“I am aware that I made Fashion progress, and that I allowed women to access a world of freedom that was prohibited to them until then.” – Yves Saint Laurent

Freedom. That is one word that aptly defines the Yves Saint Laurent brand. From turning the tuxedo into provocative women’s evening wear in the sixties, to turning on the power of ultra-femininity with miniskirts designed not to tease, but to make you move forward freely. Because you’ve got places to go and emotions to experience.

For today’s woman, freedom is the ultimate luxury. After years of fighting for emancipation or success, it has become a state of mind and a way of playing by your own rules. The modern woman can be powerful and hyper-feminine; a luxury addict and connected with nature; ultra-cool this minute and spitting fire the next.

It is this range of emotions, and the desire for freedom that Yves Saint Laurent pours into Libre, a quintessentially masculine-structured yet ultra-feminine scent for the modern woman. It is a freestyle take on the Fougère, a classic style for men’s fragrances featuring lavender. Perfumer Anne Flipo’s provocative move was to gender-bend it into a feminine scent, just like Yves Saint Laurent retailored the tuxedo for women.

Created by Anne Flipo and Carlos Benaïm after 7 years and over 1500 variations to precision-cut its lush accords, Libre is a blend of sensual top notes mandarin orange, lavender, black currant and petitgrain that draw you in where you are immediately held by the middle notes of jasmine, more lavender and orange blossom which then give way to the stronger base notes of Madagascar vanilla, cedar, ambergris and musk that journey with you wherever you go.

For its bottle, designer Suzanne Dalton did the unexpected: in a bold, playful move, she flipped the iconic YSL on its side, bent it to follow the sharp angle of the bottle and nailed it to the glass – a jewel of engineering echoing the sensual fusion between metal, glass and fragrance.

Following successful global launches in Paris, New York and London, Libre is finally in Nigeria. Shop this sensual yet strong fragrance by YSL Beauty at Essenza stores today.