27 Monday Apr 2020
Posted in Perfume Reviews
Tags
aftelier, dawn spencer hurwitz, frederic malle, lilac, perfume, serge lutens, yves saint laurent
How are you doing today?
On Saturday the sun appeared over the New York City metro area and I was able to sit outside for a couple hours, just reading and drinking coffee and editing a PowerPoint on my laptop. That was a treat.
As I’m writing this post, it’s raining again. All the same, I’ve been trying to welcome Spring through my recent fragrance choices…
13 Monday Apr 2020
Posted in Perfume Reviews
Last Friday I realized that one month has passed since my workplace closed. It seems much longer…or not that long at all. Time is all askew.
I found myself craving comfort scents last week, rather than big dramatic roses. Here are a few of the perfumes I sprayed while staying home…
10 Friday Jan 2020
Posted in Perfume Reviews
My latest post on Now Smell This is a review of MaccaBees, a holiday fragrance from Dawn Spencer Hurwitz.
You can read it here.
19 Monday Aug 2019
Posted in Perfume Reviews
Tags
blackbird perfumes, cartier, cherries, dawn spencer hurwitz, hilde soliani, lolita lempicka, perfume, tom ford
Once in a while someone asks me my opinion about Tom Ford fragrances. Let me try to summarize: I think some of them are excellent. I think some of them are boring. I think all of them are overpriced. And I won’t buy (or review) any of them anyway, because I choose to reject Tom Ford’s branding and marketing.
I’ve heard that Tom Ford Lost Cherry is worth trying, and I’ll get around to smelling it eventually, just for reference. In the meantime, I’d like to mention a few other cherry-inspired perfumes that are worth seeking out.
17 Wednesday Jul 2019
Posted in Perfume Reviews
Tags
blackbird on ballard, cire trudon, dawn spencer hurwitz, demeter fragrances, penhaligon's, pilar and lucy, schmidt's deodorant
Jean Shrimpton photographed by Richard Avedon for Harper’s Bazaar, 1965
July 20, 2019 is the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11’s spaceflight to the Moon and the first human contact on its surface. “One small step for man…” (You know the rest!)
I don’t think Buzz Aldrin, Neil Armstrong, and Michael Collins were wearing cologne on that historic voyage—they had other things on their mind!—but I couldn’t help wondering, what perfume would I wear for a fantasy visit to the Moon or simply for an evening of moon-gazing? What might enhance or complement that experience?
Here are a few ideas…
12 Friday Jul 2019
Posted in Perfume Reviews
My latest post on Now Smell This is a review of Dawn Spencer Hurwitz’s newest limited edition fragrance, Sharkskin.
You can read it here.
09 Tuesday Apr 2019
Posted in Perfume Reviews
Tags
aroma m, dawn spencer hurwitz, fragrance, frederic malle, gucci, ineke, lilac, perfume, yves saint laurent
Mary Cassatt, Lilacs in a Window, 1880-1883. Oil on canvas. Metropolitan Museum of Art, Partial and Promised Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Douglas Dillon, 1997. 1997.207
— T. S. Eliot, The Wasteland (I. The Burial of the Dead)
If you asked me to name my favorite flower, or my favorite floral note in perfume, lilac wouldn’t be the first one I’d name. It might not even appear in my “top five.” Yet every April there’s a day when I have the opportunity to visit the blooming lilac trees in the Brooklyn Botanic Garden and I suddenly want to spray myself with a lilac fragrance.
Here are a few recommendations, including three from independent female perfumers and one from a preeminent female “nose.”
26 Wednesday Dec 2018
Posted in Perfume Reviews
My latest post for Now Smell This is a review of Dawn Spencer Hurwitz’s Colorado and Maria McElroy’s Desert Flower, two limited edition fragrances created for American Perfumer.
You can read it here.
19 Monday Nov 2018
Posted in Oh Really
Tags
ayala moriel, dawn spencer hurwitz, hiram green, natural fragrance, natural perfume, new york times, perfume, providence perfume company, velvet & sweet pea
Flipping through the Sunday New York Times, I came across a short profile of Marie-Lise Jonak and Baptiste Bouygues, the mother-and-son team behind the new perfume brand Ormaie. The full article is available online, as “Brand to Know: A Line of All-Natural Perfumes, Made by a Mother and Son.”
For me, the packaging is the most interesting aspect of Ormaie’s story—see the photo above! The bottles and labels are classic French elegance, while the beechwood tops are fun nods to the work of Ettore Sottsass and other postmodern designers.
However, the Times (especially in the print version) focused on topic of all-natural perfumery…
