I think that one of the things I heard about China, before I went, was that they don’t really love perfume and have a penchant for softer scents. But everything was scented when I was there and the scents were wide-ranging. They also had lots of perfume stores with local and more mainstream brands.
Beautiful perfume store in Shanghai. @meltseasonofficial I didn’t have time to stop in but I couldn’t leave without taking a picture.
Le Labo Vetiver is like vetiver grass on fire, dense smoke almost burning your lungs with every inhale. All this with a leathery Cade and birch tar. If I close my eyes, this could almost be an early Lush perfume, or that snake oil shampoo bar that smelled like a witch’s brew. Maybe someone put a hex on me because this perfume smells stronger as the day goes on, instead of dying away. Forget the vetiver of air-conditioned hotel lobbies, this is a vetiver that buries you.
Highlighter that looks like velvet, and even lip balms that are so beautiful that I don’t want to use them. Prada Beauty continues to earn its place on shelves and in our makeup bags.
The packaging is so understated, giving me a quiet luxury aesthetic that almost made me not want to open these boxes.
The highlighter is beautiful but and the velvet look really makes it stand out, and like all luxury products, there’s a nice big mirror inside.
I’m back from China, and there’s so much to look back on that I can’t even begin to wrap my head around it. The trip wasn’t about perfume, and I was really intentional about not seeking out perfume everywhere I went, but it was still all around me. ⠀⠀
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During a sweltering hot day, we walked around a trendy new shopping area in Shanghai and stumbled across the Amouage store. They didn’t have the newest perfume and of the three that launched last year, Outlands was missing. The sales associate couldn’t speak English but she took us through some of the scents, and I threw in what I knew about my favourites. We walked out with 4 unmarked blotters, and went to lunch. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Over tapas, our noses kept coming back to what we had smelled, and I tried to identify what was on the strips by memory. The only one I could pinpoint with accuracy was Guidance, thanks to a gorgeous sugared rose whose sweetness was augmented by a syrupy juicy pear. This shone in Shanghai heat in a way that Guidance never had on my skin. We loved it and couldn’t stop smelling it.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
I realized that it was Guidance because it smelled like a new release that was in my collection at home – Lancome Idole Power. This Idole has become one of my favourite finds of the year, and because of it, I understand the hype around Guidance. Guidance is more textured with many layers – the opening is something I need to get my nose around, but Idole goes right to the heart of the fragrance with its fruity rose combo. Is this inspired by Guidance? Most definitely. If you liked the Guidance DNA, you might like this even more.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Perfume shopping in Shanghai is excellent, with lots of brands being available. They clearly love their perfume, and every hotel we stayed at was scented. Going from a perfume desert to a landscape where scents are celebrated was one thing, but shopping is hard when you don’t speak the language, and even the most touristy areas were not ready for English speakers. More soon.
Le Labo: cosplaying as a neglected bathroom since 2006. The $500 price tag of a city exclusive is justified when you take into account that they have to intentionally destroy certain subway tiles by hand to make them fit the aesthetic. Oh, that and the rent of space in the toniest of locales in every major city in the world.
I’m wearing a near-empty bottle of Fidji today, a perfume that reminds me of L’Heure Bleue, which reminds me of 2020 when I started exploring some classic perfumes. As much as signature scents are cool, the best thing about having a collection to choose from is that you can live in the past and present at the same time. Fidji, a leftover from the 70’s, a soapy blends of classic florals that read bright and fresh. It’s like wearing pearls and heels with your jeans. Powdery and classic, this is a perfume that works in hot weather. ⠀⠀⠀⠀
Charlotte Tilbury Unreal Blush Glow Stick in Rosy Glow.
Perfect for summers when you don’t want to use a brush and need your makeup to be infuse but also good when you want glowy colour or need your makeup to be moisturizing too. Personally, I don’t find them to be very long-lasting in the summer on oily skin but they’re great if you’re going to be inside air conditioning.
This entire line smells like cucumbers and it’s just what the warmer weather is calling for. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
This is a cute set for anyone with slightly oily, slightly acne-prone skin. Really, if you have a hormonal teenager in your life who is battling with more oily skin because of the warmer weather, this would be just thing thing for them. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
The Violet Ice Cold Plunge Pore Mask doesn’t feel cool or icy, but it is refreshing when you wash it off, and it has the fairly standard kaolin clay base that absorbs oil and leaves skin matte. The effects last for a day or so, and it would be perfect to use after a long day or before a special occasion. If you can mattify your skin, your makeup is going to look that much better over the course of the day. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
My favourite is the toner – I love a good clarifying toner. The BHA in this one helps go through the oil in your pores and exfoliate your skin. Not only does this help reduce breakouts but the gentle exfoliating also lightens acne scarring, so this is a great option for anyone who struggles with that. It’s why the brand can advertise that you can get “clearer skin in 1 week” because you will notice a difference in a short amount of time. For once, there is some truth in advertising!⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
You don’t have to douse yourself in citruses in the summer. Laundry musk with a hint of aldehydes and a soft pear can be just as reinvigorating. The fruity-laundry musk was redone by Frederic Malle for Acne Studios, but some iteration of it has been around for a while including Lazy Sunday Morning. Actually, let’s not forget the newly launched Merit Retrospect which dialed the pear up and intensified the perfume into an Extrait so that you could be done with just one spray. I prefer the softer, customizable take in Lazy Sunday Morning. The base of laundry musk and ambrette like you’re fresh out of the shower is perfect on a hot day. You’re fresh, put together, organized, on top of it all. You don’t have to be having a lazy day to wear this, it’s actually the perfect office scent. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Scroll for swatches. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
This is this year’s Charlotte Tilbury Nudegasm palette. I think it’s nice to re-release palettes and change or even improve them each year. The first year, the formula was not great. You couldn’t pickup any pigment and the colour payoff wasn’t there. Last year, the blushes were very shimmery. This year, there are great contour and highlighters so this one is working for me. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
