Spring has Sprung

Well, I hope everyone had a very pleasant Mother’s Day. I sent out greetings to my friends who are moms and enjoyed seeing pictures of the Northern Lights, which apparently could be seen as far south as southern California. Unfortunately in order to see them you would have had to navigate a moderately treacherous mountain highway north of the city to escape the “light pollution” the kept is from being visible from, say, my front yard. Since there was Action McNews on the scene gleefully stating that the roads were jammed and just ripe for a catastrophic accident, I stayed in, ordered a pizza and watched “Mildred Pierce.”

Which just reminded me: a good friend of mine was for a year or so a director at one of the art-house cinemas here in LA and had the idea that for Mother’s Day they would have a special screening of MP with Joan Crawford. Her direct boss said something like “you know it’s only going to be you and your little friend in the place, but whatever..”

It was sold out. Two shows. Because who would have predicted that in West Hollywood? He didn’t last long as head of the place..

In any case, we are firmly into spring here in LA. Our last (unexpected) rain was overnight last Saturday and now we are having cool nights and warm days. Spring in California is lovely (most times are) but I do miss the Lily of the Valley that we would get in New England. I think I have often written that in our neighborhood it would pop up in patches of grass between houses and it was an unspoken rule that one mowed around them- you didn’t pick them and you certainly didn’t mow over them. (edit) I see that Cinnamon is also writing about LotV this week. No, we didn’t plan ahead, I’m riding her coattails and claiming great minds thinking alike (/edit)

Which makes me reach for some of the LotV scents I have hanging around, either as decants from Surrender to Chance or as bottles. They are (in no particular order)

Dior Diorissimo Patty calls it “the Queen” and who am I to disagree? Just beautiful even in the reformulated version you get today (the original can make you weep for what’s lost) It’s a dream of LotV, like a memory of youth. It’s a crying shame that they can’t sell the vintage formula (with the houndstooth packaging, please) with a warning label that you may get a rash or sneeze. Luckily you can still sample it at Surrender to Chance.

Floris Lily of the Valley is from nearly a century before Diorissimo but in no way seems dated. It’s very English from this very English house, but that’s no bad thing. The LotV here is supported by roses and tuberose, as if the breeze on this gentle, dewy morning was wafting some of scent of the more manicured garden up the hill from the more manicured garden over the dell with the lily of the valley in which you’re happily pausing. It’s also sending a little whiff of the less manicured hunky gardener who is tending to that garden, adding just a little welcome touch of D. H. Lawrence to the proceedings..

Commes des Garcons Series 1 Leaves: Lily I sort of think of as Robot LotV. Or holodeck (for you Trekkers) LotV. Or better yet, Synthahol (again for you Trekkers) LotV. It’s all the Lily but won’t get you drunk. I’ve had a bottle for about 15 years and though I like it I don’t think I’ve made a big dent in it.

Penhaligon’s Lily of the Valley seems, like most of the classic Penhaligon scents, to be, on the surface, straight up and simple. As English as scones with clotted cream and a linen shift. Wait a bit and you do get a bit of grass and soil. Not my fave of the LotV from Penhaligon: I actually prefer Bluebell, where, although the LotV is not the star of the show it’s definitely a scene-stealer.

Woods of Windsor LotV is almost straining truth in advertising laws: citrus, mimosa and geranium kind of swamp it, but just when you’re ready to give up the LotV pokes it’s little head out and goes “yoo hoo!” A decent bottle is like $20, so why not add it to the arsenal?

So, did you see the Northern Lights? Have a nice Mother’s Day? Have a fave LotV scent you’d like to share? Let us know in the comments.

Photos: Pexels and Wikimedia Commons