The last few months have not been easy. I’ve had unexpected news from the doctor; scary appraisals from the plumber and house painter; and my spirit-reviving winter vacation will be delayed. Oh, and a new operating system at work is making my hair stand on end for eight hours a day. If I ever needed a comfort scent, it’s now.

Many of my perfume-loving friends turn to “food-y” perfumes in times of woe, but I usually don’t enjoy gourmand fragrances. I’d rather eat cake and caramels, and drink hot chocolate for comfort than smell them on my skin. I opt for perfume simplicity in turbulent times — fragrances that play with, and display, just a few notes. A comfort scent shouldn’t be too powerful either; it must not “intrude” on calamity but buffer it.

For my current tempestuous cycle, I’ve opted for an oldie perfume: Caron Pour un Homme, a fragrance that debuted in the 1930s when lots of people around the world needed comforting…

Read the rest of this article »