In Your Opinion: 314 posts

The other day I was walking through New York’s Chinatown, and I realized that I kept smelling a strange melange of scents: rotting vegetable peels, run offs from fish mongers, linden blossoms and salty sea air. It hardly sounds like a perfume to dab on your wrists, but those are the scents of my city. Also, I can’t forget the exhaust fumes, metallic dust, hot asphalt, freshly baked bread, and wet grass in Central Park.

What about the place where you live? If you were to bottle the scents of your town, what would they include?

Wishing everyone a great Memorial Day weekend!

Black locust blossoms that smell of jasmine, Indian incense and coconut water

What fragrances do you consider the staples in your perfume wardrobe? What do you put on when you can’t quite decide what to wear? 

Over the past week, my staples have been Jo Malone Orange Blossom Cologne, Chanel No 19 Poudré, and for the evening, by Kilian Sweet Redemption. No 19 is a perfume I wear often, and if I can’t decide what to wear, I reach for it, knowing that it will be perfect no matter what the occasion. I was surprised to discover how much I fell for No 19 Poudré after all. It’s sheer and crisp at first, but the drydown is tender and soft–the layers of musk, powdery iris and sheer jasmine. Sometimes just pretty is more than enough for me.

Wishing everyone a wonderful weekend!

Photo by Bois de Jasmin

What perfume or fashion habits have you picked up from your mother or grandmother?

“My grandmother will not leave the house without perfect hair and perfect makeup and her splash of perfume,” explained actress Natalie Portman about her “new mom” fashion style. Portman always seems to be well-put together and elegant. Her photos in fashion magazines usually appear in the best-dressed, rather than fashion disaster columns. Still, I liked the quote and the accompanying photos of the movie star in a trench coat and black pumps.

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The cherry blossoms in Central Park are not the only signs that spring has arrived in the Big Apple. When I notice that New Yorkers shed their habitual dark uniforms and incorporate a splash of color into their wardrobe, I know that winter is finally over. I start taking my lunch outside and find small open air coffee shops to enjoy some sunshine and people watching—one hour of la dolce vita, if you will. As I was observing a beautiful redhead in a pistachio green coat and pink shoes, I realized how energizing colors can be. I myself was dressed in grey jeans and a black sweater, hardly a dazzling color combination.

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What do you smell around you these days?

It is officially spring. The Bradford pear trees are draped in the foam of blossoms, its marine connotations echoed by the white petals’ fishy odor. The sticky red buds on maple branches smell sweet and acidic, a mixture of hot metal and honey. On most mornings I step outside and feel uplifted by the bracing freshness. It works better than a cup of coffee!

As I enter the subway, I realize that these days I smell more perfume. Since people wear fewer layers, the sillage can be overwhelming. The usual green apple and peach scents of hair products are now supplemented with the fragrances I recognize. On Monday, I sat next to a girl wearing Dior J’Adore. On Wednesday as I was heading back home, a guy wearing Thierry Mugler Angel and tight black jeans complimented me on my perfume–I also wore Angel. Yesterday, my friend and I had to navigate the sushi bar to avoid a lady wearing half a bottle of Chanel Coco Mademoiselle. And this morning I smelled the dewy gardenia and coffee at Starbucks. Not much of a scent revelation, but it made for a more memorable morning.

Image: Pear Blossom by kellygifford via flickr, some rights reserved.