2009 was a good year. Any time one’s health is good, and that of one’s family and friends, it is a good year. Then throw in a few good times, a lotta good perfumes, some good books and movies, and it becomes a very good year indeed.

It’s always nice to put some thought into those things we love.

Best Perfumery Trends in 2009:
It has to be oud, which is everywhere, suddenly for us in the west, but always a presence in the east. I am not located in a place easy for access to many of these, so I’m personally limited in knowledge to the ones I’ve sampled.

Kilian Pure Oud

First, perfumes.
As for perfumes, remember I’m in the back of beyond as far as easily sniffing some of the lines, so if you have a favorite or are a favorite, if I have samples, I’ll be glad to add my voice.

Best expensive niche:
Andy Tauer Une Rose Chyprée: A wearable rose, with vintage aspects, not quite dirty.
Anything by Ormonde Jayne or Andy Tauer or Ayala Moriel or Neil Morris or…

Best less expensive niche
Anything by Sonoma Scent.

Best in fragrances more easily found, some niche:
Kilian Back to Black
Kilian Pure Oud
Guerlain exclusives, take your pick. I like a number of them, including Moscow, Double Vanilla, 68, Chypre Fatale, La Petite Robe Noire…then there’s also Mon Precieux Nectar…I buy from Guerlain @ Palazzo in Las Vegas, ask for Claire. Call (702) 732-7008 or email: GuerlainPalazzo.STORE@lvmhuspc.com. Be sure to tell him that you heard it from me. (I saw them recently on a trip more locally, but the sales agent blew the sale with me. That’ll teach her, LOL!)

Serge Lutens, take your pick.
Prada, the original, and L’eau Ambree.
Chanel exclusives — I like Coromandel.

Best surprising fragrances
Le Jardin Retrouvé should be more fully known. I was glad to get a chance to review them.

Best inexpensive fragrances
Make Me Smooth
Bathed and Infused

Skin care that really works:
These are not new for 2009, but they still are going strong, and more importantly, work.

Best Moderate to expensive
Arbonne products RE9 or FC5; RE9 for the body is terrific.
Estee Lauder New Perfectionist CP+
La Prairie Cellular Anti-wrinkle Firming Serum; Cellular Hydrating is good too.

Best inexpensive skincare
Avon Ultimate Gold or Anew Alternative Intensive Age Treatment

Best cosmetic trends 2009
Minerals, everywhere. Some much better than others in texture and look.

Best color products, Not Mineral
High end
Chanel

Less expensive
Arbonne
Aromaleigh
Maybelline
NYX

Best lip gloss
MAC dazzlers comes in first
Beaute
Arbonne
Chanel

Best mineral niche
Aromaleigh or Fyrinnae

Best new product
Kindle 2 International — would be made better if it incorporated the ease of reading library ebooks, if our library had any. Please send us a free wireless download to add this in order to be competitive with Sony’s ereader. (Elena, you will really enjoy yours! Congrats on receiving it as a gift this Christmas.)

The best things in life are still free
You can find a gazillion free ebooks to read on your Kindle or other ebook reader before you even consider buying any ebooks.

Don’t forget to take time to view sunrises or sunsets or enjoy seeing bodies of water, free to all if we but take the time.

Internet friendships that become RL friendships. This is an amazing time we live in, when we can be instantly connected to friends around the world. You know who you are! I regularly keep in touch with friends in Europe and China, as well as at home from coast to coast. Not to mention checking in on blogs and yahoogroups I love that originate anywhere.

The qualities of hope, inspiration, gratitude, happiness, safety…

Don’t forget prayer…

What are your favorites?

I’m sure I left something out…
If I think of anything amazing, I will add it as the day goes on…

Have a good one!

Karin
www.savvythinker.com

Check out the other particpants:

http://mossyloomings.blogspot.com

http://1000fragrances.blogspot.com/

http://ayalasmellyblog.blogspot.com/

http://bittergracenotes.blogspot.com/

http://qwendy.typepad.com/shoescakeperfume/

http://www.eiderdownpress.com/Perfume_Journal.html

http://www.scenthive.com

http://olfactarama.blogspot.com/

http://journal.illuminatedperfume.com/

http://arosebeyondthethames.blogspot.com/

http://thenonblonde.blogspot.com/

http://underthecupola.blogspot.com/

and http://perfumeshrine.blogspot.com/

http://sonomascent.wordpress.com/

http://alliam-aredhead.blogspot.com/

http://scelfleah.blogspot.com/

http://ismellthereforeiam.blogspot.com

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Moving on to Serge Lutens from L’artisan:

Ahhhh… Oh my. This is the first time I’ve seen so many Lutens fragrances in one place since I was in Paris. On that trip I was overwhelmed by the choices, didn’t really know the offerings, and felt confused enough not to make a choice. Then a generous POL’er (you know who you are) sent me from Europe a wonderful selection of sample vials so that I could really try them at my leisure. I went on to order several decants and a couple of partial bottles.

This week I sampled Rousse, Datura Noir, and Miel de Bois.

Miel de Bois is practically straight honey. I prefer L’Occitane’s Honey and Lemon which has less honey predominating:

Miel de Bois:
Notes of honey and woods with top notes of ebony, gaiac and oak wood, middle notes of honey and bottom notes of beeswax, iris and hawthorn.

Honey and Lemon:
lemon and citrus fruit, golden honey, vanilla and caramel scents.

I liked this Datura Noir quite a bit, but I have Maitre Parfumeur et Gantier’s Secrete Datura* and while not the same, it gave me pause to think of getting this one. I look forward to putting it on skin again, and comparing it to SD.

Datura Noir

Notes of myrrh, bitter almond, tonka bean, and musk, heliotrope, mandarin, lemon flower, and tuberose, vanilla, coconut oil, and apricot.

My favorite of what I tried was Rousse . I fell in love with this one, but I would want to sample it comparing it to Fou d’Absinthe on my next trip, unless I simply decide to bite the bullet and get both. Rousse was created by Chris Sheldrake. Cinnamon is one of my favorite spices, so to have it in a fragrance that is more than gourmand, is a delight.

I expected it to be like Chypre Rouge, which I find masculine, but it is not. Rousse is certainly wearable by a man; it is equally wearable for me.

Rousse
notes of mandarin, cinnamon, cloves, spices, floral & aromatic notes, fruit, cinnamon wood, precious woods, amber, musk and vanilla.

Now, I would be completely happy concerning fragrance if I had one or both of the ones I loved — but then would I be on the hunt for more? Yes, probably, but I’ve resigned myself to the knowledge that there are so many new offerings that it is impossible to test all of them. I must be satisfied with the few.

There were a couple Lutens I didn’t care for, but I didn’t write their names on the cards, and I am having trouble recognizing the names as I look for them, so I will have to have an addendum when I sample them again.

Karin

Secrete Datura’s notes:

Notes: Datura, Sandalwood, Vanilla, Chocolate

Top: intermingles the lily, heliotrope and lemon.
Mid: jasmin, honeysickle, wallflower and orange blossom,
base: iris, vanilla, chocolate, and sandalwood.

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No one ever accused me of not having expensive tastes. I was able to sample these on my recent trip, and if I had a lot of money burning a hole in my pocket, I would have bought several of them. They are not marketed exclusively for men or women, but all scents could be worn by anyone. I am reminded of the wonderful scents by Neil Morris, Andy Tauer or Ayala Moriel.

There are twelve to choose from and they look quite magnificent on the store counter. [1.7 oz is $165 and 8.3 oz is $450.] The latter is a huge bottle, hefty and dabs with the cap. I didn’t get near as much sillage this way. I preferred the spray. The 1.7 oz bottle has a nice hand to it and is meant to resemble a chess piece.

No matter what I think of Tom Ford and his ubiquitous ad campaigns for other fragrances, he certainly struck the right blend with these. Ahhhhhh…sigh…

Tobacco Vanille is my personal favorite, yummy and just right, not too sweet and not too heavy on the tobacco. It reminds me of a beloved uncle. And it definitely was good on me. It was the favorite of those around me. (As usual, I try a couple at a time on different arms. Then sample again on different days.)

Tobacco Vanille:
A modern take on an old world men’s club. A smooth oriental, Tobacco Vanille opens immediately with opulent essences of tobacco leaf and aromatic spice notes. The heart unfolds with creamy tonka bean, tobacco flower, vanilla and cocoa, and finishes with a dry fruit accord, enriched with sweet wood sap.

Black Violet was an interesting floral, not too sweet, but it became sweeter as it dried down. I quite liked the darker aspects that kept it from being a typical floral.

Black Violet
Crisp citrus surrounds a modern pulpy fruit accord, fused with black violets. Woody accents fold into oakmoss adding the universally comforting sensation of warmth.

Noir de Noir was another of my favorites. I like chypre and patchouli. But this is quite light, at least with my skin. I found over all it blended with my skin and got lost, compared to Japan Noir.

Noir de Noir A dark chypre oriental, this scent opens with an earthy mantle of richly woven saffron, black rose and black truffle, with hints of floralcy. Underneath, vanilla, patchouli, oud wood and tree moss soften the intensity, making the scent a sensual experience.

Japan Noir was another of my favorites. It had more sillage on me than Noir de Noir. An excellent choice.

Japan Noir: spices, purple patchouli, porto noir, night blooming jasmine, leather, amber, vetiver.

Tuscan Leather was sprayed on a card, by mistake, and handed to me as if it were Tobacco Vanille. All I could smell was leather! I thought, where is the tobacco?! (We realized our mistake.) Well, it isn’t in this fragrance, but if you like leather, this is a good one for you. I do like leather, but it is not my favorite note for me when it is dominant. I would like this on a man — or on a woman where the leather note is perfect for her chemistry.

Tuscan Leather: A chypre blend of notes brings a raw, yet reserved sensuality to Tuscan Leather for an original take on a classic leather scent. Saffron, raspberry and thyme, open to olibanum and night blooming jasmine. Leather, black suede and amberwood add an intricate richness.

I quite liked Oud Wood. It is lovely and soft. I believe it could be layered with other fragrances to add a woody accord. It is not heavy on rose, at least on me, and that is a good thing. [I also sampled Lancome's Mille et Rose -- and it was just a typical rose scent which got stronger on me and quite unpleasant. I have this trouble with rose scents and generally with Lancome scents, so don't let this put you off. I liked the bottle.]

Oud Wood: An exotic rose wood and cardamom, blended with exuberant Chinese pepper, envelope the wearer in warmth. Eventually, the center exposes a smokey blend of rare oud wood, sandalwood and vetiver. Finally, the creamy scents of tonka bean, vanilla and amber are revealed.

Purple Patchouli was not what I expected. I expected it to be heavy like the 60s — and heady. Instead, it was quite mild and more floral. I didn’t catch much spice or leather. Naming it Purple Pachouli gives the right idea.

Purple Patchouli: This 60’s inspired floral woody fragrance opens with an elegant orchid accord and wet, succulent citrus notes. The heart blends noir leather and a signature purple patchouli accord with exotic spices, supported by the intense depth of amber, Peru balsam and vetiver.

Amber, on the other hand is exactly what Amber is. You would have to try this on your skin, but it was rich and glorious. If you are looking for an amber, this is one to try, for sure.

Amber: A honey colored scent infused with the purest form of amber, joined by a tenacious refrain of African incense, labdanum, rich woods and a touch of vanilla bean.

Since I had already found a couple of favorites and did not want to wear out my welcome with the SA, I did not try the following. There will have to be another day.

Velvet Gardenia: I wish I’d seen how this differed from other gardenias. It sounds far more interesting.

Velvet Gardenia: A heady floral blend of ripened black gardenia and succulent orange deepens into a heart of jasmine, rose and muguet. Tuberose blends with dark plum, honey and beeswax, finishing with a smooth accord of incense and labdanum.

Bois Rouge: The notes sure sound like something I’d love.

Bois Rouge: This woody oriental opens with a blend of elegant citrus and spice. The luxurious heart reveals cedarwood, patchouli, jasmine and muguet. Sandalwood, vetiver, amber and refined leather are warmed by vanilla and tonka, adding lasting depth and texture.

Neroli Portofino: I don’t usually do well with orange blossom, but this might be different entirely, not to mention it has amber.

Neroli Portofino: A modern intercontinental version of an iconic fragrance theme, Neroli Portofino balances luminous citrus oils and floral notes with amber undertones that awaken the senses and leave a splashy yet substantive impression.

Moss Breches I think I did try this one. It is quite green, which I often love. I was on over load with the ones I liked. I’ll have to try this again first, rather than in the middle.

Moss Breches Dark and complex, this mystical chypre combines fresh wood and warm spice notes with the delicate essence of beeswax absolute. The scent intensifies with the addition of ingredients, such as Moroccan clary sage, Hungarian tarragon, Corsican rosemary and labdanum, patchouli and benzoin.

So there you have it. If you get a chance to try these, by all means do. I found them at Neiman Marcus. Perhaps they are in other places too.

Have you sampled these — or bought any of them?

Karin

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What a great interview!

Karin

Now, to answer your question, we might want to look for another analogy: Music. The perfume formula is like the notes on a piece of paper. To make a symphony alive you need musicians and instruments. Good musicians and good instruments. The music that you hear is then the manifestation of the notes on paper and -to finish the analogy- the fragrance you smell is the materialisation of an idea, written down as formula. You need a good formula to make a good scent, coming up with the formula is the creative act. The better the formula, the more robust it is, allowing for minor quality of certain ingredients. The shorter the formula the more difficult it will be to compensate missing ingredients quality. Andy Tauer

To see the full interview go here.

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I promised I’d get to my incense/patchouli fragrances and that’s what I’ve been doing the past few days.

I always recommend trying a fragrance more than once before buying it. And I also recommend comparing it to things that remind you of it that you are either considering buying or already own. That way you know if it is FBW or more or less a duplication, or if in comparison, you either really like it or you really don’t. I learned this through trial and error. Sometimes the right combination of scents if you are doing a mini sniffa makes a fragrance smell better than it really does. Ditto for the weather or hormones or whatever. I find if I can’t trust a fragrance to smell pretty much the same always, it makes it iffy for me to use it. Because while mostly I might like it, there are days when it can be a scrubber, so it’s not one I’d reach for as often as ones that are always beloved.

I compared Le Baiser Du Dragon By Cartier with L’air du désert marocain by Tauer with NEW BLACK ORCHID by TOM FORD .

Notes for Le Baiser Du Dragon, introduced in 2004, a woody oriental:
Amaretto, Neroli Blossom, Gardenia, Cedarwood, Iris, Bulgarian Rose, Vetiver, Patchouli, Amber, Benzoin

Notes for L’air du désert marocain: The elegant head note is based on typical spicy scents of the Maghreb; coriander and cumin, joined with petitgrain. The warm heart note surprises with the fragrance of rock rose and a hint of jasmine. The body note is full of warm woods such as cedar wood, vetiver brilliantly joined with a fine amber background. Tauer Perfumes

Notes for Black Orchid: top notes of Black Truffle, Ylang, fresh Bergamot, Black Currant.
middle notes of dark florals and rich fruit accords, deepened with Lotus Wood.
base notes of Patchouli, Incense and Vetiver, Vanilla Tears, Balsam and Sandalwood.

The first day I compared BdD with DM. I bought BdD when I was on an Alaskan cruise. I probably tried it 25 times before buying it, because it was so different for me. I also wanted to know that those around me liked it. Re-spritzing does not make it too heavy. At the same time I wondered if it was the combination of the sea air and the cold that made it so delightful.

I found that sometimes I can smell it, and other times, I can’t smell it as well, but because it is so heady until it dries down a bit, I always go easy on it. Plus, it has good sillage, so others can still smell it. I wear it on days when I want a kick as& fragrance. More recently, it didn’t hit me really well, so I set it aside until this trial between fragrances. The two blended together in a nice way in wafting, but if I wanted to smell either separately, I just smelled one arm or the other. I like to do that anyway. It’s more interesting. DM is much sweeter, but also drier, as you’d expect with a fragrance that has the word ‘desert’ in its name.

My husband’s first comment to me that day: you smell good! (And I did.) I will likely do some layering with these two, as I prefer DM, but not to waste the BdD.

Yesterday I compared DM to Black Orchid. I’ve wanted to like Black Orchid. It has many notes that I like in other fragrances. But every time I had tried it, it went odd on me. (Tom Ford, ever crude, has said he put the scent of a man’s crotch in it, and perhaps he did. That funky note is either nearly absent or totally present depending on one’s chemistry.) Nordstrom’s is newly carrying it, and they had samples, which NM did not have when they first debuted it. This is one that I would not buy without making sure, sure, sure. I thought, good! now I can really try it.

I have to say the first time I really liked it was when comparing it to DM. In comparison, Black Orchid (BO to some, pun intended) smells sweeter than it does if I’m not comparing it. I quite liked it. But when I asked my dh which he preferred, he picked DM. So, there you have it. The Black Orchid bottle is elegant. I think I’ll get it anyway and wear it with DM.

I have BdD and Black Orchid on this morning. I asked a friend which she preferred. On first sniff, she liked them both. On second sniff she liked BdD better. On third sniff, now that’s it’s dried down, she said Black Orchid smells better than it did, but she still prefers BdD.

Looks like I’ll have to get a bottle of DM. My decant is not going to be enough. It will be a nice treat for me. I do love the fragrance.

The SAs at Nordstrom’s were really talking about Black Orchid. I agree, in many ways it is a lovely fragrance, especially if it is wearable for you. It would smell great on a man, likely all the time. On me, I’d have to be careful, but that bottle is calling to me.

Do you wear any of these? Which is your favorite? Is one calling to you, but you haven’t decided?

Karin

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Lonestar Memories is a rich leather scent, intense and multilayered, with a lasting, soft and gentle woody accord. Andy Tauer Perfumes

I was so happy to get a chance to try this fragrance, thanks to a POL’er. Descriptions of it made me wonder how it would do on me. I figured it would either be love-hate. It turns out it is love.

I love the leather of Cabochard by Gres, but Lonestar is completely different. How to describe the difference: Cabochard ultimately comes down to a leathered floral on me, but stays very heady. Lonestar comes down to smokey leather (no floral) on me, that purrs rather than stomps.

So far, it is two for two. I’ve tried two of Tauer’s fragrances and love them both. He is very talented.

Lonestar is supposed to evoke the land, the smoke, the leather of Texas. Along with that is a very strong initial note of gasoline, though not listed in any notes. It reminds me of what I smelled like when I accidentally spilled gas on myself while filling the car.

And it reminds me of the smells around my late father-in-law’s gas station/car dealership. Happy memories for me.

Just now, when spraying it for the second time today, I had the sprayer aimed wrong and got my hand. Memories of mis-filling the gas.

But very shortly on me, within the first few minutes, this high-tech gas scent leaves and underneath are the combined scents of a wood fire and plenty of soft leather.

The little bit I sprayed this morning was still going strong this evening. I had to press my nose to my skin to smell it for a bit of private olfactory jolt, similar to a good cup of coffee. I wasn’t overpowering anyone else. But it is one that would appeal to others, I believe, if I had worn enough to carry out into the room.

I’m going to go hit myself with some more even though I sprized my hand, as I said, about five minutes ago.

The scent grows on you. I’m almost getting a kind of licorice from it. I love it when a fragrance moves like this.

I wondered at first if it would remind me of Bvlgari Black. But Bvlgari Black is not a scent I can wear — it is too brash on me. All burnt rubber, tea and leather — mostly burnt rubber. I picture a woman with a whip.

Lonestar can be worn by either a man or a woman, but I wouldn’t call it unisex. It is much too sensual for that. It is either the sueded leather of a cowboy hat or the smooth and buttery leather of a leather outfit. This scent would be at home wherever you took it.

“… it’s the scent of a lonesome rider, wearing old jeans and leather jacket, after a long day on the horse in the dry woods, preparing his coffee on the open, smoky fire. I want it to be fresh and light, yet lasting and powerful….”

He got it exactly right.

Karin

Green and spicy head notes: Geranium, Carrot seed, Clary sage.
Smokey leathery Heart notes: Birchtar, Cistus, Jasmine, Cedar wood.
Fine woody body notes: Myrrh, Tonka, Vetiver, Sandalwood. Thanks to Prince Barry at POL

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I’ve heard a lot of good things about Andy Tauer fragrances, originating in Switzerland, and I was excited to finally be able to try several of them thanks to a friend at POL. I will add my reviews as I try each of them. I have added links to both his blog and his website at my link section.

Perfumes are pictures, painted with scents. Tauer Perfumes

I think for my first foray into Tauer Perfumes, L’air du desert marocain was a perfect choice. It is said to be a unisex fragrance, but it is not like any other unisex that I have tried. Tauer Perfumes says it is for ‘him or her.’ They do not call it unisex.

In general most unisex fragrances on me smell too masculine. It might be that most unisex fragrances are really neither masculine nor feminine which is why I do not like them on me. They have a certain nondesript quality to them, on me, as if one set of notes cancels out the other.

On the other hand, there are men’s versions of fragrances that I prefer on me (and maybe I just prefer them on anyone) over the women’s (Guerlain’s L’instant for men is one of them.) Many fragrances can be enjoyed equally by men or women if the categories of men’s or women’s are forgotten and one only goes by the scent and how it smells on oneself. I know several men who wear women’s fragrances as part of their fragrance wardrobe.

So I was intrigued to see how I would feel about this one. I find it a winner for either a man or a woman, but I would not classify it as unisex.

The scent of desire. Inspired by the fragrant world of the Maghreb desert. Powerful, sensual and pure. Tauer Perfumes

I find this scent to be wonderfully evocative. For me, it does paint a picture with fragrance. It is very paradoxical — it is both warm and dry; both sweet and non-sweet; incensy and clear; a sensual scent and an intellectual one… I am transported as I wear it.

And the wonderful thing about it is that no note cancels out any other. Each note stands distinct, yet blends with the others in a dance of joy.

I have never been to the Maghreb desert, but if it smells anything like this, I am ready to go. In one sense that is similar to Hermes Un Jardin Sur le Nil which evokes the area around the Nile.

I was careful my first try to take only the tiniest spritz, because I didn’t know what to expect. Not to fear, it is delicious. The dry down is sweet, but not too sweet, full of spicy incense and woods. And the journey from the beginning to the dry down is a lovely bit of travel. The opening is distinct from the drydown. It is not a fragrance that would bore one with sameness in all three stages. A little goes a long ways, and it lasted on me very well. Twelve hours later, it was still strong on my wrists.

For those who fear a cumin note, it is not negative at all.

The elegant head note is based on typical spicy scents of the Maghreb; coriander and cumin, joined with petitgrain. The warm heart note surprises with the fragrance of rock rose and a hint of jasmine. The body note is full of warm woods such as cedar wood, vetiver brilliantly joined with a fine amber background. Tauer Perfumes

Today I tried a bit more, and it is every bit as good. I think of this more as a skin scent, as I don’t know if I would want to apply for sillage. Let those who come close to me partake of the pleasure.

It is very sensual, but soothing. I think it is full bottle worthy. It goes for $65 for 1.7 oz at Luckyscent in the US. It is also available in NY.

Have you tried it? do you own it?

Karin

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