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Scented Thoughts Archive
Page 4 of 8 • 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
 The smell of muguet (Convallaria majalis), or lily of the valley in English which has also retained the French word especially in the field of perfumery, is instantly delightful, delicate and fresh, with a capital letter. The scent of a sprig of muguet evokes without much effort of the imagination the woodland and the cool of the forest. If you concentrate and smell and close your eyes, the scent conjures up damp grass and sitting-sessions ending with your clothes wet with the morning dew and patterned with water-rings. When you smell further, you realize that the freshness is extraordinary compared to the sizes of the shapely little bells. If you approach your nose close to the flowers themselves, it suddenly feels as if you had entered halfway inside a refrigerator and next, that your nostrils and the tip of your nose just turned into an ice cube. The delicate mini bell-hats have huge air-conditioning power but it is not accompanied by any perceptible sound of a motor humming. How can something so tiny smell so fresh?...
Continue reading "Spring Notes: Lily of the Valley - Muguet... & Christian Dior {Scented Thoughts} {Fresh Notebook - Green Floral Freshness}" »
 Springtime is generous with floral and fresh notes. Like a natural calendar that unfolds over the weeks, you can discover a variety of delicate to heady notes when you put your mind to it wherever you are, at the florist's, the farmer's market, or the countryside. White Broom or Retama Monosperma, Bridal Veil Broom or Genêt Blanc is one of those discreetly sensual notes of spring that can insistently permeate the air thanks to its strength in numbers. It seems to concentrate the essential olfactory imprint of the renewal of nature in its aroma and even though it is a flower in the flesh, it seems to embody the general abstract, ideal scent of spring...
Continue reading "Spring Notes: White Broom {Scented Thoughts}" »
 A New Flanker to CristalleChanel will release a new flanker to Cristalle called Cristalle Eau Verte (Cristalle Green Water) set to be introduced on April 17th 2009 in the French market. It is signed by in-house perfumer Jacques Polge (who works with Christopher Sheldrake now). Cristalle was originally composed in 1974 by then in-house nose Henri Robert. An eau-de-parfum version created by Jacques Polge saw the light of day in 1993. Cristalle Eau Verte is an Eau de Toilette concentrée like Cristalle...
Continue reading "Chanel Cristalle Eau Verte (2009) {New Perfume} Chanel & Guerlain:Their Youth Appeal {Scented Thoughts}" »
  Scented Thoughts -- On Perfume Vintages: No Leap Year for GivenchySince 2005, Givenchy has turned to the concepts of natural harvests and vintage years to create renewed interest for some of the mainstay compositions from their fragrance catalog (see 2006; 2007). As one can witness the incessant stream of creative ideas nurturing French food culture on a daily basis, a country where edibles - from vegetables sold on market stalls to elaborate cuisine dishes and from hip yogurt flavors to breads at your neighborhood boulanger - follow or rather set fashion trends on a par with clothing, perfume, furniture design, and more, it is little surprising to see this fresh idea being adopted, at long last. In fact, it is surprising that the inspiration did not occur sooner. But let us see what measure of newness one can ascribe to this idea. As it is, the inspiration was born not in the middle of a picturesque produce market or a field in Grasse but as Alain Lorenzo of Parfums Givenchy was perusing champagne descriptions on a new LVMH site, eluxury, and became struck by the similarities between descriptions of the luxury beverage and perfume. The Harvest idea emerged, and as WWD reported in 2005, "Each has been reworked to highlight key ingredients culled from harvests judged by perfumers to be of above-average quality."
Lorenzo further explained the similitudes with champagne-making and the nature of the Givenchy project, "...to maintain consistent standards of flavor and
quality, every 12 months champagne companies blend reserve wines from
prior years' harvests with the current year's crus (growths).
"When there's a great year, they stop blending and there is a vintage," said Lorenzo. Like champagne, the ingredients used in Givenchy's
scents are a blend of ingredients culled from several harvests. With
the launch of the new line, however, the house will create special
juices to celebrate exceptional harvests of particular ingredients.".. 
Continue reading "Givenchy Harvest 2008: Ange ou Demon Jasmin Sambac, Amarige Ylang Ylang, Very Irresistible Rose Damascena, Organza Fleur d'Oranger - On Perfume Vintages {Scented Thoughts} {New Fragrances} {Blotter Notes}" »
 As announced previously last month, here is my follow-up article on the idea of turning to " Perfumes That Smell Unique Because You Are Unique" on how to pick fragrances that have an unique signature to them and seem to defeat the notion of fluctuating "skin chemistry" the most. That reflection is motivated by Hermès Vanille Galante. It is also, I realize, the second article in our Perfume Streetwear column where scents come alive in the hustle and bustle of a city, in the beautiful anonymity of strangers you pass by that smell familiar, or perhaps not. Psychology and perfume, love and scent, all these partners seem to have been brought up in the same house since their childhood and share existential affinities. As I have come to reflect a little about the topic of uniqueness as applied to the perfume one wears (leaving aside the personality of the wearer), some fragrances seem to possess an uncanny ability to retain their personality whole even when worn by thousands of different people (statistically speaking). It makes you wonder exactly how these particular scents can resist melting into people's skins and blending in with their "skin chemistries" whatever that notion may cover in reality other than a somewhat vague metaphor with a pseudo scientific ring of legitimacy to it. A perfumer like Jean-Paul Guerlain does not believe in skin chemistry and imply tongue-in-cheek that unless you haven't washed for some time all perfumes should smell the same on different people's skins. Another perfumer like Jean-Claude Ellena has said that on 1000 skins one perfume smells in 1000 different ways. Others attempt to classify people's skins according to their innate, never-evolving, inborn scents, correlated to their hair color or even race...
Continue reading "Best Unique-Smelling Perfumes for a Unique You on Days Like Valentine's Day: Part 1 {Scented Thoughts} {Perfume List}" »
 Do you notice the similarities between a perfume by Salvador Dali called Sea and Sun in Cadaques launched in 2006 and Ma Dame by Jean Paul Gaultier introduced last year in 2008?
Continue reading "Salvador Dali Sea and Sun in Cadaques & Jean Paul Gaultier Ma Dame Fraternel Twin Bottles {Scented Thoughts}" »
 When I initially posted about the 25th Tova Anniversary, I soon had to realize that Tova Signature perfume was somewhat of a pop culture phenomenon thanks to the popularity the scent had gained over the years of being sold on QVC. If the thread at The Scented Salamander is but the emerging tip of an iceberg, you can well imagine how many - reportedly millions of Tova wearers - are thinking similar thoughts. At the same time that affection and love was lavished upon the perfume, or rather upon its former glory, much disgruntlement was voiced too regarding its present formulation. And from time to time, a Tova Signature wearer drops by perfume café Scented Salamander to gripe, mostly (and I am guessing) in the hope that the message will come across to the Tova people...
Continue reading "The Tova Signature/Tova Reserve Saga: All In The Eye Of The Beholder?{Scented Thoughts}" »
 Vanilla, which has been in the recent past showcased as a main source of inspiration for perfumes such as Tihota by Indult composed by perfumer Francis Kurkdjian and Spiritueuse Double Vanille by Guerlain created by Jean-Paul Guerlain, while being announced as a key note in the upcoming Vanille Galante by Hermès in the Hermessence series, a work by Jean-Claude Ellena, has visibly awoken the interests of some of the major perfumers of the day.
L'Express is devoting an article to this beloved, indispensable ingredient of perfumery in more or less high doses including a Q & A with perfumer Jean-Paul Duriez of the house of Patou.
From that article we excerpt, translate and comment on a quote regarding the new Vanille Galante (Flirtatious Vanilla) to be launched in February 2009...
Continue reading "Article on Vanilla & Preview of Upcoming Hermes Vanille Galante {Fragrance News} {Fragrant Reading} {Scented Thoughts}" »
 Here are the new print ads for the fragrance Miss Dior Chérie shot with model Maryna Linchuk. Sofia Coppola has been hired by Dior to film the TV commercial version of the ad featuring the same model but the latter has not been released on the net yet as far as I can tell. And here is an anecdote about the perfume: last summer as I had feasted on ripe French-bred strawberries and some were left on the table and forgotten, I started smelling Miss Dior Chérie in the air in a very distinct manner after a while. It is only after a few quizzical moments that I realized the strawberries smelled exactly like the strawberry note in the perfume, complete with its chypré overtones. I don't know if the scent of these strawberries have been enhanced or if Miss Dior Chérie just captures the natural scent of this varietal wonderfully, but it was funny. I have been doing involuntary reverse-associations more and more by the way. I smell this cumin and I think, mmm, it smells like L'Autre or that other cumin and mmm, it smells like Kingdom...talk about living in a different world! It does not happen systematically but it looks like the world of perfumes is taking on a life of its own... 
Continue reading "Miss Dior Chérie: The Official Ads & The Unofficial One + A Perfumista Hit by Reverse-Associations {Perfume Images & Adverts} {Scented Thoughts}" »
 1931 advert for Un Air Embaumé by Rigaud from Memory Pub Smelling some recent releases in the past few days, one of them being Lyric by Amouage, it has struck me how, precisely, perfumes might have lost their lyrical, limpid and aerial quality and that this is the reason why artistic director Christopher Chong, an opera singer by training, might have wanted to recapture that quality with both the Jubilation (2007) and Lyric (2008) duos. These fragrances do make me think of the opera, but do they make me feel that they are like a voice that soar with longing in the air and makes an opera house come alive or even riotous as in the olden days? Not necessarily. In the case of Jubilation for Women I readily think of a sumptuous stately marble and golden staircase strewn with ladies in evening attires making their way to the deep velvety reds of their private boxes; in fact the image that superposes itself on the impression of the scent is that of an advert from the beginning of the 20th century depicting such a scene for the once wildly popular Un Air Embaumé (Balmy Air) by Rigaud. In the case of Lyric for Women, I also think of the ruby reds of the opera house but more also of a fine dinner by candlelight taken after the performance, a little Dame-aux-Camélias like. Somehow, the first perfume by Amouage, Jubilation, seems to allude to the anticipatory moments of emotion prior to going to listen to the opera. Somehow, the second fragrance, Lyric, makes me think of a night after the opera, of a meal taken à médianoche with its hedonistic hints of wine, roses, and something palatable like chocolate and vanilla. Lyric is billed as a floral oriental and the rose is its major floral note, but it seems to my nose to contain the olfactory allusions of a gourmand oriental as well, like so many other perfumes nowadays. It is even more subtle than that; it is not really gourmand, it is gourmand by allusion as the oriental notes have been worked in such a way as to be on hanging on the cliff of a gentle precipice called ganache...
Continue reading "Perfumes That Sing Vs. Perfumes That Eat: Rooting for the Return of the Aerial in Perfumery {Scented Thoughts}" »
 Lavandin Abrialis
Reviewing By Kilian Prelude To Love yesterday, I puzzled over the question of why this young and exclusive niche perfume house had decided to compose a bold citrus-y fragrance, quite literally plugging into a group of notes that from a certain perspective can smell a bit plain. Or perhaps I would not have asked myself this question had the jus smelled different. The next puzzle I have had in mind is why they had decided to take on the added challenge of doing not only a citrus-y perfume but also do it in a rather minimalist, even straightforward style? It seems to compound the difficulty of attempting to uplift the lemons and mandarins from the level of the mundane. Indeed, the resulting impression makes you perceive the difference existing between metaphorically expensive and literally expensive...  Lavandula Vera
Continue reading "Notes on Lavender in Eaux de Cologne & Further Thoughts on By Kilian Prelude To Love {Scented Thoughts} " »
 Prince Matchabelli Wind Song by Parfums de Coeur is, no doubt in my mind right this instant - and has been for the past few days - the most perfect fragrance in the world and never has this type of preposterous, fleeting, yet sincere axiom sounded more subjectively convincing and worth a public review than in the, at times, sweltering heat of a glaring Cantabrigian summer (Note: this review was initially written, but not completed, in July 2008). If the latter qualification seems to diminish the very notion of a perfect scent, it does not in reality; it just expresses my genuine sense of bewilderment at finding the added, heavensent desirability of a complementarity discovered between the hotness of July in New England and the perfectly collected coolness of this subtle and fresh green powdery scent that seems to encase an elegant pin-thin-sized hand-rolled lady's clove cigarette, maculated with traces of rose-scented lipstick in its heart. The subtle greenness is charming is what at first pulled me into the scent. I am finally not let down by the creamy, smoky and dry herbal-y vetiver in the drydown. The ylang ylang is discreetly sexy. Ah but that carnation is enigmatic and metallic yet completely alluring as a beauty with a steel prosthetic leg is: you note the silvery flash from the corner of your eye, yet quickly forget about it and are enchanted by the general aura of the person. And there is so much more to say that I will probably need to review it several times before I can let go of it. Wind Song is, however inconspicuously, related in regard with the clove-carnation accord to perfumes like Tabu and Opium, with their central hot-and-dry carnation accords. But it is also at the same time a fresh aldehydic related to Chanel No. 5. There is something also of l'Origan in that orris chewing-gum effect. The dry woods in the base, cedar, vetiver, add a subliminal perfecting masculine touch that contributes to the sense of wholeness of the scent as in the circle of assembled yin and yang symbols. Together with the exotic suggestion offered by ylang, it comes to smell like sandalwood. This perfume, I realize, is a hidden gem of the drugstores and the perfume world more generally speaking....  This advert, from 1995, is reportedly the favorite of Parfums de Coeur.
Continue reading "Prince Matchabelli Wind Song (1953): A Perfect Fragrance {Perfume Review & Musings} On The Perils in Comparing Vintage & New Formulations Side by Side {Scented Thoughts}" »
 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 WagnerBeing 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}" »
 In typical fashion for our general approach and perception of a perfume, images come first and then the first inhale. How much this precedence of the visual over the olfactory guides our thoughts about a fragrance is hard to decipher, yet we can recognize this shaping, almost hierarchical quality of vision over our nose where fine fragrances are concerned (except when a reviewer is offered the opportunity to sniff unnamed and unadorned lab samples, but then again, we see something before we smell it). Left to fend off in a less civilized environment or simply put in such conditions as to be able to smell natural aromas freely and unaware, the relationship of precedence inverses and we will experience oftentimes the sudden intrusiveness of a smell before finding its origin and identifying it with the help of our sight as we request for further clarification. We talked at length already about the images surrounding Secret Obsession by Calvin Klein and the brand made sure the images around the new perfume would be arresting around the idea of nakedness and feminine desire...
Continue reading "Calvin Klein Secret Obsession: Prelude to Love, Mmm...to a Review {Perfume Short} {Scented Thoughts}" »
 Hope everyone is having a lovely 4th-of-July weekend! There are still fireworks planned for this evening so the festivities are not quite over yet in the part of the country where we are. The other day the countryside smelled fresh and cool in the evening mixed with gunpowder. I took some olfactory notes on Skunk Cabbage (Symplocarpus Feotidus) or Swamp Cabbage. Depending on whether you smell the crushed leaves or stem, the smells differ slightly. Despite its name, the plant is not repulsive at all, making you think more of savory culinary associations and wondering whether it might work in a recipe. This source indicates that Native Americans even used skunk cabbage as an underarm deodorant, which points in the direction of a buttery, garlicky aroma being considered attractive, as it is in some other cultures....
Continue reading "Happy 4th of July...And What does Skunk Cabbage Smell Like? {Scented Thoughts - Journal}" »
Scented Thoughts Archive
Page 4 of 8 • 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
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Fin O'Suilleabhain on
Les Exclusifs: Bel Respiro, No 18, & 28 La Pausa by Chanel {Perfume Review & Musings} {New Perfumes}
: Hi ... can I ask about the Stravinsky / Chanel image. Is ...
Thalestris Dupont on
Fragonard Caresse (1929/2008) {Perfume Review}
: Lovely perfume! Reminds me of the spring 2011 when I was wearing ...
Karen Lindsey on
Long Lost Crabtree & Evelyn Fragrance: Help Please {Ask The Readers}
: I just found this site and I so need to find someone ...
Regina on
Happy New Year 2012!
: Valentine's Day will soon be here. Any recommendations?
C Sasich on
Easy Tricks To Create Golden Globes Hairstyles! {Beauty Notes - Hair}
: My fave was Michelle Williams - modern , effortless not overdone . ...
kelvin neo on
Victoria's Secret Life is Pink Wish Pink, Live Pink, Hope Pink (2010) *New Fragrances*
: Hi good day, Can i know where can purchase or order Pink ...
Alan on
A Funny Post About Scented Candles {Fragrant Reading}
: Hell-scent candle, lol.
Gina on
Two Organic Oud Scents: Sama Oudh Jasmin & Undergreen Black Classic (2011) {New Perfumes}
: I want to try Sama Oudh Jasmin but checked the websites. I ...
Tammy on
Top 12 Best New Department Store Fragrances of 2011 for the Holidays {Perfume List}
: Wish this came with a little print out sheet for my next ...
Toñi on
Dance with Givenchy (2010) {New Perfume}
: Where can I get Dance with Givenchy? It's impossible to find it ...
Toñi on
Dance with Givenchy (2010) {New Perfume}
: Where can I get Dance with Givenchy? It's impossible to find it ...
evageli karounzou on
Choppy Waters for Stella Cadente Miss Me {Fragrance News}
: at 2007 i was in paris an i bought this perfume.Since then ...
Mandy Aftel on
Aftelier Perfumes Secret Garden (2011): Featuring Real Civet & Castoreum {New Fragrance}
: Thank you so much Marie-Helene for your lovely review! You are great ...
Kay on
Mona di Orio Chamarré (2009): Perfume Review in Memoriam
: This is very interesting. First thing that came to my mind when ...
Maddy on
Bint el Sudan, The Other, African Chanel No.5: Interview with Nick Evans of International Flavors & Fragrances, Inc. {Perfume Q & A - The Scents of Africa}
: Interesting post. I've lived in Ghana but I don't remember encountering anyone ...
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