Perfume Chat Room

Perfume Chat Room, May 19
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Perfume Chat Room, May 19

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, May 19, and we are back from our Bermuda holiday. Sigh. It was so beautiful and relaxing. Luckily, I had the foresight to take yesterday and today off work also, so I can ease back into regular routines and hold on to some of the vacation vibe a bit longer.

Photo by Andrea Powell on Pexels.com

Last weekend, we had a fabulous visit to The Bermuda Perfumery in St. George, home of Lili Bermuda fragrances, and we had tea with our friends in their garden. The next day, Mother’s Day, I was served a lovely breakfast by my family and was “given” the Lili Bermuda fragrance I had chosen the day before: Bermudiana. I had tried Mary Celestia, whose back story intrigued me, but the fragrance wasn’t as interesting as the story, and it didn’t seem to last on my skin.

I was able to do more reading than usual on this holiday, and I read more of Bermuda’s early history. I had known before that it was first inhabited by English sailors whose ship, the Sea Venture, on its way to re-supply the struggling English settlement at Jamestown, Virginia, had been blown far off course by a hurricane and shipwrecked at Bermuda. Apparently the true story of this adventure provided Shakespeare with the inspiration for “The Tempest”. What I hadn’t fully realized before is just how desperate the conditions at Jamestown were, by contrast with the plentiful lushness, safety, and beauty of Bermuda. No wonder there were a few mutinous uprisings during the ten months that the crew and passengers of the Sea Venture were on Bermuda — many of them didn’t want to leave their newfound paradise for a settlement they already knew was in trouble — insufficient supplies, attacks from Native Americans, disease, etc.

On our way home, I picked up another Lili Bermuda fragrance in the duty-free shop: Pink. It is a very pretty floral, and I look forward to getting to know it better. I’m counting it as a supplemental Mother’s Day gift, lol! Speaking of Mother’s Day, I was very touched by the number of local people who wished me a happy Mother’s Day while just passing by on the lane that led to the beach. Bermudians are famous for their old-fashioned manners (you do NOT get on a bus or request help or information at a counter without first greeting the person with “Good morning”, or “Good afternoon”), but this was next-level courtesy.

I’m already planning some more “perfume tourism”; I will tag along with my husband on one of his work trips to London this fall, and we hope to take our family to France next summer, as a delayed graduation/anniversary trip (we were supposed to go in the summer of 2020). A new “Perfumer’s Garden” is about to open at Versailles, sponsored by Maison Francis Kurkdjian, and it looks gorgeous. Gardening AND fragrance — two of my loves, together!

Did you do anything special for Mother’s Day?

Perfume Chat Room, May 13
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Perfume Chat Room, May 13

Welcome to the 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 Saturday, May 13, and we are in Bermuda! Which is why I’m a day late posting. And in case you’re wondering, Lucy is safely boarding with her vet! A friend had kindly offered to watch her, but the trauma of her recent overnight disappearance moved me to put her in more official hands.

We have the happy coincidence of our oldest friends being here in Bermuda the exact same days as us, completely unplanned. We’ve been having dinner and some beach time together, and today, we are all going to visit the Bermuda Perfumery, home of the Lili Bermuda fragrances. One of my longtime favorites, from a prior visit, is Lily. One of my daughters loves Coral. I’m excited to try Mary Celestia, a re-creation of a 19th century perfume found in a sealed bottle in a shipwreck. Their new Island Rose sounds beautiful, too. Perfume tourism!

The Bermuda Perfumery in St. George's, Bermuda, with pastel houses
The Bermuda Perfumery. Photo: http://www.foreverbermuda.com

Bermuda itself is marvelously fragrant. The cottage we are renting has a garden with jasmine, rosemary, and a shrub I think is a loquat tree, with waxy white blossoms like orange blossom, that have a similarly semi-narcotic scent. When we stroll down to the water, the air smells of the impossibly blue saltwater, which sparkles in all shades of turquoise and even purple. It is a clean, salty smell, with very little of seaweed about it.

Do you like the scent of tropical flowers, or the seaside? Any particular favorite scents that evoke them?

On Monday, Portia and I will be posting our monthly collaboration Counterpoint so,I hope you’ll come back here to read it and share your thoughts!

Lily fragrance collector gift set from Lili Bermuda
Photo: http://www.lilibermuda.com
Perfume Chat Room, May 5
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Perfume Chat Room, May 5

Welcome to the Friday 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, May 5 — happy Cinco de Mayo! We had drama a few days ago that has a happy ending. Our sweet dog Lucy slipped out of our back yard and went missing for the rest of that day and overnight. We searched the whole neighborhood and the next one over on foot and by car. Our three young adult children, several friends, and passersby joined in. Night fell, and still no sign of Lucy. She is 10 years old but in excellent health, so we worried on multiple fronts, including, has she gotten sick or injured and can’t get home; or, has she gone so far, given her good health, that she can’t safely find her way back? She has only ever gotten out of our fenced, gated, locked back garden a few times in her ten years, and has never gone further than a block or two away, at most. Once, she went to the end of our block; and once, she got to the sidewalk and then ran back up our driveway and into the back yard! We only knew she had been gone because friends of our had seen her on the sidewalk and came to our door to tell us.

So this overnight disappearance was very alarming, to say the least. Happily, our next door neighbor let us know early the next morning that he had found her, trapped in the small locked enclosure where his HVAC unit sits in their back yard. He had been away all day, didn’t see our email to neighbors until late that night, and didn’t see her until the next morning. We think she jumped down there (it’s on a slope) and then couldn’t get out. She’s not a big barker, and she wouldn’t have been able to hear us calling her with the unit’s fan running. So my husband rushed next door to get her, and the prodigal returned, safe and sound.

I need a calming scent this week! I think I’ll wear DSH’s Smudge Nebula, which isn’t, strictly speaking, a body fragrance but which works beautifully as one. We’re looking forward to our upcoming trip to Bermuda, when we’ll visit the Lili Bermuda perfumery, among other sites.

Now that it’s May, and we’ve had lots of “April showers”, do you have May flowers? Real, or perfume?

Perfume Chat Room, April 28
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Perfume Chat Room, April 28

Welcome to the Friday 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, April 28, and the “Now Smell This” blog community which I know many of you also enjoy, has had some sad news. On Wednesday, the blog’s founder, Robin, shared that her husband had died unexpectedly the night before. I feel so sad, although I’ve never met Robin. Robin loves teapots and often entertains us with photos of them, so in Robin’s honor, and with warm sympathy:

Teapot with tea cosy printed with robins
Tea cosy by Madeleine Floyd.

Because NST’s “community project” this week was to wear a fragrance whose name was a clever twist or a pun, I’ve been wearing a lot of 4160 Tuesdays fragrances! One, I love most of them; and two, Sarah McCartney does come up with very clever names! I especially like her “Clouds” series; and I think it’s very clever that she made one version with synthetics of the otherwise very costly naturals in the original formula, and called it Clouds’ Illusion. Then she made a version that combined the naturals and synthetics, and called it Both Sides of Clouds, just like the song lyrics. So I’ve been wearing those this week, plus another favorite, An Excess of Carelessness, referring to The Great Gatsby.

I know several of you have commented at Now Smell This to offer condolences to Robin, as have I; so let’s spare another thought for Robin and family on this last Friday of April. And take good care of yourselves, please!

Perfume Chat Room, April 21
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Perfume Chat Room, April 21

Welcome to the Friday 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, April 21, and my roses continue to explode in bloom (’tis the season here in the Southeast, I know some of you haven’t even gotten all your spring blossoms yet). I’ve been enjoying sniffing each one and smelling the subtle differences in their scents. Some are more fruity, some are more musky, some are so strongly “rosy” that it’s all I smell.

David Austin English Rose "Fighting Temeraire"; image from www.gardentags.com
David Austin English Rose “Fighting Temeraire”; image from http://www.gardentags.com

This past Monday, I posted another “Counterpoint“, the collaboration between me and Portia of Australian Perfume Junkies. The mystery perfume we analyzed is Jean Patou’s Joy — the original, the one and only Joy. If you haven’t read it yet, please check it out! I really love these projects.

In other news, the community project at another favorite blog, “Now Smell This“, is to wear a spring floral fragrance or other fragrance that reminds you of spring. I’m ready, bring it! I have so many spring florals, it’s not even funny. Now I just have to decide which of many to wear today. I think I’ll go with a newer acquisition, 4160 Tuesdays’ Both Sides of Clouds in extrait strength, the one that earned me compliments from a checkout cashier last week!

What is your favorite spring floral fragrance if you have one?

Perfume Chat Room, April 14
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Perfume Chat Room, April 14

Welcome to the Friday 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, April 14, and we had a lovely Easter. All three kids were here, and I cooked and cooked to my heart’s content. We had salmon en croute on Saturday night, and roast lamb for a mid-afternoon Sunday dinner, with the obligatory (at least in my family) asparagus with hollandaise sauce. This week, my upcoming retirement at the end of this summer was finally announced to all my colleagues, and I’ve been getting lots of very nice emails from them.

My beloved David Austin roses are in fine form, with more blossoms popping open every day in spite of the ongoing variability in our weather. We’ve returned to chilly and rainy, with periods of sunshine in between but still very moderate temperatures. Luckily, the roses seem to be happy — they are English roses, after all!

We’re looking forward to a quiet weekend with no scheduled obligations. And yes, we filed our taxes months ago, so the upcoming US deadline isn’t an issue.

Please remember to check in on Monday, when Portia and I will post another “Counterpoint” post about a specific fragrance and our different experiences and perceptions of it.

Unlabeled decants of mystery perfume
Mystery perfume; image from etsy.com

I got a lovely compliment on my perfume today — I stopped at a supermarket on my way to work, to get cupcakes for the class I teach on Fridays, and as I was stepping away from the checkout line, the young woman called to me “Ma’am! Ma’am!” I turned around thinking I had left something, and she smiled and said, “You smell so nice!”. Made my whole day. Have you gotten any fragrance compliments lately?

Perfume Chat Room, April 7
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Perfume Chat Room, April 7

Welcome to the Friday 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, April 7, and my last post (“Notes on Notes: Galbanum“) was the 700th post I’ve made on this blog! It is also Good Friday today, and I’m really looking forward to Easter Sunday. All three of our kids will be home this weekend, and I’ll make our usual festive holiday dinner: midday, after church, with roast lamb, asparagus with Hollandaise sauce, parsnips, potatoes, and some other veg (probably Brussels sprouts or peas). Believe it or not, my children who are all in their 20s have requested Easter baskets again, lol. I’m happy to oblige. Several of my roses have started to bloom, and they smell wonderful.

This weekend also marks our 33rd wedding anniversary! My husband is the best and nicest man I know. I love him dearly, and I feel lucky every day that we found each other.

Happy Easter, to all who celebrate it! We’ll go to church on Sunday morning; I even have a new dress I might wear. I usually wear a hat, too. I haven’t decided on a fragrance yet, but I’ve been enjoying a spring purchase: a tester of Jour d’Hermès parfum. It is just gorgeous, so that may be my SOTD on Easter Sunday. Do you have any plans?

Perfume Chat Room, March 24
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Perfume Chat Room, March 24

Welcome to the Friday 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 24, and Spring has sprung! We’ve gone in just a couple of days from temps below freezing at night, back to sunny and in the 70s. The pollen is flying everywhere leaving yellow dust in its wake and all over cars. All over everything, actually. Thank goodness for non-drowsy antihistamines!

I still have daffodils, azaleas, and dogwoods in bloom, and one rose bush that has started blooming its head off. In honor of William Morris’ birthday today, NST’s community project is to wear a scent that can be matched with anything to do with him — his art, his designs, his books and poems — whatever. I love William Morris designs, so I matched one of my favorites (actually designed for him by J.H. Dearle) called “Daffodil” with my beloved Ostara, by Penhaligon.

Drawn design for fabric with daffodils
Design for “Daffodil” by JH Dearle for William Morris & Co.; image from the William Morris Gallery.

All the spring scents are jumbled together outside in a charming melange that includes grass, flowers, trees, dirt, and rain. My poor vegetable garden froze solid back in December. I didn’t bother replanting winter vegetables, I just spread more compost so it could “season” until the weather is warm enough to plant again, and the compost is adding to the mix of smells.

Portia and I have decided we will just wait until April to resume our “Notes on Notes” and “Counterpoint” collaborations, since we were both traveling a lot in March. We’ve got some great material to discuss! If you want to suggest 1) fragrance notes; or 2) specific fragrances that you’d like us to tackle, please let us know in the comments!

And for those in the Northern Hemisphere, happy Spring!

Perfume Chat Room, March 17
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Perfume Chat Room, March 17

Welcome to the Friday 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 17 — Happy St. Patrick’s Day! As regulars here know, I love green fragrances, so my green of the day today was Tom Ford’s Vert d’Encens. It is one of a group of four “Vert” fragrances he released in 2016. The perfumer was Olivier Guillotin. I have decants of all four; my favorite has been Vert de Fleur, which has a hefty dose of galbanum. I wasn’t crazy about Vert d’Encens when I first tried in some years ago, but now that I have an actual decant and have sprayed it more liberally on my wrists, I quite like it. The incense accord is very detectable, and it lasts well, too, several hours. Per Fragrantica, it has notes of incense, pine resins and fir balsam, heliotrope and woods. It isn’t smoky at all, which I’m enjoying.

Green incense sticks
Green incense sticks; image by Philip Arthur Moore.

I decided to honor my Irish roots as well as my husband’s and make corned beef with cabbage for dinner tonight. However, I’ve adopted a more modern cooking technique — baking/roasting the meat and vegetables instead of boiling them. I look forward to seeing how they turn out! I’d rather be eating Irish soda bread slathered in Irish butter, but I’m trying to reign in my consumption of carbs after our two weeks eating everything in sight in Barcelona and Lisbon over two weeks!

Do you have anything fun going on for St. Patrick’s Day? Also, fyi, due to my travels and absence, we’ll be off-schedule with our Notes on Notes and Counterpoint posts this month. Stay tuned!

Perfume Chat Room, March 3
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Perfume Chat Room, March 3

Welcome to the Friday 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 3, and I am in Barcelona! Love this city. Yes, I have visited some perfumeries, most notably The Perfumery, a true haven for artisan and niche perfumes. I had a lovely visit with its owner, who now sees clients by appointment. And then you get his undivided attention and expertise, for at least an hour! It was great. I tried several brands that were entirely new to me, including the line developed by Fragrantica writer Miguel Matos.

I also visited Perfumeria Regia, also a lovely store but a more standard retail experience. I sampled a couple of brands I hadn’t seen before, but most of their stock, while excellent, is available in the US. I did come out with one discovery set, though!

We’ve had fun revisiting favorite places like Park Guell and seeing some new ones, like the interior of Casa Batllo. And we have eaten very, very well! Do you have any favorite Catalan or Spanish dishes?