Jordyn Woods and Nicky Hilton Rothschild Took Over Guerlain’s Garden in the Sky

Manhattan has never needed much encouragement to turn a cocktail hour into an occasion. On October 27, Guerlain supplied it anyway: a rooftop iris garden, dinner by Daniel Boulud, and a guest list (Irina Shayk, Natalia Bryant and Nicky Hilton Rothschild among them) that gave the skyline some competition.

The French beauty house took over Le Jardin sur Madison, the Rockwell Group–designed garden perched 28 floors above Madison Square Park at One Madison Avenue, to celebrate its new L’Heure Bleue fragrance. Director of Perfume Creation Delphine Jelk hosted an evening inspired by the fleeting moment between daylight and darkness, and the indoor-outdoor venue became an immersive interpretation of blue hour, complete with sky-inspired surroundings and plenty of reasons to linger.

Photo Credit: Jason Lowrie/BFA

Photo Credit: Jason Lowrie/BFA

Some context, because “new” is doing a lot of work in that sentence. The original L’Heure Bleue arrived in 1912, when Jacques Guerlain set out to bottle that hushed stretch of Parisian twilight when the sun has gone but the night hasn’t quite committed. More than a century later, it remains one of the most revered perfumes ever made (the kind people describe in terms usually reserved for first loves). Rewriting a legend is a risky business, so Jelk didn’t. Instead, she created an entirely new Eau de Parfum that shares the name, the inspiration and the bottle’s silhouette, while the original carries on as L’Heure Bleue 1912.

The 2026 version takes blue hour somewhere fresher. An ozonic accord, pear and neroli open the composition—think the first cool air of evening—before iris, jasmine and a marshmallow accord soften the mood, and vanilla, ambroxan and musks settle things in for the night. The iris, a bespoke tincture paired with iris butter, sits at the heart of it all. Which explains the live iris garden on the roof: Guerlain wasn’t merely decorating.

Photo Credit: Jason Lowrie/BFA

Photo Credit: Jason Lowrie/BFA

Shayk, Jordyn Woods, Bryant, Hilton Rothschild, Ashe, Olivia Ponton, and Athena Calderone joined friends of the house for the celebration. Also in attendance were Tessa Brooks, Ava Dash, and Gabrielle Richardson.

Cocktails came with a little creative direction. Guests wandered the iris garden and fragrance discovery stations, where the new scent could be sampled before dinner, while artist Nikki Javid painted her interpretation of blue hour in real time. With Manhattan stretching out beyond the rooftop, the setting did a fair amount of its own scene-stealing.

Photo Credit: Jason Lowrie/BFA

Photo Credit: Jason Lowrie/BFA

The evening then moved to a seated dinner featuring a menu curated by Michelin-starred chef Daniel Boulud, who oversees the food at Le Jardin sur Madison. A surprise performance by Broadway’s Maya Boyd supplied the soundtrack before DJ Isabella Massenet took over for the after-party.

Blue hour may be fleeting. Guerlain clearly had no intention of calling it an early night.

Photography: Jason Lowrie/BFA

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