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Browsing by author: Jessica

Blackbird Triton ~ fragrance review

Posted by Jessica on 4 July 2014 17 Comments

Neptune and Triton via NASA

I wrote about the Seattle-based business Blackbird last winter, when I posted a review of their incense cones (which are still favorites of mine). At the time, none of their personal fragrances really captured my fancy; the names were memorable and provocative (Tinderbox, Pipe Bomb), but the actual scents just didn’t fit my personal taste. But you just never know: Triton is the latest release from Blackbird, and I’ve been happily wearing my sample for the past few days.

Triton includes notes of violet leaf, iris root, cedar, aldehyde, incense, mimosa, carrot seed, dry amber, vetiver, styrax and black pepper. It was “named after the moon of Neptune that was in turn named after the son of Poseidon,” and “its scent carries the nose to the icy surface of its namesake moon. . . . It’s about finding and relishing the beauty of a frozen landscape.” It’s a tricky fragrance to classify: I’d call it a unisex mineral-earthy-woody scent…

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Top 10 Summer Fragrances 2014

Posted by Jessica on 27 June 2014 84 Comments

tall roses

For some reason, I’m easily irritated by the question, “What are your plans for the summer?” As my husband keeps reminding me, it’s just a harmless conversation-opener, but somehow it never fails to set my teeth on edge — more so than ever this year, when my “plans” involve nothing more than unemployment and job-hunting. Maybe we’ll do some day-trips, but it’s hard for me to feel as though I’m on holiday when I don’t know what comes next.

In that cheerful spirit (with apologies to Robin, who assigned this post to me without knowing my current frame of mind!), here is a list of ten fragrances I plan to wear regularly this summer, as I try to enjoy myself. I won’t be shopping for perfume much over the coming months, so I’m relying on my current collection and stash of samples to raise my spirits.

I’ve worn Diptyque L’Ombre dans L’Eau every summer for the past decade…

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Maison Martin Margiela Replica Lazy Sunday Morning & Promenade in the Gardens ~ fragrance reviews

Posted by Jessica on 20 June 2014 20 Comments

Maison Martin Margiela Replica Lazy Sunday Morning & Promenade in the Gardens, brand visuals

Last month I reviewed three fragrances from the Maison Martin Margiela Replica fragrance collection: Flower Market, Beach Walk and Funfair Evening. This week I tested two more, Lazy Sunday Morning and Promenade in the Gardens.

Lazy Sunday Morning, developed by perfumer Louise Turner, is meant to suggest “silky skin, crumpled linen sheets and the reassuring scent of fresh laundry” in “Florence, 2003.” Its notes include aldehydes, pear accord, lily of the valley accord; iris accord, rose absolue [sic], orange flower accord; white musk accord, Indonesian patchouli oil and ambrette seeds absolute. Leaving aside the question of why Florence was chosen as the “location” for this perfume, how does Lazy Sunday Morning function as a “fresh and clean” fragrance?

Not very well, I don’t think…

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Maria Candida Gentile Cinabre ~ fragrance review

Posted by Jessica on 13 June 2014 15 Comments

Dante Gabriel Rossetti, Roman Widow, detail

I’m still exploring the Italian niche line Maria Candida Gentile, so you can imagine my delight and curiosity when I realized that the collection includes a rose-centered fragrance. Cinabre, one of the “Classic” scents in the line…

…creates the fragrance of a magic rose with a breakthrough formula. It blends the essences of the Moroccan Splendens roses, absolute of May roses and pure vanilla to recreate, by magic, the scent of the Ayrshire rose Splendens, an ancient rose well known for having exquisite and extremely rare notes of myrrh.

It was also inspired by an inscription on the Porta Alchemica in Rome and by the Dracaena tree, also known as “the dragon’s tree,” which produces a red sap (“dragon’s blood”).

All this scene-setting aside, Cinabre is an oriental rose that unfolds like a crimson satin fan…

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Guerlain Terracotta Le Parfum ~ fragrance review

Posted by Jessica on 30 May 2014 55 Comments

Guerlain Terracotta Le Parfum brand visual

Last month, Guerlain launched Terracotta Le Parfum, a limited edition fragrance celebrating the 30th anniversary of the brand’s Terracotta bronzing cosmetic products. Terracotta Le Parfum was developed by Guerlain perfumer Thierry Wasser and has a composition of bergamot, coconut, tiaré flower, orange blossom, jasmine, ylang ylang, vanilla and musk. It’s described as a “sun-soaked invitation to explore faraway lands,” complete with a sun-embossed label on its circular bottle.

In case you were wondering (as I was), this fragrance is unrelated to Terracotta Voile d’Eté (1999), other than the fact that both were inspired by the Terracotta beauty collection and both were (are) limited editions. Voile d’Eté was a spicy-soft blend of clove-y carnation and ylang ylang; it was lovely, and I wish I could remember where I put the splash bottle that I used to own. Terracotta Le Parfum, on the other hand, is a summery “solar floral,” and although it’s not my usual style, I’ve fallen hard for it…

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