What is not in doubt, however, is the talent and taste of Ernest Beaux, nor his temperament which allowed no one the privilege of telling him what to do. His best composition was not No. 5, which has always been cleverly promoted, but rather the magnificent Bois des Iles of which Chanel has never taken full advantage.
— Perfumer Edmond Roudnitska, in the foreword to Michael Edwards' Perfume Legends. I have owned this book for years but somehow never read the opening.
The Body Shop has launched White Musk Breeze, a new musky floral flanker to their best-selling White Musk fragrance:
A fresh, sparkling take on our most popular fragrance…
Deal at aveda: get free shipping on any order, today only, with coupon code THANKYOU10.
Deal at b-glowing: get a free Presque Nue solid perfume from Crazylibellule & The Poppies with any purchase of $30 or more (not including sale items) using coupon code divine, good through 2/1.
New at colette (France): Martin Margiela Untitled.
New at harrods (UK): Chloe Eau de Fleurs trio.
May (who comments here as perfumegeek) is getting married in April. It will be an intimate morning ceremony on the beach (you can see her wedding dress after the jump) in Florida. She’s thinking the temperature will probably be in the low 60s. She wants a perfect perfume — something she loves and will have as a keepsake — and is willing to pay up to $200 to get it.
Here is what we know about May:
She’s a chemist (the kind that plays with lasers, strong magnets and colorful compounds) in her 20s.
She’s a bookworm (she loves Jhumpa Lahiri and Neil Gaiman among others), a music lover (Chopin, Debussy, The Shins, Brandi Carlile), a museum freak (The Victoria and Albert in London, Georgia O’Keefe in Santa Fe), and an outdoorsy woodsy girl (hiking, snowshoeing, fishing)…
I find myself using body oils more often in cold weather; somehow, in my mind, they seem to cut to the chase in moisturizing dry skin, particularly on rough knees and elbows. Yes, I could just use jojoba oil or everyday olive oil and get good results, but I inevitably prefer a product with appealing packaging or a more interesting fragrance. MBeze’s Body Oils fit both criteria. Their labels look like Pop Art interpretations of vintage magazine ads, and I’ve tried the oils from two of their available scent “collections” so far.
The “Aim to be Pleased” fragrance is described as “Determined, driven, never a dull moment. That’s the way you roll. We’ve taken cherry blossom and added just a dash of sandalwood to make this scent as brave as you are.” Aim to be Pleased is subtler than it sounds…