I tested 4 fragrances from Demeter over the weekend. I have no detailed reviews here, as there is only so much you can say — Demeter specializes in capturing a particular smell, and while they are frequently successful, these are not complex perfumes. Here is what I tried:
Grass: Like many of the fragrances in the line, it is short-lived on the skin, but for the time that it lasts, it smells pretty much like a freshly mown lawn. It is perhaps a little sweeter…this must have been a lawn with a few flowers here and there, or perhaps it is a particular kind of sweet grass.
Greenhouse: Starts a little sweet, but fades to a pretty floral that also captures the rest of the greenhouse: green leaves, humidity, soil. Nicely done, and lasted considerably longer than the others listed here.
Christmas Tree: This one was particularly fleeting, but while it lasted, it smelled just like the sap oozing from a freshly cut pine tree.
Condensed Milk: I wish I had a tin of condensed milk in the house to compare to this fragrance. It is a very sweet milky scent, but it also smells like eggs — in fact, it smells very much like a flan I used to make back in the day when I used to cook. This is very much a foody-comfort fragrance.
Demeter fragrances are presented in relatively simple packaging. They are very reasonably priced; most of the fragrances are $18 for an ounce of cologne. They can be found at Ulta or Sephora, and a google search will probably turn up other possibilities as well.
Have a favorite Demeter scent? Please comment!
I actually don’t own any Demeters but I’m kind of flirting with their Kahala Collection. Their Hawaiian Surf and Lava Rock I found especially interesting. You can actually order all the Demeters on-line from Fashion Planet: http://www.fp1.com/shopping/demeter/demeterhome.html
I believe they also have some body products available.
Lava Rock sounds interesting — does it smell like the name implies? Although I'm not sure I've ever smelled a real lava rock!
Thanks for the link, looks like they have the whole collection.
Mmmm. I do like Demeter, it's a really interesting concept, although I admit some of the scent concepts scare me, LOL! Before I learned about fragrances, Demeter was just about the only thing I wore! But they have very poor lasting power.
Gingerale- my favorite! Really wonderful, it has the “cold” feel to it, and a zingy fizz note, just like you opened a can of lemon-lime soda. It sometimes smells more Sprite on me than gingerale, but it's very refreshingly cool, and I love it.
Condensed milk is defn. one I really like. I remember when CSP Lait Sucre was first released, (I was just starting to learn about fragrance!) I really wanted to love it, but instead I smelled like butter. Not even sweet cream butter, just butter! Condensed milk is what I had hoped for, a lovely sweet milky scent, but I do notice it can sometimes have a teeny buttery note as well.
Mint Chocolate smells just like Marshall Field's Frango Mints! I really loved that. Birthday Cake is a lovely rendition of a very simple chocolate cake. Cinnamon buns… wonderful! It smells so good, like buttery warm buns dripping with frosting. And the cinnamon isn't too sharp either! And Honeysuckle is a dead-ringer for Kate Spade, IMHO! There are more, but I can't remember them off the top of my head…
Now the disappointments… there were a lot more of them! Some I can't judge fairly, b/c I am allergic to so many scents. But I can tell you that Blueberry was a huge let-down. So sharp, sour, and artificial. Creme Brulee was too sweet and heady. I didn't get any sort of sugary scent from this at all. It was much too caramel. Not even a very good caramel! And… oh, there are much more, but I think I better stop, LOL!
I'd put in another vote for Gingerale — it's really fresh and crisp and smells exactly like, well, Canada Dry — which I adore. It's a perfect weekend-morning spray and it lasts a good few hours on my skin.
I also recently bought the Fig Leaves spray, which is a lot greener than the perfumes I usually go for, but I like it. It starts off very green — definitely leaves rather than fruit! — but settles down into a soft, sweet fig. Not as complex as Fresh Fig & Apricot or Philosykos, but it has decent staying power and, like all the Demeter range, it's excellent value for money, even here in the UK. Liberty in London is the only place I've found Demeter for sale over here — they have a limited selection in store.
By the way — I *love* your blog. It's inspiring me to go out and try new things, and it's also encouraging me to develop a bit more of a precise nose myself — wonderful!
M, Great reviews, thanks! Now I want to get myself to Sephora and try a few more. Some of the bar drink scents, like Mojito and Gin & Tonic sound intriguing. And Cinnamon Bun sounds perfect for a cold, dreary day. I just got the Korres Cinnamon Vanilla body water and I need to give it a try.
Hi Jessica, Looks like I need to try Gingerale. I will also have to look for fig leaves, I love almost anything with fig, and green doesn't bother me at all.
And I'm so glad you like the blog!
I like Gingerale too! Also amoung my faves: Tangerine, Brownie & Wet Garden.
Not very long lasting, but still fun and the price is right. Nice to wear to bed, they'll be gone in the morning. :O)
Wow, gingerale has lots of fans! Wet Garden sounds nice, and Brownie would probably get my son to pay more attention to me
My favorites are only two, Holy Water and BellaDonna.
Holy Water is not a marine to my nose, but a complex scent that is unlike the usual Demeter style. BellaDonna is roses. And really nice ones!
Thanks for this thread on a cute line that is just what it is, and doesn't pretend to be anything else.
Holy Water! I really do need to get to Sephora or Ulta and try some more of these.
It is a cute line! My one criticism that I meant to include in the article but forgot, is that they could easily make the label more attractive without raising their packaging costs.
Hi R!
I have to recommend Thunderstorm. I was blown away on how similiar it smells to a severe thunderstorm. I live in Ohio so I have experienced hundreds of serious storms. I can not describe that smell but when I sprayed the Demeter it really knocked me on my knees. I did not buy it because I do not want to smell like a thunderstorm. However I have flirted with just getting a bottle to sniff every once in a while. I also enjoyed Dirt and Wet Garden.
A, I think I sprayed Dirt on a card at Ulta ages ago and liked it. I should try it again. Thunderstorm sounds cool. We get our fair share of them here too, but not like you get in Ohio. But we've managed to have our house hit by lightening twice, which is pretty impressive for PA.
I too have a major fondness for Thunderstorm. It's eerie how accurate it is. On dull days, sometimes I just give a little burst of it in the air, and I get the electrifying sensation that there's just been a storm. Truly, as the name of the line puts it, the stuff is a pick-me-up spray.
Has anyone tried Funeral Home? It sounds really interesting. Awesome blog!
I am so glad you like the blog! Funeral Home is supposed to be carnations, lily and dust, but that is all I know about it. Could be interesting.
I second the positive comments on your blog! I love it – so much fun to encounters who share my fragrance obsession.
Some Demeters I've tried & liked:
Wet Garden – I was blown away by how authentic this one was – truly smells like raindrenched plantlife.
Cosmopolitan – this is a fun zingy cranberry/citrus smell. I really like some of their “bar” scents.
Honeysuckle – a very pretty & authentic honeysuckle scent.
I'm dying to try some of the other floral scents that Demeter does, but so far I haven't seen them in Canada: Flowershow, Funeral Home, and some of soliflores they have produced – especially Lilac. If anyone has tried these, I'd love to hear your impressions!
Thanks cheezwiz! Sounds like Wet Garden is a must try. I wonder how different it is from Greenhouse.
I'm a Demeter collector
I love, love, love
chocolate chip cookie – very yummy freshly baked cookies with melted chocolate
Bananna Flambee – amazingly delicious, like soft cooked bannana in sugary syrup. A bit hard to describe but oh so good
Waffles – Another yummy foody one smells to me like hotcakes and maple syrup
Earl Grey Tea – Very authentic, a lovely clean fresh scent.
Hi FS, Thanks for commenting, I haven't tried any of those! Earl Grey Tea sounds like something I would really like.
A couple more raves for Demeters.
I absolutely love consensed milk. It is absolutely spot on. I used to eat condensed milk out of the tin when I was a kid so this is a wonderfully nostalgic scent for me.
I also have the strawberry icecream and waffle cone duet. Im not so keen the strawberry icecream as it is a bit fake to my nose, tho I suppose thats what a most icecream smells like. Waffle cone is great tho, a warm, crisp, sweet scent perfect for any foodie.
Thanks, agree on the condensed milk, and waffle cone sounds like it is worth checking out!
For anyone who enjoys gourmand scents, try the Caramel — it is very sweet and buttery, but the burnt note offsets the sugaryness. Plus, it's the longest lasting Demeter I've ever used — I could still smell it in the morning. Good skin sent. Dirt is very delicate — musty and sweet, and a little green, way easier than gardening! Gingerale is lovely too, my mom took it and she doesn't wear perfume,zingy. Creamsicle was sickening, artificial(but accurate)orange and vanilla — but you could smell the wood stick, and that's not some yummy cedarwood, it's plasticky fake wood. I saw holy water and did not try it , but now I will have to — it sounds interesting, so does condensed milk.Thunderstorm, salt spray, and wet garden are good representations — too good, after while they can concern you, smelling like the elements. Speaking of salt spray, I tried CBHulot'sHoliday — I can't wear it because it reminds me of a Calgon spray I used as a teenager(it was bright blue). Anyway, Demeter is great, but I like fairly simple scent. Hey, this were talking about food smells, I spilled wine the other night and it sure smells good — so now I'm wearing Kors(red wine, spice, rose), and I also like champagne/green grape. Do you more worldly perfumistas have any suggestions? Your blog is wonderful — although it does make me neglect what I'm supposed to be doing! Currently(fall) I'm wearing origins Ginger,loccitane Amber, Britt gold, CavalliOro, and want CdgSequoia. But I'm open to anything.
Now my mind is churning over representational sents!
I have been trying the CBI's and CDG's, I'm impressed with Burning Leaves, Gathering Apples, Memory of Kindness, and In The Summer Kitchen. But, I haven't tried the others. Please share some you all like.
Everyone seems to like CDG Incense series — must try
It also makes me wonder — what specific smells do we want perfumers to create?
Hmm — my beginning list would be Tazo Refresh tea, Puppy, Wheatfield, Apple cider, Barn, Pipe tobacco,Red and White Wine, Storage Shed, Tomato Basil, Hot Skin, Jalapeño –?
Maybe some existing perf captures these.
Your site truly makes me giddy — plus I can show my boyfriend there are people more kooky than me about this stuff! We are both sensitive to it, so I know it's good smelling if he is not revolted. It seems like men generally are more put off by it than women — but may be is just an acquired taste like wine?
Don't worry, there are lots of us kooks out there!
Do try the CdG Incense series, and for that matter, lots of the CdG series are worth trying. I really liked the Leaves series, now sadly discontinued, and the Red series, and you might even like some of the “Synthetic series” (Garage, Soda, can't remember what else).
And check out the “Accords” on the CBI site, he has lots of simple representational scents.