It’s Hump Day and Shark Awareness Day, plus, happy Bastille Day! What fragrance are you wearing?
If I had any Geir Ness Laila ("the clear essence of Norway"), I'd wear it, but instead I'm celebrating Bastille Day with Guerlain Cologne du 68.
Reminder: 7/16 will be Nordic Friday...wear a fragrance inspired by, or made by a brand from, one of the Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway or Sweden).
And for those of you who like to plan ahead, see Scent of the day ~ Friday community projects 2021, where I'll try to always have the next five or six weeks mapped out in advance.
Note: top image is Stryn, Norway 1 [cropped] by helen genevere at flickr; some rights reserved.
Bastille Day! anyone remember when Lancome had their special and you would get a fresh baguette with your purchase?
A sample of Byredo Tobacco Mandarin is the SOTD.
Yes, that was usually at Macys or one of those department stores.
I haven’t bought anything from Lancome in ages..
me either – but I remember looking forward to that gift w/purchase!
Yes! I think back when they offered it I use to buy a lipstick or whatever just to get the baguette and the makeup bag full of goodies.
I remember that! I remember Lancome used to have the best gifts with purchase.
I remember Macy’s, Jordan Marsh (part of the Federated chain), and Maas Brothers (also Federated) had those GWPs.
Wow, no! I missed that entirely. But I did used to plan my cosmetic purchases around GWPs 🙂
I remember!
I totally missed out on that Lancome GWP. And I worked in retail during the mid- to late 1980’s.
I don’t remember that, but now I want a baguette. Boo hoo our Macy’s is gone and with it, a wonderful Lancome sales representative: Patty, I miss you, and La Vie Est Belle smelled wonderful on you; I kinda wish I’d just got a bottle and been done with it! 😀
Azemour Les Orangers by Parfum d’Empire for me today. I just got a 8ml decant. I may have to splurge for a full bottle.
Yes, you may! You smell great.
I am in Encens Mythique today since someone mentioned this on NST recently and I want to see how it does in the heat…
I think this is the perfect scent to have on while reading this crazy mythical book, Black Leopard Red Wolf. I find it so bizarre and Marlon James, the author, is not holding the hand of the reader through this one.. I am 100 pages in and I almost want to give it up. I am pushing through since one of my favorite actors Michael B. Jordan bought the rights to this book to turn it into a film, so I will push it forward. But the violence and the writing in metaphors for 500 more pages, I am not sure I can do it. Maybe my perfume will help.
Whew..that was a lot of book venting.
Sipping French Breakfast tea and reading to stretch after my walk in the park this morning.
Hope you had an enjoyable walk! That book sounds challenging, for sure.
Ciao ST-
I did the stretching video afterwards. My plan was to do one of J. Smith toning videos but after listening to my body I really needed a guided stretch. It was good and I love the dog sleeping on the mat. Thanks again for your recommendation.
This is the book-movie adaptation MBJordan https://www.oprahdaily.com/entertainment/tv-movies/a26235305/michael-b-jordan-adapting-black-leopard-red-wolf/
My stomach for violence, or even unhappiness, in books is small right now. I am struggling with the book I’m reading, The Fishermen. I’m already 60% through and I do like the book so I will finish it, but it is not cheerful.
I am hoping this passes, because lots of books that I would have normally read by now, I can’t even make myself start. The Water Dancer has been at the top of my pile for well over a year now, and The Lying Life of Adults for even longer.
Hi Robin, good idea ~ I’m with you, I’m editing books from my reading list that don’t bring me joy or comfort. I don’t have the bandwidth for violence or disturbing content right now.
I understand and thanks for taking the time to read my book venting.
Lying life of Adults is a good book but I would say it will not spark joy if that is what you are looking for.
I added The Personal Librarian to my reading list after seeing an interview with the coauthors. It looks pretty good!
That does look good!
You smell great! I also wore Encens last night because someone mentioned it last week.
Sorry about the book woes. Maybe this is one to just watch when it gets turned into a film! Or wait until you’re in a different frame of mind.
I’m glad of the opportunity to vent about books and reading. My weaknesses are that I love to buy books, already have more of them than I have time or shelf space for, and often get distracted about halfway through and start another book.
I’ve decided not to fret about not finishing, though, since I’ve usually learned or experienced a lot in the first 50 percent.
You smell wonderful; I think EM works anytime. I got distracted with little projects (and the new kitten) and weaseled out of my morning walk today. Only cheated myself; our neighborhood birds are still singing all out in the early hours, and yesterday one of the bats was still on the hunt.
You smell wonderful! I’m not doing sad or difficult books right now, it’s just too much.
Happy Bastille Day! I am wearing Caron Aimez Moi.
Good news for my husband and me: we got a puppy last night. She’s a rescue and looks like she has a lot of Black Mouth Cur in her. Her mother is an Australian Cattle Dog. Dad is a mystery, but I wouldn’t be surprised is he was a Black Mouth Cur. She is so cute 🙂
yay! Have you named the pup yet?
Congrats on your pup! I had to look up Black Mouth Cur…Yellow dog! What a great combo – she must be a doll. Enjoy.
congrats!!! I have to look up this breed of dog (black mouth cur)…very adorable!
Puppy!!!!! Congratulations!
Congrats on the puppy!
A puppy! Congrats on the new addition to your family.
Thanks everyone ! Her name is Piper 🙂
What fun! Hide all of your shoes and slippers!
Congrats on the adoption! Piper sounds like a lovely name! 🙂
Piper Puppy! Pictures?
Piper Puppy!!
Or even Piper Pupper! (picked a peck of pickled peppers)
Congrats on the puppy! She is going to have you VERY active indeed!
What wonderful news!
Congratulations on your new addition to the family!
Yay for your puppy!!! I had to google black mouthed cur…had not heard of that breed before.
Congratulations on adding Piper Puppy to your family! ?
Beautiful dog – congratulations!
Yay for Piper Puppy!
Happy Bastille Day and congratulations on your new bundle of joy!
If I was trying to wear a scent that matched the Tour stage today, it would be something mineral, given the number of hot springs along the route in The Pyrenees. I gifted away my Alaia bottle, but it would have been a good choice.
I stayed French with Guerlain Idylle Love Blossom. Very light, pleasant floral.
Girding my loins to assemble a tall shelving unit for our laundry room.
Speaking of The Tour, we are watching live. The steep grade they are on is almost painful to watch.
My husband is tivoing and watching every night. I see little snatches. Watching them go downhill (yesterday or the day before?) was too much suspense for me, ack.
It’s amazing, isn’t it?
Well that’s unfortunate. I just got an email from Beautyhabit cancelling my order of Kiss Me Intense from their sale. “Unforeseen circumstances.” Guess they sold out before getting to my order. Oh well.
We are watching the Tour live as well. Vive la France!
What a beautiful photo!
I’m wearing Ouai’s North Bondi today. It’s a great easy summer pick.
I hope everyone has a wonderful day!
Spending time last night looking for images has made me want to visit Norway! Gorgeous scenery.
We stream it every night and I agree about those treacherous descents yesterday. Today is supposed to be the most challenging course but I can’t imagine getting through Day 1!
Allo, I know you are talking about the Tour de France, and yeah, I would not make it through the first hour is my guess! Even with a battery I couldn’t make myself go that fast — and more so after seeing the big pile-ups this year!
I went on. Norwegian Fjords cruise 7 years ago. Beautiful country!
I’ve been to Norway a number of times (I was part of a big university project there for ten years), and it is indeed incredibly beautiful. Also incredibly expensive! I too went on a fjords cruise but it rained almost the whole time, so the scenery didn’t quite look like this. But those little red buildings are really essence of Norway.
Norway has never been on my list (or I should just say other places are higher on the list) but I can see really enjoying that.
I visited Oslo a few years ago during Thanksgiving weekend and I fell in love with the city. Everything was decked out for Christmas, a pop-up winter village set up in the middle up the city, candles outside all of the shops and restaurants signaling that early nightfall can be beautiful, gorgeous winter gardens, etc, etc. Just wonderful.
Happy Wednesday, all! Work is stressful and we have lots of guests this month so I won’t get to post much and I’m way behind in reading, but I’ll check in now and then.
Mr. SP is half Norwegian and we’ve visited his relatives several times (including once at Christmas) so I feel fortunate to have traveled in Norway, Sweden and Finland. I don’t think I have anything to wear that makes me think of the cool clear air of the mountain we climbed or the beauty of the fjords we saw or the market in Bergen or all the delicious food. So I’ll just wear Monserrat for the beauty it has in itself!
Sorry to hear about work stress, I hope things improve soon!
Envy here of your travels in Scandinavia.
I’m envious of your travels in Scandinavia, someday, I’ll make it there..
My MIL has been several times, her pictures are amazing…
Good on you for showing hospitality during a stressful time at work! Hope work will start behaving itself soon.
Wearing Worth Courtesan and finished up cleaning a few things but not motivated to vacuum today. Parents leave on Saturday to go to California to visit my sister and her family. The dogs have their vet appointment later on this afternoon and I need to get dog food too. Haven’t figured out this afternoon’s perfume yet.
We are not-motivated-to-vacuum twins 😉
Wearing Replica Jazz Club today if I can find my little bottle. If I can’t, I’ll wear Chinchilla. Just craving something different.
Good pair of “differents” 🙂
Good morning all, and happy Bastille Day! My SOTD is Magie Noire by Lancome. One of my all time favorites.
Makeup also by Lancome ~ wearing my favorite Lancome eyeliner, Black Lapis, a dark/teal color smudged, with a golden champagne on the lid, Perfect Fig on the lip.
That sounds très chic!
Thanks! 😀
You look and smell great!
That eyeliner sounds great. I love a good dark teal.
It’s one of my favorites, I think it’s been in my rotation since 1994. That and Cedar Rose blush (also by Lancome) are staples.
That makeup sounds very pretty!
I have that Black Lapis pencil too, it’s fab.
I’ve all but stopped wearing makeup, but I really want that eyeliner.
Feels like tropical jungle today… Humidity and heat are hard to stand.
SotD is SMN Citta di Kyoto.
I love Citta di Kyoto; you smell great!
I just panicked and bought a lifetime supply of my suddenly discontinued ? favorite Burberry eye shadow on ebay. Well, five years’ worth, anyway. At least I found out before sellers were charging several times the original price.
Haven’t thought about perfume yet because I have a medical appointment later and I’m waiting until after that.
Has anyone tried Geir Neiss Laila?
I tried it years ago…it did have some fans on the MakeupAlley fragrance board.
Going on memory, it is pretty but possibly too clean for many perfumistas (including me).
I’ve tried Geir Neiss Laila and liked it, but it was very ‘clean’ smelling. Good for days when you can’t decide what to wear or meetings at the office.
I have a few Burberry eye shadows and love them. Silky, creamy, great color payout and little fallout or flaking. And the packaging is so elegant.
They are great — just enough shimmer without glitter. It appears to me that it’s not just my color that is discontinued, but rather that Burberry is phasing out makeup. If you have any favorites, now is the time to snap them up.
Oh, good to know! Thanks, I’ll be snooping around on the online discounters…
SotD = Vol de Nuit EdT
VdN feels very French to me. 🙂 Happy Bastille Day.
Hiris is on deck in her pretty blue bottle for this evening.
Robin, you smell amazing. I wish Guerlain would bring back Cologne du 68. It’s a beauty.
You have some lovely scents lined up for the day!
thank you, Gail 😀 Guerlain and Hermes make my most worn scents.
I doubt I will ever drain my bottle, but if I do I’ll be sorry!
same! 😀 I have enough and to spare, but often times when I share Cdu68 with friends there are cries of “oh no, it’s discontinued!”
I’ve been to Norway, so beautiful and it smells good too. Today I’m wearing Bitter Peach.
What does it smell like? (I imagine trees and water from the pictures)
I’m happy to say that it’s cool-ish and overcast here today, and I thought Dryad would complement the feel of the day (spoiler alert: I was right ?).
Good thinking 🙂
SOTD is Messe de Minuit because I didn’t get around to it yesterday. It’s so good! My decant is definitely the new formulation that smells nothing like a graveyard or musty church basement.
Waving to you! I’m in MdM again today and am enjoying it.
I’m enjoying it so much too! I’m definitely going to be wearing this again soon.
I just remember it as rather strong. I might now mind a lighter version as long as they didn’t amp up the artificial musks.
No artificial musks detected. It’s like a pomander + incense to me, yet amazingly light enough to work well in the summer.
Started with Paris-Edimbourg and just added a bit of Paris-Biarritz.
Theme: Paris, and the fact that I want to go! Seeing friends visit over the past month is making me very happy and excited about travel again overseas.
You get an enabler’s pin! I bought Jenni’s Savannah Buttermint and had a scoop on Sunday. Yummm!
SO GOOD! I do love it.. glad to have the enabler pin 😉
Oh you smell really fresh and lovely!
:))
It was a lovely combo after all!
Rockin’ Japanese Cherry Blossom again. Feeling like a delicious smelling person today!!
Yay!
Humpday!
1) Honoring both Bastille Day and Sylvie (the female Loki variant) in Black Jade. I love this, and I need another bottle. Time to go to Fumerie!
2) I have to redo my sink plumbing, since there was a leak! I am thinking I just need to tighten some attachments but that’s it I hope! I also have to drill a hole for the dishwasher; when we built the Island we did not make an access hole for the water access and drain lines.
Good thing you have great perfume to carry you through the plumbing work!
You smell great!
Fingers crossed that you get the leak fixed easily!
SOTD = Byredo Gypsy Water Hair Perfume
I really should say zero smell because it went poof in < 1 hour despite my 8 sprays! It does smell like the perfume on first application and then it went the way of the dodo. It’s woody vanilla incense.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CRUMlighkWg/?utm_medium=copy_link
Thanks everyone for your kind comments. I spoke with his widow (and this does not roll off the tongue quite well) and to say she was devastated is an understatement.
Ha! Look at those big eye’s!
It looks like the hair perfume sprays like a hair spray?
It was so good of you to reach out to her, difficult as that was. Nothing can stem the grief at this point, but at least she feels supported by those who make contact.
Glad that you made the difficult phone call yesterday. Gestures like those are incredibly meaningful to the people on the receiving end of them.
And on a much lighter note, guess what? The MIA Ice Cream truck showed up in my neighborhood this afternoon after a long hiatus.
I’m continuing my Agonist week with Isis today. Usually it’s my favorite one but I’m finding it a bit too heavy this morning. Maybe just because I’ve got a lot of worries going on–car in the shop, a lot of errands to run (luckily I can use a neighbor’s car), my surgery coming up, etc. I’ve been fortunate to visit all of the Nordic countries and really loved it. I really want to go back to Iceland because the scenery there was so unusual and striking.
That sounds like a lot to juggle at once! So wonderful that you’ve had a chance to visit all the Nordic countries — now is a great time of the year for cooling memories!
Hope each thing is done on time, and that your surgery goes well. I want to go to Iceland also because of all those hot springs. I think taking the waters is a custom in need of revival!
Working from home in Vivid. Long since discontinued, I wore this all the time in the 90s and finished a full bottle! Now I have one tiny little sample vial, which is quite enough. Wearing it because I have to bring the cat to the vet today and I don’t want to smell like something I wear a lot. He is “cat”astrophically constipated…
Poor kitty; hope all goes well…
Is the Vivid by Liz Claiborne? I admit I don’t remember it.
The very one. It’s a nice floral, with an amber/sandalwood base. I still like it, it’s just not quite right on a regular basis any more, having been such a staple at a different time of my life.
I went through a bottle of Vivid too. I loved all of the Liz Claiborne perfumes back then. After Curve, I moved on.
I never tried Curve, but if I see an ancient sample at a thrift store/yard sale (which is how I got this sample), I’ll give it a shot.
Oh no, poor kitty. Good luck, and I hope he feels better soon.
Aw, poor kitty! Is there such a thing as Metamucil for cats?
Yes, Laxatone. 🙂 It’s a tube of mineral oil based paste like vaseline.
Interesting. My vet recommended that as an anti-hairball fix for one of my previous kitties.
Yes, it works for both problems. 🙂
Poor guy. One of mine has the, umm, opposite problem. We’ve been adding kitty pro-biotic powder to her food and it has helped her digestion issues. I think it is designed to help with constipation too. It must taste good bc our two cats get into shoving matches over who gets the bowl with the “magic dust”.
Oh, poor kitty! Constipation can make them so sick. Bertie Wooster needed two enemas at the vet when he was afflicted, and got prescribed meds to move things along more quickly.
Thanks, NSTers, for all your kind words about Mousie the cat.
I give him laxatives in his food from time to time, but I guess it just got out of hand this time. He went to the emergency vet over the weekend, who gave him 2 enemas and checked to make sure there was no kidney disease. There wasn’t.
So I took him home, because emergency vet is soooooo expensive, and took him to his normal vet today. They had to give him another enema AND obstipate him, which means–no, I won’t tell you what it means. If you want to know, you can look it up. WARNING: it’s really gross. Lord, I feel so sorry for the vet techs! I would not be happy doing that job…
When we got back, it was a MESS. We spent a very unhappy hour or so in the bathroom with a lot of wet wipes. He’s still in there. Just in case. I’ve had a recovery half-beer, and am now reading NST to complete the soothing process.
Oh, poor Mousie, and poor missionista! You both have been through a lot. Sending wishes that Mousie feels better soon, and missionista drinks the other half of the beer.
Had a craving for L Air de Rien today and it was grey and overcast again, so a perfect choice. I don’t think I have anything to match the CP, so I wear my favorites
You smell wonderful!
I don’t have any cp compliant scents either so I went with Bvlgari since it was mentioned earlier this week. I’m wearing Omnia Coral, the lotion. I’ve almost thunked this bottle, maybe two more wearings.
Feeling pretty good after my vax; I even booked a haircut. It’s been a long year’s wait. What’s 2 more weeks?
Yay for your vaccine! 🙂
Congrats on both the vaccine news and the upcoming haircut!
Congratulations on the vaccine and upcoming haircut!
Glad you are feeling good post-shot!
Glad you are feeling well!
Just sprayed on some Korres Cashmere Kumquat which was a blind buy…Top notes are Kumquat, Orange and Mandarin Orange; middle notes are Orange Blossom, Jasmine and Almond; base notes are Cashmere Wood, Vanilla and Cedar.
Notes are very accurate…quite nice w/ lots of citrus and almond so far.
I have kind of been in a funk the past couple weeks…maybe since my brother visiting from SF left…not sure why. but I have been thinking about and remembering my parents lately. 🙁 I shall keep walking and spraying perfume…those are my paths to mental salvation typically. 😉
Sorry to hear that you’ve been feeling down as of late. Hugs.
Hugs, She-ra: I lost both my parents in 2019 and I miss them very often. When I do, I offer prayers of thanks for the wonderful examples they gave me, and that is very comforting.
Sending virtual hugs, She-ra.
Sending you vanilla hugs as you pass through your funk!
Hugs to you She-ra. I don’t think people talk enough about the impact of losing one’s parents. It’s very hard to process imo.
Maybe you need a new adventure to take your mind to a new place and suspend thoughts of chronic concerns?
It could be something simple, like a camping trip, or even just a day-trip to a new state park.
Or maybe you need to write about your parents, to get it off your chest and onto paper?
Walking and perfume are great and handy, though.
Journaling and a change of scenery would both do me good. Thank you for the suggestions. Solvitur ambulando. It is solved by walking…or spraying 😉 usually but not always.
Stinking hot and humid today. But at least it is a quiet, stinking hot and humid day.
SOTD = Grenadille d’Afrique EdP from Aedes de Venustas and the sample stash. So good in hot weather!
Yay for quiet. I saw your rain on the news. Did you get flooding or did it miss your area?
Nope, no flooding for me. Heavy rain, yes. The places that really got clobbered on the NJ side of things are only about 10 miles away.
Testing various things most of the, but finally will report Dame Wisteria as SotD! My free sample box arrived and Mr. Dame generously included two other samples and a discount coupon – wow. The wisteria is simply a delight, and I see a FB in my future.
What other samples did you get?
Oohh.. maybe I will get mine tomorrow. I think you might be west of me, so you get your mail first ?, lol!
How did my phone know I was trying to be funny?!, I don’t know, but I don’t like it one bit.
Stopping by late today after a long parade of work calls. Testing Sonoma Scent Studio’s Winter Woods, thanks to SheriG, which is still hanging on 10 hours later. Unintentionally earned a CP point with this one, because it could easily be called Nordic Woods. I get lots of birch wood, some guaiac and sandalwood, and a comforting rich note that smells a lot like cat fur, so I’m assuming that the castoreum.
Started the day with Clipper Ship’s Chocolate Puer to wake me up for an early call, and then thunked a bag of Golden Monkey loose leaf this afternoon.
I was glad to see your comment above about the cat probiotic. I have a cat with the same issue as yours, and haven’t tried that yet as a remedy.
For anyone squeamish about the bodily functions of cats, please scroll past this comment
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My 16yo cat was leaving behind soup and soft serve instead of tootsie rolls (my vet’s descriptive words) and often didn’t make it to one of the four litter boxes we have strategically placed around the house. Those issues have improved significantly with daily probiotic powder.
Another lovely sunny day, went for a joy ride to the lake with the dog, she loves the wind in her fur. :-). A bit of Splendiris to celebrate Bastille Day.
Sounds like a great day ?
More humid than hot here. The rain is on its way. I have tomorrow off after working the last 7 days. I am so hoping to sleep well. My sotd was Proenza Schouler Arizona. I am not sure what I am smelling in this one. I like it, but can’t make out any notes.
HUZZAH for a well deserved day off!
And sometimes I can’t tease out individual notes in a perfume either.