Culture: 426 posts

It started, like all overwhelming events, quite unexpectedly. First, the skies were tinged a pearly grey, then suddenly they whitened and broke into a rain of monsoon proportions. The staccato noise of drops hitting the roof, the surprising brightness of sunshine reflecting in the water, the steamy heft of air… Within seconds I knew that I might as well succumb–having discarded my useless umbrella and high-heeled shoes, I simply ran. When breathless and wet, I finally reached the apartment, the rain started to recede, turning mellow. The deep puddles were filled with green leaves and marigold petals, the street looked shiny and clean…

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The announcement came that my flight is going to be delayed by another hour. I actually love airports and have many pleasant memories associated with them, other than those times when I was either being interrogated by Italian custom officials or being taken for a drug smuggler by their American counterparts. Yet, I love the rush of the crowd, anticipation of a new journey, bittersweet pangs of parting, slight fear of take off, and impatience to arrive.

My maternal grandfather was the director of a factory that transformed fighter jets into passenger planes, and I grew up surrounded by airplane parts. The airplane is perhaps the first thing I recall from childhood. I remember floating dahlias from my grandmother’s garden in one of the containers made from a jet fuel cell. The silvery sides reflected intense sunshine, while the inner sides were coated with green slime from the constant contact with water. I would bend over the canister bringing my face closer to the sweet smelling water until my grandmother would warn me that I might fall in and drown. Somehow that did not scare me at all. Instead, I was fascinated by the silver well that tapered towards the bottom.

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The following excerpt on how to wear perfume comes from a charming little book called “A Guide to Elegance: For Every Woman Who Wants to be Well and Properly Dressed on All Occasions.” Written in 1964 by Genevieve Antoine Dariaux, a longtime directress of Nina Ricci couture salons, it is a fascinating glimpse into the fashion mores of her time. While some advice may be outdated, the book is filled with many interesting ideas. So, for your reading pleasure, Madame Dariaux’s thoughts on perfume…

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I am currently reading Jean-Claude Ellena’s fascinating Journal d’un Parfumeur and wishing that more perfumers would share their thoughts on the creative process as generously as Ellena does. After all, understanding the creative intent behind fragrances makes one appreciate them even more. While I am on this topic, I would like to share an excerpt I loved from another book by Ellena, Le Parfum. The excerpt comes from the section “On Certain Perfumes,” a title derived from the last piece written by French author Jean Giono.

“In order to judge perfumes that have outlasted time I use the nose of today, whereas for new perfumes I use the nose of yesterday. And I realise that memory works in such a way that perfumes which are not experienced with excitement and passion, which are not linked with a personal story or, in our business, with the training of the nose, are devoid of meaning and leave no trace in the memory… In order to discover a perfume, I have to enter into it, grasp it from the inside…

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For me, May 1st, May Day holiday in Ukraine and other European countries, is always associated with lily of the valley. Its scent is notoriously difficult to capture, and in fragrance, all lily of the valley accords are recreated through the combination of natural and man made materials. From Christian Dior Diorissimo, the gold standard against which all lily of the valley fragrances are judged, to Hermès Eau des Merveilles, this floral note can be found in a variety of compositions.

Today I am wearing the incomparable Parfums de Nicolaï Odalisque, which I will review tomorrow. Meanwhile, please see my article Spring Flower Bouquet ~ Lily of the Valley on lily of the valley and some of the best fragrances on this theme.

Image credit: lily of the valley bouquet via Red Loft Studios.