The last two days have been a whirlwind of walking, perfume, bread, and gulping the beauty of the gorgeous and peculiarly Parisian combination of strict form with ornamentation. I hope you'll forgive the hasty writing.
On Friday, we met Denyse from Grain de Musc at Café Lemours, an elegant café near the Palais Royal with white-aproned waiters and large jars of jumbled silver forks decorating the windows. Our first stop was Les Salons du Palais Royal Shiseido (aka Serge Lutens). We walked into the Palais Royal courtyard with its rows of plane trees pruned into boxes, and under the arcades separated from the courtyard with a gold-tipped iron fence.
The Serge headquarters is dim and feels like a harem's lounging room without the pillows. All of the paneled walls were painted a background of dark blue — or was it black? — with oriental symbols in gold. In the center of the room was a spiral staircase. Lining the edges of the room were glass-topped console tables holding the Serge Lutens fragrances and a row of paper strips, each labeled and spritzed with a different scent. Someone brought us small glasses of hot Marco Polo tea, and we got busy smelling.
When we left the almost meditative world of Serge an hour later, we plunged into the drizzly Parisian air and dodged scooters on our way to Rue St Honoré and the hip "lifestyle" store Colette. Upstairs, beyond a display of Fendi bags (love the one with the needlepoint panels), was Colette's perfume collection. The small selection of perfumes was a mix of trendy and cutting edge, with the three Chloé Eaux de Fleurs sitting near two new Comme des Garçons fragrances, Holygrace and Holygrapes. They carried Balmain Ambre Gris (strangely enough), a few of the Comme des Garçons incenses, the collection of Mark Buxton scents you can't get anywhere else, Daphne Guinness Daphne, and some of the Histoires de Parfums, among others. Downstairs was a café with patrons backed up the stairway waiting to be seated. The toilets are Japanese with heated seats and a selection of derriere-cleansing services you can select from a panel on the wall.
After a break for lunch, we visited IUNX (sounds like "yoonks"), a tiny, dim shop with ambient music and a row of clever scent diffusers. To smell each of Olivia Giacobetti's fragrances, you leaned toward a glass tube with a light and what looks like a large, whorled paintbrush inside. Leaning over the tube activated a motor — you could hear it click on — that blew the fragrance toward you. The IUNX packaging is post-Calvin Klein minimalism. I liked many of the fragrances for their sheer, organic feel, but I would have gone crazy if I had to work there and listen to the Enya-derived music all day.
March and Louise split off to conquer the Grands Magasins, while I walked Denyse back to her metro station with a stop at Jean Patou. The Patou store was almost like a laboratory-white lunch counter without the sandwiches. Facing the door is a white counter in front of a white wall, beyond which there must have been Patou offices. On the counter were bottles of Joy, Enjoy, Sira des Indes, Sublime, and 1000. Next to each perfume bottle were two or three small bottles of some of the raw materials that went into each perfume. For instance, next to the bottle of Joy were small bottles of Grasse jasmine and rose de Mai, and next to the 1000 were bottles of patchouli and osmanthus. Smelling the raw materials, especially side by side, was a revelation. Grasse jasmine was so much more complex and delicate than Indian jasmine, for example, and rose de Mai was brighter than Turkish rose. Raw fleur d'oranger was leaner and sharper than the candied orange flower I'm used to in a finished composition.
The next day, I metroed over to the Right Bank to meet an NST reader, a native Parisienne I'll call "L" to guard her privacy. Meeting a stranger and committing to spend a few hours with her can be a risk, and as I headed out into the rain I wondered if I was making a mistake. I needn't have worried. She was more funny, smart, perceptive, and friendly than I could have dreamed. Plus, she loves perfume and has a terrific nose. I ended up spending most of the day with her.
We started by dropping in on Divine, a warm, clean oasis of elegance. The bottles were arranged so gorgeously — their different sizes artistically lined up — that I wanted to photograph them. (I didn't. It didn't seem right somehow.)
Next we visited the Task Institute, a spa for men and the only place in Paris to buy Parfumerie Générale fragrances. They also carried a few Miller et Berteaux and Etat Libre d'Orange scents. While men were massaged and facialed in adjoining rooms, we smelled our way through the fragrances. Unfortunately, they didn't have the new scents, Gardenia Grand Soir and Bois Naufragé.
Out into the drizzle again, and we walked the edge of the Tuileries to reach the shop for the Musée des Arts Décoratifs et de la Mode, on one of the wings of the Louvre, to find Etat Libre's lastest scent, Tilda Swinton Like This. While we perused the rest of the shop — the book to the Madame Vionnet exhibition! fascinating jewelry! fabulous lamps and throw pillows! — I let Like This wear on my skin. It was fresh, glowing, rounded, and unexpected, full of orange, immortelle, ginger, and musk. I bought a bottle.
Three more perfume stops ahead: Annick Goutal, Maison Francis Kurkdjian, and the Guerlain flagship. The Annick Goutal store had some rarities, including Eau du Fier and Eau de Monsieur. Eau du Fier reminded me of a smoky Scotch. It was wonderful in the damp air. Eau de Monsieur mixed a hint of immortelle with a traditional cologne, and I loved that, too. The sales associate had clearly been there for years. She reminded me of Inès de la Fressange, and was terrifically warm and helpful, and in French she and L decried the changes in the perfume industry, the loveliness of the Goutal scents, and the need for a more informed consumer while I listened in and wished my French were better so I could do more than nod.
The Kurkdjian store was magical. We stepped off the street into a heated vestibule with a silvery, 3-D panorama of Paris crafted in silver metal. A ferris wheel with tiny perfume bottles suspended from it turned. The arms of the Moulin Rouge rotated, too. On another wall, clips of old movies played without sound. I saw Jack Lemon and Audrey Hepburn. Inside the store, a whimsical selection of music played. We smelled everything, and the sales associate blew scented bubbles, which we popped with our noses to release the smell of pears and a green garden. I bought a bottle, thinking my cat would like to play with the bubbles, although the sales associate said her cat hid from them.
Up the crowded Champs d'Elysées, we practically bodysurfed on other tourists to reach the Guerlain store. Upstairs was a room with, as far as I could see, every Guerlain fragrance in production. The sales associates stood by helpfully, but let us freely try anything we wanted. Mouchoir de Monsieur smelled like lavender, smoked cigarettes, and dirty underwear to me. Terrific, but I'm not sure I could pull it off. I wondered why I don't wear Vol de Nuit more. I love it. I soaked my scarf in Vega before leaving.
Now it's Easter Sunday, and I'm looking forward to some baguette with butter and a stroll in the Luxembourg Gardens before making a frittata for lunch.
Note: image is Cours Montpensier près du Palais Royal [cropped] by kimdokhac at flickr; some rights reserved.
[Ed. note: if you missed them, see Perfume and Travel and Paris (and perfume): Day One. And please note that Angie may or may not be able to respond to comments.]
Oh my goodness, I’m smelling, seeing, hearing, loving it all-it sounds so amazing! Etat Libre would be my kind of place–lucky you buying a bottle of Like This! The ferris wheel at Kurkdjian sounds precious. Being a bread lover I’m drooling for a baguette. Savor your days!! Your writing is wonderful-you capture it beautifully.
I’m definitely savoring them! (Except for the surprisingly lame dinner March and I just had at Alain Ducasse’s Aux Lyonnais.) I’m glad you enjoy reading about them.
Me, too! About the baguette. I love to bake bread – I don’t buy bread for my family, I bake it several times a week. I purchased a specialty pan for baguettes at home just before Passover started and I haven’t been able to use it or eat bread for eight long nights and days of matzoh. Finally, bread today!
What a wonderful day! I would have loved to have taken in the raw materials at Patou, in particular, but all those stops sound lovely.
I have a small decant of Vega coming my way, and I’m excited about it. I admit, though, that I could probably listen to Enya/ new-wave Celtic all day. (For ONE day, and then I’d want something different. Jazz would get on my nerves, because I am… a philistine.)
So glad you got to meet a reader and that you had a blast together!
I would have loved to smell the raw materials chez Patou too!
I envy your stops at Les salons du palais Royal and Guerlain the most… The art et ls matière line is driving me crazy with lust, along with vol de nuit extrait and sous le vent… I haven’t smelled any of these, they are just giant lemmings running around in my head!
Oh, and have you tried vanille44 @ Colette? How is it?
Have a lot of fun… And report back!!
Zazie – email me at julia941 @ yahoo. I have bottles of both Vol de Nuit extrait and Sous le Vent and I am more than happy to send you samples. Seriously – I’m Daisy in training!
I’ve tried the Le Labo Vanilla before, and although I liked it a lot, Havane Vanille has filled my vanilla longings. Guerlain is fun! I hope you’re able to sniff your way through the arts et matieres line soon.
Zazie —I know you are in Italy–and the customs there can get a little well,….picky….do you think a bubble mailer with samples would make it to you? I am willing to try — my email is Daisyloo82 at gmail dot com. Let’s talk. 🙂
It was such a great day! L is completely terrific. I hope you love that Vega.
Oh, my goodness, Angela, this is the next best thing to being with you!!!!! Don’t stop!!!!
I still have lots more to write about! It’s finding the time that’s the problem.
I am drooling!!! Chez Serge (dark blue with gold symbols – I think I’ve found what to paint my room)! A bottle of the new Tilda Swinton frag (which sounds even more FB worthy)! Le Rive Gauche! Goutal! Guerlain! What a dream. I’d be fainting from overstimulation. lol
I bought a tin of Marco Polo tea yesterday so I can bring back the Serge experience in some form at least.
Oh, I just knew SWINTON wouldn’t let us down!
Everyone says Paris is more amazing than they had imagined. You seem to agree. Lucky, lucky you! Popping scented bubbles with your nose–sublime! Something you can do with small children and teach them to love scent, too. Hope you bring back many more lovely memories.
Isn’t the bubble thing to die for? I had to read that part out loud so everyone around me could hear about it.
The bubbles are fun!
It’s been really great, it has. I can’t wait to get out the bubbles and try them on my pets and whatever kids fall into my path.
I almost passed out just reading about your adventures, too! What a lovely, whirlwind perfume vacation! Tell us more!…swoon….
I’m afraid I only trotted out a laundry list of places I visited, but hopefully more will come soon.
Le sigh……how I wish I were there aussi.
It sounds amazing!
It’s good to know the French have a number of derriere cleansing options…. 😉
You and me, Daisy. Sometime this fall or maybe next spring. If only we didn’t have these pesky kids and their college tuition. That really cuts into my perfume buying budget.
🙂
You guys would have so much fun!
right up until they kick us out……oh wait, that’s only if Miss Kitty goes with us…. (not that she’d incite naughty behaviour or anything…)
Hey!
Well… yeah… you might be right. I am a problem child. 🙂
Yes, thanks to the clever Japanese. I just can’t imagine getting a machine-produced hinder wash in a store’s cafe.
I’m having some difficulty imagining a machine-produced hinder wash under ANY conditions….it boggles the mind…..
Angela – I can’t believe you’re spending time writing and responding to these long posts! You should either be out soaking it in or sleeping to recharge for the next day. That said, I – like many others here am reliving my visits to Paris through yours. 2003 was the last. I hope you’re able to attend a performance at one of the great historic theatres: Chatalet, Champs Elysee, L’Opera Garnier – especially the last, where you can feel like you’ve just stepped inside a Degas painting!
I especially like your remarks about the Japanese toilets! I had an encounter with them in Tokyo’s Narita a few years back, they can even play music to disguise – or relax you into doing – your business – so clever!
tinkle-tunes?
Makes you wonder if the music would have a Pavlovian effect, and any time you heard it…
no more listening to music while driving!
I’m not kidding – They thought of everything! (Really makes a layover at the Tokyo airport worthwhile.) I’ll have to say though that at that time, not every bathroom at the airport was fully equipped with the gadget. My brother, who was in my travelling group, also visited the restroom and reported no such contraption in his stall.
talk about musical chairs….
ROTFL!!! STOP!!! Seriously you guys, first I spew my tea laughing and then when I think you’ve stopped, I scroll down, find some more and then laugh so hard I snort it up my nose!
ack ! nose-tea…..so sorry. But it’s a completely new concept to some of us and we need to explore the idea. I mean what if a group of us went to Paris and HAD NO IDEA? I”m a bit of a curious button pusher myself —–can you just imagine the shocked squealing that would ensue???
Daisy – The music would not be loud enough to cover up squeals…
Indeed, the part about toilets reminded me of the Cougar Town episode with their Japanese toilet, and one of buttons that only said “NO”. Those that pressed it could be heard yelling “Nooooooooooo” and ended up soaking wet. Obviously Japanese toilets in Paris are nicer.
So all this talk of toilets… I feel like I have to share (as much as I really kind of don’t want to) that my in-law’s have an odorless toilet company. Based on what I’m reading, they really need to focus on the Japanese market. (BTW, the toilet really works. Yes, we have one. I’ll just leave it at that.)
I have just read my husband your comment, fortunately he wasn’t drinking tea at the time!
I just got back from dinner and am putting in a little time responding to comments, but I feel like such a slacker for not responding to every one of them. Every one is so nice! Maybe when I get home I can scroll back and respond to everyone.
Just make sure you’re not drinking anything when you read the ones above about the Japanese style facilities.
Thanks to your vivid writing, I almost [almost] feel like I’m there too – there’s not a better person to illustrate this experience for us! I don’t remember if you mentioned if this is your first trip to Paris? Despite my feelings of envy, I’m happy for you! No, really. 😉
I’ve been to Paris probably six or seven times, including a six month stay once, but it’s been almost eight years since my last visit, so I was missing it dearly.
Lovely! I can’t wait to read more, Angela.
Hugs!
Thank you!
While shopping anywhere, I have so often wished that Enya was playing her soothing spa-like tones. So much better than Celine Dion screaming “My Heart Will go On” while I’m tyring to figure out unit pricing or how many yards of fabric to buy. I exit stores much more quickly than I normally would because of their excruciating music.
I have been to Paris five times; four while working for a major perfume company. Reading about your trip is bringing a lot of joy to so many peole as we relive our times there and wish we were with you. Thank you for your posts which I look forward to daily, realizing that you can’t possibly write that often.
Haha, ditto on the music. In fact, my favorite time to shop is the last 5-10 minutes before the store closes, when they turn it OFF to clue you in. Those times, I never forget anything I meant to pick up, even though it’s a mad dash to find it all. 😀
So true! We list the price of all our yarns by the ball and also by the yard so customers have a real sense of what they are paying for. I’ve slipped into the habit of telling prices by the yard rather than the ball ($.06 is a nice, medium priced yarn). So far my perfume math isn’t by the millilitre yet, but I do think of things in terms of how much perfume purchase X would buy. The $245 shoes I’ve been coveting for two years have been put on hold over and over again when compared to say, a bottle of Serge Lutens, a Guerlain extrait, etc.
Yikes, Celine Dion! Maybe Enya isn’t so bad. Still.
Celestia, would you mind sharing how you got to working for a major perfume company? (You don’t have to name names!) That’s the industry I’m hoping to join, but I have no idea how one gets into the perfume world.
Sorry, I left the second “p” out of people! Thank you, “peoPle”, for making me feel not alone in my gripe about piped in music.
Ari: I got my start when I was transferred to cosmetics in a dept. store. After landing at the counter (that seemed to have my name on it because the brand’s history was so appealing) as a part-timer, I eventually worked my way up to be the fragrance specialist. The best advice I could give is to approach a dept. store’s cosmetics’ manager and volunteer to be a demonstrator. That person may then put you in touch with a particular firm’s rep who would then maybe pay you in product for a while and then hire you outright if you work out. You would begin by giving out blotters for a new launch and then slowly work into a position.
I don’t reveal which company I work for because I want to give my honest opinions about all fragrances and not have readers think I love a perfume because I’m an employee. Similarly, if I really dislike a perfume from my company, I want to be able to say so with impunity! And I love many fragrances from many companies.
i am seriously swooning too. i wish i could go back to paris and experience the shopping better – last time i went in 2004, i was only interested in seeing the art (which isn’t too shabby of course!).
I saw the Yves Saint Laurent exhibit today which was TERRIFIC.
San Francisco’s DeYoung Museum hosted a YSL exhibition last year– I saw it twice and wish I’d seen it many more times. Another reason to envy you, Angela.
Are you taking notes while you shop and explore or do you just have a phenomenal memory? You make me feel like I’m there, and my feet are tired from doing all of this walking with you! What a fantastic trip. Oh, and I happen to be wearing Vol de Nuit vintage extrait today!
I’m just trying to remember! Hopefully I’m getting it right. At least these posts will make a sort of record for me. Love that VdN.
I am drooling over the description of the Patou store. I’m not nuts about their scents, except Joy, but the idea of smelling the raw materials sounds lovely.
That is the other part I read out loud so everybody could know how awesome that is!
You’re so nice!
It really is so enlightening to smell the raw materials. Denyse came over on Sunday and brought some to smell–a real eye opener. (And of course her company was wonderful.)
Angela – thanks for sharing your adventures with us. Isn’t that just one of the reasons fragrance is so much fun? I would have loved being in the Goutal shop with you!!
I have a new appreciation for Goutal after listening to the SA. Now I want Eau du Fier and Monsier Guerlain, too.
Love to read your Parisian adventures.
I visited the Goutal shop on the rue Castiglione in August of last year. Got me some Eau du Fier. Not to lead you into temptation but it does improve on you every time you wear it.
Have lots more fun!!
Tonight I’m wearing my newly Musc Nomade and am swooning. It’s my 5th FB of AG, so you know I’m a fan. I was once in Paris doing a video shoot and had a couple of hours free before heading to the airport. I had to choose between the Louvre and a visit to the AG boutique. Guess what I chose?
There have been rumours about the demise of AG or at least a significant reduction in distribution. Can you put these to rest (please).
I close my eyes and can smell and hear everything you’ve just described! wonderful 🙂 have a nice rest of your stay all three of you.
btw, it’s a pitty they sell vol de nuit only in the paris boutique, quelle domage!
There’s a place in Portland you can buy it. I think it’s available elsewhere–although probably not super easy to find.
Zara – VdN is sold at the Guerlain boutiques – Bergdorf Goodman in NY, Neimans in SF, Palazzo in Las Vegas, etc. I know I’m missing some. I usually deal with Alena or Jason at BG as periodically they have a gift card promotion where you get $25 off of a $100 purchase.
Zara-You can buy it at Bergdorf Goodmans store in NY and on their online site. I bought a bottle from them and they are wonderful. Sent several samples of other Guerlains in the package.
You have such a knack for bringing things to life! I feel like I was there with you. Your little touches, like the Japanese toilets, are priceless and definitely add to the whole feel. I can’t wait to smell SWINTON.
It’s a good one!
Angela – reading your posts is transporting! You write so beautifully that I can picture every scene – (and you look like Audrey Hepburn in some beautiful vintage Givenchy!) I’m so glad you’ve bought 2 bottles! And the Toto toilet – my parents bought one, after experiencing them on a trip to Japan. We all had to come over and “meet the Toto”. When you walk into the bathroom, the cover opens up – it feels like the toilet is greeting you: “OHAI!” I hope the rest of your trip is truly wonderful and can’t wait for your next post!!
That’s kind of freaky. I think I like a more passive toilet, really.
Ha! I’m with you on that! Angela, thank you for taking the time to write these. I’m enjoying them so!
oh haha; I’ve never been game to try those toilets, in case um, something goes wrong! I’ve seen them in Japan but have not been to Europe yet. Fancy the French getting them from the Japanese!
Thanks for the wonderful travelogue!
OHAI! I LOVE it!
Sacre Bleu, Cherie! You write so beautifully, I almost feel I was there with you! xoxo ; )
And yet you were!
Indeed! Your memory is unbelievable…your posts will serve as a diary of sorts for me!
Absolutely beautifully written. Like everyone else I’m amazed you find the time to write, and so thankful! I’m glad you like Like this. I tried it and enjoyed it, but there was a candy-like note that kept me a bit sceptical. I made my husband smell my wrist without telling him what it was and his first reaction was “That smells (like the color) orange!” and then “Yum!” He often describes smells in colors and with this one he was objectively right 🙂
Wow, he’s really insightful! Do you like it?
I liked Like this but didn’t love it, partly because I got something that reminded me of some childhood candy… If it were widely available here I’d definitely give it another try, though.
Angela- I am dripping with envy- all sounds spectacular! I know you are savoring every minute and thanks for sharing a bit of Paris with me =)
You’re welcome, of course!
Thank you so much, Angela! I just love reading your impressions of Paris and I am very glad that you are visiting the market and enjoying the bounty of perfect ingredients to whip up something in your kitchen. Aren’t those little French street markets the best?
The street markets are terrific, although I have to admit that I ran out of time (too much perfume sniffing) and had to stop at the Franprix.
This makes for wonderful reading. I would be interested in hearing which fragrance is your very favorite during this wonderful scent journey.
So far Like This is at the head of the pack. Of course, I’d love a bottle of Vega.
During the first unfettered minutes of my day (i.e. just before leaving), I made haste to check out NST and read your post. How delightful! I wish I were there, but reading your lovely account is the next best thing, and it will have to do for now. Maybe we should organize a field trip…
That would be fun!
It sounds just perfect. Hope you’re having the time of your life! Oh how I would love to buy some L’Heure Bleue parfum from the Guerlain boutique… all I have is the stinkin’ EDT.
I need to get back to you on the L’HB parfum. I can enable (somewhat)!
Squeeeeee! Thank you, Mals!
I’m so glad you got to go to Paris, your dream trip…
I’m having so much fun, thanks!
Your writing is always so wonderfully evocative. Thank you for sharing your experiences with us! I’ve been wondering what outfits you’ve chosen to wear?
I should have brought along a few more gathered skirt dresses to wear with leggings and cardigans.
Thank you for letting us live vicariously through you, Angela! I may just have to buy a bottle of Like This unsniffed…
I really do like it, but it’s so dangerous to buy unsniffed!
I am jealous right now. Paris is such a beautiful city plus it’s one of the only places where I can speak French other than in Montreal 😛
It’s nice to hear the murmur of French all around while you walk down the street.
Oh Angela– cher amie!!! Continued joy as you sniff around Paris. Don’t forget to stop at the tiny Malle store and even the big Sephora on the Champs Elysee has some good stuff. I know this is a scented jouney, but have you encountered any unique, special skin care lines? What are all of the beautiful French women using? What perfumes are you sniffing in the crowds and the cafes? Have a wonderful time and if you are in the Monoprix, pick up an herb blend called Persilotte….it is great on chicken and in omlettes!!
There’s lots more sillage in the air here, for sure! I got a snootfull of Coco yesterday, for instance.
Thank you for all the vicarious thrills. Envy! Will be looking for Like This and Vol de Nuit.
VdN is a must smell, in my opinion. The parfum has a whole different character than the EdT.
Thank you for keeping us updated with Paris. Love Vol de Nuit, wearing it today! what a coincidence :~)
A happy coincidence!
Maybe you saw my sister while you shopped, as she was in Paris shopping at Guerlain and Serge Lutens that day as well!
I wonder if we did–cool coincidence.
Thank you so much for sharing your trip; you make it feel like I’m right there tagging along, so I’m only just barely jealous ; )
You’re wonderful!
Thank you! I need to work up another post soon…
Angela, I’m very much enjoying your dispatches. So evocative. Like I’ve said, Paris isn’t “my city”, but I’m coming to realize that I would definitely love to spend a bit of time there again.
Love the description of Mouchoir de M.: “… lavender, smoked cigarettes, and dirty underwear.” All that is certainly not an incentive for me to want to smell it, though, not even out of curiosity.
Enjoy the rest of your trip!
Thank you so much! I’m having a wonderful time. We probably share the same feelings about MdM–it’s fascinating, but not so wearable for me.
Joe, I posted an answer to your comment below, by mistake…
Joe, Mouchoir de Monsieur is beautiful, stunning and a must smell.
It is not the animal of MKK (like you I am very sensitive to musks, and get all the s**t out of them, and wish I wasn’t); MdM is Jicky’s “clean” twin (i am referring to Jicky extrait). It is a cat sleeping in the sun, not the cat’s litter!
It is really very similiar to Jicky, with the animalic notes toned down a lot. Some say it is Jicky’s less interesting version, but I find it more wearable for a day at work.
The edt bottle and the name make people expect a cologne-type of scent, while it is one of the very few oriental fougere, like it’s sibling. I think on a man it is just stunning. And also on a woman!
I suppose the pure perfume is more animalic, but the price is too outrageous to even think of it.
Please, try it and let me know 😉
Thanks for the note, Zazie. You may have convinced me to put MdM back on my “try it someday” list. However, any hint of cigarette/ashtray is a sure way to make me gag, so I’m hoping maybe Angela was picking up on something that doesn’t do that for me. And in general I like some animalic musks and civet. I even get passing glimmers of genius from MKK, but mostly just stink. Musc Ravageur is a major love though.
Oh that sounds such fun – I treated myself to 3 days in Paris doing the rounds of the perfume outlets for my 50th birthday last year and covered some of the same ground, including IUNX, where I succumbed to the purchase of a policeman’s truncheon of a bottle – Eau Frappee. At that time (last June) you could also buy Parfumerie Generale in a shop called Aepure on the Left Bank – is that no longer the case?
Angela, thank you for sharing. It is a pleasure to read your reviews about Paris.
Angela, I’m loving reading about your adventures! I really need to try Paris again someday…I’ve only been there once on a quick three-day trip when I was studying in London and didn’t really get to savor the city. But for the time being, I’ll live vicariously through you.
Exquisite. Almost like I was there. Thanks!