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Browsing by category: perfume talk

Heeley Eau Sacree ~ fragrance review

Posted by Kevin on 8 April 2020 28 Comments

Last Sunday, I took a late-afternoon walk and noticed a wonderful incense fragrance “accord” in the air, a mix of spring flowers (magnolias, English laurel, Oregon grape) and the scent of wood burning in fireplaces. I decided to wear an incense perfume the next day and selected a sample vial of Heeley Eau Sacrée.

I love the ritual of burning incense and watching curlicues of incense smoke move through my house. Prime spots for placing incense? In front of religious images and statues, especially my Ayutthaya crowned Buddha that I “adopted” in Chiang Mai, Indra from Nepal and many Ganesh statues from India (one given to me on my wedding day). I light a candle or burn incense on days a person or animal I loved was born…or died. Incense feels important, not simply a product to scent a space…

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Floraiku Part II ~ fragrance reviews

Posted by Kevin on 19 March 2020 11 Comments

Today, I tackle six more Floraïku perfumes; for an introduction to the line, see yesterday’s Part I.

Sound of a Ricochet (vanilla, tonka bean, sandalwood) “A red dragonfly under the burning sky, the sound of a ricochet.”

What a great name: Sound of a Ricochet. I expected something sharp, startling, so I was surprised at the warm notes listed for this scent. This is a cuddly, wool-y scent, with creamy vanilla and tonka bean…

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Floraiku Part I ~ fragrance reviews

Posted by Kevin on 18 March 2020 19 Comments

Floraïku came to my attention not because I smelled one of its fragrances but because I saw one of its bottles; beware beautiful packaging. Floraïku is an offshoot of the niche line Memo Paris and its perfumes are inspired by Japan. At present, Floraïku has 19 perfumes (two of which are “ShadowingTM” fragrances — more on those later). According to the Floraïku website, the perfumes were developed by Aliénor Massenet or Sophie Labbé and each perfume supposedly contains more than 50% naturals (not sure any agency monitors such claims).

Floraïku fragrances are arranged in groupings: Forbidden Incense | Kodo — Sound of a Ricochet, My Shadow on the Wall, My Love Has the Color of the Night; Enigmatic Flowers | Ikebana — I See the Clouds Go By, Cricket Song, First Dream of the Year; Secret Teas and Spices | O Cha — The Moon and I, I Am Coming Home, One Umbrella for Two; Light Shadow — Sleeping on the Roof; Dark Shadow — Between Two Trees. Each scent has a poem attached to the perfume and comes in a gorgeous bottle/10 ml travel spray combo (presented in a bento box). Eight of Floraïku’s perfumes are missing from my two posts this week: Just A Rose, Ao, The Mountain Standing Still, Flowers Turn Purple, In the Rain, Wind in my Hand ($755!), In the Dark and Surprise…

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Scent of Japan: Parfum Satori Hana Hiraku & J-Scent Roasted Green Tea ~ fragrance reviews

Posted by Kevin on 5 March 2020 18 Comments

If you read any quantity of perfume writing, you probably know that the Japanese have a reputation for loving light, almost-not-there perfumes. Notes in such Japanese-beloved/Japan-inspired scents are often citrus-y — or watery: water lily, lotus, cyclamen, tulip and the like. The perfumes I’m writing about today are made by companies based in Japan; I was curious if they would fit the “supposed” Japanese scent target.

Parfum Satori Hana Hiraku (A Flower Blooms)

[by perfumer Satori Osawa: listed fragrance notes of melon, bergamot, galbanum, magnolia, iris, jasmine, tuberose, rose, ylang-ylang, chamomile, miso, kogashi-shōyu (‘burned’ soy sauce) , beeswax, sandalwood, cedar, mitarashi (sweet soy sauce)]

Read Hana Hiraku’s list of notes and you’d expect a powerhouse. Hana Hiraku certainly has one of the most interesting openings I’ve smelled in ages: a combo of realistic muskmelon, ramen and thick soy sauce (a salty-sweet delight). If the perfume stopped right there, I’d be a customer ASAP. But Hana Hiraku still has some interesting developments in store…

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The Monday Mail ~ help Thomas find a new fragrance

Posted by Robin on 2 March 2020 44 Comments

Thomas, who lives in Berlin, wants to find a new “handsome and rich” fragrance for personal and casual wear. He does not know much about perfume, but he is interested in exploring — especially the world of niche fragrance —and has good access to perfume stores. His price limit is about the same as a 50 ml bottle of a Tom Ford Private Blend, and he’d like his new scent to be long lasting, but without overwhelming sillage. Here is what we know about Thomas…

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