Cheap & Chic: 70 posts

Whenever I see a product described as a cult favorite, I’m instantly skeptical. The pink and green Maybelline mascara is the worst thing I’ve put on my lashes. Rosebud salve in its pretty retro tin dries out my lips. Nars Orgasm blush is just OK. The exception for me is Huile Prodigieuse Dry Oil from French skincare & cosmetics firm Nuxe, and it fully lives up to its “cult favorite” label. It’s a seaside vacation in a bottle. The oil leaves skin soft and shimmering, not at all greasy, and applying the golden liquid feels like a luxury spa treatment.

Besides the nourishing and moisturizing benefits, fans of Nuxe oil adore its frangipani and coconut perfume. It’s sophisticated and rich, a tangle of white petals and coconut flakes. I’ve always thought that it’s good enough to be in a perfume bottle, and a couple of years ago Nuxe decided to do just that. The company turned to the same perfumer who created the beloved Nuxe oil scent, Serge Majoullier, and asked him to blend Prodigieux, Le Parfum*.

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If you were to open my fridge and avoid having some unidentified jar fall onto your foot, you will always find fresh ginger. I’m addicted to its vibrant flavor. The twisted rhizomes covered with pearly, beige skin taste less of the earth from which they are dug out than of citrus zest, crushed lemongrass and green orange flowers. Ginger shares aromatics with all of these ingredients, and although the first impression when you pop a sliver in your mouth is an explosive freshness, the flavor soon becomes more complex. I add ginger coins to sauteed greens and fish soups. A few pieces also end up in my tea. Since I love the scent so much, any perfume promising a blast of ginger piques my curiosity.

One of my ginger favorites is Origins Ginger Essence. Introduced in 2000, it can even be called a classic, especially in comparison to so many launches that vanish after a couple of seasons. Ginger Essence is not a perfume masterpiece, and if you want the perfume equivalent of an epic novel, then don’t waste your time on it. It’s simply a ginger cologne that feels refreshing and uncomplicated. Since one can’t read only Dostoevsky nor wear only Guerlain (at least, I can’t), its happy simplicity is a pleasure.

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Andy searches for a perfect fig perfume.

Each year, I anxiously await the summer fig season. For the few weeks when I can get my hands on really good fresh figs, I treasure each bite of the sweet, succulent flesh, and when the season ends, I am ready for the next to come. Luckily for me, I can experience the scents of my very favorite fruit, the fig, through perfumes, which fill my void for the rest of the year. While past trends have left a slew of beautiful niche fig perfumes, Pacifica Mediterranean Fig, an affordable alternative, remains one of my favorites.

The word that comes to mind when I picture Mediterranean Fig’s main accord is sparkling, because when I wear it, I always imagine a fizzy fig mojito. In this case, rim the glass with salt, replace the mint with a generous bunch of crushed, fresh fig leaves, add twists of bergamot and lemon peel in with the lime wedges and sugar, and top with plenty of sparkling water. Set the glass down on the sands of a sunny beach, near a tangle of wet driftwood, and you have Mediterranean Fig.

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The first time I tried Parfums de Nicolaï’s Eau Soleil I was surprised. I expected a walk in a Sicilian orange grove perfumed with the zesty freshness of orange flowers and crushed green leaves, but instead of a gauzy, sunlit vision, the fragrance opened on my skin with a peppery, bitter tang. My orange blossom garden fantasy was nowhere to be found.

The mark of a good perfume is its ability to hold your attention. However different Eau Soleil was from my expectations, it followed me throughout the day. I would catch myself stealing little sniffs from my wrist or else enjoying the herbal and green scent that hovered around me. The next morning, I reached for the same scarf I wore the day before and for a few minutes I stood with my face buried in the silk scented with white flowers and soft musk. Eau Soleil courted me successfully.

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Among my perfumes that are the equivalents of t-shirt and jeans, Roger & Gallet fragrances share a top spot with L’Occitane Green Tea and Parfums de NicolaïL’Eau à la Folie. The classical cologne, Bois d’Orange and Fleur d’Osmanthus are among my Roger & Gallet favorites. They are easy to wear and are perfect for those days when you want something refreshing and not overly demanding.

In addition, the low price (18€ or $25 for 1 oz bottle) makes them accessible. A low price doesn’t have to mean a poor quality perfume (and I would argue that the worst quality perfumes on the market today are among the most expensive). The Roger & Gallet collection is created by excellent perfumers. For instance, Fleur de Figuer was designed by Francis Kurkdjian, Bois d’Orange by Dominique Ropion, and Gingembre by Jacques Cavallier.

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