Now Smell This folks, meet Sekhmet; my favorite goddess and today’s cover girl for Cinq Mondes Eau Egyptienne. If I could find an un-copyrighted image, I’d include another ‘goddess,’ too: Olivia Giacobetti, Eau Egyptienne’s creator, and one of my favorite perfumers.
Cinq Mondes describes Eau Egyptienne (inspired by ancient kyphi recipes) as an “aromatic ritual for body, hair and pillow,” a therapeutic mist to calm the mind and moisturize the body…
Quick reviews of Tauer Perfumes Majestic Tuberose Bar Soap, Tauer Perfumes Rose Nip Room Spray, Frédéric Malle Iris Hand Cream, Frédéric Malle Carnal Flower After Sun Balm and Herban Essentials Eucalyptus Towelettes. Please add your own quick review of anything marvelous you’ve tried lately!
Tauer Perfumes‘ glycerin bar soaps have been around, off and on again, for years, but this is the first time I’ve tried the Majestic Tuberose. It’s a lovely, full-bodied white floral, and the rose and the jasmine in the blend soften the impact of the tuberose perfectly — it smells like tuberose, but it doesn’t overwhelm. The bar is scented just enough to make your bathroom smell good, and just enough to leave a light fragrance on the skin, not so much as to make it difficult to match your perfume after you shower (or wash your hands). The glycerin bars are soft (they slice easily, if like me, you don’t want to keep a whole glycerin bar melting in the shower, or if you want a small slice for your dresser drawers or whatnot) and foam nicely. I’m a fan…
For Le Premier Figuier, I received only a few words of direction to ensure I was given the utmost creative freedom. I had the idea to create the first eau de toilette around a fig because the fig tree is the tree of my childhood. Natural fig essence doesn’t exist, so I had to capture that smell of the tree as a whole—the bark warm from the sun, the green of the leaves, the milk that trickles from the fruit. A child was sitting next to me in a garden once, and she turned to me and said, ‘You smell like sunshine.’ I was wearing Premier Figuier. Beyond its commercial success, the emotional association people have to that fragrance is the greatest compliment of all.
— Perfumer Olivia Giacobetti talks about L'Artisan Parfumeur Premier Figuier. Read more at 3 L’Artisan Parfumeur Fragrances That Are Destined to Become Your Signature Scent at Vogue.
Frédéric Malle talks about his new (one-dollar-per-ml) Iris Hand Cream.
It's $75 for 75 ml so it won't be happening, but I'm seriously lemming the new Frédéric Malle + Olivia Giacobetti Iris Hand Cream / Creme Pour Les Mains au Beurre d'Iris. Someone do alert me if you see it marked down to around, say, $20? The blurb: "Frédéric Malle honors iris concrete’s historical use as precious perfume for the gloves and hands of the Medici family. Its colorless, silky texture was harnessed by Olivia Giacobetti with musk and woody notes to produce a clean, soft scent to accompany you wherever you go."