May 31, 2012 by Undina

Alien wears Prada Infusion d’Iris

If I’m supposed to identify with those extremely beautiful women from different perfumes ads, dressed up either impeccably or with a calculated carelessness, I should say that it doesn’t work on me. I do not feel that any perfume might transform me into one of them – or even make me feel like I’m one of them: they are artificial; they are abstract and just an expected visual aid to the release de jour.

When Infusion d’Iris* by Prada was released, I immediately went to a store to try it. I didn’t like it. I think it was my first perfume with a prominent iris note (though I’m not sure I even knew then what it was). I didn’t expect to smell what I smelled – so I didn’t like it.

I don’t remember how exactly it happened but I remember that one day I was looking at the ad above and thinking that I liked that image so much that I just had to have Infusion d’Iris. I don’t even like that model, I prefer them older and … more human. But the image is hauntingly weird and cool and elegant.

I tried Infusion d’Iris again, liked it that time and bought a bottle without even waiting for it to make its way to discounters online. For me it smells very elegant, cold and refined – exactly the way that alien in gloves looks on the picture. And unless they colonize the Earth tomorrow, I do not want to look like it or project that image. But five years later I still enjoy wearing Infusion d’Iris and probably won’t want to be without in – just in case, you know, extraterrestrial invasion and all that.

For a real review (and a very cool suggestion on layering) read Birgit’s (Olfactoria’s Travels) Wallflower? – Review: Prada Infusion d’Iris. Robin (NST) had also reviewed this perfume. If you reviewed Infusion d’Iris on your blog share a link please.

Update: one more review of Prada Infusion d’Iris at Scentandshinythings.

* Infusion d’Iris in this story refers to the EDP version.

May 2, 2012 by Undina

In the Search for the Perfect Lily of the Valley

I grew up with May Day being an International Workers Day. Even though it was a holiday, it was an official holiday and people were required to participate in parades officially held in all major cities and translated by all TV stations. In my city, I remember, all traffic would be blocked for those demonstrations in the downtown area from early morning and until 2-3 p.m. My room’s window was facing one of the major streets and I would be woken up by music, megaphone announcements and other human noises. And then, for hours, non-stopping streams of people with flags, banners, balloons and artificial flowers would flow by my window toward the main city square. As a child I liked that holiday: it was a real beginning of the spring, we would get two days off school, kids weren’t a part of those demonstrations (unless their parents took them to their groups formed by places of work) but it was festive, different from regular weekends and there always was something interesting to do during or after the main event (like shooting balloons with a slingshot, for example).

I haven’t been not only celebrating but even acknowledging this holiday for many-many years and this year with everything going on under the sign of this day I’d be even less inclined to feel any nostalgia towards May Day if it weren’t for my hobby. Starting last year, when I read about it for the first time, I chose to associate this day with a beautiful French tradition of giving bouquets of lily of the valley.

I’m fascinated by this flower. I’ve always been. It looks fragile and lusty at the same time as if those tiny flowers were carved out of a very white ivory and carefully placed against a backdrop of flat wide leaves. And I love a very distinct lily of the valley aroma unmistakable with any other.

For a while I was collecting samples of perfumes built around this beautiful flower and testing them for this post in my Single Note Exploration series. Then I was struggling with a horde of lemmings born after I read an announcement about this year’s limited edition bottle of Muguet by Guerlein. How cool would it have been to make a picture of that gorgeous bottle for the post about lily of the valley note in perfumery?! It wasn’t easy but I won with the moral support from Victoria (Bois de Jasmine) and Natalie (Another Perfume Blog) despite Tara’s subversive actions! Instead I bought the last in the store pot with lily of the valley and took pictures of my very photogenic cat Rusty playing with it.

That was a hell of a preamble. But don’t worry: since I’m not doing real reviews I’ll try to be laconic. I’ll skip usual “created by” and notes lists since most of these are well-known perfumes.

All perfumes I tested can be divided into three categories: Lily of the Valley I didn’t Like, Lily of the Valley I couldn’t Smell and Lily of the Valley I Loved.

Lily of the Valley I didn’t Like

Muguet Blanc by Van Cleef & Arpels – I smell an apple in it even though it’s not mention in notes. An artificial apple. It’s wrong. On paper I remember it being more lily-of-the-valley-y but on my skin it smells rather unpleasant in the first 45 minutes even though I think I recognize the scent of the flower. For my nose Muguet Blanc smells of a cheap synthetic lily of the valley air freshener brought in the room full of not just wilting but decaying in water floral bouquets. Then the freshener wins. In 2 hours it’s a perfectly nice scent on my skin. I’m not sure I’ll ever finish my sample.

Le Muguet by Annick Goutal – in general, it’s nice, slightly more perfume-y than other believable lily of the valley renderings but still very recognizable. Le Muguet has some sweetness but it’s not overly sweet to my nose. Unfortunately, during one of three testing I got some plastic-y note. It might be my skin reaction but understanding that doesn’t make Le Muguet more wearable for me. I will give my sample another try but I do not see this perfume joining my collection in any form after that. You should try Le Muguet since it might behave differently on you (and if it does it smells really nice and natural).

Idylle by Guerlain – for the first couple of times when I tested it (a year ago) I was sure it was a rose scent. And then one day my nose picked out a prominent lily of the valley note. Since then I always think of Idylle as of a lily of the valley perfume. When tried in parallel with the other perfumes that are closer to being a soliflore Idylle feels more complex, more perfume-like and less lily-of-the-valley-centric creation than the rest perfumes I tested. I do not think Idylle is bad, it’s just not special enough for me to go beyond the sample I have (if even that).

Lily of the Valley I couldn’t Smell

When I read about Andy Tauer’s lily of the valley perfume I was very excited. There are just several Andy’s perfumes that work for me but I thought: how bad can it be if a talented perfumer creates a perfume with one of my favorite floral note in the middle of the composition? Well…

Carillon pour un ange by Tauer Perfumes – I smell pollen, a lot of sweetness and, I think, some mimosa. It has a great tenacity and I think it’s a very nice, very masterfully created perfume. But I couldn’t smell lily of the valley in it at all! I was so upset when I tried Carillon pour un ange for the first two times, I felt so cheated that I gave away my sample.

It wasn’t until several months later when, after trying DSH’s Muguet de Mai Perfume and Muguet Cologne, I realized that while I couldn’t smell lily of the valley in there either it seemed to me that both Andy and Dawn smelled (tried to re-create?) the same flower. Muguet de Mai starts very lemon-y plus some earth note. Muguet Cologne starts earthy and then turns into more floral composition… Both without much lily of the valley how I know it. I got another sample of Carillon pour un ange just to confirm my impression. And I can tell that though these three are completely different perfumes I smell more in common between them than between any one of them and lily of the valley. Compared to the real flower (I think I spent hours doing that for all perfumes I tested for this post) I kind of “see” the idea but all three don’t smell as lily of the valley to me. It should be my nose, right? Samples will stay in my scents reference library.

Lily of the Valley I Loved

For the First of May this year I wore Diorissimo by Dior. I own a bottle of the current EdT and a vintage mini that has problems with top notes but then it’s fine. Diorissimo is so nice and spring-like! I do not love it but I like it enough to enjoy wearing from time to time. Even though Diorissimo has a prominent lily of the valley accord I do not think of it as of a soliflore. When I wear it I wear a perfume. But only when I smelled Diorissimo together with the real flower I realized how close they were. I always knew that Diorissimo was an iconic lily of the valley perfume; I wore it knowing it smelled of lily of the valley but I’ve never realized how much it smelled like lily of the valley. Wow.

Muguet by Guerlain – is a fresh and very… clear scent – not in the sense “airy” but rather “without impurities” like a diamond or “not distorted” as in “clear sound”. As I’ve mentioned earlier, I fought off the urge to buy a full bottle of this perfume but I’m amazed at how much I liked it and how true it is to the real lily of the valley. I get everything – sweetness of the flowers, greenness of the leaves, general warmth of the scent. The only component that isn’t there is earthiness but I do not miss it, I’m fine with the pure floral part of the plant. I want a full bottle but will have to settle for a small decant of Muguet if I can find it. It’s so beautiful!

Lily of the Valley by Penhaligon’s – I like it a lot. It’s bright, warm and very realistic. I’m not too familiar with this brand, I’ve tested just a few of their perfumes and I haven’t formed any opinion about the house yet. It was the last perfume I tested for this episode and I think I didn’t expect it to be as good as it proved to be. I suspect that I like Muguet slightly better not even because it’s Guerlain but because I loved the bottle and all that “one day only” marketing BS (sorry, Guerlain, I start liking you more and more but this February Muguet 2011 was still available at the boutique). But I’m not sure if in a blind sniffing I would be able to tell them apart. I plan to add a mini bottle of Penhaligon’s Lily of the Valley to my collection.

I read a rumor some time ago that Frederic Malle had a plan to add a lily-of-the-valley-centric perfume into their line-up. If it happens I will definitely try it. Other than that I do not plan on actively seeking any more perfumes with that note being a dominant one.

How about you? Do you like lily of the valley – as a flower or a perfume note? Do you wear it? And, what I’m mostly interested in, if you tried perfumes from my Lily of the Valley I couldn’t Smell category, did you smell lily of the valley in them?

Images: my own (I hope there was enough of them to compensate for the long story)

April 26, 2012 by Undina

Déjà vu, Episode 3: powdery fruit vs. peony oriental vs. sandalwood jasmine

When I was a child there was a sketch comedy TV show for kids – Yeralash. One of the episodes was titled Twins (it’s shorter than 2 minutes – start at 4:00 – you can watch it for the idea, I didn’t find it with subtitles).

The plot: Two little boys (LBs) on a sled bump into an older boy (OB). He gets up to confront them when he notices that they look alike.

OB: Identical twins!
LBs (here and later they speak in unison): We are not identical twins!
OB: What do you mean “not twins”? Are you brothers?
LBs: Yes!
OB: Then you’re identical twins!
LBs: No, we told you, we are not identical twins!
OB: Were you born the same day?
LBs: Yes!
OB: Then you are identical twins!
LBs: No, we are not!
OB: Why are you messing with me?! Let’s do it again. Were you born the same day? Are you brothers? Are you look-alike?
LBs: Yes! Yes! Yes!
OB: Then you are twins!
(the third little boy who looks exactly as the first two comes from behind and pushes OB away): Leave them alone! We are identical triplets!!! I went to pee!

A year ago in one of the department stores I came across a stand with six or seven classic Guerlein fragrances. It was my first close encounter with those perfumes and since the only one I tried before – Shalimar – didn’t work for me I was reluctant to put anything on my skin. So I spent some time with all those bottles and paper strips. Have you ever tried keeping six unsigned blotters in order? I thought I was doing fine… Later, as I was going through those blotters in the car, the scent from one of them suddenly felt very familiar. A couple of minutes of intense sniffing later I conjured the answer: Estee Lauder’s Tuscany per Donna! The problem was that I didn’t know which perfume it was: blotters mixed in my hands and names did the same in my head.

I came home and went through the notes lists for those perfumes I suspected might be “it” – Mitsouko, Jicky, Jardins de Bagatelle and L’Heure Bleue. Each one of them had a potential but I couldn’t tell which one it was just from comparing notes. So the next week I went back to the store and sprayed those perfumes on new blotters (signed this time to avoid confusion). Nothing. None of them smelled like Tuscany per Donna. Since all that happen soon after I published the first episode in my o Déjà vu category I concluded that it was a wishful thinking on my part and thus wrapped up my experiments.

During my Guerlain Quest in Las Vegas this February, following Suzanne’s recommendation, I tested Samsara in parfum concentration. I smelled it from a blotter that an SA handed to me and immediately thought of another perfume Samsara reminded me of. Actually, I thought of another two perfumes. But remembering reaction of the Specialist (I won’t repeat the link but you might want to look through the story from the Episode 1 linked above to understand what I’m referring to); I chose the “more niche” of two to mention to that SA. I told him that Samsara reminded me of Frederic Malle’s Iris Poudre. And that was where it was “déjà vu all over again”: his reaction was really similar to the one I got from Malle’s Specialist. I thought it was ironic.

A month ago at a grocery store I thought I recognized a scent on a woman. I’m never shy to approach people about perfumes (or shoes) they are wearing:

– Are you wearing Tuscany per Donna? – I asked.
– No, it’s Samsara – she answered.

The circle has closed.

Since this post is a follow-up to my older story I decided against a full-blown blind testing (which was, in my opinion, a complete success in my second Déjà vu episode) but I had a chance to solicit a quick blind sniffing participation from Susan (Fine Fragrants):

Based on my first tries of each of these perfumes, I agree that they are similar. Yet I can readily identify differences between each of them. Red (Iris Poudre) smells more “modern” to me than Blue (Tuscany per Donna) or Yellow (Samsara) – more like something that would be coming out on the market now. Yellow is quieter and closer to the skin than Red or Blue. Blue is the most assertive, classic, and sexiest, as well as the most animalic – it’s the one I’d want if I had to buy one of these perfumes. It’s the diva of the trio.

Recently I tested all three perfumes – Tuscany per Donna, Iris Poudre and Samsara (both parfum and EdT) several times. Having five notes in common for all three (rose, carnation, jasmine, sandalwood and vanilla) and additional 2-3 between the most note-rich Iris Poudre and each of the other two, these three perfumes are distinct. I can definitely tell apart my favorite Iris Poudre: after more than a year of wearing it repeatedly I do not think any more that it’s identical to Tuscany per Donna. Testing Samsara and Tuscanny per Donna in parallel I can smell the difference. But all three have so much in common, especially on some stages of the development, that I’m not sure I won’t mix them up next time “in the wild” (©Dee, I think). Tuscany per Donna, Iris Poudre and Samsara are not identical triplets but definitely fraternal ones.

By the way, Tania Sanchez gave this “sandalwood jasmine” ****

Read Suzanne’s (Eiderdown Press) real (and very beautiful) review of Samsara and Iris Poudre; Victoria’s (Bois de Jasmine) very informative article on new and vintage Samsara; Elisa’s not a review but an interesting layering idea for Tuscany per Donna and (thanks to Suzanne’s comment) Meg’s (parfumieren) review of Tuscuny per Donna.

Image: my own.

March 5, 2012 by Undina

Déjà vu, Episode 2: huge floral vs. abstract floral

For those … everybody who hasn’t read Episode 1 of my Déjà vu [supposed to be] series, I want to explain that the idea is to feature those perfumes that to my nose are very close smell-alike. Not just a feeling or an association, not just the same genre or several recognizable notes but really close scent resemblance.

What is a perfect starter house for a young perfumista? I’m not talking about a real estate to store all 3 bottles in the collection. A perfume house. If you ask me now, I’ll say L’Artisan, Hermess (Hermessance) or Chanel (Exclusifs). But I didn’t know it when I started my journey so the first niche brand that I tested intentionally on the onset of my hobby was … none of these. I placed my first ever samples order: seven 1 ml vials from the same brand.

The second perfume from the line that I tried was one of the most expensive perfumes I’d ever tried at the time. I read many great reviews and mentions of the house itself and of this perfume in particular. I was expecting a miracle. And it was a miracle… in a way. In a couple of minutes of wearing it, with astonishment, I realized that to my nose that perfume smelled A LOT like another perfume I knew and liked. I couldn’t believe it. I wasn’t at home so for several hours I kept smelling my wrist and thinking if it was possible. As soon as I could I applied my perfume to another wrist. My first impression: it wasn’t the same perfume but they smelled very similar. And I liked my perfume more.

I checked available information. Sure, there were some notes in common but it didn’t mean much. I needed somebody else to acknowledge and confirm my discovery. I ran multiple searches and couldn’t find any other mentioning of this similarity. I even tried to contact one of the bloggers who I noticed was familiar with my perfume and wore it but I’ve never heard back from her. When I asked my friend lyu what the perfume I tested reminded her of (if anything) she told me without thinking: “my perfume name>!” But I wanted more.

Rusty Testing

Almost a year later I asked several blogo-friends to participate in a blind testing and contribute their thoughts for this post. I sent each of them two vials. I needed to distinguish them but I was afraid that using numbers or letters would somehow reveal my attitude towards those perfumes or will suggest my preferences. So I wrapped vials with electrical tape – blue and yellow. Here are their thoughts. Keep in mind that these are fragments of e-mail exchanges and not finished reviews. I did some minimal editing trying not to introduce too many errors from me as I was selecting paragraphs to publish here. Emphases (bold, italic and color) mine.

Vanessa of Bonkers about Perfume:

I have tried Yellow and Blue about four times now, and have more or less used the samples up, so I thought I should jot down my impressions while I have got them on again and they are relatively fresh on my skin and in my mind!

Firstly, I don’t think they are the same, but I think there are very similar all the same – a bit like the same perfume but with different facets accentuated in one vs. the other:

Both have a powdery (aldehydic?) retro feel, both are florals with a hint of green in them.

Blue has a smoother quality, is a little more green and less aldehydic. It reminds me a bit of Antonia, but is more powdery and not as vanilla-y or ambery, so it never entered my head that it could BE that. But the greenness reminds me somewhat of Antonia out of the few perfumes I know that are anything like these two samples.

Yellow, on account of its greater powderiness, reminds me of Chamade, though Chamade is sweeter and fruitier, and somehow a bit more approachable. Yellow feels very old school, which is why – when I read the reviews and notes of the new SSS Nostalgie – I instantly wondered if it could be that though I haven’t smelt it.

And then the fact that you showed Climat to Natalie at your recent meeting made me think that maybe it [Yellow] could be that (having googled the notes), however on reflection neither of these scents are remotely animalic, whereas Climat has civet. I like to think I have good radar for civet, but who knows?! And Climat sounds like it might be a richer scent overall, based on the base, so possibly not such a good contender (plus I have never smelt it either!) All of which goes to show how suggestible and easily led I can be by something topical, or which looks like it might count as “circumstantial evidence”. : – )

The other perfume that Yellow and Blue both remind me of, Blue slightly more so, is Niki Saint Phalle.

What I learn from eyeballing all these note lists (Vanessa has included those for all the perfumes listed above but I’ve decided to omit them – Undina) is that the perfumes I think Yellow and Blue smell like, as well as being retro in style, and prickly aldehydic florals (in varying degrees), and green (in varying degrees), they all have LOTS OF NOTES, i.e. they are “busy” perfumes, quite big productions, as used to be the fashion. These are not contemporary scents, of that I am fairly sure, unless it is a new launch inspired by an earlier era like a Miriam or Nostalgie, but not those (and I haven’t smelt Miriam either!).

(later)

Am at the far drydown stage now, some 7 hrs after application, and the two are not as similar at this point as I thought from previous trials. It could be that my nose cross contaminated the two sites by transferring traces of one perfume to the other hand or it may just be that I am more familiar with them now and hence able to spot differences more easily.

They are both smoother by far now, but Yellow remains markedly more powdery/aldehydic even at this late stage. Blue did get even closer to Antonia as it wore on but I still don’t think it is that, as it lacks the rich ambery vanilla warmth. The smooth green facet is very like it though.

It struck me […] that the more I tried them, the more distinct they became. Yellow was more powdery and Blue more green – what confused me was the fact that they both felt from the same time, so that in itself was a point of similarity. And as it is not a category of scent I am very familiar with, it is perhaps all the easier to lump things together. Like young people’s “old lady”.

Suzanne of Eiderdown Press

Both of these smell like one of my very favorite categories of fragrance: rich, aldehydic-floral perfume with a complex bouquet, done in the classic French style.

I opened the blue vial first and my first thought was, this smells like Amouage Gold pour Femme. Then I opened the yellow vial and things got very difficult because, though there is a difference between the two perfumes, they so smell very, very similar.

After much sniffing, I still think that the blue vial resembles Amouage Gold most closely. It smells a bit brighter in its florals than does the perfume in the yellow vial. I feel like I can smell the silvery lift of lily-of-the-valley in the blue vial perfume. Not that it smells like a lily-of-the-valley perfume (not at all), but it smells “higher in octave” than the perfume in the yellow vial. It has a little more lift, while the perfume in the yellow vial smells somewhat deeper to my nose.

To me, the yellow vial smells like it has more of a Chanel base when it dries down: I smell more of that warm jasmine that reminds me of a Chanel perfume (though I’m not necessarily saying this is a Chanel perfume). A little more musk, too. This perfume has a slightly more animalic drydown than the perfume in the blue vial. It reminds me of vintage Chanel No. 5 in its drydown, but its top notes don’t smell quite the same as Chanel No. 5.

(a day later)

I kept thinking about the drydown on the perfume in the yellow vial: there is a urinous tinge to that drydown that I find rather appealing (sexy, even though it doesn’t sound sexy) that reminds me of vintage perfumes. And I tried to think of other notes, besides jasmine, civet and musk, that can have an animalic tinge to them — and I thought of narcissus. I don’t know if narcissus used as a perfume note smells urinous, but if you’ve ever smelled narcissus flowers — the ones they call paperwhites — they smell urinous.

Quite some time ago, JoanElaine had sent me a fragrance package that included a small dab vial of Lancome Climat edt. And I remembered that when I originally tested it, it reminded me of Amouage Gold, but the dry down was more animalic (on the urinous side, rather than on the indolic side) and I remember it had narcissus in the base. So today I dabbed some on my skin and then dumped the remaining drops on a perfume blotter. On skin, I couldn’t come to any solid conclusions, but on paper — oh my goodness! The scent really matched up with what you sent me in that yellow vial.

My final assessment — I think the blue vial smells like Amouage Gold. I think the yellow vial smells like Lancome Climat. And I think both of them smell very much like one another.

Rusty Testing

Natalie of Another Perfume Blog:

I’m pretty sure the blue vial is Climat. I find it fuzzy, warm, like someone took the idea of Ivory soap and transformed it into a very luxurious-smelling perfume. At the very beginning, there is an animalic touch, but it is slight and does not last very long. On my skin, the whole life of the fragrance is peachy, warm, and golden. I can smell the florals (mostly jasmine and I think lily of the valley), but they are not “white floral diva” to me, because of the powderiness of the fragrance as a whole. The drydown is even more “golden” and I can smell a bit of the sandalwood, but it remains very peachy and powdery.

The yellow vial I don’t recognize. At times it smells very similar to Climat (or the blue vial, I should say) to me, so maybe it is another formulation or concentration of Climat? I suppose it could be, but really I don’t think it is. Although it has similar notes, it actually smells to me as if someone took the blue vial and said “Let’s do this perfume, but focus it on the animalic notes rather than the powdery peachy notes.” This one to me has an almost metallic musk that I find rather unpleasant, and I feel the civet is very prominent. It’s a bit too much for me at the beginning. As it dries down, it gets a lot prettier and more similar to the blue one, but I think I smell more iris in the drydown of this one. Once when I wore it, it almost reminded me of No. 19, but I haven’t ever experienced No. 19 having that metallic-animalic-civet thing going on. Maybe I would have liked this better if I had not always had the Climat/blue vial on the other wrist. :) But I would have to get through the first hour for sure!

I won’t keep you wondering any longer. Let’s see what perfumes Vanessa, Natalie and Suzanne tested.

Blue Vial contained Climat by Lancome (my first perfume love) – created in 1967 by Gerard Goupy, notes include violet, peach, jasmine, lily-of-the-valley, bergamot, rose, narcissus, aldehydes, rosemary, tuberose, sandalwood, tonka bean, amber, musk, civet, bamboo and vetiver.

Yellow Vial contained Amouage Gold – created in 1983 by Guy Robert, notes include rose, lily of the valley, frankincense, myrrh, iris root, jasmine, ambergris, civet, musk, cedarwood and sandalwood.

I thought it was hilarious: Suzanne has identified both perfumes but switched them.

Even though Natalie hasn’t recognized Amouage Gold, she’s being very consistent in her not liking this perfume. And here’s is her review for Climat. (UPD: APB is closed now)

By now I’ve worn both of these perfumes on many occasions, I’ve tested them separately and in parallel again and again. I think that I can tell them apart, at least on some stages. But, in my opinion, they are so similar that could have been, as Vanessa pointed out, “same perfume but with different facets accentuated”.

Twins: Lancome Climat & Amouage Gold

Please give a link to your blog’s post(s) if you reviewed any of these perfumes.

If you’d like to be entered into the draw for two color-coded vials (red and green?) of these perfumes to do your own comparison, please mention it in your comment.

Images: my own.

February 21, 2012 by Undina

What Happens in Vegas… Part II: Confession of a Sillage Monster

What do I think about Las Vegas? It’s a quintessence of kitsch. It’s busy, crowded, artificial, vain and idle. I like Las Vegas exactly for all these traits. Having grown up in the downtown of a multi-million-population city and living now in a suburbia (highly urbanized but still and all), I miss crowds. I miss well-dressed work crowds and dressed-up holiday crowds. All that is within a 30-minutes drive from where I live but I do not take that drive too often in my day-to-day life.

Las Vegas is my fix. Once every 2-3 years for several days I live in a very busy downtown. Every time we’d stay at one of the newest hotels, walk the Strip, do some [window] shopping, watch a show and occasionally pay for resting at a video poker machine.

Many years ago my vSO and I went to Las Vegas to celebrate my birthday. The plan was to have a dinner and go for a walk but then my vSO decided to take me to see Riverdance show which I wanted to see but was hesitant to spend money on (for budgetary reasons). It was a very thoughtful gift on its own but while we were getting ready to go out my vSO handed me a nicely wrapped gift. I suspected (and hoped) it would be a perfume but wasn’t sure which one since at the time there were several perfumes that I liked and hinted to my VSO I wouldn’t mind having in months preceding my birthday.

It was Vera Wang’s first perfume Vera Wang.

Vera Wang – created in 2002 by Jean Claude Delville and Harry Fremont, notes include Bulgarian rose, calla lily, mandarin blossom, gardenia, musk and white woods. In 2003 it won two Fifi awards – for the Women’s Packaging of the Year and Women’s Nouveau Niche.

I liked Vera Wang perfume very much and was so excited that I got it that as soon as I tore off the wrapping paper and opened the box I sprayed myself all over with this wonderful perfume. I mean all over. I don’t remember how many sprays it was but I wasn’t trying to be frugal: after all, it was a new 100 ml bottle of eau de parfum.

Riverdance performed in a small venue with somewhat unconventional seating arrangements: there were sets of a table with four chairs next to it. Tickets stated only a table number. When we arrived there a couple who shared the table with us was already there. They had occupied two seats adjacent to the table leaving us two seats a table and two chairs apart. I felt bad about it: it was my birthday, we paid a lot of money (for us at the time) to go there and we were forced to sit apart. My vSO is a nonconfrontational person and I… they were just much older and I didn’t find the right words.

So we sat apart. And despite everything I was enjoying the show. Until I realized that a woman sitting next to me started coughing and sneezing and I suspected it was caused by my perfume. Because even two hours after the initial application I was still in a fragrant cloud. I felt hostile towards her for grabbing those seats but at the same time I felt guilty for aggravating her allergies. I even contemplated apologizing to her after the show. But then I thought she could have changed places with her companion (or with my vSO to be even further from me) but she hadn’t. So I kept silent. I don’t know for a fact that she did react to my perfumed indiscretion but since then I’ve never applied too much perfume when going to any performance.

Since then for many years Vera Wang was my dress-up perfume. I used it for occasions where I wasn’t afraid to over-apply it. On the onset of my perfume hobby my tastes and my collection changed and for a while I forgot about my old favorite. And then I took Vera Wang to my most recent trip to Las Vegas and wore it (very discreetly) to a show (Penn & Teller – we loved it). I still enjoy this perfume. I have no idea if it’s good or if it just holds a sentimental value but I love it. It’s loud, very feminine and very flowery. And, I think, it’s mostly (all?) synthetic. But I still would wear it from time to time and remember myself being once a Sillage Monster.

See Vanessa’s take on this perfume: The Art of Wearing Perfume Ironically: Vera Wang EDP

Images: Riverdance from broadwaysd.com; perfume (and the cat) – my own.

February 16, 2012 by Undina

What Happens in Vegas… Part I: Guerlain – Mission Accomplished

While helping Birgit with charts for her Monday Question: Guerlain or Chanel? I was fascinated by the list of perfumes from Guerlain that respondents named as their favorites without which they couldn’t imagine their Perfume World. That was when I realized that I’d tried merely one third of all perfumes that others loved.

There is a Guerlain boutique at San Francisco Saks. It’s not too far from where I live but even a 30 minutes drive combined with the cost of downtown parking makes it an unlikely place I’d go casually to try one perfume after another.

That’s why when I realized that during my birthday trip to Las Vegas I would be staying at the hotel that hosted the only stand-alone Guerlain boutique in the city… wait… or was it that I booked my stay at the hotel because of that?.. Anyway, I thought it would be a chance to try all those perfumed wonders and asked for an advice.

As you might have noticed already, I like numbers. So here are some relevant to the topic:

– 28 perfumes were suggested for testing and 14 of them were mentioned more than once;

– The most popular suggestion (7 voices) was Chamade;

– On this trip I smelled 14 perfumes from the list and tried some on the skin;

– 3 days are not enough to do justice to what a great perfume house has to offer (duh!).

Once checked in, I immediately embarked on my mission. I went to the Guerlain boutique and explained my intentions to the SA who greeted me. He was professional and helpful but somehow we didn’t “click”. I might be wrong but I guess he didn’t think I would end up buying anything. Nevertheless we went through a number of bottles, I chose two to try on my skin and went on with my vacation. I came back the same day and then the next one, and the next – and everything repeated.

I didn’t try Chamade this time because I tried it before and liked, so it was my back-up plan (together with Vol de Nuit) – I decided I would try these two and choose one of them if I wouldn’t find any other perfume that I’d like more. I still plan to seek samples of Chamade and Vol de Nuit to figure out if I can go with the EdT, EdP or need an extrait. But all those who suggested this perfume were right: I like Chamade.

Suzanne, your bet on Samsara extrait would be safe: you were right more than you could imagine (but it’ll be a separate post next month – “How’s that for mysterious?” ©Natalie).

Out of those perfumes that I tried on the skin two were a definite No: Nahema (“old lady perfume” on my skin – sorry to everybody who loves it) and Sous le Vent (I might try it again one day but this time it wasn’t close to what I was looking for). I need to test more Angelique Noire, Cuir Beluga and Bois d’Armenie: I liked them all but it wasn’t love. At least not yet.

And then I took a blotter, inhaled and thought: This is the one! Probably you know that feeling when you smell a perfume and immediately like it. You do not need to work on it, learn to appreciate or let it grow on you. You just like it. That was what happened to me with Cruel Gardénia. It is extremely beautiful and the moment I smelled it I wanted to have it in my collection.

I wore it twice and even though I had one more day to decide (or try more perfumes) I felt it would be right to get my birthday bottle of perfume on the actual day of my birthday. When my vSO and I went to the boutique the guy who was helping me previously (you see, I don’t even know his name since he’d never introduced himself!) wasn’t there. I felt a little bad since I usually try to be fair and buy from those SAs who helped me. But in this case it was for the best: Jorganne, who was there and helped me with my order, was just a right person for me. It was a very pleasant shopping experience including a hand-written card from Jorganne that came in my package (I had to have it delivered since we had only carry-on bags). Guess where I’ll be buying my next bottle of Guerlain. And I have no doubts there will be more.

And finally, please meet Elena from Perfume Shrine – a Godmother of the first Guerlain perfume bottle in my collection. She was the first to suggest Cruel Gardenia and she wrote a beautiful review for this perfume. An honorable mentioning: Asali who seconded that advice.

Images: my own

February 9, 2012 by Undina

WANTED: Guerlain Perfume Godmother

I have a confession to make: I do not own a single full bottle of perfume from Guerlain. While I’m at it, I don’t think I have more than 2-3 ml of any Guerlain scent in my collection. Here, I said that.

Many years ago I was gifted with a bottle of Champs Elysees (EdT? EdP?). I didn’t dislike it but I wasn’t too impressed either. There was something unsettling about that scent. I kept the bottle but didn’t use it much. Until one day I read something very nice about this perfume somewhere. I do not remember exactly where or what (it was more than 10 years ago), I remember only that it was described as bold and sexy… Yeah, I know, nowadays which perfume isn’t described along those lines one way or the other. But back then that suggestive description made me change my mind about Champs Elysees. And I wore it happily feeling sexy, and daring, and vivacious. Until… One day a co-worker who was also “in perfumes” came over for a quick lunchtime sniffing session, picked up my bottle, sniffed it from a nozzle and pronounced: “It smells like a bug spray!” And that was it. I didn’t suddenly realize Champs Elysees smelled the way she described. She wasn’t even my close friend! But nevertheless I couldn’t bring myself to wearing it again. That’s how impressionable I am. Luckily my second bottle of that perfume was almost empty so I didn’t waste much. But that was the only and the last bottle of Guerlain perfume in my collection.

It was a preamble. A tale comes next.

As I’ve mentioned already I am impressionable. Not only my Champs Elysees story above but a list of my last year’s perfume godmothers attests to that.

As an aspiring perfumista I made a New Year resolution to find at least one Guerlain perfume to love (and to hold in my collection). For my upcoming birthday I’m going to the ball traveling and staying in a very close proximity to a Guerlain boutique for several days. What I need now is an inspiration, a perfume godmother to share her (his?) passion for a perfume from this perfume house.

If you had to name just one Guerlain perfume (currently available, modern formulation) for me to try what would it be? If you’ve previously reviewed it on your blog give me a link, I’d love to read it. Or just tell me why you love it.

To make it harder, I’ll list those perfumes I’ve tried already.

Vol de Nuit is the closest to become a bottle in my collection. I was tempted (surprise!) by Natalie’s review of Vol de Nuit and since then I kept trying Vol de Nuit in both concentrations – EdT and parfum. I have a strange love-hate relationship with it: every time I apply it I think: “Hmm… not bad. Why didn’t I like it last time?” Five minutes later: “It is unpleasant on my skin. It’s definitely not for me.” Thirty minutes into wearing and for as long as it stays on my skin I like it very much and keep sniffing my wrist. And the next time it all repeats.

Usual suspects – Shalimar (EdP), L’Heure Bleue (EdT and parfum) and Mitsouko (EdP and EdT): I tried them again and again (and again…) and no, I do not want to wear them. I can appreciate them, even like them on paper and kind of like some stages of their development on my skin but I do not think I would choose any of them to wear as my perfume if I had other choices.

I do not mind Shalimar Parfum Initial, it’s never unpleasant on my skin (unlike its classical siblings mentioned above) but it’s too boring.

I like how Rose Barbare develops on my skin but in the beginning it’s too sweet. I have a large sample to keep testing and make up my mind but I do not see it as the bottle now.

What say you? Is there a hope for me?

Image: my own (with the help of glassgiant.com poster generator)

January 24, 2012 by Undina

My Blog’s First Anniversary

Most of you are probably familiar with, I’m positive a well-studied and explained, phenomenon of the time going faster as you get older. I wasn’t curious enough to look for those explanations so at some point I came up with the one that seemed logical and left it at that.

In our earlier years time is very discrete and structured: we always know which grade we are in, what semester (or quarter as it was in the country where I went to school) it is and when we’ll have the next break. Our years are distinctive in terms of classes, class-mates and teachers. And each year constitutes a significant part of our self-aware life.

As we get older, finish our education and start working full-time, our lives become more unified, “continuous” and provide much less range poles for memory to measure against. Also a year becomes smaller and smaller relative to life lived. Small kids might improve that situation for their parents for a while but it’s still not the same and it goes away as they grow up.

I didn’t know that at the time, but starting my blog a year ago served as an antidote to that acceleration tendency (probably just a temporary one but still). My life became much more structured. I’m constantly aware of not only a month (“Is it time for a monthly stats post?”) but also dates and days of the week (“I haven’t posted since the last Tuesday” or “I’m reading a six-days-old post – Is it still Ok to comment?”).

This first year was veeery looong and really good for me. I published many more posts than I planned I would. I found many more blogo-friends than I hoped I would. And I discovered many more great perfumes than I thought I would.

I’m thankful to all my friends, supporters and enablers influencers.

Suzanne, lyu, Vanessa, Michael, Ines, Victoria, Ari, Diana, Joanne, Tara, Olga, Elisa, Thomas, Lavanya, Carol, Laurie, Meg, Krista, Asali and Christos – thank you. For reading, commenting, writing inspiring reviews and sharing perfumes. I appreciate every token of your support and value your friendship.

And now a special spotlight on my perfume godmothers:

Five Bottles

Natalie of Another Perfume Blog: as far as I know she was the first one to report on upcoming Chanel No 19 Poudre release. She kept publishing updates and impressions the topic and it resulted in My First Unsniffed Purchase. (UPD: APB is closed now)

Dee of beauty on the outside: after I won a drawing for a decant of Estee Lauder Bronze Goddess perfume on her blog, I liked it so much that I bought the last bottle at the store and then brought it with me on the trip to Hawaii – how often do you haul a FB to a vacation? (if you haven’t seen it yet, take a look at the Bronze Goddess’ picture from that trip, I think she looked great).

Birgit of Olfactoria’s Travels: she described Annick Goutal Ambre Fetiche in such a way that I just had to try it! (well, Birgit does it a lot). I got a sample (thanks to Carrie), tried it and fell in love. So now finally I have a colored Annick Goutal’s bottle in my collection.

Tarleisio of The Alembicated Genie: her beautiful writing resulted in not one but two new bottles in my collection: Serge Lutens Ambre Sultan and DSH Vert pour Madame. If you haven’t read The Incomparable Khadine and Vertesimilituda yet I dare you to do so and see if you can resist the urge to try these perfumes if you haven’t tried them yet or re-try if you have.

Mals86 of The Muse in Wooden Shoes: here I told the story about my bottle of Puredistance Antonia and what role Mals played in it.

What else did this year of blogging give me? A complete realization of how great the climate where I live is.

Images: my own

January 17, 2012 by Undina

Three Pieces of Neela Vermeire’s India Puzzle

I love puzzles, quizzes, riddles and tests. I’m not seeking them out actively but when I come across one I might put off everything else and spend unreasonable time solving it.

I learned about Neela Vermeire Creations from several inspiring reviews. Usually when I read reviews for perfumes that I haven’t tested yet I glance over more technical details – notes, creator, etc. – and concentrate on the impressions, associations and a general mood from the perfumes. So all I remembered about that new line was a general favorable feeling.

Being not too active on the Facebook I miss a lot of friends’ updates. Unlike my blogroll, I’m not even trying to catch up. But I just happened to read my News feed When Neela posted a quiz.

The photo below – where is this from? North, south, east, west or central India? It is tough but some of you may know.

I had no idea, the picture was too generic and I wasn’t intrigued enough. Then there was a second picture and the next question:

Another hint for the quiz below. Name the place.

This time I got hooked, I wanted to solve that quiz. It took some time but I figured it out. I found the answer: it is a ceiling of the ‘Poomukkam’ room in Padmanabhapuram Palace. An interesting fact about this ceiling: there are ninety flowers carved on it, and each of them is unique.

My correct answer earned me a prize. I expected to get a set of samples for the line. Instead Neela Vermeire sent me a discovery set – three 10 ml bottles: Mohur, Trayee and Bombay Bling!

First I felt a little worried: what if I wouldn’t like those? In that case I would have felt much more comfortable if I had been sent just small sample vials… Now after I tried all three perfumes I’m so glad I got those bottles!

For a proper review I want to refer you to A Festival of Colour – Neela Vermeire Trayee, Mohur and Bombay Bling! Perfume Reviews by The Candy Perfume Boy: I can’t do better so I won’t even try. I want to share just a couple of personal impressions for each perfume.

Trayee – is the most complex and sophisticated perfume out of three in the line. And the most tenacious. I enjoy wearing it and will definitely go through the bottle I have. And after that I might go for at least a decant. For even more impressions read enticing review for Trayee by Persolaise.

Mohur – is the most low-key perfume in the line. Though two out of four times I wore Mohur, it surprised me with an unexpected surge of agarwood in the opening. When it calms down it becomes a well-blended flower bouquet on my skin. It is never unpleasant and I suspect it might behave better on somebody else but in my collection it’ll stay, most likely, just for the reference.

Bombay Bling! – is my absolute favorite in the line. It’s so juicy, bright and happy! But despite its playfulness Bombay Bling! feels like a real perfume with an extremely interesting composition and graceful development. It is a full-bottle worth perfume for me.

I also want to mention that even before trying Neela Vermiere Creations perfumes I was very pleased that a new line has been launched with just three perfumes and there are both sample and discovery sets available. I wish more new and established companies Mrs. Vermiere’s lead.

I hope in years to come Neela Vermiere will present us with more pieces to her scented puzzle of India.

As always, feel free to link to your blog’s post if you’ve reviewed these perfumes.

Images: two of Padmanabhapuram Palace – Neela Vermiere, the last one – my own.

January 2, 2012 by Undina

New Year Resolutions, Part I: 2011 Round Up

New Year resolutions… Crowds in gyms and dance classes usually subside by mid-February allowing regulars to go back to their normal routines. Healthier eating habits get buried under stress of a “holiday-less” life and kitchen catch-all drawers stay in their natural state that makes finding any useful thing we put in there at some point an adventure.

In the beginning of 2011 I decided to see at least one of my New Year resolutions through. The resolution was: I will wear one of my favorite perfumes at least two times a week. By that time I’d created already a database to hold information about perfumes in my collection. So all I needed to add was a diary part where I could record my perfumes usage.

I’m proud to report that in all twelve months of 2011 I followed my NY resolution and gave perfumes in my permanent collection the attention they deserve. In addition to that, my numbers collecting provided me with a lot of interesting though probably not that useful data points which I’d shared with my readers in the Quick stats section of my monthly reports.

I was very curious to see the numbers for the whole year. So, here they are.

Quick 2011 stats:

* Different perfumes worn/tested: 376 (303 tested for the first time and 73 previously tested – see the chart by month) from 110 brands;

* Perfumes I wore just once: 191;

* My Top 10 Brands (perfume house I wore/tested most often): see the chart, click on it for a full size;

* My Top 10 Perfumes (those that I wore the most often):

Perfume	Times Worn
*№19 EdT* by Chanel	16
*Heure Exquise* by Annick Goutal	13
*Tiare* by Ormonde Jayne	12
*№19 Poudre* by Chanel	10
*Bronze Goddess* by Estee Lauder	9
*Iris Poudre* by Frederic Malle	9
*Une Rose Vermeille* by Tauer Perfumes	9
*Antonia* by Puredistance	8
*Jeux de Peau* by Serge Lutens	8
*Ta’if* by Ormonde Jayne	8