Le Labo Baie Rose 26

There was a time when I thought I'd never ever enjoy smelling cloves again. The reason for this is a trip to Malaysia me and some fellow exchange students did 20 years ago. Somehwere I'd read about Kretek, Malaysian cigarettes made of tobacco mixed with cloves. At the time, they sounded amazing! And, with the power of initiative only found in teenagers about to something that's bad for them, we did manage to get some. I can't say they were that spectacular. Yes, they did induce a spinning feeling in my head and the cloves made my mouth go numb. From a "smoking-weird-stuff"-point of view they were very lame but what they DID do was making me sick every time I smelled cloves for a very long time afterwards.

Fortunately, this has now passed. Le Labo Baie Rose 26 opens with rose, pepper, allspice and lots of cloves. It's a spicy rose fragrance, not soft spicy in the way orietals are spicy, full of vanilla and cinnamon, this is sharp and spiky spicy. The peppers and cloves are contrasting against the rose like a new punky haircut and a fresh facial peircing look on an otherwise sweet and innocent looking 15 years old.

As the scent wears the pepper dissappears, the spices soften, but they never leave  completely. After about one hour, there is a metallic phase when I can almost feel the taste of iron in my mouth. This might not sound very pleasurable, but I don't mind. The rose part of Baie Rose 26 is deep red and prominent.

During the long dry down the rose softens and melds into the wooden notes. The scents mellows and matures just like I imagine the girl in the picture, first hanging out with her edgy emo friends at school but then going home, removing the eye liner, slipping into somthing comfortable and at the end of the day she's in bed, reading Nietzsche.

Official notes:  aldehydes, clove, pink pepper, rose, pepper, musk, virginia cedar, amber

And, yes, I couldn't resist this image that came up when googling for kretek:

This guy has very little to do with the smell of Baie Rose 26

Images: quizilla.teennick.com, swagooo.com

Tea for Two - l'Artisan Parfumeur

Tea just has to be one of the most comfortable and versatile scent notes around. It can be light and dainty, perfect with crustless cucumber sandwiches. Green tea goes from tasting like lightly toasted rice towards tasting like whole bales of hay, begging for something intensly sweet to cut through the astringency. And there is smoky tea, black tea, spicy tea, the list goes on and on. And, weirdly enough, most of them can, at some point, be detected while wearing Tea for Two.

First thing that happens when applying is a huge blast of smoky Lapsang Souchong. It's very intense and smoky but somewhere behind that smoke one can detect a balancing gormand note. To me it smells like biscuits. Dry, not very sweet, but with a smattering of vanilla added for flavour.

After an hour the smoke has faded and now we're having a very robust green tea. It tastes strongly of hay and unlit tobacco. The gormand note has also evolved, it's still sweet but it's also spicier now. Mabye there is gingerbread served with the tea?

Fast forward two more hours and most of the hay is gone. Now I get more of a regular, good quality black tea. It's served hot and a teaspoon of honey has slowly melted and been stirred into the cup.

At the extreme drydown all the tea and spices seem to meld together, forming a cup of nice, sweet Indian chai. The perfect warm, comfy ending of an intense day


I percieve Tea for Two more as a olfactorian recording of a series of nice moments than a classical perfume. It's amazing how it manages to morph from one cup of tea to the next. The notes seem to  swirl one around the other and I'm very intrigued how the sweetness first seem belong to the gourmand half of the scent, then in the tea. Same with the spices, first they go with the cake but thy end up in the chai. And its's not just an "interesting" scent, it smells very good indeed. I love it on cold winter days when you'd rather stay cuddled up under a blanket. And it's even better on days that I've anticipated as going to be rather bad. It's like carrying around a warm cuddly teddy bear, nudging you through any challenges out there that you'd rather not have known anything about.


Official notes from l'Artisan: ginger, smoked tea, honey

Notes from Fragrantica:
Top: bergamot, star anise, tea
Heart: cinnamon, ginger, spices
Base: honey, vanilla

Created by Olivia Giacobetti

Foto: http://old-photos.blogspot.com

Revisiting perfumes I've disliked

No, this is not me.

As I'm about to move within 3 weeks from now I've been in a major clear out mode recently. I've been going through all of my stuff, forcing myself to categorise it into "keep", "give away" or "throw away". My beloved perfume sample collection has been subjected to this as well. There are some that I'm very sure I'll never ever want to wear again (Hello Secretations Magnefiques and Serge Lutens Miel de Bois). But there are others I'm not so sure of how to handle. These scents I typically tried on once and either mildly disliked or just felt so indifferent about I never bothered to try them again. So now I've decided it's time to take on a few of them on and decided once and for all if they are keepers or not.

Frederic Malle - Une Rose. If I'd play "Guess the recipe" it would be the following:

• 3 parts rose
• 2 parts soap
• 1 part fresh cow urine
• 1 part beef broth

Does this sound like something you'd like to wear? First time I tried it I nearly shreiked in horror but the weirdo in me begged to give it a second chance. This time around I do like it better, it's resonating with the most sad, showy and melodramatic parts of myself. It's a "look how you make me feel, I'm all messed up and I'm desperatly trying to imply it's your fault"-kind if scent. Lets hope I won't find too many occasions to wear it - but I will keep it.

Tauer Perfumes - Incense Rose I remember trying this one on and thinking that the combo roses and washing powder felt old and that the sharpness hurt my nose a little bit. Shouldn't Tauer be able to do better? Now I tried it again and I can't believe I'm remembering the same perfume. The intro is absolutely wonderful, full of spices, reminding me of "glögg", the lovely Swedish mulled wine that's very popular here this time of year. I don't get a lot of roses at all but I do get LOTS of spicy incense. To me this is the perfect Christmas scent and I can't believe I even considered getting rid of my sample. 

Frederic Malle - En Passant. Bright and cheery lilacs. Washing detergent overdrive. When I was 12 real lilacs used to be my favourite smell, smelling them in En Passant makes me feel old. Another sample to be sent away.

Etat Libre d'Orange - Putain de Palaces. I'm perfectly aware of that this is one of the most loved and cherished ELdO scent. But it just doesn't work on my skin. I first tried it this summer and got "Suffocation by Play Doh". Now I also get bitter almonds, unwashed bodies and sun tan lotion. This sample is going away to someone who has better use for it.


http://img-homerenovations.com

Cuir et Champignon by DSH Perfumes - and a DRAW!!!

(Yes, I'm reusing this image, here is a reason for that, hang on and you'll see why!)

Lets do a bit of fantasy role play. Imagine it's a cool autumn day. You live somewhere in rural Britain where you're the lord or lady of a huge manor. Every now and then you saddle your fastest white stallion and take him for a ride to inspect your vast properties. As you gallop through the woods and over the fields you notice how the weather is getting colder by the day, soon holiday season will be here. After the ride you relax into your old leather armchair in front of the fireplace. Your butler brings you a cup of tea, a piece of gingerbread and your favorite pipe, stuffed just the way you want. He should know, after all his family has been serving yours for more than 3 generations.

These are the vibes I'm getting from "Cuir et Champignon". It starts out smoky in a big way. In the very beginning I'm getting salami, black pepper, smoked meats and animal. After half an hour CetC calms down into one of the nicest leather interpretations I've smelled, ever. I'm getting saddles and halters. The leather is just my type of leather, there is none of the cloyingness of Cuir Mauresque nor the perversity of Bandit (which I do love, but I couldn't wear it every day). It's comfy and wearable and perfectly accompanied by warm spices like cinnamon, cardamom and cloves. I also get wood and tobacco. The mushroom note does not stand out to me, but it's noticeable if you know it's there and it aids the general feeling of autumn.

In my last review I also wrote about a fragrance with mushroom notes, namely Aftelier Perfumes "Cepes and Tuberose". If I was to compare that one to CetC, "Cepes and Tuberose" happens on a sunny day in September while CetC takes place on a chilly day, late in November.

And what was that thing about the reused picture? Well, I did use it 2 weeks ago when I reviewing "Celadon - a Velvet Green", also from DSH Perfumes. In that post I described how Celadon took me back in time to when I was 8 years old, dreaming of a horse. Celadon had all the elements of that dream, well, everything except the actual horse. Therefore I was utterly astonished when I tried CetC and it turned out to be a another horse riding experience in a bottle. This one mirrored my adult fantasy of a life where horseback riding is an integral part. Totally different but still the same things from two different periods in my life.

And now to the really good news. Dawn Spencer Hurwitz, perfumes and founder of DSH Perfumes, has been incredibly generous and sent me extra samples of both "Celadon - a Velvet Green" and "Cuir et Champignon" and they can become yours!!! All you have to do is comment on this blog post before Tuesday, September 20 and I'll announce the lucky winner sometime towards the end of next week. You may live anywhere in the world and I will not be responsible to damage or loss caused by the postal services. Don't miss this chance, these are great fragrances for fall!



Official Notes for Cuir et Champignon:
Top notes: Bergamot, Clary, Sage, Galbanum, Neroli, Wild Chamomile
Middle notes: Cepes (mushroom absolute), Clove Bud, Gardenia,Honey, Orris, Sandalwood, Tuberose Absolute
Base notes: Castoreum, Civet, Guiacwood, Hiba Cedarwood, Indonesian Vetiver, Leather, Peru Balsam, Tobacco Absolute


My samples were sent to me for review but they can also be bought on the DSHPerfumes website. They have a huge sale right now, don't miss it

Etat Libre d'Orange - Eau de protection Rossy de Palma

Rossy de Palma herself

I have said several amazingly stupid thinks on this blog. Like "I don't like vanilla" and "I don't like orange flowers". Luckily for me I've been proved wrong several times on both of those accounts now. Ok, my first experiences with those scent notes might have been a bit unfortunate but there was really no need to dismiss whole scent families because of that.

Another note that I've been prejudiced about in my past is rose. I used to believe that rose scents belonged either on old ladies that are a bit senile and think they are little girls or in fabric softeners. Fortunately, that is changing and one of the reasons for that is Etat Libre d'Oranges "Eau de protection Rossy de Palma".

There are resemblances between Rossy the Actress and Rossy the Scent. At first glance, Rossy herself is no conventional beauty, but the more you see of her the more you want. She just gets better and better - and the scent is just the same.

At first sniff of Rossy the Scent, there is a shrilly rose, reminding me of washing powder. Within a few minutes, dry incense sets in, adding perfect balance to that rose note. It makes me think of hand printed books stored in old Gothic convents. Or, on a sunny day, deciding not to go to the beach but instead sneak to the library, finding a cool and quiet corner and reading fantasy novels all day. During drydown, cocoa and patchouli are revealed, beautifully offsetting the rose, never getting too heavy.

Is this a scent I can imagine Rossy the Actress wearing? No, not at all. It's way to clean. I imagine her wearing something muskier and animalic, radiating all over the room. If I'm to make up a person representing this scent it would be Penelope Cruz playing a shy, sensitive and highly intelligent librarian. Big glasses and and mousy clothes just accentuating her beauty and grace.

So far "Eau de protection Rossy de Palma" is my favourite scent from Etat Libre d'Orange. With their radical image I tend to think that their scents would also small radical but Rossy de Palma just smells "nice" and lovely. Just as I think of Nombril Immense as a patchouli for beginners, Rossy is the perfect gateway into both rose and incense notes. Highly recommended for days when you need a little bit of serene cool and quiet for yourself.

Orange Star by Tauer Perfumes

Orange Star starts with a bang, supernova style. There is orange peel, mandarins, aldehydes, honey and spices all over the place. I'm picking out cinnamon and cloves. It's sweet and syrupy and I keep thinking this should be pretty close to what you get if mixing Coca-Cola with one of those high quality Italians orange sodas in small bottles (San Pellegrino I think they are labelled), and then boiling everything down to a concentrate. 

Pretty fast the initial fruit frenzy of Orange Star calms down. What is left is warm and resinous. I'm getting a lot of resin actually, I'm a little curious about it as I haven't seen that in any other review. When I was a kid I used to play the violin and there is a note in Orange Star that reminds me a lot of the stuff you rub onto the bow, in order to get a sound. Also, there is still orange zest and some lemongrass that add a herbal bitter note. Half a day later there is resin and vanilla. I'm not catching any citrus or lemongrass right now.

This is my second Tauer, I've only tried Zeta before and I'm amazed about how much there is to discover in them. They both have such a distinguished style, it's difficult to explain, but these are big scents. Never a dull moment with a Tauer on your arm!

I'm rating it 3 out of 5. It's a big scent that everybody should try. I'm just finding that resinous note a little bit to much at the moment. Maybe it will work better in winter?



Pic: phenomenica.com