Welcome to the weekly Perfume Chat Room, perfumistas! I envision this chat room as a weekly drop-in spot online, where readers may ask questions, suggest fragrances, tell others their SOTD, comment on new releases or old favorites, and respond to each other. The perennial theme is fragrance, but we can interpret that broadly. This is meant to be a kind space, so please try not to give or take offense, and let’s all agree to disagree when opinions differ. In fragrance as in life, your mileage may vary! YMMV.
Today is Friday, March 12, and spring has sprung! It is now reliably sunny and warm every day; daffodils are in full bloom; pink magnolias have started blossoming; the redbuds and clematis armandii in my garden are in bloom too. I still haven’t found a fragrance that adequately mimics the scent of pink magnolias, but I have hopes for the new Estee Lauder Beautiful Magnolia. Hydrangeas and roses have started to leaf out, as have the many Japanese maples in both front and back gardens. I plan to start working in my new raised beds for a vegetable garden this weekend. Last year, I grew purple cauliflower for the first time; it was beautiful and it tasted wonderful. One forgets how much better homegrown, freshly picked vegetables taste. Even the cauliflower skeptics in my house had to admit they enjoyed mine.
I’m also hoping to visit the gardens north of here where they have planted tens of millions of daffodil bulbs, which have started their bloom season. The varieties cover early, mid, and late seasons for narcissi, and they are a gorgeous and impressive sight. Plus they smell wonderful — just like my beloved Ostara. How is spring coming along in your part of the world? Or autumn, in Portia’s case …
Serenity Now Scents and Sensibilities 
I am going to wear Ostara for my favorite Fridays – I only have a decant, should have bought a bottle when I could. Our daffodils aren’t quite there yet but soon. The previous owners of our house planted a ton of them so we get a lovely display in our front yard each spring. I’m totally ready for my spring perfumes – yesterday was Goutal Grand Amour – hyacinth! And the previous two days I went with Iris. On deck – Violet, more Iris, all the green things!
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I love all the green things! Have you tried Green Spell by Eric? I just got a sample, it’s pretty great.
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I like cauliflower, especially when it’s not pretending to be something else (steak, pizza bread, or rice)! It’s gotten beautiful and warm in MA, although it’s quite windy as well. I’ve started putting on “pinker” perfumes, such as L’Orchestre Parfum Rose Trombone. Pink is the complementary color of light green, so it should work!
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We are forecasted for two feet of snow this weekend! Denver, CO receives our greatest snow accumulation in March and April. The more snow/moisture we get, the greener the spring and summer will be. We lacked snow accumulation this winter and will require water restrictions this summer if we don’t make up the snow now, so its a good thing.
I’m looking forward to exploring more “green” perfumes this spring, a genre I had mostly avoided in the past.
Enjoy your spring blooms and landscape OH!
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Thanks! Maybe I’ll do a green “marathon” this spring. I’d have to think up a cute name, though, like my May Muguet Marathon, lol. Ideas, anyone?
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A very Verte spring marathon would be intriguing! I enjoyed your May Muguet Marathon very much, learned about so many fragrances.
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Un Marathon Vert or Un Mois Vert 🙂 I’m tempted to join you with Mini-marathon Vert.
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Love it!
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It’s definitely spring in north Florida. My camellias are blooming and the azaleas will follow in April. Daffodils don’t seem to bloom around here. Too hot I guess. I kept wondering what was happening to my camellia blooms. I would see many buds, one or 2 blooming and then they were gone, poof. Then one afternoon I saw our resident squirrel eating a bloom, just munching happily away. He was eating the heart of the flower where it attaches to the stem and spitting out the petals. It was funny to watch. The little rascal. I wanted few blooms to put in a crystal bowl to enjoy, but I’ll have to beat Mr. Squirrely to the punch I guess. No wonder he looks so well fed and sleek these days!
I’m interested in some green type perfumes these days or at least something lighter than the heavy ambers and vetivers I was wearing. I think Ormonde Jayne’s Osmanthus and Champaca will be perfect. Going to use up my decants of these and maybe buy one.
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I just wore OJ Champaca, and it was perfect!
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Ooh, you smelled great!
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Hey OH,
YAY! I love autumn. The wind, rain and cooler weather are coming intermittently with super warm sunshiny days. I’m already grabbing out some winter warming fragrances and tonight Jin and I made a lasagna. It was freaking delicious.
There is one bummer though. In our area there was a perfect Liquidamber tree. It was about four storeys tall, shaped like a pine cone on a stick and had the most divine deep red through to daffodil yellow autumn colour. Every year I’ve lived here it was an annual highlight and it outperformed any other Liquidamber I’ve ever known. For about 5-6 weeks this amazing tree would be a pit stop for my dogs to snuffle around it and do wees. For me it was this unbelievably elegant and peaceful landmark. I would gaze at it for a few minutes every day as it was in colour, and sometimes just walking past when it was green or bare would still bring a happy sigh. Sadly the houses land it was sitting on has been redeveloped and the tree was razed.
I am mourning my friend the tree.
Yes, I’m fully aware how stupid that sounds. Nevertheless…….
Portia xx
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How awful! Not stupid at all, I hate it when trees are cut down unless they are diseased and dangerous. I despise many developers, too. Most make no effort to save trees, they just clearcut. Ugh.
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Yeah, it’s a big problem worldwide OH. The thing is our area is really leafy and the council usually makes it VERY expensive and red tape bound to get permission to cut a perfectly good tree down.
I don’t know who this crew paid or married.
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Infuriating!
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In general, I’m far from being “green” or overly environmentally conscious. I try not to waste more resources than necessary, but I’m not “religious” about it. But when it comes to trees, both my vSO and I are going nuts. Around where we live now it seems people prefer, as we call it, “a parking lot” to parks. In my complex I fight for every tree that they are trying to cut down. It takes 30 minutes to cut a 30-year tree! And it cannot be undone. One can’t look without tears at what they plant instead – some tiny “broomsticks,” half of which won’t survive the first couple of years.
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100% Undina,
Keeping cities cool is getting more and more difficult. Unless there is tree life, green space and some decent shade we may as well be living in a parking lot.
I also think it looks infinitely more regal to have a large tree. Especially such a glorious showpiece.
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Trees do so much good for our planet and for us as living beings. The science behind their effect on humans is fascinating: https://www.fs.usda.gov/inside-fs/out-and-about/walk-woods-wellness-health-benefits-forests
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I agree !
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The last couple of days were probably the coldest we had this “winter.” I realize that it’s still warmer than spring in many other areas, but it was unpleasant enough to excuse ourselves from going for a walk 😉
Still, it’s Spring, and I’m moving onto my spring perfumes – irises, mimosas and later lilacs.
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“irises, mimosas and later lilacs” reads so beautifully Undina.
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Doesn’t it, though? I can just smell that bouquet of mixed flowers.
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