• About
  • Login to comment
    • Bluesky
    • RSS
    • Twitter

Now Smell This

a blog about perfume

Menu ▼
  • Perfume Reviews
  • New Perfumes
  • Archives
Browsing by author: Jessica

Diptyque L’Art du Soin (The Art of Body Care) ~ scented body products

Posted by Jessica on 30 May 2009 24 Comments

Diptyque L'Art du Soin scented body products

Diptyque recently expanded its selection of personal fragrance and home fragrance with a new line of luxurious bath and body products. The five products in the “L’Art du Soin” range are designed around carefully chosen natural ingredients like organic olive oil and argan oil, among other naturally beneficial essences, while remaining free of parabens, silicones, sulfates, petrochemicals, and other synthetic additives. Unlike Diptyque’s previously existing body washes and lotions, which were scented to match specific Eaux de Toilettes in the collection, these new items have their own unique fragrance blends.

With L’Art du Soin, Diptyque is also adopting a theme of travel and discovery: all five products incorporate ingredients associated with historic Mediterranean destinations. Creamy Body Wash (Gelée Lactée), a softly foaming shower cream, evokes the ancient bathing traditions of Aleppo with a scent of lemon and olive leaves. Rich Butter (Crème Riche), in a tribute to Byzantium, is fragranced with a true Damask rose note enhanced by myrrh and balsam. Luxurious Hand Balm (Baume Généreux pour les Mains) is a mouth-watering souvenir of Cordoba, in Spain, succulently scented with ripe apricot and buttery tonka bean…

Read the rest of this article »

Tokyo Milk Waltz ~ fragrance & scented soap review

Posted by Jessica on 16 May 2009 68 Comments

Tokyo Milk Waltz 14 perfumeTokyo Milk Waltz Soap

Tokyo Milk is a small company with a delightfully inventive (and surprisingly affordable) line of fragrances called “Parfumarie Curiosite” [sic], as well as complementary perfumed soaps. Although I enjoyed reading the descriptions of all the scents in the line, the floral-lover in me was most drawn to Waltz Parfum 14 (formulation not specified, but probably an Eau de Parfum, shown above left) and Waltz Perfumed Soap (scented, somewhat confusingly, with a fragrance blend called “Minuet 14”, shown above right).

Photos don’t really do justice to the sweet packaging of these two products, especially their sepia-toned illustration of mid-nineteenth century dancers promenading in pairs along the length of a ballroom. The label of the perfume bottle is applied to the back of the bottle, so that the picture appears through the liquid of the fragrance itself, and the soap’s wrapper is highlighted with fine, iridescent glitter.

A historical note: when the waltz first gained popularity in genteel European society in late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, it was considered daring and even immoral…

Read the rest of this article »

Renew Elixir from Drops of Nature ~ scented body products

Posted by Jessica on 25 April 2009 22 Comments

Drops of Nature Renew Elixir

Renew Elixir is a fragrant essential oil blend created by the company Drops of Nature and designed to promote emotional balance and mental clarity. For me, Renew’s effects begin even before I unscrew the cap of its small bottle. This bottle, molded from frosted glass in the leaf shape and ornamented with a green tassel, fits comfortably into the palm of the hand, giving a soothing tactile sensation.

Renew Elixir feels gently emollient, thanks to its use of sweet almond oil; it absorbs easily into the skin, softly diffusing its scent for about fifteen minutes. In addition to the almond oil, Renew’s ingredients are essential oils with aromatherapeutic benefits: peppermint for alertness, as well as relief from headaches or nausea; bergamot and sweet orange for their uplifting effects on the mood; and lavender and clary sage for stress reduction…

Read the rest of this article »

Sabon Patchouli Lavender Vanilla Body Oil ~ scented body products

Posted by Jessica on 4 April 2009 19 Comments

Sabon Patchouli Lavender Vanilla body oilOne litmus test of a store’s success in New York City is the frequency with which its logo shopping bags are spotted on the street and on the subway. I’ve noticed quite a few Sabon bags being carried and reused for other purposes by my fellow commuters, so I decided it was time for me to revisit one of this company’s local boutiques. I’ve visited Sabon a few times before, but I usually left empty-handed. Some of the products and scents just didn’t appeal to me, and others bothered me slightly by looking too similar to items from other brands (Agraria, Côté Bastide, Lush…).

On my latest trip to a Sabon shop, however, I ended up purchasing a bottle of Patchouli Lavender Body Oil. I liked its antique-looking, ribbed-glass bottle, the idea of concentrated, oil-based moisture for my dry elbows and legs, and oh yes, the scent. I surprised myself by being drawn to this fragrance, because it doesn’t smell like lavender essential oil, vanilla absolute, or actual patchouli; in other words, it’s definitely a synthetic scent…

Read the rest of this article »

Sleep Scentsations Scented Pillow Liners ~ home fragrance

Posted by Jessica on 7 March 2009 29 Comments

Sleep Scentsations Scented pillow linersThe company Sleep Scentsations was started by two sisters who wanted to create an affordable, portable form of aromatherapy. Their first products are “scented pillow liners,” with a “scent menu” of six categories ranging from Fresh to Exotic to Botanical. The scents are designed to evoke pleasant memories and positive emotional responses in the user, in order to calm him or her for a good night's sleep.

The pillow liners are individually wrapped in foil packets labeled with their fragrances; each liner has an adhesive backing and can be pressed directly onto a pillow. The liner is thin, so you can't feel it through the pillowcase, but the fragrance filters nicely through the linens. This product strikes me as being very convenient for travel. I'd like to have one of these handy in a hotel room, for example, or even on an airplane. They don't create any mess, and unlike candles, they don't pose any risk (it's never a good idea to burn a candle while you're sleeping!). They're not meant to fragrance an entire room, of course; their scent remains in the area immediately surrounding the pillow, so that it's a more private experience…

Read the rest of this article »

« Newer articles
Older articles »

Advertisement

Search

Recent reviews

Atelier Cologne Love Osmanthus
Moschino Toy Boy
Arquiste Misfit
Diptyque Eau Capitale
Zoologist Bee
Parfum d’Empire Immortelle Corse
Comme des Garcons Series 10 Clash
Frédéric Malle Rose & Cuir
L’Artisan Parfumeur Le Chant de Camargue
Yves Saint Laurent Grain de Poudre
Régime des Fleurs Chloë Sevigny Little Flower
Chanel 1957
Gallivant Los Angeles
Amouage Portrayal Woman

Blogroll

Bois de Jasmin
Grain de Musc
Perfume Posse
The Non-Blonde
More blogs...

Perfumista lists

100 fragrances every perfumista should try
And 25 more fragrances every perfumista should smell
50 masculine fragrances every perfumista should try
26 vintage fragrances every perfumista should try
25 rose fragrances every perfumista should try
11 Cheap Perfumes Beauty Outsiders Love

Favorite posts

The Great Perfume Reduction Plan
Why I Love Old School Chypres
New to perfume and want to learn more?
How to make fragrance last through the day
Fragrance concentrations: sorting it all out
On reformulations, or why your favorite perfume doesn’t smell like it used to
How to get fragrance samples
Perfume for Life: How Long Will Your Fragrance Collection Last?

Upcoming

List of upcoming Friday projects

6 January ~ damage poll

31 January ~ winter reading poll

Back to Top

Home
Archives
About Now Smell This :: Privacy Policy
Perfume Reviews
New Perfumes
General Perfume Articles
The Monday Mail

Glossary of Perfume Terms
Perfume FAQ
Perfume Books

Noses ~ Perfumers A-E :: F-K :: L-S :: T-Z

Perfume Houses A-B :: C :: D-E :: F-G
H-J :: K-L :: M :: N-O :: P :: Q-R :: S
T :: U-Z

Copyright © 2005-2026 Now Smell This. All rights reserved.