Smells Like a Monday - Souvenirs of Italy

I went to Italy for two weeks at the end of October, and even the smallest towns there had little perfumery shops. It was much easier to find pretty perfumes - and lots of selection - than in some American cities I've visited. Given the huge fragrance displays in the local pharmacies and the presence of perfume shops on what seemed like every other street in even the smaller towns I visited, I got the impression that fragrance plays a larger part in daily life over there. As someone who doesn't feel entirely put together until I've spritzed on a little something, I completely agree with this approach!




I was already familiar with Dolce & Gabbana, Gianfranco Ferre, Ferragamo and some of the other major designers' perfume lines, so when browsing for goodies to bring home, I didn't linger long at those counters. I instead kept an eye out for lines that are harder to find back home. In a small town in Tuscany, a local perfumery carried the I Profumi di Firenze line. If you ever have a chance to try these scents, do so! They are beautifully made and while they are much less expensive in Italy, they are also available in the United States via Beautyhabit. After sampling the wares, I ended up with a bottle of Talco Delicato. I've worn this scent before and it's still one of my favorites from the line.

I've seen Talco Delicato described as a musky vanilla scent, which would make one expect something much heavier than it actually it. The name really says it best. Talco Delicato is a very warm and feminine scent that has a powdery aspect to it, but without making one feel as though one is smothering in a cloud of talc. I find this scent elegant and incredibly graceful. It drifts over the wearer and just settles in naturally. With its warmth, it's a perfect scent for fall and winter.



My next fun stop was at Santa Maria Novella in Florence. Known officially as Oficina Profumo Farmaceutica di Santa Maria Novella, this pharmacy has been open to the public since 1612. In addition to selling a variety of fragrant colognes (Zagara, or orange blossom, being one of my favorites), Santa Maria Novella also sells a variety of luxurious soaps, home fragrances, and skincare products. Many of their recipes are based upon those developed by Dominican friars around the 13th century, and the Domincans actually owned and ran the business for several centuries before it went into private hands.

The pharmacy is housed in an ornately decorated old building and it takes up several large rooms. Given the enormous crowds on the day I was there, they needed it! I didn't end up with any new perfumes for myself, but I did buy several of their milk-based soaps to give as gifts. The soaps are strongly fragranced and smell absolutely beautiful. I got some in carnation and some that are jasmine scented. They are blending beautifully in my sweater chest until time to wrap them for Christmas.



Throughout my travels, I noticed that almost every pharmacy or midlevel perfume shop had plenty of shelving devoted to a brand called L'Erbolario. I had seen a few of these scents in the United States, but I have no real familiarity with them. Given that the company makes perfumes with matching bath/body products, it made me think of something along the lines of Crabtree and Evelyn here at home. Every time I saw a display, I took a few minutes to try various scents. Oh my goodness, the variety!

Many of the scents were soliflores (based around a single flower), but some of the flowers were ones that I had never seen scents for before, such as Acacia, which turned out to be soft and rather sweet. They also make various citrus scents and a neroli(blossom of the bitter orange tree) scent. The Italians seem to love their orange blossom! Almost every line, whether high end or not, seemed to have an orange blossom cologne or neroli scent of some type.

After trying many, many fragrances from L'Erbolario's seemingly endless list, I settled on Fiori Chiari as my last fragrant souvenir of the trip. It has notes of lily, rose, peony, lily of the valley and various fruits. This scent smells of green grassiness and light blooming flowers. It's the perfume equivalent of walking in a sunny breeze, and I suspect I'll be wearing it a lot in the spring. Even though I visited Italy in the fall, this scent really captured for me the essence of how I felt on my favorite day of the trip, which would be the day my friends and I hiked through hills in Tuscany on a bright sunny day when the light made everything look unbelievably green.

And to bring it all back to Virginia, I discovered over Thanksgiving that L'Erbolario now has a US distributor, and this distributor is based in Charlottesville, VA! You can find the complete L'Erbolario line in the USA at Londons. They have a shop in Charlottesville (love it!) and a website complete with Cyber Monday deals. If you're interested in L'Erbolario, Londons has set up a dedicated website and those products can be found here.

Smells Like a Monday - 20 Best Ever Perfumes

As I caught up on my blog reading today, I saw a feature over at Perfume Shrine talking about an article in the Daily Mail which purports to list the 20 best perfumes of all time. I realize that scent preferences are a very individual thing, but I just don't agree with the list. The scents listed in the article are:

1. Chanel No. 5
2. Shalimar
3. L'Air du Temps
4. Joy
5. Poison
6. Eau Dynamisante
7. J'Adore
8. Blue Grass
9. Je Reviens
10. Jean Paul Gautier Classique
11. Opium
12. Angel
13. CKOne
14. Anais Anais
15. Jo Malone Lime, Basil and Mandarin
16. Rive Gauche
17. DKNY
18. Coco Mademoiselle
19. Beautiful
20. Youth Dew


Most of these are scents that have sold millions of bottles, so I wouldn't be surprised to see them on a bestsellers of all time list. However, I don't think that these are the best 20 scents that perfumery has ever had to offer. My own personal 20 best list would be:

1. Laura Ashley No. 1 - now discontinued, but one of the most delicate, polished florals I've ever worn. Of scents available today, Santa Maria Novella Angels of Florence probably comes closest.

2. Coty Chypre -Nearly 100 years ago, this perfume launched an entire category of perfumery called chypres. It too is discontinued, but I've smelled vintage bottles of this scent and it was amazing.

3.Guerlain Mitsouko - One of the most sophisticated and beautifully crafted chypre scents out there

4. Guerlain Shalimar - It's not really "me", but this oriental scent truly is a classic and if you like orientals, it's one of the great ones.

5. 4711 cologne - This scent has been around since the 18th century, and remains probably THE classic citrus cologne. I love Eau Imperiale dearly, but I do have to give this one the edge.



6. Je Reviens - I'll agree with the Daily Mail on this one. It's soft, feminine and beautifully crafted.

7. Quelques Fleurs - One of the oldest multifloral perfumes (i.e. doesn't simply focus on the scent of a single flower); It was launched in 1912 and women still wear it today.

8. Dioressence - I know that Opium gets all the attention, but frankly I think this oriental which came out around the same time is much better made. It's been reformulated since then (sadly), but still deserves a mention.

9. Chanel No. 5 - Yes, this one is a classic and deservedly so. It's probably the most famous aldehydic floral of all time and has been loved(and imitated) for many years.

10. Joy - Another one that belongs on the Daily Mail list. Again, it's not really "me", but this rose-jasmine powerhouse has definitely been famous for a reason for all these decades.



11. Ivoire de Balmain - I've come across many aldehydic green florals that came out in the 1960s - early 1980s Some are better crafted than others, but this green floral which starts off sharply green before drying down into a heart of roses and white flowers is probably my favorite.

12. Crown Rose - Sadly discontinued but this is an amazing rose scent. It starts off very rosey and then dries down into a resinous sandalwood base

13. Estee Lauder Pleasures - Trendy fresh florals are sometimes maligned, but I think this one is wonderfully blended.

14. Creed Fleurissimo - This was created for Grace Kelly and she wore it on her wedding day. One of the most polished sweet white floral scents I've ever tried!

15. Estee Lauder White Linen - This is another amazing aldehydic floral. It's fresh, polished and really well done. Whenever I smell Charlie, I keep thinking that it WISHES it could be this perfume.



16. Chanel No. 19 - No. 5 gets the lion's share of attention, but this green perfume is amazing, too. It manages to be both feminine and yet give off a very no-nonsense, powerful vibe.

17. Annick Goutal L'Eau d'Hadrien - I'm usually not into the unisex scents, but this cologne has an understated polish that definitely makes it classic in my book.

18. Caron Nuit de Noel - Another classic wonder - this one from the 1920s. This scent is very polished, but with an undercurrent of darkness and mystery to it. I love to wear it to midnight service on Christmas Eve as it fits to unfathomable wonder of the occasion very well.

19. Robert Piguet Fracas - This 1944 creation is a bigtime attention getter. There are several big tuberose scents out there, but this one is the best, I think. It has just enough green to tone down the big florals so as not to overwhelm everyone around the wearer. A great party scent!

20. Guerlain L'Heure Bleue - This floral with the powdery drydown came out in 1912 and is deservedly still in circulation. It does have a faintly old-fashioned vibe to it, and I love the powdery drydown. There's a melancholy, bittersweet air to this one that just gets me. And as with most of the older Guerlain classics, the craftsmanship is impeccable.

Smells Like a Monday #9 - Kai

Yes, I know. I've been bad and not posted regularly for the past few weeks. Such is the craziness of my work life. However, it's the last Monday before Labor Day and there's one summer perfume I want to mention before we head into fall. Kai is not too heavy, but it pretty much screams tropics to me. It's a beautiful white floral that comes in oil form. There is now a spray version, but the oil is heavenly, so I can't imagine not wanting to use the original. Favored by a diverse group of stars from Reese Witherspoon to Maria Shriver, Kai is a sweetly tropical floral with notes of gardenia, jasmine, tuberose and lily.


This is perfect floral to wear with your own Lilly. Though the notes make this sound like an almost overpowering floral, it really isn't. It starts off sweet, clear and a little greenish. As the oil warms up on skin, it gets to be more floral and less green, but it stays relatively close to the skin. The tropical prints on the clothes and the beautiful rich tropical notes of the scent blend together perfectly. So, before Labor Day passes us by, I say it's time to pull out a cute Lilly Pulitzer dress and a dab for Kai for one last summer cookout.


Kai is available at a number of shops. I've seen it in several cute little boutiques, but I most often order it from Luckyscent or Beautyhabit. Partially, I like the convenience of not having to drive to Richmond or Charlottesville for it, and I also love the great customer service at Luckyscent and especially Beautyhabit.

Smells Like a Monday #8 - Guerlain Boutique at Epcot

As I mentioned in my last post, I spent most of last week down in Florida. While I was there, I got a chance to slip away and play at Epcot. Even though it was ridiculously hot and my sunglasses steamed up the moment I stepped out of the hotel, I had a blast! The food in the international pavilions is fantastic, and I had fun on the rides. If you're ever there, I highly recommend Soarin. I really did feel like I was flying!

And what does any of this have to do with perfume? Well, the venerable perfume house of Guerlain has its largest US boutique right in the middle of the French pavilion at Epcot. And on a fine sunny day last week, I got to spend a fun morning in it.

Most people best know Guerlain for its classic Shalimar, launched in 1925 and still very popular today. However, this perfume house has been around since 1828 and is one of the oldest perfume houses in the world. They have created more than 300 scents and many hold them in high esteem.

Guerlain is one of my very favorite houses, so when I stepped into the pavilion and saw their round, three-tiered table of perfume bottles sitting in the center of the floor, I felt a little thrill of excitement. First I visited some of my old favorites such as Eau Imperiale, Chant d'Aromes and Mitsouko. Then I found myself testing the scents I've never owned or never tried. There was the bracing clean scent of Vetiver pour Elle, the happy lemony freshness of Eau de Fleurs de Cedrat and the mysterious sophistication of Vol de Nuit (I want!).

The ladies at the shop are French and have trained at the flagship boutique in Paris. They were very helpful, and I enjoyed discussing the history of various scents with them. In the end, since it has been so very hot, I decided that my souvenir of Epcot would have to be something a little lighter. One of the ladies there brought out a bottle of a scent that she said was originally inspired by the gardens at Epcot and had been exclusive to this location until spring 2010. As soon as I tried this one on, I knew it would be perfect. It smelled of white flowers and honey on my skin and was pretty without being overpowering. And it was:

Flora Nymphea!

Flora Nymphea is a new scent in the Aqua Allegoria line, a limited edition line that Guerlain adds to each year to celebrate different scents found in nature such as rose, anise, mint, etc.. This scent has a little citrus to lighten it, but mostly I smelled orange blossom and honey as it settled into my skin. It's a soft floral and very wearable. And if you're interested in wearing Flora Nymphea yourself, you no longer have to go to Paris or Epcot to get it. It can be found at select Guerlain counters or ordered from here. I had a wonderful trip, but I'm glad to be home.

Smells Like a Monday #7 - Lancome Peut-Etre

When most people think of Lancome, they tend to think of Tresor (I swear I smelled that one everywhere from high school through law school), or possibly of the more recent Hypnose or Miracle. However, Lancome has in recent years reintroduced some of their vintage scents or, in the case of Peut-Etre, retooled versions of vintage scents.

The original Peut-Etre was released in 1937 and has been described as featuring rose, lily and linden - sounds like a very feminine floral to me. For the 2008 re-release, perfumer Nathalie Lorson has, according to Now Smell This, added lilac as well as an amber and musk base. I expect that this base would add strength as well as warmth to the original.

I've only ever worn the modern version of this scent (would that I could try the original!), but it's still a beautiful one. On my skin, I got a soft, warm floral. It definitely smelled rosy, but I could tell other flowers were in there, too. Some reviewers have complained that the amber/musk base dominated things for them, but I did not find this to be the case at all. Perfumes can smell very different on different people due to skin chemistry, and Peut-Etre is one that works well on me. It's a sweet rose-jasmine floral on me, and actually rather subtle.

This lovely scent can be difficult to find, but the La Collection scents from Lancome are generally available at both Saks and Nordstrom. They also show up periodically on EBay and decants are available at The Perfumed Court. It's definitely worth trying if you get a chance. On me, Peut-Etre is both a subtle scent and a meltingly feminine one.

Smells Like a Monday #6 - Bronnley Lily

It seems like everyone I know both online and offline is going on vacation lately. I don't go until October, so I'm spending my summer enjoying sunny locales vicariously. All this travel made me think back on one of my favorite destinations - London. I've been there twice, and I absolutely love that city. Samuel Johnson reputedly said, "When a man is tired of London, he is tired of life." And indeed, there are so many different kinds of lives in London, that I have never yet tired of exploring that city. I enjoy New York for much the same reason, but London has so many more centuries of history and as a history buff, my brain feels so engaged while I'm there.

And what in the world does this have to do with perfume, you may ask? Well, last time I was in London, I noticed many shops from small gift shops to larger department stores carrying the Bronnley line. Bronnley was founded in London in 1884 as a soapmaker, and their high-quality soaps were very popular. The company is known for using relatively high amounts of almond oil and other natural ingredients in their soaps and toiletries, and they are definitely a cut above most I've tried. They currently hold royal warrants as soapmakers to the Queen and to the Prince of Wales.



The scents tend to be simple, but very pretty. I liked the soaps and I have enjoyed layering lightly scented bath gel, lotion and perfume since I was a teenager. After sniffing my way through the various Bronnley scents, I settled on the Lily. This is a very simple, clear and sweet lily scent. There's not a lot of depth or nuance to it, but it is very pretty. I've used up the lotion already but I still have my eau de toilette left, and on a hot day it's very welcome.



The Lily has recently been discontinued by Bronnley, but I did see some still available at FrenchMaison on EBay, and while they are out of perfume, a number of the Lily bath products are still available at Bronnley USA online. You can also find all kinds of other Bronnley goodies at the online shop in a variety of other scents(the Apricot and Almond is very nice) in case you want to try Bronnley soaps without ever leaving home!

Smells Like a Monday#5 - Eau Imperiale

Guerlain is one of my very favorite perfume houses, and since I haven't talked about any of their scents yet, I figured I'd fix that little omission. Eau Imperiale(also known as Eau de Cologne Imperiale) is the first Guerlain I ever wore, and it's still very dear to me. I discovered it in law school. Someone in my legal clinic wore it, and I thought it smelled refreshing and hopelessly sophisticated all at the same time. So, of course I had to try it.

What followed was a comedy of errors as I went to our local Belk and asked the saleslady for Eau Imperiale. She gave me a rather incredulous look and stated, "But that's a men's perfume." Seriously, from the look on her face, you would think I asked for Eau de Litterbox. I felt a little less certain of myself by this time, but I still troddled off to the men's department and found a tester of Eau Imperiale.

Just as I recalled, it was total bliss in a bottle. While I could see a confident, sophisticated man rocking this scent, it is also quite feminine. The citrus and floral notes blend together to give it a refreshing crispness that reminds me of every determined, clever and slightly old-fashioned heroine I ever met in fiction. Not a bad image for meeting the world head on.


Eau Imperiale is an oldie but a goodie. It has been in production since 1853, and was created by the House of Guerlain in honor of France's Empress Eugenie. It contains notes of bergamot, orange blossom, lemon, petitgrain and neroli. Though not mentioned in the official description, I also detect what I think may be rosemary in this one. It's a beautiful floral citrus, and it's the sort of light scent that is almost impossible to overdo. It's perfect to wear to work or simply relaxing on the weekend. And isn't the iconic Guerlain bee bottle lovely?

Smells Like a Monday #4 - America

In honor of Independence Day, I had to choose a perfume with some all-American, patriotic quality about it. America, a scent by Perry Ellis, immediately came to mind. Launched on the 4th of July in 1996, this scent was designed to pay tribute to the independence of the United States of America. In her book Fabulous Fragrances II, Jan Moran describes America as a "casual scent" and discusses how the perfumer gathered materials from all over the United States and blended them into one lovely perfume. In addition, to support the environments from which the materials came, the packaging is all made of recycled material.

This fragrance is indeed very casual. It's the perfect thing to wear with jeans or khakis while cooking out or simply running errands around town. The notes are listed as Texas ruby red grapefruit, lilacs from the Carolinas, freesia from East Hampton, Alaska blueberry, California nectarine, yucca flowers, honeysuckle, iced tea, lily, Virginia cedarwood, Hawaiian vanilla flower, redwood, plum and musk. I believe this scent is no longer in active production, but I've seen it at outlet mall discounters and it can also be found fairly easily in online shops such as Perfume Emporium or Parfum1.



This scent is not heavy by any means and it has a chameleon quality that I admire. Somehow it manages to be floral, spicy and a little bit fruity all at the same time. When I first apply it, the hint of southern sweet tea is the first thing I notice. It really smells like I'm having sweet tea on my aunt's porch, and I can smell the tea as well as the scents from her garden wafting in and out. As the scent warms up on my skin, I catch more floral notes and a bit of the cedarwoood with just a hint of sweetness underlying it all. If you like to have something that is undemanding and easy to wear, this one is good to have in your wardrobe.



I hope everyone had a happy 4th of July!

Smells Like a Monday #3 - Un Lys

I've written about lilies of the valley and Diorissimo. Now for lilies, and one of my very favorite lily scents. My perfume this morning is a little more obscure, but very lovely. One will not find it at Sephora or perfume counters everywhere, but it's worth the search. Un Lys, made by Serge Lutens, is a lily soliflore (scent focused on a single fragrance note) that has a clear and luminous quality about it.

Serge Lutens is more well-known as master of darker and more unusual scents, but with Un Lys, it is clear that this perfume house can do florals beautifully as well. When condensed down to its notes, the perfume sounds deceptively simple - lilies, green leaves, musk and vanilla. However, the perfumer has blended it so well that one cannot help noticing how polished it seems. It just seems to drift over one gently while being worn and I find the clarity of the lilies quite surprising. There's a certain crispness to it that keeps the floral notes from being too sweet or smothering.

As you can probably guess, Un Lys is a very feminine scent, but I wouldn't describe it as frilly or girly. It has too much polish for that. Serge Lutens scents are notorious for being difficult to find as many from the line are available only in Europe. However, Un Lys has been given limited release in the United States and can be found at Luckyscent. You can also buy samples and smaller decants of this one at The Perfumed Court.



I find Un Lys one of those rare scents that works both for day and for evenings out. I wear it to work a lot, particularly in the spring. It matches well with things like my wedgwood blue skirt suit. And it's also pretty for weddings or evening events with a pretty dress like this one from J. Crew:



Hope everyone has a lovely Monday!

Smells Like a Monday #1 - Diorissimo

I love perfumes and perfumery, so I've decided that every Monday I'll write a little bit about a scent that I love. For my first entry, I've chosen a real classic - Christian Dior's Diorissimo. This perfume was launched in 1956. It's been reformulated a few times, but still smells absolutely lovely. This one is a creation of legendary perfumer Edmond Roudnitska, whom Helg discusses here far better than I ever could, and is one of the best lily of the valley scents out there. It's been beloved of debutantes and brides for generations, and was reportedly a favorite of Princess Diana.

Though lily of the valley is the main thing most of us smell when wearing Diorissimo, it actually has a rather complex formula of notes. In addition to the lily of the valley, there are greens, bergamot, calyx, jasmine, lilac, rosewood, sandalwood, and civet mixed in there which give the scent depth and a poignant, haunting quality. Though deceptively ethereal, it can have real lasting power on some people. It's the perfect thing to wear on your wedding day, or at a cotillion. I like to wear it when I'm wearing something pastel or softly floral, like a vintage Laura Ashley dress or perhaps something like this little number from Anthropologie:



Not only is Diorissimo feminine and lovely, it's a scent with a lot of memories for me. Many women in my family have worn it, and I've caught whiffs of it at almost every wedding, debutante cotillion and garden party I've ever attended. It's one of the few fresh and girly scents that also comes across as being both poised and elegant. It's the perfect gift for a dear friend's birthday or perhaps a bride-to-be. The packaging has changed slightly from what I have here (the pink and white on box are now reversed), but isn't it pretty?



Happy Monday!