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Perfumista on a Shoestring Archive
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 Kiehl's have released a revamped and more extensive collection of their Essence Oils which total up to 122 different scents. They have selected 10 essences for the 2009 lineup. A neat detail is that each essence is now dated with its year of introduction, an excellent way to know how a particular decade smelled!...
Continue reading "Kiehl's Essence Oils {Fragrance News - New Packaging} {Perfumista on a Shoestring}" »
 The world of fragrance - and this has to do with its artisan side - abounds with more or less derivative works. This time we mention one that is more than an inspired copy, a faithful copy but made with cheaper ingredients and available at a bargain price: the distinctive signature of the original Gianni Versace the debut scent of the flamboyant Italian fashion brand heralded by the Medusa head was recreated with Varensia by Ulric de Varens, the latter a down-market label that has decided to go slightly more upscale lately...
Continue reading "Versace Gianni Versace - Ulric de Varens Varensia {Perfumista on a Shoestring - Twin Frags} {Hasty-Reviews}" »
 "I was wondering if you could give me an idea of what scent by Estee Lauder would be comparable to Lancome's Tresor. I cannot wear too
many colognes, so I am looking for something like Tresor, but made by Estee Lauder. Any help would be appreciated. When I go to the cosmetic
counter, after smelling just a few it gets to me. Thank you for your
time.
Jennifer Schroeder"
Dear Jennifer,
Off the top of my head, I'd recommend trying
Estée by Estée Lauder. It is also a powdery and velvety floral oriental, feminine and
rich although it will not smell exactly like Trésor by Lancôme.
If
I understand your question correctly to mean that, perhaps, you are
looking for a cheaper, more recession-proof priced version of Trésor, then I'd certainly recommend the peachy and rosy Exclamation! by Coty. It was created by perfumer
Sophia Grojsman, the author of Trésor, and smells like a relation of it. It is a lovely
fragrance despite its mass-market distribution channel which might turn
off some (word to the perfume snobs!)...
Continue reading "Is There A Fragrance Similar To Tresor by Lancome...by Estee Lauder? (& Maybe by Others, adds TSS) {Ask Marie-Helene} {Perfumista on a Shoestring}" »
 Goats are smelly
The Get-Out-The-Vote (& Grab-A-Scent-On-The-Go) Perfume ListIt is a priori tricky to attempt to draw a connection, many will perceive as superfluous, between perfume-wearing and election day, but as I have been reading on a steady stream of accounts describing the grueling waiting-period people have to endure to cast in their votes, I decided it was time to call attention to what perfume can do for the morale of the citizens. Those who are already aware of the psychological effects of perfume, such as perfumistas, have a unique opportunity to canvass their neighborhoods and distribute samples of scents as rewards and effort-sustaining devices (while downsizing their collections)... 
Continue reading "Perfumes To Wear on Election Day 2008 in the Long, Long Lines {Perfume List} {Perfumista on a Shoestring}" »
 Voluspa has put out a collection of four fragrances that can be used both as room sprays and body sprays in a collection titled Mika Room and Body Spray (not listed on their site). It features Apricot Nectar, Tart Rhubarb, Thyme Flower, and Tunisian Blood Orange, which are also available as scented candles.
The line is carried by Anthropologie which commissioned the bottle design so that it be in tune with their universe straddling the worlds of grunge/shabby chic/Paris appartment/retro charm and more. The glass spray flacons are covered with a mono-colored baroque floral pattern and the cap is made of white ceramic; they actually look better in person than on the pictures they provide......
Continue reading "Voluspa Apricot Nectar in the Mika Room & Body Spray Collection (2008) {Perfume Review} {Perfumista on a Shoestring}" »
Yves Rocher is going to introduce Neonatura Breath - Souffle in the US market this spring of 2008 after they launched it last year in France. Described as evoking "...the radiantly heated sensuality of a warm breeze caressing the sand" and as showcasing a "sunny jasmine" we expected it to be a light summery jasmine with maybe an iodine edge to call to mind the backwash of the sea. Created by perfumer Delphine Lebeau from Givaudan, it appears in fact to be an economically priced mass-market version of a popular category of perfumes, the luscious tropical white floral blended with coconut, a warm-sand accord, and some citrus to add sparkle and fizz. Therefore we think it fits well in our Perfumista on a Shoestring column (much neglected) because it can effectively replace scents such as Ensoleille-Moi by André Gas, or Deseo by Jennifer Lopez or Origins Shedonism Exotic Floral Essence..... 
Continue reading "Yves Rocher Neonatura Breath - Souffle (2008) {Perfume Short (Review)} {Perfumista on a Shoestring} " »
Despite the title of this post, honestly, in this case I would recommend that you save your pennies to get Sisley Soir De Lune when you can because it is hard to settle for something less impressive once you have experienced the fineness of this scent. Nevertheless the two other chypres I suggest here are great and smell similar, it is just that they pale in comparison with the latest Sisley.
L'Arte di Gucci is very, even extremely similar to Soir de Lune except that the latter is more of everything than the first one. It is more subtle, more elegant, more expensive-smelling. The difference is not huge but it is enough for Soir de Lune to become the gold standard for this type of chypre....
Continue reading "Perfumista on a Shoestring: If You Love Soir de Lune by Sisley, You Might Settle (for a time) for L'Arte di Gucci by Gucci or Even Gucci III" »
 The Body Shop has issued four new perfumes: Neroli Jasmin, Cotton, Sequin Sparkle, and Cozy Cashmere. After testing them I can tell you in particular that Cozy Cashmere is in fact a not-so-subtle copy of Angel by Thierry Mugler. A lot of [........] (you can fill in) fruity-floral notes for the others. Neroli Jasmin retails for $20. The perfume oils retail for $14. For more information you can visit The Body Shop website.
 Bath & Body Works will introduce three new perfumes this fall called Seductive Perfume Mist Japanese Cherry Blossom, Sensual Amber, and Warm Vanilla Sugar in their Signature Collection. The perfumes will be available by the 10th of November 2006.
Japanese Cherry Blossom is described as "An intensely feminine interpretation of the fragrance you love, uniquely nuanced in a Perfume form. To create this strikingly original scent, our master perfumers have carefully blended intoxicating blossoms from an exotic Japanese garden with hints of Asian Pear, luscious Fuji Apple, and seductive silk musk. Top notes: Asian Pear, Fuji Apple, Luscious Ume Plum Mid notes: Japanese Cherry Blossom, Golden Butterfly Lily, Kyoto Rose Petals, Delicate Mimosa, Hedione Base notes: Vanilla Rice, Imperial Amber, Silk Musk, Cinnamon Incense, Himalayan Cedarwood, Creamy Sandalwood...
Continue reading "New Perfumes: Seductive Perfume Mist Japanese Cherry Blossom, Sensual Amber, & Warm Vanilla Sugar by Bath & Body Works" »
 This summer I discovered the Nemat International line of fragrance oils from India as they are currently being sold in places like Whole Foods and other types of health food stores. I am struck by their good quality. So much so that the Kuumba Made line which previously ranked high in my opinion of such oils has now taken second place. The Kuumba Made oils which smelled satisfying to my nose and are supposed to be 100% natural now take on a less authentic aura compared to the Nemat oils. The latter have more depth, more complexity, richness, and are rounder. Ultimately, they smell more natural. I particularly liked both Musk Amber and Jasmine although I must hasten to add, I am not a jasmine fan. Unfortunately, this flower has been so repeatedly mistreated that your average jasmine oil can feel pretty cliché. Not so with Nemat International, I recommend their jasmine oil...
Continue reading "Perfumista on a Shoestring: If You Like Ambre Passion by Laura Mercier, You Might Like Musk Amber by Nemat International " »
 Guerlain is issuing a reedition of Mahora (2000) called Mayotte which is part of the collection "Les Parisiennes". The new flacon, a classic Guerlain bee bottle, is different from the original but the juice remains the same. These reeditions usually retail around 140 Euros so grab a discounted bottle of Mahora if you want to smell expensive for less!...
Continue reading "Fragrance News & Shopping Tip: Mayotte by Guerlain " »
 Exclusive! The newly released Sensuelle Russie (Sensual Russia) by Esteban in their Le Bain collection does not disappoint. It is a delectable and rich gourmand Oriental blend that will be perfect for this coming fall and winter. Imagine a pot of succulent, idealized honey (let me specify that I do not like honey as a note in general but here it is a wonderful dark honey) a nectar fit only for the gods which would have accidentally or by design spilled onto a giant rough-hewn table made of fragrant cedarwood and as it slowly spread out would have mixed with tobacco and strange spices laid out there for no practical reason. Fate. The concoction thus created would have then macerated for a long, long time forgotten in the kitchen of the gods to reach, enfin, the perfect stage of aging at which point an enterprising human being would have come in and copied the molecules released by the mix and made it into a perfume...
Continue reading "Perfume Review & Musings: Sensuelle Russie by Esteban & Sample Giveaway (Updated)" »
 Notes: Bergamot, mint / jasmine, white lily,
rose, ylang ylang / carnation, iris, heliotrope, vanilla, pear.Terracotta Voile d'Eté was created in 1999 and officially signed by perfumer Jean-Paul Guerlain but in reality entrusted to junior perfumer Mathilde Laurent as a limited-edition fragrance. She had just been able to compose her first real independent work the previous year with Pamplelune in the Aqua Allegoria collection.
Like Les Météorites by the same house and more recently Azurée by Tom Ford for Estée Lauder, Terracotta is a perfume associated with a makeup line. One can thus guess that the marketing concept presiding over the launch of such a fragrance is to make the perfume be apprehended as an integral part of a beauty routine: the makeup is for the face and the fragrance is for the body. In effect, these fragrances are often conceived of as skin scents, evoking the intimate relationship one can develop with one's body through the mediation of scent. The powder for the face is mirrored by a fragrant powder or veil for the body.
I tend to like this concept. It puts the stress on the simplicity of the perfuming gesture envisioned as a complementary touch of beauty rather than as the exhibiting of a masterpiece of perfumery to be worn like a diadem.
It is an especially welcome mood for the summertime. It can suit you to wear this kind of relatively simple yet subtle scent as a preface to the summer holidays or to wear it to bottle the memory of these for later on.
When I say that Terracotta is simple, it is actually more complex and rich than many recent launches I have smelled lately, yet it is clear at the same time that it wants to play the card of summer far niente and lazy self-indulgence...
Continue reading "Guerlain Terracotta Voile d'Eté (1999) {Perfume Review & Musings}" »
A Try Me Size of Voile D'Ambre is now available for purchase on the Yves Rocher USA website. Voile D'Ambre is the first scent to be made part of the more upscale fragrance collection by Yves Rocher, Secrets d'Essences, and until recently was only available in Europe. I have heard through the grapevine that the full size bottle might be introduced to the US market in the fall.
Continue reading "Shopping Tip: Try Me Size of Voile D'Ambre by Yves Rocher Available in the US" »
Un Jour se Lève (A New Day is Beginning) was created in 2006 by nose Annick Ménardo. I have read somewhere that it has been a big hit with the French public, making it into the top 3 best-sellers' list together with Angel by Thierry Mugler and No5 by Chanel (sorry, I haven't kept the press reference). It is meant to evoke the firts rays of sunshine piercing through the sky. The perfume is described as a soft fresh floral chypre. Top notes are rhubharb and a green note. Middle notes are rose and wild lily of the valley. Base notes are patchouli, oakmoss, and musk...
Continue reading "New Perfume: Un Jour se Lève by Yves Rocher" »
Perfumista on a Shoestring Archive
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