by

Sunday Question: Would You Endure 45 Minutes of Olfactory Misery to Get to the Good Part?

A couple of SQ ago, rickyrebarco used that description in her answer about perfumes we wear only when nobody else can smell it, and it struck me as a serious dedication to the perfume hobby.

 

Saturday Question on Undina's Looking Glass

 

Saturday Question #274:

Would You Endure 45 Minutes of Olfactory Misery to Get to the Good Part?

Do you have any such perfumes in your collection? OK, maybe not 45 minutes but 15-20? How about the reverse: are there any perfumes that you so love in the opening that later you tolerate the drydown that you don’t like?

My Answer

No, no, and once again no. Theoretically, I could probably do the “OK -> great” or “great -> meh” combinations, but if I actively dislike any part of the perfume life on my skin, the maximum I could do is to run 1-2 more skin tests hoping my initial impression was wrong. But I do not remember ever changing my mind that drastically.

How about you?

 

Would You Endure 45 Minutes of Olfactory Misery to Get to the Good Part?

by

Saturday Question: Which Discontinued Perfume Do You Miss the Most?

Perfume discontinuation and reformulation are just a regular part of our hobby now. I think I was happier when I didn’t know that this was a thing.

 

Saturday Question on Undina's Looking Glass

 

Saturday Question #273:

Which Discontinued Perfume Do You Miss the Most?

This is a broad question. You can talk about perfumes that you still have in your collection but know that you wouldn’t be able to replenish if you finish them. Or you can name one of those perfumes that you used to have and wouldn’t mind wearing these days, but it’s gone and cannot be bought any longer.

My Answer

When I looked through my database trying to figure out my answer, I realized that many of my current favorites belong to one of the two camps – reformulated or discontinued (and some of them were first reformulated and then discontinued – so, it would make it even harder to search for any vintage offerings in the secondhand market). But for most of them, I still have some juice left, so they will last me for a long time. So, my choice is one of those that I do not own any longer.

Gucci Rush for men. That was perfume I bought for my vSO, I never wore it myself. But I loved it on him. And I still miss it. If I knew it would be discontinued, I would have bought a couple of backup bottles.

How about you?

 

Which Discontinued Perfume Do You Miss the Most?

Foxy by DSH Perfumes
by

Foxy by DSH Perfumes

Hey Hey ULGers! It’s no secret how much I love Dawn Spencer Hurwitz and her DSH Perfumes but because of shipping restrictions it’s becoming harder and harder to get her fragrances here in Oz. So I’ve turned to Surrender To Chance to find decants. Clever, eh? Foxy is such a perfect name for a sexy animalic. While I also love the word vixen, foxy has panache. I’ve written often of Dawn’s perfume, here’s the most recent: Souvenir de Malmaison.

Foxy by DSH Perfumes 2017

Foxy by DSH Perfumes

 

Some of the featured accords include:
Animal notes, Amber, Spices, Beeswax, Whiskey, Benzoin, Cumin, Leather, Thyme, Oak, Apple, Valencia Orange Flower, Peach, Jasmine

DSH Perfumes site has this to say: A smart, sexy, and playful retro-nouveau animalic fragrance that features the fur accord paired with a spiced – boozy beginning, and a rich, ambery drydown.  You will definitely feel FOXY in this!

I am loving the tag retro-nouveau. Vintage style done with modern sensibilities. Something Dawn does so well, also the Eris line treads this ground beautifully too.

So, how does Foxy wear for me?

Boozy, spicy, animalic opening with honeyed sweetness and it reminds me of walking past a Chinese BarBQ store. It’s charred, fleshy and very beautiful. Like a quarter used vintage perfume that’s been kept in a cupboard and aged slowly.

The heart is vintage sweet with a hefty hit of bed head and sweaty pre-shower morning all riding a boozy, old school wave of tinned fruit. To say I’m swooning is an understatement. THIS is how I like my perfume to smell.

Dry down remains boozy and animalic with a huge helping of what smells like labdanum rich amber. It’s not dirty but it is skanky, in the best possible way. YOU MUST TRY THIS!

Foxy by DSH Perfumes

 

Totally unisex with moderate projection after the initial fireworks, longevity is good to excellent: day dependent. Foxy ages beautifully on the body, just spectacular.

Did you know that Dawn now has a
DSH Perfumes Etsy site that ships WORLDWIDE?

I know many of you are Dawn fans, what are some of your favourites?
Portia xx

by

Saturday Question: Do You Have a Scent You Wear Only When No One Else Will Smell It?

I know that we wear perfumes for ourselves. But this is true from the point of not trying to please someone else. And this week’s question tries to examine the opposite intent, namely, not to offend or disturb someone else. Any other reasons to wear something only when nobody else is around will do also.

 

Saturday Question on Undina's Looking Glass

 

Saturday Question #272:

Do You Have a Scent You Wear Only When No One Else Will Smell It?

If yes, what is it and why?

My Answer

I do not have a scent that would fit the question 100%, mostly because my vSO doesn’t mind any of my perfumes. But the closest choice would be Mugler‘s Angel: I still like it, but I would not wear it outside of my house. Why? I think it became too ubiquitous and recognizable. But I still like it.

How about you?

 

Do You Have a Scent You Wear Only When No One Else Will Smell It?

by

Saturday Question: What Is Your Favorite Tuberose Perfume?

Mid of Summer seems like the right time for heady white florals. And tuberose is a queen of them all (or so I heard).

Saturday Question on Undina's Looking Glass

Saturday Question #271:

What Is Your Favorite Tuberose Perfume?

Do you wear it just in summer or all-year-long?

My Answer

I do not like tuberose, in any form – be that a flower itself, perfumes or body products. I do not mind it in a supporting role, but there is no currently a single tuberose-centric perfume that would work for me.

I still have a travel spray of Carnal Flower that I bought by mistake many years ago. And year after year I keep trying it. Still no. But I plan to make the next attempt tomorrow while reading your responses.

 

How about you?

What Is Your Favorite Tuberose Perfume?

Ombre Indigo by Olfactive Studio
by

Ombre Indigo by Olfactive Studio

Hi there ULGers, I know we’ve chatted about this perfume before but I’ve been wearing it a few times on sunny winter days here in Sydney and have been thinking what a perfect summer amber it is. As you’re all suffering mild heat stroke up there in the Northern Hemisphere I thought you might need something just like this to help moderate your internal temperatures.

I’m up to my neck in study this month, trying desperately to get this stupid Celebrant Course done. Yes, I know that I’m super lucky to get the chance. Also that once done I’m good to go eternally. Right now though it’s touch going. So bad that I am paying my mate Penny to come help me get it all done. She’s running 15 minutes late so I’m taking this moment to finish the post that needs to be up in a few hours. PHEW! Sometimes the universe provides.

Ombre Indigo by Olfactive Studio 2014

Ombre Indigo by Olfactive Studio

Olfactive Studio gives these featured accords:
Top: Petit Grain, Bigarade, Tuberose Absolute, Saffron, Plum Accord
Heart: Vetiver Essence, Papyrus Essence, Leathery Notes, Incense
Base: Benzoin Resin, Ambery Notes, Musk

Perfumer Mylène Alran is not well known and is yet to have a super big hit but has done a couple of perfumes each for Berdous, Zara, Bottega Veneta and Chloe.

The opening of Ombre Indigo is a frozen block of very lightly salted sea water. I know, but it is amazing. You can already smell the wood, vetiver and leathery amber riding underneath. What it conjures in my mind is the old wooden boats that used to go to the poles. As perfume openings go, it’s a standout.

As the opening burns off the dark, woody amber takes precedence and the heart is the change from frosty to cozy depths. It’s amber but not like the vanilla rich sweetnesses that we perfumistas love so much. In Ombre Indigo it is shadowed and cool. That is where we end up. Dry down is this feral amber that over the course of the day slowly becomes a barely there skin scent.

Next morning there are soft remnants. Amazing.

Ombre Indigo

My bottle is the old one. There has been considerable use since this pic was taken in 2022.

Unisex but leaning towards a modern traditional masculine. So wearable and beautiful.

Did you ever Ombre Indigo?
Portia xx

by

Sunday Question: What 3 New(ish) Perfumes Would You Recommend to Try?

I am traveling for pleasure this week, and I will have a chance to visit a couple of specialized perfume stores. I do not know what niche or high-end mainstream brands they carry, but it doesn’t matter since in the last several years my new releases testing was almost nonexistent. So, please recommend me perfumes that I should try if I come across them.

Saturday Question on Undina's Looking Glass

Saturday Question #270:

What 3 New(ish) Perfumes Would You Recommend to Try?

The best recommendation would be something that you bought or consider buying despite not needing any more perfumes. But if you don’t have any such perfumes, anything you tried, liked and thought that you would have bought it if it weren’t for the size of your collection will also fit the bill.

My Answer

Well, if I knew, I wouldn’t have asked you. But I know that when I get to such stores these days, everything seems unfamiliar (brands) and repetitive (perfumes). So, it would be nice to have at least some hypothetical list of what to look for.

  

What 3 New(ish) Perfumes Would You Recommend to Try?

by

Saturday Question: What Is Your Favorite Classic Perfume?

Thank you to all of you who commented on my last week’s post. It was heartwarming to read your kind words.

As we were discussing fragrant choices of our fathers a couple of weeks ago, I was surprised how many of you mentioned Old Spice cologne and thought that it was amazing that it was still around (reformulated a dozen of times, I’m sure). True classic? And that brought us today’s question.

 

Saturday Question on Undina's Looking Glass

 

Saturday Question #269:

What Is Your Favorite Classic Perfume?

I won’t make the question harder than it is: it’s up to you to define what you consider “classic.” The perfume you choose doesn’t have to be currently in production – it can be a discontinued gem that you still own. And if it’s still available but you prefer the previous version in your collection, that works too.

My Answer

That was a hard question! I decided to consider only perfumes created before the current century (can you believe we’re already a quarter into it?!). And an additional limitation is that I still like and wear it. It provided me a list of 30 perfumes. And then I had to choose. You all know how hard it is: every time I try to select just one perfume for any reason, it feels as if I’m betraying my other favorites. But I did it!

I decided to go with one of the oldest (though, not the oldest) by the year created perfumes in my collection – Chanel Cuir de Russie.

Chanel Cuir de Russie

How about you?

 

What Is Your Favorite Classic Perfume?

 

Image: my own (though, the level is much lower in my bottle now)

Fortnight Perfume Wears
by

Fortnight Perfume Wears

Hi Crew, It’s my Tuesday fortnight already and I’ve completely dropped the ball. There are three half finished posts awaiting attention in my Drafts Folder but I’m still trying to get a bead on the fragrances. So here is a picture of most of the perfumes I wore in the last two weeks.

Fortnight Perfume Wears

Are any of these loves, likes or loathes of yours? Do the houses speak to you? Do you wish you’d grabbed any of the now DCd beauties?

Also I did the Boy George look again this week. LOVED my make up this night so thought I’d take a pic. I was wearing Hermès Eau de Citron Noir. It’s mid winter here so this outfit is one of my warmest and it gets a lot of winter wear.

Also, here’s a quick hello from the dogs who now own this apartment and have all the best spots. They’re both in their 10th year, getting old, stinky and rickety. What was once not allowed is now permissible. We will be lucky to have them another 12 months. What are rules in the faces of these beautiful hounds?

The white spot girl is Momo, Jin’s baby, who has decided MY BED is the comfiest spot in the house. She only came to us last year. Her Dad went into care and no-one would take her. Jin saw her on our local greyhound FaceBook page and they were worried that she’d have to go to a pound where old dogs are usually euthenised on arrival. We got her that weekend.

This used-to-be black guy is Paris, my true love, who has taken the prime spot on the couch. You’d think he is watching the TV with us. Paris came from a trainer mate of mine with another Greyhound Jinx (Jin’s) who got cancer. Jin was heartbroken.

So what have you all been wearing? Clothes or fragrance. How are your pets doing?
Portia xx

by

Remembering Rusty

A year ago, we said goodbye to our wonderful cat, Rusty. We are still grieving. My vSO and I both loved him very much, and he loved us. I do not feel the acute pain of his loss daily, but it comes and goes.

Last December, I ordered a daily calendar with 365 photos of Rusty, and it became our ritual to tear off the next page every day before the first meal. We see a new picture and remember when it was taken or a good story about that moment or a similar event in our life with Rusty. It’s both sad and joyful.

It doesn’t make me feel worse when we interact with other people’s cats. And we often enjoy funny cat photos and videos on Instagram and YouTube. Theoretically, I even want to get another cat… but as soon as I start thinking about any practical steps, I can’t imagine bringing one into our house, where some of Rusty’s things still live with us. Maybe one day, but not yet.

Rusty's Shadow

Rusty was such an exceptional cat. I’m not even sure I want to stop hurting after him.