Yes, it's Hump Day again. Also Banana Day, and Cannabis Culture Day. What fragrance are you wearing?
I'm in L'Artisan Jacinthe des Bois, still the best hyacinth fragrance I know.
Reminder: on 4/22 we're doing What's in a name, part 2 — we'll be wearing "misnamed" fragrances. You can interpret that howsoever you wish. The project was suggested by Dilana, who noted that Jardins d’Écrivains Orlando smelled like traditional honey cake instead of a modernist multi-gender novel or hero/heroine. If you like, tell us what your fragrance should have been called, and/or tell us what the fragrance you're wearing should have smelled like in order to fit its name.
And for those of you who like to plan ahead, see Scent of the day ~ Friday community projects 2016, where I'll try to always have the next five or six weeks mapped out in advance.
Note: image is Christmas Hyacinths [cropped] by Amanda Slater at flickr; some rights reserved.
Au Masculin Fraicheur (Lolita Lempicka).
Ah, is that the new one? I have a mini of the original.
Not sure, according to my records I purchased it a year ago.
This was released in 2004, according to another website. I didn’t think it was that old…
Thanks!
Boudoir Vivienne Westwood EDP.
Funky flowers and spices.
Fantastic!
And VW sure has been quiet lately — wonder if they’ve given up on perfume?
I don’t know, but I went on her website for the h@ll of it.
630$ for red mesh men’s trousers. Ummm, no thanks. LOL.
Ha!
Milk of Flowers
Hope it is a good day!
I’m meeting a new very important senior colleague today, so wearing Rue Cambon.
Will need to think of something more light-hearted for the evening: I’ve invited co-workers over for rum cocktails, as I have several bottles of really nice rum that I brought back from Martinique. Should make fried bananas as well, to celebrate Banana Day (I did make banana jam the other day, it was so good).
I am curious about that banana jam, it sounds delicious
I love fried bananas! The way they are crispy outside and melt in your mouth
Misia perhaps?
Please tell me that your next blog post will be a banana jam recipe.
Second this!
I did have a post on banana jam already, although without the recipe – I could update that, maybe. But I need to ask permission, as I used a recipe by one of my readers, so it wasn’t my own creation.
I’m interested in what you’ll wear for this evening
You also smell great now.
You smell great, and rum cocktails sound great. Perfume and some booze are a recipe for a good day, imho. ???? Those are some lucky co-workers!
Jacinthe is one of those fragrances I wish were still available. It sounds so gorgeous.
I’m wearing AdP Iris Nobile, which is lovely. Drinking Damman Frères Macaron Jasmin, ok but not great.
You smell lovely!
I have just a tad bit left in an old 1 ml sample vial from back in the day. It is a lovely hyacinth for sure.
I really wish I could get my paws on some Jacinthe des Bois too.
Went with ELDO again today and am wearing Putain des Palaces. This seems at least a little misnamed, and like it should be a lot louder and include civet (cumin just doesn’t seem dirty to me, though I still don’t particularly like it). In any case, I smell pretty darn good, and am pleased that all of my ELDOs work really well on a warm (read: out of shape and walking from the subway) body.
The French name sounds like a high-class courtesan to me and with the ‘palace’ connotation and all.
Anyway, the Etat Libre line, to me, seems to smell like they are serious about perfumes, contrary to the prepubescent names
Just don’t translate the names into English and remain slightly ignorant of the names… it feels faux haute all of a sudden!
I am wearing Cuir de Russie extrait. This is beyond gorgeous.
I bet the iris must be glorious.
I’d love to smell CdR extrait one day
Me, too! Hera, could you waft som of it our way? ????
With pleasure
I’ve always been curious about how this compares to the edt.
Softer, less smoky and with less pronounced sillage. It also smells like a million dollars, which the EDT, lovely as it is, does not.
Even though it doesn’t project very far it lasts for hours.
Unfortunately I haven’t tried the edt, next time I am at Holt’s I should. The etrait stays close to the skin and lasts , I smell it the whole day.
Went with Chloe today! To me, this scent screams SPRING!!
Have a sunny, springy, sweet smelling Wednesday!!
You smell great!
Couldn’t decide to what to wear because the weather has been warm, then cool then warm again… I wore bright spring roses (MFK A La Rose) then deep dark dirty (Orto Parisi Stercus). Today I am opting for a warm yet bright fragrance. SOTD is Dior Ambre Nuit.
Love! One of my favorites.
+1. One of my top 10 ambers – and I have a few
A bit of 1. Blanche Immortelle, 2. Afternoon of A Faun, and 3. Like This for comparison.
The richest singularly immortelle is Blanche Immortelle. The Faun is the most complex immortelle, harking back closely to a chypre. Like This is the most gourmand immortelle. 1. and 2. are good contenders that might replace my favourite Immortelle de Corse.
How do you like your immortelle to be served?
With salt, as in Sables. :^)
I have the ELdO samples pack at home. Tried the first on Sunday (Hermann à mes côtés me apparaissait avoir disparu après moins qu’une heure). I think some of the others look more promising.
Ah forgot to that Sables has its own shelf space already
It is still out of stock on the EU site, though. Grr!
So far, I have been struck by Rien Incense Intense the most, and I have not even applied it on skin to test.
With a name as long as the list of notes, and novella for a back story…I had high hopes Hermann.
Just a dash like in the sadly discontinued AG Eau de Monsieur.
Huh? I saw it just yesterday. Are you sure?
There is an original version of EdM from the 80s? and then a recently reformulated version from 2013 or 2014.
Ah hah.
That is such a great fragrance!
Hey, I’m wearing some immortelle today too, in El Attarine. I’ve only smelled Like This from you current list but I like it too, though I vastly prefer El Attarine. Sadly it is 3x the price….
Are these only available in the boutique of SL?
Sadly. But it is shockingly beautiful. Well worth a sample or decant.
I am on my way to the school to do an IEP for my daughter. These meetings tend to make me want to pull my hair out, so I am wearing JHaG Mad Madame. I really like matching my scents with my mood, and I was thinking this morning that some days I wish I had a fragrance that was like a mood ring. It would turn into something different depending on how you were feeling. I would name it Sybil.
Good luck with the meeting. At least you are in the advocacy process. I hope your Mad Madame helped you get the appropriate accommodations for your daughter, because you smell fearless!
Thank you, I think it went pretty well. I lucked out because the lady who normally likes to argue with me, didn’t show up.
We just did our 3 year IEP review for our daughter. Thankfully we are all on the same page. But there is just too much jargon and I always politely nag them about that.
How old is your daughter? my children are 12 and 13 now. I feel like the older they get, the more I have to stick to my guns and fight for the services they need. It can be very frustrating and scary.
She is 8 and I already know that about age 13 or 14 in PA they move the kids out of services. Thankfully we haven’t had to fight too hard b/c our school district prioritizes services. We are lucky about that.
Yup. I am currently drafting an exception to OUSD’s PWN.
I hear yah.
Criminy, as my grandmother used to say. I hate those meetings.
It’s Baseball Day for me today. We’re taking the grandkids, who are finally on spring break, to the ballpark for an early afternoon game. Breezy and warming up today, hoping the rain holds off until late, Balmain Vent Vert will do quite nicely!
That’s a really late spring break! Enjoy your day with them. My time with my grandparents when I was young was really special.
That’s lovely–I hope you have a fantastic day!!
If I remember correctly, you said you’re a White Sox fan? OMG, that means you get to see Mike Trout?! That dude rules.
Zooming down the Rhone valley towards Avignon – I guess I should be wearing the eponymous CdG. But this week I’m trying samples with names that I think will be difficult to live up to.
SOTD today is “Esprit du Tiger” by Heeley. When fresh on, this reminded me of a boiled sweet I used to have very occasionally as a child, very spicy with cinnamon and cloves, and vaguely honey-ish. Cinnamon Altoids have some of the intensity but not the honeyed tones. Sadly, this scent doesn’t have great lasting power, maybe an hour or two.
Pretentiousness Factor 3/5 (I can’t help thinking of that eighties bad hair group yowling about “the eye of the tiger”, which doesn’t help)
Incongruity factor 4/5 (this spicy tiger is a cousin of the Cowardly Lion and runs away too soon)
Perfume score 3/5 (being slightly generous as I like the smell, but wish it would last longer. Might try again or go for a decant).
I am happy green with envy over your trip on the Rhone! It is one of my daydream trips these days. I’ve even printed out the google map so I can drive along the river, just in case I happen to be over there anytime soon.
Now I’ll have eye of the tiger in my mind all day.
There was a point along the journey when the white stone and red roofs of Lyon changed to the honey-coloured stone and buff tiles of Provence. :^)
Have a wonderful time on your trip
I hope you get to see lots of beautiful things and smell some lovely scents!
Thank you! We have planned a pretty interesting itinerary with the Cathars at the heart of it (so Avignon is kind of the heart of the opposition before we go west). I blagged a sample of Annick Goutal “Amber Fetiche” in Lyon but really, truly trying to avoid perfume shops (so naturally there’s a Hermès at the end of the street). :^)
you smell great. that one is such fun, however fleeting.
You’re right – now that I’ve tried it, this would have done well in “fun perfumes” week!
Oh thank you, your journey through Avignon has happily reminded me of a beloved childhood song. My favorite version is sung by Sylvie Vartan. Here are a few lines:
Sur le pont d’Avignon,
L’on y danse, l’on y danse,
Sur le pont d’Avignon
L’on y danse tous en rond.
I remember singing that song! I haven’t thought about it in ages.
We saw the famous bridge yesterday and aim to get onto it today. Might not dance around in a circle, though if I do I’ll think kind thoughts and send them to you, Tiffanie! :^)
sotd: Le Galion Snob (the 2014 relaunch)
I’m not sure what I think of it; at the beginning it smelled like roses and leather. Several hours later it’s becoming powdery and smells much less of rose and more non-distinct florals and lots of aldehydes. Enjoyable, just not sure what I think yet. Some have compared it to Jean Patou Joy. No, not really at all, unless any aldehydic floral is Joy. Snob has zero raunch and Joy is all kinds of musky/civet darkness on me.
Good to know. I will stick with Joy then.
Joy is gorgeously filthy!
Oh I love Snob, I am burning through my little mini
Ah the joy of early meetings… I get to post to NST early.
SOTD is Conference Room. Why is it that conference rooms are either roasting or freezing?
Yesterday my GPS lady had a mental meltdown getting me from the office to my hotel. She sent me on a new route — I thought, what the heck — which sent me past a school which was letting out at the time. Ok, just bad luck, I think; then the road ends at the highway — 4 lanes, rush hour, no traffic light — and she says: Turn left. Hmmm. Having no death wish, I turned right. Make a U-turn, she says; but the next intersection is marked no left turn no U-turn. Onwards. GPS lady getting rather snippy with me: Make a U-turn. Next intersection, same story. GPS lady quite shirty at this point. Next intersection, I finally manage a left turn (“MAKE A U-TURN” she’s snarling) (not legal) and get back on track.
I take the exit for my hotel and she says Make a Left. Hotel is on the right, so I ignore her. I miss the hotel entrance, which is fine by her, since she is adamant that I need to go around the block anyway. I finally get into the parking lot; “Your destination is on the left” (no, it’s straight ahead). I pull into a parking space and she’s still yelling about making a left when I turn her off. I think she needs a good lie-down.
This morning she tries to send me past that dratted school again. Heh, not falling for that today.
LOL!
Technology shouldn’t have an attitude problem. My cousins rented a car with built-in GPS once years ago and tried to use it to get from the airport to Mom’s. At the first major intersection it tried to direct them left instead of right (which would have taken them about 30 miles out of the way on country back-roads) and shouted “turn around” at them until they stopped and restarted the car.
For fun (and because we are so mature), my husband and I programmed our GPS with bad words for destinations. Our home destination is called f@#kface and every time it says “arriving at F…face” we crack up laughing.
That’s hysterical! I might have to steal that
Last summer I heard you could get Arnold Schwartzenegger’s voice on the Waze app, which my nephew swears is the best.
rekaaaalkulating
I really think that every GPS should be able to hear and understand two verbal commands from the humans: “Repeat that” and “Shut The F@@% Up”.
Thanks for the laugh Pixel. What a hoot!
Oh my god, I hate that lady so much! I sort of secretly love it when she is wrong and has a nervous breakdown, because then I can shut her off and get out a map.
I got in a car service recently and the driver had changed the voice to that of Morgan Freeman. That might be more dangerous, as you would just calmly do whatever he told you, traffic laws and the real site of your destination be damned.
Yes, God’s voice coming through the speakers doesn’t seem like a good idea to me.
A good lie down? Sounds like she needs to go back to the factory for a brain transplant. I don’t drive and many people I know simply turn the voice off.
The only one I’ve actually heard was a Garmin (before cars came with GPS installed). My friend had chosen the polite English man. Best of all, when you didn’t follow a direction it simply said “recalculating.” and did so.
Sorry for your GPS troubles. But this thread has made me laugh so hard!
It’s been so warm, I decided on Osmanthe Yunnan. I like the kick from the citrus opening and then the quiet swirling later on of the flowers and tea leaves floating in the juice. Reorganizing with the JCE choices easily reachable for the coming months is on my endless “to do” list. Somehow I think it will end up taking priority over older tasks.
Scent twin!
We’re having one more warm (near hot) sunny day today, despite predictions earlier this week, and I went with Azemour les Oranges. The mossiness in it is extraordinarily lush this morning. Mmmmm.
YUM.
Indeed.
Scent twin ????
Hi twin – you smell GREAT!
El Attarine, one of the most delightful Lutens, ever. As Luca Turin put it, “When the planets align and nothing else will do….” Today though I’m up early for class, ready for a day of laundry and homework and avoiding people who make inane 4/20 jokes.
I would like to have a nice etched bell jar of Attarine!
I’d love the limited edition one since we’re dreaming.
Lime, Gardenia, & Benzoin. I wanted to wear La Panthere, but couldn’t find my sample. Probably just as well: I have a date this afternoon and the Cartier is not shy.
No, La Panthere is not shy lol!!
That’s what’s great about it! I really should get a full bottle.
I have a 30 ml bottle that I’d given to my mom, but it was too bold for her. She gave it back to me. I’d swap it….?? Let me know.
Thanks for the offer! I don’t currently have anything to trade for it, but I appreciate it all the same.
The offer, I mean! I appreciate your making the offer. I hope this is less ambiguous than it suddenly appears to me.
That is very true, La Panthere likes to make a statement.
I wouldn’t have it any other way. But for today, maybe something else is better.
Fragonard Santal today. It’s a very true sandalwood with citrus and musk. I can drench myself in it in the warmer weather because it’s a cologne. Really easy wear stuff.
Fragonard makes some great easy-wear fragrances. Wish it were easier to sample them here.
Yes, easy wear and very reasonably priced. I sort of stumbled across Fragonard at H & M Crumpet in Ogonguit. There was a men’s cologne shelf with four or five cologne testers and I fell in love with Santal. We came back home and my husband ordered a bottle for me online. I tend to wear it a lot in the summer because it smells so light and natural.
I love their Orange Blossom and Lavender in the same series.
Those sound nice. I heard that Fragonard stopped distributing to the US in 05, but I found Santal about three years ago in Maine. I guess smaller specialty shops could carry at least some of their perfumes.
Yes, Beautyhabit and Four Seasons Products both carry the line too.
SOTD is Kai. You have to enjoy BWF, particularly gardenia, for this one.
Tested Parfums DelRae Wit and Ann Gerard Rose Cut last night. Both are very nice, but decided I didn’t need full bottles. That is a good thing since both are fairly pricey.
Wit is really lovely. I would like to have a small decant of that one, but don’t need a FB either. If I didn’t already have Amoureuses, which I think smells like Wits’ mother, then I’d probably be more active about getting some.
Kai is such a lovely scent. Although it’s a BWF I don’t think it’s too overbearing, depending on how much is put on of course.
SOTD: Plum Japonaise
It’s seriously getting hotter and hotter everyday. But still a little reluctant to put away the heavier fragrances though!
Please send wafts my way!
Yum, this way too please!
First hour of the morning at work:
1. fridge is broken
2. internet is out or on/off due to an outage (AGAIN!) in the area
I also woke up with a sore throat and slept on my neck weird so I can’t turn it and it’s sore. Seriously, universe… you wanna throw more at me today? Bring it.
Luckily, Ostara is keeping me cheerful. I thought it would be a good day to test out and I’m not understanding all the love for this one. It’s beautiful.
I’m also leaving work early to go see a movie in the city tonight with friends, so I have that to look forward to.
I have some room in my fridge if you need it!
Aww, thanks.
Boss had me to go get a new one from a scratch-n-dent place. It’s ordered and will be here tomorrow.
It’s just been “one of those days” but I’m just holding out until I can leave to go have a great dinner and see a good movie
Not a great way to start the day so good to have something to look forward to. My day was kind of like that yesterday-just minor mishaps, but annoying, but I had a theater date to look forward to. The play was super depressing, however. Hope the movie is a good one! Which is it?
Excuse me while I nerd out: I’m a big anime/manga fan and the movie is a very limited screening. It’s an adaptation of a novel from a famous Japanese sci-fi writer named Satoshi Ito. It’s called Project Ito: Empire of Corpses. It’s a steampunk tinged Frankenstein thriller with zombies and literary references out the wazoo (main character is named John Watson).
I’ve been so excited to see this. There were three movies made off Ito novels and this is the first one.
Sounds very cool! I would have way preferred that over the play which was an intense drama with a Lolita-esque theme.
That movie sounds like fun! I like anime and manga too, though I don’t keep up with them as much as I’d like. I just looked it up and saw that today was the only screening at my local theatre, so alas, I won’t be able to go.
Yes, it’s unfortunate, but a lot of more obscure anime films like this only get two showings on two days and that’s it. But at least we are getting these films.
I’ve got subscriptions to anime streaming services and have anime news sites on my FB feed to keep up with stuff coming out.
What news sites do you follow? I have thought about the streaming services but haven’t really checked them out. I have plenty of stuff in my Netflix and Hulu queues to keep me busy for a while… now that I’m pretty much caught up on Orphan Black and have gotten through the massive amount of old school Doctor Who that a friend loaned me.
Gosh. Good luck making it through to the movie.
I know! On my way to the scratch-n-dent to buy a new fridge I checked google maps for the address and there were a TON of accidents all over the place. Today is bring out the crazy in every way possible. I’ve got a few hours left and now wondering if aliens are going to show up.
I was talking to a client / friend on the phone earlier and he said: fridge broken AND internet down? Just give up and go home. GO HOME!
Testing a couple of vetivers today, Guerlain Vetiver Pour Elle and L’Artisan Coeur de Vetiver. The Guerlain doesn’t do much for me (I can’t quite decide if I even think it smells pleasant?) but I find the L’Artisan really charming and feel surprised I don’t see it mentioned more. Altho per Kevin’s review, maybe it’s another candidate for most misnamed fragrance–wonder if it would have done better pitched as a spice fragrance rather than a vetiver one. To me it feels a little like a sibling to Safran Troublant.
Hm I may have talked myself out of that one! Now that ST has crossed my mind, all I can think is, “Why would anyone add vetiver to Safran Troublant?” Pretty sure I’d rather wear ST straight up. Oh well.
I have the L’Artisan (huge vetiver fan here) and I like it, although I don’t think of it as a vetiver centered fragrance. I too was thinking that Coeur de Vetiver Sacre is a candidate for most misnamed fragrance.
Agree 100%. Possibly a good candidate for Friday.
SOTD SL Fumerie Turque
Bottle…
Getting…
Empty……
The worst feeling in the world, especially when it’s pricey. I haven’t worn Brin de Reglisse in months….
Happy Hump Day Everyone! First day back at work this week. We are one of the only districts in the area that returned today. My commute to work this morning was an hour and 30 minutes. Streets and highways are still flooded. It is pitch black outside now. It worries me because it is supposed to storm again today. Concerned I might get stranded at work.
SOTD is Wild Fig and Cassis. I wore it because I’m a little stressed out (and I am the school counselor) and needed something soothing. Hope everyone has a great day!
Oh my! Keep us posted on the floods
Good morning, all. Sleepless in Auckland again. Sigh! My sleeplessness is scented with Youth Dew, and I’m deeply pondering that decision–it’s a good perfume to catch a whiff of when you’re on your way home from somewhere at 2 a.m., slightly (just slightly) drunk and more than slightly kitted out in heels and something sleek, but it’s probably not so great with stripey pyjamas. Context is everything, I suppose.
I have filled my tummy with hot tea and I am now going to finish the second book in the Southern Reaches trilogy and hope to fall asleep, though not because the book has any sort of soporific effect. Annikky, if you see this post, I can tell you that explanations of Area X do happen, but so far, they are tending towards “The explanation is that things have happened and ARE and cannot be explained.” I suppose that’s no kind of explanation, but I find I don’t mind, or at least, not yet. The characters are all vaguely –and not so vaguely–unpleasant. That’s a bit more wearing.
Sleepless Waterdragon,
This program was suggested to me by a doctor friend who is a sleep specialist. If sleep apnea or other reversible medical conditions aren’t the cause , he swears by it http://cbtforinsomnia.com/pdfs/you-can-conquer-insomnia.pdf
I’m planning to try it after getting through some other projects.
Thank you so much! I’ll follow through. I don’t have a medical cause: I’ve simply always been a poor sleeper. I’ve trained myself over the years not to be angry or despairing about being awake. I go with it, read, maybe mark assignments or do some silent housework, lke ironing, and when I start to feel even slightly sleepy, I relax and breathe in a concentrated sort of way and will often fall asleep for a bit. I’d love to not be sleepless these three or four nights a week, though.
Late today but in case you see this: I found the second volume the least satisfying because the humans were so hard to feel for. But the third picks up again in great ways.
Today I’m wearing Parfum d’Empire’s Musc Tonkin.
such an amazing fragrance…….
you smell great.
This one takes a while to grow on you. I listed mine on Evilbay, it did not sell Soo I decided to try it again. Now me likes it
Alahiiiiiine
Counting down the days until I am done with my job so I can spray with abundant. We have a no fragrance policy so I just dab 1 drop behind my ears.
You smell GREEEAAATTT!!!
Alahiiiiine
I really need to try this one, based on your enthusiasm!
I finally ordered a small decant and CAN’T WAIT until it arrives. Blind buy, but I trust my NST sources.
Give it a few wearings- it wasn’t love at first sniff.
LADDM! Ahhhhh….
Mmmmmm!!
SOTD is some of my beloved Beloved by Amouage. I am getting more leathery bits out of it than I usually do, which is just fine today. If I was so inclined to off-load my entire collection (except No 5 and Coco), Beloved could certainly be a one and only fragrance for me.
You smell gorgeous today! Wish I had joined you.
You can join tomorrow! I was in the mind for greens after Angie’s review of whatever it was the other day. Yesterday I wore some GIII early in the day before I put on Safari to carry me through the rest. It seemed like a nice progression for spring and greens to go with Beloved.
Strong words of endorsement! I’ve been considering whether to ask my husband for a bottle of Beloved for our anniversary or to allow him to pick a gift on his own for once. The problem is, gifts are not his strength. If I’m not specific about wanting something, I may end up with nothing. :-p
If gifts are not his strength, he’ll probably be relieved if you just tell him what you really want.
Good lord! Tell him pronto just to get the Beloved!!!
You don’t want to be regretting your chance!!!!!
I almost went with Beloved today. You smell wonderful!
Thank you!
I smelt Beloved for first time last weekend, on paper, it’s absolutely gorgeous. The strip is in a cardigan pocket, and still smells wonderful. Can’t wait to try this one on skin!
It’s interesting how some days Beloved is almost a leather, other days, incense, and other days neither of these. It must be balanced on a sort of olfactory fulcrum.
Continuing on the theme of misnamed perfumes —
SOTD = Slumberhouse Pear + Olive
Actually, Pear + Olive is the only Slumberhouse named with real words but it is also misnamed. I get about 30 seconds of bright pear and then BAM!!! — fruity mahogany and fatty coconut. I usually have difficulty with coconut but it is very well done here. I have an older extrait round bottle with beads.
Hm, that actually sounds much more interesting than I imagined Pear + Olive would be. Sounds like I’m going to have to seek this one out
For another data point, I’ll mention that I get a lot of olive from it, but, I also don’t care for olives, which I’m sure is part of why it feels so noticeable to me!
I would prefer the name Fruity Mahogany and Fatty Coconut.
Lol!
Ha!
Interesting. On me it is very appropriately named, as I get a linear pear and olive combo for hours. Works better than I thought it would.
Same here. Although I get more savory olive than pear.
Maybe I’m anosmic to olives ?
I should mention I get zero olives nor anything remotely salty which I associate with olives. It is fascinating how we have very divergent smell impressions!
I have been interested in P+O for a while, since some of the other perfumes in the line were too dark for my tastes, but was always worried the olive would be weird. I opted to try Sadanne instead and ended up smelling like I’d washed my clothes in Boone’s Farm.
I had to look up Boones Farm – too fruity or too fruity-boozy and not in a good way?
Pear and Olive is gorgeous. I actually get a ton of both from it
I definitely got a short-lived pear note and I am womdering if perhaps what I smell as fruity is actually the smell of olives?
Kenzo Summer here. Comfort and child-like happiness to me.
mimosa
I suspect that is why childhood memories – mimosa is strongly associated with my childhood… every March 8th, a bunch of mimosas for mom
SOTD: Soivohle Meerschaum. It being Cannabis Culture day, perhaps my meerschaum pipe should hold something more extraordinary than mere ‘baccy.
Is it a tobacco scent? We went to Turkey many years ago and made a special trip to a city called Eskisehir because they manufacture meerschaum products as my husband used to collect pipes. It was a very untouristy town so the lodgings were pretty dismal- the hole outside in the ground that serves as the toilet, ya know. But the pipes were pretty cool.
Yes, it’s a really rich spicy tobacco chypre– I love it. What a journey that must have been! A pipe pilgrimage.
Such a nice tobacco
I agree, so lovely.
What other fragrances by this brand would you recommend?
So far just in some Lys Soleia, but not by choice. I had all my decants out so I could decide which to try to swap/sell/whatever, and I put them on the dining table last night instead of putting them back in my armoir because the baby was sleeping (he sleeps in our bed with us). Fast forward to today – I attempt to do my workout while Walden is awake, instead of during his nap. He climbs onto the dining table, unscrews Lys Soleia and tries to drink it.
According to poison control, the biggest concern is him getting drunk – and by all accounts he seems perfectly fine (it’s hard to know how much he actually got, a lot just landed on the table and on my hands), but it still feels like a major mom FAIL! And I don’t particularly love Lys Soleia – even less now!- so I can’t wait to shower and try something else. 
I hope the little guy is okay.
He appears no worse for the wear – but hopefully he won’t be unscrewing any more decants! Thanks for the kind wishes.
Oh my!! I hope he will be fine and you are a great mom!
I wonder if that will become a favorite of his on women when he is older.
My kids got into champagne truffles ( a lot) and attacked frozen margaritas before we could stop them. My sister got drunk at a slightly older age at a party my parents had where they served spiked punch. She asked each guest for a sip and they gave her just a taste having no idea how many others she had asked. She recovered quickly enough to receive punishment because Mom had told her no more after letting her taste hers!
Hehe, yes there’s nothing better than drunk kids. Your sister’s story is really funny
Thankfully Walden doesn’t appear drunk (drunk at under 2 would be an impressive feat though), and seems to have survived the incident unscathed.
Don’t beat yourself up over this. I can assure you that something similar has happened to most moms. I am wishing you a less panicky day.
Thanks for the well-wishes.
I’m glad that he didn’t pour it all in his eyes or something!
That sounds scary! I’m happy he will be OK. If it is any consolation to you, my daughter put cat poop in her mouth once. Ugh! Kids ingest horrifying things. It is not a mom fail.
Walden has probably eaten cat poop when left unsupervised for brief periods of time – he LOVES the litter boxes!!
I know it’s not funny, but it is. We all have mommy fails. Thanks for the small chuckle. He’ll be fine.
Yeah, these little ones are pretty resilient.
He was horrified when it went in his mouth – I guess the alcohol stung and it didn’t taste good!
SOTD is Flora Nymphea. Or, at least is was Flora Nymphea. It poofed around the four hour mark. I don’t wear it often but will need to bring a decant when I wear this next. I admit that the bottle did influence my purchase. Still it is a bit of sunshine in a bottle.
I’ve been considering a bottle of this since it’s readily available on the discounters. Good to hear both the good and bad.
It’s a nice fragrance and as you said, you can find a great deal at a discounter. It’s not such a big deal to reapply when it’s not breaking the bank.
How is that baby girl doing?
Baby girl is doing well, thanks.
She is starting to smile and coo now, which is so much fun!
awww… so cute!
Oh, those first smiles are so, so heartwarming!
It lasts even less time on me. SIgh.
I sprayed liberally on my skin, hair and shirt. I also borrowed Robin’s trick of spraying some on a cotton ball and stuffed it into the front of my bra… Probably TMI but when does that stop us here?
The scented cotton ball trick is wonderful. No such thing as TMI @ NST.
Guerlain Pamplelune is my SOTD.
Also, thanks to all of you who recommended Merz Apothecary as a place to visit while in Chicago last weekend. It was our last stop before dinner last Friday. We walked all over downtown Chicago. My friend (and future daughter-in-law’s Mom) said we had walked seven miles that day.
The staff at Merz was so nice, and not pushy at all. I ended up buying some makeup remover towelettes, Outremer lotion and fragrance and Italian hard candy to keep in my purse when I need some sweetness in my day.
I used to love stopping by Merz during my lunch break! Glad you enjoyed your visit.
An Hermessence morning: Osmanthe Yunnan layered with Rose Ikebana. Getting ready for a long walk in the park with baby girl.
Have a lovely walk!
How are things going mama
Things are going very well! Baby is now waking up only once or twice a night, which means that instead of napping with her during the day, I can do real life stuff, like go for walks and post on NST.
Seems that I missed some news. You’re leaving your job soon?
Lovely walk! Osmanthe Yunnan is so pretty. Enjoy your baby time!
Armani Prive Oud Royal. I love this one so much, it’s my second favorite in my collection.
Narciso Rodriguez for her L’Absolu. It’s a beautiful sunny day, going out now for a walk to the beach.
you smell great.
Love L’absolu.
Chanel Coco EDP – a gift from my exercise-loving younger brother worn in the hopes that I will be inspired to leave work at a reasonable hour and in order to exercise.
Unlikely, but I’ve been trying to teach myself to be confident I worked hard that day and can leave (and not wait for my supervisors to order me home like last week). Also trying not to panic that I won’t meet deadlines, which means communicate immediately if I think I won’t meet deadlines so I can get some help. Too bad I don’t have the luxury of thinking I can do everything by myself (a.k.a Superwoman). First steps for work-life balance!
Feel free to chime in with advice – I know there’s a lot of collective wisdom here at NST.
You are right about communicating immediately if you will need help. It is a proactive step.
It sounds like your employer needs to hire a few more people. I hope that they appreciate the fact the you sacrifice your free time. Sounds to me like you know what to do but need to implement it. Good Luck!
Coco edp is gorgeous! One of my HGs.
You smell great. Love Coco.
Power posing! It sounds kind of silly, but I’ve found it very effective for a short boost.
Totally commando today. I left for work with only one eye open this morning and eye number two hasn’t made it even halfway yet. Yikes…
Hope you can get some caffeine.
La Vierge de Fer today.
I love that one – so pretty. It doesn’t get much love on the perfume boards though.
Gris Montaigne. Making me happy. Quiet and pretty.
This one makes me happy, too. I’m surprised I don’t hear about it more often.
Today is a Jicky day. I haven’t worn it in forever. Too bad STC doesn’t have decant in pure Parfum so I guess I have to go to TPC. Just not interested in spending another $300 since I spent that on my cellphone bill (new plan and activation fees).
SOTD LouLou. White flowers and almond cookies=cheerful!
I had a “first” today: I went to the gym BEFORE work. Unheard of! I was hoping it would energize me, but I’m feeling like I could use a nap.
Nap is always good. Workouts make me sleepy too.
Me too. I’m always more tired afterwards.
yeah, i have been doing my workouts earlier in the day, but it really just makes me want to nap. speaking of which…
Ha! My solution is to work out on weekends only.
:/
(#*%!!! I was packing up the Oriza L Legrand samples to send to a new home and found that I had two of Heliotrope Blanc. I pulled the cap off to resniff since I remembered getting on okay with it, and I just SPILLED MOST OF THE VIAL ON MY PANTS. @($%&&. I did not want to spend the day smelling of HB. It’s clashing pretty hard with MG Plum.
At least if I was going to spill something, it happened to be the one I had two samples of.
That is the worst! Thankfully you didn’t loose all of it. I always get paranoid about dropping and spilling something really precious.
I did spill almost half the vial of Osmanthe Yunnan on the carpet once. I worried about the carpet reeking of perfume for months, but as the other half of the vial lasted .4 seconds on me, I decided not to fret about it.
I sampled again, but got the same result: gone in a flash. Oh well.
Impressed you kept the initial sample pack this long–I swear, they were so nuclear to my nose that I had to get them out of the house immediately.
I’m in a lovely cloud of Neroli Portofino today. I was keeping this between me and Donatella, but I bought one of the little 30ml bottles during the recent Sephora sale. I waa trying to be scornful about the price, but I kept coming back to my sample and loving it so very much — something about that vintage suntan lotion note just makes me so happy! So, hey, cheaper than therapy, right?
If it makes you happy Isabella then it was money well spent.
Isabella, I was thinking the same thing as Petunia while I was reading your post.
I am glad you bought your bottle of Neroli Portofino!
I love NP and will not be talked down! You smell great.
Jour d’Hermès Gardénia
I really want to try this. How is it different from the original JdH?
I find it def more gardenia-y! I’m not a huge gardenia fan so I don’t find that necessarily a plus but I am certain others would disagree with me. Otherwise it’s tonally similar to the original, a cool, elegant floral. Maybe less grapefruit than the first? After smelling three of the four (haven’t gotten to the parfum), the Absolu is def my favorite.
Thanks – I’ve only smelled the original, and I loved it except the musk in the base. I’ll have to try out these others.
Yesterday evening I celebrated a friend’s birthday, and today I am horribly hung over. Ugh. Needed something completely generic and unchallenging this morning, but also nice smelling. Went with Nicole by Nicole Richie. It is doing its job.
Glad its doing its job.
I hope you are feeling better!
Still trying to find my HG orange blossom (which may not exist), so wearing the gorgeous Vero Profumo’s Rubj today instead. I really like the few I’ve tried from her line, hoping to get samples of Onda and Mito next!
Have you ever tried Lorenzo Villores’s Dilmun? It is really lovely.
I have not! Lucky for me a wonderful local perfume store carries the line and I just so happen to have a GC, I will definitely try it out, thank you for the recommend!
I like that one too.
SOTD Narciso Rodriguez for her (black bottle). Not challenging but so pretty and has become a favorite for office wear this time of year.
Onto another topic…can somebody please stop me from ordering every sample set out there? Just got the Teo Cabanel set, then ordered the ELdO set AND Histoires des Perfumes. I hardly get to wear the bottles I already own and love. My name is Gi and I am an addict of tiny little bottles.
Little bottles are so cute! Oh, wait, you want to be discouraged…ummm, sorry, I got nothin’.
Little bottles are so cute…
This made me laugh out loud.
I held off on the Histoires one, but can say the ELDO is worth it.
I will pass it on to you next!
Oh thanks! I have some vintages you might like to try, too
I have the same problem. Too many samplers!!
I am tempted to get the black bottle. I have the edp white bottle, they are so similar, but the edt seems better for spring and summer.
No help here, I love sample sets!
We are leading eerily similar perfume lives. In the past 2 weeks I ordered the LC, ELDO and Histoires too. I love sample sets.
I already have on the next sets I will get. Ormonde Jayne and Amouage.
My work isn’t pleasing me of late and samples, and exploring new perfumes, are all that’s getting me through some days.
So keep the sample set suggestions coming.
It’s my little boy’s third birthday today, and it’s such a beautiful spring day! I’m on my second perfume now, first was the new Miller Harris, Vetiver Insolent, which was lovely, if somewhat quiet and short lived. Now wearing Kurbside Violet which is gorgeous, very springy. (I received a small bottle for Christmas)
I’m very happy that I don’t want a full bottle of the last couple of samples that I’ve tried, as there have been quite a few samples from generous NSTers that I have loved recently!
Happy 3rd birthday to your son!
Hope his birthday is great. Happy Birthday to him!
Yay! Happy birthday to your son!
3! Such a fun age.
I’m wearing Bois des Iles extrait today, and so glad I brought this with me as I’ve got 3 days of conference work ahead of me. This scent grounds me and delights me — two things I need a ton of!
Happy hump day, friends!
You smell wonderful!
Thanks, meredifay! Hope you’re doing well..
Spring is finally sprung here so I am focused on gardening. It’s all good!
SL Rahät Loukoum. Managed to splash it a bit (but on my cardigan so it’s all good) and I can still smell it 9+ hours later. RL has always been kind of fleeting on me so I’m pretty pleased! Plus I have such vast quantities of it, I might as well wear it liberally.
Such a good perfume to have vast quantities of!
I am sampling 1804 today…
Kind of strange…I didn’t get pineapple until I read the notes but now I smell it. I would describe it as sweet, soapy, patchouli.
Someone on Fragrantica called it rotting pineapple…and yes, there’s some of that too…not the tasty, bottom of your pina colada cold pineapple…but the sitting outside pineapple rind whicha ccidentally fell out of the trashcan during a heat wave pineapple.
I tried this one last night and it totally made me think of canned pineapple. Not a plus for me.
Spritzed Jo Malone Wood Sage & Sea Salt on one arm, and a smear of Fils de Dieu on the other.
When this gives up, I’m thinking I may go for some Gap Grass (the original). Of all the things I’ve worn over those years before I mentally moved my perfumes into a ‘collection’, this is one of the few that I held on to.
Oh man, I wish I had kept my very old Gap Grass. I used to love that stuff!
Wow, Gap Grass! That is a blast from the past. I remember smelling it in the stores but never actually buying any of it.
Another sunny and unseasonably hot day here in Portland, so I’m wearing Ashoka. I have the little bottle from the discovery set, but I can see myself wearing this a lot in summer
SOTD: grabbed Sud Magnolia from my Atelier set.
I like that one! I’m looking forward to wearing it this summer.
Was SO tempted to get one of their sets during the Sephora sale. Somehow managed to reign myself in. But I’m sure I’ll cave at some point in the future.
SOTD is Pacifica Sandalwood.
Banana Day? I had no idea. Now I know. It’s made me smile because I associate bananas with archaeology thanks to my field school way back in the day. My supervisor would have us take a break every morning to snack on the bananas included in our breakfast. No matter what the exact time was, it was known as Banana O’Clock. So even now, that’s what I call a mid-morning snack!
So funny!
Showers are supposed to return tomorrow after many days of sun. Working on the theory that April showers bring May flowers, I am using a “shower” of Gucci Envy to get to those flowers earlier.
Re Cannabis Culture Day: I live in Vancouver so cannot escape knowledge of 4/20. What started initially as a small protest has turned into a festival. Last year’s attendance was 50,000 people over the course of the day.
I think people around here just celebrate quietly in their basements:)
Also, Envy is glorious!
I seem to be doing the Friday project a little early: in Evening in Paris, which should be called “Morning on the Beach”, a nice, salty fragrance.
Hello, all. Slept a bit, and now Youth Dew is reduced to a hum of spices on my left wrist, but it has clung tenaciously even through my shower and body lotion. I’ve sprayed with Fancy Nights (that name! really!) which is one of my cheap thrills, and I have to say that my wrist smells fabulous the deeper, darker spices of YD residue are delicious with the creaminess of FN. it’s a private pleasure, though-I wouldn’t want to project this layering all day to the whole world. I think the world could find me A Bit Too Much. the dear man just peered over my shoulder and muttered something yo the effect that it probably dies anyway, but I shall let that pass- and get him back later! Be well, my scented friends.
And sorry for all the typos– that was even worse than my usual carelessness!
Youth Dew… now that’s a misnamed fragrance if ever there was! I wore it as a teenager, and still love it in the dead of winter.
Started the day in le labo the noir, which I haven’t tried since the first time I got the sample in the winter. It’s better in the sun, and I am a definite LL fan, but even I don’t think this smells a bit like black tea, fitting in with this week’s theme
Going to go back through today’s comments for inspiration of what to wear later…
Monsieur Li was sitting patiently by my door when I arrived home. He followed me inside and sat quietly while I put away the groceries and cleared a space on the table, so I could give him my full attention. I remarked that I liked the colour of his jacket, the yellow brightened the room and he smiled and said that he liked it too, adding that some people expected him to be quite formal, whereas he often wore a splash of colour, ‘as provocation, to liven things up.’ The scent he carried was equally lively. I think it must have been tired after its long journey as it burst into the room in a flurry of citrus, took a quick look around and then headed towards the door, where it lingered for a few minutes..as if torn between staying with us or rushing outside to explore the garden. After such a bold entrance, the hesitation was touching, a sign of uncertainty. I asked Monsieur Li if he was wearing a hint of Eau des Merveilles and his lips twitched into a faint smile but he said nothing. Later, we walked together to collect the post and I observed that I liked the smell of the damp boulders I had been weeding around, but Monsieur Li wasn’t really listening. He had moved a few feet away from me, and was standing quietly, looking at the rain washed sky, lost in his own thoughts.
Mmm. I too found him pleasant, but somewhat detached–a polite and promising companion, should he ever engage with anything more than his own introspection. I don’t want to make all the effort in the relationship, so I haven’t invited him home yet, but I might.
I like it … It’s nice and quiet, like a walk along an esplanade on a dizzly winter day.
I love how you personified Monsieur Li. It kind of makes me want to revisit the perfume, since I didn’t care for it the first time around.
Yes, wasn’t planning to try it, but now I am.
Perfect!
After reading about your walk I’m happily mixing up Monsieur Li with Kakuro Ozu (with apologies for wandering from China to Japan to France.)
I must try to make friends with Monsieur Li.
I ate a Jazz apple the other day with a floral-hyacinth aftertaste. It was the best apple I’ve had in a very long time!
I’m in Phaedon Noir Marine today. It starts out rather masculine, but dries down similar to VC&A Bois d’Iris… they share a very tenacious aromachemical that sticks around for days, and it’s one I actually really enjoy. Cheers!
We love those Jazz apples here. I think they started as a local variety called Pacific Rose. They make wonderful spiced apple cake, too– one of the easiest recipes in my repertoire.
I’m testing Heeley Cardinal today. I’m not sure I like it as much as my current favorite incense scent (Passage d’Enfer), but it’s nice.
I love Cardinal; it’s exactly what I imagined when I was looking for my perfect incense. I need to remember to wear both Cardinal and Passage soon. You smell great!
I was commando for most of the day because I was in a hurry getting out the door this morning and was halfway to work before I realized I hadn’t put anything on. And my backups were in another purse. Oh well. But I needed to take a break and get out of the office for a little bit (and get something caffeinated while I was at it), so I decided to take a walk to the Whole Foods a few blocks away. I think they’ve completely done away with their Pacifica fragrances but they had Nemat oils, so I have Majmua (vetiver) attar on one wrist and Himalayan Musk on the other. The musk is very diffusive stuff. It seemed to have a pretty impressive sillage on my walk back.
Being perfume-free on the way there was kind of nice in its way, though, because I could focus on the ambient smells. It’s really humid out, so there was a nice hint of grass and leaves in the air, along with wet pavement. I got a whiff of what I think was star jasmine from somebody’s fence but I didn’t see where it was coming from.
I have a challenging day tomorrow (in a good way), so I’m relaxing in Roja Dove Diaghilev to stoke my energies.
Hope your day tomorrow doesn’t involve boats or water.
SotD is Iris Ukiyoé.
Thanks to Kanuka tonight I’ll respritz and begin rereading The Elegance of the Hedgehog.
Yesterday was a day for Jour d’Hermès. I’ve got Monsieur Ellena stuck in my head.