Perfume Style à la Anna Karenina

High society, couture and an illicit affair: Joe Wright’s take on Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina is a dramatic affair. And Keira Knightley’s turn in pearls and diamonds, vintage Balenciaga and fur has us pondering the perfume worn beneath it all. Or rather, what would suit the young Russian princess.

Marchesa Parfum D’Extase, with its sparkling top floral notes, suggested the wonder of a young noble caught up in the romance of a fling. But then it gets more interesting. The spritz mixes woods with iris, violet leaves, jasmine, ambrox and musk to achieve a more sensuous, sultry effect. It’s pretty but not uncomplicated.

Then the bottle: Crafted to look like a block of crystal, it is set with a glitter-encrusted ribbon. Its theatricality nods to the elaborate gowns of the brand’s designers, Georgina Chapman and Keren Craig, which look tailor-made for any princess, 19^th or 21^st century.

Marchesa Parfum D’Extase EDP, $72 (50 ml), www.sephora.com

Inspired by the couture of it all? See the Marchesa video on the making of the scent. 

PHOTO: ALLIANCE FILMS (LAURIE SPARHAM)