she shared. 'My Nana's biscuits and gravy. That sounds like dessert to me.' She also explained, 'Whenever that day comes, I do know I don't want a big cake. I think I'd want a mini one, for just us, that we can freeze.' Gomez previously discussed the first dance between the bride and groom on an episode of Table Manners with Jessie and Lennie Ware, saying she was probably going to skip it. 'I don't think we're looking at having one of those 'cause they're a little—I feel embarrassed,' she said. But she was hoping to be escorted down the aisle by her grandfather. 'He never got a chance to walk my mom down the aisle,' she explained. 'I wanted to give [my grandfather] the opportunity to have that.' In July, Blanco discussed how planning is going on Jake Shane's podcast, Therapuss. The music producer said that they have both been so busy since the release of their album, I Said I Love You First. 'That's why we both need to chill,' Blanco explained. 'We've both been working so much. We got engaged, and then we were filming music videos for our album. Then it's holidays, then right after the holidays, we had to start all the promo for our stuff, do that. Then she left to film her show Only Murders [in the Building] and then I met her, then we hung out for a week, and then right after that, it's promo. And then I'm writing another book, so then I had to write a book, and then she came back for one day here. And then it was my birthday, and you know.' He continued, 'We're both working on so many things that we hadn't even had time to get into it, but we're so excited. I think this summer we're going to sit down and be like, 'Okay, what are we doing, hun?''
Yahoo
18 hours ago
- Yahoo
Here's What's Happening With AI Models Inside The Newest Issue Of Vogue
Earlier this week, TikTok user @lala4an posted a video with an observation about the August issue of Vogue. Inside, there was an ad for Guess's chevron dress, modeled by an otherwise unassuming (but, of course, gorgeous) blonde woman with a slim, hourglass figure. However, a look at the small print revealed something surprising: "Produced by Seraphinne Vallora on AI." Related: The revelation that AI models were inside the pages of Vogue quickly went viral, with the video amassing over 2 million views in three days. As the TikTok found its way across other platforms, much of the response was, in a word, negative. So, who is Seraphinne Vallora? Go on their Instagram, which has over 220k followers, and you'll see hundreds of smooth-skinned women with high cheekbones and plump lips (the caveat being that all of these images are AI-generated). In their own words, courtesy of their bio, "We design editorial level AI-driven marketing campaigns and cinematic videos. As seen in Elle, Grazia, Vogue, WSJ, FT, Harper's Bazaar." The real women behind the business, Valentina Gonzalez and Andreea Petrescu, told me that they started making AI models because they were trying to create a jewelry brand and couldn't afford the real thing. Andreea recalled, "With us [being] designers and architects, we decided to use our skills to try to create our own models. We started to put our own jewelry that we were trying to sell into these AI models and campaigns. Essentially, other people saw this, it was a success, and they asked if we could do the same for them." As they saw it, there was a "huge gap in the market" for a "design-led" AI image company. Andreea said, "We started going viral, because nobody was doing this at the time, and that's how we grew our account. We grew the account organically." Related: The company has since been going for two years, comprising now of five people. Their page caught the attention of Paul Marciano, the co-founder of Guess, who sent them a DM. As Andreea put it, "Paul is a very fearless man. He's a trendsetter. So he decided, 'I like this, I want it.' Eventually, I really believe many other companies will go for this." Valentina said that they're the "first AI-driven campaign to be published worldwide," in 20 storefronts across Europe and an additional 30 magazines. I asked them why a brand like Guess, which has a presumably ample budget, would opt for AI. "When Paul hired us, he told us very clearly, 'I'm not looking to replace our models.' He wants to supplement, because they have so many product campaigns that can take a very, very long time to plan, so he can only do a few campaigns every year," she recalled. "Meanwhile, with AI, it could be faster. You don't need to arrange any traveling, you don't need permits. You don't need any of these to create beautiful images." Related: They both insist that their use of AI, rather than a layman's, is a form of art. Consider a comparison Valentina made: "It's no different to a random person taking a camera, that doesn't make them a photographer." Neither are they fans of the idea that the models, based on text inputs and "proprietary techniques," are easy to make. They deny that images of real people are used to make composites: "It's really not copying anyone's features. It's pretty much like imagination." Generally speaking, they'll provide mood boards to clients, sometimes working with photographers and in-person models to test poses and angles. Stylists will select the clothing and accessories. They showed me an example deck for a luxury brand, which said, "Together, we'll collaborate to bring your model to life. We begin by selecting the ideal body type, eye color, hair style, height, and other defining features that best represent your brand's identity." This is an example of what they'd send to a client — Saint Laurent does not appear to be a current client of theirs. "We invested so much in our technology, because we wanted it to look like a photo. What you see in Guess is amazing, but what we do now is even better," Andreea continued. This presents a potential issue: What if people don't know that the woman they're looking at is AI? She replied, "I do feel like if they don't realize it's digitally made, I don't feel like there's blame to be placed on us, because we do disclose it, the brands we work with do disclose it." Andreea notes that the Guess ads do have disclosures, but she doesn't think there will necessarily be a requirement to do so in the future. As she put it, "People are not familiar with it and people are scared of change. But once this becomes the new norm, I think whether companies decide to add it or not, it's not too relevant. The impact of it, whether you do it in AI or in a normal medium, will be the same if you get the same results." Related: Do they worry that the use of AI models will further an already unrealistic beauty standard? "We are not creating a new standard. The standard has always been there," Valentina responded. Andreea affirmed, "We're pretty much in line with the same standard that is set in the rest of the magazine. If I look at a magazine, I'm gonna be bombarded with 10 different supermodels. Because one is AI, it doesn't change anything." Initially, the women say that they featured more diverse body types and ethnicities on their Instagram pages — even men. But it was the "fantasy type" of woman that got them the most attention. Valentina said, "It's not even us, it's the public. If they loved the diversity, we would have flooded our Instagram with diversity." They can't tell me who they're currently speaking with, citing NDAs. However, there is another service that Seraphinne Vallora offers: AI twins of real-life models. As Valentina described, "For example, if you're a supermodel or a model, you might want to have a twin of you so you can take two jobs at the same time. If you're in China and Miami, either way, you can get an AI avatar that is identical to you. We literally get everything exactly the way you look. I'm talking details, pores, facial hair, everything, we get it to exact accuracy." This is a real image of Bella Hadid. If supermodels do wind up using their AI avatars, will they have to disclose it? Valentina replied, "It's their choice. We encourage them to." BuzzFeed has reached out to Guess for comment. Also in Internet Finds: Also in Internet Finds: Also in Internet Finds:


Cosmopolitan
a day ago
- Cosmopolitan
Is Leah Williamson in a relationship?
Leah Williamson, footballer and captain of the England women's national team, has long sparked dating rumours with Elle Smith, an American model and former Miss USA winner. From sweet holiday snaps to celebrating her football wins together, the 28-year-old and her beau have somewhat soft-launched their relationship on Instagram over the last few months. However, from what we, and other social media sleuths (see: fans of the pair), can see, they're yet to actually make it 'official.' So, let's take a deep dive into their rumoured relationship, including some of the sweetest moments so far... Last month, Elle took to her Instagram to share snippets of her Majorcan holiday with her 127K followers. While many shots showed off her summer fits and stunning views of the Spanish island, a couple of pics saw the pair looking super loved up. Case in point: slide 3 caught Leah and Elle on a paddleboard together, while slide 17 saw Elle snap a candid pic of the footballer dressed up and heading out for dinner. Leah also posted snaps of the getaway — where they were celebrating Elle's birthday — which included a gorgeous photo of the pair at dinner. A selfie of the two was featured in the carousel too, which saw Leah and Elle sunkissed and smiling. Elle commented on the holiday roundup: "same time next year?" to which Leah responded: "yes please x." Err, cute. Back in May, Elle posted a black and white shot of her cuddling Leah, who was sitting on her lap. Leah was clutching a medal and wearing an England shirt following her team's 6-0 win against Portugal. The post also included footage of the match, in which Elle could be heard cheering on the team. Leah commented on the post: "We did it!" Even earlier in March, Elle posted a video of her and Leah floating in the ocean on a paddleboard. Leah appeared to be lying down and resting her head on Elle's legs, as they had a sweet, intimate chat. Elle accompanied the post with the caption: "happy birthday my love x." Leah responded with the cutest emojis: "🥰🤭🧜♀️." Interestingly, this Insta post sparked 'official' comments from fans, with one person writing: "The mother of hard launches!" Others said: "So happy for you!" while another person said they were the "cutest" together. Officially obsessed with these two.