by the ailin’ Musette
This is going to be a quickie post becauuuuse….well, I have a Really Bad Toothache and all I want to do is go to bed and wait for the ibuprophen to kick in. Who knew one could hurt bad enough to actually look forward to going to the dentist??? Thursday is the day I get this wisdom tooth yanked. Is it Thursday yet? Apparently it will take 6-7minutes. I’ll be stoned out of my mind and won’t remember a thing. He promises. One can only hope.
But!! I have to tell you about Sunday. My neighbor has hostas lining her walkway that have pretty much taken over – but she was too chicken to divide them. I am HostaQueen so I offered to divide in exchange for the divisions – problem solved. In addition to the hostas she has a host of fiddelhead ferns growing rampant around her home – and they have invaded the hostas. I don’t pay a lot of attention to ferns – most of my garden is too sunny to support them with any decency so I have few opportunities to interact with them – but on Sunday I got down and dirty with the ferns.
Wow. Fern. The first fern I dug up was so ……….GREEN. Fairytale green. Green Mansions green. Dinosaur Green. Original Green (if you now have an Atomic Dog earworm, blame George Clinton. 
I’m just the channeler )You know, we talk about ‘green’ scents all the time – and I love the greens that I have….but I don’t think I’ve smelled anything that just …well…defined GREEN like that fern. Now, part of that could be that it’d just rained and nothing amps green like a good, solid, soaking rain….but…wow. This is not a soft green – this is all black earth and life and that weird, elusive pea-y (not pee. PEA), peaty, fresh-leaf/leaf mold smell that …well, I don’t think I’ve smelled anything so primal in my life. I know that ferns have been around since the Jurassic Era (possibly earlier) and they have the look and smell of something Beyond Ancient.
And I know I haven’t ever smelled this in a bottle. To be fair, until Sunday’s chance encounter I don’t think I’d given fougeres much thought. So I don’t have a lot of fern perfumes to compare. My sample of Jovoy Fougere, which lovely and very fresh, doesn’t smell anything like that fern. Donna wrote about ferns on PST here – but her ferns are of a softer sort (great review, btw). Roger and Gallet has the eponymous Fern Perfume, which I haven’t tried….
So I throw it out to you guys – have any of you recommendations for a Jurassic Green fern perfume? Once I recover from this toothache, I’d like to start exploring that genre.
Today, I busted out Andy Tauers Carrillon pour un Ange….. and immediately thought of this post. Because the lily-of-the-valley is all there, leaves, roots, bits of moss, clumps of wet earth and sundry grasses included, as if a three-year-old had picked/ripped out a bouquet right after a rain shower. That’s some aggessive green growing vibe surrounding the LOV!
Good luck with the tooth!
I was just thinking about Penhalligons English Fern, which is pretty green and generally very ferny. But it doesn’t really have the super fresh note that I associate with green scents.
What good timing–I pulled out a bunch of ferns before opening the door when I got home tonight. They had a rather spicy, green smell to them, and oddly, it reminded me of Strange Invisible Perfume’s Musc Botanique. That has an almost sour, green smell on me–sometimes I like it, sometimes I don’t. But it really smells like those ferns!
Good luck with the tooth. Ugh. I hope you get some good drugs! (Uh, kidding. Kinda. Wisdom tooth removal hurts!)
You may be kidding – but I sure ain’t. I plan to be cooked to the gills on VItamin V going in, and then swimmering in her cousin Lady Vi, on the way out! I don’t need any more anxiety – and I sure don’t need any more pain. Soooo….Better Living Through Chemistry, here I come!
I’ll have to check out Musc Botanique. That ‘sour’ note may be persackly what I’m looking for….
xo :Devil:
Seriously. The first time I had one and actually got inside , I flipped out and wanted to know EXACTLY how they would get me out in the event of a power failure! :Afraid:
Now I make sure that my eyes are firmly closed well before I slide into the tube of doom. Cripes.
What the hay? This should have posted higher-sorry!
You do the Open, right? I couldn’t do a closed MRI if you put a gun to my head. If there was a power failure (and it was an OPEN MRI, I would probably just go to sleep. I think….
then again, I might scream until the damn thing exploded. Ya nebber know…
xo :Devil:
I completed forgot my momentary toothache pain relief hint. I’ts an acupressure technique and it really works….albeit momentarily. But there are those moments when you think you just can’t stand it another second, and performing this maneuver gives you a break.
Open your mouth slightly and press a finger firmly against the spot where your upper and lower jaws meet. It constricts the pain receptors just enough that you’ll get a moment of instant and complete relief. It may take a try or two to find the exact spot, but it does work.
It works best if you use the pressure on both sides of your face.
Teri,
Believe it or not, that is the ONE thing I did remember. Forgot the benzocaine, forgot the Oil of Cloves…forgot about the painkillers BEFORE the pain gets too stupid-bad….but I did remember that acupressure point – and you’re right. Works like a charm.
xoxoxo :Devil:
Tauer Pentachord Verdant is my rec. That’s some insane green, that one.
I’ll have to check that out!!
xo :Devil:
Yes! That’s the one that was in the back of my brain and just floated to the top a while ago. It’s got a lot of that mossy, earthy, primeval kind of vibe to it.
See, this is what I mean. I am a relatively intelligent woman – yet the pain has me so bumfuzzled that I forget about things like Oil of Cloves….and OVER THE COUNTER NUMBING AGENTS. Jeez. I have an entire cabinet full of that stuff – you’d think I would remember….
My mouth thanks you for the reminder (my head, too – it is aching from the pain)
xoxoxo :Devil:
Mouth pain is the worst because there are so many nerves in that area. At least you’ll have it over with in one shot though, unlike with a root canal. Any over-the-counter product with benzocaine in it will numb the tooth until your appointment.
For Jurassic green I’d go with Calamus. Feel better soon!
*waves hello* Galbanum essential oil comes pretty close to the smell of Jurassic green, I think (having never pulled up a fern– sliced peapods, with a little pile of pencil shavings. Very bracing.
*waves back!!!* – that galbanum EO sounds swoony!
xo :Devil:
I’m sorry that you are having trouble with your teeth. I need to have my wisdom teeth taken out. My two top ones are literally falling apart. My regular dentist said that I would need to go to an oral surgeon to get them yanked because my roots are so deep. I don’t want to know what that is gonna cost me. I can’t help you with the Jurassic green.
Crap! on the oral surgeon. Do you have insurance that can help cover it?? I hope so. Once I get this tooth taken out I am going to explore dental insurance options – my dentist said my teeth are in excellent shape but I’m not getting on nanosecond younger so I might as well have the insurance in place for, well…insurance!
Wishing you the best on that – damn shame wisdoms can’t be like our baby teeth.
xo :Devil:
I have health insurance but I’m just wondering what the copay is. I’m afraid of the dentist because one of them botched a filling and didn’t use a lot of novicaine. And I don’t want to be out of work for 2 or 3 days.
New dentist, sweetie. Get one. At this stage of our tech evolution there is no reason for a dentist to botch a filling. And PAIN? Fuggedaboutit. That’s just sloppy work. Dump him. El O ended up with a nasty infection from the local dentist. I’m dragging him to my new one.
Novocaine. Yet another Chemical Wonder!
xo :Devil:
I dumped the one that botched the filling. My new one took X-rays of my teeth and one look at them, he said flat out that I would have to go to an oral surgeon to get my wisdom teeth removed. He let me look at the X-ray and explained that I had really deep roots and the nerves around my teeth sit funny and that’s why the novocaine didn’t really work. That’s why he won’t touch my wisdom teeth with a 10 foot pole. The girl who cleaned my teeth said the doctor that he was refering me to did hers and she was out eating supper with friends that night. That made me feel a little better
that’s excellent news!! Good luck and pain-free pulling!!!
xo :Devil:
Re insurance: Most of the time, oral surgeons can be billed through your medical insurance. I needed a new splint for tmj and because I had it made through the oral surgeon, they paid. (Not counting the $60 co-pay but that’s standard now.) When I had the original one made, thorough a dentist, they didn’t pay a cent. So if you have med ins try them first.
Poor baby!! I am so sorry!! Toothaches are soooo painful! Agree you definitely need more than ibuprofen. It should be much better once he pulls the tooth; hope you get in quickly!
I don’t have a good green scent recommendations for ya. I use Celadon (Lady Primrose) bath products but they’re a pastel green smell, not the biting green I think you’re looking for. Maybe Diptyque’s Eau de Lierre? I really love Darryl’s green grass suggestion! I think that would be a great green smell, staying ever clear of the Coast soap direction.
Wish you a quick, easy dental visit! Hope you are much better sooooon!!
I LOVE Coast soap.
Just not in a perfume. Or on me, either. Except every once in awhile, if the summer is just scorching, I fall back in love with it – but only after a long morning or afternoon spent pulling weeds in the garden, when I am so icky-stinky that even the dogs won’t come near me! Of course, Coast obliterates any other scent for miles around, like a blast radius.
xo :Devil:
Ouch! Try putting some oil of cloves on a cotton ball and dabbingthe area, then biting down on it. Cloves oil is great for toothaches. And, the happy gas is indeed very happy stuff! Hey, maybe they should allow you to scent it with your favourite analgesic scent? In case that’s my million dollar idea, remember you heard it here first! :Wink: Can’t really help with the Jurassic green scent, sorry
Oooh! I forgot about Oil of Cloves, too! Lord. What would I do without you guys? Really. I’m like some lost puppy, running around, totally distracted with pain and irritation – so the basics (like OoC and remembering to take painkillers BEFORE the pain sets in)….just completely blanked…
I am wondering what scent to wear? I’m thinking Neela Vermeire’s Mohur, which I’m going to review…..it has some lovely, calming properties…
xo :Devil:
I’m glad to jog your memory of clove oil! It is amazing how discombobulated pain can make you isn’t it? Mohur does indeed sound wonderful, I’m looking forward to hearing your take on it.
I might choose A Taste of Heaven for the glorious lavenders- it worked in the VERY confined MRI machine the other day so I would stick with a known entity. :Pleasure:
OMG! The Dread MRI. I had to get an MRI for shoulder work and, as usual, wasn’t really paying attention the first time…when they showed me the machine and described it (it was open but, like I said, NOT PAYING ATTENTION). I just swanned in there….they rolled me in…and I flipped right the hell OUT, like a puppy with a vacuum cleaner! Once they got me out I walked around the machine, sniffed it (to make sure it wouldn’t attack me)….saw (ACTUALLY LOOKED AND SAW) the opening at the other end…then I was able to get back on the slab and slide in. Hoped to have erotic visions of Howie Long and The Rock but all that noise made me think of The Killing Fields. Yuck.
xo :Devil:
Oh poor girl. You seem to have held on to your wisdom teeth, the way I did. My dentist wanted to take them out years ago, but I held on, til they hurt. I had one taken out because it became infected. I thought I would have one out every time I gained a few lbs, as it isn’t very comfortable to eat after oral surgery (also, because my oral surgeon is quite hot, and I would get to make extra visits). Dr. Jeff didn’t think that was an appropriate form of weight control, so when the next one began to hurt, he removed the remaining 3 in one go. It wasn’t bad at all. He put me completely out. It was actually almost pleasant. You will definitely need more than ibuprofen, tho, and make sure you take your painkillers before the pain sets in. Good luck, Anita. You’ll be fine 🙂
We must’ve been separated at birth, sweetie!!! I thought the PERSACK same thing!!! I can manage breakfast but the rest of the day is devoted to tepid tea – I’m surprised I’m not back to a size 8! LOL! yah, right…..
thanks for the reminder about the painkillers – I always forget that, to my dismay!
xoxo :Devil:
You won’t feel a thing. Harry had to have an extraction on New Year’s Eve of a Wisdom Tooth, and he hates the dentist and put it off until he was in so much pain. They gave him some happy gas, he didn’t feel anything, he was giggling all the way through it.
I have those ferns in a shady spot in my backyard with the hostas, and I love them. I’m trying to think of scents that are really green, but that’s not my normal love in perfume, green scents, so I can’t help ya!
but good luck! :In-pain:
I actually did the reverse of Harry – and I’m so glad I did. I cracked this tooth awhile back but didn’t give it much thought because it was a filled wisdom tooth, etc…and I figured, ‘what the heck” (so I actually did the SAME as Harry, I guess (blushes)…but then logic prevailed and I figured I’d better a) find a dentist (am NOT going to go back to Chicago for dentistry – that’s just absurd. One goes to Chicago for PERFUME) b) make sure this wasn’t something bordering on serious. And c) SUCK IT UP AND GET IT TAKEN CARE OF!
I’m feeling very virtuous. 😀
xoxo :Devil:
I hope your toothache gets taken care of quickly, it must be so painful. And anything in your head just totally takes over. I have never had toothache, thank god, but I do remember having otitis as a child. It was the worst pain I ever suffered.
I like the fact that perfume takes priority over dentistry in your life. That is the way it should be!
I love green scents and will name some of my favourites:
Parfums de Nicolaï; Weekend à Deauville
Jacomo; Silences
Diptyque: Virgilio
And the usual suspects, 19, Cristalle, Envy and the CdG Laurel.
Oooh, poor baby, so sorry you are hurting. Hope all will be better soon. Haven’t smelled a green quite that intense, but it prompts me to go poking around in the perfume stash. Hang in there!
Before you do, go poking around some ferns! It will blow your mind.
xoxoxoxo :Devil:
Musette, when you said “toothache,” my first thought was, OUCH – there goes the perfume budget! Fortunately, this should be RELATIVELY inexpensive, at least. Hope you feel better soon!
I love Diptyque L’Ombre dans L’Eau, which has a lot of green. There’s also CdG Monocle Laurel. Not familiar with fiddleheads, so I don’t know if these are the right greens or not, but they smell great! Oh, and of course there is also Miller et Bertaux Green, green and green. Please let us know if you find something that conjures this prehistoric green!
I lucked out – found a fabulous dentist and the tooth cooperated by being an expendable wisdom tooth – the whole thing will cost less than a bottle of Beloved. But it still sucks because if I didn’t have to pay for the tooth I would be 75% of the way towards a bottle of Beloved. But at least I don’t have to sell a kidney to pay for this.
xo :Devil:
I loved the original Vent Vert and Ma Griffe. I like green, but can’t think offhand of any ferny scents I might have. Will have to go and smell some ferns this weekend–we have lots. We also have lots of hostas, which the deer reduce to the appearance of celery every year mid-June.
So sorry about the tooth, dearest, and hope it’s all better soon.
Deer. ugh. Pretty, but destructive. I’m so glad we put up a 6′ fence. Unusual in a rural town but between the Rottweilers, the weird neighbors and the deer…..
Vintage Vent Vert – that was one of my most beloved fragrances, back in The Day. sigh.
xo :Devil:
Hi, doll, so sorry about that tooth! I know tooth pain can be excruciating. Hope all goes well on Thursday.
I don’t have any fern scent recs to share, but your post makes me want to seek some out. My neighborhood is old and shady, and there are several houses w/fiddleheads all around. My house is one of those shady bungalow grandma types perfect for ferns; wonder why we don’t have any? I didn’t know you could divide hostas in the spring. I keep meaning to get some bcs shady house and all.
xx
If you have a wet spring you can divide hostas, easy. Or if you’re willing to water them nonstop for a week or two, while they reconsider their situation. I divide hostas pretty much anytime that isn’t the dead of summer (and we know winter is out of the question in our neck of the woods 😀 Like most of Nature, hostas are predisposed to survival, so they will just jam down deeper – even if they get all shocky at the top for a little while, they come back with renewed vigor.
xoxo :Devil:
They’re not exactly ferny (I don’t know anything that captures that sweet-woody-Jurassic Park smell of crushed ferns), but I’d say the greenest things I’ve sampled are: Annick Goutal’s Ninfeo Mio, Profumum Ichnusa, Diptyque Philosykos, and Tauer Pentachord Verdant.
Toothaches. Agh. The stoned-out-of-your mind part sounds great … modern anaesthetics are marvelous.
Better living through Chemistry!!!
And I totally forgot about Ninfeo Mio – that is some GREEN there!!!
xo :Devil:
Here’s a second to Ninfeo Mio. I’ve been wearing the heck out of that recently. It brings some much needed verdancy to our high desert dryness.
I LURVE that deep Jurassic ferny/loamy/peaty/mossy green. If I were a dog, that’s the stuff I’d roll in.
Surely there are perfumers that read this blog and equally surely, you can see there’s a void here, since none of us can think of a spot on scent. Heck, we’ve even given you the name….Jurassic Green. C’mon now, create us a little sumpin.
Toothaches are awful. You poor thing. I know how bad you feel, I’ve been there myself. Hope the ibuprofen helps.
I have no serious green scents so I don’t think I can help you there. I like green, just haven’t seemed to add any to the collection. I will say that ferns have popped up in my yard in some areas that get a bit of sun so take some from your friend and give them a try. I am shocked at where they are growing so you might’ve surprised to see you can grow them too.
I do have a couple of ferns in a sunnier place but they get all burned and dessicated-looking. When I say sun…I mean SUN! That’s why I can grow tomatoes and peppers like nobody’s biz but have to row-cover my brassicae and lettuces. It can hit 100F in the summer. The ones in the side garden seem happy (same direction as the ferns I just unearthed)
I love your dog’s glasses, btw!!!
xo :Devil:
Oh, that would be too much sun. You’re right.
Thanks! Stanley was a good sport to pose with the Dame Edna glasses. It’s amazing what they will do for a treat. If only my hubby was that easy to motivate.
sigh. tell me about it!
xo :Devil:
Go to your nearest LUSH shop and get a sniff of their Grass shower gel…or as I call it, the greenest green that ever greened. Imagine an eye-searingly bright day in July, mercury threatening to burst out of the glass. Your next-door neighbor is cutting his lawn, and the smell of fresh cut grass permeates the air. Now amplify that smell times a thousand, darken it with some wood and musk notes, and bottle it. That’s Grass. It is divine. You will thank me.
I am thanking you already! What a great description!!!
xo :Devil:
I will second that recommendation. It’s the most aptly named shower gel I’ve ever stumbled across. Amazing stuff.
Oh and I hope you get relief for your toothache soon! I had an impacted tooth last year and it was honestly more painful than giving birth. Do take care.
it’s …..stunning (I think that’s the word best describes it)…I have powered through torn/broken/busted ‘other’ parts of my body…but this toothache (and it’s not anywhere near the pain of an impacted tooth, I’m glad to say)….it’s just got me unable to focus. Once the Ibup kicks in it’s okay but in the interim….
xoxo 👿
Have you tried clove oil for your toothache?
Fiddleheads are edible and one of those yummy forest finds along with morels and wild ramps. Fiddleheads with brown butter and prosciutto is divine.
I had a little eensy weensy sample of Coty’s vintage La Fougeraíe au Crépusculeis that I adored. I was just thinking about reordering, so thanks for the push. 🙂 I like really good fougere scents and like you I like hostas and all things green and growning in my garden. I was making peach/jalapeno jam last week and liked the pepper scent on my skin but haven’t been able to find a perfume that plays with jalapeno.
You are in luck, Joanna: L’AP Piment Brulant has a brilliant jalapeno pepper accord!
nozknoz, I’ve actually never sampled that one! Thanks for the heads up!
I love those little fiddleheads but confess to never going into forests to forage for anything. Years ago I came across a snake whilst pulling weeds – nobody special, just a little corn snake – but we were both quick shocked. I love ramps but wait for my farmer to bring them to me. Around here, folks are big on morel hunting, with tales of wolf spiders the size of their hand, etc….true or not, it’s yet another reason for this chickenheart to stay out of the undergrowth!!
xox :Devil: