Today we're helping Gillian, who lives in the UK and is looking for three specific fragrances: a lemongrass and ginger scent, a spicy carnation, and a juicy apple that isn't too sharp. She'd rather not spend more than £60 on any one fragrance. She lives near several department stores, and is willing to order samples online.
Gillian is in her late 20s, and describes her style as quirky. Gillian likes...
...vintage clothes (mainly greens and blues), outsider music, houmous, vintage prints, the smell of old telephones, my green Pashley bicycle, finding strange objects in charity shops and sewing and crafting. Corduroy not silk, messy red hair rather than sleek and coiffed, and Muppet-print knickers rather than lingerie-ad pink panties.
In addition to the notes already mentioned, Gillian likes cinnamon, vanilla and gingerbread. Her favorite perfumes at the moment are Yves Saint Laurent Cinema and Penhaligon’s Bluebell. She also likes The Body Shop Amorito and Indian Gardenia. She doesn't usually go for vintage although she does love Guerlain Mitsouko. Other scents she appreciates: Stella McCartney Stella, Boucheron Trouble and Philosophy Pure Grace.
Gillian doesn't like celebrity fragrances or fragrances that are too sweet and/or generic. She's not a big fan of florals in general. She isn't good at identifying particular notes, but several of the B Never Too Busy To Be Beautiful make her ill for some reason.
Gillian had a lemongrass and ginger lotion from the Body Shop, and she'd like to find a perfume that matches that scent. It should be green, but warm rather than cold. She thought of using layering Demeter fragrances to re-create that smell, but finds they don't last long enough. She also tried Idole d'Armani for the ginger, but found it dried down to a "musky nothingness".
On the carnation front, Gillian adores the Lush Potion solid perfume, and she'd like something similar: "spicy, not too floral, warm, slightly powdery, scented talcum powder after a hot bath, that kind of thing". She tried Penhaligon’s Artemesia thinking it might be similar, but found it too masculine.
For her apple fragrance, Gillian tried DKNY Be Delicious, but "after living with it for a few months, it just started to smell of nothing much, an air-freshener rather than a perfume".
What say you?
Note: image is 6:45 pm by Jam Adams on flickr; some rights reserved.
Hi, Gillian! I don’t know of any frags with both ginger and lemongrass, but I’ve tried two that have a fresh gingery feel, rather than a winter-spice gingery feel; those were Brigitte by Tocca, and Eau de Sisley 3. I really like carnation as a note, and there are some nice soft-to-moderate ones (not too peppery): Comme des Garcons Series 2 Red: Carnation, and I have always loved Guerlain’s Terracotta Voile d’ete. Santa Maria Novella’s Garofano is a sharper carnation. You should try Vanille Tonka by Parfums de Nicolai on general principles; it may have the feel you might be looking for. Have fun!
Gosh, I love Vanille Tonka! It always makes me light-hearted, and often giggly.
Gillian, you sound like a lot of fun! For the spicy carnation, I’d like to recommend trying Guerlain Terracotta Voile d’Ete, a carnation “skin” scent with a warm, baked-in-the-sun feel. I love it!
Oh this one is a beaut!
It really is! I see that Bergere and I posted the rec for Terracotta at the same time. And it’s meant for summer, but appropriate in spring and fall too, IMO.
** For US readers: 60 British pounds is about $98, hope that’s helpful. **
I’m no help on the lemongrass/ginger front, sorry. (I do love Bath and Body Works Aromatherapy Orange Ginger body products, but the related body spray is a big mist of nothing. And I don’t know if BBW is even available in England.)
I’ve been on the hunt for a spicy carnation scent for some time myself. CDG Carnation is pretty close (it had an unpleasantly soapy opening on me, which went away after 15 minutes – this effect seems to be particular to my skin, as I find it often in carnation scents), and just a wee bit over Gillian’s price limit, at $102 at luckyscent.com. I’d prefer DSH Perfumes’ Oeillets Rouges, but as a natural indie creation, it’s pretty pricey at $135 for an ounce.
I love the apple-and-rose combo of PdRosine Rose d’Ete, but it’s probably not right for Gillian as it’s very floral, primarily rose. Perhaps CB I Hate Perfume’s Gathering Apples might suit, though I don’t know the price point on it.
For ginger and lemongrass try Origin’s Ginger Essence – there’s a full line of products for it: soap, body souffle, lotion. And very reasonably priced. For apple, see if you can score of sample of ‘Outrageous!’ by Frederic Malle – which I understand was created exclusively for Barney’s New York. Contrary to its name, it isn’t the least bit outrageous but it is a nicely done scent; very sheer and simple – basically an apple accord paired with a beautiful light musk.
Aaah, yes..one more recommendation: for a spicy carnation, try a sample of Fiori di Capri (sp?) by Carthusia.
i second both the origins ginger..they have a dry body oil so u could use that after shower and the fiori…although i don’t find the fiori spicy…it an easy to like fragrance ….
also roget and gallet have a ginger fragrance…i chose that over escale a portofino at a duty free airport once!!!
Love the Ginger Essence!
Ginger and lemongrass has to be Jasper Conran Woman, available in the UK!!
For apple, how about Rose d’Ete from Les Parfums de Rosine? That’s a fresh, real-smelling apple.
For carnation, Floris White Rose could be a contender, or CK Eternity for a more overt spicy vibe. Or Apres L’Ondee or L’Heure Bleue.
Hi Gillian! Lemongrass/Ginger, Origins Ginger Essence immediately sprang to mind. It’s about as fun and straightforward a lemony-ginger combo as you can get, with a nice blast of bergamot to rev it up. At £30 the price is right too, and it lasts a bit longer than the Demeter perfumes (this was my go-to happy scent for a long time).
For Carnation, you might want to give JAR Galconda or Fendi’s Asja a shot. They’re both rich, beautiful, spicy carnation Frags. Caron’s Coup de Fouet/Poivre have lovely powder aspects you might like as well (I can only afford a small decant of Poivre but I treasure it!).
Good luck and happy sniffing!
Sorry – Mals86 already mentioned Rose d’Ete! Didn’t spot that.
Hi Gillian,
I have a couple thoughts for you…for Lemongrass Ginger, escentialonline.com has a nice Lemongrass Ginger Perfume Oil. It is very inexpensive and is kind of a fun fragrance to have around. For carnation, I like Fragonard Billet Doux, but I noticed it is no longer on their website, so I’m not sure how hard it will be to find. I bought a bottle last winter and I don’t know if they’ve discontinued it since then. Apple is tough, but CB I Hate Perfune has an apple. There is also Brandy for a different take on apple. Good luck!
Oh, man… I really liked Billet Doux and was thinking of getting a bottle. Found it more floral than spicy, so did not recommend it here.
Have you had the chance to try the Ginger Fragrance by Lush? I don’t think it’s available in stores, but you can order it online in the Retro section – it’s not too terribly expensive and vegan (if you care about those things). Also, Absolute Blu by Bulgari has a pretty dominate Ginger note.
For carnation, you might want to try LV Garofano – but be forewarned – this stuff is pretty potent! It does have a nice combination of rose, carnation and musk.
Good Luck Gillian
Hello, Gillian here! thank you so much for all suggestions
Unfortunately, I am allergic to Lush’s Ginger. Such a shame, ot sounded so lovely.
I have tried LV’s Carnation – it’s gorgeous, like winter bottled.
I second Blv, but try all of them, the ginger note is not always noticeable (different skin releases?)
For a very reasonable price, what about Nanette Lepore Shanghai Butterfly? It has apple and carnation. I’ve never quite made up my mind about this one, but it’s interesting enough to warrant a sniff.
Dawn Spencer Hurwitz Indochine (Ginger 2) (www.dshperfumes.com) doesn’t specifically contain lemongrass, but it has a lot of citrus.
Top notes: Bergamot, Fresh Ginger, Fresh Lemon, Green Mandarin, Lemon Balm, Lime Peel, Lime Tree Leaf, Pink Grapefruit, Sweet Basil
Middle notes: Ginger, Jasmine, Rosewood (bois de rose), White Ginger, Ylang-Ylang
Base notes: Honey Musk, Tamil Nadu Sandalwood
That DSH sounds really nice; I’ll have to try to remember it myself.
For gingerbread, try Burberry Brit Red. It’s yummy and quirky with a rhubarb note to balance out the gingerbread/vanilla sweetness. And for a soft spicy frag with both carnation and vanilla, and try the Opium flanker Fleur de Shanghai. Both are probably more easily found on- line than in shops.
On the apple front, I have a slightly odd recommendation: Ormonde Jayne’s Frangipani. It’s supposed to be a tropical flower with lime, and while I do get that, to me it also smells a lot like some sort of celestial apple juice. It’s bright, happy, fresh, and unusual, and it has plenty of zip, so even if you don’t get apple you might like it anyway.
This may sound weird, but I get a really nice lemongrass vibe from L’Artisan L’Eau de Jatamansi. Expensive, but the bottle is HUGE, so not really so much per mL or as a decant.
Carnation: if it hasn’t been mentioned, I do like Comme des Garcons Carnation.
Apple is a tough one, and the only thing I can think of is Caron L’Anarchiste, which is technically a men’s scent and not exactly “juicy” apple, but worth sampling if for no other reason than it is super inexpensive.
I love carnation scents. CdG’s carnation is great, but you should also try Caron’s Bellodgia. The EdT and EdP can be found online (even amazon sells it) for less than US $30.00. I have a bottle of the parfum, but it is a vintage one I found on eBay. It is beautiful. I haven’t tried the current parfum, so I don’t know if it has changed, but it isn’t budget breaking in the half ounce size. Tabac Blond is also a beautiful smoky carnation, but is harder to find and pricier. Many of the Caron fragrances have a nice carnation note. I also like DSH’s Oeillets Rouge. It was included in a carnation sampler from the perfumed court, with a couple of other terrific carnations scents. I can’t remember which because I’m not at home to dig out my samples, but the others were not Bellodgia or CdG.
I have CB I Hate Perfumes Gathering Apples, and it is straight up apple. I only wear it mixed with Burning Leaves. I think that combo really balances each other and brings out the best of both scents.
I wholeheartedly agree with the PdN suggestion. Several of her fragrances include carnation and they are so reasonably priced that is is easy to try two or three. I just love the 30ml. bottles and recommend all of her scents.
Another vote for both CdeG ‘Carnation’ – lent it to my friend as her wedding perfume she loved it so much
I do find I have to not get too spray happy with this one as too much makes me literally feel all hot and bothered and a little sick – don’t let that put you off, just as a note of caution – you really can have too much of a good thing!
Also love the Guerlain as a much more subtle variation. Have got half a bottle I’d almost forgotten about which I picked up cheap online – definately one to search online for to get a bargain.
Not too familiar with lemongrass and ginger scents. However, for carnation; Belladogia or Lauren by Ralph Lauren. It’s got the peppery feel, but some fruit notes sweeten it a little without it being too sweet. For the apple, I’m kind of stumped. I was also disappointed with DKNY Be Delicious.
For a ginger scent, how about Roger & Gallet’s Ginger. For apple, how about Brandy by Brandy? It’s got apple in the top, herbs in the heart and spices in the drydown? Very comforting and warm, and it won’t break the bank, I think it’s $48 (U.S. dollars) for 50ml.
I second Brandy for the apple.
For ginger and lemongrass (and coconut), kind of Thai Curry, but also kind of great and makes me smile: Crasylibellule and the Poppies – Ginger and Coconut. Cute perfume solid for less than $20.
Spicy Carnation: Caron Poivre – very spicy carnation and clove. Also Lorenzo Villarosi Garofano – spicy but more floral.
For ginger – I would recommend Hermes Un Jardin Apres La Mousson. It doesn’t have lemongrass, but has sweet lime, green notes, and spices. I also recommend Bvlgari Blv mentioned earlier. Also I recently fell in love with Dior Escale a Portofino – no ginger, but a very beautiful citrus with almond that you may enjoy.
I’m not much help on the carnation front since I haven’t tried very many, but I did enjoy Possets Perfumes Silver Carnation, which is very inexpensive to try. You may also find a good apple from them in their seasonal section (maybe Autumnal Equinox).
Ooh, those were the exact two recs I had in mind.
Mousson may be too cooling rather than warm-ish, but it’s a nice one to try either way – and Silver Carnation is a) cheap, b) loveable and c) a definite chimera of the spiciness of gingerbread and carnations.
Ginger (along with the similar-ish cardamom) is one of my favourite notes in perfumery, and you may want to try one of these:
Krizia My Africa (ginger plus cuddly amber)
Eau de Sisley no. 3 (freshly cut ginger and citrus – way overpriced though, perhaps check out discounters)
Nelli Rhodi no. 3 Cardamome (which I much prefer over their no. 5 Gingembre)
Jo Malone Dark Amber & Ginger Lily (oriental ginger, incense & amber – however this is a ltd ed, and I don’t know if it’s still in shops)
Kenzo Jungle L’Éléphant (heavy use of cardamom along with other spices and vanilla – this one may be too sweet or generally “weird” though.)
That said, I’ve found that chasing after the sensation brought by a long-lost or discontinued scent may actually keep you from recogising new but different pretty smells. Just sayin’.
I’ve been wanting to try the Kenzo Jungle L’Elephant and Le Tigre as well.
I’m surprised that Caron’s Bellodgia got a mention but not Coup de Fouet: Bellodgia is a very soft, pretty floral-bouquet carnation, but CdF is a hot, spicy, peppery carnation, utterly fantastic. I bought it at Harrods a couple of years ago and I think at the time it was £49, well under your limit; it can’t have gone up that much in the interim, surely.
Also seconding Comme des Garçons Carnation and Guerlain Terracotta Voile D’Ete. I wear them and Coup de Fouet a lot; three different takes on the same idea, like three different shades of red.
I’d really recommend Esprit de Gingembre for Him by Angel Schlesser.
These are the notes: ginger root, grapefruit, lemon peel, lavender, cardamom, pepper, vetiver, white musk and Atlas cedar.
In practice it’s a gorgeous variant of the eau de cologne theme, with the ginger adding a lovely twist. It’s fabulous in hot weather and still warm enough to wear on a cool day too.
There’s also a women’s version, but I haven’t smelled it. (It has a floral hue to it, evidently.)
How about Pacifica Tibetan Mountain Temple? It’s incense with some ginger and citrus — not lemongrass, I don’t think, but it might fit the bill. (Oh hey, I just checked Pacifica’s Web site, and it appears that they also do a lemongrass scent that DOES have ginger in it! I’ve never tried this one, but it sounds like a good possibility.) It’s quite cheap as well, although you’d probably pay more for shipping to the U.K. than for the fragrance itself! And I’ll add my vote to the Bellodgia nominations above for a warm carnation. Good luck, and have fun!
Funny — I was just catching up on this discussion and thought of Tibetan Mountain Temple. The ginger and incense is different and really nice. I have the candle and the body butter.
I hope you don’t mind me suggesting some masculines…
For ginger – Dior Homme Sport, full of citrus and ginger.
But as for apple – Lacoste Style in Play (red)? There is also a crisp apple like note in Guerlain’s Idylle. You might like that as you like Stella, with it’s grand rosy thing going on.
For a spicy carnation, well YSL Opium is just that!
Gillian, I’m not sure about the other two, but as far as the spicy carnation is concerned, you HAVE to try Dolce and Gabbana by Dolce and Gabbana. It is an awesome bomb of carnation, spice and soap. It may be too floral for you, but it’s worth a shot. IMHO, it’s absolutely fantastic.
Kaffir by Anya’s Garden has that lemongrass feel to it. I don’t know if it is one of the notes, though.
Hi what about ‘Armani Code Summer pour Femme’ not your typical Armani perfume…and has Ginger
hi gillian
i did mentionsomewhere above about roget and gallet gingembre which i chose over escale a portofino…bulgari blu notte has a ginger note, but i find it soft and powdery.(i like it very much) origins ginger dry body oil and fragrance are great and i think that you will really like the green apple in dolce and gabbana LIGHT BLUE. all of the mentioned are reasonably priced and can be found cheaply at discounters…good luck
for apple, not alone but as a significant primary note, try Ralph Lauren, Ralph (woman’s fragrance).
Personally, I prefer the Tibetan Mt Temple of Pacifica in the body butter – unless you love love love clove, which is the shining star in the edt.