Yves St. Laurent, the legendary French designer known for a dazzling line of perfumes, passed away on May 31, 2008. He was 71.

St. Laurent was actually born in Algeria to a mercantile family. As a boy, St. Laurent showed considerable artistic promise. As a teenager, he won a design contest for fashion and embarked (then living in Paris) on that career. He never wavered from his constant pursuit of couture.

While Yves St. Laurent was not an overnight success in fashion, he seemed like it to casual observers. While still relatively young in the industry, he met fashion designer Christian Dior. Dior reportedly took such an instant liking to St. Laurent that he hired him on the spot. Years later, when Christian Dior stepped down from the fabled House of Dior, it was Yves St. Laurent who took up the reins.

LIke many in his generation of couture, Yves St. Laurent was first and foremost a fashion designer. (One of his best-known scandalous designs was a see-through blouse.) Fragrance was an accessory to the overall concept of fashion.

His first perfume was Y (see Confessions of Perfumista for Joanna McLaughlin's take on that fragrance). Although not considered by many his best, it put him on the fragrance map. Opium is probably his most famous, along with Baby Doll. The latest in the line-up are the brand-new Elle and a not-quite-but-sort-of-new Cinema.

Like most designers, Yves St. Laurent was not the nose behind his perfumes, but he stood behind the scents as part of his grand vision. He once said that he thought fashion should, in part, inspire women and give them a sense of confidence. His scents were complex, but bold. He favored Orientals rather than whimsical florals or flimsy neutral-type scents. These are strong scents, and confident ones.

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