In last week’s review of Iris Silver Mist I offered to giveaway the large number of wax samples I was given at the Serge Lutens store in Paris.
The winner of the random draw is:
Congratulations fragoom! Please email me at abottledrose at gmail dotcom with your postal address.
Thanks to everyone who commented and entered.
Filed under Perfume Reviews
By Val the Cookie Queen of APJ
A Dislike of Cinnamon
But there is an exception to every rule.
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Iris Pallida, Galbanum, Cedarwood, Sandalwood, Clove, Incense, Vetiver, Labdanum, Musk, Benzoin and White Amber
When I visited the Serge Lutens flagship store in Paris back in April, I was talking to a member of our group about how we loved fragrances that evolve on the skin. Then I promptly purchased a perfume that pretty much stays consistent from beginning to end: Iris Silver Mist. It’s a reminder that we don’t always need twists and turns. Sometimes consistency is what we crave.
The sleek black atomiser of ISM I bought in Paris
I owned a small decant of ISM maybe 5 years ago and wanted to fall in love with it quite badly. Howver, it was a bit too metallic; as if a cold knife were pressed against my skin. Like a lot of the Lutens fragrances, it appears to have been reformulated since then. It is not only less metallic, but less reminiscent of freshly dug carrots. For once, reformulation had worked in my favour to make Iris Silver Mist considerably more wearable.
While it may not be as evocative of orange vegetables as it used to be, it is still satisfyingly rooty. I love this about it because when I’m in the mood for iris, I want it in all its raspy, rootsy glory.
Released in 1994, I’d forgotten that this Paris Exclusive was composed by Maurice Roucel and not Christopher Sheldrake.
It’s not worth spending much time pondering the notes list. This is such a cohesive composition it’s hard to unpick and really, why would you? It’s all about that spectacular overdose of orris. Everything else is merely there to enhance and complement that striking effect.
Iris Silver Mist is likely to cause the uninitiated to take a step back. It’s unearthed bulbs, freezing fog, green shoots, rich soil, purple violets and even a crisp ream of paper. The dusting of powder serves to soften its edges somewhat and gives it a silky feel. However, it is still most definitely a statement fragrance rather than a pretty perfume.
On me, it swathes the skin so closely, others’ reactions are not of any concern.
ISM is as much an atmosphere as a scent. It’s introspective and wistful but it is also rarefied and mysterious. Has a name ever fitted a pefume more perfectly? I doubt it. You inhabit it the way you might inhabit an otherworldly mist at dusk.
It doesn’t need to mutate. It just has to be.
I find it more soothing than sombre, though I lean towards the melancholy so maybe I simply feel at home. Lately my nerves have been on edge and Iris Silver Mist has been s supremely calming influence, grounding and pacifying me. It’s a beautiful, ethereal filter through which to view the world.
When people ask me what my favourite perfume is, I now have an answer: Iris Silver Mist.
A Giveaway
When I bought my atomiser the SA at Serge Lutens gave me what I think must be close to a complete set of wax samples. If you’d like them, please let me know in the comments and I’ll do a draw next week and announce the winner on Thursday 28th June.
Filed under Perfume Reviews
By Val the Cookie Queen of APJ
Filed under Food & Drink
It’s Mood Scent time again! Today, Megan, Sam and I are picking perfumes that remind or connect us with the place we live or have lived in the past. There are so many fragrances and entire brands devoted to geographical locations, but there are also perfumes that evoke a particular area for other reasons. It’s a personal resonance and I’m looking forward to reading which fragrances my blogging pals based in Wales and France have chosen to represent their home. Hopefully Esperanza will be up to joining us for our next post in August.
London by Gallivant Perfumes
Cucumber, Rose de Mai absolute, Leather
I’ve lived in the capital my whole life so I’ve chosen two perfumes that represent it. This city of mine is a quirky one and Gallivant have made a perfume to match. London is a light, rosy leather with a twist – an aquatic top note that you might not expect to work but somehow does. It captures the eccentric side of the city where everyone is free to express themselves in whatever way they choose. It’s one of the things I am most proud of about my hometown. This unique perfume was a finalist in the 2018 Art and Olfaction Awards for good reason.
Wood Sage & Sea Salt by Jo Malone
Ambrette Seed, Sea Salt, Sage, Red Algae and Grapefruit
While I might not be naturally drawn to Jo Malone’s clean and tasteful output, this 2014 release made an impression on me for its evocation of the British coastline. It was composed by Christina Nagel who is doing a stellar job over at Hermes after taking over from Jean-Clause Ellena. It represents in scent a windswept shore rather than the more familiar tropical beach fragrance. Wood Sage & Sea Salt starts with citrus moving through light woods with gentle greenery and ending with a salty/sweet amber in the vein of Eau de Merveilles. It’s successful in bringing to mind the flashes of sunshine and salty breeze I used to get when visiting a British seaside town out of season with my family as a child.
Vaara by Penhaligon’s
Quince, Rosewater, Carrot Seed, Coriander Seed, Saffron, Moroccan Rose Absolute, Bulgarian Rose Oil, Freesia, Indian Magnolia, Peony, Iris, Honey, White Musk, Cedarwood, Sandalwood, Benzoin Resin, Tonka Bean
I can’t write about London without taking into the account the multicultural mix that I am a product of. My mother came to Britian in the 1950s with the rest of her Angl0-Indian family from Bangalore. They moved into a house in Willesden and when she married my English father, they bought a house in west London. I’ve grown up in a mixed race family and still live in this terrifically diverse city. I therefore have to include a perfume that reflects this and I happen to own and love Vaara. Penhaligon’s is a quintessentially English brand that have created a Western perfume inspired by India. It’s a light, sunny Anglo-Indian rose fragrance with gorgeous splashes of quince, saffron and carrot seed.
Dryad by Papillon Perfumes
Narcissus. Oakmoss. Jonquil. Cedrat. Galbanum. Benzoin. Vetiver.
Moving out of the city into the British countryside is a joy and I love it whenever I get a chance to trample through a forest or woodland. What’s great about Dryad is that it is more than a literal interpretation of the ancient forest in Southern England that inspired it. It starts out with a galbanum note that is a photoreal expression of being immersed in the lush vegetation of this green and pleasant land. However it is embedded in a magnificently complex chypre with a base of oakmoss and oriental leanings which give it a glorious antique feel.
Have a look at the Scents of Place from my partners at Megan In Sainte Maxime and I Scent You A Day.
Is there a perfume that you associate with your part of the world?
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7.5ml press samples
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When I occasionally read Young Adult fiction, I stick with fantasy or LBGTQ+. I read one of each last month. Unfortunately there is a lot of dross in YA so I try and be picky. One thing I’ll say about the genre though, is that the books are well paced and usually fun to read. They can be a good choice if you’re in a reading slump.
Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor
I really loved the main character of the first instalment of this YA fantasy duology. Lazlo Strange is a librarian who spends all his spare time researching the lost city of Weep. He’s a dreamer with a big heart and we follow him as his life takes a huge twist. It’s a well written tale with fantastic characters, great world-building and a well-paced plot. Looking forward to the release of The Muse of Nightmares in October. 4/5
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis
I felt like I was cheating a bit by reading a children’s book for my monthly classic. Even though I already knew the story, it was lovely to read it for myself and enjoy the little details, such as how Lucy loves the smell and feel of fur; rubbing her face in it when alone in the wardrobe. The concept is as good as it gets and beautifully realised. 5/5
The Name of the Rose by Emberto Eco
I put this down after only about 60 pages. The writing was so dense I couldn’t get into the flow. This book is extremely highly rated so clearly the issue is with me. If you think I should persevere please let me know in the comments. I did like the idea of a Medieval murder mystery set in a monastery.
The Girl in the Tower (Winternight Trilogy 2) by Katherine Arden
I loved the immersive, magical experience of The Bear and the Nightingale and was happy to find that atmosphere continued in the second instalment of the trilogy. The focus of the story moves from the Russian wilderness to the city, but continues to revolve around Vasya, who has been branded a witch by her village. I had loved the rural setting of the first book but there is still a fair amount of that to start with and I was intrigued to read about Medieval Moscow. My only mild criticism of the first instalment was that it was rather slow paced. The Girl in the Tower moves along nicely and the last fifth or so is positively action packed. I’m not quite sure how I will wait until January 2019 for the final part of the story but I’ve already got it on pre-order. 5/5
Simon vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli
This YA book has been recently turned into a film re-named Love, Simon. The story follows a 17 year-old boy in Georgia who hasn’t told anyone he’s gay and charts his anonymous online relationship with another closeted boy at his high school, known only as Blue. I wondered if I’d find Simon irritating at the start of the book but I grew to love him. He’s funny and his email exchanges with Blue are as endearing as they are entertaining. I stayed up much later than I should have one night because I was genuinely dying to find out the identity of Blue. I’m rubbish at working out any kind of mystery and true to form, I guessed wrong. I also enjoyed his interactions with his friends and family, who are all great. It doesn’t topple my favourite book in this sub-genre (Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe) but it comes close. 4/5
Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami
This was my first novel by Murakami and it proved a good place to start (thanks for the tip Ana-Maria). It’s set in Tokyo in 1969 and while I see it described as a love story, it’s MUCH deeper than that. While the subject matter is tragic, the narrator – 19 year-old Toru Watanabe – is wonderful and the writing is beautiful. It had a spare, melancholy feel and kept reminding me of Catcher in the Rye. I felt validated when one of the characters asks Toru if he’s trying to talk like Holden Caulfield. Ah, Toru. He is such a sensitive, kind soul who wears his heart on his sleeve. This makes him painfully vulnerable but incredibly empathetic. I’m concerned about how I will get on with the magical realism of Murakami’s other novels but I definitely going to give them a try. 5/5
Should I read the rest of The Chronicles of Narnia? Can you recommend which Murakami novel I should try next?
Filed under Book Review
By Val the Cookie Queen from APJ
As some of you may have read in my last post, I recently spent a few hours with Nathalie Vinciguerra Founder and CEO of Anima Vinci Perfumes, formerly the Creative Fragrance Director of Penhaligon’s and L’Artisan. One could say she knows her stuff. Inside out.
It was The Candy Perfume Boy that first brought Anima Vinci to my attention, and to be with both him and Nathalie in London, to sniff through the line was a privilege and a great pleasure. Both of their enthusiasm and love for the brand was infectious.
There are five fragrances in the initial Anima Vinci collection.
Wood of Life by Michel Roudnitska
Bergamot, mandarin, grapefruit, mint, blue ginger, ylang ylang, rose, petitgrain, cinnamon, cloves, sandalwood, vetiver, patchouli, piri piri, palo santo, leather note, musk, vanilla.
Mellow, woody, smooth, soothing, quiet, but that is not to say unnoticeable. This perfume contains the material “piri piri“ seldom, if ever used before in a fragrance. The South Americans have drunk it as a tea for centuries, as a means of entering a dream like state, and for creating a calming and sedating effect. Perhaps this is what induces the feeling of tranquillity in Wood of Life. A distinctive and elegant fragrance.
Lime Spirit by Christiano Provenzano
Bergamot, orange, citrus fusion, mandarin, black pepper, neroli, ginger, lavender, hedione, pink pepper, cardamom, pepperwood fusion, amber, cedarwood, moss, patchouli, vetiver, sandalwood, tonka, leather, benzoin, musk.
Opening with a stimulating and restoring burst of citrus, reminiscent of a cross between an Opal Fruit and Rose´s Lime Cordial, it is pure pleasure. Diving into the heart we find a multitude of colourful spices, enhancing the revitalizing effect of the citrus opening. Unlike the cologne you might be tricked into thinking it is, it all rests on a bed of leather, tonka, amber… Lime and leather? Absolutely.
Jasmine Yang by Thomas Fontaine
Mandarin, yuzu, pink pepper, solar flowers, water jasmine, frangipani, ylang ylang. sandalwood, ambergris, patchouli, vanilla, white musk.
This is my most worn of the five as I have a bottle in my collection. It is a white floral, but think more along the lines of a white floral for yoga and meditation. It dos not scream. The jasmine cossets your skin, sweetening your emotions, relaxing your mood. Jasmine blossom is offered to the Gods and Goddesses in the Hindu faith. Opening with a mandarin and pink pepper flash, the jasmine is there from the start, enhanced in the heart with ylang-ylang and frangipani. It rests on sandalwood, ambergris, patchouli …… and is utterly delectable.
Oud Delight by Christian Provenzano
Bergamot, lemon. cinnamon, clove, ginger, saffron, coriander seed, ylang ylang, rose, olibanum, sandalwood, oud, patchouli, tonka, labdanum, vetiver, musk, amber.
As Nathalie introduced me to the Oud Delight, she commented that no collection is complete without an oud fragrance. Oud is no longer a phase, it will remain. Oud Delight opens with a strengthening bergamot and citrus accord, before smoothly going into a spicy heart, the oud apparent, but not overpowering. It is anchored into the base along with sandalwood, labdanum, amber …..Tranquil.
Rose Prana by Randa Hamami
Violets leaves, verbena, pink pepper, Centifolia rose, oak moss, woody accord, vetiver, patchouli, white musk.
It was The Candy Perfume Boy saying that Rose Prana was one of the most gorgeous roses ever that sparked my interest and the subsequent meeting of Nathalie. I love rose, but only have a couple in my collection. Rose Prana is absolutely ravishing. Rose: Sensual, love, enlightenment, calming, nourishing, rejuvenating, stimulating, restoring. Rose Prana is clear, sweet and with light notes of honey. Divine. I crave a bottle of this.
All beautifully constructed, modernistic perfumes. An absolute joy.
Anima Vinci offer a perfect discovery set. 5 x 1.5 mls, and it includes a stack of scent strips and a very informative leaflet. You also receive a fifteen pound voucher to redeem if you choose to purchase a bottle. The discovery set is ten pounds plus postage.
For more details and a lot more information on the Anima Vinci house, go check them out here.
With great thanks to Nathalie for the fantastic day that we had together, for the black cab ride, excellent tea and sunstroke.
Om Bussis
CQ
Filed under Perfume Reviews
I went into the new Miller Harris store at Westfield London recently to try the pair of fragrances launched in January this year which were inspired by F. Scott Fitzgerald’s classic novel Tender is the Night.
Miller Harris gave a passage from the classic novel to two perfumers and asked them to interpret it in scent as they wished.
Here is the text: –
“…She walked on, between kaleidoscopic peonies massed in pink clouds, black and brown tulips and fragile mauve stemmed roses, transparent like sugar flowers in a confectioner’s window – until, as if the scherzo of colour could reach no further intensity, it broke off suddenly in mid-air.”
It was clear from the packaging alone that the perfumes were very different and I discovered it mirrors their contrasting characters. I kept muddling up the names because Scherzo is very tender, while Tender is very striking.
Scherzo (by Mathieu Nardin)
Top: Tangerine and Davana
Heart: Olibanum, Narcissus, Pittosporum and Dark Rose
Base: Patchouli, Vanilla, Oudh and Sweet Note
I had to look up what ‘scherzo’ means. It’s a musical term for a composition that is light and playful in character. Now I understand why this feel-good fragrance is named as it is.
The opening of Scherzo is the best part for me. I love a tangerine note and the juicy, fruity opening is fantastic. I would have really liked to get those heart notes of narcissus olibanum (incense), pittosporum (Mock Orange) and dark rose, but after 10 minutes it has morphed into a fluffy vanilla. I don’t pick up on the oud.
Scherzo takes its inspiration from the ‘pink clouds’ and ‘sugar flowers in a confectioner’s window’. The SA said they only had two bottles left and I can well imagine it pleasing a wide range of people.
Tender (by Bertrand Duchaufour)
Top: Pink Pepper, Aldehydes, Green Hyacinth Note and Cinnamon
Heart: Black Tulip, Leather, Saffron, Geranium, Cyclamen, Incense and Turkish Rose
Base: Amber, Cedarwood, Myrrh Absolute, Patchouli, Frankincense, Vanilla Absolute, Storax, Sandalwood and Musk
If Scherzo is more mainstream in appeal, then Tender is more niche. Where Scherzo seems to focus on the word “fragile”, Tender seems to take its lead from the word “intensity”. It picks up on the kiedoscope of peonies, black tulips and mauve roses in the passage. Its character is as introverted and stealthily seductive as Scherzo is buoyant and innocent.
The first chapter of the perfume is the scent of a bed of green hyacinths; deep and heady in the shade. This combines with the black tulip accord and rose in the heart to create a dark floral aroma which is uncommonly gorgeous.
This gradually slides into the familiar Duchaufour base of musky woods spiked with incense. It’s not as strident as it can be, but it’s still not something I’ve ever enjoyed in his work. All the same, I still favour Tender over Scherzo because I’m not much of a vanilla fan and up until the base, I find it quietly intoxicating.
Are you attracted to perfumes inspired by literature? Which of this pair of fragrances is more your style?
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Sandra reviewed Niral by Neela Vermeire Creations last week and generously offered to post a sample to one lucky commenter.
I did a draw via random.org and the winner is:
Congratulations Ingeborg!
Please email me at abotttledrose at gmail dot com with your postal address, which I will pass on to Sandra.
Filed under Giveaway
