The Monday Mail is about to take its holiday vacation, but first, here is an open thread for participants in the Monday Mail articles to share their experiences, and hopefully let us know if they found what they were looking for (or went bankrupt trying). I'm sending out emails today requesting feedback from everyone who took part between May and August of this year, so check back over the next few days to see what we can find out.
Here are links to the articles for each participant:
Anne, Ines, Nike, Susan, Malte, Joane, Melissa, Ann, Jason, Kristina
Look for the Monday Mail to return mid-January. If you'd like to get on the waiting list, see the instructions here.
Note: image "Letter box in a house-wall of San Giorgio in the community Resia, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Italy" by Johann Jaritz, via Wikimedia.
Hi everyone! I was looking for a new scent for fall/winter with a little bit more warmth than my usual suspects but without being sweet. You guys came up with a lot of great ideas and this is what I tried:
Bvlgari Black – I was expecting something avant-garde, therefore I was disappointed that it turned out to be rather tame (new formulation?). I like it though and it is still on my back-up list.
Donna Karan, Black Cashmere – I was 100 percent sure that I would love it but this one was a total scrubber on me (the clove?).
SSS, Tabac Aurea – Wow. What an amazing scent. Golden yet smoky and complex. I ordered a bottle after the first sniff and love it dearly although I find it a tad too sweet for daywear.
Chanel, Sycomore – I’m not sure this was recommended but I tried it anyway and was blown away. Vetiver heaven. I’m waiting for the small bottle to arrive in Europe.
I’m also enjoying my decant of Chanel 31, RC! I still have to try some of the Parfums d’Empire which sounded really beautiful to me. Thanks again everyone for your help, I really appreciated it! Best wishes from Cologne, Kristina
Hi, Kristina! glad you are enjoying Tabac Aurea, which is a favorite of mine. And wanted to say that I’m not all that surprised that you found Bvlgari Black tame. As far as I know it hasn’t been reformulated (somebody chime in if I’m wrong), but I found it very comforting rather than bold, with the rubber note faint and pleasant, like wearing brand new sneakers – the old-fashioned canvas kind with white rubber soles.
I totally agree! It’s a brilliantly done, comforting scent, I just couldn’t figure out what all the “Oh my god, this is so weird” talk was about.
I agree with you two. Black is downright subtle, to my nose. Not a bad thing, it’s just different from what I expected!
BB was my first love as a passionate ‘perfumista’, ie. of my ‘perfume phase’. It was quite hard to find here and I thought it was bulgari jasmine noir that Luca Turin had enthused about. And I really didnt like that much. Then I discovered Bulgari Black, spritzed it and went straight into a perfume euphoria. I saw it as an exotic big black flower that smelt like a rubber toy! I was totally obsessed until I scraped the money together to buy it. Then I decided I wanted my skin to smell like that forever and forever. 18 months on and I cant remember when I last used it – I find it a bit too sweet now!
Yup. I’m pretty close to a fresh floral lover and I wear
Bulgari Black. To me, it smells like tea and vanilla. It’s my comfort scent. The rubber note just comes through as a clear whistle.
I think I should probably mention that I have yet to find my signature also. It’s been a while but I was ;looking for a gorgeous floral and I mentioned the word “green”, what started as a “touch” turned into everyone suggesting mostly full on green florals.
I would like to try again. Now that I have more experience, I believe I can do a better description of what I am looking for.