I thought 2009 was a pretty good year, and 2010 was even better. There was, once again, way too much new product — it looks like there will always be too much new product, regardless of what the world economy is doing. Oh well. It does mean that I have pretty much given up on smelling everything that matters. I suppose it could be done if you had absolutely nothing else to do, but I do have other things to do. I smell what I can. So, to all of my picks below, add "of what I managed to smell".
My choices for the year are just below. Scroll down to see what Angela, Erin, Jessica and Kevin thought was noteworthy in 2010, or click over to Bois de Jasmin, Grain de Musc, Perfume Posse or Perfume Smellin' Things. And of course, do add your own thoughts in the comments.
My favorite niche fragrances for 2010: a tie between The Different Company De Bachmakov and L'Artisan Parfumeur Traversée du Bosphore. I also particularly liked Annick Goutal Ninféo Mio and Parfums DelRae Panache.
And my picks for best mainstream fragrances: Balenciaga Paris and Marc Jacobs Bang.
Did what they were supposed to do: Love, Chloé, Penhaligon's Amaranthine, Thierry Mugler Womanity, Hermès Eau Claire des Merveilles, Voyage d'Hermès, Honoré des Prés We Love New York, Frédéric Malle Portrait of a Lady.
Best celebrity fragrance: Every year it gets harder and harder to keep up with the celebrity fragrances. Of what I smelled this year, I liked Jessica Simpson Fancy Nights the best.
Best commercial: This year, there were three big money / big stars / big director productions — Bleu de Chanel, Gucci Guilty and Dior Homme. I didn't find any of them all that memorable, and can I just say that if I never see another 20 second teaser (or 120 second "director's cut") for a 60 second perfume commercial, that will be just fine with me? Like everyone else, I was charmed by the Old Spice Man — he gets my vote for 2010.
Cheap thrill of the year: Sonoma Scent Studio Incense Pure.
Best new niche brand: ok, they're not really new-new, but the Gorilla Perfume line at Lush made many people happy by relaunching the best from the defunct B Never Too Busy range, and their new additions make it clear they're going to continue to think outside the box. The fragrances don't all work for me (in fact, many of them don't work for me) but at least they don't bore me.
Clive Christian award for aspirational pricing: even the refills at Xerjoff are way outside of my budget.
Best packaging: Hermès Voyage d'Hermès.
Perfumer of the year: the supremely versatile Yann Vasnier, who made two of my favorites this year (the aforementioned Marc Jacobs Bang and Parfums DelRae Panache).
Angela's Best of 2010
For me, 2010 was a very good perfume year, especially compared with 2009. My favorite new releases were Parfums DelRae Mythique (still can't get enough of this gentle iris suede); L'Artisan Parfumeur Nuit de Tubéreuse (I tried not to like it — and failed); XerJoff Richwood (warm and luxurious); Vero Profumo Rubj Eau de Parfum (the definition of delicate skank); Etat Libre d'Orange Like This (strange, radiant pumpkin flesh, immortelle, and ginger); and Penhaligon's Amaranthine (fruity, milky, tropical skank.)
My biggest discoveries were that I can wear and love a beautifully composed tuberose (hello Frédéric Malle Carnal Flower), and that I'm falling for fragrances I used to think of as too elegant for me (Carnal Flower and XerJoff Irisss, for instance.) My biggest disappointment is that I'm so behind in smelling new releases. Maybe next year I'll be able to report on some of this year's perfumes, including the new Cartiers and Diors.
Once again, I've met so many wonderful people through perfume this year. Perfume people must be the most generous, kind, fascinating, and stylish people out there. Thank you, and let's all get together soon for a huge dinner party. Maybe we can rent a villa near the Osmothèque.
Erin's Best of 2010
2010 was a year of surprises for me. Two of my favorite releases came from houses with scents that I'd previously found pleasant, but not purchase-worthy: Honoré de Prés Vamp à NY and The Different Company De Bachmakov. After a pair of puzzling, cleanly functional fragrances, L'Eau Serge Lutens and Bas de Soie, Serge Lutens snuck up on me with his latest Paris-exclusive, the magical Boxeuses, a perfume that inspires some (only some, mind you!) of the wonderment conjured up by those recent pictures of his "home" in Marrakech. And who would have predicted that Tauer Perfumes, the House of Sacred Smoke, would dazzle me with a lily-of-the-valley and a sweet, super-vivid "homage to rose"? Vero Kern's strange and sensual Eau de Parfum version of Rubj and Patricia de Nicolaï's brilliant, unisex L'Eau Mixte round out my list of best fragrances of the year. Other interesting 2010 launches I've tried and would recommend sampling include Humiecki & Graef Bosque, Honoré des Prés I Love Les Carottes, L'Artisan Traversée du Bosphore, Maison Francis Kurkdjian Absolue Pour Le Soir and Gorilla Perfumes The Smell of Weather Turning.
Jessica's Best of 2010
I found several new fragrances to love in 2010. Some of them, like Balenciaga Paris and Amouage Opus III, are classically inspired beauties. Others, including Etat Libre d’Orange Like This and L’Artisan Parfumeur Traversée du Bosphore, are more esoterically charming. My favorite new rose-based fragrance is Tauer Perfumes Une Rose Vermeille, and my favorite packaging of the year is the We Love New York “coffee cup” design from Honoré des Prés.
Most of the past year, for me, was organized around our move into a new home. I stocked our new bathroom with Anjolie Ayurveda soaps and Pattern Body Washes, and fragranced the other rooms with a Blue Garden candle from Nest. As the record-setting summer heat arrived and home improvements continued, I managed to keep cool with Bathlife scented deodorant bars and liberal splashes of Murray & Lanman Florida Water. Now that we’re finally feeling settled in our new place, I’m lighting an Oliban candle from the latest Diptyque holiday collection and wishing everyone a happy and peaceful New Year.
Kevin's Best of 2010
I’ve already “pronounced” my favorite men’s fragrances for 2010; but a few new things turned up since that post. I’ve smelled the lovely new Miller et Bertaux Om: inspire…and smile and was happy to see two long-awaited perfumes arrive in the U.S.: Aesop Mystra and Marrakech…available in Eau de Toilette and Baume de Parfum. Guerlain also introduced the beautiful Guerlain Ode à la Vanille. As for home fragrance, I’m happy to report the Cire Trudon room sprays are rich, perfume-quality concoctions available in the following scents: Roi Soleil, Abd El Kader, Spiritus Sancti, Ernesto and (holiday) Nazareth. Toiletries? I bought Malin + Goetz Eucalyptus deodorant because it got raves in lots of men’s magazines; it smells great (like limes) and doesn’t contain alcohol or aluminum. Pattern body washes (my favorites are Nutmeg and Black Pepper) provide loads of lather and go easy on dry, winter-ravaged skin.
You know, I kept thinking that Annick Goutal Ninféo Mio was 2009, otherwise it would have been on my list too. Somehow the beginning of 2010 feels like it was a decade away and in some other universe too (well, technically, the latter is almost correct 🙂
It might have been 2009, but I didn’t smell it til 2010.
First I’m dying to know if Kevin finally got his bottle of Shalimar Ode a la Vanille?
And I love that Pattern Black Pepper body wash as well–very nice stuff (I blame Jessica for turning me on to that line)
It’s great! So is the Nutmeg, which I used just yesterday. It even works well as a shampoo!
Hey, I’m dying to know too. I will see if I can find out. I am the only one who has not tried Pattern — I must get on the ball.
Since both Kevin and Jessica mentioned the Pattern body washes, I want to try them all! Always looking for great scented body washes.
Has anyone tried Grapefruit and Geranium by Avalon Organics? Wonderful grapefruit scent.
I adore that one, and it’s very cheap. I use the shampoo & conditioner too. Also love the Weleda Sea Buckthorn, which is a little more but also has a cheerful citrus scent.
I loved reading everyone’s lists….especially when I agree (somehow it makes my picks seem more legitimate since we all know I have questionable tastes!)
I am never really certain when things are released …so my new favorites are likely a blend of this year’s and some vague undefined release date….let’s just say they’re “new to me” and call it good. 🙂
In no particular order:
1. Amouage Memoir (w)
2. SSS Incense pure
3. FM Portrait of a Lady
4. DSH Khyphi and it’s sister Cardamom & Khyphi
5. Traversee du Bosphore
6. Nuit de Tubereuse (the non-tuberose tuberose!)
new-to-me loves:
1. FM Carnal Flower (see? I can love a tuberose!)
2. FM Iris Poudre (yeah, the budget is dead and gone…)
3. Solange Cosmic & Stoned (what’s a budget?)
4. SL Rahat Loukoum (yeah, don’t even think the “b” word)
5. Rosine Secrets de Rose
Honorable Mentions go to two great new fragrances that I plan to wear the heck out of, as soon as I’m not freezing my butt off in this freaking cold weather…it’s just hard to really embrace “cool, juicy green ” while you’re shivering, you know?
1. TDC Bachmakov
2. Hermessence Iris Ookie (blame Joe for the renaming)
and now for the one that’s grabbed my nose and is now at the top of my buy-as-soon-as-BH-has-another-coupon list:
1. CdG Daphne
y’all are thinking “intervention” I just know it, but don’t bother; it won’t work. 🙂
Happy 2011 –may your perfume budget always go up and your atomizers never clog! Now go forth and smell amazing!
I don’t know why, but it really warms my heart to see Rahat getting some love even now, so many years after it came out. And hey, I didn’t own Carnal Flower until 2010 myself!
biggest disappointment…had to be Carillon pour une Ange…I love lotv and had such high hopes. But it went all decay with a fecal undertone. Big unsniffed purchase mistake….lucky for me I have a good friend who found it to be lovely and took it off my hands! 🙂
i.e., please sell me your decay with fecal overtones… there’s a chance it will be in my top two of the year. 😉
hey, there’s no accounting for tastes! 😉
It’s in my “best of” list too!
I freakin’ love Carillon pour une Ange! I think it might be my number 1 fave for the year! Delish!
Daisy, sorry it went “carrion” instead of carillon on you.
LOL!! Carrion pour une Ange !! Well, it wasn’t good on me , but that’s the beauty of skin chemistry. (PG Tuberose Criminelle, and FM Fleur de Cassie get that note too.) I was so ready to love it to bits…and the first 20-30 minutes were gorgeous…it was what happened in the dry down that was scary.
But I’m glad that you all found a keeper ….and I’m super glad that Joe wanted my bottle of CPUA. 🙂
Daisy I love your taste (DUH!!) but I’m so pleased you fell for Daphne too! I WANT this one for a FB as well….*sigh*
Were insatiable my dear, there is no stopping us.. 😉
Also was disappointed in LotV and especially URV from Tauer…boy was that a sad day finding those were scrubbers on me….very sad.
I found others to lust for though, pretty quickly.
I bounce back rather fast!
😀
and I shouldn’t even be THINKING about anything new right now! I am such a hopeless perfume ho….
You’re in good company. 😉
I agree with you Robin, 2010 was actually a pretty good year but then, with all the stuff coming out, I guess there’s bound to be at least a dozen excellent products, right? I’m happy to see Rubj edp, De Bachmakov, Boxeuses and Bosphore make it to the lists — and now I really have to go and smell the Cire Trudon room sprays. The candles already give a great idea of the quality of the compositions. Kevin, have you tried them on skin by any chance?
In case Kevin doesn’t check the comments here, he does mention trying on skin, and just says they’re flat (as you’d expect)
https://freebox.it.com/2010/12/22/cire-trudon-spiritus-sancti-room-spray-home-fragrance-review/%3C/a%3E%3C/p%3E
Oh thank goodness you posted on G d M Denyse, over a week and I was getting withdrawals….
What I want to know is, did M Douchafour actually think of going sailing on a stonking big boat in the height of summer which brings on a state of – -of —
Nuit d T is the sexiest thing I’ve smelled …was it just luck or great design???
This year feels like the year when quite a few fragrance didn’t quite live up to their promise. The vetivers in particular were disappointing – Diptyque Vetyverio, Prada Infusion de Vetiver… I haven’t tried LAP’s Coeur de Vétiver Sacré yet but I doubt it will be my thing either. Iris Ukiyoé was another anti-climax for me.
I did, however, like Hermès Voyage a great deal. That and Amouage Memoir Woman were probably my favourite 2010 releases. Not necessarily FB-worthy but I’ve no doubt that I’ll drain my samples fairly quickly.
I haven’t tried them yet but I’m still hopeful for De Bachmakoff and Boxeuses (sample on the way)
Not a new release but, rather, a new discovery this year was SL Bois De Violette.
On the whole, not many new things appealed to me but that just meant that I could use my money to tick a few old favourites (Diorissimo, Bandit, Cuir de Russie, etc) off my wish list. And frankly, that’s a very good thing!
I didn’t do the “biggest disappointment” category this year because I couldn’t pick, but mine were very like yours! Add in the Prada Tubereuse, which might have been my biggest, I don’t know.
The falsely advertised no vetiver vetivers were the biggest pet peeve for me. And I don’t even remember what that Prada tuberose was like, it left zero impression. I also remember feeling a little let down by Balenciaga because I hoped for something a little edgier but I’m over that now 😀
Yeah. The Balenciaga grew on me, the Pradas did not!
R, you and I had almost the same intro, lol. 2010 was the year I gave up trying to keep up, even with the “niche” releases.
I really want a bottle of Bosphore. So much so that I’m waffling about buying it instead of a decant. (as if I’d ever use up a decant!)
It’s hopeless — I haven’t even smelled one of your picks, Boxeuses. In all truth, I haven’t kept up for years, but this is the first year I stopped worrying about it. I didn’t even try to get my hands on Boxeuses — some day it will come to me, or it won’t.
I REALLY want a 15 ml bottle of Bosphore. Here’s hoping there’s a coffret eventually.
Ditto-ing the “gave up trying”… That’s why I’m focusing mostly, though perhaps undaringly, on the houses and/or perfumers whose output I know and trust. There simply aren’t enough hours in the day to do follow everything, much less to do justice to the good stuff…
Released in 2010: Shalimar Ode a la Vanille
Le Cologne du Maghreb
MFK Absolue pour le Soir
New to me 2010: Ubar Amouage FANTASTIC!!! ALL CAPS!!
No 5 Eau Premiere
Happy New Year Everyone! 😉
I have not smelled that darn Shalimar, and probably never will. The first thing I gave up on was obscure Guerlain releases.
Hold on, Amaranthine was well back in 2009, no? (and Mythique?)
I agree it was a really good year. I’ll be brief, though I found SO many to love:
Tops: Traversée du Bosphore & Carillon pour une Ange.
Runners-up: Penhaligon’s Zizonia, Nuit de Tubéreuse, Tonka Imperiale (uh oh, which year?).
Amaranthine was launched in 10/2009. Can’t remember what month it made it to the US, but I didn’t smell it until early 2010…I think we can’t be that strict about launch dates or some perfumes would never get considered for a “best of” list.
And ack, I sort of forgot about Tonka Impériale! I really liked it too.
My favorite from this past year – from most $$ to least!
1. Amouage Memoir Man
2. Shalimar Ode a la Vanille
3. LM Ambre Passion Elixir
4. MJ Bang
Honorable mention to Costamor Tabacca because I can’t remember exactly when it came out and to L’Artisan Coeur de Vetiver Sacre which I want to like so badly that I keep trying.
The LM Ambre is NICE and would be in my top ten. Glad someone mentioned it.
Forgot to mention my new to me love (although it was released in 2009) – Korres Pepper Jasmine Gaiac Wood Passion Fruit. Nothing better than a love that’s so affordable even if it has a ridiculously long name. Hunting a bottle down proved to be a bit of a chore – so I bought two!
I really want to try that Korres series…wish they were easier to find. Did you know there are a bunch of new ones? Hope to announce them later this week.
I’ve been keeping my eyes open for reviews of the new ones. Now that I have a contact in Greece I’m hoping they’ll be easier to sample LOL!
Did a search…there’s a Korres USA website!
http://www.korresusa.com/
Yeah, but I want a local store with testers….
I was going to get there eventually, but I am too spaced to be coherent with this best of list. I tried too many oldies to get a clear head. But the LM Ambre Passion Velvet is definitely one of my fav new releases this year, and I’m well on my way of blowing through my bottle. I also agree with Nuits de Tuberuese which smells so good on me I want to eat my skin, and then Traversee du Bosphore is amazing. I don’t like leather nor do I like sweets. Somehow I love TdB! Oh, and Ninfeo Mio which I think is amazing super green!
“Clive Christian award for aspirational pricing” LOL Love this!
I’m not sure dear Clive deserves to name the award any longer, w/Xerjoff and Agonist around.
Oh, I still think he deserves it. He’s worked the price angle harder than anyone.
Mostly he wins cause his juice is not that great for the prices he charges.
Yeah, that too.
I have SO given up on trying to keep up. In fact, this year was the year I consciously strove to just enjoy what I already have. (The fact that hubby was out of work for 6 months playing a huge part in that!) But I did get to try and enjoy Tauer’s Un Rose Vermeille, which delighted me with its strong violet note in the middle. And I also loved Absolute Pour le Soir and Mona di Oiro’s Cuir. In the new-to-me category, I feel in love with Dzongkha.
It is not worth it, and it’s so much easier not to chase things down, but to let them come to you when they will! You will love Dzongkha just as much now as you would have then, why hurry….
What you said. 🙂
The scent most beckoning to become a (very rare) FB purchase for me: Like This. Growing on me immensely: Midnight in Paris. Biggest disappointment: Voyage d’Hermes, bc I love it but seem to be allergic… pass. I also loved de Bachmakov, Cologne du Maghreb, and Futur. I slowed down a lot this year too, as other areas of my life picked up immensely, so I’m terribly far behind in testing even the things I desperately wanted to try (like the other new releases from Tauer).
I really must be anosmic to something in Midnight in Paris, it was so blah to me but everyone else loves it.
It started out that way for me too… almost like a blah version of L’Eau d’Hiver (which I like, mind you). Then all of a sudden, the leather came out of nowhere and made it infinitely more interesting. It’s like one of those trompe l’oeil pictures; now that I’ve smelled it, I can’t un-smell it again.
I think that I must be anosmic to the same element!
That some people were comparing it to Bulgari Black had me really excited… but then—nothing! Or, close enough to nothing to be disappointed 🙁
More money for other things, right? 🙂
Seriously, it’s worth revisting. I think it was Joe who commented on the huge hit of leather (rawhide!), and I couldn’t figure out what he was talking about, since I got nothing. And then, suddenly….there it was.
Well, that sample isn’t going anywhere! I’ll try it again, hopefully with better results 🙂
Boo – do you think I’d like ‘Like This’? It’s been on my to try list forever!
The answer to that probably hinges on how you feel about immortelle. I know Daisy got maple syrup out of it, but I got a nice cozy scent with just a little burnt sugar.
***death by maple syrup*** –you have been warned.
Now, I’ve been known to find the maple syrup in immortelle…but this one was cool cozy at best on me. And I liked it!
It was death by potpourri for me, unfortunately…
oy …Like This was a “grower” on me….it grew and grew and grew…it was nauseating! It’s just something about me and maple syrup–eat a pancake (yumm) but wash the plate IMMEDIATELY because the syrup smell will make me sick!
Oh, I totally agree with you about maple syrup. I was just lucky enough NOT to get that from Like This.
I get the maple syrup angle from immortelle myself, but–I LIKE maple syrup. I gave my husband a bottle of AG Sables for Christmas.
Rapp – I wasn’t really even interested in trying Like This, but I did b/c Joe sent me a sample in a swap. You just never know – I think it is pretty darned interesting, nearly amazing. I’m not even capable of describing why I think it smells good, and it doesn’t smell like I got too friendly with a pumpkin pie. It is an amazingly interestind warm skin scent to me. I don’t know if it is FBW for me based on my long list of wants, but if I suddenly found a bottle on my dresser I’d be pretty happy about it and I’d surely wear it.
I’d try it. I can’t stand immortelle, but this really worked for me. Oddly, it sort of reminds me of the smell of lipstick. But maybe more old-school lipstick than, say, MAC.
A: I very much get an “old-school cosmetics” vibe from Like This, but also a strong hit of fresh ginger root. I don’t mind maple syrup, but I don’t get it that strongly … Like This is no AG Sables (which would probably send Daisy screaming).
running away (and screaming) from Sables!
Aw, see, I love Sables in microscopic doses~!
Thanks very much, I’m a sucker for lists like these. If someone was to do a survey of all the lists that have been published so far, I think Bosphore and Portrait Of A Lady would probably come out as clear winners. I haven’t ‘properly’ tried the former as it doesn’t come out in the UK till next year and I absolutely love the latter.
I’ll be posting my own list on the 30th.
Happy New Year everyone!
Yes, with Bosphore way far away in the front of the pack. Look forward to your list!
Hmmm, I think this year I managed to love and acquire things that were launched relatively close to 2010. Amaranthine is on my list, too, as well as the reviled Coeur du Vetiver Sacre. Byredo La Tulipe won my heart right away, as did Portrait of a Lady. Aftelier Honey Blossom might win “most swoony” – I am almost afraid to wear it. A full bottle is looming of the revelatory Tauer Carillon, my favorite of his new releases.
I need to revisit these l’Artisans everyone is adoring. I have samples of both Nuit de Tubereuse and Traversee. Neither have caught my attention.
A lot of my year was discovering and/or revisiting classics and masculines. Chanel 5, Bel Ami, M7, Bal a Versailles – all part of the arsenal now. I think my biggest (and most panicky) love affair of the year is Attrape Coeur.
I didn’t love the LAPs either. I like and am happy to wear my decant of Bosphore, but I’m not hankering after a FB. Sounds like Carillon is where I should start w/the new Tauers, since you and I had the same favorite of his previous launches.
Oooh…Attrape Coeur….love this one. Totally understand the panicky part.
Love the idea of “most panicky”, and it’s so true!!
AC is my biggest love affair of the year, too!!! And, O Woe! Can’t believe it’s being discontinued.
Love your lists, especially as they help narrow down my “must sample list ” that seems to grow daily!
Santa (and his 5 year old helper elf) left Jessica Simpson Fancy Nights under our tree along with EL Sensuous Noir .
They aren’t in my top five for 2010 over all but Santa ranks fragrances according to accessibility in mall department stores within a 15 mile radius. I am enjoying both and looking forward to trying what everyone else has discovered!
Do comment please on Fancy Nights, it has created a buzz, especially for a celebrity scent.
I think there’s a brief review somewhere on here… plug it into the search box, and see what comes up. Wait, I’ll do it for you:
https://freebox.it.com/2010/11/04/jennifer-lopez-love-and-glamour-jessica-simpson-fancy-nights-two-brief-celebrity-perfume-reviews/%3C/a%3E%3C/p%3E
(Sorry, I’ve never yet got the hang of the tinyurl.)
Thanks, Mals86!
Bear – I tested Fancy Nights on the skin last time I was actually at our sad local Macy’s about 7 weeks ago. It is a well put together desserty clean-patchouli. It’s good if you like sweet patchouli-vanilla-benzoin type things. It’s not on my radar b/c it would never get any skin time with me based on my other favs. I would be happy to smell it on someone else.
Fancy Nights is incense, woods and sweet but much less so than the original and it gets smokier on me as it dries down.
Definitely unisex, actually I think a man would smell pretty great wearing this!
AnnS and RuthW,
Thanks for the reviews. The patchouli and benzoin make it sound like Coromandel. Will have to sniff @ my sad little Macys. 😉
Hey, Santa is a very busy man — he did well if you factor in the mall aspect.
I love these lists too!
New favorites – thanks to intruiging NST reviews:
Like This
Mythique (my “leather chiffon underwear”, that phrase is the best!)
Carillion Pour Une Ange
Futur
Barney’s, We Have a Problem (You still don’t stock it)
Different Co De Bachmakov
Thank You, Online Discounters!
Hermes Hiris
Givenchy III
It’s Not You, It’s Me (I Just Don’t Love You as I Should)
L’Air Du Desert Au Marocain (misspelled, and if anyone wants a bottle, please let me know, it needs a new home!)
LAP Nuit de Tuberose
Voyage d’Hermes
Wanna Sniff
Portrait of a Lady
Panache
Wanna Buy
Balenciaga Paris
Wanna See Created in 2011
Eau de Kitteh Bref (Serge, are you listening?)
Wanna Cry About
Dzing discontinued
I go with LADDM to avoid the inevitable spelling issues with that one! Needs a new home????
Yup, it’s only been sprayed 2 or 3 times and has lived in a nice dark cabinet. I’m not sure I still have the box, but I have the box from Incense Rose, so it will fit in that. Is also free!
It would get the love it deserves over at my place!
Hi Thanna – drop me the address to mpdgz@comcast.net and I’ll send it on over!
Dzingnut, you might just get my award for Best Categories!
I know! Took me a minute to sort it out but totally get it now.
Pretty sure Dzing was not discontinued…
Oh, I hope not! I remember someone posting a few weeks back saying that it had been, and she had confirmed it with someone else who sounded like they really knew one way or the other. Keeping my fingers crossed!
Can’t confirm, but Gaia listed it as being discontinued on The Non-Blonde recently…
http://thenonblonde.blogspot.com/2010/11/discontinued-perfumes-very-partial.html
And she might well be right, but so often these reports turn out to be wrong, even when they were verified with a brand. When they stop selling Dzing in Paris, then I’ll believe it.
I didn’t see it listed on the L’Artisan site a while back and made sure to order a great big FB as a Christmas present to me.
However, i DID see it listed when I just checked, so it looks like it’s still available.
If I needed to own it, I’d be stocking up too. I just find it nearly impossible to find out for sure when things have been axed.
The sales lady at a niche shop here said Dzing and Ananas Fizz are both only available now in the 100 ml sizes, but she didn’t say anything about it being discontinued, so let’s hope it’s just an ugly rumour.
Dzingnut, on a random note, your username inspired me to get a sample of Dzing just out of curiosity 🙂 I was browsing the LAP shelf at my local niche shop and I couldn’t remember which ones Robin had named in her “100 scents every perfumista must try” list (which I’m still making my way through,) so I just picked up Dzing because I figured it couldn’t be bad if someone named themselves after it 😉
I ended up loving it, and getting the FB. So thank you.
I am interested in the L’Air–if you still have it email me at corvuscoax at comcast dot net!!!!
Some of my favs in no particular order:
Portrait of A Lady
Zizonia
Traversee
Nuit de Tubereuse
CdG Wonderwood ( didn’t like at first )
Balenciaga
Amouage Memoire Woman
Bond No 9 Washington Square
Bachmakov
Tauer Orange Star and Une Rose Vermeille
Ineke Gilded Lily
L’eau Mixte
New Look 1947
AdP Colonia Essenza
SL Boxeuses and Bas de Soie
HdP Vamp A NY
MFK Pour le Soir
Disappointed:
TF Azure Lime
Le Labo Another 13
Lap Coeur de Vetiver Sacre
Bleu de Chanel
Hermes Iris Ookie
Wish I got to try:
Six Scents Series 3
Agonist
Huitieme Art Parfums
Anya Garden Light
Plum
I’m sure I’ve overlooked some. Sorry for the loooooong post. Happy New Year everyone!
Diptyque Eau Duelle
Oopsie! Eau Duelle was supposed to be filed under disappointed.
And with you on Eau Duelle. Wanted to love it but it disappeared in seconds on me.
I can’t say that that Eau Duelle won my heart but it definitely stays on my skin at least for several hours.
I need to try the Huitieme set – they just seem so intriguing. Am I setting myself up for disappointment?
With you on the Chanel Bleue – ick.
Wow, long list! So that New Look was worth trying??
Sorry about the long list Robin. I would def suggest trying New Look.
Hey, I was not complaining — I was impressed!
I’ll give it a shot then. If I see it 🙂
From that list of new loves I’d say you had a very good perfume year in 2010….bet your credit cards are hoping for a little less ‘new love’ in 2011. (my credit cards are hoping for the same thing!) The good news is that you have so many good things to wear and the hardest part of the morning will be choosing!
OH! New found favs:
A bunch of Guerlains!
Carlos, I forgot to include Orange Star under my faves for 2010!
And in the Wanna Buy category, CdG Laurel.
YES! Laurel is reaaaaaaly nice! Totally forgot
I wouldn’t mind a bottle of Laurel either 😉
However did I leave off PG Papyrus de Ciane? Definitely top 5 of the year material for me.
I’ve got to go back to that one. As I recall, my first playdates got me thinking pinky ball + galbanum. But compelling enough to go back.
I really like that Papyrus de C too, E. I didn’t realize you liked that and Like This so much. Cool.
Like everybody else, I didn’t get around to testing even HALF the stuff on the “Best of 2010” lists.
Favorites of the year’s releases:
HdP Vamp a NY
Carillon pour un Ange
Mary Greenwell Plum (joins vtg Emeraude, Parfum Sacre and La Myrrhe, and Le Temps d’une Fete for Lifetime Awards)
New-to-me loves in 2010:
Carnal Flower
Iris Poudre (I know, what took me so long?)
The ones I’m still on the fence about:
Nuit de Tubereuse – that “mildew/earthy” opening still skeers me, though everybody else seems to compliment it, and I enjoy it once the first 15 minutes are over.
New Look 1947 – supposed to be a white floral/ makeup sort of smell, tres femme, and it’s nice. I just wish I got more white floral out of it.
Une Rose Vermeille – it’s too sweet. No, it’s not. Yes, it is. No, it’s not…
Still on my “want to try” list:
Bas de Soie
Idylle edt (word has it that the edt is less musky-patchy)
MJ Bang – yes, really, it’s on my sniff list.
My “I wanted to love it” list:
Portrait of a Lady (don’t worry, my decant found a good home)
DelRae Coup de Foudre (found a good home for that one, too)
C: so interesting that I don’t think I’m the rose fan you are, yet I really enjoy Portait so far and really love Coup de Foudre. Our roses obviously fall in different places on the spectrum!
Joe, my beef with CdF was that it was utterly lovely for an hour, and then it was GONE, and I got so frustrated with that (because that hour is so beautiful) that I just couldn’t keep it. It was… too much like trying to hold on to happiness.
And of course the balsamy thing in the bottom of PoaL just killlllled me, and I couldn’t face enjoying the top/heart (where the rose is, mostly) and suffering the base.
‘Sokay, I am luxuriating in Plum.
And I have not tested everything on *your* list!
Ah ha ha ha! Gotta love a passion that incites both derisive laughter (Clive Christian Aspirational Award) and lemming (oh, so the Richwood and Irisss are all that, eh?). FWIW, I’m right on board both trains: I find the pricing so outrageous that it is nearly offensive. And I would be most happy to have at least a decant of Irissss. Hmmm, the two faces of fandom? 🙂
One of my biggest surprises of 2010 was Absolue Pour le Soir, which I believe Denyse called a “skankfest”…quite rightly so. And when a perfume heads that direction, I generally head for the door. But I tried and tried and tried again…and then, VOOM! all the rest of it came forward. And I found it beautiful. Difficult at times, but ultimately lovely. Oy. Another sort of two-face/complex relationship.
A third? The “it’s too simple for me” Kiss Me Tender from Parfums de Nicolai. I was ready to toss it with Vamp a NY as an airheaded pretty one-note ride. But I kept coming back…and darned if I don’t want a proper amount of it now. Hunh. What do you call that, a half-face turned full???
Thanks for the fun with the year end round up, and with all you’ve done this year. Best wishes for a wonderful 2011 for all of you; looking forward to meeting up on the next page of the calendar!
I need to try Absolue Pour Le Soir again. I admit that so far, I’ve found the whole line lovely but not swoon-worthy.
That’s absolutely (“Absoloue-ly”??) where I was with it all–could see why FK had to do his own wardrobe, maybe if that had been my first exposure to any of the “types” I would have felt more positively about them, etc etc. Then it was…two weeks ago, late in the afternoon, super cold outside, a fire in the fireplace…
…maybe that’s the secret. Take out the Absolue when it is bone chillingly cold and you are relaxing by the fire. You’ll be too lazy to get up and wash off the skank, and it will occur to you that the skank isn’t so much, and hey, there’s more going on, and say, the cumin is just woven in to the rest, and oh! so “skank” has calmed into “cumin,” has it???…. At least, that’s how it would be if you were me. 😉
I don’t have a fireplace anymore. Might have to come over to your house 😉
Mi fiero es su fiero. 🙂
I need to try that MFK Absolue, because unfortunately the Cologne pour le Soir was like urine to me. I really liked Lumière Noire p Femme though.
I love LN; would a thousand times rather have that than PoaL!
I definitely ramped up trying things this year, and ended up discovering decants and splits. 🙂
Favorite 2010 releases:
Kilian Love and Tears
Nuit de Tubereuse
Traversée du Bosphore
Favorite new to me (most thanks to Dangerous Daisy!):
Attrape Coeur (sigh!)
Eau de Sisley #3
Nuit d’Amour
Chanel No. 19 EDT
Bois de Violette
La Treizième Heure
Amouage Dia
Karin, judging by your list I now pronounce us Scent Twins!
I too discovered decants this year and it’s made my perfumed life so much richer, literally and figuratively–no more sweating over FBs of everything.
Ooooh! I have a scent twin??? How cool is that!!! We may have to commiserate and do some swapping, Suzy Q!
I need to discover a few more splits myself 😉
heh heh, I do love to spread the joy! 😉
Great picks everyone! Could not agree with you more Robin about Paris and Bang. Two of my absolute favs this year. And Nights is the winner for me too. Good job Jess. : )
Let’s hope she keeps it up!
Robin which were the worst for you this yr? Or biggest disappointments? Too many to count? LOL! SJP NYC or Mine Again? LOL! : )
Oh let us not forget Love & Glamour. LOL! Did you get to try Queen of Hearts? Didn’t think much of it? : )
I never do a “worst”, but I often do a “biggest disappointment” — hard to pick this year. Prada’s 2 infusions are up in the running. Hermes Iris Ukiyoe too, although I didn’t really count on loving that. And others! Just couldn’t decide which was the lowest of the low 😉
Queen of Hearts was not bad, I think — I did not manage to get a sample, did think it was fine on paper.
Love & Glamour was just dull!
I’m so behind on sniffing!
I’m surprised not to find a single mention anywhere of Chantecaille’s Kalimantan. I’m obsessed by this smoky, spicy, woody vanilla.
Hmm. I think it’s pretty nice, but interesting that you consider it a vanilla whereas I’d call it a patchouli. And the truth is I’d just much rather wear Borneo 1834… or for a vanillic patch, Ava Luxe Sweet Patchouli. I think those Chantecaille launches sort of got lost in the crush of releases!
My chemistry tends to ramp up sweetness and vanilla. That’s why I only like drier vanillas. There’s definitely patch in there, but it plays a supporting role to the vanilla on me.
Now, Borneo I can’t wear because it goes all chocolaty and sweet on me.
Robin, I thought the other Chantecaille releases were nicely done but that only Kalimantan was a standout.
I liked the new Chantecaille scents in general but admit they didn’t get more than a quick try from me…
Enjoyed reading everyone’s lists.It’s always interesting finding out other peoples likes and dislikes.
Santa bought me Balanciaga Paris! I love it, perfect on a Sydney summer day. I also bought myself SSS Incense Pure earlier this year and it gets positive comments all the time.
Yay Santa! I do love that bottle, too.
For one reason or another, I’ve not tried the majority of new releases this year. And I hope to make up for this over time. For me 2010 was all about falling in love with the least expected. My lesson was all about opening up my nose and to never say never. I normally do not like incense, smokey woods, leather, sweets, or tuberose especially. Guess what? I found fragrances to challenge all those things and more this year. I adore Nuits de Tubereuse for it’s weird oriental vegetalness that morphs into a gorgeous deep suede on my skin. I swoon over Traversee du Bosphore which never in a million years would I pick out from it’s list of notes, ditto for Like This. I despise cat pee like boxwood in real life, but I love Ninfeo Mio. I normally can’t be within 10 yards of a strong tuberose b/c it gives me a terrible headache, but have found redemption in Carnal Flower. And the biggest surprise of all is my new found love of gaiac wood in Goutal’s Vanille Exquise. I can dump that stuff on my head and I’m already calculating how long it will take to get through my bottle, and how many other gaiac-y samples I have around that need retesting pronto. Nothing surprises me more than being surprised, esp. when it comes from myself. You never know until you try, and I’ll just keep on trying them all, esp. the ones I used to think I’d hate.
AnnS, your post cracks me up. I could have written it myself! My biggest lesson of 2010: do not judge before trying. If I had, I never would have discovered NdT and TdB, two scents that have brought me immense happiness this year.
Great minds – I’m glad to know I have a friend in being crazy. 😉
Vanille Exquise, in general, is so overlooked — glad it found another fan!
Me too!! I read your review a dozen times before I took the plunge. It layers astomishingly well with other fragrances too. These past few months have turned into a very Goutal quarter for me.
Vanille Exquise is my “rabbit hole” scent – absolutely fabulous, isn’t it?
It *is* fabulous – I love a good breakthrough scent especially b/c it opens the door to others. It smells like a soft slow burning fire on my skin. It’s so soft and I love that I can get all spritzy with it rather than applying carefully like I normally do. I love it, and I’m happy my hubby likes it too.
Drat – those Goutals are so hard for me, and then I see something like this and have to try again.
Whereas, it’s a great line for me, and I *still* have managed to overlook VE.
Boo – VE hasn’t been so available in the US. I see it at the discounters occasionally and always passed. I’ve been eyeing it for a few months now and decided to bite as I’ve been on a Goutal streak these past few months. It’s not sweet or foody at all – maybe I’m missing a sweet musk or something – but it still works for me. Reviews of it are all over the place – a real love or hate one apparently. Let me know if you want a sample.
Ok, I just clicked on the “New Fragrance” tag and went trough all the 2010 launches (yes, I am that obsessive and helped me unwind after a hot hot day at work)
The best of what I have tried… surprisingly they are all FOR WOMEN!
Givenchi Eaudemoiselle (sexy and restrained at the same time)
lancome tresor in love (as many have said, this is a BETTER version of tresor. in the vein of the chanel n 5 Eau Premiere reinvention…. wonderful)
Jo Malone English pear and freesia (I ended up dreaming about spraying this one… I think it is now “new” but it smells of quality ingredients IMHO.
Ralph Lauren Big Pony 3 (the only masculine… ginger and freshness galore)
Biggest dissapointments
Bergamotto di calabria (MEH… how can you make a MEH bergamotto???)
prada infusion de tuberose infusion de vetiver (infusion de bland to me)
Funnies:
Funniest magazine ad: Yves Saint Laurent Belle d’Opium ~a.k.a. smokin crotch
Funniest fragrance name: Star Trek Shirtless Kirk – set phasers to stunning. 🙂
Still waiting to try these… balmain carbone de balmain, hermes iris ooky and the arsene lupins from guerlain and christian dior la collection.
I wasn’t smart enough to figure out how to do that, or I’d have done the same thing!
I bet you are smart enough 😉 Cheers
Ok… I was too lazy. 😀
Wow!! That must have taken a good long while. Glad it helped you unwind.
Thanks for the “funnies”! I needed a good laugh this morning.
Glad I could make you smile ! 🙂 Cheers
I love to read the lists, but the years are blending more and more!!!
Enjoyed Balenciaga Paris and Mary Greenwell Plum genuine 2010 launches I think. Did not buy them but would be delighted if they materialised on my shelf.
Loved and Bought Prada Eau Ambree and Shalimar Ode a la Vanille.
New to me
Hermes Hiris – did not buy but WANT
SSS Winter Woods and Rose Musc – bought – yum
Narciso Rodriguez for her EDT – gorgeous
So much is out there!
Boy, lots of people brought up that MG Plum. Might just have to try it.
This may seem like an unusual choice, but I have to vote for Pacifica’s California Star Jasmine as “perfume of the year.” This is a simple fragrance (maybe too simple for a lot of folks) but it really does capture the mood of Southern California in the mid spring. Yes, we can all joke about the smell of freeways and smog, but the star jasmine is a fragrance which I note in my neighborhood and in those of my friends. I give it an extra point for its very reasonable price – $9 for the solid fragrance and $22 for the spray liquid. In a world where $150+ for an ounce or so of perfume is becoming the norm, this simple little fragrance and its very reasonable price point is a wonder to behold.
The Pacifica line is a good bargain – I like a number of them and must remember to try the Star Jasmine.
I did not love that one quite as much as you did, but will resoundingly agree on the Pacifica concept in general! Great job for a small price.
my faves for the year
, Like this,
L’artisan HV (I know its last year but its taken me a while to decide I love it!)
PdN Kiss me tender
Vamp a la NY and eau claire des merveilles
A lot of my favourites I tried thanks to reviews here so thanks very much everyone!
I’m so glad!
How’s this for irony: the one perfume I smelled this year that made me want to whip out the credit card and immediately buy a bottle was Mary Greenwell Plum – which is only sold by one retailer who doesn’t ship to the US. Oh, the agony! Or perhaps, oh, the excuse for a spring trip to the UK!
Runners-up: L’AP Traversee du Bosphore, Tauer Eau d’Epices, & AG Ninfeo Mio.
New to me this year: L’AP Havana Vanille and Les Nez Manoumalia.
I’m curious about that Plum!
I’m beginning to be, myself! Should have looked into it before my boss went to London for the holidays. I probably could have twisted his arm.
a couple bottles of Plum have shown up on ebay—but they get bid up and snatched away…I’m hoping against hope that it will show up at luckyscent someday.
Ok, everybody needs to stop talking about that Plum 😉
Also loving that Manoumalia – perfect for winter denial!
My favorite fragrances this year:
-Ninfeo Mio
-Mandorlo di Sicilia (though I don’t know when it got released)
-Traversée du Bosphore
Thank you so much for those brilliant reviews: they made me want to try all these fragrances I love (or hate). 😀
Always glad to help people spend money 😉
This was my first year as a serious perfume addict, so they were ALL NEW to me! Like I’ve been on a desert island all this time. Of the new ones, I have to say MFK Absolue pour le Soir knocked my out of my socks. And Memoir Woman. I also like Van Cleef and Arpels Cologne Noir, although I’m not sure if it was this year or not. So many to sample; I’ve made a list from this posting and will get right on that sampling boxcar to Heaven.
What fun, glad you had a good 1st year!
L’Artisan Traversee do Bosohore tops my 2011 list – I just ordered a decant yesterday! If it’s as good as the sample, I’m in for a FB.
However, the Nuit de Tuberose didn’t work when I tried it this summer. I just dabbed it on again after reading that it made so many lists and it’s so much better now. Perhaps it’s one of those cold weather scents on me. It went from scrubber to “let’s just see about this!” I definately like it a LOT better than before. May have to use up this sample…
A while back, I got a terrible cold that lasted for weeks. I could still smell things, but something changed with my sniffer even now that I’m better. I never liked aldehydes and now I’m loving Chanel (#5 and Eau Premiere) and I love SSS Champagne du Bois. And now the change in heart with the Nuit de Tuberose!
Tauer Une Rose Vermeille – best juicy red rose I’ve tried
Also on the New for Me list:
L’Artisan Safran Troublant – love Love LOVE
L.T. Piver Heliotrope Blanc – I risked a FB buying unsniffed and it’s wonderful!
SL – Violette du Bois – Santa forgot to put this in my stocking…
CM — that Nuit de Tubereuse is tricky stuff…I got a decant when it first came out—had 2 spritzes, thought “meh” and sold it…..then I got a sample with a purchase from BeautyHabit and tried it again…It was better!…so I tried it again…even better, started getting more depth, picking up on more in the dry down…so I tried it a third day…and by then I knew I had to have a bottle. sigh…sneaky stuff.
It was never merely ‘meh’, it was, ‘OMG get this schtenk off right this minute!’ But yesterday, as I was retesting and reading the comments, it was rather nice, and it continued to be nice through the evening. Quite the turnaround. I plan to wear it again today and may end up getting a small decant.
Thanks for the vote of (in)sanity… it IS tricky stuff, indeed! Perhaps that’s why it made so many lists – it’s interesting.
It IS very interesting, isn’t it? It has grown on me somewhat since I first tried it. I am fairly sensitive to mildewy, earthy notes, and I still don’t like the opening 15 minutes of NdT. After that, though, it’s very enjoyable, and the more I wear it, the more I like it.
So weird – I liked NdT immediately. I normally don’t care for tuberose at all, so I was very prepared to hate it and was just testing it b/c I thought I should. Instead it was all chewy and interesting and I just loved it. Within minutes it smells like soft suede to me and it lasts for hours. Eventually this will be FBW for me – love that bottle too.
I think that’s the difference – I love tuberose and you don’t. If I think of it as “not tuberose,” I seem to like it better! But the drydown is really comfortable.
Wow, kind of sobering how many on the top ten lists I haven’t even tried yet, partly because I just discovered samples and ebay in late 2009 and spent 2010 endeavoring to sniff the last 110 years of perfume! 🙂
I also loved many favs mentioned above, such as the HdP We Love New York scents and L’AP Traversee du Bosphore. Rather than repeat too much, I’ll add La Via Del Profumo Mecca Balsam, BK Rose Oud, Legendary Fragrances Iris Gris (recreation) and PdN Violette in Love (technically an earlier release but new to Luckyscent).
I’m right there with you. I only just got a home computer this year, so I have gone somewhat crazy with the sampling in 2010. It has certainly been entertaining, though, as well as instructive. I have to say, though, that I really had no idea just how much stuff was out there until I started reading this site. Yikes!!! I have to be careful not to spend so much on samples that I can’t afford a FB once I find one of my HGs.
50 Roses, you are so right, and time, attention and skin real estate are almost equal constraints. I actually realized that one of the things I really enjoyed about the Perfume Posse 7-day signature scent challenge was feeling free to ignore all the yet untested samples clamoring for my attention! 🙂
I agree. I have scent glue skin, so once I apply something, it’s on for the whole day. I don’t like to test new things at work, for obvious reasons, so I either have to go scentless all day, or save my testing for weekends.
HA…yes, it’s hard to catch up in 1 year. Or even in 7, I can attest to that…
Oh, dear! It is such a great help, fortunately, to have lists like these in order to focus one’s attention on the essential must-sniffs.
I have to agree with Robin that Ninfeo Mio is great. In fact I have it on right now.
I have to say when I first sniffed Balenciaga Paris was completely underwhelmed. I found it boring, especially for such a quirky label. These reviews make me want to give it a second shot.
I have been rather taken with Ninfeo Mio myself. I am thinking it will make an especially nice warm weather scent–fresh and light enough not to smother me in the summer heat, but with much more longevity than the usual citrus eaux de cologne.
I strategically planned a Ninfeo Mio bottle for my birthday in November. It is so wonderful! I thought I’d just wait until spring to wear it, but then something about that super green ivy/boxwood/fig made me want to wear it at Xmas. I had it on just the other day and it went perfect with the day after Xmas snowy vibe I was feeling. It is very “evergreen”.
Oh, I can totally see it as a year-round scent. It’s just that where I live, we have about six months of sticky hot summer a year, and so many of the rich, warm scents I love are just too suffocating in the heat. Finding suitable scents for winter is easy for me; finding things I can wear in the summer is much harder.
Balenciaga Paris is a sleeper … do try it again!
I want to try this again to. It got out-competed last summer during a whirlwind sampling the ONE time I was at Nordstrom last year. But I keep wondering about it. It was very pretty at the top and reminded me a lot of the way the St. Ives Collagen Elastin body cream used to smell years ago. I don’t remember the drydown at all which is what’s keeping me from picking it up.
That was nice lotion, I remember that… haven’t seen it in stores in a long time.
Aaaah I was on the Posse with Nuit de Tuberose (you know, a hot sunny day cruising on the yacht, pulling into a couple of sandy bays for a swim, showering to get the coconut oil off, slipping on the most minimal little dress {this was about 40 years ago}) then soaking the everything with, well back then it was Fidgi, bumping into the dock and running into town to go hunting…well N d T evokes all that and more!
A couple of hours ago I sprayed the Dior ‘New Look’, well I loved it at first sniff, but the drydown is seriously sensuous. And I forgot Rubj, the drydown of which is x rated…
Maybe all is not lost after IFRA…
2010 has been just joyful for this ole perfume lover!
Argh. So, that’s Plum and New Look that are now must tries for me. Thanks!
I’ve only tried two of these, by briefly spritzing them on in the store: De Bachmakov and Aesop’s Marrakesh. Both were interesting enough at first sniff to merit a sample purchase.
… Not like it hasn’t been a busy year full of firsts, and overall a productive one especially considering I’ve only been at this since summer 😉
I’ve been steadily working my way through Robin’s list of 100 fragrances every perfumista should try, and wearing all the good, bad and stinky ones for at least three days. Robin, thanks so much for that list. It’s an invaluable navigation tool for a newbie braving the stormy seas of fruity-floral new releases and badly-reformulated classics 😉 I really feel it’s given me a solid base of knowledge that I can build on further.
Other noteworthy events for me this year:
The not-so-great discoveries:
First scrubbers:
A la Nuit, Bandit
New to me classics that I ended up not getting at all:
Miss Dior, Arpege
Biggest “huh?” moments:
JPG Classique and Gucci Rush
And the positives:
My rabbit-hole fragrance that months of sampling later turned out to be great but FB-unworthy:
Angel
First niche fragrance purchase:
Dzing
First Serge purchase:
Santal Blanc
New to me scents that I ended up loving:
Messe de Minuit, Havana Vanille, Bois Farine
First perfume house that I’ve become obsessed about:
L’Artisan Parfumeur
I love your disciplined approach to your perfumistahood. Wish I could even a bit that organized!
It’s very correct to become obsessed with L’Artisan–it’s a great house with scents that are both unusual and yet wearable (I have many L’Artisans!) I love it that your first SL purchase is like a landmark event….also very correct! SL is a “strange” house and finding your first (possibly only) Serge should be treated like the momentus right of passage that it is! Congrats– you are a bona-fide, card-carrying Perfumista now! ***cheering & confetti ***
I’m so glad you’re finding the list helpful! I’ve been feeling like I should update it, but that will probably take me a few more years 🙂
Love your “first Serge purchase”! I have been at this for a couple of years now and JUST bought my first Serge, so you are way ahead of me!
Hey Tama, which one did you get, out of curiosity?
You probably won’t see this now, but Arabie.
For me things new to me are old news to everyone else I’m so relatively new to the game, but Amarinthine and Nuit de Tuberose were both instant loves.
Two instant loves in one year is not at all bad!
Yay – another Dzing lovah! It really is such a neat scent!
Dominika: I so agree with your comments about Robin’s 100 Scents To Try list – I am also working my way through it, and it has been invaluable.
Good, that makes me happy!
It’s so interesting to see that many people have fallen for the magic of L’Artisan TdB. I have given this one a couple of tries, and I can’t even remember what it was about. I do remember thinking that there was something similar in style between a cluster of new releases that included DeRae’s Panache, L’Artisan TdB and Midnight in Paris.
I’ve fallen hard for a couple of perfumes this year (wearing Cadjmere right now!), but for new releases, I couldn’t get enough of Incense Rose and Carillon pour un Ange from Andy Tauer. Also love Mythique and Ninfeo Mio, but find come with requirements. Mythique disappears in heat above 85 or so, and NM really works in the heat, but can be too much – so it’s all about my mood.
Here’s so more lovely explorations of perfumes new and old in 2011!
It is interesting — I can’t even remember the last time that the “fragrance of the year” was so unanimous.
Thanks for sharing your lists, everyone. It’s always a treat to peek at serious perfume lovers’ lists.
I’m sticking with my choice for best perfume of the year, DSH Perfumes Cuir et Champignon. It charmed me and left an indelible, delicious impression on me. Equally memorable was Anya’s Garden Light, the opposite of the kind of perfumes I usually go for, but that’s how we find the good ones sometimes, right?
Oh for me, this was the Tauer Year.
I fell in love with Rose Vermeille — which from the face of it, is an unlikely “love” for me — as well as Orange Star, Carillon Pour Une Ange.
Oh, and I was finally seduced by Lonestar Memories… When I originally tried it, it smelled like a Canadian Tire store — tires, sports equipment and cheap cleaning products. But then my doctor found vitamin and mineral deficiencies, I got them fixed, and all of a sudden, LM smelled AMAZING!
2010 was also the year that I discovered vintage Mitsouko, and mourned…
Jeez, can’t believe I haven’t smelled Ninfeo Mio yet — I’ve been hunting for a good boxwood scent for at least 2 years now! (as soon as the kids go back to school, I am off to the Annick Goutal counter!)
Wow what a great list, this comes really handy as I am going to visit Paris this Saturday! I will definately try Boxeuses and Bachmakov.
My favorites for 2010:
Humiecki & Graef – Bosque, Huitiema Art – Sucre d’Ebene
Vamp a NY, Vanitas – Profumum, Voyage – Hermes, Tonka Imperiale – Guerlain
Designer Shaik no. 33 and Sharp by Andrea Maack, exclusive fragrances but wow!
belated thanks for this list of best fragrances. you brought amaranthine into my life and it’s so delicious & lovely! yum.
Wow its old but good.