Sa Sa Fragrance Fair & Awards 2009 brings back the most fragrant event to town

The Sa Sa Fragrance Fair & Awards 2009 is taking place for the second time in Malaysia and this year's edition is all about celebrating the love of fragrance.

This glamorous bash must be the most fragrant of all red-carpet events. Presented by leading specialty cosmetics and beauty retailer Sa Sa, the Fragrance Fair & Awards 2009 is a prestigious occasion where talents in the fragrance community are honoured for their outstanding creations.

The event is set to run from now until Oct 4, with consumers being able to sample various luxury fragrances and learning more about them at Sa Sa outlets nationwide. Roadshows will also be held with promoters on hand to help consumers pick the fragrance that best suits them.

21 shortlisted fragrances are in contention for this year's awards under six categories - Best Women's Fragrance, Best Men's Fragrance, Best Couple Fragrance, Best Celebrity Fragrance, Best Bottle Design and Packaging and Fragrance of the Year 2009.

Winners are selected based on the choices by a panel of judges (40% of total score), votes from the public (40%) and sales of the fragrances by Sa Sa during the campaign (20%).

Judges will be given a set of guidelines to make their selections, which also need to be based on the following criteria.

Top notes - provides the first scent impression of a fragrance once it has been applied to the skin; usually the most volatile ingredients in a perfume. They are usually lighter, more volatile aromas that evaporate readily. Their scent usually lingers for between five and 30 minutes.

Middle notes - sometimes referred to as "heart notes", these make up the body of the blend. They may be evident from the start, but will usually take 10-30 minutes to fully develop on the skin. They are the notes that classify the fragrance family (floral, oriental, chypre, etc).

Base notes - those with the greatest molecular weight. They last the longest, and are also important as fixatives, that is, they help slow down the evaporation rates of the lighter notes, giving the fragrance holding power. Common base notes include oakmoss, patchouli, woods, musk and vanilla.

The judges will also have to take into account creativity, popularity and the impression and appeal of the fragrance to users.

Another element in the judging will be the presence of coffee beans. A considerable amount of coffee beans will be available on hand for the judges to do all that sniffing. Smelling coffee beans "resets" their sniffer so that they can keep on judging the different fragrances without getting all the scents mixed up.

A judge would sniff the beans, wait a minute or two, then go back to smelling the fragrances - certainly an interesting, possibly even amusing, aspect of the judging process.

As we salute the fabulous fragrances that have made it to the nominees list, let's take a look at our panel of celebrity judges, namely Belinda Chee, Sazzy Falak, Siti Hasfizza Aswaty and Fashion and Clove editor William Kee.

Meet the Judges...

Belinda Chee

Belinda Chee is a versatile personality from the entertainment industry who is adept at hosting, acting, modeling and voiceover gigs. She currently appears on 8TV's Mandarin show Adjuster and the 8TV Quickie Live Show. The trendy entertainer has previously won such awards as EH! Magazine 20 Yang Anggun 2008 and FHM Magazine Most Wanted Women.

Belinda says that fragrance shopping is no easy task, and with the Sa Sa Fragrance Fair and Awards 2009, the public will be able to view and sample all featured fragrances. Belinda feels that scent is a memory trigger, often reminding one of fond memories and loved ones.

"With this event, the choices have been made and it will be much easier for shoppers to make their decisions based on the most popular fragrances." she stated.

Belinda loves fragrances that have a light feel to them.

Siti Hasfizza Aswaty

"Fragrance is a woman's best friend," says Siti Hasfizza Aswaty, a popular presenter who is known for her work on programmes such as Wanita Hari Ini, Nona and Impian Anggun. The attractive presenter's talents first came to light when she became the first runner-up on Pesona Nona 2007.

Siti also believes the event would provide shoppers with a better idea of how to choose the right scents based on top, middle and base notes. Shoppers will also learn which scents are best for them.

"It's also a good avenue for showcasing these fragrances to the public," she said. Siti's preference is for scents that are floral and fruity.

Sazzy Falak

For popular personality Sazzy Falak, the Sa Sa Fragrance Fair and Awards 2009 is something new to her and she's certainly looking forward to it.

Sazzy is known for her acting in Gol & Gincu (2005), for which she won the Best Supporting Actress award at Malaysia's 19th Film Festival (2006). Many would also recognize this stunning actress from various other dramas and films such as the Gol & Gincu TV series, Sepi. Kami, and Jin Notti. A popular television host, she has hosted a string of successful shows such as Beat TV (for three years) and Muzik-Muzik (2000).

"This is one of the ways to make informed purchases of fragrances, as the fair educates shoppers on which perfumes are the best," She said.

Sazzy prefers more seductive and spicy scents.

William Kee

For Fashion and Clove Editor William Kee, woody and understated scents are his preference.

"The Sa Sa Fragrance Awards 2009 is a great avenue to recognize outstanding scents. As an editor covering beauty and fashion for the past decade, I have seen how the fragrance industry has evolved over the years," he said.

"The scents, packaging, campaign and overall appeal have become more sophisticated, and customers have become more discerning about what they want. This event is beneficial for both fragrance makers as well as consumers."

William is no stranger to the fashion and beauty industry, bringing with him 15 years of experience from the demanding field of journalism during which he has been invited to attend glitzy events all over the world.

In the course of his work, he has interviewed many famous international and national personalities such as Donatella Versace, Amber Valetta, Bobbi Brown and Datuk Bernard Chandran. William has also judged many fashion design competitions, beauty pageants and cosmetics competitions.

With his vast experience and charming personality, it's no surprise that William was selected to be a judge for this fabulous event.

From fashion and beauty experts to personalities from the television and modelling industry, this years' fragrance and fair awards showcases quite an impressive line-up of judges.

May the best fragrances win.

For more information on the Sa Sa Fragrance and Fair Awards 2009 and how to cast your votes, simply log on here.