Luca Turin and Tania Sanchez have released the first of a projected series of quarterly updates to Perfumes: The Guide, and are offering the first issue as a free download:
Each newsletter reviews about 100 perfumes. The first free issue includes some fragrances missing in the original guide, as well as new brands. Future issues will discuss favorite discontinued perfumes and give our point of view on perfume history, culture, and developments.
You can find it here. My absolute favorite line after a very quick skim-through this morning, from the review of Guerlain's recent Cruel Gardenia:
Would be perfect if the spray button said "sucker" each time you press it.
Awesome! Thanks so much, I love these guys. I've been wondering when they would put out a new one and this is so much better.
I'm dancing. Thank you.
I'm thrilled too…much better than waiting every year or so for a new edition.
Thank TS & LT, I did nothing
I scanned through it… I agree on what they said about E. Lauder Sensuous.. It just disappeared on my skin.
as usual the first in fragrance news. Thank you!
I posted a link to basenotes men's fragrance discussion so you'll get a bit more traffic than usual. I hope you don't mind. Thanks again.
Oh goody! I'm going to start a notebook, so these can be on the shelf next to my Guide. Thanks for the info!
As always, I agree with some of the reviews, not with others. But all of them were fun to read
You're kind but doubt I was first — they sent the news around yesterday and I'm sure somebody posted it right away.
Good idea!
OK, so I'm 12, I know, but that picture on the left side of their page made me giggle. All I could think was “Smell my finger!” It's just a really unfortunate image, IMHO.
And that's what I get for not hitting Preview. I meant the right side, not the left. D'oh!
That is totally what is actually happening in that picture! [cue Beavis laugh] If you guys could hear half of the fart jokes told at the offices of the GUIDE…
oh this is exciting! since i haven't read the book so far (i know, shame on me), i'm thrilled to get bits of the duos bits and pieces of wisdom, thanks for the link
now, i've swiftly browsed through the list, oh boy, some funny reading
i mean i'm no expert perfumista, there's loads to sniff, but Jlo deseo 3 stars? insolence 5 stars? there's no accounting for taste, i guess.
Unfortunately for me, more Guide = less money. Just bought a bottle of Cabaret unsniffed for a bargain because I could not resist…
It's nice to have more reviews, but god, I wish they would stop using the word “hissy”.
I wouldn't argue with the Deseo, necessarily. If it were me, I'd probably do half stars because I'm so indecisive, & would probably give Deseo 2.5 or something. I do think it's probably the best celeb scent so far this year.
I haven't smelled the new version of Insolence yet, but want to! I liked but didn't adore the original EdT.
Anyway, half the fun of this or any guide is arguing with it
So far, haven't bought anything because of the book, but if Armani Rose Alexandrie were cheaper, I'd be very tempted after reading their review!
Didn't notice that so many times, but so far have only skimmed. Even then I have too many verbal tics to complain about anyone else's! I just love reading Cephalogenic, but you know sometimes I just literally cringe and say “oops”, knowing I've committed whichever crime a gajillion times.
And 'screechy'… they've got to stop saying 'screechy'!
Good to see the Guerlain tinted glasses slide off a bit in this newsletter!
Ouch @ Serge Noire .. I agree that the Lutens can just get too loud and noisy, and predictable in their sweet n spice market schlick..
Heeley seems like the next great niche house !
Heely is rather good, I think. I have tried 3, and 2 I thought were worth further exploration. I liked Figieur and Cardinal. I did not like Sel Marin (could be because I don't care for aquatics).
I haven't read the book either….
I love the update and think its a great idea, though I assume future updates will be by subscription (which I will no doubt take out)… my fave review in the update is of Nasomatto's Duro: “this is a masculine, intended to celebrate the exuberant, unwarranted fondness Italians have for their weenies.”
i am so happy LT gave 4 stars for Un Jardin Apre la Mousson (which I have been trying to justify to buy a full bottle at full price for a month). He disapproved a lot of Ellena's work before but not this time!! great! I enjoyed The Guide though I found their taste for perfume were so different from mine.
Ah, I like 'screechy' because I know exactly what they mean.
They like Heeley better than I do, although I did like Cardinal & Esprit du Tigre (sp?).
Yes, they do say future issues will be by subscription but I don't know the price.
And that one cracked me up too!
LOL — he disapproves of all of JCE's work that I adore, and loves the one I don't like. Figures! But if you love it, do get some
I like screechy, too – hard to find another word for scents that make you wince.
I don't know whether to love or hate this development since it will only add to my list! Of course I have downloaded the thing already and signed up for emails…
I treated myself to a lazy Sunday swathed in Joy. Ah, a ratty housedress and a fine perfume!
i hope i can! i am on a tight budget recently (no, tight budget is my life long default mode!) so do i want to smell good but starving?? haha.. i have to think about it…
exactly, i love arguing about fragrances, as with all pieces of art or results of creative work (and i consider perfume creative work and art), it's the subjective that is arousing interest, and for the most part of perfume works, they're all (little) pieces of art (somhetimes kitsch, sometimes made just for the sake of profit, sometimes true masterp ieces) keeping perfumistas awake
ok, i'll give deseo another try
Thank you, darling. What a sweet treat!
I think that's perfect louche living!:-) I wore Hermes Poive Samarcande to clean the garage!LOL!
Great marketing concept on the part of the publisher. I'm assuming only this FIRST addendum newsletter is free?
I haven't even read “The Guide” yet…. and now 100 new reviews each quarter! Ack!! If I start down that road and continue reading NST, I might as well give up all other interests completely…. (wink).
Hey, mind you, I don't think Deseo is a masterpiece…just better than most celeb scents!
Tama & Mamabear: I'm in L'Artisan Liane & cleaning the hermit crab cage, LOL…
If it helps (not suggesting you starve, mind you!) imaginationperfumery does have the 50 ml for $55, that's the best price I've seen so far. Beautyencounter has it for a bit more.
Hey you! Glad you enjoyed it
Yes, only the first is free. Which seems fair enough to me, it must be a lot of work. And, it's very much like the book — if you like the first issue, you need the book!
OK, here I go. Newsletter downloaded? Check. Book ordered immediately? Check. Lemming nerve bundle activated? Check.
Now can someone tell me where I can get my hands on some SL El Attarine?????
Not sure if this is mentioned elsewhere… Did everyone see the INDEX !!!!
Yes!! This was left out of the book, and was definitely missed. As I just posted on MUA, it's quite lengthy if you print it, so play with the formattting first.
It's on the “Corrections” page and is in EXCEL.
RE: Fall 08 “Newsletter” …
I see 4 stars for Aveda Yatra (I have a bottle of this, and find it underwhelming, I'd rank it a 2…)
And only 3 stars for L'Artisan Tea for Two? I was wondering why this was missing from The Guide. It's 4 stars in my book
Still, despite my differing tastes…. having your new reviews to read _made_ my weekend! Thanks Tania & Luca.
GGS
I'm thinking we really know how to live… lol!
thanks a lot! i'll go and check! i hope they ship to hong kong!
What a hoot the updates are – the pair of them are on absolutely cracking form! At last, someone else who has tried Jasper Conran Woman – they give it four stars. I am on a bit of a mission to spread the word about that one as I too find it so uplifting. Also pleased to see the four star ratings for Mousson and Escale a Portofino, and to see that he nearly gave his bottle of DelRae Amoureuse away. I gave my sample away to Farah! Also, I am experiencing “post purchase cognitive dissonance” with L'Ete en Douce for just the reasons he cites (“laundry-soap-on-steroids”). I swear it did't smell like that in the shop!
They really are a hoot
LOL — ah, for that you're on your own. But I'm sure you can get a sample at The Perfumed Court.
I think it's the same index that was posted on Perfume of Life some time ago — a reader did all that, if I remember correctly. Very impressive!
I already have… I am fragrant but unfit!
Oops, I got separated from Joe's comment higher up about giving up other interests!
Not quite yet, but I suspect they're working on it… (the thing is, Lutens is WAY too spendy for me anyway, but it does sound worthy of a sample).
I have not read The Guide yet, so I was highly amused by the style of their reviews. And I thought I was snarky! Of course I disagree with a LOT of their ratings (they hate Nasomatto Narcotic Venus?!) I have to admit that I admire their great breadth of knowledge, and the two-word summing up descriptions are sometimes hilarious, such as calling Ambre de Cabochard “chemical fruitcake.” They certainly don't pull any punches, which has to infuriate the mkaers of the perfumes they diss – which is as it should be! Perfume has been more or less immune to industry criticism for far too long.
They seem to infuriate some readers too, but I love their style and the book has received great reviews. Agree, the 2 word “fragrance families” are perfect.
Yes, I agree that screechy does give a good feel for what they mean with certain fragrances…
but I was replying to a comment that talked about how they use several words over & over. And screechy is definitely one that they over-use, along with hissy, dreck, & 'sad iris'. Just wish as writers they'd mix it up a little more, maybe consult the thesaurus… that's all.
The bits of the newsletter I skimmed weren't quite infuriating, but I noticed they seem to HATE the Aqua Allegorias (allegoriae?). Oh well, even when they hate something they're incredibly fun to read!
Yes, they do seem to hate them!! Ah well. The only review in the book that made me stamp my feet was Hiris (which they call 'Orrible) and truth be told, even that one made me laugh.