It's Monday and Presidents' Day, and there are 29 days left until the end of winter. Birthdays: Copernicus, Kay Boyle, Carson McCullers, Smokey Robinson, Amy Tan. What fragrance are you wearing?
I'm smelling glorious in Frédéric Malle Carnal Flower.
Reminder: on 2/23, we're off to New Zealand! Wear a perfume that is named for a place in New Zealand, or that reminds you of a (real or imaginary) trip to New Zealand, or that features a local ingredient, or ?
And for those of you who like to plan ahead, see Scent of the day ~ Friday community projects 2024, where I'll try (but usually fail) to have the next five or six weeks mapped out in advance.
Note: top image is Cathedral Cove [cropped] by Strange Ones at flickr; some rights reserved. (See: Whanganui A Hei (Cathedral Cove) Marine Reserve at Wikipedia.)
My sotd is Chanel Egoiste, mmm.
I’ve looked at Fragrantica for hints on New Zealand and found nothing that I have, no perfumers that I recognize, so I will have to get very creative for Friday.
Abel perfume and Curio Noir are NZ perfumes if you have them
Anything with Manuka, kanuka, kowhai, taramea, pittosporum ( tarata) , harakeke flax, Bracken , hebes, mosses , lichen, ferns in general…all native.
A lot of introduced trees in quantity include pine, macrocarpa, briar rose, wild thyme, tussock, most English oaks ( and all other trees) , rhododendrons, roses, lilies etc
A lot of marine scents, kelp, sea, sand, beaches
Mountain scents of beech forests, ferns, moss, mulch
Farm,ands
Hot springs, sulphur, mineral volcanic
Just about anything
Thanks so much, Kanuka! I had no idea.
Thank you!
This is fantastic. Thanks Kanuka, I’m ready to hop on a plane!
Oh, thanks for that.
Great list, thank you Kanuka! I will add wine notes, from my extensive knowledge of New Zealand acquired while watching Brokenwood, ha.
Yes wine, beer, and now gin, and vodka .
And lots of dairy, milk etc.
And sheep, wool, grass
Pavlova, meringue scents
Kiwi fruit
Thank you so much for this wonderful list!
Hello.
Sotd is Guerlain Imagine. Warm golden cocoon, so cozy.
I used up a 50ml No.1 de Chanel serum some time last year. Didn’t feel much regarding the anti-aging claims but there was a gift with purchase in my local Chanel with the range so I picked up a bigger 100ml bottle and the face cream as well. Couldn’t resist. So I started using the 2 items together today. Here’s hoping for better, glowing skin!
Hope springs eternal 🙂
It’s a statutory holiday in most Canadian provinces today: in mine it’s called Family Day. Heading out for a walk (despite the temperature — -4°C, -10° with the windchill) and incandescent in Clinique Wrappings, which is basically the olfactory equivalent of a lens flare. If there’s anything brighter, I don’t know of it.
Huh. Well, enjoy Family Day then!
Smelling wonderful in Wrappings! 😍
Shortly to be arriving to my little rolling home and I can’t wait!
Wore Papillon Bengale Rouge for a warm hug and still going strong.
How many of you will be running to get the new Trump’s new shoes? 🤡
Ack! Can’t type and walk 🫠
I knew that the sneakers would 1) sell out instantly, but 2) be bought entirely by scalpers, and that’s what happened: they were immediately being offered for prices up to $6000, and at least two pairs went for around $4500. This is the world we live in now.
And here I didn’t even know they were already in production and available for sale! What an American Embarrassment 🤡 Nay, let me rephrase that: What an embarrassment to all of humanity.
Hey guys. Lay off the Trump shoes talk, yeah? No way to keep that from getting political.
You smell glorious indeed Robin. Feeling a little under the weather today so no fragrance as of yet. My room smells lovely though after burning a Margiela candle almost overnight.
I hope you feel better soon🌸
Feel better soon!
Hope you are back to yourself soon.
Drat, sorry sugarvenom! Hope it passes quickly.
Hope that you are feeling better ASAP!
I’m going to wear my Naomi Goodsir fragrances this week and apologies in advance since she’s New Zealand adjacent.
Starting the week off with a bang in Nuit de Bakélite!
Up until 1841 New Zealand was a colony of New South Wales ( Australia) so there is a historical link.
https://www.nma.gov.au/defining-moments/resources/new-zealand-becomes-a-separate-colony#:~:text=On%201%20July%201841%20the,islands%20and%20the%20Australian%20colony.
Thank you for the information, Kanuka, and for adding credibility to my cp plan👩🎓😊
Smelling wonderful!
😘
Since you asked about my perception of Synthetic Jungle vs. EL Legacy Private Collection, I consulted my notes on SJ.
“Top note of this is green bell peppers?? Then it quickly shifts to clover. Not really getting any floral notes in this. After a few hours, this is a quiet scent that leans masculine on me.”
EL Legacy Private Collection is a polished green floral that is quietly feminine to my nose.
So they might be cousins, but not close ones.
I’ll have to try that comparison test, too. I’m dragging my feet on testing the EL Legacy samples.
Wearing Chanel Misia to feel glamorous on a day of more cleaning and declutering. I am still going thru books, and I already have 3 boxes to be dropped to a Community Book Shop. They are more than happy to receive the books after I emailed them the list of what I have available so far. I am glad they are going to a place where they will be more appreciated than just dropping them at Goodwill.
I might take a walk outside later on this cold, but very bright, sunny day!
Happy Monday! 🌞
Misia is so pretty.
I love it!
I did the same with my books when I hit the road- so many feelings! I knew I would miss them, not only rereading but also just looking at them tucked into my bookshelves. I felt I was losing a part of myself. But then I found a great local family owned used bookstore and donated box after box after box, and was very happy to know some stranger would be browsing one day, pluck a donated book off the shelf, and read exactly what I read. I felt connected to complete strangers who would, sometime in the future read, hold, spill coffee on, and otherwise enjoy those books. Hope your walk is wonderful and your carefully curated books end up in the hands of an appreciative reader. 📚
I hesitated so many times to donate most of the books. I felt a very strong connection to each one of them. I even found many hand-written notes by both of my parents in small notebook sheets related to the book they were reading at that moment. I am keeping those notes. As you said, I am happy there is going to be an emotional connection between all the people who have and will have those books in their hands, hopefully for many years to come.
I have one book from each parent with their handwriting and notes.
And I took many pictures of all the books before I donated them to the library.
It will always be bitter and sweet.
I also kept 2 books from each parent, and my youngest sister did the same. It was very emotional for both of us. We took pictures of all the books as you mentioned to me before. At least, we will have those memories and we can always browse for those books later on if they are digitally available.
Oh well done on the books. I like Misia very much but once in a while only.
Thank you, Aurora.
I love Misia, but I keep forgetting about my bottle. I really enjoy wearing it.
I dropped off a bunch of books at the local library in NJ. Have more boxes to go thru here in CO.
I am done with my parents’ books and now I have to go thru my own books. I am going to have at least 2 to 3 more boxes for donation.
We can cheer each other on with the book project then!
Robin you do smell glorious-I’m in L’eau de Hiver.
Had another large amount of snow last night but had both visibility and traction to get to work so I feel spoiled. Come on Spring!
Carole, it’s a cold, rainy day in LA, so I too am wearing “L’Eau d’Hiver!”
we smell great, on opposite sides of the globe 🙂
We are cousins 🙂
Virginia Woolf described Katherine Mansfield as smelling like a civet cat that had taken to street walking ( or something like that) but I’m taking inspiration from this portrait of her, painted in England with more colour and light, and a hint of steel in the expression. Wearing a Fille de Berlin for the roses and connection to one of Mansfield’s famous works, In a German Oension. I think I will spend the week responding to paintings and art work with a NZ theme.
https://collections.tepapa.govt.nz/object/41995
My take on it is that VW may have felt jealous of KM’s writing ability, catty remark.
Also that she was from the colonies, I think. So, snobbish as well.
Ah very possible, thank you very much for the quote.
My memory is that despite their ongoing friendship, KM also wrote something nasty about VW in a letter, but I can’t find the quote.
But the whole Bloomsbury crews were terrible snobs, it is true.
VW was known to dislike perfume and I wonder if KM wore any…
That’s a good question.
SOTD is Rogue Champs Lunaires. Beautiful tuberose.
Tuberose can be amazing in cold weather.
I love tuberose! I tend to wear it in the winter as it tends to project pretty far on me, but if sprayed with a lighter hand, it can work in any climate.
Back to work smelling of Halston, sadly not the vintage, but the recent reiteration. Still smells very nice. Our generous patient left me a travel spray with a scent she recommended, because i told her i was a chypre gal.
So i now smell like Memoires du Futur by Les Eaux Primordiales. This is one of the IFRA complacent Neo-Chypres and i would love it if there was less violet (always reminds me of the french candy…)
Old Halston was good stuff, glad the recent is nice enough!
Well well well,
Diptyque Bejoin Boheme is everything and more. How did this escape me? Glad I sprung for the bottle.
Slept 12 dreamless hours after finishing True Detective.
It’s raining.
Good afternoon to lay across bed and read all the snippets of everything I have loaded onto kindle.
So glad it is what you hoped!
Frozen mango and clementine smoothie
I pulled a small bottle of Houbigant Chantilly edt (I also have a small bottle of the EDP), frothy and like an expensive cream, I wear it occasionally. Tonight it’s Angel Men because my bottle is the original version. I wear this much more than Angel.
What do you think is the biggest difference between Angel and Angel Men? I was late to the Mugler line, and never had a chance to test any of the masculine ones before the L’Oreal makeover. I know they have unisex appeal.
Angel Men is less dense, brighter, quite sweet too and has a delicious mint gourmand note. It’s lovely, less a commitment than Angel but lasts very well too, it’s clearly related though with that clean patchouli in the base and totally unisex.
Sounds very tempting. I think I can imagine those differences, given other Mugler scents I know. Thanks!
https://youtu.be/4b-by5e4saI?feature=shared
Song match!
A perfect match 😃
Your smoothie sounds particularly tasty today. 😋🧊🍊🥭
It was delicious, wish I could make you one.
I would happily accept one!
I’ve been lucky enough to have visited New Zealand and the one scent memory that remains vivid to me is the sulphur from all the geysers and bubbling mud in Rotorua! So sulphur it will be as I either get out my Patchouli 24 from LL or one of the really bad Zoologists like even T Rex! ha ha!
I also remember the many extraordinary tree ferns, and though I don’t associate them with a scent, there’s probably some nice ferny smells one could choose. And finally, the amazing snow on the Southern Alps, so a snow scent might be apt, perhaps Snowy Owl? Hmmm.
Whenever someone mentions sulfur, I think of Yellowstone National Park, and Thermopolis WY. And Lava Hot Springs ID.
SOTD = Parfumerie Generale Felanilla
Powdery incense vanilla! Another one that goes into the “Why don’t I wear it more often category?”.
https://www.instagram.com/p/C3ilVd8RHBX/?igsh=MWQ3dWFodG1td3JpYQ==
I used to have a Capital One account / credit card but I noped it out of there as soon as I was able to extricate my mom from its unscrupulous ways. Not sure of the status right now with the proposed purchase of Discovery although I don’t have a Discover credit card anymore either…
Felanilla always makes me think of Petunia.
I’m working on paying off Capital one so I can close it.
Felanilla always smelled like Pixel kitty’s fur to me. It’s a bittersweet perfume memory.
I had a Capital One credit card ages ago (like over 10 years ago), but they closed it due to lack of activity.
I’m checking in late today, wearing Zoologist Hummingbird. I have to be in the right mood to wear it, and today it is just perfect.
You smell lovely.
Testing Estee Legacy today. I’ve mentioned before that OG Estee is my desert island perfume, and I have and love it in several different versions and reformulations. Estee Legacy is lovely. The drydown is an excellent skin scent. So, on its own, I’d like it, but upon this first wearing it does not seem like a legacy of Estee. Not that I was looking for one! 🙂
Thanks for the Estee report!
I haven’t been able to devote my attention to testing them as fast as I would like. I am least familiar with Private Collection, so I’ll save it for last.
Looking forward to hearing your thoughts on Private Collection Legacy!
Hiya, scent sibling!
I think we smell quite nice, but yet not fabulous! 🙂
I’m back to work tonight. I’m wearing Belle d’Opium. It’s not great, but better than most current offerings.
I guess I missed out on a big parking lot fight here last night.I am thankful.
Glad you missed the fight! That’s pretty unsettling.
Truly is.
Belle d’Opium had a really pretty jasmine top note when I first got my bottle.
And seconding Gail about that fight! UGH!
See… I don’t get any floral. I might need to try it in the heat.
I haven’t noticed that floral note for a while with Belle d’Opium. Maybe layering it with a jasmine lotion would do the trick?
It’s still a decent floral fruitchouli.
On me it’s all fruitchouli. Which I do like. I got it to replace my jimmy choo edp.
That sounds scary, I’m glad you were off.
Me too. I guess we had to lock the doors coming in and the police were called and they came and broke it up.
Glad you escaped the fight.
Thanks Aurora. Me too.
Wearing Iris 39 today.
Im still trying to maintain a no-buy, no matter how reasonable. I stumbled across a pretty good deal on the Laura Mercier Ambre Vanille set; trying to be mindful that I don’t need it. It wasn’t even on my radar and I have no idea what it smells like on skin, so it would be another blind-buy. Has anyone tried it?
I am cheering your No Buy on! Keep it up!
Thank you, Jalapeno! It’s hard some days but I guess it’s about breaking bad habits. I watched a few videos by Cheri of The TopNote; she did a whole no-buy year.
I just checked the LM set; it’s now sold out!
Money saved, then!
Definitely!
I used to wear the regular Vanille and loved it. The Ambre was nice but I didn’t love it. The new versions I believe to have ambroxan and I don’t like them. You can sometimes come across the old versions ( tall bottles) on discount sites or tj Maxx type stores.
Oh, thanks lillyjo! I know it wasn’t the original formulation so that’s very good to know. I was kind of wondering why it was on such a substantial discount.
Another bright and sunny day here along the Front Range. I’m getting spoiled with all the sunshine here. Trying to pass some of it along to the folks who are heartily sick of winter. I’m more than happy to share. 🌞🌞🌞
Well, I fell off my “No Buy” wagon last week. I’ll spill the beans once (if?) my purchase shows up. I’ve been eyeing the Soivohle website a lot lately, since Liz Zorn will be taking another hiatus from perfume soon. She does patchouli, incense and roses SO well. There could be potential purchase from there in the near future…
SOTD = EL Legacy Private Collection again. Such a smooth and well balanced green floral scent. Is it worth $280? Probably not. I can’t see myself paying that much for any perfume. But it is quite lovely.
I see on the Soivohle website that all the perfumes are at least 25% off so you may want to purchase from there soon.
Also, I was going to tell you that I emailed Jeffrey Dame to confirm his discontinuation of the Carolina Woman series. I just wanted to make sure he didn’t have an extra bottle hanging around of Cassis, Rose and Sandalwood. He replied immediately and confirmed that he was all out😥 It does remind me a bit of Desert Rose by him so I can always go with that if I need to.
I found Cassis, Rose & Sandalwood to be superior to Desert Rose. But perfume is all a matter of preference, isn’t it?
I wonder why the line was discontinued?
He told me that line was not a good seller, but it seemed like this particular one was always sold out. Oh, well they are 75 ml bottles so it will last a while.
That one, and the Mate, Heliotrope & Patchouli were never around when I had cash available. 😞
I had some sun today!
I’m glad you were able to get your perfume.
Happy to hear that you saw the Daystar today!
Until I actually have the perfume bottle in hand, I don’t consider it “mine”. So we shall see how long it takes to show up.
Well done on testing EL scents. Like you I recoil at the price.
I’ve been pleasantly surprised at the scents I have tested so far. We shall see how I feel about the rest of them eventually.
Just looked at the EL site. Wow, prices sure are up. I bought a bottle of Knowing about 4 years ago; even that has doubled.
I couldn’t find the new offerings so they must be sold out.
Every so often, I think about getting a bottle of Youth Dew. I have Opium in EdT and EdP plus Cinnabar in the original style bottle.
Pleased that I decided to get the EL Legacy sample set after all. I sure can’t afford those bottles!
I keep thinking about getting Youth Dew too.
Will I be the last post of the day? I always wonder, though never come back to check.
Mostly commando today, which was an unexpected 11 hour workday as we had some unexpected work crises. Fun times. But, I’ve had worse.
My FB of HdP 1725 arrived at the tail end of the day, so that was the only scent I used today. A FOUR OUNCE bottle. Who does that? Such a strange size. So I will spray with abandon.
If you enjoy purple prose and bad copy, go check out seiclub.com, a matchmaking service whose ad I was just served up here. 😂 I’m dying.
They really need to do a quality check on their marketing analytics, cause I’m clearly not the target demo.