For the second part of my interview with the Perfumed Bee, please CLICK here.
What scares me is when you have a 17-year-old son who loves chemistry. I’m not talking about just your garden variety, love to screw around with the chemistry set. I’m talking about clears off a table and starts to build engines out of paperclips and magnets and concocting things in all of your drinking glasses that may bubble, explode or otherwise scare the crap out of the cats.
Him loving chemistry does not scare me. He’s all set on going to the School of Mines, wants a degree in chemical engineering or something like that. I’m happy because that will keep him close by, even though he’ll be in the dorms, and Mines is a great school that will give him an education that will take him anywhere he wants to go.
What scares me is when he’s been ordering more chemistry supplies, asks me if I’m going to be home to sign for the package. I ask him…. why? Do they want someone here to sign for something so the Secret Service knows who to arrest? He laughs… oddly… and says no, mom, of course not. So the package gets here Monday, and I’m in the office taping for an employee campaign and other meetings and not here to sign for the package. I get home, see the note, and the return address is for…..
UNITED NUCLEAR
Read that again. Yes, that’s right, he’s getting chemistry supplies from United Nuclear. The box should show up today, he claims it only has a glass set in it, I have to sign on the dotted line, but I won’t sign first without making sure it doesn’t originate in Pyongyang or Tehran. Having a scary smart, creative, funny, love-a-practical joke kid is not for the faint of heart.
What else scares me? Wearing fragrance in the heat of summer. It’s just around the corner, and this summer I’m going to be going to my same set of go-to heat fragrances as last year — Santa Maria Novella Eva, Hermessence Osmanthe Yunnan, Serge Lutens Iris Silver Mist, a couple of the really light L’artisans, like Tout Simplement. This year I’m adding the new Jatamansi light scent from L’Artisan and the earthy scents and tea scents from CB I Hate Perfumes, which are absolutely perfect for the dog days of summer. But I keep thinking I’m missing something.
So when the days get smoldering hot, and you can almost not wear fragrance at all, but you want something refreshing, what do you put on? Drop a comment and be entered to win a set of my favorite dog day summer samples, including those listed above and a few surprises!
Hi all,
My favorite summer scents: Huiles 85 (Bourbon French), L’Artisan Dzing, L’Ananas Fizz, Annick G. Eau de Hadrian, Chanel Eau de Cologne, Guerlain Vetiver, Jalaine Citrus Dream.
I never even heard of Jalaine or L’Artisan until I started reading here!
Please enter in contest.
Merci beaucoup,
Devon
My new email address is devon7@rcn.com
you know patty, reading of your son made me think of when my younger brother was a kid, and how he messed with my mother’s perfumes, she had a couple of them, all of them from abroad, mostly france, and considering the fact that we lived in a communist country where such thing as quality fragrances was non-existent, they were a treasure. so one day he decided to surprise my mother and make her a gift. he decided to make her a scented handkerchief, so he took a textile handkerchief and poured half of the bottle of j’ai ose from guy laroche on it (the bottle was a perfume extract, 10ml maybe?, freaking expensive and straight from paris) and ran to her to show and give her the gift, oh ho proud and happy he was. she,z not as much. i know this story is a bit off the topic with your son’s chemistry obsession but it just came to my mind 😀
Philosykos,Hermes Jardin sur le Nil, Annick Goutal Eau d’Hadrien,
Riviere de Janvier, CdG Rhubarb and CdG Peppermint. Also, the L’Artisan Ananas Fizz body cream.
For me, Philosykos ONLY works in extreme heat; otherwise it’s too stemmy. The Ananas Fizz cologne is too short-lived and the cedar completely takes over on me. However, the body cream is wonderful. This summer, my chemistry experiment will involve layering of Bahiana with the Ananas Fizz cream to see what happens. It would also be interesting to try Etro’s Heliotrope — dangerous anytime, but potentially fatal in the heat.
Yes, be very wary of what you receive from the chem industry.
Being that everything shipped by such companies are “regulated” (read “watched over by the feds”), they may be more suspicious of any “fragrance vials” that you are also receiving via post.
I hope that you receive them via “parcel post” (legal way to ship liquids of any form), or else they may make a “stink” of things in the future.
Not a total “gloom and doom” warning, but nevertheless, I do like AdP Colonia during the warmer days, as well as Selection Verte.
Love you guys, and thanks for all of your comments! I was tied up most of the day and then had this stomach bug, but tonight I’m nursing it while flipping back and forth between the Batchelor after-show and American Idol. Go Jordin!
Hope you feel better soon, Patty..
Enjoyed the interview Patty! (both parts) and your post especially the bits about your son..Like another ‘commenter’ said, his love for chemistry might translate into perfume making..:).
Unusually this summer,I seem to be craving spicy scents especially Coup de Fouet (will soon have to buy a larger decant from you..my tiny decant is going to run out soon!) which I am absolutely in love with.
Am also loving Andy’s Reverie Au Jardin ( green but warm)
But when I want something more ‘summery’, I like Caron Aimez Moi, JM Orange Blossom, Chanel Gardenia and offlate some jasmine scents as well: SL A La Nuit, Givenchy Organza Jasmine Harvest (samples from a generous MUAer). It has thankfully not gotten too hot here as yet (touch wood!) but when it does , I might have to abandon my spice and smoke craving and look for lighter, ‘dewier’ scents..but until then..its sugar and spice (and all things nice).
Oh..and yes, Please include me in the drawing..Thanks..
I like to take advantage of citrus scents during hot weather. Some of Acqua di Parma ones, while too wimpy for the winter, are wonderful for a hot day. I like L’Artisan’s La Chasse de Papillions, too. Many of my other favorites have been mentioned, like Philosykos. TDC’s Ailleurs and Fleurs is nice. Sometimes L’Occitane’s Bergamot body spray is enough if the temperatures hit over 100.
p.s. I’d love to be in the drawing! 🙂
Good luck to your son! My verysoontobe father in law had his chemistry set taken away by the police on a regular basis. And somehow knowing that I still hope to have a science-minded child one day. At least you have yet to have the police show up!
Hmmm…I’ve only recently gotten a wee bit obsessive about perfume. Before this year I either wore White Tea & Ginger by bath and body works, or used scented hand made soaps. My favorite was from a farmer’s market and was the seller’s own recipe to make a creamy chai scent – when my skin got nice and baked I could catch just the perfect spicey whiff from under the sunblock.
Have to put in a word for Bois des Iles for warm summer days… also Cristalle smells great in steamy humid washington dc weather. I also pull out the Fracas for summer and sometimes #19 to bring back days of yore. For Teri: I highly recommend Serge Lutens Claire de Musc as the perfectly balanced light delicious musk that is what you have always been looking for. Enter me please! Sarah
Sarah, thank you so much. I’ll definitely try it. 🙂
Many of my favorites have also been mentioned, but as a newbie I haven’t had a chance to try them out in the depths of summer (when the air is so still and so thick that nothing moves, and you just want to lie around in a tattered slip a la Liz Taylor and clutch a glass of iced tea to your sweaty forehead. I do love living in a place w/ four distinct seasons!) The fragrance I would add is Eau de Rochas – even the bottle looks like it’s made of ice. I would love to be in the drawing, too…going now to read Part 2 of your interview, P, really enjoyed Part 1 🙂
well, it’s hot and sticky here in texas, and oddly enough, i love many of my white florals – carolina herrera, do son, even fracas – in the heat and humidity. also some chypres like miss dior and mitsouko. i just don’t overapply (i don’t overapply anyway). of the lighter (to me) scents, i enjoy ysl in love again jasmin etoile, l’artisan the pour un ete, premier figuier, and mure et musc, dior eau sauvage, goutal’s les nuits d’hadrien, and creed’s aubepine acacia. but honestly, i can do a lot of heavier scents – chypres and orientals – in the summertime – as long as i know they’re not going to go sour on me – they work. heavy gourmands don’t usually float my boat then, though. i just don’t like super-sweet things in the heat. would love to be included in your drawing – thanks!
Almost all my hot weather favorites have already been mentioned, but will add Carthusia Mediterraneo.
When I took my then 6 year old son on a tour of what would turn out to be his new school, the first thing he asked the science teacher was whether they’d be able to blow things up with chemicals. So I’ll be joining you eventually!
My father worked for a long-time as a professor of nuclear engineering, but then moved to solar in my teens. For a long time, the radiation symbol was as much a part of my childhood as the Sesame Street logo.
As to summer: Lys Mediterranée from Malle. No “true” lilies in, instead ginger lily, lily of the valley and a bit of orange blossom. It’s diaphanous & light as a cloud, also smells very genuinely of fragrant flowers on the air (in fact, people sometimes comment on the ambient smell blossoms when in fact it’s my sillage). The understated watery note in it along with a Hawaiian Tropic echo, makes for a perfect summery scent—also allows it to work great on a man (like me).
Patty,
You got the King of Chemistry–and we are just hoping my stepson will graduate high school! It truly takes all kinds. Congrats on your son’s focus and achievement.
Summer scents–hmmm. In northern CA our summers are pretty temperate (good), but I’m always the last to post usually due to the time difference, (bad) so I often feel redundant. Anyway, I love tropical and white florals for summer: Shalini, Jasmin de Nuit, Moynette, Songes, PdN Number One, Aqua de Firenze for clean and lively, Satellite Impanema for a beachy scent.
Hi, Cindy, I’m in California, on the Central Coast, and responding late can be a problem for me too. The trick is to check at night around 10 p.m.(or sometimes 9?). Frequently the next day’s post is already up. That’s how I get to be an early responder. 🙂
My Internet service went down yesterday afternoon and only came back on a little while ago. I’ve been going bananas. b-(
Patty, congratulations on having raised a son with a sense of where he wants to go. I was delighted with the idea of how alike you are: you both receive packages that make the other apprehensive. 😉
This is going to be my first heatless summer, but having lived on the East Coast and in Sacramento, I know heat. If I were to visit a warm place, I might wear Fendi Theorema Esprit d’Ete, which shares top notes with regular Theorema but then becomes quite different, much softer and less rich. I got it recently for $19.99. Other choices might be Parfums de Nicolai Fig Tea or Eau d’Ete. Acqua di Parma Blu Mediterraneo used to make a scent called Foglie di Basilico, which smelled, surprise surprise, like basil leaves. Sometimes that was the only fragrance I could wear. Unfortunately, they’ve discontinued it. Their Mandorlo de Sicilia is okay for summer, I guess. And, course, there’s Eau d’Hadrien.
Please enter me in the drawing. There are so many fragrances to try!
First off, Patty, as the daughter and wife of research chemists, I feeeeeeeeel your pain. Something was always bubbling and/or boiling at our house for as long as I can remember. It was never safe to simply assume that if said substance was in a pan on the stove, that it would be safe to eat. lol And don’t even get me started on the ‘cultures’ that lived in the fridge!
I would highly encourage your son’s interest in attending Mines. I work with Mines alums all day, every day, and they are smart, confident, capable individuals in every way.
I’m such a seasonal fragrance-wearer. Although I’d never dream of wearing citrus scents in any other season, I love them for summer. Like many others here, I enjoy the Hermes Jardin scents and Eau de The Vert by Bulghari. Two other favs are Annick Goutal’s Eau de Hadrian and Beth Terry’s Element of Surprise.
I’m still battling an urge to buy Creed’s Virgin Island Waters because I simply adored the sample, but am not so darn crazy about the price.
I also sometimes like a light unadulterated musk in the summer. It seem to go well with sun-warmed skin, slightly damp with perspiration. I don’t really have a favorite light musk, so if anyone has a suggestion, I’d love to hear it.
United Nuclear – Yikes! So what is it? Heavy water, some rare isotope, Carbon 14 maybe?
When it’s 90 degrees with 90% humidity I like Ibiza Hippie, Ananas Fizz, and especially Demeter Kahala Hawaiian Surf. It’s pretty close to the NH shore at low tide. Salty and seaweedy.
Champaca, too.
For proper summer weather, I like Osmanthe Yunnan, Ecume de Rose, Bulgari The Vert, Jardins Sur Le Nil and Mediterranee – I seem to be in good company! I’m loving the TDC Sel de Vetiver for heat, too, but I only have a tiny sample :((
We hardly ever get really hot days where I live, though, so I can get away with spicy florals or chypres most of the time. And in the middle of summer, I just sit out on my deck in the sun and smell the CasaBlanca liles in their pots, mmmmm. No other fragrance needed!
This year I’ll be wearing Creed’s Virgin Island Water, which I am loving. It’s so light and crisp, but still there. And Fire Island, my old summer stand by. And, when it’s not sooooo hot, LL Aldehyde 44. Who know’s what else the summer will bring….
Wore Osmanthe Yunnan yesterday though we’re just hitting 70 in the NW…also love TDC’s Osmanthus, Un Jardin Sur Le Nil, PG’s Hyperessence Matale, Eau d’Hadrien, and Guerlain’s Vetiver is quite refreshing in hot weather; I think SL’s Vetiver Oriental would be nice… Looking forward to Chanel’s Eau de Cologne this summer as well…
Well, we are getting early June Gloom here, where it’s overcast and somewhat foggy even to drizzly in the AM, with about four hours of sumlight on the afternoon before clouding over. In short, my favorite type of weather. So I am not reaching for the usual summer ones (Acqua di Parma, Hadrien, Eau de Sud, Eau d’Orange Verte) yet.
Of course, since I go from air-conditioned bus to air-conditioned office to Westside afternoon coolth, I can get away with stronger stuff.
I’ve also noticed (like Solander) that some heavier scents are actually better in the heat- I find that I like Fumerie Turque and Arabie almost better in summer. Ambre Sultan however would kill me.
Oh, and I forgot- unless my UPS man is asking for ID, I’d sign under a pseudonym. Like Francine von Fraghag or something. How are they gonna know? :d
Two words: Homeland Security. Do those folks show up in the dark glasses and suits, too? I’m sure you’ll keep us posted, hopefully not from the big house! 😮
I agree that Ananas Fizz is a great fragrance for summer. Have you tried the body cream, Creme d’Ananas? OMG! It is heavenly.
You know that I love my fall/winter fragrances best, but for spring/summer, I’m thinkin’ AG Songes, Eau de Camille, Folavril and DesLys, Givenchy LeDe and L’Interdit, Nina Ricci Coeur Joie and Capricci, Hermes Osmanthe Yunnan (my favorite of the essences), LT E.Duse (you introduced me to that, babe!), IdPF Acqua di Firenze, SL A La Nuit, and Ellie, just to name a few.
By the way, I loved you interview on perfumebee, darling. You are a star! 😡
Hugs and love!
Oh! And Fresh sake.
Well, it’s only been in the low 80s here the last couple of days and we’re all happy because we’re having a cool snap. It’s mostly hot here, and because of that I mostly wear my whole frag wardrobe year ’round. Sometimes you have to just give in to 103 & muggy and wallow in something good & rich & sillage-y: Amoureuse, A La Nuit, & Carnal Flower are what I reach for when I’m feeling all Maggie the Cat. But for some refreshment when it’s warm: MPeG Camelia Chinois, Angeliques Sous la Pluie, AP PP, Harissa, Caleche (my “summer chypre”), LL Aldehyde 44, Rose Ikebana, Kyoto, and the ultimate pretend-it’s-cold ‘fume, Zagorsk.
LMAO at United Nuclear. Oh, Patty, I would like to be a fly on the wall at your place sometimes…
Yay… summer scents! I was at LuckyScent this past weekend and picked up a bottle of Nandebary Green! Perfect, perfect, perfect scent for the summer. It’s one of the best herbal scents out there.
O de Lancome, 4711, Eau Imperiale, L`Occitane Verbena, La Chasse…
To my surprise, I found that Cabochard works very well in heat on my skin.
I live in Florida, it gets HOT here !My faves for those summer days are,Eau de Guerlain, Acqua de Parma, Vent Vert,Amazone de Hermes, Miss Dior, Cologne Blanche, Divine Bergamont, Neroli Sauvage… at night, Liu, Apres le Onde,and Mitsouko eau de toillete concentration and Vol de Nuit, how I LOVE Guerlains !
Patty your blog is AMAZING I enjoy it so much.
oooh, I’d love to be entered!!! I am currently looking for summer scents as I have only a few. Ao all these suggestions are wonderful, I have FRESH Bergamont Citrus and a L’Occintane Orange blossom for the heat…
In the serious heat of Brazilian summer, Eau de Cartier is fabulous, so are Hermes Jardin Med and Sur le Nil. Bulgari’s Eau de The Vert is great as well.
A cheap thrill – Bath and Body Works Cool Citrus Basil. Found it on their website yesterday – body splash for $10.
That is hilarious about your son. Hope that things stay on the more mild side!
And for the heat? Occasionally a spritz of Maybe Baby from Benefit. I bought a bottle for my neice and stole a bit…it’s light, it doesn’t beat me over the head. On real hot days I go without.
OmiGOD with the United Nuclear!Sounds like advanced Molesworth to me – scary indeed. Also pride worthy – this world needs smart young people who have grown up in loving families.
As to summer scents – I have 4 beloveds (and we are talking London here so temperature can vary on any day in summer between a bit parky,pleasantly warm and hot and sticky)and these are Diorella, Cristalle edt, Cartier Declaration and OJ Frangipani. I’m lemming some L’Artisans at the moment. The fizzy banana one, Summer tea and Le Haie Fleurie.
Hey, Nicola: I think there got to be some confusion when Patty’s story character wanted a fruity floral with bananas in it & Andy read “bananas” as “ananas” (pineapple in either of his native languages). So, it’s Ananas Fizz. And it is definitely worth trying for the heat! Beautiful zingy tropical fruit followed, on me anyway, by a mild, cooling cedar with a citrus backbone.
I also cool down with a similarly fizzy/cool Body Shop perfume called Zinzibar and with CSP’s O’Pomelo/Pamplemousse; Eliz. Arden’s Green Tea (lovely summery rhubarb note); Bulgari Red Tea (more tannic to me than their other teas); Comme des Garcons Rhubarb; Hermes Jardin sur le Nil (very piney on me — makes me think of cabins in the woods rather than the Nile). Haven’t tried the different orris scents in the heat, but a number of folks mention it & I’ll have to try, esp. L’Artisan Fleur de Carotte.
Thanks for all the good ideas! Patty, your son sounds delightful — thanks for the update about him! –Ellen
Thanks Ellen! Ananas Fizz, that’s it. I smelt it once and it made me laugh! I don’t know, it smelt happy to me and now you’ve told me it has cedar I’m lemming it more. Hm, likewise the Hermes Jardins. I’m off on a week’s hol in June and intend to have a jolly good search around duty free. How’s the dating going btw? I went out on one but he got a black mark for not liking the smell of jasmine in his back garden and for looking at me as if I was mad when I said I liked (ok, I down played it) perfumes.
Not liking jasmine!:o Hope he was OK otherwise?
I did see the perfume sniffing guy again last night. I think this will be a pleasant stopgap for both of us — I like him but it probably can’t work because he: 1) has NO books in his house; 2) said I could bring my dogs over but they can’t be in “carpeted areas” lest they pee (as if they weren’t housetrained!); 3) has only tried Vietnamese food once (we have hundreds of Vietnamese places & he has lived here about 15 years); and 4) calls his parents’ place “home” despite being 45 years old. Sweet guy, but I think our style differences scare each other. But no rush. –Ellen
Aha! He sounds like he could be a “sorbet” ie palate cleanser for the next main course! Well, bless him anyway. We met for a second date but, as you put it so well, there are style differences. He doesn’t read either. Books or papers or magazines or anything! And is a touch puritanical generally. I’m sure he’ll be lovely for someone else, meantime, Next! Nicola
Nicola, sweetie: You can have my “style differences” if I can have your “sorbet.” What a great visual to describe the situation! –Ellen
You ladies are fab! Thanx for letting me partake vicariously in your love lives – it’s so much fun!
And Ellen, the “carpeted areas” guy – lose him! If he ain’t an animal lover, he’s no friend of mine 😀
Hey, Dusan: I don’t know. He has two cats whom he adores, and my dogs did like him when he met them at my house. What do you think? –Ellen
heh thanks Dusan! you are welcome. and Ellen, I am surprised your sorbet (you bet we can exchange!) was so picky about your dogs – after all as a cat companion he would have had fur balls at least to deal with. And my male cat wasn’t too picky about using his litter tray in the early months – I still love him. N
I want a bottle of Osmanthe Yunnan now!
I like Terre d’Hermes for summer but skip it all winter. Only really suits me when it’s sultry. Though I do like an oriental in the heat too – though I guess it’s rare to go above 90 here. also Navegar, Eau des Merveilles, Sel de Vetiver (how could you miss this off your list, P? [-x ), Declaration, Balle de Match, and much much more.
Yes, Déclaration, how could I forget!
Ta! 🙂
Hahahaha…Ha…Hmmm…Hmmmmm… United Nuclear? Oy!
My summer favesies are usually fresh and crisp although I like to break the unwrit commandment “Thou shalt not wear orientals in summer” every once in a while. It’s mostly Emporio Armani White (will send you some for the Lil’ Kim-ist), Miyake’s L’Eau Bleue, Habit Rouge, Polo Blue, Chanel PM and moderatelly applied Egoiste. This summer I’ll be wearing decants of PdN New York and Pour Homme, Yatagan and L’Eau de Navigateur that I got from Tigs. ‘Course, I’d bathe in Eau d’Orange Verte if I had some. Note to self: work towards a bottle of EdOV 🙂
LOL at United Nuclear. The things I’ve missed out on by only having very hirsute children (i.e., not human).
Love the scents you mentioned and Jatamansi is my new uber comfort scent (on my skin it’s a lot like C&E’s d/ced Goatsmilk and Honey cream). For summer I tend to go to cooling incense scents like Zagorsk, Encens et Lavande, Bois d’Encens, etc. Also love CdG’s Mint from the Leaves series, TDC’s Divine Bergamote, the M&B #3 that Judith mentioned, Nana Green and vintage greens like Rive Gauche, Givenchy 111, Y, No. 19 and Calandre.
I loved chemistry sets when I was a kid (also magic sets), but I don’t think I got as far as your son; I just like mixing things!
Last summer, I really got a lot of wear out of Miller et Bertaux #3 and Sel de Vetiver. I also enjoyed my summer incense, Passage d’Enfer (much better on me in summer than in winter, when it’s kinda blah). This summer I also have hopes for Moss Breches, Bel Respiro, and, since it’s been mentioned repeatedly and I love it, Orris.
Invest in a geissler counter, perhaps? 🙂
I’m waiting (with increasing impatience) for the weather to get nice and toasty so I can wear my two great Hot Weather surprises from last year – Bois d’Encens and Tauer’s Orris. Both of these sit on me like compost in the cool months, and then blossom into masterpieces when the weather is so hot you can barely stand the smell of your own makeup. Strange thing, perfume…
Great post Patty! Front runners for me, so far, are: Yuzu Rouge, Rosine’s Un Zest de Rose, 28 La Pausa and CB’s Just Breathe. Also, I think I’m hooked on Armani Prive’s Eclat de Jasmin.
Eau Dynamisante is one I wore years ago and loved. Thanks for the reminder, Amy, I’ll be trying it again! Also some others I want to try thanks to the great responses: Spezie de Medici, In Love Again, Philosykos and Un Jardin sur le Nil and JoJo and Chado by Liz Zorn.
Maybe summer doesn’t have to be my perfume nightmare.
:)>-
I do many listed above-
Also, TDC’s Bois d’Iris, Rose Poivree, Divine Bergamote, Jasmin de Nuit [at night]; Eau de Campagne,Baie de Genievre, Selection Verte, Bois Du Portugal, Un Air de Molinard, Aria Di Capri,Philosykos, Eau D’Elide, Eau de Lalique [pure sandalwood], Eau de Gantier, Rose Muskissme, L’eau de L’Artisan, The Pour Un Ete,La Chasse Extreme, Eau de Hermes, Vetiver Tonka, Poivre Samarcande, TDC’s Osmanthus…
Feel free to stop me at this juncture.
May I join the covetous fray ?
I guess Sweden doesn’t get very hot with international standards, but it sure gets hot enough for me, especially in my single room with the huge window! I think I tend to go with the heat rather than against it though. Cool scents can’t really cool you down anyway, and I find the combination of hot, sweaty skin and aggressively “fresh” scents like ozone/aquatics particularly offensive. Last summer I craved Les Nereides’ super-spicy Oriental Lumpur and I think perhaps dry, spicy/ambery/woody/incensey scents are good for summer, especially spices like chilli, pepper and ginger. You’d have to apply with a light hand though, and stay away from the scents that turn on a very hot or sweaty skin. And they have to be dry, dry like a desert wind.
What I wouldn’t wear when it’s smoldering hot is sweet/gourmandy/fruity scents (with the exception of rhubarb and citrus), and I wouldn’t wear florals in the sun, only on hot summer nights.
Oh and I’d also stay away from chypres. I can’t even imagine wearing a chypre in the heat… Green scents without the chypre base might work but I have a feeling they might turn sharp and sour on very hot skin… So I guess that pretty much rules out all the classic summer scents: tropically gourmand, fruity/floral, watery/green/fresh… I have a feeling all of these would make me nauseous on a hot day…
I am currently living in Bangkok, where it’s basically summer…all the time. Thé Pour Un Été, Eau des Merveilles, Philosykos, Chanel No. 19, that starchy, upright beauty, these all work well. But sometimes I can’t resist a bit of the Nazgul or Cuir de Russie, with terrifying results. Thais are not that into perfume — seems somehow an imposition on others — and most like to go about smelling of mentholated talcum powder. The exceptions are the hi-so (high-society) ladies with Lego-helmet hair, who tend towards Opium, or blasts of tuberose…they can take up as much olfactory space as they please!
Summer is particularly hard for me, ’cause I love anything with richness and depth. But for now, I compromise with several figgy scents, teas, and this week-Spezie de Medici-it stays a bit orange (sorry Lee-not so much blossoms!)amidst the light spices. And I also pull out my commercial light weights, especially Calyx, which I wore in high school!
I like orange, sans blossom.
I live in Phoenix, Arizona where the temperatures reach 110 degrees and stay that way for weeks in the summer. So far in the heat this year, I’ve been reaching for Les Nereides Musc de Java. I also like 10 Corso Como in the heat.
Great post about your son!
Hi Patty 🙂 I really had to laugh with your post today :d
You must be proud, to have a kid who not only knows very well what he wants to do with his future, but also takes the time to build his skills with such extra curricular endeavors! I am sure with such ambition he will get to achieve his dreams 🙂
As for what I wear in the heat of the summer… I usually drop expensive perfumes all together and start layering soft perfume oil mists with fresh linear scents.
Ooh, I want to be entered, so let’s see….
Garden Made by Davies Gate
Manifesto – Isabella Rossellini
In Love Again – Yves St. Laurent
L’eau de l’Artisan – L’Artisan Parfumeur
Lots more, but can’t think of them all right now! And good luck with the upcoming terrorism trial :d
For super hot days, I love The Pour un Ete and Un Jardin sur le Nil.
And perhaps your son’s interest in chemistry will lead him into the perfume field…you never know…
Hi Patty,
I am new here on this blog, wanted to start my journey here by saying to you all…I liked that the way you girls posting your posts.
Well, if he figures out how to change lead into gold you’ll have a lot more money to spend on perfume:)
When it’s really hot, I reach for Yuzu Rouge, Eau Dynamisante or White Moss. I really burned myself out on elizabeth W Sweet Tea while on a trip last summer (it was the only fragrance I brought along – terrible idea!), but maybe I’m ready for another bottle.
How about Andy’s Orris, it’s soo cooling in the heat, and rich at the same time, how does he do it?
My other hot weather favorites are JoJo and Chado by Liz Zorn. Very unobtrusive but with a beautiful full personality.
Hi Patty! Loved what you wrote about your son, how hilarious, United Nuclear…I think it’s so very cool that he’s into chemistry and isn’t into cooking up meth!
I love Osmanthe Yunnan in the summer, too. Other favorites: Nicolai’s Balle de Match, Goutal’s La Chevrefeuille, L’Artisan’s Ananas Fizz, Rosine’s Ecume de Rose, TDC’s Bergamote, Hermes Hiris, and CB’s Memory of Kindness…I sometimes wear stuff that’s pretty inappropriate for summer, just because I get a whim. Most of the time it’s a really bad idea.