Hilary Duff With Love – mangosteen fruit, exotic spice blend, chai latte, mangosteen blossoms, cocobolo wood, amber milk, amber musk, balsam, incense. Quite a notable addition to the new releases, especially celebrity fragrances. What makes it stand apart is simply the fact it will actually stay in your memory as opposed to sniff and forget (SAF – a new abbreviation to our perfume jargon!) It’s excellently blended, and I particularly enjoy its milky-sweet, slightly bitter woody-ambery accord that’s somewhat reminiscent of woody flour/powder of Bois Farine by L’Artisan Parfumeur.
Paul Smith Story – grapefruit, bergamot, ivy, vetiver, jasmine, green rose, musk, amber, cedar. Marina did an excellent review of Story, and all I can add is the nerdy-looking fella on the perfume ad must be reading his books in some futuristic, open air library. There’s absolutely no way this smells like books, old or new. Instead, it’s a rather linear, airy vetiver-citrus blend that actually reminds me of Cologne by Thierry Mugler.
Jo Malone Napa Leather – napa leather, sandalwood, vetiver, amber, hints of rosemary, cardamom, black pepper. Speaking of libraries, this cologne is supposed to evoke images of an old study and “old-world elegance”. Excuse me, who left all the windows open, and why does it smell like ocean? Sigh. This could have been really, really good had they not ruined it by adding way too much aquaticism (another jargon word – abuse of aquatic/marine notes).
CB I Hate Perfume Musk – not sure on the notes here but if it was up to me, it’d be blue cheese, acetone, and smoke. Stinky (really stinky), and animalic all right. Besides, the scent has been received with a fair bit of controversy on perfume blogs – you either love it or hate it, there’s no in-between. Part of me just really wants to stay in the neutral territory (I haven’t tried layering it with anything else yet which works out great, I hear), and part of me loathes it with a passion. It does, however, sort of calm down on your skin to the point of actually being tolerable and borderline appealing in a weird kind of way.
Lorenzo Villoresi Alamut – osmanthus, rose, jasmin, rosewood, narcissus, tuberose, ylang ylang, orange blossom, labdanum, amber, musk, sandalwood, patchouli, benzoin, leather. A rather dense spicy oriental, along the lines of Guerlain’s Samsara or Hermes Rouge, with a prominent jasmine, rose, ylang-ylang, and sandalwood accord. Luxurious and warm like a cashmere shawl. I quite like it and would gladly own a bottle if I had some dollars to spare.
Have you sniffed anything new lately? Please share!
October 11th, 2006
You might have noticed, I like to do Featured Shops posts once in a while as I find it fascinating to get to know the people behind the business, especially fragrance etailers. You might also have noticed, there’s a Shopping page on this blog where you can find listings of beauty/fragrance boutiques nationwide, by state. Part of the reason I decided to create the page was an incident I had once when I lived in Minnesota. One time I was doing an onilne search for Fragonard retailers and quite accidentally came across a shop in the Twin Cities that carried the line. I drove there one sunny May afternoon, unsure of what to expect. Great was my surprise when I discovered an amazing little boutique with tons of niche, hard to find lines. I had no idea such a shop existed, and I can guarantee it’s the only shop in the entire state of Minnesota that carries such assortment. To make a long story short, I hope the Shopping page will help you find shops like that in your area!
Today’s featured shop is B-glowing, an online boutique for skincare/beauty/fragrance. A brief interview with its founder, Lisa James:
1. How did B-glowing come about? What was your career before that?
I worked in television advertising helping produce tv ads for advertisers like Nike, Coke for about 15 years. I always knew I wanted to work for myself. I’ve been a beauty junkie my entire life and it made sense to do what I love while sharing my passion. On-line was the obvious because I wanted to start the company while I still worked in advertising. I managed both jobs for about 2 years before resigning and working for b-glowing full time this past January.
2. How do you select the lines you carry?
I look for superior performance and great packaging helps. Mostly it is just a gut feeling that tells me whether it fits into the b-glowing portfolio. It should compliment a beauty catalog that is fun and hip, yet still sophisticated.
3. What are your favorite products?
At the moment, Yosh Ginger Ciao, Crazylibellule & The Poppies Blue Orchidee, LaLicious (I love every product and scent!) and of course Apivita is a great staple.
4. What are your hobbies/interests?
I love traveling! My favorite trip was a few years ago when I spent 2 weeks in Fiji . I love to get away as much as possible, even if it’s just a 3 day weekend down in Sun River , Oregon . When I’m not traveling I love hanging out with my boyfriend, dog and friends eating great food and drinking great wine! Oregon has a bounty of amazing restaurants and wineries.
5. Does B-glowing have a brick & mortar store?
Not at the moment. We’re undecided whether we want to move in that direction. We’ll decide in the next couple years. If we do build a brick and mortar, of course Portland will have to be our flagship store.
6. What are your current best-selling perfumes?
Kai, La Maison de la Vanille, Crazylibellule and L’Aromarine.
7. What lines that you carry are under-appreciated, in your opinion?
Tisserand Aromatherapy from the UK . It’s super affordable and intensely rich in essential oils. Also, Belli. Their eye gel and body lotion are some of the best I’ve used. The bonus is they are 100% natural, but you’d never know it because they are super effective beauty products.
8. Do you have favorite perfumes besides the ones you carry? What are they?
Yes, Jo Malone! I can’t get enough of them. My absolute favorite is French Lime & Blossom. The scent is intoxicating to me.
October 11th, 2006