At The Moment

In heavy rotation: Fiona Apple




Summer=Trashy Novels

Me thinks vanilla is better than no ice cream at all.

Fifty Shades of Grey, Fifty Shades Darker and Fifty Shades Freed. 
 by E.L James
About a month ago I had one of those perfect days: no work, no bothers,  Hubby at work, plus the housework/laundry and such was finished the day before. I got up early, fed the dogs, put them outside, brought them back in, grabbed the morning's mail-which included a couple of packages of perfume!  Spent the rest of the day sitting around reading Fifty and eating chocolate, drinking iced coffee, having a smoke and test spritzes from the perfume, while wearing the fat pants (it was that time of the month). Pure bliss.

The Fifty trilogy aren't the most challenging of reads, but they're entertaining, And dirty. They're page-turners. After a while I found myself turning the pages to hurry over the sex parts to get back to the story. A couple of romps in the playroom was enough for me, S&M isn't a turn on, and I have read erotica before. It's reads like a soap opera, this happening and some twists. Personally I would have run after seeing the S&M equipment, or finding about his ex-girlfriends. I say that easily but when you're in love it's difficult to think straight. Right now I'm in the middle of the 3rd book, finishing it has been stalled because I was reading it on my phone via Kindle and last Friday my Kindle app dissapeared, along with a couple of other apps I had stored on my SD card. Hmmm. Might have something to do with the new virus or my SD card failed. Will get right on it.

Colored French Tips
I saw these on a few co-workers, some in fire-engine red and darker colors. Didn't care for them at first but when I saw neon pink tips I had to try it. I like the colored tips only if my nails are fairly short and there's not a lot of tip with color. Long nails with colored tips make me think of "Project Nails" because it seems all the project bunnies around here wear French maincures with ultra long nails and that kind of gave the French manicure an aura of tackiness.

I do my nails about once a week, and if I avoid the dishes and most work it will last (or at least will remain halfway decent) for the week.
 First week I did a deep bright pink with a iridescent base-leaving my nail beds unpainted doesn't look good-I need something to hide the vertical ridges, ugh, as if I don't have enough issues with my appearance.

Second week I did clear beds with metallic silver tips. I've done this before, it looks rather dressy. But I found that the silver started looking kind of dirty after a few days so.....

This week: neon pink tips. I feel like painting a black line at the bottom of the pink but am afraid I'll ruin them. Free-hand painting tips isn't as easy as it looks.

Perfume of the Moment:

Almost forgot, this is a perfume blog. Well, since the summer has been off to an unusual start-lots of rain & storms, too many cooler than normal days with a few hot & humid days it's been difficult to chose, especially a summery perfume. All spring I was waiting for the rain to end so I could wear Apres L' Ondee and that didn't really come about. It's still raining. So I've been spending my time in iris perfumes, lots of  Tom Ford Violet Blonde, Shalimar Parfum Inital, Chanel no.19 Poudre, and Eau de Shalimar. Not in that order and not in that rank. Shalimar Initial and no. 19 wear the best on me, I dunno but Violet Blonde turns very, very powder-y in the mid to late notes, a bit too powdery. I do love Violet Blonde, it starts off fantastic-it just doesn't end well. I have a few samples, no full bottle for me.

Quick Sniffs of late:

Angel Eau de Toilette. Ugh, no thank you. Something smells "off" in this, very sharp and chemical, very unlike the original. About 10 years ago I hoarded loads of samples of the EDP, I keep finding them all over the house and it's smooth &  rich,  like a fine chocolate. The EDT smelled like a chemical blast. (BTW I tested this earlier tonight, I am due for my period so my sense of smell may be off)

Giorgio Armani- Armani Code: loved this at almost first sniff so I went from sample to reasonably priced full bottle. It seems fabulous in small doses, no heavy handed application or it becomes "too much". I have not test drove this outside the house yet. Will get right on it.

The French Connection

Doesn't have anything to do w/the post, I just like iconic images

There is a customer at work I'm friendly with-an older gentleman who is almost always outside during my breaks. Couple of weeks ago we got to talking, his son was going to France for a business trip, he was bringing him back 5 cartons of cigarettes because they're much cheaper and a light bulb went off in my head:

Guerlain La Petite Robe Noire
Hello! $80 USD for a 1.7 oz. and $3. for the car ride to get to the perfume store. I tried to give Joe more money as a tip for arranging this for me but he wouldn't accept it. His son will be going to France again, he travels all over. I'm making a mental list for the next trip!~

As for the juice....this is different, compared to other Guerlains. I have not really sniffed the original LPRN, only once in the store and it screamed berries to me so I promptly put it back on the shelf. Now there are no more of the original available to compare it to. I own LPRN2 and it's a different animal compared to 2012. LPRN2 is a marshmallow-y oriental, gourmand comfort scent. Nice in small doses during chilly days.

LPRN 2012 is, well, it's as if Miss Dior Chere (from 2005) and Coco Mademoiselle merged their eggs together and maybe Givenchy PI or Rochas Man (or some yummy man's fragrance, maybe a paternity test is in order here) provided the sperm, this would be the result. Yes, there are berries and cherries (on the sour side, too) but the large dose of modern musk, with bergamot, a bit of patchouli and a hint of iris here and there,  plus a spot of tea, all of that drying down onto and into vanilla turns this into a masterpiece.. What is the "modern musk"  note that I'm smelling here? I can't decipher the ingredient list. Gosh, I wish I could note pick better.

Did I say masterpiece? Yup. A modern masterpiece, as in mastering the current trend of fruity-florals and making it into an actual perfume. LPRN 2012 is a perfume, not sugar water, it's got a sophisticated edge. Don't ask me what notes give it the edge, I can't tell between the sour berries, musk, iris and all, somehow they blend into a perfume, they work. I never thought I'd actually like something with sour cherry notes but I like this.

 LPRN 2012 doesn't share many notes with Chanel's Coco Mademoiselle just patchouli, rose, tonka, vanilla and bergamot. She shares even less notes with Miss Dior Cherie, only cherry, patchouli and rose. But while wearing LPRN 12 I couldn't help thinking of Coco M and MDC, they all kind of remind me of each other.

 This isn't a "comfort" scent, I don't get the classification as an Oriental Vanilla, the vanilla doesn't stand out enough to me. LPRN 12 is something you might actually wear for a dressy occasion. It's got that perfumeness that makes you stand up straighter, makes you feel a few pounds lighter and like you're all decked out. I don't like to make age suggestions about perfumes, but LPRN 12 is a bit on the youthful side. But I'd say a trendy woman of any age can pull this off, no problem. (am I putting my foot in mouth here?)

Would I buy this at $135 USD*? Well, uh, I'd have to say no. Not at this time. Since I already have Chanel Coco Mad and Miss Dior I don't need another similar scent. I did procure this with the intention of selling it, but after a day of smelling it on myself I had to keep it. Plus it has a back story: my friend's son got it in France by my request,  and now every time I see Joe he sniffs around to see if I'm wearing it. I was wearing it the next time I saw him, he could smell it and said it smelled beautiful.  Then he thought I should ask my female co-workers what they thought of it. Um, no thank you. But for $80 it's a keeper : )

 By the way, it's amazing how your feelings about a scent will change when you're forced to wear it, no scrubbing. I got this while I was at work and sneaked a spritz as soon as I could, which was around 3pm. First impression was too much berries, too sour, too ugh. I didn't feel like scrubbing and the only other perfumes in my possession were samples of Madonna and La Prairie Platinum and I wasn't in the mood for either so I just dealt with it. By the end of the day (8pm) LPRN 12 had taken such a turn I found it quite likeable and enjoyable. Loveable. There aren't many Guerlains that I don't like, only Champs Elyesses and Secret Intention come to mind.

I have no idea when this will be available in the US. I asked the Guerlain woman at Saks and she didn't think it was going to be released here. Is that possible? It is kind of odd that it was launched in March and it still isn't here yet.

Limonene, Courmarin, ethyl hexyl methoxycinnamate, Geraniol, Citronellol, Linalool Butyl Methoxydibenzoylmethane, Butylene Glyco butylene glycol dicaprylate dicaprate gerinalol Geraniol Citral

*My guesstimate at what the price will be when this arrives in the US. My LPRN 2 was $135 in 2011. Wild guess....

Coming Soon

As per usual I don't have much time to write. Just wanted to jot down a few notes while it's fresh on my mind, otherwise things get in the way and push the prior thoughts out. I'll come back & edit this with more later on.

Lanvin Rumeur. The original. In extrait concentration. Just a little,  little-little (as my doctor said in talking about portion sizes with me & Hubby) and all I have is a little, a 1/4 oz bottle with enough juice inside to give the bottom of the bottle a liquid coating-only a tiny amount of swishing & sloshing of liquid going on in there.

Took a dab from the stopper to my left hand at noon yesterday. Took a few whiffs and, figuring the scent would fade since I only used a touch, I went on and applied SOTD: Guerlain's Apres L' Ondee. I thought the rain was over. I was wrong, it was intermittent sun and rain all day.

First thoughts: plum,  sweetened plums. Candied, but not uber sweet like many modern fragrances. Old school sweet.

Second thoughts: spice. I'm taking secret sniffs when I have a chance and it's spicy. Cinnamon or cloves maybe.

3pm. I'm out & about shopping, doing errands and getting whiffs of both Apres L' Ondee and the Rumeur. For such a small amount the Runeur is nearly as strong as Guerlain. Then again I think that Apres L'Ondee has a fairly weak silliage unless sprayed liberally and all over.

Sometime during the afternoon Rumeur turns smokey. Insence. Pipe smoke. Pipe tobacco. Or rich cigarette tobacco, something exotic like a Zware or Halfzware Shag.


6pm I'm home and enjoying the smokey pipe and leather, plus occasional spice and plums.







Perfumes that came to mind while smelling & wearing Rumeur: Rochas Femme (the spices) Robert Piguet's Bandit (the leather) Balmain's Miss Balmain and slightly Jolie Madam (leather again and again) and for some reason I haven't figured out yet: Tabu.



It is now 4am and if I press my nose to that spot on my hand I can still smell it. Amazing.

Because into each life some Pink Sugar must fall....

http://serenitynme.deviantart.com/art/Skulls-and-Roses-62236358

Weekend wearing.

Paco Rabanne Black XS L'Exces for Her.


Before I move on to my next big thing, because there is always another perfume waiting in the wings. My "To Do" boxes are quite full.

This perfume is fun and this perfume works backwards. It starts off smelling sweet and fruity, puzzling because there aren't any fruit notes listed. Something mixing is making a fruit accord? I dunno. It starts off sweetly,  almost a scrubber because it smelled a little too Bath and Body Works to me, like a fruit scented body lotion, blackberry or strawberry,  maybe snozberry. Since I can't pinpoint the non-existent berry I'm smelling it must be  the elusive snozberry.

 

http://suicideblonde.tumblr.com/

Top notes-
neroli  pepper

 middle notes-
jasmine, rose, night blooming cereus

base notes-
vanille and cashmere wood.

 Could be the vanilla, neroli or jasmine smelling sweet, ahhh, who knows?

So it begins sweet, much later it turns deep, the rose arrives and melds into wood. This is a perfume! Finally, it smells like a perfume. A real perfume. It's not the richest, deepest perfume but more of a perfume than any Pink Sugar, Fantasy or any of the modern floral fruity juices. At this point it smells sultry, rich and much more sophisticated than when it started off. At the same time the "fruit" accord turns slightly sour but it smells good. I never thought I'd ever think of a sour smell as pleasant, it's not my usual thing, but it works here.

I wore this to work tonight. The favorite of the week usually gets a public test run on Saturday nights when I'm working. My co-worker, a fruit and berry lovin' gal-I know this because she had brought some berry scented hand lotion  in a while back (wasn't too bad) plus fruit scented air fresheners & candles. And spritz of Vanilla Brown Sugar after she comes in from having a smoke. (I'd rather smell the smoke). She "goes for" fruit & sweet  type scents. She loved this, wanted to know what it was.

"Paco Rabanne."
 "Paco Rabanne? That's mens' cologne, isn't it?"
She's thinking of the classic in the green bottle.
"No, it's womens'.  Black XS L'Exces. It's new."
I am probably pronouncing it wrong, but it doesn't matter. Good luck finding a bottle! I don't think it's been released in the US yet. All I have are 2 tester sprays. Plus I am the "go to person" when any friends want perfume.

Also, a male co-worker started singing "Strawberry Fields" when I went into his section. This guy usually sings while working, but I think it's not much of a coincidence that I'm wearing a perfume I think smells like berries and he starts singing that song. His singing is usually triggered by something, say someone looking for light he'll break out into "Light My Fire", someone looking for directions might bring on "Do You Know The Way to San Jose" and so on. Yes, most of the people I work with are older than me, it's cool. I was the baby of the place for years. Anyway,  it's not me, there IS something berry-ish in this. Not a bad thing, I do like this.

An easy and enjoyable wear, different from my usual routine. Plus it was going strong from 5pm to midnight,  and still lingering on my clothes.

Will I be searching all over for a full size bottle? Well, there aren't any on Ebay US, only samples, and I don't buy internationally unless it's an out of this world deal of the rarest of the rare,  so that's out for now.  My sample sprays will carry me over until the next big thing. There are some new Guerlains at Saks calling me right now: Mon Precieux Nectar, Myrrhe & Delires (which I got sprayed with my last time in, very nice!) and the new Bond no.9 I Love Earth Day or whatever it's called sounds promising. I'll be in during the week for a whiff.....

Madonna in White

Photo by Martin Schreiber, 1979

Madonna Truth or Dare. This is a difficult post, I spent too long just poking around for the images to post, trying to decide which to use, mulling over all the various "looks". I couldn't find my copy of Sex,  I think I sold it on ebay a couple of years ago. Madonna has gone through so many re-inventions over the years, too many to count. Interesting. Obviously she's got style,  or would that be from her stylist? Everyone has a stylist today, don't they? I don't follow fashion and celebrities enough to know. For her to make a perfume should be a snap, right?

Not so according to www.wwd.com

"“The time was right,” she said of partnering with Coty Prestige. “I’ve been working off and on on various fragrances over the years, and [have been] approached by a lot of companies and have tried to create fragrances. They were always abandoned projects. I’ve always loved perfume; it’s always been a big part of my life. But every time I tried to create the scent I was looking for, it never reached the stage where I thought it was good enough or I was told that the ingredients would be impossible to re-create in a mass way. Then I’d say, ‘let’s try and do a synthetic version,’ and it never smelled as good as I wanted it to. And if I’m not going to wear it, I’m not going to sell it. So, I finally was able to create, with my partners [MG Icon and Coty], a fragrance that I could stand behind. We tested a lot of things over the past few years, and [Lourdes “Lola” Leon, her 15-year-old daughter] has told me what she likes. She is a very opinionated young lady, and she likes this perfume.”
She had her late mother, also named Madonna, in mind when creating the scent, too. Her mother, she recalled, wore Fracas. “I wanted to create a fragrance that would remind me of her.”

Reading Chandler Burr's The Perfect Scent: A Year Inside the Perfume Industry in Paris & New York, was eye opening to me, I hadn't really thought much of the process of making perfume, the behind the scenes stuff. I kind of imagined an artisan in a studio or lab mixing various concoctions of steeped herbs and flowers, bubbling pots of scented potions. Or flowers soaked in vodka and similar ancient recipes for making perfumes and toilette waters. The flowers soaked in booze never worked out, me & my friends tried it way back when. Anyhoo, my ideas of perfume making were off, to say the least. Well, who would've thunk it?

Sarah Jessica Parker pulled a decorative egg and grosgrain ribbon out of her purse to demonstrate the inspiration for her scent for the peeps at Coty during their perfume meetings, something along those lines. Plus her layering of Bonne Bell Skin Musk, Comme des Garcons and Egyptian Musk. At least she had a hand in the pot, the perfume pot, some of the other celebrity perfumes, well, I don't know.

Back to Madonna....

According to The Celebrity Fragrance Guide, Madonna wears:

Madonna by Steven Meisel, 1992

IF(orders it in bulk), Fracas, Hypnotic Poison, Folavril,Youth Dew, Fleurissimo, Perfect Veil, Dirt by Demeter, Eau D'Hadrien, Mat, Folavril, Nanadaberry Pink, Child, Grand Amour, Nocturnes, Narcisse Noir, Nahema, JP Gaultier, Lorenzo Villoresi(Sting & Trudy commisioned LV to create a custom musky oriental scent as a birthday gift), Pois De Senteur, Habit Rouge, Tuberose Indiana, Pink Lotus, Kisu, Escentric Molecules Molecule 01
Mae West ~ Femme by Rochas, Shocking by Schiaparelli

Not too shabby of a list, no? Lots of white and orientals, an impressive list, don't know how accurate the list is.

Truth or Dare. I like it,  I really do. It's creamy, loaded with tuberose, gardenia, vanilla, amber and musk. I think of it as a white perfume, there doesn't seem to be any color involved, if that makes sense. IMO, in the color scheme of things Fracas has a stripe of green to it, Versace Blonde has buttery notes and animalistic notes-splotches of yellow and beige, and Bond no.9 Saks for Her has a smokey accord, so it's got a grey-ish hue to it. Serge Lutens Tubéreuse Criminelle, it like an abstract painting, it's got splotches of everything: gasoline, vicks vapor rub, wintergreen gum, Scope mouthwash, ugh, don't get me started, it was a big disappointment for me. And I tried so hard, enduring that horrid opening, waiting for something beautiful and got nada. Back on topic,Truth or Dare is big white floral, devoid of other colors. One that doesn't scream, it's quiet. Not that screaming is a bad thing....I am a fan of the big white florals. Truth or Dare is the modern white floral, light enough for work, light enough for warm weather, applied heavily it could be date or "romantic wear" worthy.

It's easy to wear, just spritz and enjoy, no thinking or advanced dissecting required. After a few hours on my skin, I get a hint of chocolate, but no chocolate note listed. Maybe the amber and vanilla is making chocolate to me? It's a comfort scent, it's comfortable. Borderline gourmand with my chocolate note. Am I going to rush over to that horrible Macy's to buy a bottle? Nah, I have enough samples to last me, and other white florals already in my stable of perfumes. If I was given this as a gift that would be fine, although it's not birthday worthy ; )

Shalimar Parfum Initial

Sally Mann Immediate Family, 1992

Sometimes you take a test, a sniff from the bottle and things click. You're sniffing and/or huffing at your wrist until the scent is gone, then making plans to get a bottle. Funny, my first sniff of Initial was in Macys' last summer/fall.  An SA asked me if I had tried it and handed me a card. I smelled the card, looked at her, then at the card again and said, "Did you spray the card?" I couldn't smell a thing. She smelled the card and she said yes, she had sprayed it. Okay. I happened to be dripping in Mitsouko that day, a living lesson in extrait, a little goes a long way. Nobody said anything, but I realized that I had put on too much because noticed that I was kind of smelling Mitsouko constantly, like the scent has cinged the inside of my nose. But, several hours later I could smell Initial on the card and it was alright, nothing earth shattering.

The perfect birthday gift for next month.

A couple of weeks ago I was in that awful Macy's again and took a hit from the bottle-only because there wasn't anything else of interest to smell.  I was checking the Coco Madmesiole EDT, I had sprayed myself with it. When I smelled the sprayer of Initial, WHAM! It hit me. Like a ton of bricks. OMG, it smelled like a Guerlain: it smelled kind of poopy,* musky, rich and vanillia-sh. Since this was Macy's it was probably the only Guerlain in the joint.  I was sorry I had sprayed the Coco Mad on myself, I would rather sprayed Initial. Once home I was checking the retail prices, searching ebay for a bottle, a sample, anything. I found a 15ml spray for $20, like above, one of those gift with purchase items. Buy it now. I have been wearing it for several days straight, have not gotten bored, tired or sick of it. Not that a week or so is a lot, but it's like I can't get enough if it, I'm sniffing myself, spraying it in the morning, before I go out and a spritz before bed.

Initial is a strange perfume. I don't think of it as a Shailmar flanker, I didn't even approach it that way, Shalimar was the last thing on my mind when I fell for this potion. Yes, it is a nod to Shalimar, but only in it's vanilla aspect. That's the only connection I draw between the two, the vanilla. My bottle of Shalimar is ancient, an almost black extrait that smells like nail polish remover in the opening-so it's difficult to compare the two.

My thoughts a couple of weeks later: more wearings and I see more connections between Initial and her grandmother,  Shalimar: the citrus-y opening, the powdery dry down,  leather? Nah, maybe Initial wears a patch of suede, although it's not in the notes, something is velvet-y in there. Tonight I smelled the caramel notes, they smell almost chocolaty. Nearly every wearing I notice something new. I'm wondering if it has Iso E Super? I swear I smell it in the dry down, a hint of it at least.

Speaking of new, Initial wears like a new, modern fragrance with classical roots. It smells modern in a good way, modern as in rich, well made, not modern like a screechy, synthetic, fruit celebrity-drugstore scent. There's something about a new perfume-one that you just luv-something special, makes me feel all fancy smanchy & dolled up when wearing it.

ninapeople.com/natalia-vodianova-en-tenue-d-eve-pour-guerlain-a51189.html

Photo by Paolo Roversi

http://nymag.com

Now about the advertising, every time I see the  black & white ads with Natalia Vodianova I am reminded of Sally Mann's photography, the portraits of her daughter (the older one), the dreamy look in her eyes, her age of being child, but beginning to look like a woman.  I also think of early photography,  where slow film required long shutter times, and in portraits if the subject blinked or moved their eyes during the sitting,  their eyes would appear in the final print as either blurred or practically all white, a blank, zombie like look. Natalie Vodianova is stunning, why, why, why give her such an empty look?  It must be working because it gets a reaction out of the viewer. I suppose there are worse looks they could portrayed in the advertisements, let's see, something aimed at younger girls/women....name any celebutant or reality star and there you go. I'll take the haunted doll look any day over that.

The Shalimar Flankers, they're nothing to sneeze at! Well, I've only smelled Eau Legree and Initial, but they're both fantastic scents in their own right. In my mind I tend to separate them from Shalimar, and think of them as stand alone perfumes-that smell very much like Shalimar. As long as Guerlain doesn't discontinue or reformulate the hell out the regular Shalimar, then alls right with the world. On the flipside, it isn't all that creative for Guerlain to be churning out flanker after flanker, not very original. Why not make a different perfume instead of an offshoot of one already in production? Shalimar Initial and Eau Legree are full bottle worthy to me, but now there's another Initial on the way, which I'll have to test once I see it in the store, and what will come after that? Shalimar Initial Noir?
Although I do like some flankers, come to think of it, the only flankers I own are the two Shalimar ones mentioned here, and an Eau de Shalimar is on it's way to me, probably in today's mail. We'll see....


Ohhhh, I'm thinking about the birthday already, over a month away. I don't know how long my little 15 ml will last, or if I'll still be yearning for Initial by the time my birthday rolls around. I may ask for a Chanel, Eau Premiere maybe, I don't know how Hubby would feel marching into the Chanel Boutique, but I think he can get Eau Premiere at that Macy's, Shalimar Initial, too. By that time I may be chasing after something else....


*About the poop note, in some perfumes I smell a poop immediately, right out of the bottle. Notably in Chamade, Vol De Nuit,  Lui, Ivorie De Balmain, and worst of all in Joy. I used to think it was Civet, but it must be the indolic-ness of jasmine? I will be doing a post on this eventually.

Recent Perfume Adventures

Quickly, because it's my night, no obligations, nothing to do and I'm going to bed early. I need sleep, a quality sleep session. Editing to add: it's now Tuesday, 2am and I am again trying to get into bed early, but here I am writing & reading online, with emails to write, a sink full of dirty dishes. Procrastination.

Madonna Truth or Dare. Am wearing it now. Wore it yesterday.  Regardless of the scent in the bottle, like any celebrity offering, this is a perfume comes with a bit of baggage: Madonna. I have mixed opinions of Madonna. Once I straighten my thoughts out on her (don't hold yer breath!) and wear the scent again I'll report back.

Because I'm too lazy to snap a pic of my bag! favim.com/image/341605/

Chanel: Eau Premiere, Beige, Coco Mademoiselle. I have been on a Chanel kick lately. I have been to the Chanel Boutique. Me? Yes. If the doorman hadn't opened the door as I slowly walked by, still contemplating whether to go in or not, I may not have gone in at all. It's not as intimidating as I thought it would be. Of course the SA who waited on me was friendly and accommodating, but I am there to spend money and her job is to get me to spend it. So $90. later I emerge from the boutique with a bright, gleaming white (and black) shopping bag with the word "Chanel" emblazoned on it, with a camellia flower and a bow with more Chanel printed on it tied to it's handles,  loosely filled inside with a bottle of Coco Mademoiselle and a few samples of the Les Exclisifs line. I had intentions of buying a bottle of Eau Premiere or Coco Mad EDT, but they didn't  the smaller bottles of Eau Premiere, and  had only refill bottles of Coco Mad EDT, no containers to go with the refills.  I bought Coco Mad EDP (you only live once, plus I was iffy on the silliage of the EDT*), sniffed several of the Les Exclusifs,  tucked test strips of Sycomore and no.19 Poudre in my pockets and left with an admiration of Chanel Beige and 31 Rue Cambon, both of which I have to wear a few more times before deciding on which or what to do about them. Those were my samples, Beige, 31 Rue and Jersey. Still pondering them all.

In other news:

Shalimar Parfum Initial. This was not love at first sniff. It was love at second sniff. Review and thoughts in a future post.

Bvlgari Eau De Parfum II. Meh. The notes sounded good, it started off good but shortly faded and dried down into a nothingness. A powdery nothingness. Nada.

Carolina Herrera 212 Sexy. Same as above. Meh. My sample of this has been floating around for about a year or more, I finally give it a whirl and it's blah. The top notes were strong and promising, a short time later it had dried down to a faint hint of powder or something not exciting.

Both  BLV II and 212 are "Meh", as in, I wouldn't run out and buy myself a bottle, but the smell isn't horrible or sickening. You know, mezza mezza. Oh well.....





* Two weeks ago I sprayed myself with Coco Mad EDT during a run-through of Macy's. The little girl SA at the Chanel counter told me they didn't have the EDT in the store. She must not venture out of her Chanel section because I found the EDT not very far away,  displayed prominently on the fragrance counter in the fragrance section, along with the rest of the fragrances. The Chanel counter does have it's own fragrance area. Oh well. Anyhoo, the EDT didn't last long or have much silliage, I'll just apply the EDP with a light hand or else I will overpower myself and that's not good. Small doses of Coco Mad are lovely, big sprays all over are headache inducing.