*****************Still Commercial Free**********************

Monday, February 27, 2012

By Kilian Amber Oud

Musings

* I wonder if Kilian Henessey has a signature scent....

* Pure Oud is really rich and gorgeous and when I first sniffed it I wanted a bottle so badly . My decant has lasted a long time , but it is getting low .

*Funny , I don't think I have sniffed Rose Oud - the combination of roses and oud often strikes me as too metallic .

*By Kilian's Facebook campaign was wonderful - I reallly enjoy having the full sample set as a reference .

* I recieved an e-mail from the company announcing the release of Amber Oud and of course accepted their offer of a sample .

* I have been in a perfume funk this year , and I haven't even opened the Amber Oud sample yet .

* Somebody slap me , because I adore smoky benzoin ( hello PRADA Benzoin parfum ! ) and I burn Papier d'Armenie whenever I can get my hands on it .

* Enter Amber Oud , with smoky benzoin slithering out  as sexy as a genie out of a bottle . Three wishes ? Why yes . Yes thank you . A bottle of Pure Oud , a lifetime supply of Papier d'Armenie and a beribboned case of Amber Oud bottles for me and all my friends .

* It is pouring rain today , the first time in months . Florida has had a warm , dry winter and we need this rain so badly . I am wearing snuggly Amber Oud , and I will let you kow how it goes....

By Kilian Amber Oud (Arabian Nights Collection) includes notes of cedarwood, vanilla, bay leaf, and benzoin.

image : Genie in a bottle by *SusanCoffey

Photography / People & Portraits / Miscellaneous

Monday, February 20, 2012

Robert Piguet introduces a new collection of fragrances !


The five fragrances are described  as follows:

Bois Noir
This avant-garde elixir combines warm woods with rich balsam. The blend opens with facets of gaiac and cedar wood. Heart notes include warm sandalwood and patchouli. The drydown features the richness of balsam and cistus absolute. Bois Noir is modern sophistication and the ultimate scent for baring bold style.

Casbah
This striking fragrance transports wearers to a mysterious realm. Top notes include the warmth of angelica root, black pepper and nutmeg. Mid notes feature smokey incense, orris and tobacco facets. Base notes include rich cedar wood and vetiver. Casbah is a spellbinding scent perfect for creating an impression of glamour and mystery.

Mademoiselle
A delicate and romantic addition to the Piguet family of feminine masterpieces. Composed of elegant orange flower complimented by almond and apricot tones, this alluring fragrance also features notes of bright bergamot and sensuous tonka bean. Mademoiselle Piguet is the perfect scent for the young and young at heart.

Notes
This fresh fragrance blends invigorating green notes with vibrant woody accords. This energizing elixir opens with a crisp top note of bergamot and clary sage. Mid notes include fresh herbaceous facets featuring geranium and orange flower. The drydown reveals the warmth of oakmoss, vetiver and tonka bean. Notes de Robert Piguet is the signature fragrance for creating an aura of magnetism and charm.

Oud
Oud is a resin released by trees and is sometimes believed to ward off evil spirits or even attract lovers. Wearers will be enveloped in this rich and elegant blend. The intensity of spices morphs darker as the fragrance evolves into its smokey undertones. Wearers will be reminded of rich woods and opulent incense as this sumptuous scent clings to skin like warm silk. Experience Oud de Robert Piguet, featuring notes of rich vetiver.

I am anxious to try all of them , they are scheduled for release in June , but I hear some are available already at Harrod's in London .

Friday, January 27, 2012

"Our Winter 2012 Top Fragrances & Other Stuff " and a draw !


2012 is here ! A cycle has ended , a new one begun . Our collective consciousness holds it's breath - will we see great changes ? Are the ancient peoples correct in their predictions for this time on Earth ?

The Mayan Long Calendar speaks of the end of one cycle of time moving into the next on December 21 , 2012 when their date numbering system rolls over to 13.0.0.0.0
Some researchers suggest Nostradamus was a true prophet and that his prophecies are genuine. Credited with accurately predicting numerous major world events including the assassinations of JFK and Princess Diana, the rise of antichrists Napoleon Bonaparte and Adolf Hitler, the French Revolution, the collapse of the World Trade Centre and the Challenger Disaster, Nostradamus is now being closely linked with the 2012 “end of the world” prophecies cited by ancient cultures like the Mayan, the Hopi and Hindu texts.


Just like the Mayan, the Hopi predict a new dawn of civilization in 2012.
The Hopi are Native American Indians occupying the lands in the Arizona Desert. Their name Hopitu means peaceful people. Little is known about their past but it is thought they have lived in the Black Mesa for around 10,000 years. Like the Mayans and other Mesoamerican Indians their traditions and prophecies are passed down orally from generation to generation. And just like the Mayan, the Hopi predict a new dawn of civilization in 2012.The similarities predicted by the two cultures do not end there. The Hopi also prophecies Earth is soon to go through a period of great purification and that it will be the choice of humanity how extreme the purification process will be. The Hopi say the planet is emerging into the fifth world, but will go through a trial of suffering before a time of “one-heartedness.”
An ancient Hopi Indian prophecy states:

“When the Blue Star Kachina makes its appearance in the heavens, the Fifth World will emerge.”

The Blue Star Kachina is the name the Hopi give to the Sirius, the brightest star in the sky that the ancient Egyptians referred to as Isis or the Dog Star (God Star) the mother of fertility and rebirth. The Hopi say this will be the day of purification.The Hopi believe the Star Kachina will initially be noticed by the entire world when it becomes so bright it appears yellow in the night sky. As it moves slowly across the heavens red pulses from violent explosions will be seen on its surface. As it appears over the North American continent blue rays of fire will be seen emanating from the surface, so brightly people will be able to see in the dark.

The Dogon are a tribe of native Indians from Mali in West Africa and are believed to be of Egyptian descent. What is most astonishing about their culture is that they have a profound knowledge of astronomy that dates back thousands of years and has been passed down from generation to generation through oral traditions.Between 1931 and 1956, two French anthropologists, Marcel Griaule and his student, Germaine Dieterlen conducted extensive research within the Dogon communities during which time they were told about the tribal myths by four village elders. What they were told astonished them.The Dogon knew about the rings of Saturn, the moons of Jupiter and the spiral structure in the Milk Way that reflected the circulation of blood in the human body. But they also had knowledge of the brightest star in the galaxy, Sirius and its companion star Sirius B. The Dogon priests told the anthropologists that Sirius B was a white dwarf planet with an extremely heavy mass and orbited Sirius every 50 years. The facts were true, and the Dogon had known this for thousands of years, even though Sirius B was not visible in the night sky by the human eye and was not discovered by telescope until 1862. Its density was not discovered by American astronomers until 1910.
It is interesting that the Hindu predict the emergence of a new world is prophesied in their calendar, the Kali Yuga, which has an end date of 21 December 2012, just as the more familiar Mayan Long Count calendar does. But the Hindu went one step further and cited certain behavioural patterns would be evident towards the end of days. It is important to note that many of the circumstances the Hindu stated are evident in the world today.
Just as with the Mayan and other ancient civilisations, the Egyptians were master astronomers and astrologers with the ability to predict events on earth by reading the position of the stars, planets and the sun in the sky. Subsequently they made reference in both the Egyptian Book of the Dead and the Kolbrin Bible to a global catastrophe that would invoke major disruption and changes to the planet.

The Egyptians predicted the event would take place in the year 9792 BCE, though didn´t speculate what the damage would be other than to state: “The sun moved from his wonted course, twice rising where it now sets and twice setting where it now rises,” and that “The Old Lion turned around.” This account seems to imply the phenomenon predicted by geologists and other scholars of the pole shift.

Wait a minute , this is just a perfume blog after all , but I hope I shared with you some things you did not know . There has certainly been upheaval in the world of perfume with all of the IFRA restrictions . My interest in new perfume releases no longer exists in fact . Has anything come my way this year ?
If you are still reading - good for you !
I have been getting pretty crafty lately , spinning lots of wool yarn and crocheting a new sweater for myself . I also am suddenly smitten with Irish Lace and began a crochet project with paisley motives which eventually will be a fitted coat . I'll share pics with you if you want to see them .

My old standby fragrances are still with me - our Florida winter has been extremely mild . It was 80 degrees yesterday so I wore my tropical favorite ,
Bruno Acampora Seplasia . Yummy coconutty floral that it is .
Dior Mitzah was my holiday choice . We had a brief cold snap to put me in a Holiday mood and Mitzah has astonishing sillage and longevity . Delicious !
Caron Infini parfum is new to my collection and I have slowly fallen in love with her cold aloof charms . I recently swapped for a big vintage bottle of parfum de toilette and I use it with abandon .

I would love to share samples of these with one lucky reader . Just tell me what you see happening in 2012 , and give me some suggestions for new releases worth trying .

Happy 2012 !!



participatig blogs :
Gaia at thenonblonde
Elena at perfumeshrine

Friday, January 20, 2012

Cuarzo Luxury Perfume

The Cuarzo Signature range is hand-produced, with the devotion and skill required for perfect quality. There may appear slight variations from one item to another, due to natural characteristics of the wood or glass, or in the perfume itself due to the nature of natural essences. Light sensitivy, temperature or maturatuion can also induce slight variations in colour.


Each gem contained in our perfumes has been in direct contact with the different perfume essences during a long period, to allow a complete transfer of energies, and convert the perfume into an elixir.

Each gem has been manually selected according to its energy, and not according to shape and size, which may differ from one gem to another.

Ruby -
top -raspberry , lemon , ginger , blackcurrant , mango mandarin
heart - ylang , jasmine , lily of the valley
base - amber , woods , musc , sandalwood honey

Sapphire -
top - Ceylon Cardamom , pink pepper , mandarin , nutmeg
heart - amber , incense , vetiver , violet leaf , magnolia , iris , sandalwood , oud
base - castor , green moss , musk , tonka , benzoin

Emerald -
top - peach , hyacinth , bergamot , neroli , pink pepper , lavender
heart - magnolia , white hibiscus , ginger , jasmine , lily of the valley , violet leaf
base - musk , white amber , vanilla , cedar

We bring together the naturelness with sophisticated , , the rough stone with the polished gem , the earthly, natural and wild with the human and refined, in an exquisite, unique perfume (of a limited and numbered edition), thus creating one of the noblest and most luxurious perfumes ever created.

from http://www.cuarzosignature.com/gemscollection.html




Sunday, January 1, 2012

Happy New Year

Snow Effect by Lucien Levy Durhmer 

Saturday, December 24, 2011

A Dozen for Winter

winter in  connecticut from davis galleries

No snow here in Florida , but it's Chritmas Eve and everyone is celebrating .
Happy Happy Holidays to you !

I'm in a rut . Not a snow rut , a fragrance rut . I have my favorites and I can't seem to wear anything else . After years of searching for the best of the best , I have found a wardrobe of scents that are ME , and I am so happy to be in this rut .
The downside ? It has placed a serious cramp in my reviews - nothing measures up . ( IFRA restrictions might have a leeetle something to do with it...)
All of a sudden I can't tolerate Arpege , which is weird . I have a couple of "new" vintage finds to love .
All in all , my collection is as large as ever , but I am selling off those things I don't adore , and using with abandon those things I do adore .
So what is my winter dozen ?

1. Aftelier Pink Lotus remains on top , with it's warm , earthy vibe it never fails to satisfy . Though it only lasts a few hours , I don't mind . It allows me to change to something else in the evening .

2. Roja Dove Diaghilev - I wear this more than any fragrance I have ever owned , and love it for so many reasons . I can put it on in the evening and it is still going strong when I wake up .

3. Guerlain Sous le Vent - Recently I acquired a couple of decants thank goodness , because I was running low . I may never own a full bottle ( sob ) but I adore this year round . It would be number one if it lasted longer , but alas it only hangs around for a couple of hours . So what is a girl to do ? Re-apply , of course...

4. Guerlain Chant d'Aromes - my chypre love rages on , and the older formulations of this are so warm and gorgeous I can wear them year round .

5. DSH Vintage Patchouly - My patchouli love also rages on , and nothing fills the bill like Dawn Spencer Hurwitz Vintage Patchouly in parfum strength , full of resiny warmth and a little tobacco . Scrumptious !

6 . Chanel Coco - Surprise ! I swapped for a mini bottle of Vintage Coco EDT and went through the roof . I KNEW there had to be a Chanel for me , and this is IT .

7. Dior Dioressence and Miss Dior - Although Miss Dior is more rosey and therefore better in the warmer months , both of these vintage chypres have lots of goodness to enjoy during the Holidays .

8 . Roses....in the summer they are too much , but my winter rose collection is making me super happy !
Rosine Rose d'Homme - I wonder if they make a matching body cream ? The other Rosine's are MORE gorgeous in the cream than the spray , IMHO .
Caron Infini - Christen ( who owns knows perfume in Seattle ) sent me an ounce of the pure parfum and got me hooked on this cold-blooded , yet warm hearted rose concoction . Now I own several bottles of vintage EDT and can wear with abandon...
JHAG Citizen Queen - I sold all the bottles from my boutique and only have a small decant left....
what was I thinking ?
Nobile 1942 Anonimo Veneziano takes up where Citizen Queen left off , full of leathery labdanum that lasts and lasts....love !

9. Jacomo Parfum Rare - new to my collection , an oriental-chypre that captures the best of both . I may just wear this on Christmas Day .

10. Comptoir Sud Pacifique Matin Calin - milky-rose candy , the best gourmand EVAH . Like eating Divinity , without the calories...

11 . DSH Cardamom and Kyphi - weird and wonderful and over the top . Everyone around you will wonder what they are smelling .

12 . Shiseido Nombre Noir  - No list of mine will ever again be complete without this wonder chypre of dry rose awesomeness .

How many fragrances do you count among your faves ?





Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Puredistance Winner





The winner of the Puredistance sample set is...........

CAROL FROM NYC .