First sniff of friendship

Patty’s post yesterday got me thinking about the correspondence I’ve been running with my closer-than-close friend Jazmin, out in the Bay Area. If you recall (I think I’ve mentioned it before, but then I am the type of person who starts conversations as though my conversees are actually living inside my head), I sent J 40+ frags from a range so she could decide what kinds she liked or even loved the most.

I have to say, as an aside, that one of the first things I learned about J when I met her many years ago was: ‘I think 10% of my pleasure in life comes from the smell of men’s cologne’. Neither of us were particularly refined back then, and since I’d been exploring the realms of niche these past three years, I thought it was time she got to sniff some sensory wonder, even though she was no longer my neighbour.
She’s methodical where I’m slapdash and she certainly isn’t the perfume piggy type like me. I’ve been getting regular updates on likes and dislikes (even posting out a bottle of Un jardin en Mediterranee when I realised it wasn’t ever going to meld with me, and she liked it because it clanged some memory bell in her childhood head). Last week, she finalised her list. This is what she wrote:

Okay, I’ve got my fragrance response at long last. I gave each two rounds, spaced apart by weeks, and here’s a refined sense of moi.

Faves:

Rush (the men’s lumberyard beauty)
Harmattan-Noir
Sequoia
Terre D’hermes
Avignon
And I’m thinking there was one called Cedar, but I forgot to write it down.
(And I’ve no idea what she’s on about because, surprise, surprise, no list here)
Zagorsk too.

Second Place, i.e. can definitely see days where I’d want to wear any as an alternative to the above (if there were enough days in the year)
Pomegranate Noir
(that’s right March – here’s a fan)
Moroccan Dessert
Encens et Lavande
L’absinthe
(no, not the fabled Gaubin Daude, but the l’Artisan)
Orris

Does the above make sense with all the elements and ingredients and categories and higher/deeper knowledge you have about all this stuff? Like does that make me an ENFsomething in the smelling world?

Also, whenever we next see each other (sob*, scheduling bites) can I try the above again to further refine a preference order? Then I’m going to need to buy a few ’cause DAYAM. I ain’t never buying anything at Macy’s ever again. In my whole life. There’s so little time and such great stuff to surround your olefactory bulb with. Why waste even a moment on trash mass marketed shite.

Sniff.

J

See, one of the reasons I love J is she’s fooled into thinking I have higher/deeper knowledge rather than a lot of muddleheaded gobbledegook I can string into reasonable sounding sentences. And she has a precise way with words. Love that Macy’s dig-in-the-ribs. Though J, if you’re reading this, occasionally you’ll stumble on a wonder even when you’re slumming it. Just avoid the slebscents in general. Though March et al might convince us otherwise tomorrow.
Oh, and my reply to J:

You like woody rather than spicy. Transparent rather than thick, unless we’re talking smoky. Sour / savoury rather than sweet. Notes you like are: cedar, incense, vetiver, grapefruit, sap, black tea, mint (if subtle). Personality wise – difficult to say what it means – you’re drawn to modern, clean lines in scents, but I wouldn’t necessarily say that’s true entirely. and to be sure, Avignon has some Gothic flourishes there too. But generally, you’ve picked out warm weather perfume, more suited to California than other stuff (I think incense and pure wood scents like Rush are actually better in heat than cold – refreshing somehow). There’s something very orderly about all of your choices – no muddiness at all. And you’re not overly keen on amber, sandalwood (too creamy?), florals, spices (except where they play around in the background of woods).

You want me to refill your vials, baby?

Did I get it right? Have I missed anything out? I’m better at getting balls rolling than knowing where they stop, so help me out here.

Oh, and I’ve been sniffing all the Miller Harris scents – exclusivo and hoi-polloi. I have a pretty box set of vials to give away to one lucky reader who’d like to be thrown in the draw. They’re good at packaging at Miller Harris. As for me and them – well, there’s pretty, ethereal, delicate at one extreme, and gutsy and full-bodied at the other (the full Pinot Grigio to Noir experience), but I’m not sure any of them are for me. The vials are virtually full, except for Feuilles de Tabac, which I initially had a torrid love affair with before it dissipated. And like wild, irresponsible sex, I thought Piment de Baies was my baby until the main course was over and it turned my stomach.

Perfume Piggy I may be, but I ain’t no slut.
Winner announced in two weeks’ time.

Image courtesy of http://allposters.co.uk

  • elve says:

    MIller Harris! Miller Harris!
    Isn’t it too late to enter the draw? if no, please enter me in 😀
    Thanks!

  • olga says:

    Hummm… must confess I’m a relentless scent consultant myself for anyone who would let me dabb or spritz on them! My boyfriend is sometimes overwhelmed but has to admit that he loves it as well…!!!

    These scents turn absolutely stunning on him:
    Lonestar Memories
    Ambre Narguile
    FM Vetiver Extraordinaire
    OJ Isfarkand
    Guerlain Vetiver

    Only one year ago he used to wear Boss (one of the dreaded metal balls…), and now he fancies himself in leathers, sweet rummy ambers, dry woods and chunky rocks of salt… It is so true that the envelope of a scent can make you feel classy, executive, sexy, assertive…

    But talk about happiness and the list changes. The scents that make him absolutely happy are Andree Putnam PP and Philosykos. For me it is Chanel 19 and Diorissimo that transform me, and in really hot weather L’Eau de l’Artisan. I guess we are meant for each other: two Giacobetti suckers!!!

    Lee, do you also have such ‘happy’ scents?

    And yes please add my name to the drawing…very curious about the MH! 🙂

  • Kyra says:

    Lee, you have got to find an avatar that doesn’t like like a cross tween an American hayseed and an ocker. You deserve better.
    My sample heap is getting down to the dull stuff, so put my name in for the MH pretties.

  • Lee says:

    We’re all innocent at some point, March.

  • noyna says:

    Hi, March!

    Please enter me in the drawing! As you’ll find out in a few weeks, we don’t have Miller Harris here in Bangkok. Maybe better for my wallet, if sad for my sniffer.

  • Cheryl says:

    I’m drawn to the MH bottles — I’m vulnerable to the packaging I guess – but I have yet to really smell these with due care. Therefor I too would love to be in on the draw.

    Your friend’s hit list all look like cool “landscape” perfumes — ones that are evocative of places,,,

    C

    • Lee says:

      You’re spot on about them being landscape perfumes – I’ll tell J – that’s a real insight. Thank you.:x

      The packaging is beautiful, it’s true. And you’re in the draw.

  • sweetlife says:

    I can’t even come close to being able to send someone 40 samples (lucky friend!) but I have had several little mini-sniffas at my house and out and about in the world for my scent-vulnerable friends. We have so much fun, and of course more converts = more people to swap/split bottles with! Hooray!

    Re: cedar — I’ve been wearing CB’s Cedar Tea happily in the TX heat — but I’m betting that’s not what you sent your friend. Too obvious.

    Please do enter me in the drawing — I know next to nothing about the Miller Harris line.

    • Lee says:

      Sweetlife – be thankful that you’ve not been acquisitive enough to have way too many scents – it makes decisions and card repayments harder each month…

      And I’ve never smelled that CB…!

      And you’re in the draw.:d

      • sweetlife says:

        Ha! I’d love to think its not due to my acquisitiveness — more like to my cheapness (you should see the number of samples I have) and to the fact that I only jumped on this bandwagon last October. I’ve no doubt I’ll catch up soon enough…

        And the Cedar Tea is lovely — dry, woody, simple, refreshing…he took the original Cedar scent, which was meant for one’s closets, and added black tea to it.

  • Twibbet says:

    I long to smell Miller Harris perfumes – please enter me in the draw!

  • Teri says:

    I have friends who’ll send me boxes of foods to try, friends who’ll send me a dozen silk scarves to play with, friends who’ll send me bits of glass for my collections, but alas, no friends who’ll send me perfumes. Does this mean I need new friends? lol

    Your friend is a very lucky girl indeed to have you looking out for her olfactory needs.

    I’m giving you my finest winning smile 😀 and asking ever-so-nicely if I might be included in the drawing?

    • Lee says:

      Sounds like you already have great friends – I’m just lucky I’ve got one to share my obsession with, that’s all. The rest raise their eyebrows…

      You’re in!

  • Abigail says:

    I’m looking forward to seeing the reviews of Miller Harris.

    I’d also like to be entered in the drawing.

    And I’d like a pet cat. An ugly one.

    • Lee says:

      I want a dog. But I’m not sure an Irish wolfhound would be happy being left for three days a week…:((

      You’re in the draw.

  • zara says:

    ok, i’m gonna try it this time again and be lucky this time 😉 no seriously, the m&h sound really tempting

  • helg says:

    Lee, I don’t post to be entered in the draw ( I really liked Piment des Baies btw, why did you fall out of love? I love some spicy freshness myself) but to say I enjoyed your post quite a bit. Very true!

    And also to apologise for delaying sending you the promised sample (had been unable to go to post office, it was so rushed around here…)I will do so before the end of the week, though, promise!:-j

    • Lee says:

      No worries Helg – as and when. I’m the non-urgent type.

      Piment des Baies – I’ll reveal all at some point I’m sure – there’s something there that does to me what Terre d’Hermes does to others…

  • Christine says:

    Wow! J. is certainly lucky to have you as a friend, oh and also… let us be best friends too, okay? I did offer you an airport once, certainly that puts us on the road to “BFF” material. 😉

    In the meantime, maybe I can just win some samples. Please enter me in the drawing.

  • Robin says:

    Have never smelled the men’s Rush, sounds like I really need to!

  • tmp00 says:

    Well, of course I’d like to be in on the draw.

    And there is the perfect reason for you to visit California!

    Patty- Yikes!!b-(

    • Lee says:

      You’re in.

      You know, I used to be almost a regular on those transatlantic flights, but I haven’t been out to visit J for, what, three years. It’s long overdue. We never made it all the way down the coast – only as far as some place called Harmony I think – some cutesy tourist town not far from the Hearst place. I’ve only been to LA once, in my early 20s, when I was cute and striking and charming. Now I’m just windy. And I don’t mean in the Pacific Highway sense…

      • CH says:

        Next time you are there, go a little farther – down to Pismo Beach. Ahhhhh, bliss!:x

        • tmp00 says:

          Lee, I’d meet you in Pismo Beach.

          I’m a little windy as well, which is why I don’t go tot he same placed I used to. But then again, so is most of the rest of the world..

          • Maria says:

            Pismo Beach is wonderful. You can buy candy with worms or insects in it. You can also drive vehicles onto the sand and make a little bonfire (not in the car). You can eat hot dogs while watching people struggling to get their cars unstuck. We’ve only been there once, but will return.

          • CH says:

            Pismo has several great Italian restaurants, but they are little places, nondescript…or perhaps I’m thinking about Shell Beach. Pismo Beach, Shell Beach, Grover Beach, heck – it’s one big beach. Next think you know, Atascadero Prison will want their own beach. Geez….[-(

          • Lee says:

            *Scribbles down the beach on the list. Scrubs off the prison*

  • CH says:

    Lee, OooooOOOO please oh please include me in the drawing!

    If Jazmin lives in San Francisco proper, she’s lucky to see temperatures in the 80’s. Plus, she is blessed with fog, especially in the summer! This is from someone in the “central valley” – the hotbed, well…just darn hot in the summer. Not humid, not the “southern” type of heat – just temperatures in the 90’s and 100’s for about three to four months. I am drawn to Miller Harris’ Fleurs de Sel because it fits this type of weather. I drive to the SF area occasionally, if just for the day, for a brief respite from the heat. The ocean air heals the parched soul of us central valley citizens.

    I agree with you that some of the incense-like scents and cedar are refreshing for the warm weather *IF* you apply them sparingly. Incense smolders in dry heat and is quite beautiful. 🙂

    • Lee says:

      J lives close to Stanford, so some distance south of SF. Never quite as hot as the central valley, fortunately, but I’ve cycled round campus in midsummer, imagining my life as the son of some rich Republican, and even under those eucalypts I’ve sweltered.

      • Lee says:

        Oh, and of course you’re included!\:d/

      • CH says:

        But still a lovely place to cycle.

        The dividing line for Democrats and Republicans seems to be Sacramento. West of there is mostly Democrat. Go east and you hit conservative h*ll. b-(

  • pitbull friend says:

    Lee, this has been wonderful & informative. It may also be the first and last time I’ve seen “Ulaan Bator” and “rectums” in the same sentence. 🙂 (Some days it just stuns me, the quality & variety of the writing on here from the four of you & from the contributors. Along with perfume, it really makes my life more beautiful.) I think you’re exactly right about the “mineral” in Td’H, which I usually adore, but which occasionally turns my stomach.

    I’m thinking that you should charge folks $200-500 or so, get someone with psychology credentials on board (Bryan???) and do perfume/personality profiles. It would be the alternative for those who can’t afford, let’s say, to meet with C. Brosius and have a bespoke perfume matched to their personalities. (Ooops, singular/plural issue.)

    Patty, I am very sorry to hear about your tax news. That’s a heck of a lot of perfume. My contract job ended yesterday, so I’ll pass the rice & beans & sympathy… –Ellen

    • Lee says:

      Fwiw, I love rice and beans.:)

      Thank you for your kind words. I aim to juxtapose in novel ways….

    • Dusan says:

      “It may also be the first and last time I’ve seen “Ulaan Bator” and “rectums” in the same sentence.” Now this is why *I* love coming here every day, Ellen. 😡 A quick fix of endorphin is always guaranteed from you guys!!!

  • Judith says:

    Re the “cedar” scent: This is of course not called “Cedar,” but that is nevertheless what it is–and it sounds like something she would like–Christian Lacroix Tumulte PH.

    • Lee says:

      She’d definitely like Tumulte, though I didn’t send her any. It’s a close relative of Rush, I think… and Tam Dao as well.

  • Jennifer says:

    Lee, that is wonderful that you keep a correspondence going with your friend. I do the same thing. One of my most cherished prizes is letters of correspondence that have taken place over the years with my friends; fun to just see what you were thinking over the years. Please add me to the drawing.

  • Solander says:

    She has great taste, and you did a great job at analyzing them!
    And pretty pretty please enter me in the drawing! [-o<

  • Patty says:

    You are a little enabler, but she picked some awesome scents. I’m finding some of the Miller Harrises I like or at least admire, and I had ignored them for a while. I really should get on to more of them.

    You are a good friend, indeed, but I often wonder if those friends I’ve converted will eventually curse me? My little perfuming budget is dried up. IRS audit ended, and it was not good news. 7k worth of bad news. 😮

    • Lee says:

      Gulp! Poor you. I’m guessing you’re still wanting those little two things from this side of the pond, and you don’t want me shipping that parcel back to France?:d

      • Patty says:

        Well, Yeah, I still NEED that stuff! 🙂

        It will just slow me down a bit for a couple of weeks as I contemplate that amount, but they do have lovely payment plans. At least I got an education on a couple of things I was doing wrong, and I’ve also enlisted my sister in looking over my stuff so I don’t screw up and put something in there twice again!

    • CH says:

      OUCH, Patty! I’m sorry to hear the bad news. That would hurt. Hopefully they let you make payments! @-)

    • Maria says:

      Patty, so sorry to hear about the audit outcome! :((

    • Dusan says:

      Yikes! :-ss That’s terrible news. Know what, all us Posse Piggies should pool resources to help you replenish your perfume stocks. We owe you that much :”>

      • Patty says:

        Oh, you goof. i guess the bright side of owing that much in an audit is that we make enough to have to owe that much, so it’s really a blessing, right? 🙂 I will not be one of those people that complain too much. It just smarts a bit for a while.

        One of my brothers is a genius business guy that makes millions or billions for the company he works for, and they bonus him up very nicely every year, and he started whining about having to write a large check for taxes this year, and I told him to just stfu. 🙂

  • Marina says:

    Your friend is lucky to have you as a friend AND she has great taste in perfume.

    Hoi Polloi Miller Harriss scents, :d:d:d Love that.

    • Lee says:

      Doesn’t she just? What a sophisticated schnozz.

      And Hoi polloi Miller Harris. Well, with le Labo about to launch their latest number exclusive to Ulaan Bator and l’Etat disappearing up their own rectums (recta?), niche is no longer what it was…

  • March says:

    Gucci Rush comes in a men’s flavor?

    😮

    I’m so behind in the men’s dept it’s pathetic. Why does no-one TELL me these things? Why are the shelves covered in Hummer and Blue Sugar? (although…. now that I think, Hummer may be missing from Sephora! Hah!) Given how much I love the women’s, with that weird hairspray/skin thing going on, I have to try the men’s. Which is, I see, widely available online.

    The only MH I fell for is Fleur Oriental, but I haven’t tried them all.

    • Dusan says:

      Definitely try Rush Dude! Speaking of Gucci, you might also consider Envy for men. Not sure you’re going to like it (most days it’s too much of a good thing, but leather it’s got plenty 🙂 ) but it’s worth a try. How ’bout Visit (Azzaro) – dry cedary incense – you sniff that one?

    • Lee says:

      It does March, but whether you’ll like it… It’s a cedarlovefest. I personally think it’s Gucci’s best (and I think, discontinued – typical). Though Envy is a reasonably close second in a handsome virile young man strutting his too-much stuff’ kinda way. It’s a sweetnspicy powerhouse. He doesn’t walk that way cos he got off a horse; that’s all I’m asaying…

      I can put you in the draw if you like, but then I’d need the UN here to make sure the selection procedure was above board with no hanky-panky, shenanigans or sleight of hand…

      • Dusan says:

        Ah, so that’s why I never feel comfortable wearing Envy…:d

      • March says:

        Nah, you’re very sweet, but I’ll be whispering in your ear for something else at some point, I’m sure. (Possibly more Courtesan, at the rate I’m draining that damn bottle; not just wearing it, making samps.) I’ve sampled enough of the MH line to be pretty sure I’m not going to fall in love with anything.

        Or I’ll be begging you shamelessly to mail me some more of those … those whotsits. The not-technically-digestive-biscuits I fell in love with. McVitie’s Hobnobs. What I wouldn’t do for more of those. Damn pesky kids ate my stash.

        PS so glad to hear about your conversations in your head. I had an ENTIRE conversation with you this a.m. in the car about wanker vs. tosser and whether they applied to the only man I met in the U.K. who I thought was a complete ass, and etc., and you weren’t even THERE?!? I wished you were, desperately, at the time, to tell me who/what he was.

        • Lee says:

          You know what, he just sounds like a knob. A wanky knob, no doubt.

          Aaah, the power of a hobnob (spot the seamless segueway?) I think I need a couple with a cuppa in the next half-hour (dodgy stomach officially over).

  • Elle says:

    What a blast she must have had sampling all of those! I’ll join the chorus of people who think you’re a damn good friend. W/ the exception of Terre d’Hermes, love all the ones she chose as her faves.
    I like a number of MH scents, but haven’t loved any enough to have a long term affair. I thought I would w/ Rose en Noir, but I’m afraid I find I almost never wear it now.

    • Lee says:

      Aw shucks – thanks. :”>

      I’m trying to pin down why Terre d’Hermes is such a divisive little number – is it that chemical edge that can either be read as ‘smells like stone’ or ‘smells off and fake and blechy’ depending on the sniffer?

      Rose en Noir is the only one not in the sample box – ain’t that some American LE or somesuch? 😕

      • Judith says:

        Rose en Noir was a BRITISH LE made just for Liberty’s.

        • Lee says:

          Clang! goes my brain. I’ve even sniffed it there. :-“

          • Elle says:

            Yep, as Judith said, it was just at Liberty’s and they charged around $40 to ship to the US. *Painful*. And one of the reasons I feel I should be feeling more passionate, undying love for it.
            My skin chemistry turns TdH into a very sharp, synthetic scent. May have something to do w/ the fact that grapefruit and I have never been on very good terms and I have an on again, off again relationship w/ vetiver.

      • Maria says:

        Lee, you put your finger on the problem some of us have on Terre d’Hermes: ’smells off and fake and blechy.’ Very strong synthetic on the DH and me–and we don’t have the same skin chemistry.

        • Lee says:

          Y’know, I can easily see how it floats into that territory, even though it doesn’t for me (it did one day, when I was feeling a little on the queasy side). Mostly, I just love it.

  • Judith says:

    What a great friend you are! And what wonderful and woody choices she has made. She certainly has consistent preferences (unlike me–a piggy for sure). My favorite MH is Vetiver Bourbon (which I love)–also like Geranium Bourbon (that bourbon must do something for me):). Tried to like FdT because it seemed like I should–but no go for me. 🙁

    • Lee says:

      I know – I’d love to be consistent like that, rather than a flibbertigibbet always on the lookout for my next score…

      *sigh*

      I’m going to resniff VB – which was SOUR on me. GB – can see the love there – struck me as one of the best in the range.

  • arhianrad says:

    Wow, that’s a loootttt of samples for that friend of yours! lucky!

    anywho….I really love the MHs…please enter me?!? Pretty please?

  • Dusan says:

    You’re such a nice person, you scent profiler, you! Wanna do my profile, huh? 😉
    Funny thing is halfway through reading your post it dawned on me that I too have a perfume-crazy friend called Jasmine for whom I decanted some of my fumes only last week (loves Fumerie, Dior Homme). She’s also the one person able to understand and share my little obsession as well as being a true friend. 🙂
    And now I’d like to be, ahem, slipped into the drawers. MH is a line I have yet to explore…

    • Dusan says:

      Forgot to say ’tis a pitty Rush is such an understated frag. I used to dismiss it myself earlier, most probably for its strong lavender top note. But now it’s lovely smoky woods and incense. 🙂

    • Lee says:

      Slipping you in. A parallel no less, eh?

      I’ve just been resniffing Rush to answer you. I don’t get the lavender much – more something slightly floral boozy that’s gone in a few moments (and no, I don’t mean the alcohol carrier). It was actually one of my first Wow! scents when I weas re-exploring, ahem, the world of wood….

      • pitbull friend says:

        Lee & Dusan, you’ve hit upon something great! So many on here wondering how to get their significant males interested in perfume, etc. Let’s make clear to them that there is a whole new world of double entendres available for them to enjoy! (Unlike M. Monroe, sometimes I like to have a little Tea for Two in bed…) –Ellen

      • Dusan says:

        Well that’s the thing you see – I can only tolerate lavender if it is done as an herb, crisp and sweet. Its dry floral facet makes me gag – ugh. True, it’s been a long time since I last smelled Rush but I do remember falling for the incense and the wood (insert pun of choice), especially cypress and gaiac.
        Newsflash – Erica Jong is in Belgrade!!! I’m going to go see her tomorrow at some lecture she’s giving, can’t wait!!! I’ll bring a copy of Fear of Flying to get it signed <:-p YEY

      • March says:

        (chokes on tea brought from Fortnum) Has there been some time when you were not exploring the world of wood? :d

        • Lee says:

          As I saomehow ended up saying below, rather than here, innocence is in all our lives at some point….:”>

    • Maria says:

      Dusan, I recently saw a Slovakian version of your name written with an upside-down circumflex on the s. Does your Dusan also have a diacritical mark? How is the s in your name pronounced? I want to make sure when I read your posts I’m doing justice to your name in my head. After all, you’re fluent in my native language. 🙂

      • Dusan says:

        Heh! That’s right, my name is spelled DuÅ¡an, and Å¡ is pronounced as “sh” in EngliSH. Funny how a fellow Basenoter ‘mentally’ pronounced my name as Du:zan (as in Susan, which, btw, is my sister’s name:) ) or Da:sn/Dasn (fasten/mustn’t without the final ‘t’) while reading my emails. You are a love for asking this 😡 😡 I *have* been wondering how other people pronounce my name ;)) So, the closest match would be ‘cushion’, well ‘dushion’ :))
        Un beso para tí

        • pitbull friend says:

          Hey, D: I was mentally pronouncing your name correctly, but that’s because the only other Serbian man I know is also named Dusan. (Is it a very common name, or was that a fluke?) Congrats on going to see E. Jong. I’ve heard her interviewed on the radio & I bet she will be so much fun! –Ellen

          • Dusan says:

            E, Dusan *is* a fairly common name here. And promise to report on Erica Jong. Hugs

        • Lee says:

          Can I get a kiss too? Por favor? Quizas un besito…?

          • Dusan says:

            You cheeky tosser!
            What the heck, yes you can have un besito o dos, but on the cheek, mind you (this being a PG blog and all…)
            I know “cheeky tosser” sounds all wrong so pls fill me in with the distinction between tosser vs. wanker vs. knob and their common collocations… 😀

  • delizt says:

    I think you are lucky to have such a wonderul “fragrance” friendship!! Please enter me in the drawing!! and I would love to hear more thoughts on the Miller Harris Thanks!

  • Alica says:

    Hi Lee, I would be glad to enter the drawing for M. Harris decants. Many thanks!

  • ann lillevig says:

    o=>Lee…what WONDERFuL frags you introduced to your friend….can you IMAGINE not being interested in scents,or having a spouse/significant other, that is of that mind….sorry…this would absolutely end the relationship(such that it was)for me….too many men/perfumes;so very little time,doncha know…..please enter me in the drawing….carry on little soldier!…..ANNIE

    • Lee says:

      Well, my lovely SO has some anosmia issues, but I’ve piqued his interest through merciless flattery. He’s now scented on most days, though his interest doesn’t go much beyond, ‘Oh, I’ll try this one today?’ It certainly can’t move away from, ‘Hmmm…. I see you’ve been spending AGAIN.’

      You’re in the draw. Yessir!

  • Lavanya says:

    What a fun post!!..

    This reminds of this Saturday when i generously ‘fragranced’ one of my friends who was visiting from Seattle. He couldn’t believe what he had missed out on by not having sampled the niche world yet.(though his wife-who is not scent crazy- was throwing curses my way for having led him towards a time and cash consuming passion)

    He seemed to love(to wear):

    Andy’s Lair du Morrocain
    Lone star memories
    Tabac blond
    Bond no. 9 New Harlem
    PG Bois Blond

    and seemed to love (but not to wear)

    SL Tuberose Criminelle

    My weekend was made!! *grin*

    oh..and please enter me in the draw!

    • Lee says:

      Your good taste is showing up on him! Lovely to read.

      You’re entered, if you’ll excuse the double entendre…:o

  • Amarie says:

    Hi Lee,

    What a lovely idea to broaden a friend’s perfume horizons. Unless you actually go looking it isn’t immediately obvious that there is a whole other scented world out there.
    Have you considered a M.H. lot of reviews? Even a sentance each? I remember seeing a collection of the samples on ebay but missed them, so please put me in the draw.

    • Lee says:

      Where I live, you’d imagine the world was scented by Floris and Crabtree&Evelyn, given their ubiquity…

      I’ll go for the sentences. And you’re in.

  • zeram1 says:

    Lee,

    Are you planning to do a complete MH review? That would be lovely!

    Please enter me in the drawing as well.

    • Lee says:

      Perhaps I should aim for a one sentence reiview of all of them for next time around, as suggested below. You’re in.

  • Maria says:

    Lee, Jazmin is a very lucky lady to have you for a friend! 😡

    I think her choices are not based on “California weather” at all. The Bay Area is moderate the year round, so she’d be able to wear fall scents easily in July (especially in July!). My guess is that they really resonate with something within her.

    She could probably stock her entire fragrance wardrobe with Bertrand Duchafour creations! I wonder how that happened. 😉 Do you think the cedar one was Serge Lutens Cedre? Or could you have sent her Chene and she was confused about tree nomenclature? I’m glad she likes some of our Andy’s work. I know Reverie au Jardin was not out at the time you sent her this stash, but maybe in the future it would be a good one for her to try.

    Here I am, the fragrance analyst. 8-| Please put me in the drawing.

    • Lee says:

      That’s very sweet of you, but actually she’s the most thoughtful friend a guy could ever have. I fall some way short of her wonder.

      And maybe it’s just me, but her bit of the Stanford-flavoured bay, whilst falling waaay short of Sacramento sizzle, can certainly heat the hell up in summer. Though you’re right: most of the year it’s climactic perfection.

      Yeah, Duchaufour – funny, that… And I’m pretty sure it wasn’t Cedre – she didn’t like that one (too honetyed for her, I seem to remember. J – AVOID Acqua di Cuba AT ALL COSTS). ASnd I don’t have any Chene at the moment (sniff)….Am still puzzling.

      You’re in the draw, sweet one (I always imagine you smiling like in your pic on Andy’s blog).

      • pitbull friend says:

        And Ginestet Botrytis, Lee. If a person should avoid AdC, s/he should definitely stay away from Botrytis as well. (That’s the one where I got Marchie interested in it by mentioning that it reminds me of the smell of piss in the NYC subway. Chacun a son gout…). –Ellen

      • Maria says:

        *waiting with you till Chene is released for the export market*[-o<