My First Five Perfumes
Today Marina from Perfume-Smellin’ Things and myself are waxing slightly nostalgic. We’re talking about our first five fragrances. According to her, I have a “dark, aquatic past” (oxymoron, anyone?), and, while I can’t help but agree, I will proudly say I have no regrets. I was very much a child of the 90s, completely falling for the ozone/marine trend. Below, in chronological order, are my very first five fragrances that I owned (purchased with my own hard-earned money).
Davidoff Cool Water - ozone, pineapple, melon, black currant, water lily, hawthorne, lily of the valley, jasmine, vetiver, sandal, peach, blackberry. The best oceanic floral of the 90s. Cool Water was my very first, dearly beloved perfume. I was doing student teaching at the time at the school I attended, and Cool Water was found worthy to spend my first paycheck on. It was a grown-up perfume to make a serious impression on my students (which I’m afraid failed to happen). I adored it beyond belief, and, even though I could not wear it today, I still love the fragrance.
Elizabeth Arden Sunflowers - lemon, rosewood, orange blossom, mandarin, cyclamen, rose, jasmine, orris, cedar, musk, amber, moss. Sunflowers won my heart while I was spending two summer months in England back in 1997. I couldn’t afford it right away, so I’d often frequent the Essex department stores just to steal a spritz or two. Upon my return home, once again, my first paycheck was spent on a bottle of Sunflowers. Working hard through my last year of college, Sunflowers brought to mind the sunny (meant in a figurative sense here) days of England.
Carolina Herrera 212 - bergamot, mandarin, orange blossom, gardenia, lily, sandalwood, musk. My first encounter with 212 was in a magazine strip - it was love at first sniff. The ad had a picture of New York and some cool model, from what I can remember, and the scent was the epitome of all things urban. I wanted to be urban, and I wanted to travel, and 212 made me feel very functionally chic, so I got a bottle almost immediately. When I wore it, I often pictured myself dressed up in some business suit and high heels and walking through busy streets of a foreign city (I was never to become a teacher).
Hugo Boss Hugo Woman - melon, papaya, cyclamen, apple, jasmine, lily, orris, sandalwood, benzoin, vanilla. I used to love everything by Hugo Boss - it appealed to my practical, minimalist soul. Hugo Woman was acquired in 1998 immediately before my trip to Sweden (that I paid for myself, right out of college). The scent exuded independence and freedom, in a modern, stylish kind of way. Hugo Ina Woman was very businesslike, with a certain romantic flair about it.
Oh! de Moschino - peach, apricot, bergamot, violet, rose, orris, jasmine, heliotrope, cedar, sandalwood, vanilla, amber. I clearly remember the day Oh! De Moschino was purchased. I was strolling along the streets of Riga, looking for last minute things to buy before my trip to the USA, and, to commemorate the occasion as well as embed it in my memory, I was also looking for new perfume. Oh! De Moschino struck a chord with me, with its bright fruity and floral notes and a sweet, powdery drydown. It was the beginning of a new era in my life, a very happy time, and this fragrance fit it perfectly.
Looking at this list and my favorites today, I can’t help but be amused at how greatly my taste has changed. The biggest difference, however, is the fact that today I determine what to wear, regardless of trends and/or other influences, and that’s quite an accomplishment, wouldn’t you say?
What were your first five perfumes?
36 comments December 22nd, 2006