I’m back in Kharkiv, eastern Ukraine. We had 110 hours of air raid alerts over the past week alone. I’ve learned to sleep through the blaring sirens. I’ve seen what drones and mine can do to a human body. I’ve smelled the smoke and tasted ash on my lips. Against it all, life continues relentless. Every day a new flower blooms on the sidewalks and a new bud unfurls its sticky leaves. An apricot tree embracing the wall of the old synagogue blooms in such a graceful way that it looks like a Japanese painting of itself. The skies during the blackouts are full of stars so vivid and bright that they seem within reach.
I travel to the frontlines. I volunteer on the evacuation missions. I record people’s stories. And I make time to smell violets in the park, wear perfume and teach fragrance classes. I continue writing my Substack newsletter. Your support enables me to continue my work and help here in Ukraine.
74 Perfumes We Had to Learn by Heart at IFF
5 Things That Stayed With Me in February
Three Mini-reviews of New Perfumes (short videos)
Perfume Class 3: Structure, Tension, and Control
What I Learned From Memorizing 74 Classics
The Art of Seduction: Field Notes from a Perfumer and a Former Ballerina
Our “Recommend Me a Perfume” thread is open this week. You can use this space to find perfume recommendations, to share your discoveries and favorite scents, and to ask any questions about scents, aromas and flavors. Or you can just tell us what perfume you are wearing. If you received recommendations from this thread, please let us know what you sampled.
How does it work: 1. Please post your requests or questions as comments here. You can also use this space to ask any fragrance related questions. To receive recommendations that are better tailored to your tastes, you can include details on what you like and don’t like, your signature perfumes, and your budget. And please let us know what you end up sampling. 2. Then please check the thread to see if there are other requests you can answer. Your responses are really valuable for navigating the big and sometimes confusing world of perfume, so let’s help each other!
To make this thread easier to read, when you reply to someone, please click on the blue “reply” link under their comment.
Photography by Bois de Jasmin
1 Comment
OnWingsofSaffron: Dear Victoria, I am quite speechless with admiration for your committment! Please do not forget to take good care of yourself in your tireless endevours to help other. I wish you the very best! April 7, 2026 at 10:04am