The everglades, land of green tendrils.
So I am once again stealing from taking inspiration from my cohorts here on the Posse. Cinnamon wrote about the latest Victoria Beckham, which sent me off to Surrender to Chance to order. I also added two others, but for the life of me cannot remember what was the impetus for doing so. I want to say StC recommended them, but who knows. Anyhoo…
Victoria Beckham 21:50 Reverie as I mentioned was covered (and well) by Cinnamon. I liked her other fragrances, even though I kind of didn’t want to- content as I was to just think of her as “that Spice Girl who never smiles even though she gets to see David Beckham naked whenever she wants.” Cinnamon wrote about those earlier ones here and I here, and reading about this in her review I had to try- something that weaves between vanilla cream through seaweed and turkish delight? Sign me up.
Vanilla cupcakes. Yum
What they’ve come up with is very interesting- almost subversive. I’m not going to cover the same ground Cinnamon did so well. It’s very wearable and if you don’t parse the notes you might not immediately notice that there’s something to this that is, well, twisted. Underneath all that nummy welcoming yet dainty vanilla are those tart green tendrils. They could have, perhaps even should have named this one “Hotel California” so well does it take something that is so intrinsically welcoming and comforting as vanilla and put a “Twilight Zone” twist on it. As she points out, longevity is excellent (‘you can check out anytime you like, but you can never leave”) and at $200 for 50ML I may be forced to purchase.
Can this poor girl even breathe?
Dior New Look 1947: Patty wrote about this back in the day and had the definitive take on it: “Diorrissimo and J’Adore l’Absolu met, had a two-week fling in Tahiti on a bed of tuberose and nine months later Dior New Look 1947 sprung into the world as the fruit of their lusty floral loins. The End.”
What can I add to that? It’s a very pretty tuberose that’s perfect for those who were scarred by an encounter with some big meanie in Fracas. Ms. Fracas would plug you for looking at her wrong while dainty Miss New Look could shrug off an invasion, twirl her skirt (enjoying the “whoosh” of the petticoat) and ring for more watercress sandwiches. I certainly have enough covering this territory but if you don’t, it’s worth a try. Starting at $165 for 1.3oz, at Dior Boutiques
I think I wore this in the 80’s
Serge Lutens La Proie Pour L’Ombre is of course the one that was the immediate favorite. Why not? It has a Lutens-style initial blast that is this time not off-putting, but a delicious blend of burnt caramel, candied citrus, immortelle and leather that reminds me of something that my Mom had on her vanity, but what I can’t tell you. That opening is so thick it’s almost chewy. The opening isn’t sustained- after a while it becomes a very nice leather/vanilla scent that I have to say for me is kind of a let down. This one is of course only available in one of Lutens’ black towers of spendiness, which means that you get a full 100ML but it’s $375, which I would have happily paid if it kept the dial turned up to 11, but alas..
So it seems it’s Victoria for the win, which is quite an achievement in this group.
Have you tried any of these? Want to? Discuss in the comments. My samples were from Surrender to Chance
Photos: My iPhone, Pexels, and Wikimedia Commons