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Browsing by tag: classic cologne

Heeley Oranges And Lemons Say The Bells Of St. Clement’s ~ fragrance review

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oranges & lemons

As I’ve said here many times before, I’m a summer person. I do not like cold, and as long as the weather is warm enough to wear shorts, I have no real complaints. Still, even I am willing to admit that the heat is a bit oppressive here at the moment: the temperature is expected to hit 99° F today, and it probably already has. I had been planning to review the new Fancy Nights by Jessica Simpson, but I can promise you that Fancy Nights is not something you will want to be wearing when it is 99° F.

So: Heeley Oranges And Lemons Say The Bells of St. Clement’s. It is named for the nursery rhyme, and it’s just the sort of thing you can wear when it’s too hot to wear most anything else…

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Guerlain Eau de Cologne Imperiale ~ fragrance review

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Empress Euguenie

Celebrity fragrances have been around a long time. Like TV, music and movie stars of today, European royalty lent their names and seals of approval to many perfume house scents in the 19th century — and were supplied with all manner of toiletries in return. Having a queen, emperor, princess or other “noble” person or family associated with a fragrance helped sales, and Guerlain received royal “warrants” from the likes of the Queen of Belgium in 1842 and the Prince of Wales.1 Guerlain produced many perfumes with “royal airs” — Bouquet de Duchesse, Délice du Prince, Le Bouquet de Fürstenberg, Esterházy Mixtyre, Bouquet du Roi d’Angleterre, Bouquet du Jardin du roi, Bouquet de l’Impératrice and Bouquet Napoléon.2

Pierre-François-Pascal Guerlain (who founded the Guerlain perfumery in 1828) was awarded a royal supplier patent in 1853 when he received permission from Empress Eugénie (wife of Napoléon III) to name one of his creations Eau de Cologne Impériale;3 Guerlain was given the title Perfumer to her Majesty the Empress Eugénie.2 Eugénie’s cologne became famous, and its “bee design” bottles are an enduring symbol of Guerlain…

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Rochas Eau de Rochas ~ fragrance review

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Eau de Rochas Femme

The concept of cologne is so alluring. A true cologne should be sparkling and clean and disappear soon after it is applied — almost like an extension of the soap you just used in the shower. It all sounds so fresh, pure, and energetic. The problem for me is that a cologne never really feels like “me”. Just like meditation, camping, and taking up a sport, cologne sounds like something I want to love but, to be honest, really don’t. That is, until I met Eau de Rochas…

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Diptyque Cologne trio (L’Eau de L’Eau, L’Eau des Hesperides, L’Eau de Neroli) ~ fragrance review

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Diptyque L'Eau cologne collection

This year marks the 40th anniversary of Diptyque's first fragrance, L'Eau, originally introduced in 1968. To celebrate, the line has launched a trio of unisex colognes: L'Eau de L'Eau, L'Eau des Hesperides and L'Eau de Neroli. All three were developed by perfumer Olivier Pescheux.

L’Eau de L’Eau pays homage to L'Eau (go ahead, translate that in your head), which was said, in turn, to have been based on a 16th century potpourri recipe. I haven't tried L'Eau in some years; my testing notes, probably written in late 2003 or early 2004, say “it is warm and spicy but sheer at the same time: an almost aqueous feeling: potpourri under water. Very nice, would absolutely never wear it.” My tastes have expanded pretty dramatically since then…

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