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.
Random Stuff
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
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
Know-How: Perfume Shopping around the World
We, perfumistas, live around the world. We travel around the world. We publish our perfume shopping stories and share our first-hand knowledge and discoveries. A year later, while preparing to a new trip, some of us might even remember where we read that great guide for this tiny town in which we’ll have a stopover on our way to or from somewhere. Or maybe not that tiny but still.
For a while I’ve been compiling links to those posts that I came across. Now I decided to create a page to hold links to those guides – Perfumes Shopping around the World. If you’ve written an article you want to include in this list (or exclude from it – I respect writers’ choice) or if you know about somebody else’s article send me an e-mail.
Also I think it might be useful to have multiple pages referring to these guides. So if you want to host a similar page on your site send me an e-mail and I’ll forward you the HTML file. I plan to update this page with new links three-four times a year and I will be sending updates to those who decide to host the page. You do not have to publish this page on your blog to have your links included and you can host the page even if you do not have any perfume shopping guides of your own (yet?).
I’m open to any suggestions. If you like the idea please spread the word. I have no commercial interest in this project I just think it might be useful for those who will be planning trips tomorrow.
Image: my own.
Laughs, Lemmings, Loves – Episode 8
It was a very stressful week: nothing too serious but a lot of small problems at work and some health issues. I’m feeling better now and ready to deal with everything I need to deal with in the office. But I had the most wonderful weekend including a perfumeeting with Natalie (Another Perfume Blog) that went too fast – as all good things usually do.
Lemmings
It feels like I’m the last person in the Perfumeland who hasn’t tried yet two last most recent creations from Amouage. New surge of lemmings this week:
Suzanne (Eiderdown Press) about Opus VI: It’s a perfume that has intensity without a ballast, and while that may not sound like a strength, it is what makes Opus VI smell so compelling, because I think we are often drawn to those things we wish to complete.
Thomas (The Candy Perfume Boy) about Beloved: The base is quite similar to that of Amouage’s first fragrance Gold Woman, although it is decidedly less animalic and more refined, it has that golden, shimmering quality to it that softens the heavy musks, balsams and woods. It seems to find that perfect balance between rich and smooth.
Laughs
Thomas (The Candy Perfume Boy): YouTube frightens me slightly. Maybe I’m just a wimp but despite the wealth of content YouTube has more loons, weirdos (not the good kind) and trolls than any of the other ‘tubes’, including the London Underground, which indeed has its fair share.
Loves
Sigrun (fragrantfanatic) tells us about the affair she had while her husband was on a trip: I’d really hoped I’d dislike Angel, considering my husbands opinions on it, but no such luck. The sensation of then sitting in a commuter train and have that…thing…whafting up on me from under my clothes invoked a giggly, exhilarated feeling… Have you read my story Angel of Jealousy?
Leftovers
Since one of the draw winners hasn’t contacted me in a week I used random.org once again. A new winner is Suzanne. Please contact me with your shipping address.
Feel free to share any links – your lemmings, [new] loves or good laughs.
Winners and Answers
The winner of the first draw is odonata9.
The winner of the second draw is australianperfumejunkies.
Congratulations! Both winners please send me your shipping addresses.
Four people guessed it right: My Daughter Dieudonne by William Merritt Chase was an inspiration for the flower arrangement from the brain teaser.
A word to those eleven who thought it was Caroline de Bassano, Marquise d’Espeuilles by John Singer Sargent: at the exhibition I had to double-check the label on the arrangement. Zoom in to see more details for both pictures.
Images: my own.
Brain Teaser: Matching Flowers to Paintings
I have previously mentioned in Three Pieces of Neela Vermeire’s India Puzzle story, I love brain teasers. So even though I’ve previously won a Discovery Set I couldn’t pass by another picture puzzle that Neela Vermeire posted on her Facebook Wall. I found the answer and won “Try your India” trial set. Out of three in the set my favorite perfume is Bombay Bling! I like Trayee and do not mind Mohur. Once my discovery set’s bottles are gone, I’ll either buy another one or will go for a full bottle. Extra 2 ml of each perfume won’t make much difference for me. So I thought it would be a good idea to spread the joy. I asked Neela if she would mind if I held a draw for my readers and transfer my winning to the lucky winner. She didn’t mind. So here we are.
If you a) have never tried these perfumes before, b) sniffed/tried those at the store and now want to try more or c) own samples already but want to test more before deciding, you are eligible. Just tell me which one it is – a, b or c. That’s it. It won’t affect your odds, I’m just curious.
*
When I asked Neela about transferring my prize she offered to double the draw. How do you feel about solving a puzzle to be entered into the second draw?
In one of the halls of the de Young museum at the Bouquets to Art exhibition there were two paintings on the wall, one next to the other, and two flower arrangements inspired by those paintings. One of the arrangements, in my opinion, could be easily paired with any of the two paintings.
Caroline de Bassano, Marquise d'Espeuilles by John Singer Sargent
Bouquet (front)
Bouquet (back)
My Daughter Dieudonne by William Merritt Chase
Which painting do you think was an inspiration for that bouquet? Click on pictures to get a larger size. It doesn’t matter if you guess it right or not, you’ll be entered into the second draw. If you do not want to be entered into the draw, I’d still want to know your choice of a painting.
Images: paintings from http://www.wikipaintings.org; flowers – my own.
The drawing is closed now.
Bouquet to Art 2012: Craft Imitates Art
Every spring for the last 28 years San Francisco’s Fine Arts Museum de Young organizes a very popular event Bouquets to Art. More than a hundred floral designers from all over the Bay Area submit their choices and concepts to a panel of judges who decide on the final list of exhibitors and those chosen then create floral arrangements based on the art in de Young permanent collection.
I love flowers so I’m very surprised I didn’t know about this exhibition until this year. I will try not to miss future events: it was a great experience, both my vSO and I didn’t notice how two and half hours went by.
I’ve never seen so many people in this museum before! It was impressive. Since for this event photography without a flash was allowed sometimes it took up to five minutes to get in the position to take a picture without people blocking something.
Despite multiple flower arrangements in each room the museum didn’t smell like a flower shop. Mostly I could smell other visitors’ perfumes. I wore Chanel No 19 parfum: I wanted to smell nice but not to overpower any possible floral aroma with my perfume. It didn’t. The only room with a distinct floral fragrance in the air was the one with the composition made of thousands of gardenia petals.
The smell was so captivating that I didn’t even think of looking for the art piece which that composition was supposed to represent. All I wanted to do was to smell it closer. So did many other people. I couldn’t find a moment to take a shot without anybody in the picture.
The exhibition was uneven: there were very creative inspirational compositions as well as very literal recreations of the art pieces (including a bucolic scene with a toy size cow or the one with banal lampshades on a table). I won’t spend space demonstrating those that I didn’t like and will focus on those that I think are interesting.
It isn’t easy to choose just several pictures for this post out of dozens I took. I tried to catch both – the composition and the art behind it (literally and figuratively). I wish there were fewer people, better lighting and a tripod.
Chihuly’s glass is created to be reproduce in bouquets!
One of the compositions that impressed me the most was inspired by Willard Leroy Metcalf’s painting Winter’s Festival.
Although appearing nearly monochromatic at first glance, such images reveal Metcalf’s extraordinarily subtle yet inventive use of color. Among the vegetation, vibrant hints of aqua, pink, gold, and even burgundy invigorate the subdued palette and suggest the dormant vitality of the frozen flora. Blue-tinted shadows and underlying traces of violet and lavender remind us that snow, never purely white, admits to endless variation. (Hood Museum of Art)
That description perfectly fits both the painting and the installation.
As I was exiting one of the rooms I overheard a conversation from a group entering that room:
– Look, an infinity symbol!
– Nature, infinity – it’s clever…
From their angle of viewing they couldn’t see that Arthur Tress’ photograph of a donut was an archetype for that composition. When I told this story to a friend who also attended that exhibition, she suggested calling that composition An Infinite Donut.
Images: my own
Laughs, Lemmings, Loves – Episode 4
I didn’t count (for a change) but I have a feeling that last week there were fewer posts in my main blog-roll (list on the right) and in all other RSS feeds. Spring? Esxence2012? I don’t know. But as I promised in the beginning I won’t force myself to mention anything just for the sake of posting. So this issue will be a short one.
Lemmings
It seems like the Blogosphere is divided into two groups: those who have already tried Amouage Opus VI and written enticing reviews and those who read all the reviews and try to control the population of lemmings resulting from that activity. Though I cannot blame Dee (beauty on the outside) solely for these lemmings (several lemming above are just trying to catch up with all the rest from the Episode 1 ) she contributed her part: Spraying Opus VI on skin for the first time is a little like seeing a Stormtrooper remove his helmet to reveal the long glossy hair and full lips… of a woman. There is a dissonance that can’t be reconciled, because, of course, Stormtroopers are men. Well, all but this one.
This isn’t coming from a blog but I’ll mention it here since my first reaction after reading about Chanel releasing a limited edition of Chanel N°19 Body Cream was “WANT!” But I don’t think I’ll ever warrant spending $80 on a body cream even for one of my most favorite perfumes. On the other hand, body lotion goes for “just” $50… Hmm…
Laughs
Vanessa (Bonkers about Perfume) reviews Denyse Beaulieu’s new book, “The Perfume Lover”: … despite stopping out till 2am every night in a fairly receptive frame of mind to any possibilities the night might bring, the only “something-on-skin action” I ended up with was a bad grass allergy from afternoons spent sunbathing in the Maria Luisa park…
Loves
Ines (All I am – a redhead) about my most favorite Neela Vermeire’s perfume Bombay Bling: The opening reminds me of a fizzy mango drink, as it were made with tonic, you know, lightly herbal (or green) and citrusy but mango is still the most prominent note.
Feel free to share any links – your lemmings, [new] loves or good laughs.
Laughs, Lemmings, Loves – Episode 3
It feels a little strange to have just two weekly episodes in a row. I wrote a big post earlier this week but then decided not to publish it. Why? I decided not to fight the fight I initially intended to. It wasn’t that important after all. Instead I’ve updated the About Me page. Even though I had time to read other blogs, this week didn’t increase my lemmings population (which is a good news, I think) and didn’t bring any new reviews for my current favorites (which is neutral; maybe I should be doing those postings myself?). But there was no lack of laughs.
Do you ever prepare a post and not publish it?
Lemmings
For those who remember this game from … many years ago, here is something to smile nostalgically (it’s not the original game, of course, but close enough).
Laughs
*jen (This Blog Really Stinks. (A Perfume Blog)): I was finally noticed by Estee Lauder PR!! Sadly, it was to ask me to please clarify that “Jo Malone” is a person and she is no longer related to her former brand, which is “Jo Malone London”. Basically, we all know that, but I must clarify anyway, lest you become confused.
Gaia (The Non-Blonde): To the person who found my blog by searching for “Queen Elizabeth nude”: I don’t even want to know what you were thinking. Ever.
If you managed to miss somehow the discussion of the new Marc Jacob’s perfume Dot at the NST, you have to read it! “a ladybird gone genetically wrong”, “I like the bottle in that weird “I’m not sure what I’m looking at” kinda way”, “Reminds me of a molecule model, but with wings”, etc.
Natalie (Another Perfume Blog) shares her husband’s reactions to some of her favorite perfumes: “Am I getting wet dog in this?” I should note that after seeing the look of concern on my face, he said: “Clean wet dog.” (UPD: APB is closed now)
Undina's Looking Glass 