After finishing In Search of Lost Time, I spent several weeks reading nothing but my old children’s books and fashion and travel magazines. Sometimes, following days of eating rich and spicy foods, all I crave is a sliced cucumber or tomato drizzled with rice vinegar. As hot weather arrives, I like to pour on Eaux de Cologne and let their sparkly, invigorating notes “cleanse” my sense of smell of its winter residue of incense, amber, vanilla and leather perfumes.

We all (most of us) like, and need, variety in our lives — and in our rotation of perfumes. I could never wear only “natural” fragrances or rely on one perfume house for my perfume ‘needs’. I can’t stick with one genre of scent: say, vetivers, ambers or chypres. BUT: I didn’t think my need for change would ever take me into the blue-bleu world of marine-sport fragrances….

Bleu de Chanel is Chanel’s “first major male fragrance since 2004’s Allure Homme Sport and its first men’s master brand since 1990’s Egoïste.”* Even though Bleu de Chanel is not geared to a particular demographic/age-group, Chanel hopes this fragrance will broaden its appeal with young men. Bleu de Chanel was created by Chanel’s in-house perfumer Jacques Polge and it contains notes of citrus (bergamot, lemon, grapefruit), “deep blue sea” accord, peppermint, pink pepper, nutmeg, ginger, jasmine, cedar, vetiver, patchouli, labdanum and frankincense…

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