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Browsing by category: perfume talk

Jo Malone Blue Hyacinth and Leather & Artemisia ~ fragrance reviews

Posted by Jessica on 23 March 2017 41 Comments

Jo Malone Bloomsbury Set

Jo Malone recently launched its springtime limited edition collection, The Bloomsbury Set. Once again, the collection has an appropriately English theme. These five fragrances — Blue Hyacinth, Garden Lilies, Leather & Artemisia, Tobacco & Mandarin and Whisky & Cedarwood — were reportedly inspired by the Bloomsbury Group and artist Vanessa Bell’s Charleston House in Sussex. I say “reportedly” because that information was shared in early press releases, although the Jo Malone website now only refers vaguely to “free spirited artists” living “an unconventional life in their legendary country house.”

Samples of Jo Malone’s limited editions are hard to come by, so this review is based on visit to a Jo Malone counter and a generous application of two fragrances that particularly interested me…

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Cartier Baiser Fou ~ perfume review

Posted by Robin on 22 March 2017 34 Comments

Cartier Baiser Fou, brand image

I like perfumer Mathilde Laurent, but we are not besties. I am pretty sure she first came to my attention in relation to her 2003 version of Shalimar Eau Légère, and when I have absolutely nothing better to do, I sometimes wonder what Guerlain would be up to now if she, instead of Thierry Wasser, had been appointed the house perfumer, and whether I would have ever gotten the (admittedly ridiculous) Shalimar Eau Légère Extrême I wanted. Instead, Ms. Laurent ended up at Cartier, where she has done plenty of respectable work without stressing my budgetary arrangements in any significant way: as I said, we are not besties. My favorite so far, on the women’s side, is the lily-ish Baiser Volé. The gardenia-ish La Panthère did not please me so much, other than the fantastic bottle. Now we’ve got Baiser Fou, inspired by “lipstick kisses” and said to be orchid-ish:

To capture the elusive aroma of lipstick, Cartier perfumer Mathilde Laurent was inspired by the intense powderiness and sweetness of the orchid. The bloom’s delicious balmy accents of white chocolate add to the addiction, lingering on the skin for hours.1

Hmm, sweet powder — sound familiar…

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5 Perfumes for: Happiness & Good Cheer

Posted by Angela on 20 March 2017 105 Comments

merry go round

That’s a presumptuous title, isn’t it? Why should I know what perfume will lift your mood? I don’t, so here’s a list of five perfumes that make me happy. My criteria is that they be friendly, uplifting, and maybe a little wacky. No brooding orientals or pretentious oeuvres here. Maybe you’ll find something to perk you up, too.

Jean Patou Colony: On the top of the “happy because it’s wacky” list is Colony, a pineapple syrup-infused chypre. To me, Colony is like an elegantly dressed woman who knows how to burp on command or who does a spot-on imitation of Foghorn Leghorn — all without mussing a hair of her chignon. How can that not bring you joy? For a bohemian take on the same concept…

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The swapmeet, episode 10

Posted by Robin on 18 March 2017 195 Comments — Comments are closed

Chrysanthemum

The swapmeet (episode 10) is open for business closed…

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Violets for (Almost) Spring: Nomenclature Lumen_esce & Agustin Reyes Royal Violets

Posted by Kevin on 17 March 2017 33 Comments

Nomenclature Lumen_esce

Niche line Nomenclature “celebrates design in perfume chemistry by showcasing today’s most inspiring, exclusive molecules.” The Nomenclature line presents synthetic perfume ingredients. I have a hard time thinking of an “inspiring” new scent molecule! Please comment if you have a favorite!

Nomenclature says:

While natural essences bask in the limelight, synthetics are the clandestine infiltrators that spark off fragrant revolutions. It was the discovery of coumarin that yielded the first modern perfume, Fougère Royale, in 1881. Aldehydes lent their abstract sheen to Chanel N°5. Ethyl-vanillin enhanced Shalimar’s plush cleavage. Hedione® breathed its radiance into Eau Sauvage. And no contemporary scent could do without synthetic musk or the ubiquitous Iso E Super. Whether they imitate nature, tease out its innermost secrets or veer off into botanically impossible smells, synthetics are the true building blocks of perfumery. Elegant solutions discovered by scientists, wafting from labs onto skin and into your nose.

One certainly would expect such talk from firms like Firmenich who developed and patented Violettyne®, the focal ingredient in Nomenclature Lumen_esce…

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