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Browsing by tag: velvet sweet peas

5 Perfumes: unexpected comfort scents

Posted by Jessica on 2 February 2021 28 Comments

I recently attended an online work meeting that opened with an “icebreaker” question: what’s your favorite comfort food? I enjoyed hearing the responses, which included some sweet-and-starchy favorites but a few spicy and savory treats, too. The idea of “comfort,” just like most things, can vary and shift. I’d say the same thing about “comfort scents” — I definitely have a few vanilla-based favorites that make me feel like I’m tucked into a fluffy blanket, but lately I’ve also been reaching for fragrances that offer other olfactory routes to calm and security. Here are just a few that I’ve recently encountered or re-encountered.

Dawn Spencer Hurwitz Couverture d’Hiver: This is DSH’s latest Holiday edition, which takes “a foresty hillside covered in snow” as a starting point and segues from a whiff of brisk winter air, with hints of petrichor and pine, into a cozy white-cocoa-and-musk skin scent…

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Velvet & Sweet Pea Luminous Lemurs ~ perfume review

Posted by Jessica on 25 September 2020 5 Comments

Back in June, I wondered whether we’d see any independent perfumers responding to the events of 2020 through their fragrance work. Yes, as it turns out: Dawn Spencer Hurwitz has been creating a series of fragrance “sketches” inspired by her home surroundings (see my review of Hot Masala), and now Laurie Stern of Velvet & Sweet Pea’s Purrfumery has released Luminous Lemurs. Laurie writes, “COVID-19 has made it even more clear to me that the purpose of my work is to help animals and indigenous communities,” and Luminous Lemurs is a tribute to these endangered creatures and their human neighbors.

I’m a longtime fan of Velvet & Sweet Pea’s Black Cat, Honey and Moonlight, so I would have been curious about Luminous Lemurs if I hadn’t known that it’s being launched for a good cause. Laurie is donating portion of its profits to Centre ValBio…

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Velvet & Sweet Pea Rose Encens & Eze ~ perfume reviews

Posted by Jessica on 4 May 2017 5 Comments

Velvet & Sweet Pea Rose Encens & Eze

We all have our own preferred “comfort scents,” and they can be just as individual as any of our other perfume preferences. Vanilla and other gourmands might be popular in this particular category, but I’m sure there are those of you who also reach for vetiver or violets or what-have-you when the going gets rough. I’ve been noticing for the past year or two that when I’m dealing with bad news, or a headache or bad cold, or just the end of a long day, I end up looking through my stash for samples of natural perfumes.

Velvet & Sweet Pea is one line that never fails to soothe my spirit with its scents (not to mention its colorful Victorian-style imagery, including lots of cats!). I’m a longtime fan of Black Cat, and recently I’ve tried two newer perfume oils called Rose Encens and Eze that have eased me through moments of stress…

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Top 10 Winter Fragrances 2017

Posted by Jessica on 20 January 2017 49 Comments

I tried not to get too Grinch-y over the holidays, and I did pretty well, considering the world events of late 2016 plus the fact that I was suffering occasional bouts of Instagram ennui. So many exotic vacations, so many artful table settings, so many #thankful embraces scrolling past my eyes; you may know what I mean.

I’m happy with my own lot in life, truly, but sometimes I worry — not on my own behalf, but on yours, dear readers. My taste in perfume may be glamorous, but my life is pretty quiet. I hate to let you down. Still, rather than fabricate some picture-perfect fantasy life, I’ll just come clean and share my own mundane activities, with the fragrances that I wear to dress them up a bit.

Just a regular day at the office: Byredo Rose Noir. This was my most-worn fragrance of 2016, because it’s a “no brainer” for me: a blend of citrus, rose and modern patchouli that doesn’t come on too strong. It’s my olfactory equivalent of my many basic black dresses…

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10 Cheap Thrills for Valentine’s Day

Posted by Jessica on 8 February 2013 29 Comments

Valentine’s Day is February 14th, of course, and you may be thinking of giving a small gift or two to a special someone. I don’t mean only romantic partners, either; I think that certain friends and family members deserve a little extra display of affection once in while, too. Here, then, are ten scented treats for all sorts of Valentines, each priced under $30.

 

Philosophy X & O gift set

Sweets to the sweet: the ever-popular Philosophy has assembled a limited edition X’s and O’s Trio just for Valentine’s Day…

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