It's the 90s Yo But In The Future! (Basically Imagine Andy Samberg as Connor4Real saying this): Versus by Versace (2010)

I know it's been too long. Long story short: Wedding planning is an insane hobby that will take over your life and after you are done you have to recuperate. That's right I am married person now and thus I must go to Lowe's all the time and talk about scheduling maintenance (at least that is what t.v. has taught me). Yet, I finally have the time and energy to take care of this little blog.

Between the resurgence of brown lipstick and pants that don't cut off your circulation I think we can all officially say that 90s fashion is back. The funny thing is the iconic perfume styles of the 90s stayed around a lot longer than the fashion, remember this is the era that gave us aquatic, fruity florals, and the gourmand patchouli bombs aka Angel. The grand irony is and never did I think I would think this with a nostalgic gaze but lets face it once you have your nose assaulted by the upteenth "praline" sugar bomb of the current era you sort of end up missing the fresher fruity florals that used to populate the landscape known as the perfume counter. Yeah, I still can't believe I just typed that. So on to the perfume.

Supposedly Versus by Versace (2010) is based on the beloved Versus from 1992, from what I can tell the notes have nothing in common. The joke on this perfume though is if they released it now with the mention of the 90s connection I sort of wonder if the sales would be better. You're getting two different perfumes from the 90s with Versus, the first is the creamy fruity bubblgum musk thing you find in Herve Leger and the opus to that genre Light Blue by Dolce Gabbana what follows is a switcheroo into the Calvin Klein's CK One territory with a dry down of clean peppery unisex slightly mineral cologne.  It is bizarre yet intriguing, you want to keep smelling it just to try and decipher what the hell is going on in this scent.

In the end all I can think is this is what I always imagined the Spice Girls to smelt like. A lot of rambunctious pink and neon lime with cologne thrown in. A bizarrely nostalgic scent that decided to cover all the bases of what the "cool" kids were wearing.

First Image from NST


Second Image Chronicle Live

Green Citrus Goodness: Lo Mejor di Mi by Mario Tomas

The beginning of Lo Mejor di Mi immediately makes me think of perfect bittersweet green limes which have been heightened with bittersweet green herbs. It is one of the best and most interesting takes I have smelled on citrus in awhile other than Bruno Fazzolari's Monserrat. It is just so zippy and refreshing. Entering the citrus party is cucumber which amps up the refreshing qualities and reminds me of those lovely cucumber waters you drink in the summer. I could  swear there is an earthy note of really good tequila thrown into the cocktail too along with hints of galbanum. It is a happy green opening worthy of sniffing for awhile, in fact I kept on finding my nose buried in my wrist constantly while wearing this perfume.

Within this perfect summer mix is pomelo* or a mix of blood orange, grapefruit, and bergamot which is all creating the scent of pomelo. The scent of Lo Mejor di Mi is so refreshing, I am a bit dumbfounded, you want to keep smelling it and feeling like you are in a sunnier and happier place.
  I know not very descriptive but Lo Mejor de Mi doesn't necessarily evoke a location for me so much as it really does pull off the great promise of aromatherapy and makes me feel happier. The closest quality I can describe it as is a cafe with a garden and there is a fountain in the courtyard. Birds flutter in the trees and there is lively conversation but it isn't loud. The scent is a combination of chill and happy, an utter rarity to find in a perfume.

As the citrus leaves the stage in walks a dry down of clean creamy musk with hints of earthiness from the violet, iris, patchouli and fig. The musk is deliciously creamy and yet not too sweet and thankfully utterly devoid of detergent qualities.

* If you haven't smelled pomelo I highly suggest in late winter/early spring you get your hands on a pomelo. It will be a pain to eat but the scent of pomelo is one of the most layered citrus scents you will ever come across it frequently reminds me of the scent of jasmine, lime, and grapefruit all rolled up into one. There is a heady floral note in it that I have not smelled in other citrus.

Try Mario Toma's Lo Mejor di Mi if you like Diptyque's Philosykos, Atelier Sud Magnolia, or L'eau de Kenzo Amour by Kenzo.

First image from theguardian.com
Second image from fragrantica.com

The Variations of Orange: Monserrat by Bruno Fazzolari

Do you need to smell something that smells close to the sublime moment of a seed sprouting in soil? If so you need to get your hands on Montserrat by Bruno Fazzolari.

This scent is for me that strange juxtaposition that citrus ripens in the winter. We consider the scent of citrus to the scent of summer at times but add cloves and you think winter. Montserrat does not go into clove combination but rather it plays with the idea of citruses out in the cold fields of spring and winter in California. In fact under the layers of grapefruit you smell the green buds of citrus about to bloom. Yet, what I love more is that he is able to capture the scent of citrus as you pick it from a tree the dry earthy green scent of the break between fruit and branch.

This scent is heightened with the intriguing note of plaster which appears in the dry down. With addition of this note Fazzolari creates a full image in my head. Think white walls of old farms houses in the countryside think in the style of Italy or Spain, especially the ones that may have a courtyard, and in that courtyard are citrus trees.

There is a strange beautiful quality of lushness and austere-ness in this scent. The grapefruit and citrus notes verdantly singing and yet the addition of earthy notes of carrot seed and plaster keep in grounded in a cooler contemplative mood.

Try if you like: Orange Sanguine by Atelier Cologne, Concentre d'Orange Verte by Hermes, and 4711.
image from Riochico

SOTD: Super Citrus Monday

So I realized that I haven't done any layers in a long time and that I really don't have any major citrus fragrances, so in honor of what will be a day of non-stop research reading, I present my layering experiment of: The Body Shop Pink Grapefruit body butter, Spun Orange Blossom by GAP, Silken Yuzu by GAP, and Delicate Sagemoss by GAP (all the GAP fragrances are a part of a layering kit a friend gave me). So far the combo is actually quite elegant.

image provided by artnet.com
Grapefruit with Freezer Bag, Cork, Hair Tie, and Bar of Soap by Susan Jane Walp 2000

SOTD: Coco Madamoiselle pure parfum

Today I am going with the highly stylish, modern, and very tasteful scent of Coco Madamoiselle. It is one of those rare fragrances that was designed for the younger set, but was not dumbed down with sugary sweets and fruit salad, but rather its youthfulness is in the transparency of the the fragrance and the overall energy of the notes. It starts of with one of my favorite citrus openings, goes into a heart of creamy jasmine, and eventually settles with the uniquely airy combination of patchouli and vetiver.

image provided by artnet.com http://www.artnet.com/artwork/424892959/3276078/sophie-prive-eveline-dans-son-atelier.html
Eveline dans son atelier by Sophie Prive

Hanae by Keiko Mecheri

Hanae by Keiko Mecheri is meant to evoke butterflies in a Japanese garden and after testing it without first reading the notes or publicity description I must say the fragrance actually does evoke this quality. The fragrance opens with the scent of fresh lychees and cream, shockingly the rendition of lychee in this scent is good which cannot be said of most of the new debuts this year that can't seem to leave the lychee note alone and also can't get it right either. This lovely opening lasts for a minute or two before morphing into a lovely airy fluffy melange of jasmine and citrus (official notes for this part being white petals and yuzu). There is a hint of greenness in the mixture and a supporting note of nectar like sweetness. The scent thankfully does not add vanilla (and I love vanilla) which added would have created a scent over the top in sweetness. Although, wild berries are mentioned in the official notes I can honestly say I don't get any berry notes in the scent, ironically lychee is not mentioned in the official notes. The scent is fairly linear with musk providing the perfect support. Overall I do not think this scent is me, but I wouldn't hate to smell this on people. It is airy and delicate with enough oomph to have presence for the wearer.

Official Notes: White Petals, Yuzu, Wild Berries, Crystilline Musk.

Perfume Review: Tom Ford/Estee Lauder's Azuree Soleil

Where to begin with Estee Lauder's Tom Ford Collection Azuree, a seasonal offering of makeup and fragrance, that was inspired to some degree from Estee Lauder's own Azuree collection. Well, I'm not going to start there, many have already done it and have written wonderful posts about the history that inspired Azuree Soleil, the fragrance of Tom Ford's collection. Rather I will say that Azuree Soleil inspires in many an image of the perfect coconut tropical scent in the most tasteful of ways, but my thoughts differ on its gourmand imagery, it is not a perfect glass of coconut water, but something all together more savory; Thai green curry. It should be noted I cannot wear most fragrances that go into near savoriness due to the fact that near savoriness is most often supported by cumin note and I am one of those people that when a cumin note is applied to the skin it is all bad. But then again Thai green curry is not the average curry it is made up of beautiful aromatics: kaffir lime leaf, lemongrass, ginger, basil, coconut cream, chili. These are scents that do not necessarily scream savory. When I first applied Azuree Soleil I was hit by a rush of spicy zest and woodiness, that reminded me a great deal of Origin's Ginger Essence (I suspect this opening is due to the citrus,woods, and vetiver mixing) and it also reminded me of some dish I had eaten. It took me a few days to realize that reminded me of Thai green curry. This image does not last through out the scent but at the very beginning, the scent goes through stage at one point a creamy gardenia coconut scent, then becoming a creamy floral caramel scent, but then the woods arrive again blending with the gardenia to make a wonderfully tropical yet earthy scent.

The scent of intelligence

What makes a scent intelligent? As usual it really does rely on the nose of the one who is smelling. Still there are few fragrances that I own or have sniffed that scream intelligence too me. And also there is one note that if I smell in on a woman it always makes me think she might be intelligent: vetiver. And now a fun little scent list:

Balmain Ivoire- it's dry, unique, earthy, yet resplendently soapy that it screams high class. It is scent of beauty but beauty with sardonic intelligence with the raised tilt of a brow.

Guerlain Vetiver- Yes, it's in the men's section of the fragrance counter but trust me this has easily got to be one of the most wearable scents. It's clean but earthy with that zest from the citrus. The nutmeg and the tobacco give it a subtle unique dry down that is inviting but does not scream I am trying to seduce you but rather, I smell incredible and I bet you wonder what the hell it is? It is the scent I wear when I want a confident easy going quality.

Cartier Le Baiser du Dragon- What this ultimately dries down to on me is a powdery iris vetiver concoction both scents of intelligence yet when used correctly have cool deeply sensual quality. This is the Femme Fatale of intelligent fragrances, this is the "going out" scent of an intellligent woman.

Chanel Chance- I admit this one does not work on me. Yet, when I have smelled it on women it works it becomes a brite citrusy laden patchouli vetiver concoction, almost having an eau de cologne quality but with definite sillage. The ad campaign was flirty and girly but the scents dry down is anything but that.

Chanel Coco Madamoiselle- This may have one of the most wonderfully smooth openings but the patchouli dry down screams pure wit.