Zoologist Bat
Like a bat with a 9 to 5, Mr. Chokkattu hasn’t really slept in two days, so I’m writing this review after cuddling him to sleep at an incredibly early hour (It’s 9PM! Madness!)
Review
Guerlain Myrrhe et Delires
Okay so I disappeared again for a month. Whoops! I’ve been working hard for money to afford books and perfume remember? I’ll post some of the fruits of my labor later this week.
I received a decant of Myrrhe et Delires as one of those fruits.
Guerlain Myrrhe et Delires
The little cap on top of my decant smells like what violet candy tastes like to most young people: violets, vanilla, resin, and soap.
Imaginary Authors: Stories IV (Air of Despair)
An Air of Despair’s story reminds me of one its predecessors, the Littmus lozenges in Because of Winn-Dixie, a book about a dog, and the only one I can think of where the dog doesn’t die in the end (and it’s set in suburbia, a stark contrast to Where the Red Fern grows which casually tears your heartstrings apart and chews on them like tobacco set in rural backcountry.) Read More
Cheap Fragrances Review – Amazon Edition
Now that I’ve graduated school and have a job, you would think I would be less broke but that assumption is incorrect. Being a hedonist in a city is quite the balancing act, though I think I’ve been balancing it well, and my business school education definitely comes in handy when it comes to budgeting and restraint.
Because of my limited spending money, I think it’s worth taking the time to troll grey market sites and second-hand stores for gems. This time around, I stumbled around on Amazon and ended up picking out three that I thought would be diamonds in the rough.
Penhaligons Equinox Bloom review
Mr. Chokkattu, being the wonderful, amazing, and very attractive young man he is, gave me a bottle of Penhaligon’s Equinox Bloom for our one year anniversary even though he should have saved his money now that he has to pay rent, gas, and internet and left the frivolous spending to the girl who can save a little under half her tiny paycheck and still have enough to eat hipster-priced foods and ask for tea instead of water.
Photo and formatting credit to Mr. Chokkattu
Frapin 1270
Just received my little decant of this from a lovely person who decants quite often for cheapskate and indecisive hobbyists like me without trying to make a profit! Frapin 1270 is based off the year the Frapin family established itself in the Cognac region of France, this a is tribute to the creation of cognac.
L’Air du Desert Marocain vs. Lonesome Rider
Took me long enough.
I’ve written about LADDM before:
Tauer L’Air Desert Du Marocain
- Wet: oak, amber, vetiver, cedar, balsamic vinegar
- Dry: vetiver, cedar, coriander, amber, jasmine, balsamic vinegar
Mr. Chokkattu’s first love, and the one he wears the most often, LADDM is a dark, woody, smoky, slightly sweet thing with a low voice and dark hair. It starts with a sharp balsamic over a dark base, and then evens out, and as per the name the resulting fragrance is dry, hot, and slightly sweet. I really like this one, and Mr. Chokkattu only let me borrow this one because he has another sample of it.
New impressions:
L’Air du Desert Marocain is still Mr. Chokkattu’s favorite (though A La Nuit is edging in), and fortunately I am not at his freezing place trying this on, but I still think this could benefit from a bit of heat, at least to give it context.
Sweet sun-dried grass and hay, powdery amber, hot, warm cardamom, basil, singed cedar and oak bark and ashes and incense, all on a bed of jasmine. Read More
Happy Valentine’s Day!(Carnal Flower)
Happy Valentine’s Day! I hope you have as lovely a one as I will with someone special!
First of all, it’s freezing where I’m writing this. Mr. Chokkattu’s new landlord sounds like a cheap bastard from all I’ve heard of him and seems to be illegally turning off the heat wherever he feels it would save him money. This is coming from a household that tries to keep the heating and cooling to a minimum, and regularly has to turn up the heat or up the air conditioning for guests; what I am experiencing is worse. I had my feet on a radiator for a while and that radiator has been shut off for god knows why.
Anyway, all this to say that this is not the optimal temperature for Carnal Flower, and I know this, so while I’m going to write my reactions based off of how I feel now, I’ve had Carnal Flower for a while and I know it’s an entirely different beast when allowed to bloom in say, 80 degree weather when driving to the beach, as I have worn it in the past.
Frederic Malle Carnal Flower, for those who may not know, was composed by Dominique Ropion. Mr. Ropion has concocted other potions for Frederic Malle, as well as Alexander McQueen, Burberry, Calvin Klein, Dior, Armani, Givenchy, Gucci, JLo, Kenzo, a regular crap-ton for Lancome, YSL, and the creator of Thierry Mugler’s Alien and Viktor & Rolf’s Flowerbomb. His career has been a pretty veritable success, and I’m sure if we measured perfumers the way we measure musicians, he would have hit platinum or double platinum or whatever the distinction above that is by now. Read More
Parfums de Marly: Oajan, Lippizan, Kuhuyan reviews!
Parfums de Marly is another one of those fun contemporary fragrance houses that liken to old traditions; as far back as Louis XV’s prestigious horse races, and as front-facing as the MySpace-esque format and music on their web page. But that’s not a knock; the page has a clean, intuitive look, and I appreciate it over the many companies who believe it should be as difficult and stylistic as possible to learn any information on their pages. I do wish the waltz they’re playing didn’t stop so abruptly before starting over.
Anyway, I have heard good things about this brand, and hope to one day also try Herod and Habdan, as well as see their take on women’s fragrances!
Warby Parker Home Try-On take 2
The first box of choices didn’t impress me a ton but I got an e-mail about their Spring 2016 line and there was a pair in an ad on Facebook that I felt the need to have so…a second box it is! Photo credit to Mr. Chokkattu, bonus credit goes to my new Yesstyle convertible scarf.
Pomelo girl thoughts 