Of course, I still want to hear about what you're wearing or sampling, not just on Fridays, but any time!
Sunday: L'Artisan Patchouli Patch. With notes of osmanthus, patchouli, white musk, anise, and spices, this is not your Woodstock hippie's patchouli, so if you've been avoiding this one because you're afraid it will remind you of the guy in your college English class who never seemed to change clothes (or bathe, for that matter), have no fear. This is patchouli with a refined, bright edge. I happen to like patchouli even in its "hippie oil" form, so this one worked well for me, although I have to prefer, I like a richer treatment of patchouli, more like the way it represents in Flowerbomb--a little sexy oomph.
Monday: Etro Shaal Nur. This was a "do over" of sorts, because I haven't worn Shaal Nur since the first time I sampled it, almost two years ago. that doesn't stop me from telling everyone how much I love it, though, so I thought maybe I'd better check on that. Results: Yep. Still love it. It's a pretty spiced rose, soft and calming, dry and spicy, and really rather modern, I think. I've linked to my review, and I stand by what I said!
Tuesday: The Different Company, Sel de Vetiver. I think at one point I had about four or five sample vials of this perfume. I somehow worked worked my way down to two (some of you out there may have received this from me), and I'm glad I finally heeded what the universe was obviously trying to tell me and tried this perfume. With notes of grapefruit, patchouli, cardamom, geranium, Haitian vetiver, iris, and ylang ylang, Sel de Vetiver is, to me, a very feminine vetiver perfume (as opposed to being a feminine perfume that contains vetiver), and luckily I wasn't overwhelmed by the citrus at the top. I'll have to talk about this one again, because as you can see, it was Tuesday. Tuesday was a long time ago, people.
Wednesday: L'Artisan, The pour un Ete. With notes of jasmine tea, green tea, lemon, and peppermint, this perfume is exactly as advertised: a refreshingly fragrant burst of tea on your wrists. It also happens to have terrific lasting power. I like tea scents, although I admit to not having tried many of them. If someone were to hold a gun to my head and tell me to buy a tea scent now dammit, I could choose this and not regret it, even if there were some other tea-based scent out there (Osmanthe Yunnan) I liked better.
Thursday: L'Artisan, Timbuktu. I love L'Artisan, and I'm amazed I haven't worked my way 'round their full offering not only once but twice by now. Sadly, I have a few samples that simply got lost in the crowd before I cleaned things out, and this was one of them. Probably this was a good thing, because I'm in a place right now where I am being very budget conscious and thoughtful, so I'm not tempted to GO OUT AND BUY IT NOW OH MY GOD I LOVE IT. Ahem. Excuse me. The notes are green mango, pink pepper berries, cardamom, karo karounde flower, smoky incense of papyrus wood, myrrh, and vetiver. This perfume is indescribably wonderful, but I promise to wear it again and try a better review. I even got a compliment on it, for the simple fact that it's so unusual and wonderful it stands out like the most elegant woman in the room at a party. Bottle worthy, and at the top of my list, possibly superseded only by the perfume I am wearing today, which is...
Friday: Hermes Hermessences, Vetiver Tonka. The Dark Knight premiers today, so in the spirit of things, let me just say, "Holy gorgeous vetiver perfume, Batman!" Vetiver Tonka is one of the more interesting treatments of vetiver I've tried. It's something much sweeter, even softer (dare I say powdery), yet without losing its own character. To me this perfume has the same presence as my beloved Elixir de Merveilles (no surprise, with JCE as creator); it's rather dry, but less gourmand. Elixir de Merveilles to me has a looser feel, more bohemian, if you will, where Vetiver Tonka is...well, a more self-assured, confident version of the same. It's less gourmand than Elixir, more floral, and it feels as though it's had everything unnecessary stripped away (not that anything in Elixir is unnecessary--no!) The notes are neroli, bergamot, vetiver, roasted hazelnuts, dried fruit, cereals, and tonka bean. My favorite Hermessence of the bunch so far. Oh yes.So that's my two cents for the week. How do you all smell out there?
Have a lovely weekend!
*images from basenotes, luckyscent, and aedes
