Weekend - back to basics

This weekend I made a point of wearing two perfumes that I actually own. To call this post 'back to basics' is possibly an insult to Hermes Terre D'Hermes and Gucci Pour Homme, as neither is basic or simple really. They are both, to my mind, examples of what can actually be achieved in the mainstream perfume market. What makes me rage inside, sometimes, is why more of these sorts of perfumes aren't released. I think what I mean by back to basics, is returning to something I usually take for granted, and shouldn't.

I've owned a bottle of Terre D'Hermes for about four years now. I wrote about Terre a couple of years ago and mentioned that I seldom wear it these days due to a negative association I have with the fragrance. It isn't Terre's fault - I wore it on a day when I was very stressed, going for an important job interview and every time I've worn it since, it reminds me of that stress and tension. As time passes, those association are fading and I was able to wear it this weekend with some pleasure, and realised all over again what a great fragrance it is.

Why, you may ask. What makes Terre so good? I can think of a number of reasons, but one simple reason is that it smells like no other perfume on the market. As simple as that. It doesn't smell generic, it doesn't smell like it has been done before. For me, that is enough to state that it is one of the few modern mainstream men's classics out there. In simple terms, it smells of orange, mineral vetiver and bleached woods, but it goes together so well.

What about Gucci Pour Homme? Well, sadly it is now discontinued. The one Gucci men's fragrance that I actually like, and I bought the very last bottle at Hoopers, one of our local department stores. I'm sure it can still be had at certain fragrance discounters, but I imagine it will become quite scarce over time. Gucci Pour Homme is essentially a calm pepper, woods and incense perfume, with some sweetness in the dry down from the amber accord, but I would call it a very woody smelling perfume. While I wear it happily in the day, whenever I spray it on, it feels like it should be worn out for the evening. It just smells sophisticated and complex enough for a special occasion. 

I know both of these fragrances are for men, but irrespective of gender, I would seriously recommend you try both if you haven't before. Terre is easy to find, and a best seller for Hermes, but you may need to search a little harder for Gucci Pour Homme.

A return to old favourites

Yeah, I know what you're probably thinking. You've read this before. Every now and then I post about how I've gone back to trying perfumes I actually own, rather than just get a quick fix from the latest craze. But you know what? It's a valid point and the reason why I do this. The message is - its good to wear perfume one actually owns. After all, why did I buy full bottles of these in the first place?

Now I know that some of you (perhaps many of you) own a lot of full bottles, but my budget does not allow that and in some ways I know that if I owned a lot, I would never ever work my way through my 'stock'. Nevertheless, I do own about fifteen bottles of perfume and over the last few days I wore Guerlain's L'Instant, Gucci Pour Homme (discontinued), Alexander McQueen Kingdom (discontinued) and Bulgari Black (I think discontinued, but not 100% certain). Interesting that about 75% of what I own is no longer in production. The most criminal of these in my opinion is Gucci. How could they discontinue Pour Homme and leave so much dreck on the shelves? Crazy bastards!

Wearing each of these, I came to the realisation all over again that they are brilliant perfumes and deserve to be worn by me more often.

Back from holiday

Well hi folks. In some ways it's nice to be back from our holiday down in Cornwall but the week went far too quickly, as is usually the case. The weather wasn't fantastic, very windy and variable, but the north Cornish coast is very beautiful, with wild, windswept cliffs and bracing coastal path walks a must if, like me, you enjoy the outdoors.

The place we stayed at was very nice too, with both an outdoor and indoor swimming pool, sauna and steam room, and an adjoining cafe that serve excellent food. The kids had a very good time and there were plenty of facilities for them, including a trampoline and a very nice play area. Of course, they loved the swimming and we did manage to make it down to the beach  a couple of times to build sand castles. We also took the kids to the Newquay zoo and aquarium, both of which were rather nice too. Newquay is the surfing centre of Cornwall (and the UK, if I'm not mistaken) and there were plenty of surfer dudes braving the frigid atlantic waters and gales.

I mentioned before I left that I would take Sel de Vetiver with me and a few incense perfumes. Sel de Vetiver is perfect for the coast, with its salty, fresh-yet-complex vetiver tang. I wore it a few times and never felt let down. I also wore Profumum Olibanum and Andy Tauer's L'air du Desert Marocain and Gucci 1, which is, if I am correct, now discontinued, or at least rather more difficult to find than it was three years ago.

I must admit that we went to a place that had terrible mobile phone reception and we didn't bring our laptop. Therefore we had no internet connection and hence I am so out of touch with the perfume world and blogosphere. In a way I have missed it, and my usual saturation in perfume, but in another way it has been a welcome break. I still have lots to write about, but with work stepping up yet another gear, I am not sure how much time I will have to blog over the next couple of months. Nevertheless I will try to keep in touch and blog as much as time permits.

It's the journey that matters

I mentioned quite recently that I had purchased two full bottles of Guerlain L'instant and Gucci Pour Homme. This is something that I seldom do. I don't own a lot of full bottles, concentrating mostly on samples, as my almost unquenchable thirst for learning about, and experiencing, perfume continues. However, I must say that having worn these two almost constantly for about two weeks (not simultaneously) I've quite enjoyed taking a break from the samples and simply wearing these perfumes and enjoying them for what they are, rather than moving swiftly onto the next 'big thing'. What I've found most illuminating is just how different these two perfumes have smelled each day, particularly the L'Instant. On some days it has been all about cocoa, patchouli and vanilla while at other times I've been struck by just how floral it can smell, particularly in the opening and heart. One thing that is relatively constant is the end-result vanilla, a Guerlain trademark. Not that L'Instant has much of that classic Guerlainade to me.

As much as I'm enjoying wearing just two perfumes, I know I will return to sampling quite soon. I still have too much to learn to stop now and I can't tread water for long. Perhaps that is just my slightly impulsive and restless nature sometimes!

Anniversary treat

Some of you may recall that my wife and I celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary last month, and part of the 'pact' was that we'd each treat ourselves to something that is dear to us. In my wife's case, it was another set of knitting needles. She is an avid (one might even say compulsive) knitter. Well, no shame in that. After all, what am I if not at least as compulsive a 'fumehead? Anyway, I've spent a few weeks musing over perfume choices. At one stage I was comparing and considering buying one of Dior Homme, Serge Lutens Ambre Sultan and Creed Bois de Portugal. Well this week I eventually plumped for Guerlain's L'Instant and Gucci Pour Homme. Why the change of heart, you ask? Well, the three I originally tested did not go down particularly well with my better half. While I have no issue with testing loads of challenging samples, they only last a short while, whereas full bottles of perfume stick around much longer, so I didn't want to force-feed my wife a scent barrage that she doesn't like. 

So why L'Instant and Gucci Pour Homme? Well, L'Instant is not that far removed from Dior Homme really if you think about it. Both have cocoa notes, and I'm sure I detect iris in L'Instant. They are both gourmand-ish without being too foody-cloying. Admittedly, L'Instant has more vanilla and a patchouli note, but the combination Guerlain-style is brilliant in my opinion. I ended up choosing the Guerlain because I felt it had more depth and subtleties that I didn't get in Dior Homme. As for Gucci Pour Homme, I've long enjoyed it out of a fairly bog-standard crop of mainstream mens fragrances, as it stands out from the crowd as a woody incense with some originality, which is a blessed relief. Even more compelling is the fact that it is being discontinued and I wanted to grab a bottle before its too late. It's quite sad really, as in my opinion it is the only worthy one in the men's Gucci stable at present, yet it clearly isn't doing well. 

Some of you might be surprised that I ended up with two mainstream fragrances rather than something more niche. I suppose I am too. I can't really explain it, except that I really like both of them and they stand out as examples of how mainstream mens fragrances ought to be done.

On a final note, a big thank you to Melanie from Hoopers, who must have been so glad that I finally purchased something, after all the cadging of samples over the last two years! Honestly, she has been so good to me and I love sharing perfume stories with her and generally chatting over the odd lunchtime. She threw in all sorts of extras by the way - samples of both the new Amouage Memoir fragrances, 5ml each of Acqua Di Parma Colonia and Cartier Delice, plus a score of other samples and soaps. Very generous I think.