May 5, 2008 19:28
16 yrs ago
2 viewers *
French term

brouille les pistes de

French to English Marketing Idioms / Maxims / Sayings perfume/idiom
In a magazine interview with the creator of a trendy new perfume (nb: please also see my previous kudos question as I'm struggling to understand the first part of this sentence!). Not sure how to translate the idiom "brouille les pistes de" in this particular context. The translation offered in my dictionaries (to confuse/cloud the issue) just doesn't seem to fit here:

Il [the perfume] est ultra facetté, il joue autant la gourmandise qu’il ne flirte avec une féminité affirmée, **il brouille les pistes de** la transparence et du velours, du croquant et du crémeux.
Change log

May 5, 2008 19:46: Stéphanie Soudais changed "Field" from "Other" to "Marketing" , "Field (specific)" from "Textiles / Clothing / Fashion" to "Idioms / Maxims / Sayings"

Discussion

katsy May 5, 2008:
I just wonder if this means 'tout simplement' (!!) that it mixes up these elements - bon courage!

Proposed translations

+2
12 mins
Selected

a blend of......

mixture of
Peer comment(s):

agree katsy : yes to 'blend' -one could also use the verb form (it blends X and Y...)
3 mins
agree Ewa Chojnowska
12 mins
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4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer. Comment: "Selected automatically based on peer agreement."
24 mins

combines the traces of

Example: Fresh clean citrus combines with traces of clove, peppermint, and thyme, and is complimented by ...
Example sentence:

http://www.heavenlyperfumes.com.au/for/Men/11

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+1
1 hr

it blurs the lines between...

another suggestion ... to see if you can work it in
Peer comment(s):

agree Isabelle Berquin : My favorite interpretation! It uses a visual image rather than olfactory, but is a similar idea.
5 hrs
thanks!
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1 hr

mixing

The rest of the sentence should make the implied contradiction in the SL phrase clear, by the time you've got transparency and velvet, crunchy (?!) and creamy in, there shouldn't be much need to complicate things further!
Just a suggestion.
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2 hrs

an intricate lacework

or an intricate maze.
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+1
13 hrs

seamlessly embracing...

"Transparent" and "velvet", "creamy" and "crisp" are, obviously, opposites so the idea is to take lots of contrasting elements and bring them seamlessly together in this single miraculous fragrance ;-)

Perhaps we can come up with another word to replace "seamlessly"?
Peer comment(s):

agree Clair Pickworth : I like this idea too.
40 mins
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11 hrs

whirlwind/labyrinth/medley

I'd use a noun instead of trying to keep the verb form.

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Note added at 17 hrs (2008-05-06 12:37:49 GMT)
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blurs the boundaries between
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