If a winner doesn’t contact me until 23:59 PDT on Wednesday, August 8th, I’ll choose another winner: I want this sample to get to a winner before the perfume starts selling in stores.
Author: Undina
Coco Noir… Light by Chanel
For many years Chanel and I weren’t getting along. I knew the brand had iconic perfumes. I knew it was well-loved and famous. I kept trying No. 5 and other perfumes again and again still wondering after each attempt what I couldn’t smell that others could.
A couple of years ago on my way home from a pleasant trip to Sonoma wineries I stopped by a perfume counter at Nordstrom (I’ve never been to that store before or after) where I met a sales associate who was really passionate about Chanel perfumes. I didn’t try any other brands that day but I left the store in an even better mood and with five Chanel samples. And that was how it started.
That Christmas I bought my very first bottle of Chanel perfume. It was Coco. Since then I enriched my collection with numerous bottles and decants from Chanel including some Exclusifs. Some of them went much higher in my personal hierarchy. But Coco holds that special place by being the First one.
Coco by Chanel – created in 1984 by Jacques Polge; lists of notes are slightly different depending on the site, I’ll go with NST: jasmine, peach, frangipani, mimosa, orange blossom, cascarilla, rose, clove buds, angelica, labdanum, sandalwood, tonka bean, leather and opopanax.
If you want real reviews here is Angela’s (now smell this) and here is the most recent by Suzanna (Bois de Jasmin).
Three days ago I casually asked my friendly SA if she knew when they would be getting the new Coco Noir perfume and she very secretively handed me two samples saying that they weren’t supposed to show them yet, but for me… (She’s always good with me and I try to give her as much of my business as I can).
I do not trust my nose too much and I trust my ability to describe scents even less (not trying to be modest – just stating the fact) so these are just my impressions from testing Coco Noir in parallel with the original Coco.
Coco Noir is definitely Coco’s close relative – a younger sister maybe? She thinks she is all grown up and should be taken seriously; she tries really hard to be like her older sister who is effortlessly elegant and confident. But even through her thoroughly applied smokey eyes, dramatic lipstick and cynical gaze one can still see the freshness of the youth and innocence. But enough of the metaphor. In my opinion, the only “noir” part of this recent Coco flanker is the bottle – and what a beautiful bottle it is! I’m glad it isn’t dark blue or I wouldn’t have been able to resist.
Coco Noir by Chanel – created in 2012 by Jacques Polge; the notes include bergamot, grapefruit, orange, jasmine, rose, geranium, patchouli, tonka bean, vanilla, sandalwood, incense and white musk.
Coco Noir smells fresher then Coco; it is brighter because of a more prominent citrus note and it doesn’t last as long as the original version. Coco Noir is “younger” than Coco in modern perfumery sense as well – it’s fruitier and sweeter in the opening. A younger sister who prefers fruit punch on a sunny day to a glass of cognac next to a burning fireplace. If anything, Coco Noir is lighter than original Coco. But they couldn’t have used that beautiful bottle for Coco Light – right?
I do not think Coco’s fans will prefer Coco Noir and it’s not distinct enough to either justify the second bottle for a fan (unless you really want that bottle) or make a friend out of those who really disliked Coco. But if the original perfume was just a little too much for you Coco Noir might be an answer.
Victoria (Bois de Jasmin) today published a real review of Coco Noir.
If you’d like a chance to win a sample of Coco Noir you have until 23:59 PST on Saturday, August 4th. You do not need to do anything, just mention in your comment if you want to be in the draw. The only condition: you have previously commented on this blog at least once (I’ll know, no need mentioning that).
Images: my own.
Laughs, Lemmings, Loves – Episode 17
It was a good week: still great weather; many wonderful posts in those categories that I track (and then some) and a very enjoyable opening ceremony of the Olympics 2012. I read a lot of criticism about it but I had good time watching it. Though I have to admit that I watched it recorded so I had a luxury of skipping through all the advertising. What I didn’t miss was the information that Ralph Lauren promises that for the next Olympic Games our team’s outfit will be Made in USA (instead of China).
Lemmings
Victoria (Bois de Jasmin) reported the new Hermes L’Ambre des Merveilles perfume to be launched in August. Somehow I managed not to try any of Merveilles’ incarnations before so I decided that I would start there.
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Dee (beauty on the outside): In Equistrius, [rice note] creates a warmly tactile aspect to the cool, silky, powder of orris— not unlike a quick stroke on the heated neck of your mount after an elegantly executed passage.
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Natalie (Another Perfume Blog) found her leather perfume (Nappa Noir by Six Scents) but even if you’re not in the search for the one I’m positive you’ll enjoy an accompanying fiction story (I don’t want to give away anything so I’m not quoting). UPD: APB is closed now.
Laughs
Kathleen (No Disassemble Charlie No. 5): Although my favorite part of the sniffing trip was her reaction to the Montale display. “What is, this…fancy Axe?”
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Marlen (The Perfume Critic) published a funny story about his visit to Coty’s office in New York.
Loves
Clayton (What Man Should Smell Like): I wonder if I presented Opus III to the version of myself that existed 10 years ago, would I screw my nose up and say, “I think this is weird”. Perhaps so- but there is something about the scent that 2012 me loves. My last year’s post Library of Amouage touches first five perfumes in the collection.
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Kathleen (No Disassemble Charlie No. 5): If the Marilyn Monroe that popped out of JFK’s Birthday cake wearing little more than sparkles and a knowing smile had a love affair with Clark Gable in The Misfits, THAT would be Tuscan Leather!
Leftovers
Susan (Fine Fragrants) is getting married. If you want to say anything to her here is the right place.
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Jessica (Tinsel Creations), an art historian by trade who you might know better from her weekly reviews on NST, on her own blog has interesting series of posts The Art of Perfume Ads.
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Judith (the unseen censer) created My Perfume Portrait page on her site. She says it was easier than it seemed to do once she took my page as a template. Melissa (She Blogs it All) has also just launched a similar page Perfume Talk.
Carol (bloody frida) has List of perfume bottles and Steven (The Scented Hound) shares with his readers The Scented Hound’s Fragrance Collection. They do not specify which perfumes are their absolute favorites but at least it’s clear they like these enough to keep in their collections. If you are reading this post and have your own blog think about creating something like that someday – I’m sure many of your readers (I am for one) would be really curious to have your tastes mapped out in a readable format.
We need to talk… Do we really?
I read Andy Tauer’s response to Sheila’s post and realized that I had more to say than was appropriate for the comment section on either of those two blogs. It’s a good thing I have my own blog.
Why would any perfumer want a meaningful discussion in blogs and forums is completely beyond my understanding. But from my, blogger, position I think those discussions is a Sisyphean task. Why?
First of all, in my experience it’s such an unappreciated activity – telling an artist anything but how much you looove his every brush stroke. So unless you’re a professional who can provide an insight on why something shouldn’t be done (e.g. “not a stable mixture” or “will spoil faster than expected on average”) or won’t sell (e.g. “there are a really close alternatives from a more-known brand/for one-quarter of a price”) you are better off sticking to “loooove” or “nice but doesn’t work for me.”
Second, it might be important that those who serve as judges on different awards committees and panels know the difference between “niche”, “indie”, etc. perfumery. But why should a regular blogger care “[h]ow are things done and why does it matter whether a scent comes from a larger factory or from an artshop that resembles a kitchen more than a factory.” (Andy Tauer)? Most of us aren’t perfume critics. Most of us do not position themselves as experts in the field. We are perfume lovers. We are consumers. We write for other people like us. If we appreciate a perfume we might want to look more into the underlying story and share it with the readers (or not); we might be fascinated by how The Artist was able to create something so beautiful in a kitchen sink. But what if we do not like the result? If an “indie” perfume isn’t better than a mainstream (or niche mainstream) creation, it doesn’t really matter that a perfumer had to work 80-hours weeks, dreamt about the scent all his life and triple-mortgaged his house to launch it. It’s not a kindergarten and we should not be giving A for the effort. The best we, bloggers, can do is not to write anything – meaningful or otherwise.
And finally, when some of us dare to criticize some Artists’ work, what do we get in response?
[P]eople are trying to critique perfumes without knowing what it is to critique a perfume. They don’t have the knowledge. People don’t know what it means to compromise if you’re creating something for a brand.” and “[…] they try to drop ingredient names, chemical names, just to prove to their readers that they have the know-how. But so far, I’ve never been impressed by any critics. I read them to see if one day I come across something really different.” (Francis Kurkdjian’s interview with Persolaise).
Or
You have bad habits: you always expect people working in sales to creep in front of bloggers, because we are supposed to be afraid of your noxious comments? I’m the owner of Lubin, and I despise the people who criticize other people’s work and publish without even checking the most basic information. (a comment for Birgit’s review of Black Jade by Lubin)
So, in my opinion, the real dialog or criticism should be left to experts – it doesn’t matter real or self-proclaimed, let them defend their own status. We, regular people, will blog about something we loved or hated; will shout out our SOTD, SOTE, SOTA, etc. in 140 characters on twitter or “Like” a nice picture of a perfume bottle on Facebook. In the end we, laymen, will sell more niche and indie perfumes then those few chosen ones who are allowed to have an informed opinion and are capable of maintaining a comprehensive discourse in the subject. Why? Because most buyers are laymen with accounts on Twitter to tweet what perfume their cat has just spilled; on Facebook to post the newest “my cat sleeping on my lap” picture; on YouTube to watch the latest Maru video and Pinterest to pin up a bunch of cute kitten pictures.
Images: my own
Laughs, Lemmings, Loves – Episode 16
Last week was very serious: I haven’t come across any funny posts or comments. And I read most of the posts not only on my reading list but from “news & noise” category as well! So please, if I missed something laugh-worthy – give a link in your comment.
UPD: For a smile read Susan’s (Fine Fragrants) Juicy Crittoure dog shampoo review.
Lemmings
Victoria (Bois de Jasmin): Santal Majuscule is […] a romantic and tender scent of warm sandalwood brushed with honey and scattered with rose petals. Never mind Scheherazade’s palace, her skin must have smelled like this–of milk, roses and sweet spices.
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Modesty Brown (Modesty Brown loves make-up): On selected dates from 27th July, artists will be available in Jo Malone Boutiques in the capital, to customise boxes with your favourite London landmarks. There is no extra cost for the service and as you can see above, the sketches look really striking on the signature cream and black gift boxes. There’s no doubt that this would make an extra special gift for someone. (you have to click the link to see a picture!) WANT!
Loves
Blacknall Allen (aperfumeblog by Blacknall Allen) muses on the pedigree of Coco by Chanel: Polge thought he could reproduce this atmosphere of richness, of muffled ultra-refinement, by fusing three existing Chanel formulas to come up with a correspondingly intricate and Byzantine mixture to reflect the subdued baroque richness of the late Mademoiselle’s decor, so he combined Bois des Isles, Cuir de Russie, and Sycomore. Et voila, the resinous, slightly sweet woody oriental that everyone now associates with the successful excesses of the eighties.
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Denyse (Grain de musc) shares beautiful pictures and haikus for the Hermessence collection. For my favorite Vetiver Tonka:
And away it flows,
Robbing the sun’s bright light
Such is the source!
Find your favorite here.
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For those of you who scans through posts headlines to decide if to read it, I want to bring to your attention touching Angela’s (Now Smell This) review of the discontinued Dior-Dior perfume by Christian Dior. This one was my least favorite out of three that my mother had when I was a child and it is discontinued and practically unavailable so I could have missed this post as well. And I’m glad that I haven’t: perfume itself doesn’t matter. It’s hard to use a vintage, discontinued fragrance knowing that when it’s gone it’s likely gone for good. But enjoying a perfume sure beats simply having the perfume.
Leftovers
In case you missed, Sigrun of frafrancefanatic has moved her blog. New blog is Riktig Parfym.
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I like Atelier Cologne brand. I was an early adopter and bought two small bottles of their colognes two years ago. So of course I was thrilled to read that they will release two new perfumes this Fall – Rose Anyonme and Vétiver Fatal. And when they come to my local Neiman Marcus I will test them. But I’m mildly annoyed: did they really need to release two more agarwood perfumes? Well, yes, they did – how else do you justify nowadays raising prices 20-30% (two years ago I paid $55 for each!)? And it’s not even read agarwood!
Twice into the same river?
I was a teenager; she was a beautiful young woman. I was staying at her house as a guest. I think she didn’t like me much (it’s complicated), and I admired her. One night, as we were dressing up for a birthday party, she kindly allowed me to use her makeup and even let me spray one of her French perfumes. All dressed up and smelling wonderfully, I felt myself all grown-up and irresistible.
Several years later, I found and bought Isa by Ulric de Varens. By that time I already owned several perfumes including my all-time favorite Climat by Lancôme (in the same post you’ll find the explanation of the “French perfume” term I used above), but Isa found its place in my fragrance wardrobe, and I wore it on and off for several years.
When a couple of years ago I remembered about Isa and tried to look for it online, I discovered that it wasn’t easily available. I read mentions of it here and there but nobody was selling it. Luckily for me, I didn’t know then the perfumer’s name (Jacques Saint Pres) or I could have ended up paying $180 for it. Eventually, I came across Ulric de Varens’ website and an online store. Too bad they weren’t shipping to anywhere outside France.
A year ago, I asked my friend who was going on a car trip through Europe to look for Isa if he happens to visit any of drugstores in France (I assumed it was that type of a brand). He took it even further: he actually drove to France to go into a couple of stores. Not speaking French, he managed to get help and find some perfumes from Ulric de Varens. No Isa though.
Two months ago, I asked Suzanne of Eiderdown Press who was going to Paris (see her account for this trip – Paris, je t’aime) to help me with my quest. She tried. She drove to the address she got from the website and walked back and forth along the street – no store, just the Consulate of Oman. The further investigation revealed that by mistake she got their corporate mailing address instead of a store one. But it was too late.
Recently, somebody in the Facebook Fragrance Friends group mentioned Suzan of Shop France, Inc. who, among other things like planning and organizing trips to Paris, does personal shopping there. She brings to the U.S. exclusive French perfumes that aren’t available here – Lutens, Guerlain, etc. And there was I asking for a $5 French drugstore brand… But two weeks later I got a package with a fragrant blast from the past (Thank you, Susan!).
Fragrantica for Isa by Ulric de Varens lists just floral notes, nutmeg and spices. That’s it. How does it smell? Unidentifiable floral notes. Unidentifiable spices. That’s it. Was it reformulated since I tried it last? I don’t know! It’s so synthetic that I’m sure no animal plant was harmed during its creation. But since packaging did change to worse (it’s a really cheap looking box, bottle and cap) I wouldn’t be surprised. On skin it doesn’t change much over the course of its life, its veeery long life (easily 12 hours and then some).
I’m glad I got it and I’m grateful to everybody who helped me to get this perfume that has a sentimental value to me. Will I wear it? I’m not sure. My vSO didn’t like it this time around; he thinks “it smells like soap”. I must have spoiled him with all those exclusive French perfumes…
Images: my own
Laughs, Lemmings, Loves – Episode 15
Last weekend was filled with events – a short trip to Carmel with my vSO to celebrate an anniversary on Saturday (a post is coming at some point, I think); the First Artisan Fragrance Salon on Sunday (my post and pictures are here). Since I didn’t have time for my weekly round-up post for the last week here’s a double portion of those posts that made me laugh, created lemmings or reviewed my favorite perfumes.
Lemmings
Thomas (Candy Perfume Boy): Since its release in 2005 Mugler has released a plethora of Alien Editions, each of which has seemed better than the last, and it would be fair to say that the very latest edition ‘Alien Essence Absolue’ is the best yet, and they know it too hailing Essence Absolue as “The Supreme Perfume”. And, if it wasn’t enough, here comes news about four more upcoming limited editions: Thierry Mugler is set to release four limited edition leather interpretations of their most popular scents.
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Birgit (Olfactoria’s Travels) keeps creating Amouage-related lemmings: The many faces of Interlude Woman can seem chaotic at times, only to resolve themselves into recurring moments of perfect clarity again and again. The seemingly rivaling accords of almost masculine spices and woods and the tender, feminine florals dance a powerful choreography around a core that is imperturbable and stands like a rock in the midst of all that agitation. And once you think she’s done, here comes the second volley: Interlude Man feels like a strong man with a soft heart, someone to protect you, care for you, be there for you. Oh my, can it be that Interlude Man is my knight in shining armor?
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Parfumista (Parfumistans Blogg) reviews a perfume with an interesting name from the brand about which I haven’t heard before: Impossible Iris is high quality stuff, very versatile, it’s the perfect officescent, a sort of first-class Prada Infusion d’Iris Edp replacement. Impossible Iris is also the perfect “lunch at some elegant restaurant fragrance” or something to wear at a day time reception… If you want to know more about this brand and when it’s coming to the US read Carrie’s (eyeliner on a cat) interview with the perfumer.
Laughs
Speaking of lemmings…
Dionne: … it was amazing how quickly they [lemmings] quieted down once I stepped away. Conversely, I swear I heard a couple of them yell “CANNONBALL!” the moment I opened up my Google Reader.
Mals: Your lemmings yell “Cannonball!”?? Mine rub their hands together and whisper evilly. Then they go have mad lemming sex and multiply.) More in comments.
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Vanessa (Bonkers about Perfume): What were the owners of the store trying to tell their customers, I wondered? Interestingly, no other ornaments were used on any other items of furniture to suggest possible usage. There were no fruit bowls on the dining tables, no hats on the hat stand, no monks on the monks bench, for example.
Loves
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Madeline (AustralianPerfumeJunkies) reviews four perfumes from my favorite perfume house: AMOUAGE Awesome Foursome.
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Natalie (Another Perfume Blog) writes a perfect “thank you for visiting” letter (UPD: APB is closed now) to my new perfume love – Cruel Gardenia (here’s my story of falling in love with this wonderful perfume).
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Portia (AustralianPerfumeJunkies): On my skin I love the crackling, nearly burnt herbs and spices that fly and waft freely as soon as you spray Ambre Sultan, as if you’ve just thrown them on a very hot, dry pan over a campfire. It’s harsh, bitter, green, wood, vanilla and smoke all at the same time and it jumps up and assaults your nostrils, BAM!
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Birgit (Olfactoria’s Travels): Chypre Palatin is a very unique perfume. I don’t have anything like it in my collection and I love its total recognizability. This is a perfume you could immediately identify when you smelled it “in the wild”.
First Artisan Fragrance Salon in San Francisco
Last Sunday, July 8th, I spent the day at the First Artisan Fragrance Salon in San Francisco. You’ve probably read something about it already so just to recap: twenty artisan perfume companies presented their perfumes at the Gallery 4N5. There were also wine and chocolate tasting as well as some talks and presentations.
In the next couple of weeks I’ll try to write more about some of my personal discoveries at this Salon but I want to share with you pictures of those stands that I managed to take before there were too many people. Keep in mind that pictures on walls were a part of the Gallery decor and participants weren’t allowed to change those. Notice how perfectly some of the stands and art came together. I’m not sure if there was any special thinking behind those designations or if they just happen to come together by chance but some of them really played out. Click on pictures to see more details.
Both Yosh (above) and Sonoma Scent Studio (below) found an elegant solution to the over-perfuming the small space: pre-sprayed glass containers. I really like the idea because in addition to the benefit mentioned there are multiple others: you do not need to remember which paper strip you sprayed with each perfume (which is even harder if you were given a blotter sprayed by a perfumer); you can revisit scents multiple times without trying to juggle those multiple paper strips and, finally, if you didn’t like the scent you do not need to decide if it’s polite to discard it right there, in front of a perfumer/presenter, or if you have to take it with you.
Many people were disappointed that Laurie Erickson, the nose behind Sonoma Scent Studio, couldn’t attend the event. On the positive side, there was her newest addition to the line Forest Walk and the stand looked very elegant.
Artemisia Natural Perfume, perfumer Lisa Fong
For a while I was considering one of Artemisia‘s perfumes – Ondine because of the name (it means the same as Undina, just a different spelling) but I’m not too good with all-natural perfumes, usually they don’t work for me. I should have probably bought a sample (though now I cannot remember if this table offered any for sale) but I was so overwhelmed with everything that I wasn’t thinking straight.
Ineke, perfumer Ineke Rühland
Ineke had a very nice spot and they decorated it just perfectly. Do you see the stack of sample sets on the left? They were all sold out quickly. On the off-chance somebody doesn’t know that, this is one of the best discovery sets out there: for $25 including shipping you’re getting the cutest box with seven 2 ml individually wrapped samples and that price is redeemable for a purchase of a full bottle.
Probably half of all participants didn’t have any samples for sale and I think it’s a mistake. I understand that for a small company it might be prohibitively expensive to give away samples and I didn’t expect them to do that. But it’s also hard to expect that people who have never smelled this brand’s perfumes (and sometimes haven’t even heard about its existence) before will distinguish any of the perfumes out of literally hundreds, fall in love with it and decide to spend $40-$135 on the spot for a full bottle. Some brands at least offered purse sprays under $20 (Sonoma Scent Studio and Olympic Orchids) which is a much more reasonable option.
En Voyage Perfumes, perfumer Shelley Waddington
Shelley Waddington presented her newest The Cosmologie Collection. I liked A Study in Water on a blotter but I didn’t have a chance to test it on skin. I’ll need to revisit it one day.
Ellen Covey, the perfumer, in addition to the main collection, also introduced her new collection created for the Devilscent Project. I found my favorite out of five – Dev 2.
Roxana Illuminated Perfume, perfumer Roxana Villa
The name 40 notes perfume seemed somehow familiar but I couldn’t remember where I read about it or what. I liked brand’s esthetics and thought that Miriam, the perfumer, was really charming. But I caught her later in the day, she was tired and wasn’t sure it was the best time to pose for a picture. I promised her not to use it, so here’s just a picture of the stand:
Those beautiful green and gold paper boxes are sample sets. Since perfumes are oils they are expensive. While I understand $5+ for 1 ml, there was just one perfume in the line to which I was immediately attracted so I just couldn’t justify paying $40 for the sample set. Maybe I should have… Well, I have time to think about it since those can be ordered from the website.
Velvet & Sweet Pea’s Perfumery
Leila Castle Botanical Fragrance
Rebel & Mercury Pure Botanical Perfumes
One more brand that decided to use glass as a medium for perfumes testing (though it bothered me a little that there was three glasses of one form and one of another). If I ever come across this line I’ll test it more: I was too tired by the time I got to them.
And, finally, there was one brand new brand that launched that day at the Fragrance Salon – Cognoscenti. There are just three perfumes in the line (that is how brands/lines should be launched!) and I liked one of them enough to put on the skin. I will test all three more and see if I have a story to tell.
COGNOSCENTI, perfumer Danniel Sergent
There were several more stands – Ayala Moriel Parfums, Divine Life Perfume and Parfums DelRae but my pictures of those tables are too blurry to share.
I enjoyed the event: friendly and warm atmosphere, beautifully decorated stands and an unimaginable variety of perfumes, perfumed oils, body products and other scent-related items.
On the negative side – music in some areas was too loud, it was hard talking to people; too many perfumes were sprayed in the area without a proper ventilation and just simply NOT ENOUGH TIME to try even brands about which I knew before – leave alone completely new ones. But I really tried.
I hope this will actually become an annual event because I want to go to the next one already.
Images: my own
Entertaining Statistics: June, 2012
It feels almost wrong but I can’t stop telling everybody how great our summer is so far: sunny but cool and breathy. But I should mention that I sympathize a lot with those who suffer from the recent heat wave.
For those of my readers who might still remember that I had some… ambitious New Year Resolutions I want to report that as of the end of June I was still good. Unfortunately, that was probably the last month about which I’m able to say that. I’ve reached my self-imposed limits on both full bottles and decants.
Now I’m trying to decide what to do. I know that there is no way I can go through the rest of the year without adding any perfumes to my collection. So should I just accept that and hope I’ll be somewhat reasonable or is it better to set new quota and try to stay within it? I don’t know.
I’m testing less of new perfumes because I’m trying to spend more time with those samples that I previously tested and didn’t make up my mind. It means that my pile of untested perfumes isn’t getting any smaller. My dream: all companies in perfumes from which I’m interested decide to take a year-long hiatus in launching new perfumes… Yeah, right.
Quick June stats:
Numbers in parenthesis are comparison to the previous month’s numbers.
* Different perfumes worn1: 26 (-1) from 19 (0) brands on 29 (-2) occasions;
* Favorite perfumes worn: 19 (-1) on 19 (-4) occasions;
* Different perfumes tested2: 38 (-7) from 23 (-5) brands on 45 (-11) occasions;
* Perfumes I tried for the first time: 9 (-20);
* Perfume house I wore most often: Dior;
* Perfume house I tested the most: Serge Lutens;
* Most popular notes (only from perfumes I chose to wear): top – (not counting bergamot) rose and neroli; middle – (not counting rose and jasmine) iris root and ylang ylang (the same as last year); base – musk, vanilla and sandalwood;
* Perfumes I tried for the first time and liked: Grand Bal by Dior, Chypre Palatin by Parfums MDCI and Vetiver Oriental by Serge Lutens.
If you had NY resolutions regarding perfumes are you still following them? Are you succeeding? Are you failing?
1 For the testing I apply a perfume to one area on my arms easily available for the repetitive sniffing. But, most likely, I’m the only one who can smell it. I can test two, sometimes even more perfumes at the same time.
2 When I wear a perfume I apply it to at least three-four points and usually I plan to spend at least 4-8 hours with the same scent so I’m prepared to re-apply if the original application wears off.
Image: my own
Laughs, Lemmings, Loves – Episode 14
Last Friday when my vSO showed me one of the temperature maps of the US (similar to the one below) my reaction was:” We do NOT pay enough for our real estate!” (For those who aren’t familiar with the subject, take a look here). It was such a beautiful week here, in San Francisco Bay Area! Warm but not hot, breathy, with just enough sun to feel summer-y.
Here are posts that created perfumes lemmings, made me laugh or reviewed perfumes that I love.
Lemmings
Even though I still haven’t tried the last two perfumes from Amouage – Opus VI and Beloved, I’m lemming already for the next one. I definitely have a thing for dark blue bottles!
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Gaia (The Non-Blonde): People who dislike the popular pairing of coconut milk note with fig will rejoice at the Armani Privé interpretation. It also doesn’t have even a hint of creamy woods, or much wood at all. This is not the olfactory representation of the lush Mediterranean tree or the wonderful aroma of its leaves, green and sappy, giving much needed shade and relief on a hot summer day. Instead, Figuier Eden focuses on the ripeness of the fruit, sweet and juicy, paired with mandarin orange and what smells like peach tea. Once again I don’t understand why they stopped carrying Armani Privé line of perfumes in most places in the U.S.
Laughs
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Vanessa (Bonkers about Perfume): I am patiently waiting for the day when someone attempts to lick me wearing ANY fragrance. Or while not wearing any fragrance. I am ludicrously happy just to receive a compliment about my SOTD, as that is such a rare occurrence.
Loves
Angela (Now Smell This) reviews one of my favorite perfumes from one of my most favorite brands: This review is a cry for glamour and an entreaty to give Gold Woman a square sampling. Perhaps you’ve dared a spritz at a perfume boutique and were daunted by its Birgit Nilsson of a voice. Maybe you thought, sure I’ll wear Gold Woman — as soon as I get gold taps for my bathtub and a Persian cat. I get it. I can’t pull off Gold Woman most days. I suspect that most of my current readers have read four participans’ take on Amouage Gold Woman vs. Lancome Climat but if no – you might want to take a look, it was an interesting experiment.
Leftovers
I wasn’t sure if to put it in loves or laughs so it ended up in this section. You’ve probably heard already that Chandler Burr’s mystery S01E01 perfume was Prada’s Infusion d’Iris. I find it really ironic: a day before Mr. Burr unveiled his first offering I posted Alien wears Prada Infusion d’Iris in which I told the story of not being influenced by the brand, the bottle, the packaging and even the perfume itself but later falling for the picture from the ad campaign. As Katie Puckrik’s pen pal called it: “It’s the anti-Burr approach.”
Now, when you know what perfume it was, have you changed your original judgment of the project (whatever it was)?
Me? Whereas I can clearly see how Prada’s original bottle is more beautiful and attractive than CB’s “unmarked 50ml lab bottles”, I do not understand why
structure is virtually invisible; it is one of the most seamless pieces of scent work I know, almost unnervingly perfect. It has an astonishing olfactory texture, soft, cool, precise.
The beauty in this scent lies, in part, in the fact that it is designed to function while making virtually no noise at all. Wearing it makes you feel like you’ve walked away to a distant point and sat down in a cloud bank; it lends you the purity of purpose and the luxury of self-imposed isolation.
… is supposed to be considered less of “marketing techniques” than
was inspired by a quest for balance and harmony in a chaotic, contradictory world. […]
“A perfume is like a dream, a journey to Italy, an atmosphere, the clean fragrance of starched linen sheets against naked skin. It comprises familiar aromas, natural oils and priceless extracts. It imitates none of the current trends in perfumery. It does not follow in the footsteps of the established olfactory or descriptive stereotypes for perfumes for women, but is expressed in the contrast between extraordinary freshness, apparent lightness and a sort of delicate, yet sensual and strong veil that embraces the body and the clothing of the woman who wears it.”
Yesterday, while stopping at the local Nordstrom’s perfume counter to chat with a friendly SA, I sniffed the air and immediately asked if she was wearing Infusion d’Iris. She was. Infusion d’Iris Absolue, a sample of which I got from her to do a parallel test at home with the EdP version. So I was right not to play this game. I do not think I need that “blindfold” to appreciate perfumes: I like perfumes many other people completely dismiss; I cannot wear some perfumes from the brands I love and I stay completely cold towards many well-respected and highly acclaimed perfumes. I do not need Chandler Burr telling me Infusion d’Iris is a warm scent – for me it smells and always will smell cold and, I agree with Katie, standoffish.
Undina's Looking Glass 