Hey Perfume Posse. Yes, I’m still rifling through Jin’s cupboard and came across one of the scents that I identify with him. It’s his alone. I’ve smelt it on others but no-one wears Bombay Bling with the same easy panache as Jin. There’s something about his personal scent that makes the perfumes that suit him even more spectacular. Jin fell madly in love with it, maybe from my first sample set. It suited hime so well and since then it’s been a staple in his fragrant wardrobe. He even wore it on our wedding day. The fact that he loves Neela definitely has something to do with it but Bombay Bling won him on its own merits long before we met her.
I think it’s particularly timely to remember Neela’s earliest works with the rush of love happening for the brand new Neith. While I await its arrival in Australia I’m finding great FOMO calming in the OGs.
Bombay Bling by Neela Vermeire Creations 2012
Neela Vermeire Creations gives these featured accords:
Top: Mango, lychee, blackcurrant, cardamom, cumin
Heart: Turkish rose, jasmine sambac absolute, Madagascar ylang-ylang, tuberose, frangipani, gardenia
Base: Patchouli, tobacco, sandalwood, cedar, vanilla
That sizzling screech of super ripe fruits sings strong and uplifting like a Hallelujah chorus. It relaxes after a minute or two with the entrance of the bouquet and calming spices. As we head into the heart Bombay Bling stops being about what makes it happen but about what it is. Like a pine-lime ice cream in the marketplace, it is everything including the surrounding scents and humanity. It’s women with strings of jasmine, rose and marigold in their hair. It’s the clear air after monsoonal rain and the smell of wet earth. It’s that complete air change from walking from the marketplace into your ridiculously lavish hotel which was once a palace. It is the sparkle of gold and jewels in the entry way store and your yearning for just one more pair of earrings.
Bombay Bling is an ode to India, as are all of Neela and Bertrand Duchaufour’s works. If you want to know what India smells like in dreams then this is your best and surest portal.
Often quoted as the Drag Queen of scent Bombay Bling goes for those gloriously screeching fresh cut fruits, through florally and out the other end into an earthy, creamy woods. It’s quite the fragrant ride and one you can rarely expect to be the same over any two wears. OR on any two people. This perfume needs to be experienced on your skin to really understand how it is.
I wrote about the original three Neela Vermeire Creations on Posse a few years ago.
Did you ever smell Bombay Bling?
Portia xx
Of NVC original releases I was sure BB would be the one I adored. It turns out I had to wait for Ashoka to find the Neela I needed to own. Rahele followed. There are others I enjoy but as yet haven’t felt as I do for Ashoka.
Jin has some excellent taste I must say
Hey Alityke,
I’m biased but think Jin’s taste extraordinary too.
Ashoka! What a freaking beauty. I also love it.
Portia xx
Portia, you always write so beautifully- but never so much as when you write about Jin … and Neela.
BBling was my gateway to NVC and it’s a scent I reach for when the temps drop into double digits BELOW zero. It smells like I imagine India does ( exactly as you describe it).
But… maybe I will try it in extreme heat…
Thank you.
OOOHHH! I can’t wait to read how your wear of Bombay Bling goes in the steamy sweaty summer Musette. It blooms like a strange and exotic flower in the warmth.
Please let us know.
Portia xx
Bombay Bling is joyful!
Perfect ElizaC,
Yes, Bombay Bling is chock full of joy.
Portia xx
Oh what a wonderful review, and it makes me happy that Jin has found such a special place in his life for it! Are there particular “surprises” in what he’s fallen for? Things that make sense to you and some that seem like outliers?
Heya March,
Jin’s scent wardrobe is very eclectic. He fell madly for Muscs Koublai Khan when we had a Palais Royale Yellow Room session and is well into his second bell jar of it. He still wears CK Eternity Aqua Man, and makes it smell like top shelf niche. I was very surprised when he fell for CHANEL Cristalle Eau Verte and next week you’ll see another one that blew my mind (and bank account) here on the Posse.
Portia xx
Yes! And I love it, but it just isn’t me. It’s like a suit that isn’t cut right for me or a red with too much orange when I am a blue-blood red kind of gal.
That is a fabulous analogy Tom.
Portia xx
Wow Portia, what a beautiful review! Really a love letter to NVC and BD for their work on Bombay Bling. I think I sniffed this back when it first came out. Not really my cup of tea, but I could admire it for what it was. Sounds like Jin wears it well. How lucky!
Hey DinaC,
You know I’m a big fan of both Neela and her creations. Bombay Bling is Jin through and through, so obviously I love that too.
I think the people BB works on really well make it hard for the rest of us.
Portia xx
Beyond Eshal, Bombay Bling is my fave NVC. That opening mango note is so so good. Jin has such good taste — and a bit off the beaten path, it seems. Do his bottles live in the perfume room or with him?
I am very curious about Neith, but it’s proving difficult to get samples here.
Hello!
Thank you for your kind comment.
In Australia you can purchase our creations from nichescents.com.au
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Hi, I am in the UK and am wondering if Les Senteurs will have this.
Heya Cinnamon,
Jin has erected his own shelves at the back of his wardrobe. They are getting very full. I did not get permission to photograph that but will ask for next week.
I love that Eshal is your number one NVC. It’s a freaking triffid, and I adore it too.
Portia xx
It’s great when you find a perfume that works for you in all ways. I’m pleased for Jin. I have tried Bombay Bling and thought I would like it but didn’t. You post with the notes list just let me know why. Lychee. I tried Bombay Bling long before I realized that lychee is a note I really dislike.
I am very curious about NVC Neith. (I had forgotten about it.) Luckyscent has samples. They also have a notes list which doesn’t help me at all. I can not imagine how they will come together in this fragrance. The writeup sounds wonderful though and it is NVC!
Hey there Maya,
Yes, I think Bombay Bling shines so well on those that it works on. TBH it smells very nice on me but the difference between very nice and how it smells own Jin is light years apart.
GAH! I am so excited to wear Neith. It hasn’t arrived here yet.
Portia xx