Monday always comes! Happy World Goth Day, happy Sherlock Holmes Day and happy Harvey Milk Day. What fragrance are you wearing?
I'm wearing Dawn Spencer Hurwitz Quinacridone Violet, from the Chroma series, because Oakland Fresca reminded me of it the other day.
Reminder: on 5/26 we're doing Under the radar — wear a fragrance with minimal (or no) sillage, or something you consider a "skin scent". (Suggested by Hajusuuri)
And for those of you who like to plan ahead, see Scent of the day ~ Friday community projects 2017, where I'll try to always have the next five or six weeks mapped out in advance.
Note: top image is cropped circles from Fractal Vision 84 - Violet Vaporiziation and Fractal Vision 90 - Purple Iris by qthomasbower at flickr; some rights reserved.
Testing Taur Day for me-
Cologne Maghreb
Un Rose Vermeille
Incense Rose
Sotto du Lune-Gardenia
L”air du Desert Moracain (a cumin bomb!!!!)
OOOHHH! I have a tiny amount of Viridian from the Chroma Series…I will add that to the mix later :)..we will be series twins then, Robin 🙂
And I just put on Hansa Yellow and Celadon — I will put on Viridian after lunch and join you 🙂
Well, you must be feeling better and I am happy to hear that 🙂
That would be Tauer…ugh…sorry Andy for butchering your last name!
I didn’t realize LADDM had cumin in it. Have you tried the newer Au Couer du Desert?
Brief report back on the Dame samples: Earth Mother was instant love! I have ordered decants (or samples as he calls them) of both that and New Musk…which is for a man…? The Rose was not my thing and ironically the Bergamot, Jasmine and Labdanum, which is the sample I requested, is just okay. I have yet to try the Lily of the Valley.
thank you for reporting back! Once I make a dent in my sample sea I will have to seek out Earth Mother and Sky Father…yes, the New Musk is indeed for men but I find all of his men scents to be unisex…I really love Citrus Man and Leather Man too….also, Dark Horse….and I think all three of those are classified as masculine.
haven’t tried the newer Tauer ACDD…am using the ones that came in my recent birthday package…LADDM is pure cumin on my skin…of course it did not help that I dumped the whole sample on my right arm……and while cumin is a note that was a big NO NO for me in the past I am slowly getting used to it….and rather enjoying it…
sounds delightful!
Miss Dior Original.
I have been picking green fragrances as a continuation of last week’s perfume project. Not on purpose. I think I just gravitate towards them. On Saturday I wore DSH Giverny In Bloom, followed by AA Pamplelune on Sunday. I’m stuck on green, for today anyway. I’ll see what happens tomorow.
I really like Giverny in Green.
Ostara, this is a close skin scent to me. Maybe because I dap it.
Question for anyone or NYCers. I wanted to ask for a place to buy cheap soap. I am hosting a baby shower and doing a southern France theme (the sex of the baby is unknown) and was going to do lavender soap for favors. Any advice? Or is this a bad idea? I don’t want to break the bank…
I love these soaps…don’t know if they are too pricey though…
https://www.vitacost.com/productresults.aspx?N=0&Ntt=south+of+france+soap&ta=south+of+france+soap
https://www.vitacost.com/auromere-ayurvedic-bar-soap-lavender-neem-2-75-oz
these are good too and less expensive and come in a variety of scents….
One more least expensive…love the sandalwood one…
https://www.vitacost.com/productResults.aspx?N=0&ss=1&Ntt=bee%20and%20flower%20soap
I love Auromere soap- I’m a devotee of the rose and neem ones. But maybe not packaged prettily enough as party favors?
I am going to do the packaging, I just need the filling! 🙂
Perfect!
Smallflower also has a huge selection of lavender soaps, but not sure you can beat the price per oz. of the South of France bars.
thanks Robin
I have no affiliation with vitacost but I love the company and I will also say that if you sign up as a new customer you get 10 percent off your first order..and the order comes fast!!!
the South of France soaps are ALL amazing but my favorite is Cote D’Azur which reminds me of a mix of AG H”Adrien and eau de Sud…..
OK! Taking a a look now. I appreciate the help!
If you need to get a bunch of soap – the yardly lavender that is commonly available at drug stores and grocery stores is pretty good. I’ve used that as inexpensive hand soap in the past, and the lavender really comes through. And it’s lavender colored. I’m not sure if that’s too low-brow, but it may be a good price point.
You could also do the aura cacia lavender bath salts individual bath sized pouch. The aura cacia lavender is really lovely and powerful. I use their bottle sized foaming bath gel for my daughter, and the whole house smells like lavender when she is done.
Thanks Ann!
What about Le Petit Olivier? Here in Barcelona they sell it at Carrefour.
Here in the USA it looks expensive
Since you are in NYC, it will depend on how far you ware will to ride on the MTA for the gifts (keeping in mind you have babies): Many areas with Caribbean/ West African/Latino populations will have Marseilles- style herbal and lavender soaps and splashes. The thing though is that part of paying for the low prices is searching through stores in:
Astoria
South Park Slope
Flatbush
Midwood
eh..ok. That maybe hard to do. Since I have to buy a bulk of them.
I love this idea!
Yesterday at the farmer’s market by the Museum of Natural History there was a lavender booth and it smelt so delicious we had to stop and explore. The lavender was very sweet smelling, not harsh at all.
Sounds like lots of good options for you to explore.
well if I need dried lavender for decorations I will check it out
Hi S., I received your package today with the Vanille Exquise. My email is down, so I’m letting you know this way. You are right, this one is not too sweet. Thank you for swapping with me!
Your welcome! I also got your package and two thumbs up for the tea samples. You are after my heart!
I am so glad you are liking VE, it has good lasting power for an EDT.
Happy Monday everyone! Rainy and cool day. Wearing Chanel No. 19 EdT just because….
Just because….it smells great!
Yes!
😉
Snap! We smell gorgeous; )
you smell wonderful!
Thank you!
You smell so good!
Juliette has a Gun – Romantina today. I love the everyday-ness of this one. Hot weather, cold, crowds or not. Seems a very good middle of the road, won’t offend but I know I have perfume on sort of scent.
Romantina is lovely, you smell great!
I need to try this one, sounds good!
I really like this one for the same reason! It’s pretty, but still interesting, and never feels like “too much.” 🙂
I’m wearing the very lovely, and very summery Thé pour un Eté. It’s not yet summer, but it feels like it today. This one needs a lot of sprays to work.
Sounds lovely- we are having one of those soft, cool drizzly spring days. It’s not too hot yet, but the dampness makes all the spring colors (it’s still early spring here!) just pop.
That one always evokes the beach for me. (Our beaches are lakes and smell like dried grass in summer.) And agree on lots of sprays – I drench myself in it and it still doesn’t last long. Works with today’s theme, maybe?
It’s why I picked it.
I’m enjoying my NV Mohur on this cool and rainy morning.
Smelling lovely!
ELDO Fat Electrician today. I don’t like the opening notes but revel in the drydown 😀
That one smells great, but I hope one day they change the name to something like Midnight Cowboy, or Hero With a Future (both ideas are quoted from ELDOs marketing).
The name doesn’t engender great associations, but it sure is easy to remember 😉
It is! And it’s funny. So I don’t terribly mind the mismatch 😀
I love this one for fall, it’s so cozy.
Waiting for Yale Commencement to begin and hoping the rain holds off! I’m wearing Mary Greenwell Plum because Bookworm likes it on me. I can’t wait to hug my graduate!
Rain go away — and huge congratulations to the both of you! Hope it is a perfect day.
Congrats!
Congrats on that!
Best wishes to the graduate!
excellent…congrats!!! what are bookworm’s plans now that she is graduating?
and you smell great!
Congratulations!
Congrats, mals, to you and your daughter! What an achievement!
Congrats! Enjoy the day!
Congratulations to Bookworm and you!
Eeeeee! NST couldn’t be prouder of SUCH an accomplished graduate- mazal tov to you both!!!
Congratulations! A very special day!!
Congrats! What an achievement!
congrats! very exciting!
What a awesome achievement! Congratulations!
Hope it’s a lovely day for you all!
Congrats! Enjoy the day!
Congrats!
Congrats to the graduate! And I hope you enjoy your stay in the Seattle of the east! 😉 (My nickname for any town in Coastal CT; So much rain!)
Congratulations!
Congratulations!
It’s Hermes 24, Faubourg for me today. Our weather has turned summery – I feel a bit like we skipped right over spring, but the plants in my yard are behaving much as usual for spring so my impression must be slightly faulty.
One of my fav classic orientals!
You smell so beautiful. I love 24.
Back to cool 60s and rainy, which I guess would be called “Spring”. I’m in Papillon Tobacco Rose today.
Looking forward to trying the upcoming Papillon release.
I’m curious about that one also.
Is it springy? I’ve been wanting to try that one but figured I’d wait until fall, assuming it does smell like tobacco.
I don’t get a lot of obvious tobacco. It’s more a rose chypre to me with a jammyish rose- and I know how you feel about oakmoss. It’s noticable to me in the drydown.
Indeed you do. Bummer.
Perfect scent for today, I may join you in that later today since I am having similar weather.
It is perfect for this weather.
you smell great!
Thanks!
SOTD is both earthy and spring-like : vintage Hermes Amazone edt.
It is one of my fondest wishes that some day I’ll get to go on a trip to Boulder and spend a few hours in the DSH boutique! I am not wanting much of anything these days, but I am sure that there are some gems in her shop that would capture my attention!!!
That would be a totally fun excursion.
I am very sorry that about 13 years ago I had the occasion to be in Boulder for just a few days but didn’t know anything about DSH! What a missed opportunity. It would be totally fun!
You smell so nice.
Thanks! So you do!!
I have a mini of Amazone and just applied it to the tips of my fingers….mmm….so good….you smell great!
Please take me with you to DSH….and then we can go to Sonoma Scent Studio in CA to visit Laurie after 🙂
Sounds like a good plan. Fragrance road trip! I would love to do both. What an event that would be.
When I went to Denver for the Basenotes meetup, four of us went to Dawn’s studio. She and her staff spent more than three hours with us and we smelled both raw materials and finished perfumes. Now I know how the different jasmines smell. She is also creating a museum with some of her rare finds. It was a wonderful and memorable experience.
Wow – that must have been an amazing experience. Not just to be in the shop, but to spend time with her learning!! I am jelly!!! 😉
What a great time you had! I’d love to experience something like that.
Wearing Diorella modern version. I tried it this morning in a shop. Nothing special, suppose I have to try the vintage one!
On the other arm I tried Bois de Iles. It reminded me of vintage Samsara, is it the sandalwood?
Yup, they are both beautiful sandalwood fragrances.
Seconding madtowngirl. I am glad to see that someone else noticed that, and it wasn’t just me.
Day 3 of 3 for me and on my! folks are cranky here today. I, on the other hand, am quite happy because it’s my Friday!
SOTD is Vetiver by Bruno Fazzolari courtesy of the lovely Foxbins. I swanning around these very unhappy halls of work, smelling fine!
Hooray for your Friday!
Oh, sorry for my terrible handwriting! It’s Mazzolari Vetiver, not Fazzolari. Also if you get the chance to smell their Lui, it’s a wonderful unisex animalic.
Pretty sure it’s my sketchy vision. Thanks for clarifying ????
You got me all worked up about a new Fazzolari!
My wallet was momentarily quaking…
Si Lolita Lempicka for me today…Spriiiiiiing!!!!!
🙂
Sampling The Different Company’s Pure Eve on one wrist and Sarah Horowitz Perfect Veil on the other. To my nose these are quite similar in that powdery non-offensive kind of way, although neither is one I need to own. I ordered these samples when I was on a quest to find my perfect “skin scent,” so I am looking forward to reading everyone else’s choices this week.
I loved Perfect Veil when it first came out…it smells exactly like another perfume I used to wear called Breathe by Fresh Scents by Terri ( a discontinued indie brand)….I was recently gifted a travel spray of DSH Formula X which smells exactly like both of those…so that is another skin scent for you to explor if you are still on a quest…usually musks wear like skin scents so I will also recommend New Musk which you have in sample, right?
Yes, and I ordered the 5 ml decant. I also really like Narciso Rodriguez for her EDT.
I recently tried Pure Eve interested in the almond/heliotrope note but this went bye-bye after 5 minutes on me..
Bummer. I love almond/heliotrope, too. Do you have any other favorites?
I did think Heeley L’Amandiere is beautiful, but out of my price range.
Not that you asked me …but…..SSS Lieu de Reves (there is no almond listed but it is by far one of the best heliotropes I have ever smelled IMHO) , Heliotrope Blanc (I have only tried the Oriza Legrand version but other NSTers say the LT Piver is good too and it is ridiculously cheap) and Tardes smells like almond and heliotrope to my nose (please correct me if I am wrong)…also, Kiss Me Tender but I think that one might be discontinued but there is an extreme version which I haven’t tried yet.
And I also like Dame Perfumery Mate, Heliotrope and Patchouli (but there is no almond note in that one)
I had a tester of Lieu de Reves and don’t recall getting any heliotrope from it. I’ve tried the Oriza and initially loved it, then decided I didn’t but I can’t remember why.
I happen to have a sample of Tardes – I’ll need to see if I can find it. The LT Piver is crazy cheap – I’ll have to snap up a bottle. Have you tried it, Floragal?
Hmm.. not familiar with that brand at all. I’ll check it out!
I’m wearing Olympic Orchid Elektra for the first time. I received this thanks to yukiej from a freebiemeet. It is very interesting. My first impression is medicinal, then root beer, then – I’m not sure what. But it is interesting.
Oh, anything with root beer makes me take notice! Adding to list.
More Eau de Magnolia today!
Getting ready to go on a brief trip tomorrow. It’s a combo of vacation, work (for my husband), and a family visit – hopefully we will fit it all in. It will also be my toddler’s first airplane trip, so wish us luck!
Enjoy the trip!
Good luck, and enjoy!
Good luck!
I tested four Memo fragrances this morning but nothing is FBW. Scrubbed them all off and now I’m wearing Hermes Rhubarb for a 90F day.
I planted three tomato plants over the weekend and last night I looked up how to care for them. It turns out I planted them wrong (too high) but I think I’ll take my chances after one gardening site warned against messing with the roots. This gardening/landscaping thing is an adventure–I planted some shrubs in the backyard and all are thriving except one. The dog has decided he likes that particular patch of sun and keeps laying on it. I don’t know whether to move the poor mashed plant or him. The plant would be easier, he’s 110 lbs.
Have you tried Shams? That’s my favourite Memo.
No, I haven’t. The notes look interesting. My favorite is African Leather.
I love Italian Leather.
Shams is my favorite Memo also!
Hee! Your dog has claimed his spot, so the plant goes! Sorry Plant!
Hermes’ Rhubarb really does sound perfect for today in the PNW.
I’ve had a garden and 2 dogs for many years now, and the plant always has to be what moves! (Or in my case, usually, the plant just dies and I try again next year.)
Dog 1, plant 0
I love gardening! Have fun!
Happy Monday!
1) Am not complete with painting BUT am almost finished. It really looks beautiful, guys!
2) Part of the reason I am not finished is that the weather was too lovely to stay inside! The whole city seemingly came out of hibernation and everyone was out in streets. I could barely squiggle into my summer shorts from last summer! So thank goodness am on this eating regime!
3) Am in Cristalle Eau Verte (from a sample). It is a green scent, so would have been perfect for Friday, but it also perfect for today, since it is gonna be a scorcha.
Unfortunately I can relate to the summer shorts thing 🙁
*groans* Isn’t it something? Forgiving suit paints, sweaters and Spanx wearing conceal a HOST of sins! 🙁
Joining the rest of you who are also having a cool drizzly spring day, wearing Dries Van Noten. I used Rose Jam shower gel and will likely add a spritz of Tobacco Rose tonight to round off the day. On a sandalwood kick this week.
Rose Jam is so gorgeous.
Nice combo 😉
great choices!
Today I am wearing Parfums de Marly Delina. Holy crap this perfume is beautiful. If only all fruity florals smelled this good.
My today’s SotD is sponsored by Atelier Cologne Cedrat Enivrant
Looking forward to wearing this a lot in the summer heat.
it’s very refreshing, isn’t it?
I’ve been wanting to try that one. I love the Orange Sanguine.
So refreshing- and dries down to a skin scent Can’t overspray.
That’s one of my very favorites from Atelier, and great for warm weather.
In continuation of last weekend’s theme, use it or lose it, I’ve finished samples of Eau de Magnolia, Eau d’Hadrien, and this morning Tam Dao.
After shower will be Lys Mediterranee for the walk on the sea wall.
you smell great!
Great set of scents!
Lys is so pretty. You smell great!
Generous spraying of Ofresia from Diptyque sale. Lots of cleaning to do…sometimes smaller apartments close in if you don’t stay on top of them. And we have someone coming to stay on an air mattress in our living room for a number of days, so we do need to be a bit more presentable. I think I’m going to tell my husband we can’t do this anymore. One quick overnight is okay. Multiple days just don’t work, given the size of our place. I want to help and be hospitable, but it really doesn’t work very well.
Ofresia is another one of those scents that seem wet to me. Goes well with the rain.
Oh, gosh, that’s tough. Our space isn’t bad but the 2nd bedroom is my husband’s studio so guests always sleep out in the living room which means I’m not open to long stays. It’s hard on both parties after 2 days.
I almost got the Ofresia as well at that sale. I like that one a lot!
Ya, without an extra bedroom overnight guests need to keep it short :/ How was the Diptyque sale? I tested Ofresia recently and didn’t love the opening, but once I got past that I thought it was quite nice. I will admit to trying it after wearing Carnal Flower for a few days, so I was unfairly comparing it.
I was late to the sale. Not much left. If I’m around next year, I’ll try to go earlier. I got Ofresia and then had second thoughts after I got home but am liking it better now. I’m a fickle beast…
When I had a small apartment I had a pull out sofa bed + futon so I could host people visiting. Since I grew up in NYC I am used to sharing very small spaces! But still, the walls would feel like they were closing in!
I had on Aftelier’s Lumiere (but it’s already worn off *sniffle*). I’ll probably put on Cepes & Tuberose for the afternoon. I adore several Aftelier scents, but my skin eats them so quickly that I keep drawing back from buying anything other than samples.
I love my samples of Wild Roses and Vanilla Smoke, but I have the same problem with the longevity.
I have friend who adores Vanilla Smoke (and wore my sample of it for her wedding) and from time to time I buy her a mini as a gift. Maybe next time she needs a refill we could get the mini trio…(somehow that makes buying something lovely but ephemeral seem more reasonable).
That’s why I’ve never tried any, myself.
I get zero longevity too.
Apply to hair — it lasts that way 🙂
Guerlain SDV, from a sample vial. Lovely vanilla on a cool day. Maybe will get a spray decant of this one.
yum!
I have a better idea for you – Suzan from shopfranceinc can get you a 20 mL travel spray. I will email you her info. It is MUCH cheaper than a decant , especially if you were planning on buying from one of the decant sites.
Thank you!! Greatly appreciated ????
Hi there NST!
Today I’m in some Kiehl’s Original Musk from a rollerball + a couple sprays of The Body Shop Shea. The Body Shop has recently moved the Shea EDT into the “discontinued favorites” section of their website, which really bums me out. So, I’ll enjoy my bottle while it lasts!
Check out TJ Maxx or Marshall’s for Body Shop discontinued sprays!
Good tip! I’ve had my eye out at the 2 Marshall’s locations near me, but so far no dice.
What happened to our sun from yesterday?! Perfect day we had and now just yuck. 🙁
Sipping 2nd cup of tea, and thinking about lunch.
SOTD: Fève Délicieuse
you smell delicious!
I agree with Elizabeth ^!!
Interpreting “skin scent” in a slightly different way. In EL Sensuous Nude, which smells like sun-warmed skin after a day at the beach. Few perfumes last longer than a few hours on me, but this stuff wears a 10-12 hours. Fortunately there’s a lot of development and I love the later phases (the opening is actually my least favorite.)
That said, I keep having twinges of wearer’s remorse. I think that’s because our weather went from winter to summer in a couple days’ time and I can’t help but want to wear a million things that have been in storage since August. (!!!)
I pretty much skipped spring scents since our spring felt like extended winter. A year’s worth of rain in 3 months’ time and temps 5-10 degrees below average did not inspire spring florals.
Also, said change of weather has made me want to Buy All The Things. Will have to keep it mellow, but am looking now for a bottle of Guerlain Vetiver edt. I wore the last of a decant (thanks, Koyel!) I got in a swap yesterday and was hardcore swooning. Is it just me, or does it seem to have a big dose of iris in it?
Not just you. GV is a very easy to wear unisex cologne. Try Zullily- they sometimes have great prices on Guerlain fragrances.
You smell great. I had a sample of Sensuous Nude awhile ago and I remember liking it. Might be time to upgrade to a decant.
Good luck on your Vetiver bottle quest.
I’m in the last drips from a dauber sample of Violet Disguise (gracias Pixel!). I love LOVE LOVE how it smells for the first 90 seconds, and then it is just meh. Not bad, fine in fact, but that is all.
HELP! I have a question and I think some of you creative and engaged with the world folks can help.
I need to buy a gift for my SiL for her 50th. We have an awkward detente–she no longer speaks to me exclusively in her second language, French, she on occasion deigns to make eye contact, and while I have not suffered ridiculous insults as of late, I quietly withstand condescension. For my husband’s 50th, she gave him “A Philosophical Lexicon: Dictionary of Untranslatables,” which is 1297 pages in length. Freudians, go wild.
Here’s my problem. I really really really do not want to spend more than about $65 on the gift. The history of gift giving here is worthy of a Russian novel, but suffice it to say that I have at times spent up to several hundreds of dollars on items she has mentioned wanting and the result was that we were given the silent treatment for ostensibly being conspicuous consumers… PS Yes, I have bought her perfume over the years. It has all disappeared from her house. Her boyfriend may be reselling it on eBay, or she might just be tossing it.
So I need something hip, attractive, not cliched that I can buy for $65? I thought about upcycle online shops, but only found one where the items were nice, but the prices were well beyond the budget.
Hi, Oakland. Have you ever tried making a donation in her name to a charity? At least you’d know that the “gift” isn’t being recycled on the Bay…
Excellent idea!
I second this suggestion!
Excellent suggestion, and as a perfumista one of my favourite charities, which I once received for my birthday from my dearest friend, is apopo rats (just google apopo). Your pay for your sil to adopt a rat which has been trained to sniff out landmines or TB. The rats look cute and have names and job decriptions (ie. Ikemba sniffs out mines in Angola).
What an interesting charity! I didn’t realize that rats could be such heroes. I might even start to feel a bit of fondness for them…
That would be a perfect gift for ME. But it would get me into hot water with FiL who would not understand and think we did not get her a gift. And we would never hear the end of it from her.
Ugh… no way to win… One last shot: a copy of Against World Literature: On the Politics of Untranslatability (which might be a kiss of the fingertips to her gift for your hubby’s 50th…)
No, really — hope The Strategist come through for you!
I wish for you Annikky were here, she would have a great suggestion…
Was about to suggest this. Very thoughtful, classy and more useful than yet another copy of Death and the Labyrinth: The World of Raymond Roussel .
So what I thought was a brilliant idea, my husband nixed–but I’ll pass it on to others in case you need a gift to give someone who has everything… etc. etc. etc.
I thought we could get her a gift certificate to Glassy Baby, enough to cover the cost of the glass, tax, shipping etc. and so could peruse the site at her leisure. 10% of the proceeds go to charity, and they’ve given away over $6 million.
The glasses have a simple elegance, and the colors and heft make them feel very special.
Here’s the site (no affiliation!) http://www.glassybaby.com/power-of-giving
If she likes books, maybe a rare edition book, or a super fancy journal? I think it stinks to have to give a gift when you know it will go unappreciated, regardless of what it is. I’m sorry. Oh, here’s a thought, could your son bring back a trinket from his trip? She would have to like it if her nephew picked it, right?
No trinkets. The 50 thing was a big deal when it was my husband, and then it was not. I would LOVE to get her a rare book or fancy journal, but finding the right one is the sticky point. As an art historian and curator, she gets many through her work.
Yikes! I don’t envy you OF!
I suppose a selection of Miss Manners books might be too passive-aggressive, and doing something ostentatiously not to her taste/terrible would just be too aggressive? If she likes food, Zingerman’s has a lot of wonderful baskets that might do. Or check out NY Mag’s The Strategist?
Heading to Strategist NOW.
A bonsai….stunted growth but aesthetically pleasing
Perfect ????
I love this suggestion!
HA!!
I’ve never seen a plant in her house, let alone a pet or children. Hmmmm…
From the Bonsai website I’m looking at:
Will I kill my bonsai?
Maybe, but probably not. Kids and pets are much harder to keep alive, so if you’ve ever had one of them you’ll be fine. Most Bonsai we sell need little more than sun & water.
My husband’s first choice of the 10 items I listed for him was a bonsai tree. We are having trouble sorting out the shipping since the package must be opened the day it arrives, and historically that has been something complicated with her. So he will probably go with something that involves less conversation and commitment 🙁
Any stores that carry locally made jewelry? One of a kind bracelet in silver or something?
I love your description although love is not the feeling of the day. You are very diplomatic in how you phrase the gift situation.
She sounds a repulsive old trout. Get her a Dignitas voucher.
She sounds like my own MIL for the first 5 years my H & I were together. She had a change of heart (if she has one, that is) and now bends over backward to ingratiate herself to me.
As to gifts, I say let her son choose!
Ya well… I made him a list of 10 items. He gets to choose. sigh
Oh man, it sounds like whatever you do, you can’t win! I feel for you! Many years ago I read an article in Real Simple about giving gifts to people who are impossible to buy for and they recommended giving gifts that “go away,” i.e.: wine, chocolates, candles, incense, good coffee, etc. (you get the picture) or my personal favorite, the gift of a massage. She sounds a little “uptight,” and maybe it would help….? Best of luck!!
I think this should be your husband’s job, it’s his sister. Make him buy the gift.
Well…. the whole thing was causing me so much anxiety, I thought I better just deal… so I’ve made him a list of 10 items–which includes the Bonsai tree! And one or two things recommended on The Strategist. My hubs says he’s debating between a handbag made out of re-purposed seat belts (it looks cooler than that sounds) and one of those Byredo perfume powders, probably the Gypsy Water.
A box of soaps – Claus Porto, Hermes, Jo Malone – elegant packaging, beyond reproach. Or a nice candle. Or just give her a gift card.
In honor of World Goth Day, I’m playing Sisters of Mercy. I was looking through Spotify trying to remember the name of a goth band I saw at a club years ago, but just as I started to type that, it came to me. For what it’s worth, the band was called Cruxshadows. Haven’t listened to them in ages, so we’ll see if it still holds up. It’s sometimes interesting to revisit music I haven’t listened to in a long time. Sometimes it still holds up, and other times I remember why I don’t listen to it anymore.
SOTD is Robert Piguet Visa.
How did I forget to honor WGD in my post?! Thanks for the reminder ????The Cruxshadows are cute-but they probably would resent that description. I do love me some Sisters, though, and will follow your lead when I get home!
wearing Byredo Reine de Nuit.
I really need to smell this, how do you feel about it compared to PoaL?
I think it is pretty…and that’s about it. Not very interesting, and I’m not tempted in the slightest to have a bottle. I don’t think it holds a candle to POAL. It’s an extrait, and I thought the longevity was ridiculous, (I have a manufacturer’s spray sample) I sprayed myself a good six times and it was completely gone at least an hour before lunchtime. the other extraits in the night veils line that are leather based do last, though.
I will include a sample from my bottle. I think dab is the way to go with this one.
Sherlock Holmes!!!! I love him in all his forms, but Benedict Cumberbatch is the prettiest one of all.
I’ve decided to wear perfume on parts of myself that will be well covered by a bunny suit to work around the perfume restrictions in our clean rooms. As such, my wrists are covered in SSS Rose Musc. Not a skin scent at all 🙂 I love it.
🙂 I liked it too, but for adorable hubby, it fell in to the category of, “What is that? It smells a lot! Not good, just a lot!” I didn’t love it enough to wear in spite of his objections.
That is almost EXACTLY my boyfriend’s reaction o.o so I plan to wear it to work a lot, far away from him!
Sounds like mom’s reaction to just about any perfume.
SOTD is Do Son.
All my sibs and I were together with my mom yesterday for her 89th birthday. Something to treasure…
Happy Birthday to your mom!, and yes, absolutely treasure it. I recently tried Do Son, and fell in love, I think it was the EDP. You smell great!
Thank you, Lillyjo! You smell like an angel, of course. 😉
Sounds wonderful!
We did have a great time together.
So nice to spend time with family. Happy Birthday to your mother.
Thank you, KellyC.
Happy Birthday to your mom!
Thanks, H.!
Hey, guess what? It’s may 22, and it’s still cold! I’m wearing Angel, and loving it.
You smell GREAT!
What’s not to love? You smell great!
p.s. Still cold here too.????
34 Blvd St Germain~spicy, woody goodness. Got this sample for the hubs but had to try it on me first. Yum!
I don’t see this scent mentioned often, but it’s a good one. You smell great!
Happy Monday, folks.
I hadn’t intended to do the community project at any point this week. Since my skin is where perfume goes to die, I’m not enticed by scents that won’t even put up a decent fight. HOWEVER:
SOTD is Frederic Malle “Vetiver Extraordinaire”.
Top: bergamot and bitter orange;
Mid: pink pepper, cloves and vetiver;
Base: sandalwood, cedar, oakmoss, myrrh and musk.
Instantly became a skin scent. No damn use to me, but I guess somebody out there likes it? Anyway, I claim my community point in advance. :^)
Oh, and I thought the picture was slices of beetroot… so Mr Malle is not the only one who isn’t on top of his game today. :^D
Ha!
It may not last, but it is a great scent.
Mona di Orio Tubereuse, very very lovely.
I put on Dame’s Rose de Mai soliflore this morning, sort of thinking I’d put on something else after I ran errands and took a shower – but instead I just put it back on. It’s a thoroughly pleasant, fresh rose that I don’t have to think about very much.
lovely
Nice…I love those “easy” scents.
I’m wearing Creed Love in White because I just got a decant. It’s greener than I expected.
SOTD this sunny Monday is a repeat of yesterday: a bit of Guerlain L’Heure Bleue, in honor of my Chelsea Blues…and because it smells so freakin’ good. ????
You smell wonderful!
I am trying out Loewe 001 today. It’s nice enough, but honestly somewhat forgettable for me. And certainly has minimal sillage on me.
I’ve narrowed down my choices for my New Orleans trip this weekend to my L’Ombre dans L’Eau, Orange Sanguine, and Frangipani (all from samples). I think they will stand up to the NOLA heat and humidity.
Ever have a moment when you try something you’ve read a lot about and you “get it”? Sometimes I try things and can appreciate what people say about it or the reviews, but don’t love it right away, if ever. But I tried Philosykos this weekend and had a total “ah ha!” moment. I loved it immediately. Just thought I’d share because I have no one else to talk about such things with. 🙂
Philosykos is really good, so glad you got to sniff it!
I have yet to try Philosykos, but those “ah ha” moments, really are great.
Nice lineup for your trip! Philosykos was my 1st niche love and purchase.
OS is a great choice! I took it went I went to Florida along with Le Labo Bergamote 22, which is also great in the heat and humidity. Have fun!
Philosykos was my first niche purchase after I discovered NST because it is one of Robin’s favorites. I had no clue what a Diptyque was until I started reading NST.
Busy day ahead, so I’m fortifying myself with a little Mitsouko.
I am wearing an old friend of mine, Emporio Armani He.
Hey Robin, you smell very nice. Sorry. With all my handwringing about what on earth to get my SiL, I forgot to note Harvey Milk Day. Must put something on my Facebook page about it. I was 13 on that November day when Dianne Feinstein announced that he and Mayor Moscone had been assassinated. It was so soon after the People’s Temple disaster in Jonestown–the region was reeling.
OF there are beautiful new editions of Emily Dickinson’s poetry – the fascicles and the envelope poems – that are simply high quality photos of the fascicles and envelopes themselves. You have to work out her handwriting but you see them in a way possible before only to a few. Unusual and artsy but maybe something she wouldn’t have already? And a good publishing project to contribute to even if she donates them.
I just looked at some of those books. What a genius idea… to see her handwriting. I am totally going to buy myself one. Do you have a favorite? On amazon a couple look very similar without holding them and flipping through pages.
A billion years ago I got a gig retyping the letters between Josephine Herbst and Catherine Anne Porter–a friendship (and epistolary friendship) that stretched over decades. I was working with photocopies, but it was still such an intimate way to see their words.
Just looking and realize that I got this wrong. The poems in fascicles edition isn’t photographs. The envelope poems are. What I have is a large format hard cover. There is a small format one two and I haven’t checked to see if it’s the same reproductions just in a smaller size book.
I was so thinking of this when I wrote I missed your memory of that horrible day. SF was going through some crazy and awful things then.
Thank you for sharing that memory, as upsetting as it must be.
I was older than you and remember exactly where I was when I heard the news.
My almost 4 year has had a tough stomach bug since Thursday. 🙁
We are all worn out.
Sniffing some Noir de Noir on my left arm and Oud & Bergamot on my right both courtesy of generous NSTers.
Ugh! Hope it passes soon. At least you smell nice!
Hope she feels well soon! That’s an awfully long time to have a stomach bug. 🙁 and you smell splendid, of course! 😀
Hope you both get some rest. You smell fantastic!
I wore Shalimar this morning because it was chilly and Monday. I still smell great, if I do say so myself. ????
🙂
You do indeed smell great. I do believe Shalimar makes everything better. ????
+1 for Shalimar!
I wore Rue Cambon for a difficult work day. It really helped pull me through.
Eeek on a difficult workday! 31 RC to the rescue. Here’s hoping for a better tomorrow.
I ran errands today in several spritzes of Tonka Vanille, one of my favorite “under the radar” scents. Also in a bit of Vanille Exquise, courtesy of Lovestosmellgood. It’s settling down nicely!
This is going to be a fun week. I’m already taking notes as I really enjoy skin scents. ????
YAY! 🙂
SOTD = Prada Infusion d’ Mimosa
I doused myself from a sample (I have a FB that I will unwrap shortly). It has the bones of all the Prada Infusions (light / sheer), with a ephemereal dose of mimosa. It is perfect for spring and summer and flies under the radar.
In other news, I went to a Hobby Lobby for the first time this past Saturday. My jaw dropped walking in – the place was HUGE (repeat after me with a NJ accent – it was YUGE!!!). The fascination ended there. Why? Let me count the ways. How in the world do they expect people to find stuff when there are no aisle markings? My mom was looking for Velcro (hook and loop) and the salesperson gave a broad sweep / flapped her arms and said CRAFTS SECTION (it is somewhere in THAT half of the store). She couldn’t be more wrong. After winding my way through two aisles, with my mom trailing slowly behind me, I saw another SA and asked. SHE gave a broad sweep of her arms and said we have it and it can be found in THAT side of the store. Since I was just basically told it could be anywhere in the huge store, I asked her to walk me to exactly where it is. She reluctantly did so and we got to the specific location. 20 minutes later (mom took her time), we slowly walked to the cashier, where the cashier painstakingly read and punched in the item number (what is this, the 70s? Hello barcode scanner), and we finally left. I was halfway out of the parking lot when I realized I did not get 50% off. I went back into the store and the cashier had to look at the circular to see if the item I bought qualified for the discount (they did). As my grandfather would say in accented Spanish – Jesus Maria Joseph Santisima! If I can help it, I will never go back again. Oh, and besides, if I couldn’t tell that an item was partially finished vs shabby chic, obviously, I am not the target market. One of my nieces used to work there and she quit because she had seen too many instances of customer rage and now I understand why.
Ever heard of kitten gentling? Neither have I until —
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=nGdpl38IJmE&ebc=ANyPxKqHH6RNFQoxqGYvafq–TeUe4Q_YXd8sfw1QMzDRof3coqXKVZhyJNZ71x10Htfzrjr_VuD4n9fjPC-MELolIQsYNAfRw
I’m slyly playing with our big boy cat’s paws – massaging and rubbing – so that I can clip his nails at some point in the future.
LOL!
ZOMG… the cutest thing I have seen today.
I glad I brightened your day, even if only for slightly over a minute!
Hey, thanks for that link! I have just volunteered to foster a group of four fluffy four-week-old kittens and I am going to try that out as soon as I get them here (Wednesday)! They are not yet very used to being with people and that will be my job, to try to get them more socialized so that they can go up for adoption when they’re a bit older. Looked like a great technique. I tried it out on my adult cat Bruce, sitting here beside me, and he found it quite pleasant!
Oooh, do olease let us know how it goes. If they are slightly feral, I wonder if starting with gloved hands would work, the knitted type perhaps? Or maybe gentling requires skin-to-skin contact?
SotD = L’air du Temps edt in honor of Angela’s review, with thanks for the inspiration.
It’s an older bottle, the rounded/flattened glass shape with wide shoulders, long neck, and gold cap. It smells lovely.