Oranges and marmalade

In some ways the use of citrus notes in perfume is so ubiquitous. We almost take it for granted that an opening in a perfume will contain a citrus accord of some sort. Yet very seldom are we able to define it, or at least I'm not. For example, I often write down, when trying to document a fragrance on my skin, "starts with a burst of citrus", or "a vague citrus note", or something equally mundane....

Scentless Saturday

I hate days when I go scentless (commando is another story...). It's been a frigidly freezing day here in old Blighty, with an icy wind out of the north east, and I've pretty much sat indoors all day, thinking about Spring, which still seems so far away. Daffodil leaves are tentatively pushing out of the cold earth, but I need a lot more assurance that those warmer days are not that far away.I didn't wear any perfume today, which kinda bugs me. It...

DSH Vintage Patchouly

In my experience to date, the DSH perfumes I have tried have been very nice, but rather fleeting on my skin. I'm dabbing from vials, so that might be part of the reason, but I feel like I want more from them, and in order to do that, they need to hang around a bit longer.I think I've found one that ticks the right boxes in Vintage Patchouly. The notes (from DSH website) include bergamot, rosewood,...

Friday roundup

The perfume sections of department stores in my part of the world are in a state of frenzy, trying to get rid of the old stock, a hangover from Christmas time, including many unwanted box sets. It's the usual suspects in many cases, although I did see a mini-set of Estee Lauder Men's fragrances on sale, marked down from £32 to £16. I'm curious to try Lauder Man, which is one of the four in the set, but honesty, the rest don't interest me at all,...

Abdul Samad al Qurashi - Musk a Ajeeb Oil & Musk Aoud Oil

I acquired samples of these two musk oils from The Perfumed Court in summer last year. I wrote about Musk a Ajeeb Oil in a post here. At the time I tested this I wrote that I was perplexed by this musk, as it bore no resemblance to the Western musks we are more used to. More than six months on and I don't know if my feelings have changed. I think one thing is for sure - these musk oils definitely...

Andy Tauer revisited

Like Gaia over at The Non-Blonde, most of Andy Tauer's fragrances feel like they could have been made for me. The incense-based ones in particular wear so well on my skin, if I may say so myself. There are a couple that just do not agree with me at all, namely Reverie au Jardin and Vetiver Dance. For some reason they make me retch, which I hate to say, but it is thus.The others are a different ball...

Agent Provocateur - Agent Provocateur

I'm often surprised by how little I read about the original Agent Provocateur released in 2000. It is a wonderful, slightly dirty, rose fragrance, with saffron to start, and ends up smelling like a modern rose-chypre in some way.Reading the reviews, this perfume seems to really divide opinion. Those that don't like it seem to be turned off by the perceived 'dirty' note, which some people have described...

Perfume thought for the day

I was in the shower this morning, thinking about perfume for a change, when a thought crossed my mind. I've been reading a lot of books recently, ranging from Lee Child to Philip Roth. Then I thought about this range and wondered if our experience with any art form is similar. For example, if I had never heard of Philip Roth, or he hadn't been recommended to me, would I have read him, and if I had, would I have appreciated his work as much if I hadn't...

Cartier Declaration Cologne

I think I've mentioned before that I am a big fan of the original Cartier Declaration. It is a fantastic fragrance, created by Jean Claude Elena, no less, with a hefty but judicious dose of cumin and cedar. Today I tried a flanker that came out last year, called Cartier Declaration Cologne. I was actually pleasantly surprised. Overall it is a much fresher and somewhat lighter fragrance than the original,...

Hugo Boss Orange

When I was a lot younger, I used to wear quite a few of the Hugo Boss fragrances. In fact, back in the day I thought Hugo Boss was the most hip thing in perfume, such was my lack of exposure. I still own a Hugo Boss fragrance today, in the Baldessarini line, called Del Mar. Boss Orange for Men is a new release, which I smelled today for the first time. However, it didn't feel as if it was the...

A brief look at Shalimar

I'm not intending to write about Shalimar in any great detail, suffice to say that I have enjoyed it for a number of years, having bought the eau de parfum for my wife. I wear Shalimar regularly and don't find it overtly feminine. I love its combination of rich, sumptuous vanilla, smoky oppoponax and zingy citrus. Today I came across the eau de toilette at Boots and without really thinking gave myself...

Annick Goutal - Le Jasmin and Neroli

I mentioned in a post yesterday that I had tried two Solilflores by L'Occitane, Jasmine and Neroli, neither of which did much to impress me.Today I was browsing and saw the 'equivalents' in the Annick Goutal line, so thought I would try them out. Neroli starts off with a gorgeous orange blast, slightly bitter and citrusy, then pretty much fades to nothing. I'm not complaining - these sort of fragrances...

Creed - Love in Black

Readers of my blog will probably have gathered by now that I am not a fully-paid-up member of the Creed fan club. Indeed, this is true, but I have to admit that there are a few I enjoy. I love Bois de Portugal for example, and for a long time now I have been trying a little of Love in Black, which, surprising for a violet-dominant scent, has won me over big time.I should point out that I don't usually...

Mother remembered

When I started this blog in March 2010, I wanted it to be only about perfume, seen through my eyes, and in many ways I still do. However, every now and then I share something slightly more personal on here, which is very unlike me actually. I am an intensely private person, to the extent that I'm sure many of my colleagues over the years, and even friends, have probably found this reticence quite frustrating. So, surprise surprise, I reveal all on...

Friday roundup

It's been a bit of a strange week for me, perfume-wise. I've been very busy at work, which in my world is not conducive to a lot of fragrance exploration for some reason. I've mentioned it a number of times before - when I'm stressed and busy I seldom feel in the mood to wear a lot of perfume.Having said that, I still covered a bit of ground, wearing mostly stuff I'm already very familiar with. Seeing as so many blogs have been writing about oud...

Caron - Yatagan

Caron's Yatagan is a strange, yet compelling fragrance. It strikes me possibly as Caron's most unique men's perfume, although thinking about it, I'd hardly call L'Anarchiste or the Third Man boring. There's something about the opening of Yatagan that reminds me strongly of an old man's cologne. That might seem like a disparaging comment to make, but I don't mean it in a bad way. It is an intensely,...

Pictures from the weekend

I mentioned in my last post that my daughter Hannah turned 4 this weekend. I thought I would add a handful of photographs of my two kids. The top photo is of Hannah and Daisy in the December snow. The second is Hannah in her Cinderella/Snow White costume which someone gave her for her birthday. The third is Daisy with a character from the Night Garden (not sure if you get this children's program in...

A birthday weekend (and Spiriteuse Double Vanille)

Some of you who read my blog from time to time may have detected a slight apathy towards Guerlain's Spiriteuse Double Vanille. The issue I have with this fragrance from a venerable perfume house is not the actual smell, idea or construction. In fact I actually do like it, while it lasts that is. I mentioned it before - I think my skin chemistry plays havoc with SDV as it barely lasts an hour, if that....

Yves Saint Laurent - Opium, old and new

This isn't a perfume review as such, but today I was in Boots, the Chemist chain in the UK, and noticed the new bottle of Yves Saint Laurent Opium, pictured left. It is very similar to the more recent Belle D'Opium, which is purple-coloured. The funny thing is, when I last tried Opium a few months ago, I thought what I was trying is the reformulated juice. I thought to myself that it wasn't half bad...

A bit of this, a bit of that (Creed Aventus and Cartier Declaration)

It's a bit of a strange time for me, perfume-wise, at the start of 2011. It's that time of year when there aren't all that many new perfume releases, and if like me, the thrill of the chase can be as satisfying as the kill, metaphorically, then January can be rather dull. Not that I'm saying that all I want in my perfume life is the instant hit and the never ending search for new releases, but that is an exciting part of being a perfume nut.Of course...

A London visit in which I discover Cologne Absolue Pour Le Soir

We visited our closest friends this weekend, who live in London. They live close to Canary Wharf, which for those of you familiar with London, will know is now one of the financial hearts of London. I say one of, because the City is still another hub, as is London Bridge, where one of London's most exciting new buildings, the Shard, is being erected. Canary Wharf, for those of you interested in a...

Olfactory fatigue

Recently I've started to feel ever so slightly panicky. I've been suffering from a lot of colds and sinus infections over the last 12 months, with numerous stuffy and blocked noses. It's worse in winter, but even this summer it started affecting me. I often wake up in the night with a blocked nose, seemingly for no reason at all.Type any of these symptoms into that wonder of the modern world, our friend and mentor Google, and you will find afflictions...

Miller Harris - Terre de Bois

Miller Harris Terre de Bois is a fragrance that frankly has baffled me for quite a long time now. I can't quite pinpoint the reason. I sort of like it, yet there is something about it that I find faintly disturbing. Not that it is in-your-face, or animalic. Rather, it has to my nose a weirdly unique smell that I haven't smelled anywhere else.Miller Harris describe Terre de Bois as a woody fragrance,...

Ayala Moriel - Vetiver Racinettes

I went through a phase when I was trying every vetiver fragrance under the sun. Since then I've lost a bit of interest, not because I don't like the smell, but well, there is a lot of other stuff out there to try. I recently sampled a perfume called Vetiver Racinettes by Ayala Moriel. It is the first perfume I've tried in her line and it is lovely. Vetiver is a very distinctive smell I find....

DSH Sandalo Inspiritu and Festive

I've been working my way through some recently acquired DSH samples, courtesy of kind Carol from Waft, What a Fragrancefanatic Thinks. Two that stand out for me so far are Sandalo Inspiritu and Festive.I love the smell of sandalwood, whether it be a perfume, soap or shaving soap. My earliest memory of sandalwood was in the form of a soap by Roger et Gallet, which my mum always used to have in...

Fragrant musings, pans and bottles

I was cooking dinner on New Year's Eve. I was making a risotto, one that I've done countless times before, to the extent that it has become almost automatic to me. The process of gently sweating finely chopped garlic, onion, celery and some herbs in a little olive oil. Then adding the rice and when it is ever so slightly translucent, adding a glass of vermouth to bubble away and reduce. Then I add ladlefuls of chicken stock mixed with the water of...

Oh dear, the holidays are almost over (and Magie Noire)

Like a few others, I'm due to start work again this week and I can't say that I am overflowing with motivation. I know that once I'm back for a couple of days it will feel like I was never away and all will be fine, but I've actually enjoyed this time off, not having had a break since September.The shops are just crazy around Tunbridge Wells, where I live. Of course, these days the new year sales actually start on Boxing Day, and in some cases even...