Taoist Inspired Aromas
Posted by ritaglh on Feb 7, 2008
Cinq Monde has just opened their first spa shop in London, in fact the official spa opening is on 22 Feb between 12-8. I nipped in to receive a complimentary tin of Black Tea with rare spices, but more importantly to sniff out these new scents in London. In addition to Taoist, Balinese, Siam, Ayurvedic and even Brazilian treatments you can purchase their five perfumes created by Olivia Giacobetti and Jean-Pierre Bethouart. Each of the fragrances symbolically represent not 0nly Taoist elements, colour coding for energetic messages, but also five different spa rituals in five countries; Kyoto, Moroccan Atlas, Kingdom of Siam and Java.
If you would like to “surpass yourself” you could try the Kyoto Rose absolute with Ginger, associated with the Taoist element of wood. This smells of green tea and roses. (I did find similarities with a couple of Rose de Rosines scents). The ginger note is more noticeable than the rose note. On the scent strip this is associated with renewal. This scent colouring is pale green.
For a “desire to undertake” there is the red coloured Orange Blossoms of Morocco. This really does smell of orange twigs and blossoms and is described as Vitality and symbolically associated with the element of fire. I drink white tea as it is referred to in Morocco, made with orange blossom water and boiling water and this scent reminds me of my childhood orange blossom tree in the garden. According to their leaflet, this scent transmits “the desire to undertake and to make a commitment”
My favourite of the five is the sunny yellow Bergamot and Guaic Wood from the Siam range. This is gorgeous in a tropical island holiday kind of way. The key word is harmony and their perfume wheel indicates it is good for self confidence. The blurb is accompanied by a charming 18th century Thai poet, Sunthon Phu: “Gilded dusk, the sun poses its last rays on the Kingdom of Siam, reflection of an ancient time with amber colours.” This scent is supposed to meet an energy need for “comfort, equilibrium, stability and anchoring and is associated with the element of earth.
The light blue one, symbolizing inner peace and inspired by Java, is a weird scent of Eucalyptus and cinnamon. Having grown up surrounded by Eucalyptus trees in Australia, it is not a note I personally enjoy in fragrance but it does have an “energy message of reflection and decision making.” Although only a couple of notes are described in each of these fragrances there are rounding notes of other citrus and herbaceous dollops. The key word for this one is lightness and is associated with the element of metal.
Finally, the dark blue bottle holds the key to soothing away tensions. Most people who like vanilla scents will enjoy this one and it is paired with cardamom. I adore cardamom in coffee, tea and Scandinavian yeast buns. This scent is inspired by the gardens of Bangalore in India and the adjective is Inner Peace. I smell mainly pop corn and clotted cream but this is eminently wearable.
Their fragrances are accompanied by aromatic candles as well as bath and shower oils. This spa can be found on Marchmont street close to the revamped Brunswick Square.
I am not convinced that I will acquire all these virtues by wearing the colour tinged scents, but I am inspired by the marketing and cross references, as well as the contexts that these unusual scents can be found. You can try them here.
Spiritual Scent Sellers
Posted by ritaglh on Feb 5, 2008
Where can I find a scent seller like the one in a charming story by the Noble Literature Prize nominee and Korean poet, Ko Un. In his story of a pilgrims spiritual quest, called, “Little Pilgrim” there is a story about the protagonists meeting with the blue lotus perfume seller. The pilgrim Sudhana has been despairing at having learnt nothing at all on his spiritual quest, when a song drifts toward him, sung by the old perfume seller. Her lyrics are more than a market sellers chant or a PR media campaign offering empty promises. She is offering a perfume where after one breath, “your whole being will brim with joy” or anointed in that perfume, “you may enter a furnace unscorched”. Or another refrain that says that this fragrance will fill “the enemy army with thoughts of love” and a scent whereby all crimes are abolished and the smelling of which “provides a deep meditation”
As the pilgrim heard these words “a faint perfume filled the air” and his mind was “delivered from the melancholy… and once again overflowing with joy.
Who can tell me, have you found such a fragrance?
In the middle ages pilgrimages were a way to see the world, and seek God’s favour, receive blessing and healing amongst many other motives. Most places of pilgrimmage sold souvenirs of the pilgrims journey. In addition to pilgrim badges, people could purchase clay or metal ampullae (small holy water flasks) to carry back on the journey home. Here is a wonderful article on Pilgrimmage Art on PDF and here are some UK detector finds of Ampullae. The image I have added is of an ampullae available to see at the V&A museum in London. If you are interested in buying replicas try here. The name for this blog was inspired by these ancient ampullae and I draw parallels between my modern day search for the odor of sanctity, with the medieval tradition of buying bottles of holy water. Are we not all buying something much more ineffable than scented water? With names like opium, samsara, virtue, pleasure, joy etc are these not qualities closer to emotions, virtues and divine qualities?
On my recent trip to Paris I happened upon two organic perfumes promising “vitality” and “presence” and beneficial for L’Esprit. Traditionally, aromatherapy has extolled the physical and healing benefits of scents and oils, as does Unani Medicine and many religious traditions. There are even certain Afro Carribean Protestant Christians, according to W. Zane in his book Journey’s to the Spiritual Lands” where in a ritual called “Rising” the floor that a pilgrim has laid on is spiritually cleansed by washing it with perfume. In one extraordinary church the famous Florida Water is poured on the floor and then set fire to. The pilgrim is then made to walk through the fire. (Disclaimer: do not try this at home!) Apparently, the pilgrims spiritual journey becomes more intense and vivid after this ritual. Historical recipes for this water include ingredients such as bergamot, lavender, lemon, cinammon, ylang ylang, neroli, jasmine, musk and rosewater. Even the original bottle lable may refer to the Fountain of Youth said to have been located in Florida.
I wonder why am I surprised by a perfume marketing suggestion that by wearing their perfume, I will magically acquire virtues? (my own words) The fragrances are really rather interesting. Presence de Bach has notes of Clematis and Vervain, wild rose and honeysuckle on a base of oak, pine and and crab apple. It is reminds me of cologne and a herbacious and softer version of 4711. Vivacity, also manufactured by Fleur Essences et Harmonie, is sweeter and floral. It has Gorse, Centaury, Hornbeam, Chestnut, and Olive on a base of Larch and guess what: Mustard! The sales staff at Le Printemp asked me which one I preferred and I would have to say Vivacity.
Here is a poem by the famous poet Ummi Sinan and translated in a soon to be published book by the singer and musician Latif Bolat: (Try substituting the word perfume for the word rose in this poem and come close to a concept of a perfume paradise…)The Rose by Ummi Sinan
I dreamt I came to a magnificent city
whose palace was the rose, rose.
The crown and throne of the great sultan
his garden and chambers were the rose, rose.
Here they buy and sell but roses
and the roses are the scales they use;
the marketplace and bazaar are all roses, rose
is for the rose, rose.
Roja Dove - finding my signature fragrance
Posted by ritaglh on Feb 1, 2008
Anyone reading my blog might think I work for the Haute Perfumery, but I don’t blame you for thinking so. Yesterday, I discovered my signature scent cost an aspirational £1000 pounds! But if I could live on perfume alone, I would buy it. I had been looking forward to an exclusive fragrance consultation with one of Roja Dove’s personally trained specialists, ever since I received my glossy black exclusive invitation at the V&A. This is something every woman should try at least once in their life and at only £50 for a moment of luxury and discovery it is superb value for a lifelong investment.
I was invited to sit in the black lacquered den, surrounded by embroidered silk cushions and offered a drink. An attentive staff member invited me to add ice and lemon to my still water as I waited for Clement to return with three test strips, plucked from a lalique box with rippled glass inlay. I was introduced to the process and we commenced with a floral, chypre and oriental. All the test strips were sprayed secretly, so I couldn’t rely on what I already knew about fragrances houses or bottles. Hence, I came to the strips fresh, instructed only to have two at a time, one in each hand, only to alternate between the two at intervals. (Just like when alternating between a lollipop and a gherkin, as you lick the sugar after a gherkin, it tastes all the sweeter for it.) More than once I accidentally hit my nose with the scent strip, which of course is taboo for scent sampling, as a little of the fragrance remains stuck on your nostril.
To my surprise, I gravitated toward the orientals, which was Shalimar by Guerlain, so a whole new world of fragrance family was introduced to me that day. I have always inclined towards floral aldehydes, so this was like rediscovering perfume all over again for the first time. I was then asked what perfumes do I have at home, and of course, this took a while. I have an eclectic collection consisting of some classics like Ma Griffe, Balenciaga Le Dix, Diorissimo, Osmanthus by Different Company, Lady by Contessa di Casteliogne, Clean, L’ame Soer by Divine, Violet scents, pure rose oils, pure sandalwood, Agarwood/aloeswood and numerous middle eastern perfumes, including ones from Arabian Oud, Black Musks, Al Qurashi and obscure Islamic perfume shops around the UK, but I will save the rest for another time.
Left alone for a moment and tempted to peak, Clement went off to spray a further 12 scent strips, with only mysterious numbers or letters to identify them. Two by two I enjoyed most of them, but this game required eliminating one scent at each round. This was harder than it sounds but the consultant was resolute. I had to choose. I was given little poetic introductions, just whispers and hints of what was to come, but never influenced to like or dislike. One’s I had to discard included Guerlain Shalimar, Caron En Avion, Roja Dove’s own Enslaved, Mitsouko, Ombre Rose which I almost held on to till the end and some exlcusive scents whose names I cannot recall.
The ones I was ready to fight for to keep included a semi bespoke including No 7, and ambergris sonata, and No 4 was the closest I have ever come to smelling a fragrance reminiscent of burying my nose deeply into a glorious fresh bouquet of fragrant blooms. I could barely pry my nose away from this scent strip and only let go once I had smelt no. 6. Oh that number 6! My signature scent. This perfume smells of happiness, joy and excitement on a sunny spring day off, to enjoy art and countryside, loved ones and hope. It fizzes and sparkles and is transported on velvet couches of resin. Even my loving husband commented on how wonderful I smelt when I got home.
To smell this perfume is a rush and to use my daughter’s catch phrase, it rocked my world. It is suggestive of how the original Shalimar may have smelt with a large spritz of bergamot and one of the roundest “seamless” compositions as Clement described it. It comes in thick card casket, a black velvet bag with purple satin interior and in a traditional perfumers flask, containing 250 ml. So at £4 per ml, this is actually good value. This semi bespoke range is not on display and only available in limited editions of 50 per fragrance, when these exclusive scents are sold, then fini. There were many other fragrances I smelt that were simply glorious, but when you have smelt the best, will I ever be able to accept another scent as comprise ever again? Fortunately, perfume though is not like love, there are so many scents in the world to enjoy and I have only scratched and sniffed my way through a tiny portion. This is one of the pleasures in discovering fragrance, hoping to one day discover a scent of holiness that can transform you into a fragrant being just by inhaling.
Perfumed Chocolate
Posted by ritaglh on Feb 1, 2008
Kaori: “meaning perfume, scent and fragrance.” The language of scent has been borrowed to describe a plethora of taste or gustatory sensations. I am always trying to find ways to eat perfume as well as imbibe it. So discovering delicacies where the lines blur is always a pleasure. Whether it be describing cigars, teas, coffee, sugar, sweets, cheese, oils, vinegars, wine or in this case chocolate and fragrance we reach to same language.
The Japanese language has a beautiful vocabulary to describe the pleasures and aesthetics of scent and emotion, and how the expression of such art resonates within us. Galler, the Belgian Chocolate sell an exotic chocolate box called Kaori. Within the orange casket lie brushes of perfumed chocolate sticks to dip into aromatic inkpots and thus with “compose your own Kaori.” The three compositions are powders of orange and nibs, tea and poppy and a gold liquid of Kalamansi (a Japanese citrus). The brushes are filled with flavours of saffron, yuzu, cardamon, ginger, vanilla & coconut and lastly strawberry with balsamic.
If I could create my own chocolate brushes, I would add rose, violet, jasmine, pandan, kewra, musk, orange blossom, cinnamon, honey, frankincense, grapefruit, truffle, salt, pepper, chilli, galangal, ginger, tonka bean, sumac among others. For the dips I would choose perfumed gooey fondants, ganaches, caramel, honey, gold flakes and my imagination runs wild… But Galler has read my mind, they have also created Les Florales, ganaches scented with rose, jasmine, violets and orange. These can be found at Harrods in London.
If you are looking for a romantic chocolate box for Valentines Day, I can also recommend another favourite Chocolate house, La Maison Du Chocolat. They do subtley scented ganaches and also the occassional ganache making/tasting workshop. Their new “The Book of Love” box includes an actual book with 6 stories of Love and Chocolate, charming vignettes written by the French journalist Emmanuelle Gaume. The ganaches include rose petals, caramel, mint, chilli and passionfruit with liquorice.
For caramel she writes: “love would be the true reason of my existences, my search to conserve and always seek these pure and sublime moments.” I would love to quote more, but I suggest you read it yourself.
Finally, I can’t write about perfumed chocolate without mentioning my most favourite truffle I have ever tasted. Rococo’s Chocolatiers make fresh rose oil scented truffles with a crispy outer shell rolled in pure chocolate nibs. When I bite into the outer layer, the wonderful texture and bitternes of the nibs enrobe a soft sweet rose center that melts rapidly in the mouth. One of the most blissful chocolate perfume experiences. They also sell geranium, rose, violet, saffron, and jasmine amongst many other traditional perfume notes in their chocolate. They also have fabulous events during chocolate week in London, I attended a quaint chocolate and storytelling session last summer.
Please let me know of any other perfumed chocolate recommendations, thankyou.
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.
Roja Dove: The Art of Fragrance Report
Posted by ritaglh on Dec 15, 2007
For all those who couldn’t make it to the V&A this evening in London, I took copious notes for you and here is a brief summary of this wonderful lecture that Roja Dove gave. He ended his speech with a reverie of when he first realised the ”beauty of perfume,” which he describes as “bottles of magical liquid.”
As a small child, he recalls his mother wore a gorgeous gold lame dress one evening and perfume which metamorphosed her into a “Goddess“. As she lent over to kiss him goodnight he remembered the scent of her face powder and perfume.
Interspersed with the powerpoint presentation and riveting talk, out came rare eye candy bottles. We were also handed scent strips by helpful assistants, inviting us to “synchronized sniffing.” This was a well prepared treatise on the history of fragrance starting with the meaning of per fumen, which refers to smoke. Six thousand years ago we were burning wood resins as a sacrifice to carry our prayers to the Gods, uniting heaven and earth. Most religions still burn incense, even if we don’t all know why. Frankincense and Myrrh were precious commodities traded far and wide. Still today the best luban comes from groves owned by the Sultanate of Oman.
Kyphi was a fragrance found in the tomb of Tutankhamen and previously, Dove had been invited to Japan to study the impact of some of the fragrances on the brain. Some did indeed had a sophomoric effect. He joked about giving six minutes for a 6000 year history of perfume, and then moved to Georgian England, when the sign of perfumery was the emblem of the civet cat. We understood from his description that some English gentlemen wore pure civet. ( phewi, my words but he used “feral and schatalogical”) Onwards to the early 20th Century looking at the first clothing designers who added perfume as gifts for their customers. Some of the designers he discussed included Poiret, Chanel, Jean Patou, Shiaparelli and her fragrance Shocking (with some anecdotes about underwear, honey and civet…), Rochas and Balmain.
Prior to Chanel becoming famous she sang and begged in bars. One of her favourite songs was about her dog called Coco and that is how she acquired her nickname. We heard how Chanel no 5 had an accidental overdose of aldehyde, (which are actually a refraction made from the refinement of petrol) which caused the fragrance to sparkle and shimmer like no other perfume prior to that. From behind a large box he whipped out a super precious and rare box containing all of Chanel’s first perfume releases. Throughout the talk I detected sporadic jibes and what may have been some disparaging comments about the “detergent manufacturers” who own 3 of the 5 largest perfume manufacturing companies today.
Some raw ingredients used traditionally in perfumery are still expensive today, but overall perfume is more affordable than some of the luxurious perfumes from the beginning of this century. For example a Guerlain bottle of Shalimar or Mitsouko cost the equivalent of a roughly a weeks wage! Still, Dove cited how much he recently paid for a kilo of Jasmine oil from Grasse £28,000 for a kilo which goes into one his own exclusive fragrances. The perfume Joy by Patou also still has jasmine oil.
One perfumer Dove seems to particularly admire was the late Roudnitska who created Diorissimo, Diorama and Diorling. We got to smell Miss Dior of 1947 with its fresh leather notes. We also viewed the ingredients of Diorissimo, (one of my own favourites which my grandmother, mother and myself wear -and if I remember correctly, Princess Diana too). It is a sensual floral with Lily of the Valley, jasmine and ylang ylang, rosewood and sandalwood. He also showed us the stunning crystal decanter with the gilt bronze roses spouting from the lid.
Among fragrances from after the war which he looked at, include Balmaines Vert Vert with its green notes and gabalnum as well as Jolie Madame, a leather Chypre, which we all got to sniff too. One of the few women perfumers of that time was Germaine Celier who created Fracas for Piquet, rich in Tuberose. When Dove moved on to discussing Balenciaga he quoted someone as having once said that if a woman walks into a room wearing Balenciaga, all the other women in the room become invisible! Le Dix was described as the scent of smelling a “woman through a thin cashmere sweater” We received a scent strip of this one too, my favourite of the night.
Another little anecdote about the name of a perfume came from the story of Givenchy’s L’Interdit (forbidden), worn by Audrey Hepburn. This is a sparkling floral with aldehydes, rose, jasmine, incense, coumarin and sandalwood. The name came about because apparently she was always popping back for more, so the designer wrote a litte sign, prohibiting her from taking it away, which then became its name. Several more perfumes were discussed including one by Cabochard, a spicy leather note, with labadnum, oakmoss and cedarwood. Towards the end he mentioned names I had never heard of including Fath, Heim and Desses. The one by Fath, Dove described as “one of the most remarkable fragrances the world has ever seen“. Our last scent strip for the night was of Nina Ricci’s L’Air du Temps, still a classic composed in 1948, containing rose, ylang ylang, neroli, gabalnum, vetiver with a wood base. This is the fragrance we weren’t allowed to smell until he said so, (but of course most of us could not resist or delay gratification for sooo long) until after we had resmellt one of the earlier testers and could then compare and perceive its “freshness, sweeping around the world, a moving scent.”
The final part of the delightful evening examined the cult fragrances of Charlie by Revlon and Giorgio. Some women in the audience could remember the queues at Harvey Nichols leading out the store and down the street when this fragrance was first launched. Roja Dove finished with the beautiful descriptions of how he fell in love with perfume, which I started this review with. To end with another of his quotes on the night, “Great Perfume makes you feel like a million dollars!”
All attendees received an Exclusive invitation to experience a complimentary fragrance consultation with one of Roja Dove’s personally trained fragrance specialists at his Haute Perfumery. I can’t wait to experience my own “voyage of discovery” to find my signature fragrance. Further gifts included the Roja Dove catalogue, a large black glossy ode to several special perfumes, as well as the Beautiqe magazine for the British Beauty experts. Also, on the ground floor near the entrance, the Haute Parfumerie had a stunning display case filled with precious perfume bottles and all passerby received a spritz of one of the three new Roja Dove own brand fragrances. All in all a scent festival extravaganza.