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, June 18, and we have been having some post-lockdown adventures! Most importantly, we have been able to visit my husband’s elderly father for several days, going over to the assisted living facility where he lives for a few hours every afternoon. Since our kids are young adults, they are holding down the fort at home. We are in New England, the part of the US where my husband and I both spent parts of our childhood and that feels like “home” in so many ways. Staying in a rustic lake cottage surrounded by the scent of balsam trees and other vegetation brings back a lot of happy childhood memories! Not to mention the distinctive sounds of loons, which takes me right back to childhood and earlier vacations when our own children were very young.
We also went to a big restaurant the other night, for the first time in over a year. People here are literally giddy with happiness at the ongoing return to normalcy. As we waited for our table, a total stranger turned to me, beaming, and said “Isn’t it wonderful to be in a crowded restaurant again, full of happy people?” Yes, I said. And it was. This particular restaurant is by the side of a lake, with most of the seating in a huge screened porch that runs the length of the building, so we enjoyed plenty of fresh air circulating as well as a gorgeous view.
Since I’m partially on vacation (working remotely most mornings, taking off most afternoons), and it’s easier to focus on fragrance when I’m more at leisure, I brought with me a box full of fragrance samples to try, but I haven’t pulled many out yet. Mostly I’ve been enjoying the smells of New England summer, which are so different from the smells of a Southern summer. Have you been trying any new fragrances lately?
Serenity Now Scents and Sensibilities 
Your trip sounds wonderful. I’ve always wanted to visit New England in summer. I love loons. I have seen one in person here in Florida, surprisingly. There was one in the lake near our house a few years ago in late fall. No one else knew what kind of bird it was, but the cries and my binoculars confirmed it was in fact a loon. There had to be a partner nearby but I only saw the one. I love loons so much. Their cries are eerie and magical. All the other colder weather water fowl like pintails and wood ducks are wonderful, too. I saw some of those in Scandinavia.
Now I’m wishing for a lobster roll. LOL I don’t think there are any lobster perfumes…… I’m wearing Franck Boclet Cashmere today layered with Ellis Brooklyn Bee. It’s a good combo.
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That does sound like a good combo! New England in the summer and fall is beautiful. It’s beautiful in the winter too, but it gets too cold for me to be outside, and there’s no gardening, so those are drawbacks. But it’s a very special part of the world. I wonder how that loon ended up in Florida? I didn’t think they went that far south!
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I know! I was so thrilled as I thought I would never see a loon unless I was in Canada! They flew off and hopefully joined other loons in a safe cool / cold spot. Would New England be too crowded in fall do you think? That would be lovely with all the fall foliage. I want to do some traveling soon but I’m a bit worried about those Delta variants of Covid. I have a bunch of auto-immune diseases, celiac and psoriatic arthritis and now the parathyroid issues so I have to be careful. But I’m good with masks all the time (except when I’m eating!).
My grandchildren are due to arrive in September but son has already told us not to visit until 2 or 3 months after they are born, so I’ll have plenty of time to travel before I’m allowed to be around the kiddos. LOL
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It really depends where you go, but making advance reservations is a good idea for October. The Lakes Region of New Hampshite is beautiful and has lots of lodging options plus great fall color and easy access to the White Mountains. Vermont is gorgeous too!
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Sounds great! I’ll start researching. I need to find some places with gluten free dining options nearby but i can always cook my own food at a rental place or AirBnB. Thanks for the recommendation.
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I’m glad you enjoyed your trip.
Today we also went to the restaurant for the first time in 15+ months. It was strange to walk into a public building not wearing a mask. And I got a compliment from a co-worker on my perfume! (Jo Malone French Lime Blossom).
I’ve been testing a lot recently: I almost stopped buying bottles, but I’m back to buying samples. I’ll stop soon because, same as before, the ratio of “tried” to “liked” is extremely low.
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I hope you had a nice night out!
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So happy you are back out and enjoying company and adventure again OH.
We have just had the Delta strain of C19 arrive in Australia from India and Jin & I are back wearing our masks in public to shop and it’s mandatory again on Public Transport. I’m not 100% sure how it will affect my work but fingers crossed we can keep going.
We are both booked for our first Pfizer shot on July 5th. YAY!
Portia xx
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Be careful!
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