Chloe- curious tickler
Posted by ritaglh on Jan 31, 2008
With a promise of a rose scent and gorgeous bottling, I really wanted to like Chloe Eau de Parfum. But why oh why did I smell insect repellant? I was shocked but bashfully asked for a sample, I had to give this another chance. The first curious sensation is of sticking a feather up my nose and giving it a twirl… My next response is to avoid getting powdered soap flakes in my nose. (As a child I used to grate soap and sprinkle it into the bath to fool my mother into thinking I had washed really well.) This is unlike any reaction I have had to a perfume before and if for nothing else it is a worthwhile experience, just for the uniqueness. But I can imagine people loving it or loathing it.
With a massive launch party in Paris back in October and its very own three muses, I was interested. Anja Rubik, a model described it as a “floral and unique”, The actress Clemence Poesy declares it “young, fresh and romantic” and finally the third muse, Chloe Sevigny thinks it is “almost edibe and beautiful”. Since last Sunday Londoners can sample this perfume at Harrods on pretty ballet slipper coloured ribbons. I checked with two different sales staff and they both described the scent as rose with lychee, honey and cedarwood base.
One of the two perfumers, Michel Almairac, commissioned by Coty to create this perfume created the beautiful Ambrette for Le Labo (available at Liberty). According to the publicity this fragrance is composed of rose, peony, lychee, freesia, magnolia, lily of the valley, amber and cederwood. Chandler Burr described it as being like fabric softener, but for a more positive take try reading the review at the Moodie Report .
The bottles are are very attractive though, with silver tops and ribbed ribbons, with miniature bottles as a gift with purchases. The marketing, packaging and promotion are all exemplary and I am sure this fragrance will find a devoted following. The black and white photos are reminiscent of 1970’s photos and the flesh toned accessories are chic, but not all of a perfumes success is dependent on the exterior and without inner beauty and attraction I will sadly be passing this one by.
Prices: 30ml £35, 50ml £45, 75ml £60
Nibbling Violets
Posted by ritaglh on Jan 30, 2008
Owing to a rare find of a vintage Devon violets bottle and a request for violet perfume, my attention has gravitated towards a violet theme this week. (The bottle on the right with a hand painted violet still smells great, with notes of absinth, actual violet leaf and sweet violet top notes.) For those who know me as obsessed with roses, it seems an act of betrayal to write about violets first, but I will brave the recriminations. I already had a collection of rose sweets from around the world, including the Japanese Kanebo rose bubble gum, rose water, boiled Gulab sweets from India, cachous from England, rose shaped drops from Italy, rose creams, fondants, syrups, confit, jam, crystallised petals, rose honey from Bulgaria, turkish delight, Iranian rose ice-cream, German rose elixir, rose sugar and Chinese rose tea, not to mention other rose oils and rose themed collection. (Yes, I will write about them another time..)
Violets have traditionally been the flowers that were exchanged on Valentines day and ebay still sells hundreds of vintage violet postcards. Here in the UK we can still buy parma violet sweet rolls. Charbonnel and Walker even supply rose and violet creams to the Queen. So, violets are not extinct yet, though definitely not as popular as at the turn of the century. The Liberties Store florist were selling bunches of violets just this week, though only lightly scented.
My first memory of violets involved a visit as a child to an old lady who had a dresser full of violet perfumes and purple Nick knacks. She taught eye exercises and promised that if I did them daily I would have good eyesight. I still perform them and when I do I recall the smell of violets and all things sweet and purple.
My journey for the perfume coincided with a search for all the edible violet sweets I could find in London. I found violet cremes from Fortnum and Masons, both smothered in milk or dark chocolate, Prestat, Bendicks and Rocco’s violet cremes and violet chocolate block, even little purple violet boiled sweets in a cube, thick violet syrup and crystallised violets, tins of violet sweets from Italy, French Flavigny violet cachous and even petite round tins of violet sweets from Harrods. I tasted violet tea at Laduree’s, who also do a charming violet room spray, bought violet perfumed turkish delight and licorice pastilles scented with violet too. I even found long purple lollipops.
There were also more violet themed perfumes than I thought there would be. My favourite would have to be Berdoues Violette de Toulouse, sweet but not cloying, a powdery iris with a soprano voice. Another charming fragrance is the Penhaligons Violetta range. Courtesy of a very enjoyable and informative “Fragrance Profiling Appointment” I had the opportunity to explore their fragrances in a salon upstairs with a cup of tea and chocolate. I bought the lush Violetta hand and body cream and the old fashioned violetta talcum powder.
My favourite men’s fragrance shop, Trumpers do a masculine Ajaccio Violets fragrance, shaving soap and shaving cream. Apparently, Italian men in particular love this fragrance. This is a citrusy violet with light woody undertones, eminently wearable. Previously I have smelt and enjoyed Borsari’s Violetta di Parma, though it was nowhere to be found this week. A sublime and very popular violet fragrance, coupled with rose is Lipstick Rose editions Malle, available from Les Senteurs. I can’t imagine any woman not liking this one. Yardly also do a presentable Violet perfume, though a little sweet and cheerful and have been making it for many years and at around £11 it is also affordable. Even Jo Malone has a violet scented item in her collection, the Parma Violets Tea Linen Spray. Thanks to a complimentary arm and hand massage while exploring their fragrance range, Sarah the facialist introduced me to the secret spray, which she admitted using copiously in her own bedroom and on her clothes. I just had to have it too, with its lemony tea and light floral scent, it was an impulse buy.
A new, fresher and greener take on the violet theme is Violette by fresh. This has top notes of Bergamot and mandarin and a woody base with Patchouli and Sandalwood. Laura Mercier has a relatively recent addition to her fragrance line called aptly Violetta and sweet like the others. The company from Grasse, L’Aromarine also make Violette Eau de Toilette, amongst other single note fragrances. I found the Caron Violette Precieuse a little heady though blowing with a breeze of violets. I also bought a Violet Bath and shower Creme from the Rose & Co Apothecary, which is only reminiscent of violets, but still delicate.
Believe it or not, the hardest fragrance to find were the Devon violets perfume, from here in the UK, whose vintage bottle started this violet excursion. Please let me know which store in London stocks this, as I could only find it online. I will end with a quote from my spiritual teacher who upon noticing I was not particularly pleased with something, urged me to go and smell some violet perfume to make me happy! I did, and it did..
Divine-mmm! Maybe..
Posted by ritaglh on Jan 24, 2008
This was a fortuitous find, the Paris Boutique of Parfums Divine and close to Fragonard’s Perfume Museum too. I first came across this range at Liberty in London last year and immediately hinted to my husband that he would love the scent of L’Ame Soer on me. He duly obliged and I am the proud owner of a large size, which is now regrettably half empty. (I save this one for sleep and my pillow testifies to this.) It is rare for me to find a perfume that I fall in love with at first whiff, especially considering I spend a lot of time on my quest for the odor of sanctity, dismissing almost all as unworthy suitors.
So I wonder why this scent is so glorious? According to the Divine Olfactory Book it is a “hymn to adore” and of “innate sensuality,” and “The most beautiful of encounters…” Well, yes I concur.. I do have a preference for floral aldehydes, including Chanel 5, Balenciaga’s Le Dix and Arpege of Lanvin and L’Ame Soer falls under this family. With a classic combination of rose, jasmine and ylang ylang, a base of ambergris and aldehydes to make them dance, this may explain the attraction. I wear some scents for prayer, some for happiness, some for confidence, some for freshness but this one I wear because I am a woman.
Walking into this shop was a pleasure indeed. With a fresh white interior, chic black and white chairs, paper flowers displays and a spectrum of flacons, books to peruse and a knowledgable assistant, I didn’t leave in a hurry. There are only six glorious fragrances, two of which seem to be for men, which left three more for me to explore. My next favourite would have to be L’Infante, a friendly floral with jasmine, ylang ylang but with the warmth of musks and a tonka bean and vanilla base. A little like a blend of dessert and an apertif.
Divine seems made for a lady, a floral chypre, tuberose, orange and rose de mai, with the support of sandalwood and musk. L’Inspiratrice is more of an oriental and their most recent creation. It has notes of patchouli, rose, topped by bergamot and some vetiver and more tonka and vanilla. I think some men could wear this too. Of the two men’s fragrances I prefer L’homme de Coer to L’Homme sage. It has some powdery iris and fresh herbs and berries on a base of woods, a very attractive scent for a man and for some women too.
The attendant Natalie, a perfume marketing expert shared that her five year old son likes and wears one of the men’s fragrances. But this perfume doesn’t need marketing. Yvon Mouchel, the brands creator works from Dinard in Brittany and his goal is to offer, “to each man and woman the olfactory world that he or she seeks.”
And buy, they do. They sell over 10,000 bottles a year in France and abroad. While I was in the shop, more than a couple of customers bought bottles immediately, although they only met the scents for the first time. I wish this shop was in London, but for those who are fortunate enough to go to Paris, this shop makes for a rewarding visit. Divine, 3 rue Scribe, 75009 Paris. www.divine.fr
Pinch of Paris
Posted by ritaglh on Jan 24, 2008
I popped over to Paris to attend the Perfume Cosmetics and Design Congress on Tuesday at the Cite des Sciences et de L’Industrie. I have always been interested in the packaging and promotion of perfume. My first collection of advertisements started when I was 15. I would tear out perfume ads and stick them on my wall. I recall the Paris perfume ads were a favourite. I also begged for and got an Estee Lauder display book, which I gutted and turned into a display case for a school project. Whatever perfume ads were selling, I was in the market for buying, though I couldn’t afford the perfume I was sold on the images. So, it was pleasure that I perused the glossy box manufacturer stands, the latest in bakelite jars, sample suppliers, gold plated atomizers, engraved lids and lush containers. So much of the pleasure of perfume lies in the packaging and not only in the scent and of course this is reflected in the cost. If only I could afford the manufacturing minimums of 5000 units each of several components, I might be tempted to launch a perfume to sail on the sea with thousands of others, bringing scents and spices on a Cleopatra barge to the beloveds.
The alternative mini pleasure of bringing a perfume home is like unravelling a pass the parcel package and discovering a treasure within a treasure. First there is the bag, usually thick card with ribbon handles, then perhaps some coloured or printed tissue paper, a couple of samples on the side and then the crispy cellophane encasing the precious casket, a sticker or two need to be pried to reveal the cover. Often an embellishment of gold embossing to run the fingertips over the ripples, before opening the box. Coddled and padded inside lies the bottle, glistening and smooth, heavy with the weight of the glass and liquid. The crown on top, often gold, lavish and sculptured can be difficult to pry open but the effort is well rewarded by depressing the atomizer or peering into the hole. Then the moment of truth, an inhalation, followed by a succession of shorter breaths to enjoy a scent followed by excessive dousing of the new dream that has become your own. To be cleaned and disposed of, a trail of paper and evidence of the disrobing on the floor, and the new joy carefully enshrined with the other bottles on the dresser.
I had hoped to find a catalogue of the old Odorama exhibition that had once been held at the Cite des Sciences, but had to content myself with a pocket science book on taste and smell, “Le Gout et L’odorat, des experiences faciles et amusantes,” a cute children’s book on smell science and experiments. There was also a wonderful scratch and sniff book with eight different odors.
The next stop was the Institute du Monde de L’Arabe. Their gift shop used to sell a wonderful incense from Egypt, little oud chips covered in sugar and oils, but they sadly don’t anymore. Their bookshop had some wonderful perfume books including the Plants of 1001 nights, a morrocan scent journey and the gorgeous “Des Epices au Parfum” both published by Aubanel. I bought a pretty illustrated children’s fairy tale set in the orient called “Le Royaume des Parfums” by Albin Michel.
On to the Fragonard museum and the new Divine shop nearby, which I will write about separately. A pit stop at Fauchons included eating a truffle scented madeleine and buying some gifts, then on to Laduree to see their new body creams, journals and gift bags. I stopped on the way at a couple of pharmacies to buy some Papier d’ Armenie in both original and limited edition scents. All I had time for after that was a visit to Printemps, the department store to explore their perfume and children’s section. I discovered three new perfume lines I had not smelt before, as well as the new Bach perfumes to make you peaceful and happy, the reviews are to follow. A friend had placed an order for a violet perfume and I happily obliged by buying Berdoues Violette de Toulouses Eau de Parfums. (I regretted not buying one for myself though). I went upstairs to the children’s section to buy Scentosphere perfume organ making kit, but it had sold out. They did have the perfume lotto though, which has 30 different round scent boxes, including fir, apple, vanilla, coconut, hazelnut, roses, pineapple and violets. www.sentosphere.fr/accueil-parfum.html
Finally, at the Gard du Nord, I had a couple of minutes to explore the discount perfume shop and focused my search on children’ s perfume. In addition to Oiliy perfumes, I quite liked the Kaloo and Clayeux’s Maelle Fleur, but will have to wait for the next visit as the store closed while I was choosing. By this time my shopping bags were getting heavier and heavier. Finally, on the journey home I read the book on Perfume Advertisements I had bought, and fingered over my purchases and re-smelt the scent strips for the short Eurostar journey back to London. I am planning a girls day out in Paris in the near future, let me know if you wish to come.
Anosmia
Posted by ritaglh on Jan 8, 2008
When sweetened lard and chocolate taste the same and scent eludes you! A moving interview with a generous anosmic friend, who shares her experience of a odourfree life after a car accident.
Q: When did you realise you lost your sense of smell?
YR: It happened after a serious accident in which I sustained a head injury. It was after I returned from the hospital and the first thing I noticed was that nothing I ate had any taste. With time I realized that neither my sense of smell nor taste were functioning anymore and that it was possibly permanent if the torn nerves did not repair within 16 years.
Q: Did you start intentionally smelling things to check?
YR Randall: yes, I had a collection of essential oils which I would sniff but I could smell nothing.
Q: What about bad smells?
YR : I couldn’t smell anything at all because the information simply wasn’t getting to my brain. I remember once waiting to cross the road and a large vehicle was passing and giving off a lot of fumes and I felt I could smell them. I think it was nothing more than a flashback to the accident. It only lasted a brief moment.
Q: Did friends come up with smells to test you with, or did doctors give you any diagnostic tests?
YR: my daughter, who was fourteen at the time, once told me to close my eyes. She then held something under my nose and told me to take a big sniff. I nearly fainted! It was a bottle of nail varnish remover and although I couldn’t smell it, nevertheless I felt the effect. No tests were ever done on me, I wasn’t even told about it. I barely remember my stay in the hospital. I had to do my own research online.
Q: I have some smelling salts. Some athletes, including boxers use them, and a whiff is sufficient to have noses and faces wince. Does Ammonia have an effect on you?
YR: I don’t think I’ve tried smelling it but I am sure it would have an effect on me because it’s the fumes rather than the scent that have the effect.
Q: Do you ever worry about eating rotten food or sour milk, or not smelling food burning?
YR: My smoke alarm was doing overtime to begin with because I was always burning toast! If I drank sour milk I would know it was sour. The sense of taste is a combination of the taste buds and the sense of smell. So, for instance, with my taste buds I can perceive sour, salty, sweet, spicy, and bitter but I don’t perceive any flavour because that’s the job of the nose. If I closed my eyes and ate a sweetened block of lard it would be the same as a bar of chocolate.
The imagination seems to play a role as well as I once discovered when I bought a cup of tea in a cafe. It was extremely bitter and undrinkable so I asked for another cup. It was just as bitter, and then I suddenly remembered that I had asked for coffee, not tea. Once I realized I was drinking coffee it became drinkable. Extraordinary!
Q: Do you ever dream of smells now?
YR: No, I don’t dream of smells but a few weeks after the accident I began ’smelling’ the most beautiful scents. I can only assume these were created by my mind, or heaven scent. They were like nothing I had ever smelled before in my life and it was wonderful. This would last for about 10 minutes or so and then fade. It only happens rarely now.
Q: Do you worry about body odour and do you apply perfume?
YR: Yes, it can be easy to forget to wash clothes because your nose is not telling you to. I use a little perfume after checking with friends or my daughters that it suits me. It is amazing how much information comes to us through our noses. Without that information I sometimes have a sense of being disconnected.
Q: There are estimates that the average person can detect over 2.500 odours, do you feel sadness or loss at missing out on this sense?
YR: I’m sorry; the question has made me feel tearful. Yes, it is a great loss but I try not to dwell on it too much. I can even forget that the world has a smell! I think I have to remind myself regularly though so that I realize there is some information I am not getting and act accordingly.
Q: Oh, I am sorry…
YR: no, it is fine.
Q: Helen Keller wrote a lot about her sense of smell as a heightened sense due to her blindness and deafness; do you feel your other senses have become heightened as a result of this loss?
YR: it took me a long time to start cooking intuitively again, without a recipe to hand but now I still love cooking and friends and family love my food, that teaches me the value of intuition and trust. That is something I also thought about a lot. I certainly don’t see any better, too much reading and writing, and my hearing hasn’t changed. Colour has become very important to me though.
Q: and music?
YR: and touch, if I go to the beach I have to go and swish my hands in it and taste the saltiness. I have always loved music but for me it is a very physical thing and I love to respond with my body by dancing.
Q: Any advice for me to make the most of enjoying, appreciating and being grateful for the sense of smell?
YR: Be aware and be thankful for every smell you perceive, good and bad, and also be aware of the information the various scents of the world are giving you, they speak as much as anything else speaks.
Q: Thank you. Please tell me about your favourite perfumes before and what do you wear now?
YR: I used to wear Diorissimo and I think I remember once having a small bottle of Je Rien, I also liked some of the scents from the Body shop such as Tea Rose. I used to make mixes with lavender, geranium, and bergamont - that’s a lovely one. My present perfume is J’Adore. Other favourite scents are the smell of the soil in spring when the sap begins to rise, the smell of the sea, the smell of a babies hair.
Q: Proust wrote about his olfactory memory and how a scent could transport him to the past, do you still carry the memory of for example a rose, coffee or sewage?
YR: It is very difficult for me to remember actual smells very clearly. I think the connection between smell and memory is one of the most difficult things for me. You know how when smell a certain scent and it brings back memories, obviously I don’t have that anymore.
Q: But can memory bring back the smell? I can still remember the smell of boiled cabbage, though it has been years since I smelt it.
YR: That is a fascinating idea. It might be worth trying a kind of memory exercise to see if anything happens. I do sometimes feel that I can almost smell something, when looking at a rose for example, but it eludes me. It’s very faint for me and I’m wondering if the olfactory nerves actually play a direct role in the memory of a smell. As if they were faintly reproducing the smell.
Q: In preparation for our chat I also googled anosmia and came across some interesting sites. Have you ever written about it?
YR: No I haven’t. That has just reminded me of another problem; when I am writing fiction I often forget to describe smells.
Q: When you read fiction that include smell descriptions, is this still enjoyable? I enjoy reading about odours I have never smelt, as well as the scents I am familiar with.
YR: Yes, it is. Definitely. It is interesting to be talking about this because I am beginning to think that I should pay more attention to the sense of smell in other ways, like dreams, or meditations, or written descriptions. Maybe I need to remind my body that it needs to repair itself. Grow those nerves back together.
Q: I was recently thinking about the concept of “a story in a word” and was wondering is there the equivalent of a “story in a smell”? You said above that smells speak as much as anything else speaks, please elaborate.
YR: As I was reading the descriptions on your blog I felt there were so many stories that could be told around the theme of scents. But also that scent, or smell, tells its own story. The smell of fear that arises from the body of a person who is threatened; the smell of aftershave on a young man getting ready to meet his girlfriend. Or the smell of animals on a farm, flowers coming into bloom, they tell us what is happening and we can also take them as signs (in the Sufi sense).
Q: Thank you so much, this was beautiful and I feel really touched and inspired.