Post with delay.

Sometimes I have wait up to two months on letters from across the Atlantic, but they´ve all arrived eventually. This far only one tiny letter have been lost somewhere on it´s way to me, and the letters I´ve posted haave all reached there directions.

Since I get about 2-3 letters/week from abroad I think it´s kind of nice statistics.

Last wednesday I´ve got a advise of delivery, my letter could be collected at the local grocery store aka post office the same day after 4 pm. Half past 4 I was there, curious as usual, since I wasn´t sure wich letter it was, waiting for 3 different one´s from foreign senders (the sender was Post Import!?). My letter wasn´t there, something was wrong.

I return the day after, now it must surely be on the right place, but no. Started to feel a little irritated, but it wasn´t the staff at the store, it was the postal system that has sorted my letter wrong. It was at a grocery store in the other end of town.

Back again on friday, looking for my letter, but no! It had been send back to the sorting terminal in Örebro (a city 150 km from here), and then it will be send from there to the wrong store again, everything is automatised nowadays and when the parcel reach the wrong store again someone there must change the wrong zip code to the correct one (I sure hope they manage to do that!).

So, you think I can get my letter today. No, today it´s arrive to the wrong store, and they send it to the right one so at best I can get it tomorrow!

Imagine that sometimes letters has reach me in just two days from US or Canada, but a letter sorted wrong within the country just goes back and forth between the wrong directions for days! It´s hard to belive that a letter within the same town can´t just be handed to the right direction at once!

I am still not sure wich letter it is that has goes back and forth for almost a week now, but I am sure curious. Do you have any postal failures to tell about?

My mother belive that the post man and the post workers at the store belive that I am in to some kind of international drug buisness ( I think I´ve got my vivid imagination from my mum!). Do you think your post worker made stories up about all the letters you recive (I belive that many readers of the blog get´s a lot of strange letters) from all over the world? Maybe, thanks to us, they don´t have such a boring work...

My Parfuem - Design Your Perfume

I don´t drink much alcohol, but of course I think it´s good with a glass of wine or a coupple of cool beer a hot summer night, but most of all I like cocktails. I love to mix cocktails, and that´s my only party trick. Usually it´s appriciated, and I´ve got the honour to be "bartender" when some good friends get married last summer. And well, my effort as a bartender was a succes. ;)

I think a lot of perfumistas dream about there very own, personal perfume. In our dreams it might be Olivia Giacobetti, Christopher Sheldrake, Maurice Roucel or Jean-Claude Ellena that guide us in the hunt for our perfect personal perfume. Most of us can only dream about it, to get a bespoken perfume is pricier than we can afford.

Therefor I think it´s so much fun that the german site http://www.myparfuem.com/ offers a cheaper option.

I first read about them at www.fragrantica.com and immediatly become curoius. The site is easy to understand and you can chose between a female or male perfume, what base you prefer and then it´s just to start put in notes. For ladies there is four bases to chose among, floral, fresh, fruity floral and oriental. You can chose among a lot fo different notes, flowers, fruits, fresh notes, spices, woods and animalic notes. At most 3 parts of each note can be used and every perfume can contain maximum 30 notes.

Before ordering my own perfume, I had created a lot of perfumes in my imagination. Before you start, there is preferable to know what notes you usually like in perfume and what notes that are suitable together, When start blending your own perfume, there isn´t much guiding, you have creative freedom and have to feel, play and guess. Wich I like, but some others may not like.

The price is 29 euro, wich isn´t that much for 30 ml, most people can afford a bottle. There is a money back guarantee, but I don´t know how it works.

I decides to create a perfume with oriental base and few and liked notes. 1 X tangerine, 2 X bergamott, 3 X vanilla and 3 X musk. That can´t be that bad!? I named my perfume to Nude Skin Poetry (ok, I am a bit pretencious), and there was two, kind of ugly, bottles to chose from, I took the one with pink swirls on!

And then I just waited for my perfume to arrive. I´ve got it in juts a coupple of days. Oh, how much fun! I sprayed it on at once, my brotjer that was at our house then say that he think it´s smelled like mosquito reppelant at first. Well, he have no olfactory scense. I think of the first spray as bubbly citrus soda.

Well, Nude Skin Poetry, smells really nice. It´s an energic, sweet and warm vanilla-musk scent. It smells really good, but not that memorable or special, still it not remind me of any other perfume I´ve tried either. The sillage is good, but not disturbingly good, and the longvity is aslo good, at least about four hours on me. I can smell the citrus all way trough, and the vanilla is discrete and bring some sweetness but not that much vanilla character, the musk is comfy, warm and not the dirty kind, but not the cleanest either. My own perfumes is a nice, comfy and casual kind of perfume. That is of course the problem for me, I wish it would be a little more personal, but then again I would have chose a little more exciting notes.

Mu own perfume become so good, that I very well can create some more, after all it´s very funny, easy and affordable. In my imagination I´ve allready created perfumes for the whole family, to give them in birthdaypresents.

What isn´t so good about it? Well, I think one could have the possibility to chose more then 3 parts of each note, I could easily put in more than the doubble amount of both musc and vanilla without being to much. The oreintal base is kind of discrete, but I would have prefered it any more in the background.

There are allready lots of notes to chose from, but I miss some. Violets, lilacs, apple, some gourmand notes and maybe also, some smokey notes.

The bottles should be possible to get without pink swirls, green leaves or red hearts, they look kind of cheap to me.

But overall I am really satisfied with my experience. It is so much fun to create my own perfume and I really recommend every curoius person to give it a try!

A trip to Stockholm with my youngest daughter.

Me and my youngest daughter took a little trip to Stockholm yesterday. She´s about to be 12 years old, and she wished for a shopping spree in Stockholm in birthday present and I was eager to give her that.

The weather was really closed to rain when we entered the train. I had planned to go to Stockholm in pretty summer clothes, but have to count that out. Well, in Stockholm, there wasn´t hardly any rain after all.

My daughter had no troubble what so ever to shop up her money, and she seem to be very content. I hadn´t no real shopping plans, but still not get home empty handed.

Finally I manage to visit the perfume shop Cow, and it was a special feeling to see all the bottles and hold them in my hand, and even test some of them on paper. I didn´t plan to buy any perfume, as every perfumista know, most perfumes are to be found for much better prices on the net, than in a shop on "high street"... on the other hand, if the sales person have been a little more helpful, maybe just asked if we needed some help, I could as well have leave the shop with a bottle of perfume for about 100 euro (hey! I am a perfume nerd after all!), rather than a bottle of massage oil for 25, wich I buy only because I feel a bit guilty, just to have entered the store.

After that I bought some bath bombs on Lush and a coupple of t-shirts to my husband and then we took the train back home again.

Serge Lutens - Ambre Sultan

I have never seen bellydancing live, only on tv, but I hope I will have the opportunity to see a real bellydance show sometime. I am usually a big admirer of people that have talents that I don´t have. And aren´t dancers worth to admire, there is something almost more than human to have such control over one´s body, a feeling for the rhytm and motions. But also, a lot of dancers start traing at the ages of 3-4 years!

Some dances I like more then others, tango is brutaly sensual, flamenco is intense, people that are good in jitterbugg take my breath away when they swing each other around, a prima ballerina looks like she´s made of glass, but is actually very strong, street dance is cool and moodlifting, swedish polska is suggestiv and belly dancing is beautiful, magnetic and utterly feminin.

Ambre Sultan by Serge Luten´s could very well been created with a beautiful belly dancer in mind. As readers of the blog know, I wasn´t that immediatly drawn to Ambre Sultan. We where closing in to each other with some slowlyness. When writing this, I can´t understand how I could miss Ambre Sultan´s glowing, sensual and spellbinding beauty at first.

As you might know, I use to like strong and powerful perfumes, and Ambre Sultan IS strong and powerfull, yet also discrete, soft and reluctant in a fascinating way. Now I find Ambre Sultan to be so good, that I think of it as a kind of golden essence of everything that is good within oriental perfumes. Different from a lot of my other oriental perfumes, Ambre Sultan is even suitable to wear during summer. It´s pretty warm now, and Ambre Sultan is really pleasant to wear. I can´t think of many more sensual perfume to wear a warm, comfortable summer evening. Wich of course doesn´t make Ambre Sultan to a less better winter perfume. It´s suitabel all year round in my opinion, but maybe not during the most crispy time of spring.

Ambre Sultans is filled with something bubbly and glowing. When wearing it, it feels like the perfume itself is lighted from inside. Filled of sweetness and body, but there are also something brisk in it, that makes it unique and personal. Ambre Sultan make me very comfortable, it´s like having an excellent dinner in a cozy restaurant in a far away exotic city. After the meal you feel really comfy and a little hot from the spices, you lay back and watch the belly dancer perform on stage. Candles, soft fabrics and scented oils create a special atmosphere. After a while you don´t know if it´s you, the belly dancer or the entire restaurant that smells so good.

The sillage in Ambre Sultan is great, but not to much, and it´s really longlasting and only gets better and better... It´s like a reaction with the skin chemistry that keep deepening it and make it glow.

Ambre Sultan is a perfume for beautiful belly dancers, a perfume that smells of oriental jewellry, saturated oils and aromatic, brisk and unknown herbs. Yet another masterpiece from serge Lutens, created by the very talented perfumer Christopher Sheldrake.

Are you getting married soon?

Soon we enter the season when most people get married, at least in Sweden, the summer. No matter what time of year it is, there is something very special about weddings and wedding parties, not only for the one´s getting married. There is something very romantic to be a guest at a wedding I think.

I get married with my beloved husband in december, during the 80'ies last month. I would have published our wedding photo here, but I don´t have any at the computer and our scanner isn´t that co-operative. But at least, both me and the husband was very young, very pretty and very (very!) thin. One may think I should remember what perfume I weared, but honestly, I don´t have a clue. I have thought about it, and maybe it was YSL`s Opium (even tough it feels like my time with that was over by then). Or something from Yves Rocher (in that case, probably Ispahan), I can also have borrowed something from my mum, maybe YSL´s Champagne (that was the name of Yvresse at that time I think). That my husband had any perfume at all I doubt.

You undertand, that this was a time when perfumes wasn´t that important to me. But if I get married again I would chose perfume carefully and make sure my husband did as well (of course I would marry the same man!). It has become popular to renew the vows, so maybe we will some day.

Well, what perfume is suitable for a wedding? I think it´s a question that isn´t that important for most people getting married, unfortunatly. Scents is what we remember best and a really good perfume would make the wedding more memorable than without. We will all get older (hopefully) and what if we become senile and the only thing making us remember our wedding was the smell of the perfume? Therefore to chose perfume for the wedding, IS important!

Chose a special perfume, and there after only wear it on your wedding days, I am sure your partner will not forget about them if you smell like you smelled on the wedding!

But wich one? It´s of course very individual, but I have some suggestions.

The classic bride: Perles de Lalique by Lalique, a shiny, understated and elegant perfume. Sensual and white, discrete but very beautiful.

Chanel No 5, this i a genuine classic, perfect for a wedding. If the original seem to strong for you, maybe Chanel No 5 Eau de Premiere is a good alternative, maybe for the younger bride or if you prefer something a little lighter.

The romantic bride: Iris Poudre by Frederic Malle, creamy powdery white perfection, utterly soft and romantic.

Almost Innocent by Vive Maria, as the name suggest, innocent but below the surface... sexy.

The fresh bride: La Chasse Aux Papillons by L'Artisan, uplifting, summery, tart and playful.

Esprit de Fleurs by Frapin, wonderful, floral, light and very fresh.

The sensual bride: Nude Musk by Ava Luxe, creamy, close to skin, comforting and warm.

Songes by Annick Goutal, beautiful flowers surrounded by airy, light incensy smoke.

The sexy bride: Carnal Flower by Frederic Malle, irresistible and with a magnetic attraction force.

Musc Koublai Khan y Serge Lutens, why save all the fun for the wedding night? With this on, things may happen already during the wedding ceremony! A few drops of MKK added to any perfume will sex it up a lot, not together with Carnal Flower tough, it´s sexy enough already.

The bride with a rose bouquet: Brulure de Rose by Parfumerie Generale, de most romantic, delicious pink gourmand roses there is.

Une Rose av Fredeic Malle, red roses at it best, and still not over-powering. Just enough!

A little more rose, Sa Majeste la Rose av Serge Lutens, splendid and strong rose.

The alternative bride: Patchouli 24, do not overdose. Two sprays will last all night long and until the next morning! Suitable if you´re getting married in black. Otherwise Serge Lutens Serge Noir is a good option.

Maybe you´re a hippie romantic? Try Intrigant Patchouli bu Parfumerie General, the sexiest patchouli arround.

Punk? Does punkrockers getting married? Appearantly, try anything from Etat Libre d'Orange, maybe even Secretions Magnifique?

Fetisch? Well what about Histoire de parfums 1740 Marquis de Sade? Stiff, black leather. Or Serge Lutens Daim Blond, soft suede.

Rubber? Oud 27 by Le Labo (lots of rubber) or Bvlgari Black (rubber, but not as much).

Genderneutral? Josef Statkus by Josef Statkus, sodt, warm woody perfection, a little androgyn. Bandit by Robert Piquet, strict letaher and herby greenery. Musc Ravegeur by Frederic Malle, magnetic on right skin chemistry no matter if you´re man or women. Same goes for Bond No 9 Silver Factory.

Wich perfume did you wear when you got married? Or what perfume do you want to wear when you´re getting married?

Star Sign Perfumes - It´s Me!

Wich star sign are you born in? No matter if you´re uninterested or skeptic to astrology, most people (in west) know what star sign they belong to. It´s almost as certain as to know in wich month you´re born. Even tough we don´t belive in astrology we can discuss differences between different star signs during coffebreak at work. Astrology, but in different shapes, is common in a lot of cultures and have looked in different ways in different times.

In China it´s the year of birth that is the most important. In ancient cultures astrology was used, not only to predict the faith of persons, but for entire countries. For instant, the aztec astrological observations predict the arrival of the european conquistadors, but unfortuntaly they belived the new comers to be red haired gods.

When it comes to astrology, I am a skeptic, like I am with most things related to belive. But I am curious, not condemning. I even know in wich signs I´ve got the moon an the acsendant.

Of course I become curious when I found the homepage of CnR Create Star Sign Perfumes! Curious, but also a little skeptic, but as usual my curiousity wins and now I sit here and smell of It´s Me! Virgo. I have also some Gemini and Cancer on.

The first time I tried It´s Me! Virgo I was skeptic and critical. Why should this perfume suit me? Or thousands of other women around the world that happened to be born in late august and within september? Well, I dabbed on some Virgo and it smelled nice, fine, a little flowery and a little spicy. Comfortable, but maybe not that unique. Decent sillage and good longvity tough. The topnotes wasn´t that prominent and I wasn´t convinced about Virgos exellence. But without thinking of it I start sniffing my wrist over and over again as the basenotes starts to develop. Well, now it´s become really, really pleasant! Not something I would chose for myself maybe, but without doubt approved. The base on Virgo is creamy, lush, with hints of spices and at the same time with some minty freshness. And I like it! The skeptic within keep protesting. Of course I will like Cancer and Gemini as well. All the perfumes will prove to be comfortable, nice and approved.

The next day I try Gemini. The top notes are more floralfruity than in Virgo, and soon there is a soapy note I don´t really like. Honestly I realise after a coupple of hours I don´t like Gemini at all! It´s absolutly not a scrubber, but it´s not interesting at all. The I try Cancer. No, no and no! Maybe slightly better than Gemini? No. Kind of boring, but still smells good. Manage to forget about both Cancer and gemini before they stop smelling on my skin.

My daughter that is born in Gemini, of course like the Gemini perfume best! She is eleven years old and don´t care much about perfume or star signs. Strange placebo-effekt the skeptic in me yells. Well, I hope you all know that Virgo is a very critical star sign, and I dont fell easily for anything!

Well, no matter what it depends on, Virgo is my big favourite among the Star Sign-perfumes. Not really in the top, among my most loved perfumes, but still good enough to be remembered and cared for. Virgo is really comfy, moodlofting and still calming, and while writing this I sniff my wrist a lot of times. Gemini and Cancer on my other arm are totally forgotten.

Virgo would be a perfect perfume for casual wear, but also one of the first I would think of I was going on a job interview. How strange it may sound, it makes me feel balanced.

CnR Create´s perfumes are made in Grasse, but the company is situated in Wienna and of course they´ve got a homepage: http://www.cnrcreate.com/wbc.php?sid=21175c6b89&tpl=start.html

The notes in Virgo is clove, nutmeg, pear and citron. I do think the base is creamy woody, maybe with notes of sandal wood or rose wood, two notes I usually like in perfume. The notes in Gemini is jasmin, mimosa, orchid and tangerine, Gemini is fast dissapearing on me, after half an hour I can only smell a weak perfume scent. In Cancer there is notes of iris, palmarosa, acacia and green apple. Cancer has better longvity than Gemini on me, but after a while all I can smell is green apple.

No matter what you think of astrology I think that CnR Create offers a really fun alternative within perfumery, a bottle of It´s Me! would be a really great gift for someone that like perfumes and also are interested in astrology. The company also guarantee that the bottles are filled during full moon, probably it makes the perfumes more powerfull. Even tough I like Virgo, it isn´t the most complex perfume I´ve run in to, but it smells so good and comfy that it manage to make it to my list of favourite comfort-perfumes. The quality of the notes in it seem to be high. There isn´t anything bland or lack of longvity in Virgo.

I do recommend you to check this perfume up, maybe you know of someone wich birthday is coming up soon? Unfortunatly they don´t offer perfumes for men, but maybe they will later?

PS. I come to think of that the creamy notes in Virgo can have hints of coconut, but it´s the creamy kind not the suntan-lotion kind. But I think it´s also consistis of sandel-or rosewood. Well, it smells good anyway. :)

PPS. If you just know how much fun I have to look forward to when it come to perfumes and other good smelling things. There can be no better "profession" than to be a perfume writer!

Creativity and perfumes.

Most kids got a living creativity in many areas and it´s very fun to watch kids create free. All children can paint, dance, sing, sculpture, build and experiment. I´ve worked at pre-school and school earlier and while almost all kids are very creative during pre-school, they seem to lost it or it being diminished during the years in school. Why shouldn´t a fifthteen years old be as creative as a five year old? Of different reasons our creativity having trouble finding it´s way out when we´re getting older.

A lot of grown-ups state they can´t dance, paint, sing or sculpture. I do belive everybody can, we have just being influenced by the environment, and what is supposed to be beautiful, fine, serious, interesting and worth something to others. I´m sure you´re familiar with the expression "Dance like nobody´s watching" and I think that goes for all creative expressions. Maybe all of us would be very creative, if we´re paying less attention to what everybody else thinks.

And... what has this to do with perfumes? Much, I think. A lot of people that love perfumes, no matter if they are perfumistas, perfumers or producers are quite creative. Either as a creator or as a consumer, there´s a creative urge and joys of discovery among perfume lovers. Not seldom a perfume lover also appriciate good music, litterature, food, wine, travelling and other things that make life good and interesting.

When looking for perfumes and seraching information about different perfumes, perfume houses, indie perfumers, perfume oils or other things that are close to perfumes I can´t miss the fact that this is a area filled with creativity.

The big perfume houses with also big budgets shows classic taste, confidence and elegans. Their perfumes can take years to develop and all about them are high culture, money and the best of the best. The perfumes are beautiful, but a little held back and strict. The bottles as well. As a "poor" perfumista the closeste I´ve got to these perfumes are often a little sample vial, it´s like haute cotoure or expensive designer furniture, to be admired from a distant.

The top ten-perfumes are to be found in every perfume department in any small town, are all about the current trends and fashions. Scents that are easy to like, but not always that memorable, maybe not even last the whole summer. It´s like buying a cd with Summer Hits 2009, how will listen on that the summer of 2010? Well, it still was fun and good the summer before. The bottle design is often fun, easy and very trendy, maybe a little girly, but never odd in any strange way.

Well, the niche I admire almost most is the one with indie perfumers. Here you´re sure to find the creative urge and joy of discoveries. Perfume with billygoat extract? Of course there is. Perfume boxes that can be planted in the garden becuase they´re made of recyled plantmaterials with flowers seeds in? Yes that too! Perfumes inspired by fairy tales, travelling, adventures, magic, subcultures, vampires, pinups, nature or poetry? Yes, you might find that as well. A perfume made for your star sign? Yes, there is. You´ve got the possibility to chose the notes of your very own perfume without getting ruined? Yes, that´s possible. A lot of indie perfumers also offer their perfumes in smaller bottles. That´s smart. A perfumista that find the perfume really good and interesting, would easily by five or more bottles, if they´re available in 5-10 ml bottles. If they´re only available in 100 ml bottle, we might not by a single one, cause we cant afford it! Maybe it´s depend on that some indie perfumers started as perfumistas?

Do you have any creative interests other than perfume?

Decants and decanting supplies within Europe.

Thanks to Facebook I found this site that sell perfume decants and decanting supplies such as sample vials and small bottles. I think the prices per decant is quite high compared to other sites that sell decants, but if you´re a European resident you might save a little on the shipping and be sure there wont be any custom fees.

And I think it´s good that there is finally a site within Europe that sell sample vials and other decanting supplies, since the shipping from US is quite high and also it takes quite a long time to get them.

So I advice you to check up: http://www.decant-me.com/

Otherwise my brother spend the weekend with us, and of course that have been fun.

Yesterday evening I can guarantee I had three of Swedens best smelling men in my kitchen, my husband had Le Labo Oud 27, my brother had Serge Lutens Serge Noir and my son had Odoris Zafferano. I kind of like that!

José Eisenberg - Rouge & Noir

I had hardly no expectations on the rest of the fragrances from José Eisenberg, since I´ve hardly heard of them before. J'ose could as well be the only among them worth trying. It isn´t that unusual to try about ten perfumes from the same company and find out that you´re only like one of them.

Well, I am obviously not one of them learning from my mistakes, it was time to go to bed and I read about Rouge & Noir, the EdT-version was said to be light, but unforgettable. I must have missed the unforgettable part, and sprayed on a little. It was some kind of sweet, spritzy floral fruity, well I tought, this wasn´t anything special. No, it wasn´t, not for at least five minutes!

Well, you´ve guessed it, once agian I manage to go to bed with a perfume that keeps me awake for hours. It smell good, interesting, different and well, unforgettable.

Rouge & Noir is a premature scent. In akind of bothering, but very differrent way. It makes me think about a girl-women with one foot left in the childhood and the other in the adult world. She might be only 14-15 years old, but she feel more grown-up, mature and sofisticated than her sam aged friends. And she is! She isn´t that kind of girl that wears worn out jeans and sneaks out with the little older boys to smoke and drink beer behind the school at night. No, she´s the kind of girl trying her mothers sexiest clothes, highest heels, most red lipstick and most expensive perfume when her parents isn´t at home. She´s that kind of girl that will move to the closest city as soon as possible, to study and hang out with the -male- teachers. She´s the kind of girl loving vanilla ice cream with hot chocolate sause and cherries, but when no one´s watching she pour dark, smoth and strong rhum all over it. You know, that kind of girl either to have a really, really succesfull life or the absolute opposite.

But, Rouge & Noir isn´t a girly perfume. Still youthful, but in a way women in most ages can wear. It´s so far away from common fruity floral it´s possible to come, but still being kind of fruity floral. The name is strangely suitable, it is a redish black kind of scent, but also with some creamy, smoth white vanilla feel to it.

It has a kind of medical note in common with J'ose, but in Rouge & Noir, it´s evolve to more of a dark rhum note. Even if there´s no vanilla listed, there is a feel of creamy vanilla, like a really gorgeus vanilla ice cream with real vanilla in it. It´s hard to put Rouge & Noir in any fragrance family, from the start it´s fruity floral, but then the fruityness goes in the background, becoming more thick and jammy, the flowers is there all the time, but toned down and yet still vibrant. Some gourmand notes enters and also I can detect a slightest hint of chewing gum (the tuberose, I guess).

But the best part is the milky basenotes, that shows up after about an hour or two. It´s so beautiful, creamy, soft and comfy. Rouge & Noir is somewhat a strange scent, it´s all over the place and you have to be careful not to miss some parts. I do not recommend it for people that like more linear, peaceful and predictible fragrances. But, to me it makes a perfume challenging.

And Rouge & Noir is challenging. Kind of a happy and bright perfume, but still with something slightly forbidden in it. Red from the start, and then maturing in to something darker, and also creamier, milkier and some boozyness. Really strange how something milky can be dark almost black? But it is! There is a smoth velvety blackness in it, that is very challenging to pinpoint.

Even tough Rouge & Noir has a youthful heart, I think it could be suitable for women in all ages, but not on all occations. It´s a scent for party, a night out or maybe on some romantic occation. Even tough I am trying the EdT version I think it has excellent sillage and good longvity, at least 4-5 hours, and the basenote is in my opinion the best part.

Stylish it´s more like Fredric Malle´s Lipstick Rose, than anything natural and casual.

José Eisenberg - J'ose EdP

What I´ve got in the post yesterday was 5 little samples of José Eisenbergs entire perfume line. J'ose EdP, Back To Paris, I Am and Rouge & Noir for women and also J'ose EdT for men.

Before writing about J'ose EdP I must tell you a little about Vilnius. Vilnius is the capital of Lithuania, with 550.000 recidenses and this year Vilnius is celebrating both that it´s 1000 year since the city was founded and also that Vilnius is the european cultural capital this year. The reciedences of Vilnius is known as the italians of the north, and thanks to on of my favourite swapping friends in Vilnius I have begin to understand why.

Vilnius isn´t a really big city, a city suffering Soviet-occupation trough several years, a city in a country few people even heard of. But the lithuanians sure has alot to be proud of, most certainly when it comes to perfume. Juozas Statkevicius are lithuaninan and Vilnius seem to have more to offer when it comes to perfumes than Stockholm, that is twice it´s size. And they also seem to know a lot about perfume. If it wasn´t for my lithuanian swapping friend I would never had heard of José Eisenberg! And that would be a shame.

When looking for information about José Eisenberg perfumes I found a company most known for their exclusive skincare products, but also with some perfumes. I don´t find any revews about these fragrances tough, and that is strange since J'ose EdP is really good, utterly refined and sensual in a naughty way.

I am having troubble picking out single notes in J'ose EdP, it´s well blended. It give me a feeling of a foggy, smoky darkness that is pierced with rays of warm light now and then. It´s definitly cool and doesn´t remind me of anything else. If you wish to find a unique, personal and exciting signature scent, look carefully (or sniff rather) at J'ose EdP. This is not at all one in the crowd. And it is unique in a very comfortable way.

As said before, it´s smoky, but it´s a light, sweet and soft kind of smoke, just the kind of smoke I like in perfumes. Somewhere in the smoke a light medical note is hiding, every time I try J'ose I am about to recognize it, but fails every time. Don´t get off put by the medical note, cause it´s as easy and tender as the rest of the perfume. In the smoke there is also notes of coffee, patchouli and hay. Amber and musk rounds it off at the base with a golden, dark roundness. It is really beautiful. Lavender and some citrus are the bright notes in it, and they hang in there for a long time, responsible for the ray of light piercing trough the smoky darkness. Lavender and coffee is a quite common combination (or common, but appearantly these two notes complete eachother in a good way in perfumes) but in J'ose they are made in a quite unique way. Coffee and lavender are subdued, but the main part is about ambery smoky sweetness. A must for all amber-lovers!

There isn´t, of course, anything girly with J'ose. This is sensual, warm and distinctive perfume for a woman at it´s best. Really daring, without being slutty or cheap. J'ose is the opposite, and that is quite uncommon for such a smoky, sensual perfume.

You really gotta try it!!!

I know I don´t write that much about mens perfumes here, but J'ose is available in a version for men also, J'ose EdT. It has everything in common with the female version, but with an unmistakeable masculine base. All the note are shared between the two version, but still they differ. And my husband tried J'ose EdT yesterday, and he really liked it. So if a more masculin touched is wished for, try J'ose EdT.

You can find José Eisenbergs perfumes here: http://www.eisenberg.mc/navigation/cms,id,1,nodeid,1,_country,com,_language,en.html

I´ve tried J'ose EdP before, but the other one´s in the collection is new to me. Yesterday evening I again made the mistake to put on a perfume that I tought of as soft, quiet and comfy, another from José Eisenberg. It was indeed comfy, but so good smelling I again had troubble gettin to sleep. Wich one of them? Well, you´re soon to find out.

Who likes a stranger?

I love perfumes, and that´s no secret. I love to use perfume, try new perfumes, look at perfume bottles and of course I love to both read and write about perfumes.

A well-written review on another perfume blog or perfume site can make me want to try that perfume at once. Some times when I then try it I don´t like it as much as I tought, but sometimes I found it as good as I hoped.

Most perfume bloggers aren´t only very interested in perfumes, they also are talented writers with a lot of knowledge, not only about perfumes. It´s so interesting and fun to follow other perfume blogs and there´s sure blogs for any taste, even if many blogs are in english, there the similarities ends. Perfume lovers that also are perfume bloggers seem to all have found their own niche. That make room for a lot of variety, the same perfume reviewed by two different bloggers can be described in two totally different ways.

But, what about the perfumes hardly mentioned? The perfumes that seem to be unknown even for many perfumistas? No matter how good the perfume bloggers are, there is a lot of reviews of the same perfumes. When Serge Lutens, Frederic Malle, Hermes and other big perfume producers release a new perfume, you can be sure to read about on many blogs, wich of course isn´t so strange.

But there is a lot of others also making incredible perfumes, new ones or older ones being around for a while but not so noticed. Of course it can depend on the perfumes not being so particular good, but it can as well depend on that the perfume is not in the big stream of perfumes going from mouth to mouth among perfume lovers. Not so good marketing can also be a reason. Some perfume producers seem to have totally missed out on that perfumes has become a big and global interest, well even a passion, among quite a lot of people.

So now I have start roaming the net after new, unknown and hardly written about perfumes. And it´s so exciting! With my eyes and ears open I can hear of some little know of perfume that some other perfume lover really loves! There is a lot of -for me at least- unknown perfumes and brands out there. Today I´ve got a very interesting parcel with post, but have others to look forward to as well. It will be so much fun to write about!

Do you have some almost private perfume secrets? Some brand you think you´re alone to have discovered? As usual I am interested in everything from the most exclusive to lovely perfume oils some dedicated person stir up at home or some strange perfumes from far away countries. That is, of course, depending on that you wont keep your goodies all to yourself!

PS. Is there someone who knows why the swedish nichebrand Byredo don´t answer mails?

Who loves the second best?

I think Sweden as a nation lack a bit of winner instinct. We tell our kids to join different competitions, activities and games and that they shall participate for the fun of it, not to win. In other countries the parents and other grown ups are more straight forward and tell the kids that all that matters is to win. An honestly, swedish double moral standars are quite amusing if having it on some distance, because of course we also love when the kids are winning. And yes, the kids love it to!

Most people seem to agree about that it´s possible to compete in sports and athletics, but when it comes to music people become more hesitant. Soon it´s the final for the European Melody Contest in Moscow, and even if it isn´t really ok to compete in music, there´s full coverage in the media, here in Sweden at least. Another thing hard to compete in is beauty, still a new Miss Universe is crowned every year. And in some countries (mostly US) they even held beauty pageants for babies, something quite unfamiliar for most swedish parents.

Well, even when it comes to perfume, there is contests. The perfume industry itself rewards succesfull fragrances, and perfume sites let their members vote for the most popular perfumes. There is perfume top ten, and if you want to be sure about being "right" and feel safe, you can easily chose the number one perfume on such a list, you are sure not to be noticed then.

I am sure most perfumista also have their own top ten list, I do, even tough it´s constantly changing. But at least I know wich perfumes I really love and want! Or...? Do I, really? The answer isn´t that obvious, the winner isn´t always the winner in the long run.

I have a way of becoming almost obsessed about a perfume at the first sniff. It goes like oooh, wooow, and marvellous, beautiful, amazing... This happen once in a while, but not more than about one perfume on ten. That makes, at least nine, not to winners. With ten perfumes I think about four-five-six are counted out almost directly, because I find them so boring that they not even are nice or cute. About two or three are good, fine, maybe a little different, nice but without making it to the top. At least, they are good enough to be tried again.

And again...

And again...

And wow, when did it become this good!? Strangely enogh there is less left in that little sample than in the sample with the superduperamazingpowerfullblast-perfume. Eh? Yes, I´ve noticed a tendecy. I do love serge Luten´s Borneo 1834, and when I´ve got that sample I also got some other SL samples; Datura Noir, Serge Noire and Ambre Sultan. Datura Noir didn´t really make it for me, and Serge Noire is very interesting but a bit difficult to wear and Ambre Sultan was... hmmm ok, good, nice, a little brisk, spicy and just good enough... while Borneo 1834 was incredible.

Yes, I still love Borneo 1834, but it´s heavy, strong, masculin and so concrete that I have to be in a certain mood to wear it. While Ambre Sultan just mingle up with my skin chemistry without making any noice and starts warming up and becoming warmer, sweeter, more golden, more intriguing and... more more so to speak. No it doesn´t really compete with Borneo 1834, but still it is as good, but in another way. I wouldn´t be surprised if I had a bottle of them both, that Ambre Sultan would be the one I reach for more often.

The sam goes for some perfumes from Parfumerie Generale, I love Aomassai, Felanilla and Cadjmere even tough my most obsessed feeling for Cadjmere have cooled down a little. Some of Parfumerie Generale´s perfumes doesn´t work at all for me, and some of them are nice, good, fine and really cute. Like Drama Nuui and Intrigant Patchouli. But, little by little they have won me over. Intrigant Patchouli is at the top among my patchouli favourites, together with Borneo 1834, but in another way. First time I tried Intrigant Patchouli was when I´ve also got Cadjmere, and I thought of it as almost a little boring. Well, I couldn´t be more wrong! When it starts to warm up on the skin it´s transforming to something lush, sensual and the animalic notes in Intrigant Patchuli is among the most erotic I can think of! Just wow, but it took a while to realise that.

And what else? Well, Chinatown from Bond No 9 didn´t get much attention from me. Because in the same shipment was Andy Warhol´s Silver Factory. Really strange, citrus fresh, metallic and with a dirty musky note as well. Cool. But then I started to notice the not so good about it, it hasn´t any staying power (something it have in common with some other Bond No 9 frags I´ve tried) and the fresh citrus fades away and leave some kind of blury musk with no direction. But there was Chinatown, what about it? Doesn´t it smell like something you bake? Something good, a little fruity, little sweet, a little different and a little adorable? Yes, in the long run it is actually Chinatown I like the most from Bond No 9, this far.

Since mentioned Ava Luxe´s Kama in the review about Serge Lutens Musc Koublai Khan I´ve tried a little more. Oh ni, it still isn´t as good as MKK, but I realised it deserve better tough. It´s totallt perfect for layering, you can layer it with almost everything. Kama manage to deepen and strengthen anything. The perfume you blend it with changes, but is still possible to recognise.

Soft, sweet, floral and vanilly perfumes goes from giggly girly to sofisticated warm blooded women in just a moment. I´ve realise I will need a bigger bottle of Kama, real soon...

And Vivienne Westwood´s Anglomania, yes I love it, but there isn´t that much left in my bottle and Libertine is also about to get finnished, and can you guess wich of them I would most likely buy a new bottle of? Hint, the perfume doesn´t start with A...

There are many more seconds best that deserve attention, do you have any? Some perfume you didn´t think to much about from the beginning but the discovered it has somehow sneaking it´s way up...

Kenzo - Kenzo Amour Le Parfum

I have write about Kenzo Amour earlier. And I really like Kenzo Amour, even tough I still haven´t manage to buy a big bottle of it. Well, that make me wonder if I still like it as much as I think I do. Because it´s possible to find a little bottle of Kenzo Amour for less than 20 euro.

But I like it, even tough there appearantly are perfumes I like more, or at least decide to buy before Kenzo Amour. I compared Kenzo Amour with People of the Labyrinths Luctor et Emergo, and then got the suggestion that I should try Kenzo Amour Le Parfum, and well... now I finally did that.

If Kenzo Amour is a quitely liked perfume, Kenzo Amour Le Parfum is more like passion. Oh, really this is wonderful! Addictive! Charming! Sensual! Sexy!

It do have a lot in common with Kenzo Amour, but it is more dense and deeper. It´s like all the notes are pretty much the same, but more of them, they are more fleshy, darker and much more sensual. If Kenzo Amour is a glimpse of a beautiful geisha in a lane in Kyoto during daytime, Kenzo Amour Le Parfum is the late evening and night time version of Kenzo Amour. The smell of incense is sweet, opulent and sensual, or is it really incense or it is the smoke from a opium den I can smell? It´s said that opium smoke is the best scent there is, I have no idea, but it would be interesting to find out! ;)

The white powdery softness, the florals and the caressing sothness is still there. But with a weight and substans that make Kenzo Amour kind of bland. Kenzo Amour Le Parfum smells so good, so much and so dense it almost smells forbidden. Sitting here and writing about it and knowing that I will go out with my little dog after finnishing feels like almost inappropriate. What if I meet a unfamiliar man while wearing this during time day, it is a strange feeling.

To me Kenzo Amour Le Parfum is a perfume to wear in intimate moments, a perfume that holds so much pleasant indulgement that it is something to share only with you lover. Now I happen to be a real slut when it comes to perfumes, so I will of course wear Kenzo Amour Le Parfum on a lot of other occations, but I guess you can understand the feeling of it. Bad enough, really bad actually, is that my husband don´t really understand the greatness of it. He don´t particular like Kenzo Amour and even if he find Kenzo Amor Le Parfum a little better, he isn´t at all impressed.

I can´t really understand why, it has everything men use to like in perfumes, vanilla, softness and something that smells like it´s eatable some delicate ricepudding with caramellised coating served with jummy cherry topping. Do you know something about how men catch Kenzo Amour/ Le parfum? Maybe it´s a perfume especially popular with women?

Well, according to me, it can´t be so mych better than Kenzo Amour Le Parfum, in this genre. For me, it´s the ultimate comfort-scent. It give my senses a feeling of weight, a feeling of glowing skin, light breath and the wind trough a slightly open window. The feeling after...

Thankfully I swapped so I´ve got me 3 ml (!) of this wonderful creation, but guess if I will hunt a big bottle as soon as the 3 ml are about to be finnished. I will never lack a bottle fo this in my collection!

Amazingly longlasting, really good sillage, will take up space in any occation. And after what I can find at the net, it´s more than worth it´s price. So if you haven´t yet tried it, what are you waiting for, go get it, pronto!

I found it!

What? Patchouli plants! On ebay of course, strangely enogh it was one of the first places that I looked without success, but then I searched with the latin name and there they where, a lot of patchouli plants. And they aren´t expensive either, a few dollars each.

That was the good news. The bad news are that they all are in US. And that the shipping will be ten times more expensice than the actual patchouli. And that the seller -of course- cant garante that the plant survive all the way to Sweden. And what if my little plant survive to Sweden, but get on hold by the custom that suspect it to be some strange narcotic herb. I guess the sniffer dogs definitly thinks that the patchouli smells very strange! I would if I was a sniffer dog. And then they tucked it away until finding out what it is and forget about giving it water and my little patchouli plant will die for sure...

But sometimes you have to go for it no matter what. And I guess now is quite a good time, it could be a little warmer, maybe in the end of the month would be a great time.

Just wait and see, soon I will be in the kitchen cooking together strange hippie oils that wont work as anything that mosquito repellant.

Florascent - Umami

Do you like sushi? Or maybe parmesan? I like both sushi and parmesan, but not together. Sushi and parmesan has umami in common. Umami is the fifth taste, and more familiar in Asia than in the western world. Even tough it´s reputation is spreading, much thanks to sushi. Umami is a complement to the four tastes of sweet, salt, sour and acrid, and is a own unique kind of saltysweet taste. In japanese umami means fresh taste. Scientists has discover that umami actually is the taste of protein. A taste we recognize most in fish, cheese and beans. Most obvious is umami in food that have been fermented or layered. Like in soy and parmesan. I do like the taste of umami and I´ve got sushi cravings just by writing this and look at the pic above.

Now I have, thanks to Florascent, realised I also like the smell of umami. Florascent is a perfume house producing natural perfumes according to old european traditions and only using natural ingredients from plants and flowers. Florascent offers no less than 23 different scents. Some traditional soliflors, and some for men, some orientals and also some a little more modern scents. Umami is to be found in the latest category together with Pipapo, Monsieur Balode and Tango.

Among the one´s I´ve tried Umami become my big favourite. The name is really well tought of, since the smell is really hard to pinpoint and quite elusive. When it comes to strenght I would call Umami a light Eau de Toilette, it´s transparent and airy. But still it´s quite longlasting at my skin, at least 4-5 hours and warming up in a very beautiful way. Umami is soft as a summer wind and do not disturbe a soul. It´s composed with notes of yuso (citrus fruit), vanilla, ginger, pepper, osmanthus and tonkabean. Non of the notes are dominating, they are nicely blended. Umami is a carefully humming kind of fragrance. Sometimes powdery, and then floral, after a while gourmand and delicious earthy notes also, even tough they are very shy I suspect there is some patchouli in it. Oh I forgot about the grassy notes! Umami is a softspoken, comforting and still different kind of scent.

It remind me a little to Angel! Umami could be Angels shy, reluctant and very beautiful cousin from the far away countryside. If Eau de Star is Angel dipped in the ocean, Umami is an angel that has rolled around in the grass and then being dipped in creamy milk.

Well, I just about start thinking about Umami reminding me of Angel when it stop reminding of Angel and stand by itself. Umami is a nice try to back of from perfumery´s ordinary olfactory families. And if Umami had been stronger, it could have end up very bad, but thanks to it´s softness it´s a really interesting effort.

Umami is an excellent choise for those who like elusive, light and caressing perfumes. You can wear Umami all year round, but it´s a perfectly well daytime scent.

You can read more about Florascent here: http://www.florascent.de/

Frapin - Esprit de Fleurs

I have tested all the perfumes from Frapin (from the beginning a cognac-producer) without being impressed. They have "only" five perfumes; 1270, Caravelle Epicee, Passion Boisee, Terre de Sarment and Esprit de Fleurs.

I started with 1270, appearantly one of their most popular perfumes, but it failed making any impression on me. Nice and fine, but nothing more. Caravelle Epicee and Passion Boisee was also nice and find. Terre de Sarment was interesting tough, a light and very green scent, but my skinchemistry didn´t really make it. Finally only Esprit de Fleurs was left, and I didn´t have any expectations at all, since florals often are on the bottom of my test list. Don´t get me wrong, there is of course florals that I love, but there is a bigger chanse that I really love an oriental.

Well, at least Esprit de Fleurs deserved to be tested. I tought it might be suitable as a bedtime fragrance so I put on a tiny little drop on each arm. And wow, what a blast! Supposedly bedtime, but it was impossible to sleep, because on my arm one of the brightest, moodlifting and joyful perfumes where playing. Like clean, happy and pure energy made to perfume. I was lying with my nose atached to my arm, very uncomfortable, for at least two hours, and I think I finally fell asleep with a content smile on my lips.

Esprit de Fleurs might be this summer No 1 summer perfume for me! Do you like L'Artisans La Chasse Aux Papillons? Well, then you really would enjoy Esprit de Fleurs. They have something in common, but in my opinion Esprit de Fleurs is the better perfume. It´s more of anything, and most important maybe, much more longlasting than almost anything from L'Artisan, especially La Chasse Aux Papillon, that are as long as a northern swedish summer, no much shorter of course, but you get it...

Esprit de Fleurs knocked me with it´s almost bouncing top notes. This is really citrus with bounce in it. After the first burst of enrgy, the perfume calms down a little and beautiful, white florals are subdued, jasmine, and a tender rose, but the uniqueness of the middlenotes comes from basil and red currant. Add a dash of vetiver and the tiniest amount of vanilla to the drydown and you´ve got something with some resamblence to lemon liquer, very creamy and sothing. Very appropriate for something from Frapin I think. All of their perfumes have some kind of liquer-note, and thats really nice, if that is something for you, I suggest you try everything from Frapin, maybe some of the others will make magic with your skinchemistry?

Well, on me Esprit de Fleurs make magic. And that makes me so very happy, since it was such a surprise. It´s so fun to love a perfume that I was expecting to merely like a little. Esprit de Fleurs is citrus floral at it´s best! When I write this, I can´t think of many perfumes better than this for summer. A must!

Wich perfumes have surprised you the most? Do you have any dissapointed surprises as well?

Issey Miyake - Le Feu d'Issey

One night you have a wonderful dream. You´re dreaming that you have won a stay at a luxurious tropical resort. A resort that millionaires and celebrities stays at, and you are feel so lucky.

Your private bungalow is situated right at the golden beach and you can here the waves when sitting on the veranda. The bungalow is surrounden by tropical trees and flowers and you can smell their discrete, but gorgeus scent in the air. Strange birds are singing in the trees and down at the beach a romantic coupple walks by. From the bungalow next to yours you can hear laughter and the smell of fine cigars lingers in the air. You wrap yourself in a shiffon sarrong and go for a walk in the water´s edge, the little waves caresses your feet. You´re enjoying the warm water, and the sunbeam at your face and inhale the scent of golden, tropical sunshine.

When you wake up the next morning you still remember the dream, and you know that you probably never will visit such a luxurious place. But, strangly enough, the scents of the dream still lingers around you. An elusive, but still very concrete smell of tropical sun.

That is how I could describe Le Feu d'Issey, if I had visited a tropical island. I think the closest is some island in the medditerean and it´s not the same. Le Feu d'Issey reminds a lot of the light version, but with more smell. It´s stronger, more flowery and also more complex. The obvious cigar-note is really nice, but a bit strange. I cant really understand why they stop making Le Feu d'Issey, while light is still in production. I find them both to be really, really good. And they both smell of summer, sun and beaches, just that the beaches are situated at totally different seas. One doesn´t exclude the other, in my opinion they complement each other.

Wich of Le Feu d'Issey do you prefer? Or maybe you dont like them at all?

Issey Miyake - Le Feu d'Issey Light

It´s a wonderful and sunny summer day. You decide to go to the beach together with family and friends. You bring some picnic, towels, sunscreen and some beach toys. Because it´s hot there are already a lot of people at the beach, but you manage to find a private spot and put your blankets in the shadow of a big pine.

You put on some sunscreen, sunbathing, builds sandcastles with the small kids, chasing the bigger kids in the water, having a swim contest, throw some ball, eats icecream, puts on some more sunscreen, drinks coffee and eat sandwiches, listening to the seagulls, crushes your sunglasses by mistake when chasing a ball, makes some barbecue and having coke, have a last bath, manage to get the kids up from the water, searching for lost bike keys and a slipper, bribe the kids with a last bun, and apck your belongings and start the ride home.

When you arrive at home you´re having a cold beer at the veranda and later on you have some more barbecue and stays out for a long time in the darkening summer night. A perfect summer day are about to end. When going inside again, you can feel the all the scents of the day remaining on your skin. Your skin smells like a perfect summer day, as if the sun have perfumed your skin in the most natural and beautiful way. You probably should take a shower, but don´t.

Well, something like that is what Le Feu d'Issey Light smells on me. It´s a almost perfect sunshine scent. In autumn and winter it´s a greta reminder of summer, and in spring it is a promise that the summer is on it´s way. It´s nice using during summer to, but not really necesarry then. It is light, caressing and very different. Longlasting and still discrete. Le Feu d'Issey makes me happy and alert.