Providence Perfume Company: Four Reviews

Posted on November 10, 2015 by Kafkaesque

Source: Parfum1.com

Mossy forests, leathery tea medleys with apricot, ginger spice blends atop soft florals, and indolic floral orientals — those are the heart of four fragrances from Providence Perfume Company that I thought we’d look at today.

Providence Perfume Company is a highly respected, American artisanal and all-natural brand founded by Charna Ethier. I really liked her Provanilla when I tried it earlier this year, a deep, dark vanilla with Caribbean rum and a surprisingly delicious splash of creamy honeydew melon. Ms. Ethier kindly sent me samples of her other creations and, today, I’ll cover Osmanthus Oolong, Ginger Lily, Hindu Honeysuckle, and Moss Gown. That’s a lot to fit into one post and I don’t want it to be ridiculously long, so I’ll try to be as brief as someone with my verboseness can manage.

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Aftelier Perfumes Vanilla Smoke

Posted on November 8, 2015 by Kafkaesque

Source: thestylespy.com

The best perfumes transport you to other worlds, filling your mind with images or memories. Vanilla Smoke, the latest release from Mandy Aftel, did precisely that for me, recalling bygone times in a way that made me smile. I once lived in places where there were four seasons, where autumn’s passage into winter was marked by piles of red-gold leaves, and a frosty chill in the air. One of my favorite things was that first winter fire, building layers of logs, kindling twigs, and old newspapers in the fireplace, the aroma of burnt paper as the fire licked the outermost edges of the pile, then the scent and crackle as the red-gold-black flames crept inwards, charring the wood, and heralding a night of snuggling warmth ahead. Ms. Aftel’s Vanilla Smoke brings all of that back to me. Eschewing the typical refrains of caramelized or sugar-coated vanilla, her vanilla is built around the heart of a winter fire, with a good slug of Bourbon drizzled on top to really bring home the cozy comfort aspects.

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Serge Lutens L’Haleine des Dieux (Section d’Or Collection)

Posted on November 4, 2015 by Kafkaesque

Source: Pinterest.

“Weird. Perplexing. Why this?!” That pretty much sums up my reaction to much of L’Haleine des Dieux, one of Serge Lutens‘ new luxury parfums in his Section d’Or Collection. Are you familiar with “The German Shepherd Head Tilt” when they’re trying to understand what you’re saying? That was me with L’Haleine des Dieux for the first three hours, not only in terms of trying to understand the notes I was smelling or where they could possibly come from, but also why such a concoction existed in the first place and how anyone could ask $600 for it.

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Serge Lutens Sidi Bel-Abbes (Section d’Or Collection)

Posted on November 3, 2015 by Kafkaesque

Source: the Serge Lutens Facebook page.

Sidi Bel-Abbes is one of five new releases from Serge Lutens, and part of the second wave of the Section d’Or or Gold Collection that debuted last year with L’Incendiaire. The press release at the time described the series as “Serge Lutens at the culmination of his art.” I see it more as a return to Luten’s signature dark orientalism after a flood of drippy releases over the last five years, most of which I find to be icy, metallic, watery, and/or excessively clean. The Section d’Or collection differs in other ways, too: they are extrait de parfums instead of the usual eau de parfums, and their prices are not cheap (to put it mildly). Sidi Bel-Abbes and its compatriots were released at Serge Lutens’ flagship Palais Royale store in June, and I’m very grateful to a dear friend of mine who picked up a sample of it for me on a recent trip to Paris, along with one of L’Haleine des Dieux (Breath of the Gods) which I’ll cover next time.

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