It's another Monday, and it's Vincent van Gogh's birthday. What fragrance are you wearing?
I'm wearing Lush Kerbside Violet (quick review coming up, hopefully tomorrow).
Reminder: this Friday, 3 April, is Chanel TNG: wear something by perfumer Olivier Polge. If you don't have anything by Olivier Polge, do feel free to wear an older Chanel fragrance, or skip it altogether.
And for those of you who like to plan ahead, see Scent of the day ~ Friday community projects 2015, where I'll try to always have the next five or six weeks mapped out in advance.
Note: top image is detail from Vincent van Gogh's Almond Blossom, 1890.
SOTD: L de Lolita Lempicka. Sooo glad I bought a bottle before this fantastic, creative brand basically disappeared from the U.S.
Wondering when human-perfume marriage will be legalized so I can finally make an honest woman out of Chanel Misia. I’m absolutely smitten!
It’s a shame. Wonder if Sweet will launch here? Although it is not as fantastic and creative as some of the earlier scents.
This is one of my favorite Van Goghs, Robin. So glad to see it here! Wearing Eau de Shalimar, because the day is grey, I woke up a bit gloomy and this one never fails to cheer me up. I wish I’d hoard the bottom of my bottle for the future, but I just can’t stop wearing it.
Have a great week, y’all!
It’s pretty gloomy here too…the colors on that painting are so gorgeous, although do not know if they are accurate — looks much more washed out on Wikipedia’s version. Nearly certain I’ve seen it in person but it was years ago.
Ah, and the online version at the Van Gogh museum is somewhere in between:
http://www.vangoghmuseum.nl/en/collection/s0176V1962
One of my favorites as well.
Me three.
I’m always pleased to see a Van Gogh. My favourite of his is The Harvest.
Today I’m still doing Amouages but have switched to the Library Collection and am wearing Opus I. I like it ok, but fortunately it doesn’t really speak to me.
The Harvest, for anyone who wants to see it:
http://www.vangoghmuseum.nl/en/collection/s0030V1962
Happily for my wallet, none of the Opus series spoke to me.
So far I’ve not really been smitten by 3 of the 4 I ordered, which I’m very pleased with as I seem to fall for too many of the others.
The Harvest is wonderful, the eye can wander and wander… I think I’ll be seeing it in person this August.
Are you coming to Amsterdam? “La moisson” is beautiful, very serene and balanced.
Hey, Austenfan! I think I’ll be going, if I get the grant, that is. But my case is solid, as I have loads of work to do at UVA, so it should work out… (No internet at my new home yet, hence my difficulty accessing perfume blogs… Sorry for the late answer.)
I’m a layering maniac this morning in a bit of both Tom Ford Oud Fleur and Mona di Orio Oud, plus I can still smell the drydown of Rose Flash from last night. Mmm.
Working through my Escada Coffret so I am in the 1996 limited edition of Jardin de Soleil by Sophie Labbe…..peach, neroli, gardenia, tuberose, orange blossom, saffron, hyacinth, oakmoss and sandalwood….maybe I should have saved this one for BWF Friday!
That sounds REALLY nice.
Also, I could probably do an entire month of BWFs. (It is entirely possible that at some point I HAVE done a month of BWFs.)
Oh do tell! what are some of your favorite BWFs? I looked up “white flowers” on fragrantica to get some ideas but there were not too many of my perfumes listed…
!!!
and also, not sure if you saw my comment on another post but beauty encounter is selling a Victoria mini for a reasonable price…you might have more luck since your e-bay finds were off….I am so tempted to get one for myself
I have given up on Victoria.
I probably have more *bottles* of green florals than I do of BWFs, but I have all these samples… I know I could wear one sample a day and get through, oh, maybe two months before moving on to another genre! But some favorites, if I’m talking about bottles or substantial decants, include Amoureuse, TF Black Orchid Voile de Fleur (the edt – now d/c), Cristina Bertrand #3, DK Gold, Carnal Flower, ByRedo Flowerhead… I haven’t managed to buy any AG Songes, but I think that one is wonderful. ELPC Tuberose Gardenia is another delightful one I don’t own.
I love that painting! I feel inspired to go visit one of the art museums in my city soon.
Just wearing a scarf with lingering traces of Petit Fracas as long as my office is so cold. Once that perfume gets on some fabric it never lets go.
SL Santal Majuscule. Half Jeux de Peau, half Santal Blanc. Very nice.
Just got to London from Edinburgh (First Class train, much cheaper than you would think and very nice). I am very much in peril of buying a bottle of La Fille de Berlin at Harrod’s in the next couple of days…
If you love it then buy it and consider it a “souvenir” to commemorate your lovely vacation.
Don’t talk to me then, because I’ll just enable you…:)
If you’re in London, then isn’t it required that you stop by the Ormonde Jayne boutique?
OMG that never even occurred to me…
Will keep you posted.
I exist to serve.
Completely forgot that it was a Chanel week, but I’m in the modern Bois des Iles. It’s a nice counterpoint to the greyness outside.
Thanks so much to whomever shared the Vonnegut quote the other day about the season of “Unlocking” vs. spring. It is honestly helping me cope with the weather.
And now to anxiously await my bottle of L’arte de Gucci….:)
Yay, L’Arte!
I am sooooo excited!
Van Gogh is the best. I like The Church, Wheatfield with Crows, Landscape at Twilight and of course, Starry Night…and several more.
Violette Fumee from a decant.
If I remember correctly, The Church was close to last painting, or perhaps his last. Not sure if his last painting has been confirmed, however. The Church was painted about a month before he died according to the dates. He initially wanted to become a pastor before getting into painting. Again, if I remember correctly. I think his father was a pastor and he was going to follow in his steps. So, it’s interesting, that a church was close to his last painting. With all of his struggles, perhaps it was a painting of hope or struggle..who knows.
Correction, according to *very reliable Wiki* lol-Wheatfield with Crows was actually later than The Church. His last words were, “the sadness will last forever”. Gosh, that’s such a bummer! Well, happy Monday! LOL.
SOTD: Spellbound by Estee Lauder.
Seeing that painting makes me want to reach for something osmanthus or maybe Chinatown (because…the bottle’s print?).
I completely agree that painting does remind me of the bottle of Chinatown…..anyway, you smell great in Spellbound! Do they still sell that at the EL counters?
I think they do! Quite often they will stash the older releases in the drawers instead of having them on display and you have to ask. I have no idea why they do that though.
Love that Van Gogh! SOTD is EL Tuberose Gardenia.
VCA Bois d’Iris. This is one I wore a lot when it first came out and just haven’t reached for it much lately for some reason. (Too many things competing with it, probably.) This morning my husband said he liked this one, which was nice–usually he has to really like something or really dislike it to mention it.
Hi everyone –
Haven’t posted in a while…
SOTD is Paestum Rose. I just purchased a FB of it after going through many samples over the last few years.
I also purchased Rose Flash over the weekend which is exciting, as Andy no longer seems to ship to Canada. I was visiting Brooklyn and visited Twisted Lily, a perfume store, which I highly, highly recommend. Excellent selection (including lots of Tauers) and a knowledgeably, non-pushy sales associate.
I layered some Satsuma body butter from The Body Shop with Aqua Allegoria Mandarine Basilic to cheer me up because it’s still snowing outside. The body butter was a gift (in a set with the body polish) and I don’t like it as much as I thought. It’s a bit sharper than I would have liked (I prefer mandarine scents to clementine). Will probably work well on hot summer days.
I love the painting. It would look amazing as a scarf design I think.
It’s a gorgeous spring day here in East Texas. Sunny with highs in the 80s. The bluebonnets, wisteria and azaleas are all blooming. Today I am wearing Perles de Lalique. Basically because I wanted something rose, and I haven’t worn this is a while. I really like the peppery notes in this.
Our wisteria started blooming last week here in San Diego as well. Had to take a picture of it yesterday since it is gone so quickly and I love it so.
Yes! My wisteria is in full bloom here in San Diego and getting ready to fade. Wish it lasted longer as it is my favorite flower.
I am wearing Nicole Richie today. It’s not outstanding, but very wearable. I have to bring my 10-year old shetland sheepdog to the vet today for his annual examination, and this fragrance will suit today just fine.
I also forgot that this week is Chanel week. I will rectify that tomorrow.
What a beautiful piece of art you posted today!! A few years ago, my husband and I went to Paris and visited the Musee d’Orsay, and one of the things that amazed me was the color of the sky in Van Gogh’s painting, The Church in Auvers-sur-Oise.
Wearing 24 Faubourg today, which seems just right for early spring.
You smell good! I love that one.
Thank you! This is one that has really grown on me. When I first got it, I thought, yeah, I like this, but not as much as X, Y,Z. These days though, it seems almost perfect, and spraying it on this morning I really got it in a way I hadn’t before.
Today I am wearing Coach Poppy Freesia Blossom. Haven’t worn it for a while, but now seems like the right time. The sky is gray here, but it’s not going to be too cold, and this one is a bright happy floral to me.
Atelier’s gorgeous osmanthus, Rendez-Vous is wafting gloriously about me.
I’m trying Atelier’s Sud Magnolia this morning. So far it’s orange juice and rose–I’m hoping the magnolia shows up soon.
Celebrated one year younger
this weekend with lots of family and friends.
Journey Woman was my scent for the weekend and today its the same.
Sounds like you had a birthday? Wishing you a wonderful year ahead of ‘smelling good.’.
Thank you so much! I did! Lots of food and wine-what more do you need-
Can’t ask for more! Happy Belated Bday
I have been wearing No. 19 for three straight days now. It is basically perfect for this time of year… but now I’m thinking that I want to counteract the gloomy weather with my decant of 1932 today, if I’m going to make this a Chanel week! I have a bit of the edt which is gorgeous but fleeting, and I have a bit of the parfum which sticks around longer but isn’t quite as ethereal. I shall layer.
vintage or current formulation? In any event, you smell fabulous!
Vintage EdT, current EdP – have worn some of each.
I recently drained my vintage no. 19 parfum over a four day marathon where nothing else would do. Afterwards, I felt like a little kid shaking out my empty Halloween bucket trying to figure out where all the happiness went. Sniff…but so good while it lasted. Picked up another bottle on eseductionBay that should arrive soon….but the jury is still out on whether it will be as lovely as my last….
Somehow I don’t love the parfum. It’s maybe too dry for me? Too much vetiver? I did have some vintage parfum I never wore, but I passed it on to another friend. Oh well. They do pop up in teh EvilBay sometimes.
Today I am in the incomparably perfect Iris Ganache.
I hope everyone had a great weekend.
Today I am wearing Coach Leatherware No1.
I like this the best out of the three. You smell good. I ended up buying all three since they were half off AND I had a 25% off coupon on top of that plus free shipping – thy were practically free
WOW! you did good
!!!!
Great score, Hajusuuri.
My husband’s Leatherware 2 just arrived today and we both love it on him.
I guess I should be in Chanel or some early Polge, but I am feeling very Hermes today. I am wearing Jour d’Hermes edp. which while marketed as a feminine is about a unisex as any of the Jardins. It is very nice, but I am not sure I need Jour, Voyage, and Jardin sur le Toit.
No? Huh. It seems I needed all 4 jardins (so far), Jour, Voyage edt AND parfum, Terre, the 3 colognes (mini mind you!
) and i have only now been wondering if I need the mandarine one… 
lol
Hee. I have all three, I am just not sure I need all three (plus the other three Jardins, Terre, and Orange Vert both Eau and Concentree). I will not mention the Hermessences.
I wore Parfum Sacre today (and all weekend) and I’m absolutely enamored with it. I applied with a light hand for work, but I’m counting down the hours until I can put on a heftier dose.
I also want to thank everyone for their kind words and sympathy on my lost bracelet. Even though it’s just an object, it’s so easy to get attached when it’s a gift from someone you love. I’m feeling a bit more at peace about it today.
Parfum Sacre is wonderful.
To celebrate the return of spring today after a week of cold and snow, my Keep-It-Simple Monday scent is L’occitane Feuilles Magic – Magical Leaves. This was mostly a bath and body line a few years ago with only a small edt available. Wish I had more! Crisp refreshing verbena and warm, comforting vanilla join together for a perfect ‘unlocking’ season scent, topped off with a hazlenut note for added appeal.
To Robin or anyone else who loves BWF’s, what’s the difference between BWF and WF? As a non-lover who cringes at most WF’s, I find all of them so BIG!
I dont know if it’s the right ‘official’ answer, but to me a BWF has indolic white flowers to some degree, whereas just a WF would incorporate the limp, washed out white florals (especially jasmine) that i find so many modern mainstream white florals seem to be. Someone described them as Laura Ashley florals, which is how i think of them- all innocent and demure and a bit boring..
So, BWF and WWF, the latter being wee (or wan) white flowers. Oh, and for Keep It Simple Monday it’s Bas de Soie.
verbena and vanilla? that sounds lovely! I am still in a season of Unlocking with snow flurries this morning…by far the worst winter/early spring I can remember!
To me, the difference between a white floral and a BWF is where the focal point is. Is the fragrance equally split between fruity top, white-floral middle, woody-musk base, for example? Not a BWF, in my opinion. Is it as much about the citrus up top and the moss and wood in the base as it is the jasmine and tuberose (like Mito)? Not a BWF, but definitely a white floral.
I like both. BWFs are big and luxurious and girly-wirly and dolled-up. The quintessential BWF, according to me, is absolutely Fracas.
I think for me a BWF lacks any green element, and is not a soliflore. Florientals can be BWFs, anything that mixes 2 or more white flowers can be a BWF. It also has to be a perfume with BIG sillage and lasting power. Doesn’t have to be indolic.
Many thanks for your comments on BWF vs WWF.
Wearing Eau Parfumee de The Vert today. I had an old sample, but this is the first time I’ve sprayed it. The opening had much more of the citrus and brightness today. It suits the cloudy spring day, starting fresh but settling into the cardamom and coriander, which I think is what reminds me of pencil shavings.
I just tried au the vert a few months ago. It was so lovely and unassuming I had to get a small bottle for summer.
Yes, I just got mine. Had found the sample I used to wear and enjoy, and drained the last of it recently. Then found it for a great deal so promptly got a FB.
Today I’m wearing Balenciaga Paris, a wonderful spring carnation/violet fragrance. And it’s by Olivier Polge! I didn’t know this until I looked it up on Fragrantica.
Of course it’s snowing outside. Sigh.
I’ve been fighting a dreary cold w fever, and violets have been my happy place throughout the day. Balenciaga Paris some how manages to make feel elegant and pretty… Even wrapped up in a blanket surrounded by tissue boxes and junky novels and sleepy cats…today I am wearing another violet… But Paris has been good to me!
Feel better soon, OF! It’s hard to feel pretty and elegant with a bad cold. Even with B. Paris.
I now love this scent. The first times I tried it, I recoiled, finding it way too sweet. But I was also fascinated by it. So I kept trying, and now I’ve come to appreciate it – particularly the opening and the dry down. And, for such a delicate scent, it lasts *all* day for me, easily 12 + hours, which is rare. I found a 30 ml bottle at Winners, and I’m so glad I bought it, both for the scent, and for the adorable little bottle itself.
It’s lasting well on me, too, Delacey! If I could find a reasonably priced small bottle, I would buy it. Still working on my decant for the time being, however.
Wearing OJ Woman from a new decant today. Im very confused- has this been reformulated??
)
The last decant i had induced utter delight! It was rich and green and deep. This one seems half water! Its more chemical, very light and fleeting- gone in like half an hour. It’s from STC so im certain its real.. but it’s SO not the same!!
(Glad i exhibited some rare restraint and didnt go straight for the fb!
On a cold/flu therapy through violets scheme… So today I am wearing SSS’s Lieu des Reves…it is perfect as my extremely diminished smelling capacity is picking up mostly powdery violets…
Good luck with your “violet therapy”….I love this one…so sad that it is now in “the vault” at SSS (a discontinued but limited availability)
SOTD for me is Juste Un Reve as I need summertime smells! So happy I’m wearing this today as I sit wrapped in a blanket at my desk.. ugh!
Happy Monday!
I wore that yesterday- it’s such a great fragrance! So happy, sunny day!
Agreed! It lingers all day as well which is so nice.
That’s such a pretty one.
SOTD Dune edt from a decant/swap from a wonderfully generous NSTer. Deep breath in and ….ah!
Love Dune! You smell divine!
Wearing Heliotrope Blanc today. So pretty, and something I would have considered not my style at all when I first went down the rabbit hole. It’s funny how much my tastes have changed!
SOTD = Lancome La Vie est Belle
From a sample as that is the most I can tolerate of this perfume. I cheated though by layering it with Le Labo Vanille 44. I may be in Chanel the rest of the week!
Just popped open a new bottle of dry shampoo, and turns out the “wild” scent is an Angel dupe. It works, i like it, but may put it away until fall.
Accessorizing with Prada L’eau Ambree.
Picked the wrong SOTD. Testing Hiram Green Shangri-La, and here I am in a Guns-N-Roses kind of mood… totally incompatible. Oops.
You made me laugh!
Wearing JM Blackberry & Bay. Couldn’t decide what to wear and this one always fits!
Just checked and I don’t have any Olivier Polge, so I will have to opt out on Friday! Unless I stop in to Sephora and get a sample of a Burberry or Balenciaga.
Today I’m layering Cacharel Amor Amor with Marc Jacobs Bang. It’s a good combo. Bang cuts the sweetness of Amor Amor with its pepperiness and vetiver. The combo kind of ends up smelling a bit like Si Lolita.
Wearing ELDO fils de dieu and rather liking it. I had this sample for a while, and while my attitude toward it was positive from the very beginning, I have no clue why it came to my mind today … and now I have to convince myself that I really don’t need a FB of it …
When I got home today, there were four perfume packages in the door. One was Coach Leatherware 2 for my husband, another was a travel spray of Black Flower Mexican Vanilla, and the other two were from the swap and from an earlier sample exchange that I had forgotten all about.
The verdict: BFMV was an immediate hit with my husband. It’s really too cupcakey for my taste, but he loves it on me, so who am I to argue? The leatherware 2 smells great on him, Somehow the citrus/ rhubarb/leather in this one suits him to a T. The other package contained some Al Oudh, a couple Vermiere samples and some twizzlers! And the last, a bunch more great samples of vanilla perfumes. I will have a lot to play with this week!
Chanel No 5 Eau Premiere for me today. Simply lovely on what really felt like a fully Spring day. Feeling good about being on holidays in 24 hours!
Incense Rose for my bedtime scent… So soothing.
SotE is lavender essential oil. Good night!