Hits and Misses of niche perfume samples I’ve tried recently.
Regina Harris Rose Maroc Oil — $125 at La Creme Beauty for .5 ounces.
Rose Maroc, Frankincense and Myrrh are the notes in this long-lasting and you only need a little oil. It goes on with the sharp incense notes, and the rose is very subtle in there. The sharpness makes your nostrils flare and reminds me that I’m way overdue for confession. This is a really beautiful, soaring incense, and the rose softens it just a smidge, but not enough to take away from what it is — a smokey, rich incense. And that bottle, I’d sell my mother — oldest teenager for that bottle. Is it worth that price tag? Normally, I’d say no way, but this really is lovely. For incense lovers, it really is an extravagant incense, much warmer than Armani Prive Bois D’Encens. Which gives me an idea! Maybe I should mix the BdE with some rose, like the Micallef Rose Aoud, which I still need to order. (picture from La Creme website)
Annick Goutal Petite Cherie —
March and I are pretty sure that we are the only people on the face of the planet that love Petite Cherie. Notes of freshly cut grass, musky rose, peach, and vanilla. I never smell the vanilla in here, I just get all that peach and grass, and this is the perfume that makes me feel frilly and girly and young and frivolous and giggly. It needs a plug in the spring, it deserves it, it’s been reviled and spit on enough. Girlie Girls UNITE in support of a sweet fruity scent that doesn’t make us feel stupid for wearing it!!!!
Costume National Scent Gloss — I’ve had a sample of this forever, and for some reason, I’ve just never put it on. Time to fix that. Notes of spicy rose, purple orchid and fresh musk, it goes on with a little rose and some other stuff that made me sneeze. Okay, sweet candy rose with a little musk in there. Not terrible, not memorable.. what was it I put on?
Just sniffin’ round for reviews of the things I’m currently testing. I bought a sample of Petite Cherie, intending it for my 13-year-old daughter. When I tried it on myself, I got Big Pear — fresh, juicy, just-at-the-brink-of-ripe pear, and then I got white peach, also just at the top of the ripeness hill before it heads down the other side into lush sweetness. And I don’t get grass; I get something green and astringent that reminds me of gin. In fact, the top notes taken together would make a fabulous summer cocktail: Poire William liqueur, peach schnapps, gin, and some seltzer for fizz. From there, it moves briefly into just peach, and then there’s a very lovely 20 minutes’ worth of peach and rose which fascinates me. I tend to find rose scents dull, but here it’s fresher than many rose scents and so comforting. I don’t get much vanilla, just a soft rosy musk.
Excited by those fizzy, juicy top notes, I called my daughter in and spritzed a bit on her wrist. “Tell me what that smells like,” I said, hoping she’d find the pear as exciting as I did. She sniffed twice, made a face, and said, “Paint.” PAINT? I sniffed her wrist too. Yep. Turpentine. Bummer (for her, anyway). After half an hour, she liked the rose.
So I made the cocktail yesterday afternoon, as an antidote to the dreary winter weather, and it was lovely. Think I’ll try to find a mini, or a decant somewhere. I don’t care if it IS “too young for me.” I like it, it reminds me of happy childhood days in my grandmother’s orchard, and I track the development eagerly every time I wear it. If that’s not perfume love, I don’t know what is.
Petite Cherie is my absolute favorite!! I’m normally not a floral lover but this one is not the suffocating kind. I smell more of the vanilla than the grass so I tried the Vanille Exquise but that one has some spicy kick that I can’t get used to
Cheez — I have the neroli. Do you live in the US? Email your address under Contact Us and I’ll send you a taste. I can’t make up my mind about it.
I too, am a Petite Cheri lover. I have a small bottle (which has been perfectly fine for the past year or so). I get pear rather than peach. But it’s such a soft tender scent: cut pears mixed with sweet grass. Goutals are tricky though, and I can see why it would not agree with some people’s chemistry. For those who find it a touch sweet, I’ve discoverd that it layers beautifully with Eau D’Hadrien!
Would love to get my hands on a Bottle of Des Lys, as I am a Lily freak. Goutal also did a ltd. edition of orange blossom which I would love to try. Must cruise Ebay sometime soon.
Great site makeover
Carolyn — maybe it’s just my wallet talking, but I prefer the EDT. The whole point of the thing is its lightness, and I like to layer it with, well, lots of summer scents (including other AGs). It smells amazing layered with light tea scents like l’Artisan The or the Bulgari Green. I’ve only tried the EDP in the boutique, but I was relieved to find it just too much — too strong, too sweet.
Isn’t it beautiful, Laurie? We botoxed the thing and did a chemical peel, and this is what happened. :”>
When are you coming to a Rockies game? I’ll find you some tickets.
Robin, I think you definitely need it!
Carolyn, I use the EDT, and it works fine, but I think I had the EDP before, and it’s just a smidge stronger. I don’t think they are dramatically different, though I may have to check that out tomorrow.
WHOA!! Look what you did to your blog!! It’s beautiful! I haven’t been by in a while and lookie this – a whole facelift. Good job.
Lemming that Regina Harris now!!
I love Petite Cherie! It’s so fresh, fruity and pretty. And like March, I get more pear than peach. I think it’s so beautiful though, and I’m tempted to pick up a bottle this summer. I have worried about the spoilage issue, and I think that’s what has kept me from purchasing. Especially since I rarely use up an entire bottle of any scent. March or Patty, do you have a preference as to the EDT or EDP formulations? I’ve read on the board that the two are vastly different.
March, what, yours didn’t spoil? I took a cooler of ice with me when I bought my several bottles or so. I get the pear too, but I still get some peach. I think it’s the grass on the peach that greens it up a bit or something. It’s definitely not a sweet peach. I can’t imagine not having it around, though.
R, I didn’t like Charlotte as much, though I did like it. I think it is just that peach note that goes awry and turns into pear/peach that I love about PC. It’s just not normal.
I don’t think I have tried Des Lys, I’ll have to look thta one up. I’m having a Lys fetish these days.
Katie, definitely is delish. I’m pretty much tortured over this one, that is a ridiculous amount of money to spend!!! But I want! ~:>
Patty — there’s that whole Petite Cherie urban legend that it spoils in the bottle in your car on the way home from Saks. I’m on my second (3rd?) small bottle and it’s just fine. FWIW I will note that what it smells like to me is fresh PEAR — not peach, and a fair number of people on MUA think the same way, but they don’t think that’s a positive thing, I gather.
I love Petite Cherie, too, though it’s not quite for me. Instead, I love Eau de Charlotte, the fragrance she created for her stepdaughter (as PC was created for her daughter). For a fresh spring/summer fix, AG’s Des Lys is for me!
Hugs!
You know, the Costume National line has never ever intrigued me, and from the sound of it, I have not been missing out really.
Now then, I have to figure out if I have a RH sample lying around here somewhere…. sounds delish.
Christina, I really do think it’s those snooty SAs we run into or people have gotten a bad bottle. PC does seem to go bad more than other Goutals, and if you’ve smelled a Petite Cherie Gone Bad, well, it’s just not pretty. :-w
Marina, have not tried Amber Vanilla, but I think I need to try that next, then mull over very carefully if I need bottles of these. At least the oil is sooo thick and lasts so long, it’s just wonderful.
Yikes!! I meant to say : You mean to tell me that other people………
See, I was so distraught I couldn’t even type correctly!!
Patty,
I can’t imagine why anyone would dislike Petite Cherie. I can’t say I *love* it, but it is so very likeable!
😕
Both Regina Harris’s scents are incredible! Have you tried Amber Vanilla?
(puts hands over Christina’s ears so she won’t hear the people that will stop by and diss The Beloved)
You mean to tell other people don’t love my beloved Petite Cherie?!!Get outta town!It may be girlie girl but I guess I like being that then!