Monthly Archives from March 2006

Perfume Streetwear Archive

July 22, 2010



4 Sexy Paris Sillages: Perfumes that Say Follow Me, Fragrances that Say Remember Me {Fragrances of Paris} {Perfume Streetwear}


Sexy-Sillages-Paris-C.jpg

How best to report on sexy fragrances but as a form of up-to-the-minute account of what you encountered on the street when you were involuntarily pulled into the aura of seduction of a perfume?

The following are four perfumes that made me stop mentally and think about them while walking (or sitting) on an ordinary day, in an ordinary venue, realizing how infinitely seductive an atmosphere they could create. I did not halt and think "these fragrances are beautiful" or "What great taste!" but rather the perfumes seemed to have an uncanny ability to become part of the personality of the woman and prolong her presence, but also address itself to you.

The women who wore them were definitely enhanced by the scent they were wearing while creating an impression of mystery since what the perfume has to say, it expresses it without words.

Paris smelled and looked all the better for it.


Shalimar or Eros Unleashed

My epiphany came the other summer day smelling a trail of Shalimar left by a young woman who otherwise seemed to be completely lacking of any self-consciousness regarding her fragrance given her casual urban look and main occupation at the time: chatting with a group of friends, perhaps even holding a biker's helmet in her hand as I recall. But Shalimar, it has to be reasserted, is one of the great love fragrances of all time and a great erotic masterpiece. The vanilla and leather in it were designed to kill...

Continue reading "4 Sexy Paris Sillages: Perfumes that Say Follow Me, Fragrances that Say Remember Me {Fragrances of Paris} {Perfume Streetwear}" »

October 6, 2009

Dior Hypnotic Poison Rubis & Thierry Mugler Angel Liqueur: Sniffing Rich Orientals in Paris Lead Me to New Flankers {Scented Thoughts} {Perfume Reviews} {Perfume Streetwear}


hypnotic-poison-rubis-2.jpgOne of the pleasures of taking a stroll in Paris or simply going from point A to point B is picking up on sillages of perfume on the streets. When a repetition pattern appears, it becomes a bit intriguing.

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Paris ca. 1925, from art.com


In early September when the weather was still summery and sunny, I started smelling Hypnotic Poison a few times. What I found anomalous was the fact that it felt as if several women had decided to anticipate the colder days and pulled out their fur perfumes, the same one for some reason, seemingly showing the same concerted impatience to get done and over with summer. I couldn't help but think several things: that Parisian women indeed like their oriental perfumes and are all too ready to stop pretending summery scents can be satisfying; it was interesting that these women were young (with one exception) and finally that maybe they could have held on a bit longer to envelop themselves with the rich, sensual volutes of this boudoir oriental. I felt pleasure at smelling the heliotrope and rich tonka but at the same time felt there was a discrepancy with the pace of the season. I somehow liked the idea that in the near future when the gray of autumn would cover the sky and mesh with the zinc roofs and coldness would be inescapable, that it would make the scent be even more irresistible. But now? Wasn't it a bit early?...

angel-liqueur.jpg

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August 28, 2008

The White Musk Trend In Paris...Really? {Perfume Streetwear} {Scented Thoughts}

Musk_Deer-1616.jpg
An early engraving of the musk deer, here called the "musk-cat" - Hortus Sanitatis, 1490


PERFUME STREETWEAR: THE WHITE-MUSK TREND IN PARIS... VRAIMENT?
by Marie-Helene Wagner


Being in Paris, a capital-city bigger, more kaleidoscopic than Cambridge or even Boston, with more clusters of villages in it, I started experiencing first-hand how one can catch a meaningful glimpse, or rather sniff, of current perfume-wearing trends trailing sensually along the sidewalks, the subway corridors and as showcased in the intimacy of steamy, thronged buses in the summer. Finding myself in the privileged historic environment of an urban culture that is  keen on burning incense at the altar of the gods of seduction and of the art of "paraître" (looks) through recourse to personal aromas (but without neglecting the interior life as the contemplative gazes of the cigarette smokers indulging in street-smoking reveals), and which is moreover conscious of its beautiful, multi-secular scented and fashion traditions, makes it all the more interesting to observe or rather take in while simply walking about.

Just as fashion-conscious Parisian women and men love to check out each other's shoes, accessories, clothes and style sense on the street, with more or less discreet patrolling surveillance-eyes that sometimes reveal a startled look of realization, one can bet one's bottom Euro that lovers of beauty are silently inhaling perfume inspiration when brushing past discerning perfumistas in the many busy areas of the city. Or is there such a thing as a perfumista in Paris and is my vocabulary just being contaminated by professional lingo? I muse on: aren't all French women and men expected to have been lulled to bed by the scents of their mothers and developed a seemingly innate appreciation for perfume from the time they were falling asleep in their cradles? Come to think of it: what if one were not just a perfumista but if one were just, is...perfume... in some meditative and deeply reflective sense? The thought is too deep to tackle right now, of course and besides I am thirsty, so I leave it aside. But it's about this idea that early education becomes something like second nature, and that other idea that perfumes that have authenticity about them are psychological constructs that contain doors one can open with invisible keys to enter in their universes...

Part II of this article: Top White Musk Trails to Try Out

Continue reading "The White Musk Trend In Paris...Really? {Perfume Streetwear} {Scented Thoughts}" »

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