signature scents

about a week or so ago, amy and i went to saks fifth avenue in search of a new fragrance for her. when i was in new york a few weeks ago, i tested diptyque's new fragrance, 34 boulevard saint germain, at space nk and i thought it would be a good fit for her.

notes of sparkling blackcurrant, green fig
leaves, fresh rose pepper and citrus,
Egyptian geranium and tuberose, as
well as warm woods with a touch of eucalyptus.

unfortunately, saks didn't have it in stock. we ended up speaking with a sales associate who showed us the by kilian fragrances, and i've kind of fallen in love with them. i'm not even looking for a new fragrance! (i'm still happy with miss dior cherie - it still reminds me of paris). but the packaging is amazing and they're so dramatic and dark and perfect.

my favorite is one called "back to black"

Back to Black is an olfactory trip to Arabia – or perhaps to the exotica-mad 1920s, when Caron gave Tabac Blond to sultry, cigarette-smoking garçonnes. The tobacco accord is slyly evoked through the herbal, faintly animalic scent of chamomile laced with honey; the honey in its turn conjures faintly floral aromas. Throughout its development, Back to Black runs through a palette of subtly gourmand flavors, from ripe, almost fermented raspberry to the dry cocoa powder of patchouli, along with almond and vanilla, without ever veering into tooth-aching sweetness thanks to the bitter, cooling effect of cardamom, coriander, vetiver and moss. It stretches out languorously on the skin for hours, displaying its dark facets, leaving you hungry for more Arabian nights in its amber glow.

when i tested it at the store, the honey scent was so stunning! the saleslady sent us home with samples and when i wore it the other day, it smelled less honey and more powdery on me than anything. hmpf. i'm not giving up on it yet, though. how can i, with a description like It stretches out languorously on the skin for hours,? (!!) that definitely warrants at least one more wear.

we also sampled "sweet redemption" which hadn't been released yet (but is available now):

the innocence of orange blossom... the roughness of the sour orange leaf absolute... the sweetness of the vanilla absolute. The dry down is composed with a strong balsamic, almost religious, accord built around myrrh, incense and benzoin.

those bottles! those descriptions! i love reading them. just think - someone gets paid to sniff perfumes and write those. i want that job.