Happy Tuesday! What's your fragrance today?
It's absurdly cold here. Ineke Field Notes from Paris is keeping me cheerful.
Reminder: this Friday, 11/21, is Unsniffed Friday: wear a perfume you bought before you'd smelled it, and tell us how it worked out for you. If you've never bought anything unsniffed, congratulations, and do chime in with your scent of the day anyway.
And for those of you who like to plan ahead, see Scent of the day ~ Friday community projects 2014, where I'll try to always have the next five or six weeks mapped out in advance.
Note: top image is Paris [cropped] by Jimmy B at flickr; some rights reserved.
SOTD is Encens Flamboyant (Annick Goutal)
You smell great!
I haven’t worn this in ages, and it is a cold but sunny day, so it seemed perfect for the occasion.
My scent of the evening yesterday was Ice Station Pineapple (alcohol-based version). Smell Bent describes it as “a scoop of pineapple sorbet buried under an avalanche of pine, mint, coconut and icy musk.” That’s a pretty accurate description, except that sorbet is sweet and this pineapple is not sweet at all. In addition, there really isn’t an avalanche of anything.
The pine smells like a freshly sawed piece of lumber. There is a constant icy undercurrent that almost skirts the edge of menthol, but thankfully, never goes there. The coconut emerges after an hour or so, and it is only slightly sweet.
After an hour or so, it started to remind me of Ananas Fizz (I was hoping that it would), but it’s not a duplicate.
I haven’t chosen a SOTD yet.
Thank you SO much for the detailed description, I was tempted by that one. Do you like it?
Yes, I like it. Perhaps you’ll review it? 🙂 I’d like to hear your take on it.
You’ve tempted me, so it’s possible!
Beautiful day here- sunny, warm. I’m wearing a few drops of Carnal Flower.
I am jealous!
Bitterly cold here too, but at least the sun is out today. I put on Jour d’Hermes because my I wanted something happy and “sunny” to wear today. I was scheduled to have a work review today, but it got pushed back to the end of the week, which scares me a little. I know this place is busy, but I’ve been laid off before (b/c I worked at a lot of smaller companies that didn’t do well profit-wise) and it always frightens me when I have stuff fall on Fridays. I might be wearing Jour again on Friday now (I don’t qualify for the Friday themed sotd) because it’s a cheerful scent for me and I’ll need it.
Good luck with your review
Sending positive thoughts your way! Keep wearing your Jour and be of good cheer!
Adding more good luck wishes…
Sending positive thoughts your way.
Another dose of good luck to you this week. Hoping for a positive outcome!
Good luck!
Crossing my fingers for you, and Jour de Hermes is always a good choice for feeling happy and confident. 🙂
Scent of the day is the original Commes Des Garçons. I purchased this untested because I was curious and the price was right. I tried it last year and did not care for it. Maybe I was not ready, perhaps the stars were not aligned correctly, the weather may have been too warm. Two caveats for those who have not tried it: 1.) better dabbed or splashed about, not sprayed. 2.) gorgeously enhanced by the rose lotion of your choice or layering with a rose soliflore. Here is my poor Haiku:
Zesty, fiery Rose
Spicy carnation peeks out
Dry, clove wonder
The feeling I get from this today is that this is a fragrance from another era. Full bodied, complex and well crafted and yes, a tad dangerous. Might appeal to black tea lovers since my nose is reading lots of tea as well.
Oh, have not worn it in ages…will have to pull mine out! Love the haiku.
Love the haiku. Makes me want to dig up the un-tried sample that I have of that frag.
I have not sniffed the original CdG. Your haiku makes me want to though:).
Freezing cold here today too; it was 18F when I took my youngest to school for his “zero period” class (he’s taking a Latin class only offered online at his middle school, and that’s when it’s scheduled) at 7:30. BRRRRRRRR! Not much warmer now, either – the thermometer says 23.
SOTD is Escada Margaretha Ley, delicious creamy white-floral that to my nose is somewhat along the lines of Fracas but without the Dove-soap thing that Fracas’ orange blossom does on me. Warm and comforting.
You beat me…it’s 29 here.
I’ve been whining about the drop to 55F! I shall cease to whine… but maybe I’ll put a fire on…
You read my mind, Oakland!
It’s all relative 🙂
If you are in Oakland, 55 can feel more like 35 due to the humidity:D.
Last night’s rain has blown away, but we have wind. BRRRR.
I am wearing John Varvatos for Women today. I hadn’t worn it in a awhile and it is quite nice, with the grappa note. This one used to be out there at the discounters, but I haven’t seen it lately.
SOTD is Musc Ravageur. I recently bought a single travel spray online, unsniffed. There were so many comparisons to Shalimar that I thought there is no way I can’t like it. I do like it. Although I get a plastic-y smell at first, it is a smell that I enjoy. Does any one else notice that? Anyhow, I sprayed on a generous amount this morning. Since then, I read a few reviews of Musc Ravageur, and am realizing that maybe it’s not the most appropriate work scent. Ooops 😉
Scent twins!
I don’t think MR smells much like Shalimar, but I do like it. I think it manages to be cozy *and* sexy at the same time.
I wore Femme de Rochas to work and felt a bit inappropriate, too. But in a good way. 🙂
Sampling Ann Gerard Rose Cut, which is disappointingly candy-sweet, at least in the opening.
I’ve flip flopped on RC. I definitely was not blown away by its originality…. What I do really like are the name and the color 😉 … I’ve concluded that while it won’t make my so called buy list, if it was given to me as a gift I would be delighted…. And pleased enough to have it my collection.
The color is pretty. 🙂 Now that I’m in the drydown it’s definitely not as sweet, more sour in a typical fruity chypre way. I don’t hate it but I have a lot of other rose chypres I’d reach for first.
It’s sugar sweet? I will pass on a sample then.
In the first ~5 minutes, yes! Like, gourmand-level sweet. Odd for a “chypre”
I had a similar experience with Rose Cut. When I first tried it, I actually hated it. It was SO sweet in the opening, and then forgettable in the dry-down. Then I tried it again and I though, “Hmm, not bad.” Then I tried it again and did not like it. I’ve been waffling around on it so much, but at the end of the day it just didn’t grab me.
That’s pretty much my experience — too sweet then ho-hum. I will probably try it again but it’s not a winner for me.
RC definitely wasn’t what I expected it to be. Huge disappointment to me. The rose was just too strong for me.
I wanted more rose! Or darker rose at least.
Weirdly, it wasn’t rosy enough for me with all the fizziness and Christmas punch.
While I tested RC with about five other things up and down my arms, I got more a rose scent that reminded me of L’Artisan’s Rose Velour (sp?) that dried down to more of a typical rose potpourri sort of smell. However, I was testing Musc Ravageur on my other wrist and when I held them together for an experimental sniff, it was magical! So maybe Rose Cut layered with Musc Ravageur is the way to go. I’ll try that after I give RC a fair wearing by itself.
Maybe I’ll try that! I’ve been meaning to give MR a re-test as well.
Musc Ravageur for me today since it is a warm and cozy scent
It IS warm and cozy, perfect for a cold fall day! I don’t know if it is my body chemistry or my nose, but a lot of the perfumes that I read about with a reputation for being “dirty” and animalic just seem cozy to me …
It’s both to me but I like the musks that tend more towards the animalic side than the laundry side
I am totally with you on that one! MR felt cozy, wide-eyed and almost innocent on me. I was very surprised when I finally got around to trying it.
I’m wearing a liberal application of Vince Camuto today. I’ve always really dug this scent and my store stalking paid off on Saturday, when I found a 30ml bottle at my TJ Maxx for $15. It’s a floriental I guess? Very sweet and pretty (ridiculous bottle), and not in anyway complicated, which we all need once in awhile.
My local TJ Maxx also had a lot of Fancy Nights, which I know many of y’all love, but I didn’t feel like blind buying. But I wanted to do a TJ Maxx “PSA” for everyone. They have tons of Christmas gift fragrance sets out right now (nothing I was interested in) so it seems many of their “regular” full bottles are getting discounted to make room. I saw Bottega Veneta Essence, or whatever it’s called, for $30 and several Sensuous flankers (Sensuous Nude & I think Noir as well).
A similar PSA is possible in the Canadian context: Winners (at least the bigger ones) also seems to be getting a lot of gift sets (I’ve been seeing Bulgari, Cartier, and Hermes). Hoping that will translate to the same sales that Squirrely is noticing 😉
You have an enviable TJ Maxx. I ran over this morning and they had all the Fancys except Fancy Nights and no EL! Some Bvlgari but not the good ones. We have a TJ Maxx Home Store which has a better selection but it is a bit of a drive. I covet the Bottega Veneta flanker but did not see it today. I will keep checking!
It’s so hit or miss. I only go about every 6 weeks, max, so sometimes I fantasize about “training” my friends to spot the finds and text me pics. Yeah, I might have a problem…
I don’t think you do! Sounds reasonable to me!
Sore tum so wanted something warm and airy… SOTD is EL Sensuous Nude.
Uh oh, feel better!
Feel better and light the fire by all means!
I am wearing SL La Fille de Berlin, a fabulous musky rose. It is lingering so nicely on my wool sweater! Last winter I sprayed some on a scarf and afterward the entryway (where we hang our scarves) smelled of roses for at least a week.
Great rose scent:).
One of my favorites and my first SL full bottle. It has been a staple for me for the last year now and it lingers on scarves and sweaters in the loveliest way!
I really enjoy La Fille de Berlin. I have blown through a half bottle already, which is unheard of in my collection. I think this takes my award for most worn scent this year, purely based on level of usage. It’s one of my favorite roses.
Love La Fille! Perhaps my favorite of all the roses, though Lyric Woman runs a close second.
I’ve been sick and completely revolted by all smells (including food). I’m finally easing cautiously back into fragrance, and am wearing L’heure Bleue (yep, still trying to use up that EDT). Today, the floral notes feel safe and clean, but not in a bad way! More in a not-dangerous-and-won’t-make-you-gag kind of way. Anyway, I have a new-found appreciation for people who are sensitive to smells all the time. This would drive me nuts. Looking forward to wearing something loud and strong by the end of the week!
Hope you are feeling much better soon.
Thank you! There’s nothing quite like feeling ill to help you appreciate feeling normal (even when normal isn’t perfect)!
Hope you feel better soon.
Thank you!
La fille de Berllin-my fav rose
Today is Prada Infusion d’Iris Absolue. My go-to for grey cold days, with the cool iris warmed up by the mix of tonka, benzoin, and vanilla.
SOTD is Orange Blossom from Jo Malone. I also mixed it with Atelier’s Orange Saguine. I woke up in an “orangy” kind of mood. Showered this morning with The Body Shop’s Satsuma, so that kicked it off for me. 🙂
Wow, that’s a LOT of orange. I once did a comparison of those two on each wrist. I can’t imagine wearing them layered!
Never too much orange:).
One of my coworkers commented this morning on how good I smelled. When I told her what I did, she said that it sounded like it would be a big mess, but she said it smelled amazing. I guess it all depends on a person’s body chemistry as well. My chemistry loves orange scents.
That’s very true. I’m glad it worked out for you! 🙂
Ok, here’s some kinda crazy- I would have worn a new perfume today but I can get the bottle open. No joke!
It came with a screw top lid and a separate spritz pump, but I CAN NOT get the original screw top cap off! What a conundrum!
So, due to high frustration levels, I am wearing my go to- Tauer Un Rose de Kandahar. Love!
If I ever get this bottle open, this will be my Friday scent since I bought it unsniffed…
Yike.
Unsniffed, no kidding! How frustrating to have the bottle and not be able to get to the fragrance. Not sure if this works with frag, but if a paint tube cap is stuck, I run it under warm water and then apply slow, steady pressure to unscrew it.
In any case I hope Rose de Kandahar is making it better.
…but for a perfume with a glass stopper that’s stuck I heard that running it under cold water will help the glass to contract so it can be eased open. Is that true or is it just an urban perfume myth?
I second what Sajini says. Put the bottle under warm running water and see if that helps.
What was the new perfume?
Let me guess — Le Couvent des Minimes Eau des Missions?
Hey, thanks everyone for your suggestions! Finally got the durn thing open- I was hesitant to do the hot water thingy because I didn’t want to mess up the label but found a way to protect it while still heating up the cap area. After that, a couple of careful taps on the cap with the heavy end of a knife and SHA-ZAM! It worked 🙂
Hajusuuri, your psychic abilities a frighteningly uncanny!
Wearing FM Angelique Sous la Pluie today. Still have a headache today, so it seemed like something that wouldn’t bother me.
That is a favourite of mine on headache days. Eau Parfumée au Thé Vert is also very suitable for wear when one is in the doldrums.
Ooh, this is such a nice scent. Clean, which is nearly a dirty word on the fragrance blogs, and quiet. I like this for contemplative moods. It’s not overpowering. This goes on my FM consider purchase list ASAP. I just have a decant…
I love this scent, but I find it to be really puzzling. I get so much pepper out of it – I like pepper so that doesn’t bother me, but it smells nothing like it is purporting to do to me. Is this JCE?
This morning I put on Ambre Sultan. I seem to reach for that one more often now the weather is getting cooler. It’s cozy and helps me focus. Actually I bought that one unsniffed because of all the great reviews and the super discounted price online. Also if I apply it lightly it is quite work friendly. My clients think it’s amber oil which I wear sometimes at work anyway.
I love Amber Sultan. You smell great!
My scent of the day is PdN’s Maharadjah which is quite a strange scent, lots of lavender in the opening and a soft balsamic drydown with cinnamon. I love it.
I put on Pacifica’s Spanish Amber, which I received in the mail yesterday. I bought it because of several mentions here on NST. I didn’t think that I liked it at first, but that was probably just the contrast to yesterday’s sweet Missoni. I am just beginning to explore amber scents, and the only other one that I own is Prada L’Eau Ambree, which frankly, I prefer. However as I wear this one, I am enjoying it more. It’s quite a dry, incense type scent.
Have you tried Histoires de Parfums 114 or Hermes L’Ambre des Merveilles?
I wear the Pacifica and like a lot of Pacifica’s fragrances they smell much better 15 minutes in. There vanilla is one of my favorites but is a hot mess when first applied. I think this houses perfumes are great for layering. One of the best jasmine soliflores ever, in my opinion, is Wakiki Pikake. I get a lot of cedar from the Spanish Amber, but that is not a bad thing.
I meant their, not there. Good grief, I should not be allowed to type! I am a spelling and grammatical hazard!
I’m on an amber kick as well. My loves in the past two weeks – Tom Ford Amber Absolute (from a swap and I got a wee bit off eBay) and Profumum Ambra Aurea (I have split decant).
SOTD is Aqua Flor Penumbra. I just returned from 3 days in Florence and visited this wonderful little tucked away shop. Penumbra is amber based and good for our very cold day here in Minnesota.
I also bought a solid perfume called Derwish. Seriously I could have bought several more, they were all lovely and the shop was amazing, only my husbands patience and room in my luggage limited me from doing more damage.
Burberry Body Intense, from a recent sample scavenge at Nordstrom. I like it, I am slowly venturing into rose territory, and this is an easy beginners rose (I decided that because I think it’s easy, I’m a beginner, and it has the apple dewy rose I find easy to like).
Whoops! That was supposed to be a separate statement.
But I did get a chuckle out of bring limited by patience and space. Only because I feel ya Kelly! 🙂
It is very cold today, I am wearing Hermes 24 Faubourg , I always forget about this beauty, I am enjoying it a lot.
Yes, I feel so graceful and womanly when I wear it. (Haha I’ve fooled them all….)
Hi, NST! I spend a lot of time lurking around here but never end up commenting. Today, things change!
Weather is weird here in Alaska, we’ve skipped the snow and gone straight to too-cold-to-snow territory. I am wearing Bvlgari Omnia because it is one of my few scents that is both comforting and won’t gas out my fellow students at my university’s cramped classrooms.
I love Alaska! – although I live at the opposite end of the country (FL). Hope the Omnia is keeping you cozy!
Hi and welcome! Love Omnia, you smell great.
In the Omnia Lover’s camp here!
Hi and welcome to the thread! We had a relative who lived in Alaska for years and loved it. She only moved back to Michigan because she missed the extended family, apparently not to get away from the intense winters. lol
Omnia is perfect for cold weather. I love it so much it’s pretty much perfect for anything, in my opinion! 😉
Welcome Dorsey! Omnia was one of my first NST inspired purchases. You smell great!
I was inspired by NST too! I was going to save it for unsniffed Friday but I took a look out the window this morning at the grey everything and decided it had to be today. I don’t know what I’ll do when my travel spray runs out. Why oh why was it discontinued? 🙁
Another welcome from another Omnia lover!
Thank you all for the warm welcome! 🙂
I am sampling Bois d’Iris today, and liking it very much, but it is not ringing my bell the way the Wisteria Hysteria did yesterday.
I love the bottle for WH!
Grey grey grey… Stockholm officially has had two hours of sunshine so far this November… I am almost falling asleep as I type this.
This dreary weather calls for a no-brainer: SL Santal Blanc.
Two hours! 😯
We’ve had a little more than you, but we’ve finally hit those dreary November days. So grey that it feels as if it never gets really light. It will pass, but it isn’t very enjoyable.
Only two hours of sunshine this month so far is completely unreasonable! Might I suggest a dose of vitamin D?
OMG! Two hours PER MONTH!? I hope you have access to a full spectrum/sun lamp.
Like bastet and Lovestosmellgood, I am in La Fille de Berlin today. We could make a trio of roses. I love this scent in the cold, and we have plenty of that today.
It is pretty cold here, too, and between yesterday afternoon and this morning, we’ve gotten at least nine inches of snow. The kids have a snow day today. *headdesk* So to keep calm, I’m wearing some Lt. Piver Heliotrope Blanc and waiting with anticipation for the plows and salt trucks to get out there. I don’t know if I can take two snow days in a row. 😉
Bottega Veneta layered with Patou 1000.
The Patou felt like a more flamboyant sister of the BV and vice versa, BV felt like the more brooding sister of 1000. Worked well as a scent combo that had to transition from office to cocktail party,
I’m wearing Reem Acra today. Hadn’t worn it in a while so I decided it needed some attention.
Absurdly cold here today, too, our 7th day of deep freeze. Anticipated high is 19°, expected to break the lowest high for this date of 22°. Snow on the ground, more tomorrow. Aargh!
I’m keeping warm with Givenchy’s original Organza Indecence edp. I was totally smitten at first sniff at its debut and remain so even now. If it were available forever and ever, it would be my cold-weather signature scent. Although I have a backup bottle plus several minis, I still use it sparingly, I never want to run out of it (nor pay the eBay prices). IMO the reissue under Les Mythiques is not the same, the newer scent has some citrus and just doesn’t make it to this level (perhaps because the original is aged by now?) and, as a bottle lover, the newer bottle is so blah compared to its risqué goddess forerunner.
Sending positive thoughts and feel better wishes to all NST’rs not feeling well or otherwise stressed or anxious.
Cuir de Russie Chanel EDT. The leather is very funky, animalic on me – smells like civet. Nice on a (as the young folks say) stoopid cold day. 😉
Eeek, Cuir de Russie goes all barnyard on me. Blech. I assume this is the current formulation?
Yes hajusuuri, purchased about four years ago @ Bergdorf Goodman.
Even more so now than when I posted two hours ago. I hope it was not ‘misinterpreted’ by anyone who smelled it on me today. LOL
MdO’s Musc today, as I wanted cuddly comfort. It goes all baby powder on me, and some days, that’s perfect.
Bottega Veneta today, warm and lovely.
A lovely perfumista sent me my very first sample of L’Heure Bleu – love at first sniff. I had a rough day today, and this is bringing me out of the funk – ah, heaven.
The second Guerlain I “get” along with Apres L’Ondee – but, of course…. 🙂
It is 18 degrees and everyone seems to be on the verge of getting sick! Today I sampled L’Artisan Fou d’Absinthe, which was nice but I think I will pass it on to my husband. As it faded, I layered on Byredo Gypsy Water, which worked very well!
I need some advice from fellow perfumistas! I am thinking of putting together a sampler of potential wedding scents for my friend. I am going to include Arquiste Boutonniere and Byredo Flowerhead, because she sniffed and liked both. I was thinking maybe Songes would also fit the general theme? I would love any further suggestions, thank yoU!
Songes would be so romantic and lovely! I know on the Olfactif (monthly fragrance subscription) website, they have a wedding sampler. It’s very elegantly packaged as well. Maybe you want to check it out? I subscribe to Olfactif, and Tara Swords who runs it is just such a lovely person, and is so prompt when I have emailed her before regarding various questions.
I think Songes would definitely fit the category. L’Artisan’s La Chasse aux Papillons and Chanel’s Gardenia would be contenders, too. Oh, and another Chanel Exclusif – Beige – would be beautiful, though perhaps the name is not very wedding-y.
Ugh I always post so late! I wore Oolang Infini… I was hoping it would be a warm lovely tea, but I don’t get the wood/leather notes that others seem to love so it felt more like an iced tea to me. Better luck tomorrow for something to brace me against this cold!
I find Oolang Infini really crisp as well (I almost drained my sample this summer) – pleasant, but not necessarily for winter!
Beautiful sunny day here in France. I decided to go for Fourreau Noir today as it is quite a cosy perfume for me and it lasts really well too. It has lavender, tonka and almond with a bit of smoke there too. It’s quite an unusual mix but one of my favourites.