by the chastened Musette
So….well, you know…one of the things I really love about my Beginner’s Mind is that it really isn’t a Beginner’s Mind – I am the Quing of Snap Judgements (or NO Judgement, depending upon whom you ask). But what saves me from myself is my absolute delight in being found wrong – I love that one of the women I’ve really grown to like here in town….well, when I first met her, let’s say my Snap Judgement…well, never mind. I. Was. Wrong.
And so it goes with perfume notes. Take a look at these:
coco palm, aqualeaf accord, night-blooming jasmine, violet, Tahitian vanilla, sandalwood, cashmere woods
That combo sounds like the making of a Musette Nightmare, so during Swapmania, when my good pal Mary suggested sending an unknown (to me) perfume, with notes that were making me gag I was all “oh, maaaann. dang’ I didn’t want to try some thingummy concocted by a singer/boxing promoter/artiste/impressaria* .. but I adore Mary…so I said (weakly) ‘okay’.
Oh, maaaan. Oh, Mary. Thank you! The perfume she sent me is Jus d’Amour by Parfums Mercedes – at first sniff I was a bit taken aback – I usually hate coconut (and I’m not all that fond of vanilla, thank you very much) and was all set to dislike the opening sweetish notes….and what the heck is aqualeaf accord? Well, who knows. But who cares? Because, against all odds, this is a comfort scent that I love! like the kind you all usually yark on about (that I never ‘get’) that is both compelling and cozy. There are lots of references to ‘cashmere throws’ and ‘snuggling’ in the various reviews, etc – and in this case, it’s actually apt! Jus d’Amour (I have the oil version) is a sexy-cozy, snuggly scent – but not fluffy. Smooth, like a good bourbon – but there’s that lovely little fire as it’s going down. There is this rough, almost piney, edge to Jus d’Amour that keeps it firmly on this side of sweet…and definitely in the realm of intriguing. This is a Skin Scent but there’s an element of languorous…not quite ‘danger’ – more cautious intrigue (and isn’t that the best kind?). It reminds me of my dog Lu and this guy I had this odd ‘relationship’ with – Lu was Protection (NOT Attack) Trained and was a total Alpha male Rottweiler, which meant he didn’t have a whole lot to prove to anybody. Anyway, it was a lovely day, the guy and I were on my patio, sipping lemonade and bantering…and somehow it was right at that point where the scales were going to tip alll the power in his favor. And I couldn’t have that. Just couldn’t. So I got up to go ‘powder my nose’ and whispered in Lu’s ear ‘watch him’ . Let me tell you – there is nothing like a fully assured PT Rottweiler to re-tip the balance for you. ‘Watch him’ means just that. Lu didn’t bark, He didn’t growl. No lips pulled back. He just sat there, in all his cuddly, smoochy glory – and kept that guy pinned to his seat (with just a look) until I returned. That’s what this scent reminds me of. The warm, cuddly softness of a beautiful Rottweiler who has the capacity to pin a 250lb man to his chair with A Look. I really like it! I don’t know if Mercedes is the actual perfumer (neither Luckyscent nor her website gives that info) but if she is the perfumer, then she definitely hit the mark with this one. It’s as snuggly and sensual on a man as a woman (I tried it on both! – had ‘that guy’ been wearing this I might’ve given over..)
I wish I’d created this. I would’ve named it Lu.
you can get this at Luckyscent – I got mine from Mary. Thank you Mary (* btw, not really ragging on Mercedes there with the descriptors. She actually sounds tres cool – and I think I’m just a leeetle bit jealous)!
Hey! I’m feeling all snuggly tonight, meself. So I’ll siphon off a scrab of the oil and send it to a commenter. Just drop a line telling me what defines ‘snuggly’ for you. I’m sure not everyone finds Rottweilers snuggly, though I think those who don’t are missing some serious smoochies.
I wanted to put a photo of a Rottweiler in front of a fireplace…but…y’all don’t seem to be feeling the Rottweiler Love overmuch…. strange.
I feel the Rottweiler love, for sure! Big, gruff dogs are the cuddliest. I’m never more in the mood for cuddles than when I have my boy (canine) and my girl on either side of me.
Snuggly: My cats. My parents. My mom’s relatives. Freshly washed babies (actually, any sort of baby that isn’t vomiting or has a clean diaper!). Kittens and puppies and rabbits. Properly trained and well behaved dogs. Fleece blankets. Huge stuffed animals (the sort that tend to be larger than young children). Vanilla Fields (for some reason, any time I smell it on someone I have the worst urge to go and hug said person!). A comforter and a cup of herbal tea. Puffalumps (remember those?).
BTW, I’ve won a couple of draws here in the past year, and I think my email keeps getting caught in the Posse spam filter, as I’ve never received any replies or filthy lucre. :( I don’t mean to complain, I’m just wondering what I’m doing wrong to keep getting caught in the filter?
NP
what did you win? If it was something from me, contact me at my gmail (evilauntieanita) if it was Patty – hit the contact button over there and let her know – or, if you’re nervous about the spam, lmk and I’ll let her know. Alas, we don’t keep records of who won what so…..just let us know.
xo >-)
Awww…Good Boy, Lu! I don’t have too much to add, Musette, because you described that feeling perfectly of being partners with a cuddly, protective rottie. My own cuddly rottie was my heart dog Gator. He was fierce when he had to be, and once saved me from a mugging. Yet I could hug him hard, kiss him on his muzzle and lean up against him while reading a book. He took all affectionate assaults with good grace. He was the most trustworthy, loyal, faithful, reliable dog…hell, male…in my life. I loved him to pieces.
God Bless Gator! He sounds like a helluva dog! 😡
xo >-)
Oh Musette, what a great review. Our little family doggies are the mini-me version of rotties, so I can tuck one under each arm and assign them each a child to comfort. Lu sounds like a good dog. I met a doberman personal protection dog, once, when I had a summer job reading electric meters. Stood stock still for about 45 minutes. Nothing else I could do. I wonder what that guy recalls about the experience of being watched by Lu. I am glad you like the Jus! It is a fun one, for me, the perfume most likely to wear to a belly dancing lesson.
45 MINUTES? 😮
Holy Cats and Crackers!
The worst part about PT dogs is when their moron owners forget. I did that once :”>. Like a lot of Guardian breeds, Rotties are often just fine with you coming in to the house. Leaving? (without release) – not so much.
So Lu let the furnace guy in, of course. I blanked – totally – and went upstairs (it was freezing and I had to get back to work). Heard this very faint “Mrs ____? Mrs _____?” I was 😮 …nearly killed myself racing down to the main floor. Lu had the poor guy stuck on the basement stairs – one foot in the air (he was terrified to move). I was mortified! Once I released Lu, he just sat down but by then the guy was so shaken that I had to put Lu in the powder room before the guy would move off the stairs.
Did I mention I was mortified?
I’m mortified on behalf of that Dobe owner, too!
:”>
sorry!
ps. I’m not putting you in the draw. [-( ;))
xo >-)
:)You are right, no draw for me this time! As for the dobe, well, that was my bad. I was warned there was a bad dog, not to go in yard if owner was not home, but all I saw was a dachsund, so I went in to do my job, confident I could handle a mean liitle dachsund. I was reading the electric meter when I felt something cold touch my elbow. . .:o The dog was a perfect gentleman, but very clear in his communication. I was not to move. So I didn’t. I eventually sidled my way out, but it was a lesson in how much fear I could handle without hollering!
😮
I’m surprised you didn’t wet your pants!
George did that to the cable guy. El O told him not to try to leave without alerting him but he ignored him, charmed by George’s sweet allowance of his entrance. Came ‘exit’ time….a very gentle – but very firm – grip on his calf put paid to the notion that he could just walk out of the yard. (to be fair, we’d asked him if he wanted us to put him up and he said no. So …)
but I’m glad you got out of there in one piece, just like the cable guy!
xo >-)
Well, I’m normally a lurker here, but I couldn’t resist commenting since this review is so adorably compelling and I just happen to be in need of comfort these days. My go-to perfume for that has been Tom Ford Tobacco Vanille. Safe and snuggly, like a blanket fort.
Well, come on down and Welcome! I actually like TV, even though I said I don’t like vanilla. He made it smoky and not too sweet, which is delightful.
This seems to be a weird time for so many of us. You come hang out with us, you’ll feel waaaay better!
xo >-)
i’d love to see a pic of your lu! rotties are great! as long as they are well-trained and listen. otherwise they (and every other dog) can be scary.
my cat’s sweet belly fur – that’s what i would call snuggly. smells fantastic!
An untrained dog is a nuisance. Makes me want to slap their human(s) silly. I wouldn’t tolerate an untrained dog – I choose only Guardian/work dogs (Bruno was a cute accident – and that terrier part of him drives me batcrap crazy). I train them well and I run my household like a military installation. People actually LOVE my Rottweilers because they are so well behaved (except Pick who, I think, is slightly demented 8-} I’m actually embarrassed that he’s not 100% under control.
xo >-)
Absolute word. It is essential that a rottie and other powerful breeds be trained and trained appropriately.
Labradors…in a cashmere sweater, that’s what I’d call snuggly ;)
Your Labs let you put cashmere sweaters on them? I’m impressed. Pick (my current Rott) would tear that thing off in a nanosecond! Then again, he’s not that cuddly anyway, except with El O. With everybody else he’s a bit …….8-x
xo >-)
Sacrebleu for my cuddle scent. Jammies hot from the dryer on a chilly, rainy night. The right guy’s shoulder. *happy sigh at the thought*
I ADORED your Lu story. You crack me up and warm my heart, dearest M!
thank you, sweetheart!
And I’m really liking your cuddle equation. That one sounds excellent!
xo >-)
For me, cuddly is a blanket, slippers, tea, and maybe a cat. :-)
sounds good to me!
xo >-)
A 250 pound man is the perfect definition of snuggly to me! :o)
Although I agree with Meg that feeling someone tucking a blanket around you is just about Heaven, especially if that someone is your very own 250 pound husband! (Or your 120 pound mama)
Okay, agreed… a 250 pound man wrapping a blanket around you is the epitome of snuggliness!
Ho, yus! 😡
xo >-)
My warm, cuddly fragrances have heliotrope or almond notes
One of the cuddliest smells in the world is original Jergens, imo!
xo >-)
My cuddly smells are the hollow between my husband’s neck and shoulder blade, my super soft older kitty (but funny enough, not the younger cat who just has a funky smell), hot spicy chai tea made with a good amount of cardamom and my mare Lucy.
I still haven’t found my perfume cuddly scent. SL Chergui comes close, but like a lot of the SLs, I find it overly sweet. Same with a lot of vanilla scents. Dzing! comes close, but it’s even dirtier and more animalic than my mare smells.
I would love to have a well trained dog like Lu. Did you train him yourself? I would love to feel that sense of security and protection from an animal I can have in my home.
We were both trained. Protection training requires that both human and canine know the program. I am very fussy about protection training, seeking reputable trainers with no hidden ego agendas. He was my last PT dog. Out here in the sticks there’s no need for it. And guardian dog breeds are, by their very nature, predisposed to that behavior.
xo >-)
Snuggly is my pleasantly plump, soft skinned girlfriend.
😡
xo >-)
What a great, great dog story, Miss M! I’ll have to give my Hayley-dog an extra patting session today, in honor of protective doggies. (She’s been known to take on the neighbors’ evil-tempered German shepherd, who outweighs her by forty pounds, if the kids are in the yard playing and she thinks Dakota’s gotten too close to them.)
Everybody needs a cuddler scent. I suspect vinty Emeraude is mine.
oh, I knew you were going to say that. You were my reentry into that gateway, you >:)
Hayley-dog deserves a smooch! Give her one from her ol’ Evil Auntie Musette
xo >-)
Frapin’s 1270 is one of my comfort scents along with Amouage Lyric for women. I have 3 Labs that love to lean up against me and give out kisses. The blonde Lab, Jake, loves nothing better than to run into my room at 6 in the morning to give me good morning kisses. Half the time it scares the crap out of me,
;))
That’s why none of my dogs are ever allowed in our bedroom. That stopped the morning Lu ripped a silk charmeuse sea-green duvet cover (embroidered with tiny pink silk knot roses). Anyone who has ever worked with charmeuse knows….no repairing that.
They have their own room, their own beds – and we have a gate across our b/r door. They know to come wake me up at 6:30, which they do. But not even a pawnail on my carpet, thank you very much.
Other than that, they pretty much roam the house.
xo >-)
Yay!! So nice to see Jus d’Amour getting some love. I got a partial bottle from a friend who had bought it then never found herself wearing it and it was affection at first sniff. I don’t know if I’d say I LOVE it, but I really really LIKE it. It lingers on a sweatercoat I have and whenever I open the coat closet, I get a whiff and it makes me smile.
I am proud to say that I have 2 lovely rotties as friends – Grover and Asja. When their mommy goes out of town, they come over to my house to play with my Irish setter, Rockne, and they couldn’t be nicer kiddos. I did have someone come to the door late at night, once, while they were visiting. The man had a car breakdown in front of my house and seen my lights on and asked if I could call a towtruck. I wasn’t in the least apprehensive with two enormous rotties standing at full attention in front of me. lol They didn’t do anything, just stood there, but it would have taken a very brave or crazy potential home invader to have attempted to push past them and enter the house.
There is no pushing. ;)) Even a crackhead would be bitten into 230,000 pieces before he ever got to you.
Will you kiss Grover and Asja for me?
I’m not sure I LOVE it, either – I reserve that kind of abject adoration for very select frags – but I like it very, very much. I probably like it more than I would’ve because I was expecting to HATE it, if that makes any sense. But it’s on my fleece hoodie and, like you, I smile every time I get a whiff of it! 😡
xo >-)
Ah the big dog lean. “I am here. You are loved.”
Best feeling, innit?
xo >-)
It is. I’ve had small dogs and loved them very much but their energy is so different. People who have never had a big dog or a giant dog don’t always understand what the appeal is. And as I’m sitting here trying to think of the words to explain it I’m looking into my living room where my 4 yr old daughter is sitting in her little pink princess throne eating cheese and crackers. Our bullmastiff is laying at her feet and occassionally licking her toes, which makes her giggle and then share the cheese. He’s just a puppy, almost twice her size and since the day we brought him home he’s never once overpowered her.
and he probably never will. She is now ‘his’. Lu was like that with the little girl (9 yrs old) next door who came over to let him and his Airedale brother out every day. She was safe as houses with him – indeed, she was safer!
xo >-)
Oh, this post makes me miss my Angus. I got him as a puppy from the SPCA and he was with us for 12 glorious years. Half Labrador, half Newfoundland, he was 100 pounds of presence, and my Big Black Suck. Calm, quiet and amazing with children, I had friends who didn’t care for dogs but made an exception for Angus.
One of the things I miss the most was his company in the middle of the night. I’m not an insomniac, but occasionally I’d have a bad night, lying in bed and fretting about old mistakes and blowing them aaaall out of proportion. (Never pay any attention to self-assessments you make at 3 in the morning.)
Eventually I’d get up so my tossing and turning wouldn’t disturb my hubs, and go into the living room to sit on the floor and read or cry until the funk had passed. Angus would always come and just lean up against me, and his steady, restful presence would be the perfect thing. I sure do miss him.
Perfume-wise, I find Coromandel to be my most comforting, snuggly fragrance.
Good dogs always know, don’t they? And they just want to make it all better.
And they do!
When Lu died, I was inconsolable. Then El O brought me Georgie, the rescue Rott. It took awhile, as I was fearful of betraying my loyalty to Lu – but Georgie was patient and …..wow. You wanna talk SOULMATE? He was the love of my life. When he went (congestive heart failure, at 12) he left me in Bruno’s care. Bruno has all of George’s traits, just in a smaller package. Dogs are the best!
xo >-)
Loving dogs of all breeds (especially rescues!) are snuggly, Cats are snuggly. Fireplaces promote snuggliness. Skin scents with a hint of vanilla and some musk are snuggly. The smell of bread baking is also snuggly (DH makes the BEST sourdough…). And speaking of DH – very, very snuggly. Indeed.
El O can be extremely snuggly, when he’s in the mood (which isn’t often, alas) – he’s one of those big, burly tree-choppin’ kinda guys. I agree – all dogs are snuggly. I can’t snuggle cats due to allergies but they are snuggly-looking! ;))
Is there any scent more intoxicating than baking bread?
xo >-)
My daughter got me a border collie -lab mix rescue (Misty) for Christmas, and though she is a handful, she likes to cuddle after dark. She is 2, and wants to play all day long (jumped our 4′ fence!!), and then crashes at dark. So cute and funny. She is cuddly. Today I am wearing a SSS scent that Lisa generously sent me during swapmania called To Dream…It’s nice and the first SSS fragrance for me, and it’s actually sticking around…a lot of fragrances tend to just dissappear on me. It’s kind of cuddly, but since I am at work I can only enjoy the sensation of cuddly, where I’d really like to be snuggled under a comforter with Misty and my kindle. It is said to have violets in it, and I don’t think I have ever had a violet fragrance before, so it was a little foreign to me at first this AM…but I am sniffing constantly, so I am enjoying it.
To Dream is very nice – and kudos to you for having a rescue dog. We’ve got one too, and she is just the bestest. dog. ever.
Both our dogs are rescues (well, one is the son of a rescue, does that count?). El O found Bruno, the baby (boxer/pit mix) when he was about 8 weeks old, in the middle of Rte 6. Called and said ‘we’ll just keep him until we can find a good home for him’. /:)
I knew the minute he drove up, with that baby in his arms, that he wasn’t letting him go for anything!
Funny thing is, he’s now MY dog. Go figure.
xo >-)
We’ve rescued both of our Boston Terriers and they’ve both been little blessings. My comfort scent is the smell of my husband/cologne that lingers on and mixes with his warm fur. It gets no better.
“his fur” refers to the dog, not my husband LOL
;))
I love when you don’t think you’re going to like something and then you end up loving it! Good for you!
My favorite snuggle thing ever is from when I was a child. When my mom did the laundry she would wait until bedtime and then make my bed on top of me. She’d put the bottom sheet on straight from the dryer, then I would lay down and feel its warmth on my back. Then she’d lay the warm top sheet on me and I’d feel enveloped. Then she’d pile the blankets on top of that and all that warmth would cocoon me inside. The best sleep ever!
Oh, that sounds delicious! Funny how those memories stay so visceral, isn’t it?
xo >-)
A purring cat…
Soft kitty
Warm kitty
little ball of fur..
xo >-)
The scent of a baby’s head. I read about a study that was conducted once where they took the swaddling blankets from babies in a hospital nursery and gave them to the new mother’s to smell. The majority of the mothers were able to correctly identify which blanket belonged to their baby just by smelling the blankets, even though the babies were only hours old. I’m sure there is something scientific about the scent and mothers being able to identify that the baby is well. Likewise babies know Mama by scent and identify that scent as comofort. I can’t remember what I did before I had kids but I bet that if you’ve ever had a child the first thing you do when you pick up a baby is kiss and smell it’s head.
They have that sweet baby smell even without products but since I haven’t found a perfume that captures that scent sometimes I slather myself in baby lotion. It’s cheap and moisturizes well and the scent is comforting. Oddly enough I’ve found that I get hit on a lot when I smell like baby lotion. I really thought that a woman smelling like an infant would scare men off but that isn’t the case.
I love my dog Diesel the bullmastiff, but his scent isn’t comforting. He smells like farts and drool and sometimes when he kisses me I can tell that he was just eating the clumps out of the litter box. At 5 mos and 60 lbs he’s still just a baby and I find his presence comforting in the sense that he’s a big dog who makes people think before approaching, (My husband is away for work a lot. He wanted me to get a gun…I got a puppy.) and in the sense that he’s just a baby who wants to snuggle and still has a tinge of that puppy smell under the drool and gastrointestinal discharge.
=))
I don’t know where to start!
Baby lotion: I don’t think men associate it with infants. I don’t think men associate anything with infants (except poopy diapers). There’s something ‘clean and nice’ about baby products that is appealing to men – John Hughes wrote an article for (I think) Mad Magazine about how various types of women smell (it was hysterical, though misogynistic as all get-out)…anyway, after he described the slightly sweaty, good hearted secretary (on a warm day she could bring up your lunch)..and the yeast-infected executive….he wrote about the women who smelled like “____and baby powder. Those are the girls you marry”
xo >-)
OK, that sounds like an article worth reading, even if parts crack me up and others make me want to throw a bookend at his head! Have a link to it?
alas, no. I can tell you, it was somewhere around 1972-73 (yeah, THAT long ago). It really was funny. I worked with him at Leo Burnett (I was an intern, he was a rising star on his way to Hollywood – so ‘worked with’ is a stretch). He was a little defensive about the article. I have tried to Google it since, many times, but no luck. It also could’ve been National Lampoon.
xo >-)
Hehehe….Sometimes living well (and blogging!) is the best revenge. Too bad you can’t find it though. That sounds movie-script worthy. Wonder if Dolly Parton and friends would be up for a re-vamped 9-5?
A scent that reminds you of good bourbon and Rottie cuddles? Sign me up, please!
My cuddly smells are my daughters (especially when they were each newborns and all scrunched up and new) their skin always smells so nice as well as cats fresh in from outside both in winter (Winter Kitty perfume is great) and from lazing in sun in summer. Fresh washed dog who has dried in front of an open fire. And line- dried clothes, smelling of sun and air. Fresh bread baking. Bourbon-pumpkin cheesecake in my oven. And my husband….
We have a clothesline out back and the minute the weather cooperates I have our clothes hanging out there. Nothing beats that smell, does it?
xo >-)
ps. every time I see Winter Kitty I think of Sheldon Cooper’s ‘sick’ song “Warm Kitty”
;))
Love the Big Bang and your comment.
the ensemble dynamic is great isn’t it? In real life, though, I would probably throw Dr Cooper out of the window.
xo >-)
Snuggly is bath, pyjamas, perfume, puppies (retired & rehomed greyhounds), book, (warm homemade triple choc) biscuits, bed.
All day on a rainy Sydney summer Saturday or Sunday. MMMMMMM
well heck YEAH! 😡
you had me a ‘bath’ and then you tipped me over the edge with the TCBs! 😡
xo >-)
Seriously, Rottie photo! Snuggly = my dog, Olive, a froston rescue, and my shearling coat, especially right when I get out of the snow and onto the train. MPG Fraicheur Muskissime is my snuggly scent.
I love the name ‘Olive’ for a dog. And snuggling into your shearling on the train. Window seat!
xo >-)
I love this review and the fabulous story of Lu. Perrfect metaphor.
My cuddly perfumes arre pretty sweet: Barbara Bui, Hypnotic Poison, L de Lolita. They all have a little edge under the sweetness. Snuggly comforts would include first of all my Maine Coon cat in all his fluffy gorgeousness. He’s an in your face kind of snuggler. I also cherish a ratty old quilt that my grandmother made that I’ve had since I was a child; just to wrap up in it and have the cat on my lap while watching snow fall outside is my favorite comforting winter thing to do. The smell of bread baking or something almondy in the oven is lovely, too.
Whoever came up with bread really knew what they were doing, didn’t they? ^:)^
Your ‘winter thing’ describes J d’A perfectly.
xo >-)
Mmmm, nice cuddlies, ladies! Never had a Rottie, but a spoiled little yellow lab mix who used to “sneak” off the couch in the morning when I came downstairs, forgetting she’d left a warm spot and some white fur behind. :)
What Alnysie said about the notes and the kittens.
We should all have a friend like Ann and a dog (or cat) like Lu.:)
I meant a friend like Mary–sorry, still on my first coffee…8-|
Well, I count myself blessed in fortune to have BOTH of them as friends!
Lu was a great dog. The epitome of a perfect dog (but aren’t they all?)
xo >-)
Wow, reading the notes I too wouldn’t have given it a second thought, but your review makes me think twice! (I hope I’ll keep that in mind when *any* fragrance’s notes don’t interest me!)
Kittens are at the top of my list! As for scents, I agree about Lann-Ael, and Praliné de Santal is also in that category for me!
Yep. Keep that Beginner’s Mind. Ya nebber know..:-?
xo >-)
Loooove those big dogs!! You have to post a picture!! We have a Swissie and a German Shepherd, world’s best security system, and I miss our English mastiff like crazy (big 150 lb. baby, she was). They are not biters but as you said they have absolutely no problem cornering and holding anyone they con sider a threat. “I pity the man” who tries to take advantage of you! :-)
Much as I love the dogs, I’d much rather snuggle with babies, newborns, though I’m at that in-between age not too many babies around. Love that smell. And most of all dh is the epitome of snuggly, for the love and sense of security I get hugging him. Not to mention his warmth; I’m always cold.
I think Lann Ael is a great cuddly scent, it evokes babies, also agree with Winfreida on Alessandro, L’Instant (much maligned but yet much complimented for me), Vaniglia Madagascar (i profumi Firenze), Cuir Beluga, Cruel Gardenia (soapy, creamy comfort), Oriental Brulant. Anything soft and warm and not too synthetic. Which is another point. I think the reason a lot of fragrances “challenge” us may be an underlying reaction to all the synthetics.
I love Swissies. They remind me of Milky Way Midnight candy bars. Don’t get me started on mastiffs – next to Rottweilers, dominant Mastiff breeds (like Corsos) are my faves.
I will have to revisit l’Instant. I think I dismissed it because I do not have a Beginner’s Mind…:”>
xo >-)
Kittens. Puppies. Thistledown. A cat smelling of hay and lavender who wants to be cuddled (I like dogs just fine, but I suppose I’m more of a cat person). Flannel bedclothes (in red!). Hot chocolate. Tan Giudicelli’s Annam. The smell coming from a bakery in the early morning (brioches or croissants – something buttery and rich). Pistachio meringues baking (seriously – I want to live in that smell). Cashmere yarn. So many things!
A scent that reminds you of good bourbon and Rottie cuddles? Sign me up, please!
My cuddly smells are my daughters (especially when they were each newborns and all scrunched up and new) their skin always smells so nice as well as cats fresh in from outside both in winter (Winter Kitty perfume is great) and from lazing in sun in summer. Fresh washed dog who has dried in front of an open fire. And line- dried clothes, smelling of sun and air. Fresh bread baking. Bourbon-pumpkin cheesecake in my oven. And my husband…
Whoops that should have been a separate comment!
I just received your parcel – thank you so much! Still looking for Shaun- hang in there!
OMG, yes! The smell of a good croissant wafting out of a bakery? 😡
xo >-)
Very thought-provoking! Its not the confronting challengers like Criminey, Pulp, Fracas, Bandit, Poison, Boudoir, Insolence, La Nuit, Amoreuse, Angel. Its not the cold cold hearts of ISM, La Myrrhe, Messe d M, Cristalle, Vent V, and its not the dripping, humid unsettling hot summer nights of A La Nuit or Isabey’s Fleur Nocturne. Its not morning’s orange blossom or something sweet and hauntingly pretty like the white flowers of Tuberose Gardenia or Killian’s Love & Trs, or most of the L Artisan or Goutal lines. Its not the rabid sexiness of my beloved Nuit de Tubereuse or even old Shalimar or Diorama; truely I sometimes skirt around those babies because they have an amazingly pheromonal effect on me! And I’m too old for that!! I go tutt tutt…instead of cuddle cuddle..
Its probably a lot of the Guerlain classics including unsung treasures like Le Instant, and anything with that soft Guerlinade-y thing including the whole of the earlier Matieres before Thierry put that masculine cut into things like Tonka Imperiale…
Its probably vanilla and soft rosey amber like Attrape Couer (despite taking my beloved vintage Goddess Mitsouko back to Paris, and ritually spraying her on as soon as I hit French soil, like some sort of pagan offering) which just hit the mark powerfully in the middle of the European Chaud Froide Grande.
Yes it is musk, even if its disturbingly TMO like MKK or retro like M Rav. Its the super feminine though, the complexities of identifying modern musk with the male instinctively throw up a little danger danger signs in my psyche—approach with caution! thus not cuddly!
I think if I had to rate my most cuddly scent, it would be something like the powdery almost innocuous vanillic almond sweetness of say Allessandro. Yet Hypnotic Poison, arguably synthesised around the same construct, is a take no prisoners thing.
And dogs, well my piggin’ dog that we got from the pound thinking it was a nice border collie cross – it just kept growing – she sleeps on my bed like a little fluffy thing until I try to assert a bit of authority…and at Versailles at the fountain of the hunting dog bringing down a stag…I tossed the first coin of wishes for her… sappy…
Interesting point about the Alessandro and HP! It never occurred to me but I completely agree! Wonder what the difference is?
I don’t think that’s sappy at all!
I keep saying I don’t like musk…but I suspect I am wrong about that. :”>
xo >-)
Might depend on the KIND of musk under discussion.
you’re right. I’m going to have to take a couple of musk tutorials. Too often I stick my fingers in my ears, singing lalalalala – because of those awful b-( musk notes. But, in my defense, even the good-quality musks (assuming that’s what they are) sometimes ook me out. Consider Chanel Beige. At first sniff I was in LOVE. Then this musk note came drumming in, ala Bolero…and it was :-&
so….:-?
xo >-)
I had a tame robin who would feed from my hand and came when called. One day I went into the garden with a chap who was going to mend the fence – my robin protector kept flying furiously into his leg in an effort to drive this intruder away. It wasn’t that he didn’t like men (he would happily hop around my husband’s feet), he just thought he should attack this stranger who might pose a danger to me. After the chap had left, the robin and I sat together on the step and enjoyed the peace again. I think the workman was pleased to get away from the furious bird.
I LOVE the idea of an Attack Robin!
xo >-)
Pleeeease show us a photo …………
I will!
xo >-)
I enjoyed that story! To me, the quintessential cuddliness is found in the natural downey odors of some people. I don’t know why, but some people just seem to have great natural, subtle smells on certain parts of their body. One man I knew had a great, soft downey smell in the fluffiness of his chest hair. I’ve heard other people say similiar things about baby’s heads but I’m not around a lot of newborns so I wouldn’t know.
Perhaps you mean non-scent cuddliness; in that case for me snuggly would be someone else wrapping a blanket around me. It’s one of the best feelings, really.
Both are wonderful ! And I agree about personal odor – ‘the guy’ in the post – his neck always smelled like dulce de leche. 😡
xo >-)