I haven’t posted in a while for no other reason than I tend to be shy. I try not to compete with Patty, March or Lee but let’s face it, I don’t have their wit nor their devoted following, so I would be an idiot to try. I honestly wonder why anyone cares what I think about fragrance. I can only offer the fact that I have been collecting for almost two decades and I research the hell out of anything I love. I truly adore scent and I am honored that the Posse includes me.
OK, so here are a few of my favorite things. I am not talking about top ten or the like. That is for later. Here are a few of the fragrances that I reach for over and over again.
It is no secret that tuberose enthralls me. I find myself intoxicated by its beauty. This is where I begin.
Prada Tubereuse: This is part of the boutique exclusives which I believe are all single notes ranging from Iris to the aforementioned. I find its beauty lies in the pungency. Here we have a tuberose that isn’t trying too hard. Much like Ms. Prada’s pret-a-porter (of which I also cannot get enough) it is beautiful in its simplicity. This is a tuberose that stands in her vase, metaphorical hands on hips, smug smile…whispers, “what do you want from me?”
Annick Goutal Tubereuse: I have loved this soliflore since it was available stateside. I purchase this by the gross from the lovely ladies at the Rue Castiglione boutique. I highly recommend them as they are sweet and efficient and generous. OK, this is a heady pure tuberose. I spray my self, my sheets, my hair, my childhood blankie that I still sleep with (shut up). This is what fields of tuberose smell like from miles away. I believe that if God opened up the Gates of Heaven and allowed a few breazes our way before closing them (for now) this scent would move through me, over me. I smell tuberose and I confirm God’s existence.
Carnal Flower: I’ve said enough. Go buy it. You won’t be sorry.
Bruno Bleu: A perfume oil. I don’t usually go for oils. The flowery prose at Luckyscent sucked me in. I bought unsniffed and I just couldn’t help myself. I do love it, but why the hell is it blue?? OK, it is a beauty….very creamy and unapologetic. Not a “rocket science” kind of perfume, but who cares, it has tuberose. Seriously though, it is lovely, if not linear. A bit salty in its warmth. Sexy.
Creed Tubereuse Indiana: I keep it around, but I find it a bit off. I think that the tuberose and ambergris fight a bit for attention. The fight continues without any clear winner, so the whole composition, well, fails. I find it amusing, though. Not enough tuberose for me. I think I have a problem.
I do love tuberose, but I by no means discriminate….too much. Here are a few of my other recent infatuations.
Guerlain Bois d’Armenie: This is beauty divine. This is incense at its most breathtaking. The sweet resiny warmth is achingly gorgeous. I feel as though I’m applying for a position at Luckyscent. I adore it.
Vintage Lanvin RumeurThank you Patty! I find the initial blast, well, vintagey. I wait two minutes and there she is. The fog has lifted and she’s standing in vintage Balanciaga. Pale, with red accents on. Glamorous and gorgeous without boring me with her age. I think she is just as relevant today….think Gesquiere for Balenciaga….timeless with a nod to the past glory. I don’t know what is in this juice but I feel so chic wearing it. I will be trying the other vintage Lanvins soon….like tomorrow if the postman hurries.
And now I must eat a few words. I reviewed Ether de Lilas and simply denounced it. I was warned by Patty (probably twice) that it must be sprayed. So I sprayed. I swooned. I purchased. I love it in this heat. Kansas City is brutal in its extremes. Arctic air in winter, the freakin’ Chergui in summer. I am not kidding… Patty I ‘m sooo sorry. I won’t question the spray thing ever again. I’m a sucker for limited editions too.
So, there you have it. A very brief look at my loves. I do apologize for the lack of eloquence. I tried to be as down to earth as I could be when writing about this beautiful form of art. I also could write pages on others, from Tubereuse Criminelle (I’m on my third bottle) to Muscs Koublai Kahn (bottle three as well). For fun, how about a giveaway. A partial bottle of one of my loves…how about Do Son or something? Just mention you are interested and I’ll randomly draw.
I have just tried a sample of Do Son–I perfer it to Fracas, at least for summer. I wear Fracas on the days I work from home to please me; but I could wear Do Son anywhere. And it find Do Son lasts longer and blooms more than Chasse. I’d love to be in the drawing for a bottle of Do Son.
Hmmmm, I love tuberose but have not smelt many of these, may I be in the drawing if it is not too late?
I haven’t tried that many tuberose scents yet, so please enter me in the drawing. I enjoy your contributions to the posse:-)
Hi Bryan–I enjoy your postings and hope to see more of them in the future. We seem to share many favorites. I am a passionate lover of tuberose in perfume and in person–whenever I am home (Santa Fe), I fill the house with gorgeous stately stalks of tuberose, and their fragrance is so luscious and creamy it seems almost tangible. Alas, in Wisconsin, where I am now, gardenia and jasmine stand a chance, but tuberose? Not so much. There are varieties of hibiscus (!) and magnolia (!) that do grow here (which a dear friend from the South used to call “mutant Yankee Eskimo magnolia”), so I hope to see tuberose growing here someday, perhaps in the hands of a more talented gardener.
Thanks again for your posting–as you see, I’ve found it rather evocative. Please do include me in the drawing. I would love to try your loves!
Hey Bryan. Great posting on that fleshy flower. Check out my tuberose posting from last Friday (the 13th) on Vetivresse.com, and keep writing!
Thank you , Brian, for warmly sharing a few of your pets. Throughout the dark ages, I met all white florals with a pinched- face and suspicious mind. I tended dillgently to my leathers and incense. Then one day–in a madcap mood-I wildly spritzed MPG Tubereuse. I girded myself to be knocked over with a bitch slap. My eyes scanned for a nearby washroom. Instead it seduced me. What followed was a hot day on the beach, where Tubereuse bloomed forth in folds both salty and buttery and oh so seductive. I’ve been obseesed with tuberose ever since. Indeed, I seem to be slowly emerging as a white flower ‘ho. Do tell me if you have yet to try Profumum’s Tuberosa? My HG. The Easter Bunny this year left a bottle of Ether de Lilas. Smart bunny. It added a sweet-and melancholy- lilt to my spring. Even if I did get mostly guava. I would be thrilled to be entered into the draw. Meanwhile, please do write on!
diSola,
I love Tuberuse by both L’artisan and MPG. I just bought Profummum’s Tuberosa…..do you get the saltyness too? I love it because it’s a tuberose with a fleshy twist…..you have a fabulous way with words…I’ll keep writing if you do!:d
Bryan:
I’d be happy to comment on your post! I like the fact that you’re a devotee of all things tuberose – at least you have your perfume priorities straight! Good for you! :d
I don’t blame you for feeling intimidated by the Great Patty, March and Leopoldo – their posts read like poetry. I still have no idea how they can identify all of those notes in one fragrance. Baffles me, is all.
I feel intimidated by the Perfume Posse site in general. I’ve tried to start conversations in the “Talk about whatever you want” section and lots of people read my posts, but only one or two or maybe three reply. Maybe it’s me! Am I breaking some Posse rule or something? I have no idea. I’ve also tried to swap and sell things in the mercantile exchange with little success. I’m starting to feel like the Posse is way to cool for me and that I don’t really belong here because I’m so new. How do I break into this exclusive society? How do I establish “street cred” on this blog? I really don’t know and so far, haven’t a clue about what to do or say next. So, I can totally understand your feelings about posting with such learned colleagues.
You’re quite an inspiration for new people like me trying to understand the social structure of a blog devoted to niche perfumes. Thanks for your honesty and your post – I’ll be looking for your next one soon! 😡
I have never felt excluded by the Posse, or the perfumistas in general for that matter. You are more than welcome here. I would suggest simply commenting more often in the post itself. That’s how I got into it….Please keep writing and please do not ever feel like an outsider….we’re all in this together…ok, that sounded cheesey, but you get my drift.:”>
Oh, Denise, I am sorry you feel that way. One hint, though, would be to try to read a day’s post as early in the day as possible and, if you are going to post, also do so early. A lot of times I (and others, I’m sure) don’t go back to a particular day’s post after 5 p.m. or so my time (Central US) because the comments die off & start again on something else the next day. Things usually get started by folks across the pond, like Lee, Denyse (carmencanada), Nicola (donanicola), and Jayne. So they’d already be asleep if I waited until after work to comment. Patty (west central US) & Maria (US west coast) seem to visit quite early in their mornings to get in the swing of things.
And also, keep trying.
And also, as advice columnists often recommend, introduce yourself into a situation by responding to what someone else has said or further drawing them out about themselves, as opposed to stepping in & leaving an opinion & stepping back out. Eventually, they will start to ask you direct questions as well. It’s hard to do sometimes, but does tend to get one in the swing of things. –Ellen
How fascinating that I tuned in today of all days for such a fascinatingly different nose from mine to read about! It’s entirely possible that we are absolutely scent-opposed. Although I overlap considerably with the wonderful Carmencanada, and you do to, just in totally different areas. Perhaps it is in the vintage Lanvin department that we can connect. I haven’t sniffed Crescendo, you’re so lucky! I do love to surprise myself by newly loving scents I’ve hated, so once a year when I’m at Serge L’s I try TC and MKK, and so far, no luck! So of couse I have to be entered in the draw, so I can see what it’s like to sniff in another person’s nose!
Soft hearted and with the soul of a librarian (as have I), how could I not love to hear from you? Keep up the contributions to the blog, but leave me out of this draw. Tuberose is, I’m afraid, my bete noir.
I don’t think I’ve ever smelled a tuberose fragrance (I’m a newbie). Annick Goutal’s Tubereuse, Carnal Flower, and Tubereuse Criminelle all intrigue me though. I’d love to be in the drawing.
I confess, I’m semi-de-lurking (I post occasionally, so it’s only semi-:)) in part to be entered in the drawing.
But I particularly want in the drawing because this post has combined with a few adventuresome forays I’ve recently made into the world of white flowers in general, and tuberose in particular, that just may be taking me in a new direction.
I began with my inability to wear Fracas (although there’s a story there for another day), but things have been shifting lately. Most notably, I’m working with Carnal Flower!
And on another note (teehee), Bois d’Armenie is something I’ve been meaning to try for a while now. Incense, now, that’s something I do in a heartbeat!
And you’ve also reminded me of Ether de Lilas, which somehow managed to drop off my radar screen for a while. I feel another order coming on …
Great post! Have you tried Parfumerie Generale’s Tubereuse Couture? It’s one of the most elegant tubereuse scents that I’ve come across and I think you might be pleasantly surprised how many bottles you may go through:)
Great post about one of my favorite floral notes, thanks. And I really need to try Bois d’Armenie again. Don’t know why it didn’t grab me the first time, and wondering if I didn’t give it a fair shot.
Bryan, I love your posts! And I love most of the scents you’re listing. Had no idea Prada had a Tuberose. When Marina and I came to the Prada shop this past wknd, we were told the exclusives got pulled off the shelves due to poor sales. Bummer!
Have to add that over a year ago, I went into Prada to smell Iris again, and couldn’t find the scents. Asked someone, and he went and fetched the testers out of a utility closet. Nobody there knew anything about them, and it took awhile to find someone who even knew the price. So no surprise they don’t sell…
Enter me in your drawing. Your love of tuberose shines through and that is eloquence enough. I remember driving down into the valley of Oaxaca when I was a teenager and being overwhelmed by this new scent. There was tuberose all over the markets. I am happily taken back whenever I smell it.
Lovely post. Thank you. For some reason I am now obsessed with Tuberose when I couldn’t stand it a few years ago. Go figure!! Carnal Flower is a favorite.
Would love to be entered into your drawing.
Very nice discussion of tuberose! I love the sweet, heavy skank of fresh jasmine and gardenia flowers (there’s a gardenia blooming in my kitchen right now – woof!) but I don’t have much experience with tuberose. I’ve smelled Fracas, and I own Amoureuse which has some tuberose fighting it out with the jasmine and the honey, but I have yet to smell TC or Carnal Flower, alas.
Please add me to the drawing! And I second the request for any good perfumey places to go in KC.
Wow, Bryan, that’s the best way to get a following – give something away! Woohooo! Include me, please, in the drawing.
You have provided a wonderful reference for some tuberose scents. I share your fondness for Tuberose Criminelle. I like tuberose; I just think it is misused and mixed with other scents where it does not belong (I’d never mix it with fruit!). I even have a tiny bottle of the actual absolute. I dilute it and use it as a room spray!
Don’t apologize for your voice or your blankie! You did a great job of convincing me to try more tuberose, which I’m not sure yet I like in large doses…
awwwww…..How could we NOT adore a fella who swoons for tuberose? As even Dorothy Parker would tell you were she alive to do so, there is a time for sharpness and wit and there is a time for gentle affection and heartfelt pleasure and you absolutely provide the latter in spades.
Please write more often.
And by the way, although I no longer have my baby blanket, I DO still have my very first stuffed animal. And sometimes when my world is tumbling down around my ears, I get him out and give him a cuddle 😉
ps – would you please be so kind as to enter me in your drawing? Thank you. 🙂
Now that is a woman after my own heart. I love her. And yes, I swoon regularly.:d
Delightful writing and great post – gives me lots to try. Please enter me in the draw and please keep posting!
P.S. would love to hear more about the spray vs. dab, why the difference, some more examples where it makes a big difference, etc. Clearly, I am have a research bent too!
I’ve noticed that with a couple of the Serge Lutens exports, most notably Rousse. I was seriously in ennui with it from the vial I got ad dabbed. Then one day at Barneys the SA spritzed me with it and it just bloomed into this gorgeous thing. I had to publicly apologise for my previous bad review!
Apologies for butting in but I’m interested in the spray/dab debate too! Scents do seem to come alive more when sprayed (I’m thinking L’Artisan Parfumeur here though I am very grateful for their generosity with the samples to be dabbed). As I have yet to make a bell jar purchase (and think it might be Rose de Nuit) would anyone recommend decanting into spray bottles? And might there be a contamination issue? Thanks! Nicola
Strange as it seems, I used to have lots of problems making my SL bell jar scents last on me until I started decanting them in small atomizers. Now they just bloom, and go-go-go all day (and/or night). I’ve been doing it since with practically everything I have (the vintage splash bottles mostly) that isn’t extrait. It really does develop the notes in a different way and probably because the dispersion allows more of the liquid to reach more warm spots, it helps the sillage and lasting power no end.
Hear! hear!-for spraying. For a fragrance-devourer like me, it makes a huge difference, not only in longevity, but also in fullness of notes. I am transferring all splashes to spray now.
I too would love to see a whole post on the spray vs. dab debate. Please, guys? I’m afraid when I sample without a spray I’m never getting a good sense of sillage, lasting power, and sometimes even the whole range of notes.
Bryan, I love your posts, please write more often!
I also love most of the scents you listed. And I wish I knew Prada Tuberose, it sounds fantastic!
Marina,
Your words do mean a lot to me. Thank you. I think we have a ton in common scent wise.:d
No reason to be shy, Bry. And don’t be silly, we love your scented stories! Hopefully you won’t make this long a hiatus again…
Can’t say that I’ve smelled many tuberose fragrances (Fracas and CF are on my ‘to-try list’), but the ones I did (TC, La Chasse, Tubereuse Couture, Ysatis) made me realize I love its hot, sensual scent, almost solid in texture, if that makes any sense. I wish Kurkdjian would do a masculine tuberose, if that’s at all possible 🙂 Did you smell his (well, Gaultier’s) Fleur du Male? Orange Blossom Heaven! Kurkdjian also did a tuberose fragrance for Gaultier, Fragile, but you probably knew that already 😉
A reluctant confession: I haven’t met the (in)famous Koublai Khan (while you are on your third bottle no less, sheesh!). Ditto on BdA and well, pretty much everything you listed. *simpers*
Just in case I wasn’t clear, the simpering meant “Put me in the drawing, pretty please”. 😀
Dusan,
I swear you are the sweetest. I will definitely include you in the drawing. Thank you so much. We need to get you set up with some Tuberose don’t we?
Bryan, doll, you are way too humble, and I also wish you would write more! You are genuine and passionate, and that always comes through.
Ha-ha! Told you on the LIlas, didn’t I? 🙂
Love you, Miss Patty.:d
Great post and I always love to hear other’s thoughts, you write well. I have yet to overcome my fears and try me some tuberose, so this is a helpful post. Pease put me in the drawing…
Bryan – I think, judging from the above, you most certainly DO have a devoted following! And why not? You write from the heart. Am coming around to Tuberose. Back in my scared of white flowers past I backed away from Tuberose as if it was garlic and I a vampire. But I LOVE jasmine now (Nuit Noire today – its moving up my list of to buys with alarming speed) and frangipane and lilies and gardenia don’t horrify me so Tuberose might well slay me next. To be honest I’d like to smell the SL first as I have a feeling that’s the one for me. In meantime, please enter me in the drawing for Do Sun which I have sniffed and do like very much.
As a recent convert to Fracas and thereby tuberose, I was excited to read your post. I’m always delighted to read posts that compare a variety of juices that emphasize the same note, since there isn’t a lot of sniffapalooza-ing to be had where I live. So your post was great! Thanks! Oh, and by the way, count me in on the Do Son draw, please!
No need to be shy! I think the reason we all keep coming back is because we love to hear about perfumes and what people have to say about them, whether it be love, hate or apathy.
Plus, you’ve added to my ever expanding list of things that *must* be tried.
And do enter me in the drawing!
Welcome!
Thank you so much. I will include you of course.:d
Well, you’ve convinced me to venture further in exploring tuberose scents. Fracas (and others) smell so fab in the bottle but like cheap air freshener on my skin, so I have kind of avoided tuberose heavy scents. I love other white flowers though, and heavier scents in general, so it seems as though tuberose and me would get along if I found the right one. Please enter me in the drawing! And – I always appreciate how your knowledge & love of fragrance comes through in your reviews (causing me to add ever more items to that endless to try list – Bois d’Armenie is calling my name…)
Please do try more tuberose scents. I swear they are uplifting, and who can’t use that, right? Thank you for the sweet words.:)
Oh, Bryan, your overstated modesty has been well addressed, so I will proceed on to ask you an embarrassingly stupid question. How does one pronounce “tuberose?” Is it “toob-erose,” or “toober-ohse?” Or something else? I did try to research this (thanks, Maria!) but couldn’t find a pronunciation guide. I don’t think it’s a tuber, and I don’t think it’s a rose, so neither makes instinctive sense.
So far, I dislike tuberose intensely, but am open to change.
Also, looks like I will be in KC for a rushed couple of days in September. Now that I see you live there, is there some smellarific place I shouldn’t miss? Thanks, dear heart! –Ellen
Botany nerd here. :-b Polianthes tuberosa is a bulbous plant. That’s how it got the “tuberosa” specific name. “Tuberosa” has nothing to do with rose; it’s just an adjective describing it as being like a tuber. Believe it or not, it’s a member of the agave family. You can see pictures of the flowers at
b r e n t andbeckys b u lbs . co m (Weird spaces added to avoid the slush pile. It should all be one word.)
Merriam-Webster shows variant pronunciations, but they all have the primary stress on the first syllable. However, a couple of them have a secondary stress on the last.
Thanks, Maria! Now I can say it in my mind without feeling stupid. –Ellen
Thank you so much for the info. That’s not nerdy, that’s well informed. I love the bulbs…it’s too cold here to leave them over winter, but I buy them by the bucket-full. Is there a way to get the fresh flowers year round…maybe on line or something??:d
I see the question has been answered. I knew there was no relation to rose, but I’ve heard so many different pronunciations. I just say it in French, it’s easier….Tu…be..r..ose. Accent over the be…so it’s like too bay rose. :d
We must do a quick sniffapalooza when you come. I have a couple haunts I enjoy, but then we’ll have lunch or something, if you have time.:)
Oh, Bryan, I will try to make it so!!!! Thanks. –Ellen
Awww, any guy with his blankie can post anytime-and you do write well. As I gaze at my beloved stuffies, I must admit that tuberose and I have a confusing relationship. I repeatedly avow that I don’t care for it, then realize that it is in many fragrances I love. And Fracas-I’ve loved it for years! Maybe I just need to mature a little.
Oh yes-please put my card in the drawing pile.
Have you tried Versace Blonde? The parfum is actually quite lovely. I hear it compared to Fracas a lot, but I find Fracas a bit more discrete. You’re in the draw.
What a great post! I do love Carnal Flower and Tubereuse Crim–but what about Caron Tubereuse? A beautiful, creamy fragrance! If you haven’t tried it, you should!
I just bought a bottle of MKK in Paris, and I am so happy to have it!! I was thinking getting a TC bell as well, but decided on a back-up of my beloved FT (which is almost gone) instead (I had limited myself to 2 at the Salons). Decisions, decisions!!
I’d love to be in the drawing!
Limits are difficult when it comes to perfumes, so my hat off to you. I love Caron’s Tubereuse and I do have it….very sunny, very creamy. Lovely.
Hi Bryan,
Great post! As another poster said, it’s nice to read the different styles that everyone brings to the discussion. Your love for fragrance comes through clearly. I hope that you will write more often.
I’d love to be included in your drawing please.
You are in. I thank you for the sweet words. :d
Bryan:
1) No need to be shy
2) It ain’t a competition, though you easily beat me on a whole host of stuff, most especially knowledge
3) Away with the modesty
4) Great post!
5) I still need to learn to love flowers a little more…
Lee, I just adore your posts. Thank you for the encouragement. When I’m through with you, you’re going to be craving the tuberose….I promise.
Lovely reviews Bryan. I admire all of you who write because I know when I put fingertips to keyboard all my words come out so stilted and stumped.
I hated white florals but persistence is changing my mind- there are some beautiful tuberose out there.
Please put my name in the hat:x
You’re in, and you’ll be a white floral lover sooner than you think. :d
hi, longtime lurker/reader/admirer here, but first-time poster :”> .
I love all the writers on Perfume Posse and Brian, I completely understand your infatuation with tuberose (and Serge, too ;)). I own quite some tuberose perfumes (Carnal Flower, Fracas, La Chasse, Blonde), but I’d of course love to get my hands on some of Do Son, because it’s beautiful, summery and I don’t have any amount of it yet. so can I please be included in the draw :d ? and I hope to read about your top 10 soon!
Welcome! I lurked forever before I started chatting with Patty. I am soooo glad I did. Again welcome and start letting us know what you love/hate. You’re in the drawing.
It was very good to share my secret with you.
My husband would never understand the blankie thing, believe me.
There are not many people in the world like us. I’m glad to find someone like me.:)
Sorry ! Wrong place… Was a reply for number 8…
Hi Brian, I enjoy your posts too. Don’t be shy… I keep my childhood blankie too (hidden from my husband) and I spray one unexpensive white flowers EDT, because reminds me my mother and I miss her so much…
I love tubereuse too. And I love Fracas.
Please count me in the drawn, if it is possible…
And I hope we can hear from you soon !
Katie,
I’m sorry that you miss her. I understand the blankie thing….but why hide it? My blaket is tied up with my sense of smell so inexplicably. I can’t sleep without it…and I’m 35. :”>
I really enjoyed reading your post and am working on my next FF order! That Vintage Lanvin is calling my name. Would you include me in your drawing?
Of course. Patty has an amazing selection. Love me some frip.
Bryan, stop putting yourself down! I won’t hear of it! [-x You write delightful, vivid descriptions of fragrance. I wish I’d had a baby blankie.
We have something very important in common: “I research the hell out of anything I love.” That’s me, bro. I suspect Ellen, the best friend a pitbull ever had, is like that too.
I too kept wondering what you think of Fracas. Mmmm. That Germaine Cellier, what a gal. Vintage Rumeur is such a chypre beauty. Maybe she’s in a leather Balenciaga? I predict you’ll enjoy Lanvin Crescendo. Lovely incense. Bois d’Armenie, I agree, is gorgeous. You have excellent taste.
I had a great steak in Kansas City once.
Oh, and I forgot to ask to be included in the drawing. Thank you.
Maria,
You are in, of course. Next time you’re in KC, we’re going out for an amazing filet. I insist. I do respect Fracas, and I keep it around, but I just don’t get enough tuberose. I get white floral bouquet. Lovely, classic, but not me.
Bryan, you sure know how to speak to a woman’s heart… Another tuberose fan — no, addict — here (I’m on my 2nd bottle of Tubéreuse Criminelle, and of MKK for that matter). I think Lutens does beautiful unspeakable things to white flowers, and they do sing out in the heat, don’t they? As for being shy, don’t: the best thing about perfumeland is that we’re all dead curious about each other’s choices/impressions!
Please count me in the draw. I don’t own Do Son yet!
I agree! I love to hear what everyone else is loving. Thanks and you’re in the draw.:d
I really enjoy your posts. I love that each of you guys have your own unique voice. Absolutely no doubt you do belong on Perfume Posse, you have a great way of saying things in a way I can truly relate to. I LOVE Tubereuse Criminelle, I DO! From the first blast of vicks to the the creamy sultriness that I get a bit later. It’s heaven, and I’m going to put some on right now. Carnal Flower is blatant sex on me, I love it, but we don’t always get along. I don’t know enough about scent to tell you what it is that doesn’t always work. Thanks to the Frip, I now have Bois d’Armenie, and damn, it’s genius. I’m nuts over anything incense, so you can imagine I’m in love with it. The others you mentioned I’ve yet to try, but you’ve inspired me. Thank you.
An aside – have you ever tried any of Ava Luxe’s perfumes? She has some great incense scents. Also, Les Nez has one called “Let Me Play The Lion” that I absolutely had to have a full bottle of. If you haven’t tried it, I’d be happy to send you a bit.
I want to join Gina in recommending Ava Luxe’s fragrances. I recently got a bunch of samples. Among the incense ones I’ve tried there have been some standouts. Fire Wood is a smoky, woody scent, very dry. My DH fell in love with it at first sniff. Moksha is a meditative scent. Royal Parvati has some skank in it although none is listed in the notes, but it becomes a smooth, balsamic blanket after a while. (The blanket theme keeps popping up, doesn’t it?)
Hi Maria! I’m so glad you’ve tried and liked Ava Luxe’s perfumes. There’s one called Kretek that smells exactly like clove cigarettes, so lovely. I too have a Fire Wood sample, and it’s just lovely. Her Oude is so smoky and lovely. I have to try Moksha and Royal Parvati!
OooOOO..Gina, Let Me Play the Lion is a wonderful incense scent. I only have a few samples but it is on my list to purchase.
I have enjoyed some of Ava Luxes’ scents, especially Kretek, Tokion, Red Carnation, and Firewood. I could not get past Rasa b-(. It makes MKK smell like a dainty flower! It has WAY too much civet and musk for me. I ordered a large bunch of samples from her the other day and I cannot wait to try more.
Hi CH! So glad you like “Let Me Play the Lion”, I adore it. Ava Luxe’s incense scents are amazing…I have a pile of samples I’m slowly working my way through. I haven’t tried Rasa, but am curious, just to see what it’s like.
Thank you so much. I love Lez Nez now…I didn’t earlier. I have yet to try Ava Luxe, but you aren’t the first to mention them. I must seek them out.
I adore Serge’s TC. I thank you for your kind words. I have not tried Ava yet, but do elaborate more please. I don’t know really anything about the scents…..yet.:)
Since tubereuse is my lifelong love, I would be vey pleased if you entered me in the drawing. Thx. Bryan.
You’re in!:d
Yes, Bryan, please don’t feel shy or uncertain! Your love and knowledge of perfumes makes your posts delightful… I’d love to hear your opinion on what tuberoses would be good for the stifling heat of Bangkok. I’m still a bit skeered of white florals, I feel like I’m being smothered in heaving cleavage… Also, I’d like to hear your thoughts on gardenia perfumes. A friend of mine adores the scent of gardenia — are there any perfumes you like that strongly feature this note?
Would love to be in the drawing. I sense you’ll help shepherd me past my white-floral phobia…
Everyone is so sweet on these blogs. I wasn’t fishing for any kind of ego boost….I’m not like that.
OK, for the heat…well, I’m not one to shy away from a big white floral in any weather. (I just don’t spray as much…to be coureous). Do Son is lovely in the heat as is Caron Tubereuse. Both are very bright tuberoses.
I love gardenia, but it’s a difficult note to find that is well done, in my opinioin. I love Tom Ford’s Velvet Gardenia and JAR’s jardenia. Both are pricey, but worth it. I also like Kai….in the eau de parfum for a no brainer gardenia that is also green.:)
I like kai too! I’m so glad you mentioned it, Bryan. I put it on and I’m in the tropics. So it would probably work if one is actually in the tropics. 🙂
First of all, shuut uhhhp! We all love to hear from you and wish you’d write more.
The fact that you have your childhood bankie makes you adorable, the fact that you spray it with tuberose makes me want to bake you something.
So what do you think of Fracas? Tubereuse Criminelle? Spill, darlin! :d
Thanks for the kind words. OK, Tubereuse Criminelle is insanely beautiful. I love the opening, but since I have to wait for the tuberose, I just don’t reach for it as often as say Carnal. I have gone through almost three bottles, so that isn’t saying much.
Fracas is too orange blossomy for me. I respect it, but don’t love it.
OK, what are you going to bake for me?? :d
Well, since Kansas is hot, how ’bout a nice hazelnut dacquoise? Or a pavlova? Oh, and yes please, I would love to be in on the draw.