It's another Monday, plus International Cat Day and National Happiness Happens Day. Birthdays: Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, Benny Carter. What fragrance are you wearing?
I'm in Acqua di Parma Iris Nobile in the Eau de Toilette, because SheriG mentioned it recently.
Reminder: on 8/12, wear a fragrance with a magnolia note, if you have one.
And for those of you who like to plan ahead, see Scent of the day ~ Friday community projects 2022, where I'll try (but obviously sometimes fail) to always have the next five or six weeks mapped out in advance.
Note: top image is Borde Hill Garden - West Sussex [cropped] by Mark at flickr; some rights reserved.
In L’Artisan Passage d’Enfer.
Happy Monday! 🥵🔥
Happy Monday…you smell great! Hot here too.
Thank you, Robin! Stay cool!
You smell like the inside of a cool stone church with lily floral arrangements in it.
That’s exactly how I wanted to smell today, cool and peaceful!
Good morning and Monday!!
Sotd is Shalimar MVP.
Woke up at 5 this morning and couldn’t go back to sleep so I watched a bit of youtube and made pancakes!
Shalimar is always a good choice
And pancakes!
Mmm. Pancakes.
After a brutal succession of hot days, it’s finally cooled down and I actually have the balcony door open. AND I got one solitary nicotiana blossom, just as I had given up. It’s the only one and there’s no sign of any more buds, but frankly I’ll take what I can get. It smells so gorgeous: nicotiana flowers must not give up their scent, because you never see it used in perfumery.
As for me, I smell like Tabu, because I was in the mood, after all those hot days, for something dangerously sultry and spicy.
We don’t cool down until Thurs or Fri, I think. I may just stay inside all week.
I haven’t chosen a perfume yet, but my shower is in a Rituals shower foam that smells like cedar wood and sweet orange 🍊
Reading The Personal Librarian, so far so good. 📖
Rituals shower products are so good.
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2021/jun/23/the-hummingbird-by-sandro-veronesi-review-a-masterpiece-of-love-and-grief?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other
I just finished The Hummingbird by Italian writer Sandro Veronesi. He also wrote Quiet Chaos which was made into a great film with Nanni Moretti. But anyway, set in a Italy and a terrific book.
You speak my language. Book + Italian
Put it on my list
“The Personal Librarian” sounds very interesting, although now I have Depeche Mode’s “Personal Jesus” running through my head, with changed lyrics…
I’m in a new 4711 Bamboo & Watermelon. It’s mostly greenish, with a fugitive melon note. OK, not great.
Melon is nearly an automatic no for me, so maybe I’d like it better if the watermelon is MIA?
SOT(early)M is Naomi Goodsir Cuir Velours, from a tiny sample vial. It’s quite lovely, and reminds me a little bit of Dior’s lamentably discontinued Cuir Cannage. I’ll have to spend more time with it when the weather cools down. Happy Monday everyone!
You smell fabulous! That entire line is exquisite.
And I’m with you on the Sot(early)d because the first scent is one of many throughout the day.
Starting the day in Aedes de Venustas Signature because nothing says August like tomato leaf and rhubarb.
ooo, good call!
You smell great!
I agree, and you smell wonderful!
Thank you! And another August scent, Jasmine has been wafting since my vine is in full bloom.
Are you familiar with the Harlequin Glorybower tree? A neighbor has one and the flowers are the most fragrant, lovely jasmine I’ve ever smelled. If only I could bottle this or find a fragrance to match!
Yes, my neighbor also has one of those trees, and they smell amazing! And the tree itself and the flowers’ different stages are so interesting.
Yummy. I would love to find their first fragrance. I had a sample once and it was on my wishlist but I never got around to buying it.
You’re in luck! They included Signature in their relaunch last year.
Q for NSTers (esp Houstonians) — any recommendations for Houston perfume shops to visit in person? I’ll be in the Memorial City neighborhood next week for a conference and I have a couple of unscheduled weeknights to myself.
In the office today, enjoying the extra strength AC while I sort through which dusty paper files need to be scanned and which can be binned. SOTD is The Maker’s Naked, to embrace the dustiness. This is fine — a delicate and pretty skin musk, but between Fleur de Peau and Glossier You, it is well covered territory at lower price points. Their fluted bottles are quite pretty tho.
Tea today (and all weekend long) has been Clipper Ship Nutcracker, which is just as good at room temperature as it is hot. My sleep pattern has been all over the map for the past several days, so I’m trying to cut out caffeine for a bit to reset, and this one is my favorite rooibos.
Robin – I tried the Lush Mimosa shower gel + Posh Chocolate body wash combo you recommended, and wow are they great together! Someone should tell Lush…
So glad you got to try it! And really, they should do a chocolate strawberry one too, and maybe a whole series 🙂
yes!!!
I’m out of Rose Jam gel at the moment, but I imagine the chocolate would go well with that too. And with Dirty for a chocolate mint vibe. You’ve got my wheels turning now, Robin! I might need a BUB of posh chocolate for combo experiments….
I thought about that too but I’m worried about the shelf life 🙁
Thanks for the mini report on your sotd! I’ve been curious about that one but own Fleur de Peau and love Glossier You- a full bottle is on my list. Sounds like I don’t need Naked.
I tried some MF Marco Polo as an iced tea over the weekend, courtesy of a lovely NSTer. It was marvelous.
My sleep patterns have shifted over by a couple of time zones. As near as I can tell, I am back on Mountain Time instead of Eastern.
I image MF Marco Polo served iced has very different flavor nuances than when served hot. More fruity?
Now that remote work is so normalized, if/when I’m ever looking for a new job I’m going to find a west-coast based company so that I can work from 11am – 8pm Eastern time and embrace my night owlness while letting my Pacific time colleagues believe I am an early bird!
image = imagine. Ugh.
I’ve never tried the Marco Polo hot, so no baseline for me to compare it with in that regard. What did stand out over ice was this gorgeous creamy texture and subtle sweetness.
I was able to steep it 4x, which is amazing.
I get a lot of dried fruit notes from it served hot – dates, apricot, prune. I think of it as the Lutens of tea 😀
On Houston perfume shopping:
You’ll have to take an Uber or something to the Upper Kirby area where I recommend, especially, Kuhl-Linscomb, near the corner of Kirby and Alabama. Very fun shop with many, many lines of independent perfumers, and a relaxed atmosphere where it’s easy to try things. In the Galleria, both Saks and Neiman-Marcus have excellent selections. I recommend them more than Nordstrom’s. Neiman-Marcus has so much, such as the Memo line, Amouage, etc., in addition to the usual high-end things. Saks has a lot too, but I find their SA’s to be more pushy, less genuinely interested in scent for its own sake. Good luck! You might ask again tomorrow because I see none of our other Houston friends have chimed in and it’s late here now. Sorry! Just getting on line tonight after a day with distractions.
We’re in for a hot day in Seattle, so I’m wearing Terracotta Le Parfum. It wears fairly sheer on me after the first 30 minutes, so I’m sure I’ll reapply later. We had the Blue Angels here this weekend and last Thursday and Friday, and I’m happy they won’t be flying over my apartment anymore. I admit they’re kinda cool to see when outside, but I don’t really need to have my ears feel damaged by their low flyover while I’m in my home. Thank goodness they’re here just once a year.
Oh wow! Glad the ✈️ are out of your ear shot
Me too! A much calmer day around here now.
You smell great! I wore that one yesterday.
Thanks, and you smelled great yesterday!
I know what you mean about the Blue Angels. I was at a Mariner’s game yesterday and it was wild to see (and hear!) them fly over during the singing of the National Anthem.
Ha, I bet that would be something wild to experience.
Oh man, my cats were possibly more traumatized by the Blue Angels than this year’s fireworks. Poor lil guys.
Terracotta is awesome, you smell great!
Eek, I don’t have pets to worry about, but I can imagine yours were not loving it.
The wake of one plane caused a whole bunch of car alarms to go off while I was out on my walk! I wish they wouldn’t fly quite so low.
I enjoying watching aerobatic teams like the Blue Angels, but having them do multiple fly-bys over my house for several days would get old fast!
We get a lot of helicopters over my neighborhood, for whatever reason. Doesn’t faze the cats at all, thankfully. 🚁
I’m glad the cats are fine with the helicopters!
Oh, I meant to also say that I ordered some shower gels, hand soaps, and a conditioner (plus some household products) from Vitacost yesterday that I’m excited to receive. I was proud of myself for actually buying shower gels that have been on my “to try” list for a while instead of just randomly buying what I find on sale. The shower gels I ordered are Shikai Yuzu and Sandalwood and SheaMoisture Raw Shea Butter Hydrating Body Wash with Frankincense and Myrrh. The latter I’ve had in lotion form and love the scent. The other two I’m getting because of raves here. The conditioner is Alba Botanicals Gardenia to go with the same shampoo that I just bought on sale at the grocery.
Which is the one that is getting all the raves?
Mostly the Shikai Yuzu is the one that gets mentioned here frequently. But I’d also added their Sandalwood to my list because of mentions here
Guerlain Meteorites Le Parfum, after my morning routine of La Mer micellar water, Aveeno Absolutely Ageless eye cream and Dior classic matte rouge lipstick.
Curious about your lippy! I own no Dior lipsticks
The color looks nice with no other makeup on. Its official name on the bottom of lipstick is Rouge Dior 772. It is very lightly scented.
Scent twin.
we smell nice 🙂
I’m in Eau des Merveilles.
It is overcast today and feels like a great day to be home and being lazy. Unfortunately I am doing neither. Super muggy though, it felt like a tropical rainforest when I walked out of the house this morning.
My iPhone has been annoying me lately by resetting the weather app every d@&$ night back to the factory settings of my location, Cupertino and NY. Then I have to put in the locations that I want again every d@&$ day! Ugh!😤
I’m off today so I will be double lazy for you.😀
I tried the VS Bare. I thought it was ok at first. Then it started to smell like a lotion that had gone a bit off. A big no for me too.
Humidity goes down tomorrow!
Ha! Hope you enjoyed your day off.
I went for a walk at lunch and it felt like the humidity was already lifting so yep, you should feel it tomorrow.
It’s too bad about Bare, they had a whole line with the lotion etc. Although now I see Missing Person has shower gel and lotion too!
Are you using a VPN with your iPhone? That could do it.
Um…what’s a VPN?😬😂
Well, I guess that eliminates that as a possibility. A VPN is a Virtual Private Network, and some smartphones make it very easy to enable one.
Are any other apps affected?
105F here yesterday and about the same for today. I’m wearing Infusion d’Iris Absolue. I find iris scents cooling, and I’m wearing a dress, too, hoping whatever air is moving will help in the heat.
Dress twins! 👯♀️ Have been living in my nice cool maxis for the past couple of weeks!
Great idea to wear iris frags in this heat. You smell beautiful!
That is crazy heat, poor you. I will send you some snow!
SOTD is BF Au Dela Narcisse. Smelling like spring in the middle of a god awful hot summer day. Fall, where are you?
Seriously. I wish we could skip summer altogether.
I’m wearing Ungaro in the blue bottle from Emmanuel Ungaro and boy is it blooming in the Los Angeles heat. Perhaps not the best choice for today but its musky 80s floral woods called to me. What a diva!
That’s a good one. I remember it well.
Last night I wore Both Sides of Clouds, copiously sprayed over L’Occitane Arlesienne oil. It was a pretty good combination. I think I will repeat this for today.
You smell great!
Thank you!
After this morning’s wearing in Lyric, I am in the original Coco Mademoiselle. Today is the last day of my vacation and not looking forward to working tomorrow. But bills must be paid.
Enjoy your last vacation day, Dawn.
Make the most of your last day!
Happy Monday!
I’m in the utterly delectable Maison Crivelli Hibiscus Mahajad.Just gorgeous,and my thoughts this AM were “Salted guava?,Something…something…”Definitely a pick-me-up during these last dregs of Winter!
XO’s
Cold, eh. We aren’t going to make it to double digits this week as far as I can tell. Keep warm!
Stay warm Kanuka,although we’re still at 23°/24° celcius daytime,so I really can’t complain!✌🏻
Salted guava sounds really nice.
Your SOTD sounds rather beachy!
Am wearing Dame Perfumery Osmanthus Soliflore. Very pretty – kinda has a peppery pear floral vibe. Don’t think I’ve smelled osmanthus in person, so I wasn’t sure what it would smell like. I like it.
I love osmanthus, I should try that one.
The Dame Osmanthus is a very cheerful fruity scent that has a similar vibe to AS Saturday. Definitely worth a sniff!
Thanks!
Still very cold, with snow on the hills and one or two patches in my garden. I’ve been outside to look at Saturn, which is extra bright, but it is overcast and now I am back in bed trying to warm up. This past week I have seen a lot of magnolia buds but still no flowers. However, my tiny grape hyacinths have begun to open. A spot of purple amongst the weeds. Wearing Al Oudh for warmth.
When do you usually have Spring there?
We usually stop having frosts by September. Early signs like magnolias, rhododendrons and some ornamental tree blossoms in mid August to September. New leaves on introduced trees in September ( like silver birch, chestnuts). Some birds start nesting now. I often see the first lambs around now. So it’s all looking good!
It’s all sounding good!
Joining foxbins in a cool floral to beat the heat. I’m in 4160 Tuesdays Flora Psychedelica, which also has iris.
House twins. I’m in Midnight in the Palace Garden.
Happy Monday!
I’m in Rhubarb My Love from The Zoo (Christophe Laudamiel). Fun!
Love that name, glad the scent is fun to match.
sotd = Myrrh Eglantine
such a delicious rose!🌹 my sample never fails to encourage FB wishes. ☺️
Today’s’s date is 8/8/22 which somehow seems auspicious.
Hope everyone smells something heavenly today.
Apparently it’s referred to as The Lion’s Gate, 8/8. Saw it on an astrology site
Smoothie by my side, it will be my dinner I think, no energy for cooking.
I was wearing vintage Maderas de Oriente, sandalwood to my nose and dry which was very welcome in the warm weather, we are heading for another heatwave, all the English lawns dry like straw make me sad.
Tonight it’s Phaedon Rouge Avignon.
I was going to roast some baby broccoli, but not sure I can make myself turn on even the toaster oven! So I might be doing caprese dinner.
Oh yes, too hot to cook, Caprese salad 🥗 sounds delicious in this weather.
Happy Monday all! It’s been a 🥵 minute!
1) SOTD: Combo of Organic Pharmacy Rose& Jasmine body oil and Bagatelle de Gabrielle.
2) The Job: It’s been going gangbusters. I have been given responsibilities that I did not ask for, including partial A/V overhead, which is above and nbeyond what my contract states are my duties. That’s been fun. I have had to be EXTREMELY FIRM with some of the experience staff on boundaries, expectations and responsibilities for overall issues.
3) The house: Kitchen is 98% complete- trim is done but painting is not; I have decided to get William Morris wallpaper for those areas of the kitchen. The veggie patch was a bust this summer; a variety of issues, including the surprise snowstorm in April, made things less productive overall. But the weeds are eternal. I am redoing the patch now for autumn/winter .
4) The e-bike: Working! So far so good. Since getting a new motor controller it has performed well. I don’t use it past PAS 2, but I have achieved speeds of 15mph going uphil and as much as 30 mph barrelling downhill!
5) The Anniversary sale at Nordstrom’s: I bought the Delina package for $347 and lord have mercy! I had never spend so much on one perfume. But I got two bottles, so I will not have to buy Delina ever again.
How are you? Tell me about your day.
Which Wm Morris print are you going with? I’m about to order some Pimpernel and it took me months to finally decide on which print & color combo. There are so many pretty ones.
Down to Three for the W&M wallpaper
Acanthus
Strawberry Thief
Bird and Pomegranate
And I agree- the patterns are so lovely!
No wrong choice among those three!
I LOVE the metallic sheen in the Teal Bird & Pomegranate and was very tempted to go for that one, but I needed more blue for my project. (Instead I am plotting to use it elsewhere 😀 )
Oh, the teal colorway is so glamorous and gorgeous! I would use that in an especially bold bedroom!
Which William Morris design will you use? I am glad your E Bike is going well. I use mine all the time and I love zipping up the hill on my way home. It’s so easy compared to a regular bike.
My knees have thanked me for using the e bike! 😁
Here are my 3 choices:
Acanthus
Strawberry Thief
Bird and Pomegranate
https://www.vam.ac.uk/articles/william-morris-and-wallpaper-design/
I like them all, depending on your cabinet colours. There’s a nice clip at the bottom of this link about the making of the wallpaper.
I think the one they are making, using thirty blocks is acanthus
Ooh, William Morris wallpaper! Tell us more….
I got the idea because the open layout; I really wanted something to define the kitchen more as it’s own space. I like arts and crafts design ( one of my friends is an expert in W&M designs) and we were able to funnel it down to 3 choices:
Acanthus
Strawberry Thief
Bird and Pomegranate
Another huge fan of William Morris!
I went crazy and bought backups of backups of the Maxwell and Williams humongous coffee mugs featuring some designs.”Strawberry thief” would look so good on a bedroom wall!LoveLove.
Strawberry Thief is SO beautiful, period! personally for a bedroom I like the Chrysanthemum design!
I have narrowed down to 3 choices (see above) and since it’s just for trimming an area, I won’t need much.
Great to hear from you! It sounds like you’re doing really well at life and that’s just so wonderful. I know you’ve worked hard to get there and it’s amazing how far you’ve come with your house and your job. You rock!
Oh gorsh! 😊 Thank you so much!
So glad the job is going well and you are able to stay firm with boundaries!
Likewise glad about the bike, although you’ve shown me up…I will go to PAS 3 pretty quickly when going up a hill, and on a really steep hill I sometimes add a little throttle too.
Love all 3 of those patterns, and always liked Pimpernel too. Really, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a WM wallpaper I didn’t like.
1) I have been able to climb up hills but with a LOT of crying before the e bike- now it’s so much easier and my knees love me once again!
2) WM papers and fabrics are so lovely!
July is usually our coldest month, but it wasn’t too bad this year – that’s because the nasth weather was being saved up for August. It’s wet, windy and cold, and will be right through the rest of the week.
The magnolia trees are starting to flower here, magnolias really are a glorious sight, but I don’t have any perfumes with a magnolia note.
I’ve been looking through my perfumes with an eye to something warming, and have decided on Caron’s Parfum Sacré.
I don’t have a magnolia soliflore at the moment, just lots of perfumes with hidden magnolia 😉
Finally warm enough to wear Jasmin et Cigarette, which only works for me in warm weather. So feeling slightly va va voom in this one.
Random life complication: Last night, just as guests were arriving for a backyard BBQ at our place, a HUGE old oak tree snapped at the base sending the trunk and branches down a steep incline that is directly across from the back of my house. It is holding on by a root system that is caught, precariously, on a crumbling retaining wall. It is now resting at the top of a straight drop of about 60 feet from its dop (it is upsidedown), and then a step decline down to the bottom, where out back yard sits. So, I met our neighbor up there. He has so much land, he didn’t really understand that the tree was his. We went for a little walk and in his defense, he was pretty horrified when he understood the situation. (There are other properties the tree could role into other than ours). Sunday night tree disasters on private property inspire no city agencies to help. Fire department told me to call back when the tree hit the house! Anyway, my new friend up the hill has been working tirelessly to find a solution. Feeling lucky that he is kind and responsible. Feeling hopeful that the tree (which is about 10 feet circumference and about 50 feet in length, and whose canopy is enormous) gets dismantled safely.
Oh wow, that’s scary! I’m glad he’s so responsive.
You smell great.
Yikes! Well the solution is to call a tree company and open the wallet wide, lol. Tree guys do pretty amazing work.
This. $$$$ will solve the problem.
Yep. The neighbor whose land it is, is taking bids. This issue is that this multi-ton tree is hanging straight down, by just a few roots. So heavy equipment would help, but the area is really inaccessible to heavy equipment. Fingers crossed.
Oh my! Glad you avoided disaster but it is still tenuous!
Oy vey! What a scary situation!
Glad to hear that the neighbor who had the tree in the first place is being a decent mensch about it.
Fingers crossed!!!
Very scary! I am glad you are safe!
My SOTD is Coconuts by Sunday Forever. It smells like coconuts and maybe a tiny bit of musk? and is a nice casual scent.
Hope everyone is having a good Monday!
I do not know it, but Sunday Forever is a great brand name!
SOTD is AdP Fico d’Amalfi, mmm. This will have to tide me over for a few days since we’re hanging with friends and the wife claims to be allergic to perfume, except for whatever her daughter chooses to wear. Like that makes any sense. Ah we love her anyway 😁
People like that make me roll my eyes and bite my tongue. You smell great!
I decided to yank her chain once and very seriously asked if she knew which chemical and/or botanical she was sensitive to. Needless to say she couldn’t answer.
Sounds like my faker brother-in-law!
People who say that they are allergic to something when they merely don’t like it tick me off! 🤬
Oh she truly believes her allergy story, but she sure didn’t enjoy my pointing out the illogic of it. She’s got a degree in chemistry too so she knows she’s inventing the whole thing 😁
I have allergies. Got tested for them as a kid, so I know exactly what I have issues with.
Fakers make me a little touchy.
FM Une Rose for an evening walk.
I think I only have one fragrance with a magnolia note so I’ll be saving that for Friday.
Happy International Cat Day! Love my kitties so so much 🙂
Wishing everyone a great week.
Perfect evening walk scent!
SOTD = 4160Tuesdays Midnight in the Palace Garden
Woody spicy and floral but don’t ask me to describe it more than this. Nice while it lasted.
And International Cat Day 🤔. I’ll have to see what I can do!
Stinking hot today in NYC even at 7AM (started hot in NJ and I was out and about before arriving in NY). It was so hot that I welcomed the blast of cold fetid air from open garage bays. And I’ve walked my route enough to know where they are, including the nooks and crannies that blast colder air. When will this end? 🥵
I booked a cruise yesterday for May 2023. Deposit was … are you ready? $1. Nope, not missing any zeros. I indulged and will be staying in a suite. My sister told me about it so we will build from there. And the best part – 7 days Boston to Boston so we will take the train there!
You know I always try to avoid the obviously “broken” people and there are many in NYC.. My luck ran out today because I was trying to avoid someone’s runaway luggage and that someone was weaving towards his luggage and we collided … and he started ranting as to how rude I was but I kept walking and did not engage. It was a close call.
I was going to ask a question but will save it for later this week.
Every day is Cat Day here at Casa de Jalapeno! 😺😺
I believe it!
Yay for the Cruise!
I’m sorry about the close call. Smart not to engage.
I’m quite excited for the cruise! 7 days and it’s the first sailing for that itinerary in 2023 so hopefully not crowded.
Yeah, I think the guy deliberately bumped into me but ine never knows!
RIP Olivia Newton-John. 😢
My laptop is being a little cranky this afternoon. Not sure why, but it seems that it’s taking longer than usual to launch programs. Maybe a software update is being downloaded in the background?
Stinking hot and humid today. At one point it was 96 degrees before the humidity was added in. Triple digits for the Real Feel temps, ugh. Tomorrow is supposed to be the worst of it this week, so as long as the A/C and the icemaker in the fridge is working, I’m good.
SOTD = Hermes Eau de Neroli Dore EdC. So good for stinking hot and humid weather! 🥵
David McCullough died today too 🙁
But ONJ was comparatively young.
My humidity has significantly dropped in the last hour. Hopefully tomorrow is the last of it for you.
I am also sad about ONJ.
Good perfume for a horrid day 🥵
I wrongly thought today would be a relaxing day off.
I’m on the deck watching a bunny eat grass now, so all is well.
I spritzed a few perfumes today. I’m currently wearing Ysatis. I wish perfumes still had fancy sounding ( to not fancy me) names like this, instead of the long declaration one’s that keep coming out.
Oy! I hope you get a doubly relaxing day off shortly.
Sorry to hear that your day off was NOT relaxing.