A Milan food photo dump while I stall on my perfume reviews. I mean, I’m sure I ate the same as the next person, but I do always seem to have my phone ready to take a picture.
Food I Ate In Milan
Posted in More Than Beauty
Tagged Esxence 2024, Esxence Travel Guide, Food Blog, Milan, Milan travel guide, Travel blog
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Watier Cosmetics Lip Oils
@watierofficial Lip Oils are now in more colours. I chose a dark and light shade to swatch because, as you can see, they are pretty sheer and every colour is easy to wear. The oil formula is more like a gel so it stays on your lips longer than you would think, but without any of the tack and stickiness of gloss. I love them and they came right before the weather turned for the worst which was perfect timing. The shades I tried on, again, are Fraise and Framboise. Despite having fruity sounding names there’s no taste to these so you won’t really be licking them off your lips and I couldn’t detect a strong enough odour either.
The deeper shades are my favourites, but I find myself reaching for all of them!
Musks of Monday – Musk Perfumes in My Collection
Musks of Monday: Frederic Malle Musc Ravageur – a cuddly cozy musk that woos with its sweetness. Easy to love and to wear. Guerlain Musc Outreblanc – musc but make it crisp and clean. Kiehl’s Original Musk – clean florals on top of a little bit of skank. It’s the coolest musk because it’s so under-the-radar.
I also recently had the opportunity of trying the Marlou perfumes, all of which are animalic musk scents and they are really going there. They all smell slightly of sweaty bodies in their own way, so if you’re interested in that type of a scent, I would say try these.
My favourite one is Poudrextase, because it is a powdery, rosy, sweaty scent, very much like a woman who is sweating but you can smell her L’Oreal powder too. I actually really like it, but it does remind me of the Kiehl’s musk, which I already have, and I don’t think that I would wear it if I had it. None of these perfumes are safe blind-buys, and actually, I think that they are so potent that the little samples would last you a long time. I can’t imagine that anyone would want a lot of sillage when wearing these, but people also like to wear Musks Kublai Khan by Serge Lutens and I don’t know how many sprays you would put of that perfume. I have yet to smell something like that out in the wild, and where I live, people are either wearing something that smells like BR 540 or they are wearing nothing at all.
Still, I appreciate that Marlou is making the kind of perfume that they want to make, and that their scents are really going in a different direction. I hope that it inspires more perfume makers to do that. Someone also told me that she layers Ambilux with another perfume to make it animalic, the way that the vintage version used to be, and I think that is a genius idea. If you want the civet and castoreum from older versions of scents but you don’t want to go down the vintage rabbit hole, then these are a good alternative.
Posted in Perfumes
Tagged Frederic Malle, Guerlain, Kiehl's, Marlou, musk, Musk Perfumes
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5 Questions for Eliam Puente of House of Puente Artisan Luxury Perfumes
I recently tried perfume samples from House of Puente, and all the scents blew me away. Eliam Puente has created some modern classics using a high quantity of natural ingredients. They’re well-blended, natural-smelling (although there are synthetics in the perfume too), beautiful, powdery (I love powder) and some are slightly soapy. The samples I have are Medusa, Iris Doux, Vespertine, and Eaden.
Last year, I made it my mission to try every iris perfume I could get my hands on, and I found some that I loved, but now I’ve tried Iris Doux and the bar has been set even higher than before. Iris Doux is the most luxurious, opulent iris scent I’ve tried, and it’s clear that it is made with a high amount of natural ingredients – you can truly smell the difference. The iris is buttery soft, with a richness not found in most iris scents. There’s a good dose of powder, and a rootiness, but this perfume won’t smell like carrots so it stays out of the kitchen. The ylang-ylang and geranium keep it fresh, and jasmine and frangipani keep it friendly. This is not a cold serious iris. It’s also not comforting and cozy. It’s an approachable iris. It has a heart and a playful side. It reminds me of the feeling of visiting a tropical island where the atmosphere is sunny and friendly, and you’re comforted by the slower pace of life.
All 4 of these scents are powdery and floral.
Eaden is centred around jasmine and neroli and smells like a lush summer garden. If you miss the scent of jasmine or white florals, Eaden delivers them into your hands.
Medusa is another powdery jasmine but instead of being in a lush garden, there is a warmth. The jasmine here is with a civet note that purrs, bringing the perfume to life so that it’s living and breathing.
Verspertine is a tuberose bouquet, pretty and realistic.
Eliam is a self-taught perfumer who lives in Spain. He has a familiarity with many iconic (and probably not-so-iconic) perfumes and was inspired to create perfume when he acquired some raw materials. Although his scents are not all-natural, they use a high percentage of naturals that are bolstered by synthetics. Truly, this is how some of the best perfumes I’ve smelled are made. You can smell the high quality of each of the ingredients, but you’ll never become anosmic to the scents and they won’t make you sneezy. I’m biased – these are my favourite kinds of perfumes to wear and have.
Wanting to know more about the person behind these beautiful scents, I sent him five questions and he was nice enough to answer them. I love speaking with perfumers who aren’t afraid to mention their inspirations. There’s no gate-keeping here, Eliam’s perfumes are iconic enough to stand on their own, and he can still talk about his role models. Perfume doesn’t exist, and isn’t made, in a vacuum. Thank you, Eliam!
- You know your way around perfume – old and new – what’s a perfume that you consider to be a reference, and what is it a reference for?
This one is a hard one because I consider several as references, but to select one I’d choose Chanel No. 5. It’s a beautiful reference for how I like composing my perfumes where there’s a beautiful balance between classic notes and rich florals.
- In a time when brands are launching 3, 5, or even more scents at a time, you are launching 1 perfume right now – what is the rationale behind that?
I feel that when a perfume is ready it should be launched if the timing makes sense. In this case, though I’m working on various projects, Virescence felt finished and felt right for Spring, so I released it. In other instances, I may release more than one at a time which was the case early last year when I released Iris Doux and Vespertine together.
- What’s something you think people should keep in mind when they try your perfumes for the first time?
I’d like them to keep in mind that perfumery is about beauty, artistry, emotions, and discovery. It’s not just about trends, receiving compliments, or going for what’s popular. I encourage wearers to explore the various nuances and layers of my fragrances.
- What is a material whose essence you want to capture but has eluded you?
The Gardenia. I find it to be one of the most intoxicating scents. it’s so rich and sensual (borderline erotic). I hope to one day be able to capture all of its nuances in a perfume.
- Who is a perfumer that you admire and why?
Jean-Claude Ellena. His ability to create beautiful fragrances with the simplest of formulas just wows me. I also love that he focuses on creating a beautiful perfume versus something trendy, loud, or that lasts forever. Most of his perfumes are subtle and non-intrusive which I love.
Posted in Perfumes
Tagged Artisan, Iris, Iris Perfume, Iris Perfumes, Niche Perfume, Perfume Blog, Perfume Review, Perfumer, Puente
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Native x Girl Scouts Collection
It’s peak gourmand: @native , the company best-known for natural deodorants, has paired up with the Girl Scouts and created a collection of products that smell like their iconic cookies. My favourites, chocolate mints, are represented, but so are the Trefoils, the coconut caramels, lemon, and peanut-butter.
Yes, all of these are available in a variety of products, but the coconut caramel must be the most popular because it’s available in every format: shampoo, conditioner, deodorants, and body wash. Canadians will see that there are flavours that we can’t get here – that’s because this collection is only available at Target stores, or online from the Native website (which only delivers to the USA). The scents are true-to-name. They are sweet-smelling but wearable, if that’s how you want to smell.
Again, I prefer the chocolate-mint scent, and I like it in anything that washes off because I’d like not to be with the scent the whole day, but if you like to layer your scents, then the body sprays will be more to your liking. They’re available now (and some of these have been out for a while), and aren’t going away right away, so add them to your Target shopping list, so you can check them out the next time.
Do I like the Native deodorant? Does it work? It does, but I will confess that I’m not very sweaty or stinky and I find that greasy hair smells the strongest and worst than anything, and at that point you need to shower.
The lemon cookie scent of this deodorant is delicious but not overly sweet, and I think it really works.
I do like the shampoo and conditioner because the shampoo is sulfate-free and the conditioner is pretty basic. The pump bottles are perfect and will last forever, and like I said, in the shower I’m open to more kinds of scents because you’re washing them away anyway.
Gifted.
Chanel Boy Perfume Review
Esxence was the perfect reset. It made me leave my house and be immersed in the perfume world that I love for a few days. Since I’ve been back, I’ve barely worn any perfume to start my day because I’ve wanted to keep my nose clear to smell all my samples. But today is Sunday and the sunshine is asking for me to take out something for warmer weather. Boy is my summer Les Exclusifs, an easy-to-wear blend of lavender, powder, and musks, class in a bottle, easy-to-love like all the Chanel.
This makes me think of wet skin even though my brain knows it’s lavender and then a simple vanilla amber accord that I can smell in Coromandel and maybe in other Chanel perfumes too. There’s a thread, or even more than one that holds all of the Les Exclusifs together and it’s possible to smell it if you’ve worn these perfumes a lot.
Regardless of what the ingredients or the actual notes are, when I wear Boy, my gut, or maybe my heart, sees wet velvety skin, soft and warm.
Diptyque Eau Duelle edp – Vanilla
Cultural appropriation or cultural appreciation?
Official descriptions for Diptyque’s Eau Duelle range from “an ode to travel” to “ inspired by a journey along the Spice Route and the ports of legendary cities: Babylon, Goa, Venice and Carthage.” The picture on the back reminds me of the Taj Mahal but maybe it’s just Mughal architecture, and many examples of it are found in North India rather than the South which is where Goa is.
I already know there will be people who say it’s appreciation, and I get that, it’s one of the reasons I like this bottle, but the mishmash of places and stories without being true to history is pointless in a world where the Internet exists and you can look things up in an instant. Eau Duelle is a vanilla scent, slightly spicy and green, woodier than other vanilla, but it’s still vanilla. It’s not a scent I’d associate with the “spice route”. The number of brands that still use “oriental” as a descriptor is many, and truly, it’s a lot of older gentlemen who probably know better but are used to describing warm and spicy scents that way. I can overlook that because truly there is no motivation to change.
All of this reminds me of a conversation I had with my aunt and uncle who work to get women on corporate boards across America, and who told me that the real way to get people and corporations to make a change is to legislate it, so maybe in the perfume world, maybe a body, like I don’t know, perfume expo organizers, need to insist that brands stop using that in their copy when they bring material to display at the show. The industry seems reluctant to change and has a fragile ego that can’t take criticism, so things will take time to change, but change is not impossible.
Posted in Perfumes
Tagged Cultural Appropriation, Diptyque, Perfume Blog, Vanilla Perfume
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Celine Perfumes
Celine perfume two ways: one for winter and one for summer, one for night time, one for the day. One to bring in the good times and the other to wash them all away.Cologne Celeste takes cues from the green neroli-centred scents of the past but updates them with clean musk, adding a certain amount of longevity which may have been lacking in the former. It’s fresh, it’s cleaner, it’s still got some powder, but not as much as some of the others in the line. It’s what I’ll wear when the weather warms up. It’s a good counterpart to Nightclubbing which smells more like clubs from back in the day, cigarette ashes, powder in the bathroom, a good dose of vanilla as everyone reapplies their perfume. It’s warmth is best in the winter.
Do you have a favourite from the line? I know Black Tie gets a lot of love because it’s a good vanilla but it didn’t wow me when I tried it last year. Maybe I need to revisit it.
Posted in Perfumes
Tagged Celine, Perfume Blog, Perfume Lover, Spring Perfume, Winter Perfume
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What I Bought in Milan
Perfume I bought in Italy. If you’ve been around for a while, you’ll see that these are all old favourites. I sold my partial bottle of Coromandel a couple of days before I left and then got a new one. I got a 4ml bottle of Le Lion with my purchase and I’ll enjoy that for a while. Meharees by L’Erbolario has a scent profile similar to Musc Ravageur, but slightly sweeter and more feminine. Easy to wear. Again, I’d bought a bottle but gave away my partial knowing I’d be able to get a new one. I also grabbed a couple of the body washes. They don’t smell that strong in the shower but an hour after getting out of the shower I can still get whiffs of Meharees even though I’m not wearing any perfume.
Melograno by Santa Maria Novella is still my favourite from the brand and I was able to get a sample of L’Iris so I can enjoy it slowly. I had a longer list of things I wanted from SMN but they hadn’t updated the bottles on all of them and I didn’t want the old-style bottles. Melograno is like clean white powdery hotel soap. It’s fresh and easy to wear. I love it in the summer.
If you’re keeping track, (and I really wasn’t) I’m still under the $800 worth of goods you’re allowed to bring into Canada.
Posted in Perfumes
Tagged Chanel, Exsence, Exsence 2024, L'Erbolario, Santa Maria Novella, Travel blog
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Where to Stay if You Go To Esxence
My @esxenceofficial recap continues. I stayed at the Melia Milano, which is the closest 5-star hotel to the venue. It happens to be reasonably priced for a 5-star hotel and is within walking distance from the metro and bus stop. There’s even a direct bus to and from the Malpensa airport that comes right to the square close to the hotel.
The room was neat, the lobby was sparkling, the lounge was comfortable, and the food was delicious. Because it’s so close to the convention, there were a lot of brands and attendees that were also staying there. Because there were spacious places to sit and socialize, it was a good place to meet for a drink or a bite to eat.
There’s not much happening in that part of town, so I think the hotel bar and restaurant receiving a lot of traffic. Many people said that staying near the Duomo was a better place to stay so that you’re near the attractions, but I’ll say that if you’re attending Esxence, this is the most convenient place to stay. It’s easier to pop back and drop your stuff off, and then head out to wherever you want to go. There was even a day that I came back for lunch and to rest, and then ended up back at the convention again. Would I give my stay a 10/10? No… the service was European (not fast) and the food menu was small, but I’d give my experience a solid 8 out of 10, and I’d stay there again next year.