fragrance

May Muguet Marathon: Lily, by Lili Bermuda
by

May Muguet Marathon: Lily, by Lili Bermuda

One of many beautiful, interesting places to visit on the island of Bermuda is The Bermuda Perfumery, home of the brand Lili Bermuda. The perfumery was founded in the 1920s. Today, its staff creates particularly beautiful floral perfumes as well as other scents, and you can tour part of its operation in historic St. George’s, which is where I discovered Lili Bermuda several years ago.

The Bermuda Perfumery in St. George's, Bermuda, with pastel houses

The Bermuda Perfumery. Photo: http://www.foreverbermuda.com

I came home with two fragrances: Lily and Coral, both of which I love. Lily is a pretty white floral with several fruity notes that work surprisingly well with its strong note of muguet. According to Fragrantica, Lily’s top notes are clementine, tamarind and fresh mint. Heart notes are: lily of the valley, calla lily, guava and pear (I’m confused by the “calla lily” reference, as I don’t think calla lilies have a scent). Base note is a simple white musk. What I enjoy about Lily is the unexpected juxtaposition of the fruits with lily of the valley, especially the citrusy opening. The clementine appears very clearly, with its sweet, light tones of orange balanced in a  nice contrast with the slightly astringent tone of the tamarind and the fresh green hint of mint. The lily of the valley note makes its presence known right after that and never really fades away. The fruit notes are succeeded by guava and pear — again, light and sweet fruit scents that have no sourness at all. The white musk base grounds Lily but never dominates. Although it is a light, white floral, I find that Lily lasts for several hours on my skin, wafting up with scented reminders of its beautiful island home.

Lili Bermuda’s owner, Isabelle Ramsay-Brackstone, seems to be a remarkably creative lady. Continue reading →

May Muguet Marathon: Perfume/Bouquet Pairings
by

May Muguet Marathon: Perfume/Bouquet Pairings

Surprise! None of the pictured fragrances are muguet fragrances. They were featured in an article in Brides magazine on pairing a wedding day fragrance with one’s bridal bouquet: A Perfect Pair: The Best Fragrances for Lily of the Valley Wedding Bouquets. The article points out that a wedding day perfume can clash with or complement a strongly fragrant bouquet — for instance, one full of lilies of the valley, like the bouquet I carried. (NB: I don’t recall exactly what fragrance I wore on my own wedding day but I strongly suspect it was Diorissimo, as I had a bottle of it then and wore it often. And yes, it was pre-reformulation! Sigh).

Interestingly, the writer suggests complementary, non-muguet scents to go with the lilies of the valley in the bouquet. Continue reading →

May Muguet Marathon: Perle de Mousse
by

May Muguet Marathon: Perle de Mousse

When I was lucky enough to visit the Scent Bar last fall, on my first visit ever to Los Angeles (which you can read about in Fragrance Friday: S(c)en(t)sory Overload), I asked the lovely sales associate to show me some lily-of-the-valley fragrances. One of those she selected for me to try was Ann Gerard’s Perle de Mousse, which means “pearl of foam” but can also mean “pearl of moss.” (In French, oakmoss is “mousse de chene”). The name conjures up lovely images of the pearl-like white flowers of muguet against a dark green background, which is one way gardeners and florists like to force lilies-of-the-valley in pots and planters covered in moss, through which the flowers grow. I came home from LA with a sample of Perle de Mousse from the same lovely sales associate.

Lily of the valley plants growing in moss in a planter

Lilies-of-the-valley grown in moss; photo http://www.growingwithplants.com

Here’s the copy about Perle de Mousse on Scent Bar’s website LuckyScent: Continue reading →

May Muguet Marathon: L.I.L.Y. by Stella McCartney
by

May Muguet Marathon: L.I.L.Y. by Stella McCartney

So what’s not to love about a fragrance whose name is based on the nickname that Beatle Paul McCartney gave to his late wife Linda? Their daughter, designer Stella McCartney, used the acronym L.I.L.Y., which was used in their family as shorthand for “Linda I Love You.” And in fact, I am coming to love this fragrance.

L.I.L.Y. fragrance based on lily of the valley or muguet, by Stella McCartney

L.I.L.Y. fragrance by Stella McCartney. Photo: http://www.boots.ie

L.I.L.Y. is not as green as many muguet fragrances. Continue reading →

May Muguet Marathon: Fragrantica’s Best
by

May Muguet Marathon: Fragrantica’s Best

To whet our appetites for more, more, more muguet, and on May Day, Fragrantica has presented its “Lily of the Valley Best in Show list: Best in Show: Lily of the Valley Fragrances (2016). All the contributors to the list have wonderful suggestions; some of their picks are fragrances I hadn’t heard of before, or didn’t associate with muguet. More things for me to try! Happy May Day!

by

Happy May Day!

Can’t resist sharing this marvelous photo of a little Parisienne clutching her May Day muguets! Thank you to the Scented Salamander for the original post:

via Jaywalking Lily of the Valley ≈ Le Muguet traverse au rouge {Paris Street Photo} — The Scented Salamander: Perfume & Beauty Blog & Webzine

Little girl with lilies of the valley (muguet) in Paris on May Day.

Jaywalking in Paris with muguets on May 1, from The Scented Salamander.

May Muguet Marathon: Decou-Vert
by

May Muguet Marathon: Decou-Vert

I doubt I’ll be able to post every day in May, but let’s get this off to a good start by posting on May 1, the day when French people traditionally give each other bouquets of muguet, or lily-of-the valley. According to http://www.timeanddate.com, this began when “King Charles IX of France was presented with lily of the valley flowers on May 1, 1561. He liked the gift and decided to present lily of the valley flowers to the ladies of his court each year on May 1. Around 1900, men started to present a bouquet of lily of the valley flowers to women to express their affection. The flowers are a more general token of appreciation between close friends and family members these days.”

Perfume Shrine has an amazing post on the role that muguet has played in perfumes for a long time, with some of the folklore about the flowers and a list of dozens of muguet-based fragrances. It doesn’t include Decou-Vert, though, which was launched in 2012, some time after that post.

Bottle of Laboratotio Olfattivoa eau de parfum Decou-Vert

Decou-Vert

Decou-Vert, by Laboratorio Olfattivo, is presented as a unisex fragrance and in fact, it would be quite appealing on a man while also lovely on a woman. Continue reading →

Fragrance Friday: May Muguet Marathon
by

Fragrance Friday: May Muguet Marathon

As you may know, possibly my all-time favorite fragrance note is lily-of-the valley, or “muguet.”  I associate it with one of my favorite books, Elizabeth Goudge’s “The Scent of Water”: Fragrance Friday: The Scent of Water. I carried lilies of the valley in my bridal bouquet in April (flowers I grew myself), but May is traditionally the month for muguets, when the flowers often bloom and when the French give bouquets and sprays of the blossoms on May 1. So, since this is the first May since I developed my passion for perfume, I’m going to celebrate May by posting as many reviews as I can of muguet-focused fragrances, including the latest in the Hermessence line, “Muguet Porcelaine” by Jean-Claude Ellena as well as some classics and other new discoveries. Wish me luck! And please join me in the comments during this May marathon!

lily-of-the-valley basenotes

by

Anubis (Papillon Perfumery)****

Luca Turin is back! He has just started a new blog about perfumes he loves. I couldn’t be more delighted, as his legendary guide book to perfumes was one of the books that started my interest in perfume and fragrance. Like many others, I discovered Mr. Turin’s book by reading Chandler Burr’s “The Emperor of Scent.” I am especially happy to read here that he loves a fragrance by Papillon Perfumery, whose scents I discovered last summer in London. The more I learn, the more I appreciate Liz Moores’ approach and philosophy. It is inspiring to see her work so well received.

lucaturin's avatarperfumesilove

p61_3_0.jpgAs an audiophile of long standing and limited means, I am struck by similarities between loudspeakers and perfumes, especially in the manner of their choosing. Most people who don’t much care about sound (including many professional musicians who tend to listen to the playing, not the recording) buy little desktop or bookshelf speakers that adequately carry the spectrum but turn muddled and shouty when pushed hard. If they ever actually pick them by sound, they tend to go for the most impressive, i.e. the one with lots of treble and unmusical boomy bass, neglecting the midrange where most music and voice actually lies. That’s most of mainstream perfumery, all topnotes and bare but powerful drydown.

Then you have horn speakers, for those who love a huge midrange sound, colored by the resonant cabinetry, but capable of playing very loud, and with a wonderful old-fashioned chesty voicing. That would be the Roja Dove tendency of larger-than-life retro fragrances…

View original post 265 more words

by

Ten Fragrances in Ten Minutes — Bois de Jasmin

What are the ultimate desert island perfumes? Patricia tests herself. I’ve lived in my present dwelling for over thirty years, time enough to accumulate an unnecessary quantity of items. With the current trend towards minimalism, my various collections have started to weigh heavy on my conscience and I’ve enjoyed fantasizing about moving into much smaller quarters…

via Ten Fragrances in Ten Minutes — Bois de Jasmin

This is a fun exercise! Try it, and share your choices!