Now Smell This

a blog about perfume

Menu ▼
Browsing by tag: spicy

Heretic Parfums Dirty Ginger ~ fragrance review

Posted by on 27 Comments

For those of you whose first response to the words CUMIN + PERFUME is to clutch your pearls or bite your pinky ring…you may ignore Heretic Parfums Dirty Ginger;* this guy is dirty with the ‘raunchy’ spice.

Dirty Ginger starts with the aromas of traditional medicine (I’m thinking Ayurveda): dried fruit peels and herbs, leaves and seeds, stored next to a block of white camphor. The herbs move from the medicinal to the culinary realm quickly, and if you’re in the mood for a good curry or Indian pickle (with its mustard seeds, ginger, vinegar and coriander), you may start to salivate…

Read the rest of this article »

Diptyque L’Autre ~ fragrance review

Posted by on 14 Comments

“Capturing the memory of long walks through the spice markets of Damascus, L’Autre is a dry, sensual blend that recreates all the mesmerizing magic found in the rich landscape of the Orient,” says Diptyque of its second perfume, released in 1973.

I associate the name L’Autre* (The Other) — given the supposed fragrance inspiration — as representing separateness: a tourist surrounded by new sights and sounds and smells and regarding himself or those around him as The Other. “Autre” in my French dictionary takes up half a page, so interpretations may vary! Certainly given L’Autre’s bold nature, many smelling it, including perfume lovers, may recoil and feel L’Autre is The Other…

Read the rest of this article »

DS & Durga Italian Citrus and Stora Skuggan Silphium ~ fragrance reviews

Posted by on 25 Comments

The dog days of summer! Seattle should reach 100 degrees Fahrenheit tomorrow! I plan on wearing perfume as I work in the garden to keep things alive (my water bill$ make friends shriek and look at me in disbelief). During this week of scorching temperatures, I decided to wear two new “garden” fragrances, one based on citrus, the other on silphium (a mystery plant).

Let’s start with citrus, “Italian” citrus. DS & Durga Italian Citrus presents a citrus-lover’s dream list of notes…

Read the rest of this article »

Parfums MDCI Fetes Persanes ~ fragrance review

Posted by on 14 Comments

La Fête Persane, Georges Lepape

Parfums MDCI Fêtes Persanes was inspired by the Fête Persane portion of Les Indes Galantes, an 18th-century opera by Jean-Philippe Rameau. I looked up the music before I started in on the review, and, my goodness, I dare you to listen to it without your heart cracking open. (Here’s a link. It’s not quite six minutes long, and the really good stuff kicks in at just after two minutes and fifteen seconds.)

But we’re here to talk about perfume, not music. Is Fêtes Persanes Eau de Parfum as moving as its muse…

Read the rest of this article »

5 perfumes: spicy fragrances for summer

Posted by on 78 Comments

Spices

For many of us, this is about the time of the year when we start to shuffle the contents of our perfume collection, moving the darker and heavier fragrances towards the back. It’s not at all unusual for me to reach for a light citrus or beachy fragrance in winter as a form of denial, but it’s sometimes harder to pull off the reverse, that is, to wear a spicy comfort scent in summer. Many of them are just too thick and rich and overwhelming to wear when it’s hot, or worse, hot and humid. Here are five sheer spices to try in summer when you’re missing your winter favorites.

Demeter Gingerale ~ a perfect rendition of gingerale, including the fizz…

Read the rest of this article »

Back to Top

Home
Archives
About Now Smell This :: Privacy Policy
Perfume Reviews
New Perfumes
General Perfume Articles
The Monday Mail

Glossary of Perfume Terms
Perfume FAQ
Perfume Books

Noses ~ Perfumers A-E :: F-K :: L-S :: T-Z

Perfume Houses A-B :: C :: D-E :: F-G
H-J :: K-L :: M :: N-O :: P :: Q-R :: S
T :: U-Z