Victoria: 2669 posts

The intense green of sun warmed tomato leaves, the salty taste of red fruit, the bitter pungency of black currant buds… On my wrist was the smell of my fantasy summer, long walks in the park and lounging on the grass included.  When I reached for the new Eau de Parfum formulation of Diptyque L’Ombre Dans L’Eau, I didn’t expect it to be dramatically different from the original L’Ombre Dans L’Eau. Much to my surprise, it was!

The fragrance was so exhilarating and vivid that a single whiff won me over. I stepped out into the grey afternoon holding the perfume box wrapped in thin, crackly paper. It might have been raining, but as I pressed my nose to my wrist and inhaled the perfume of crushed leaves and earthy roses, I didn’t even notice.

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Since both Suzanna and I are big fans of red lipsticks, I keep tabs on what’s new in the red lipstick world. The news that Guerlain’s fall 2012 collection will feature several new red shades made me anticipate its launch even more. The first tube of lipstick from Guerlain came out in 1870, and recently the perfume house has been busy revamping its makeup collection. On the Guerlain perfume front, I’m curious about the new L’Heure Bleue trio, which celebrates the 100th birthday of this great classic.

L’Heure Bleue was created by perfumer Jacques Guerlain in 1912, and this year its 100th birthday is going to be marked by the launch of the beautiful and very limited edition trio. It will contain a bottle of L’Heure Bleue parfum and 30ml bottles of 3 new fragrances interpreted by the current in-house perfumer Thierry Wasser.

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Miller Harris just launched a new fragrance called La Fumée [Arabie]. It’s the first of several limited edition perfumes  inspired by La Fumée, a smoky woody blend. According to the description: “Created in celebration of the rich beauty and magic of the Arabic cultures, La Fumée Arabie is a sensual oriental fragrance centred around the exotic woods of the Middle East.”

The notes include incense, oud, cistus absolute, cardamom, coriander seed, Egyptian cumin, incense from Yemen, Moroccan cedarwood, birch tar, rose and vanilla. The glass bottle is embellished with the 23 carat liquid gold. Available now via millerharris.com, 50ml Eau de Parfum/£110. Via millerharris.com

My ideal weekend would be spent reading or watching my favorite movies, but since we moved to Belgium my routine has been completely upended. Our apartment is so tiny that even the most minimalist notions of privacy are compromised–this is further compounded by the transparent bathroom door. To escape our weird living situation we’re taking lots of weekend trips. Belgium is a small country, but its size belies its impressive diversity. The travel distances are ridiculously short, especially by American standards, and if you are here as a tourist, I highly recommend renting a car and seeing the country this way.

A couple of weeks ago we were once again on the road going south. Belgium is divided into two regions; the Dutch-speaking Flanders spread out to the north, and the French-speaking Wallonia to the south. The line that bisects the country at Brussels may be imaginary, but it’s easy enough to get your bearings. Once the street signs start appearing shorter you’ll know that you’re in French-speaking Wallonia. Dutch, like German, has a tendency to fuse several words together in a string that looks unpronounceable to me.

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This summer a Brooklyn based perfume line MCMC Fragrances is going to present a sensory dinner inspired by its collection. The dinner is created in collaboration with chef Tessa Liebman, who runs a private catering company called Methods and Madness.

The notes in the perfumes will be translated into tastes and textures. “Guests will be treated to a smoky mezcal cocktail with basil seeds and yuzu inspired by MCMC Love, and dine on duck confited in jasmine flowers inspired by MCMC Noble. Each course will be followed by innovative coffee palate cleansers created by coffee expert Ezra Baker.”

When: Sunday, July 29th, 6:30 pm
Where: Jo’s Restaurant (back room), 264 Elizabeth Street NYC
All included for $125 per person. Seating is limited to 30.  Tickets available at www.gusta.com. Via press release