i love perfume. in fact, i'm a little mad for it. and i have a rather obscene amount of it. just in the past few months, i've bought:
- tom ford - white patchouli
- vera wang - bouquet
- mac - creations hue: turquatic
- calvin klein - eternity summer
- burberry - summer
- chanel - no. 5 eau premiere
- kenneth cole - black
- mont blanc - individuel
- michael kors - island
part of it is because i am too frequently in a duty free. and it's not because the perfume is necessarily cheaper there, it's more because it's there in such a decadent, sinful array. they have it all (even the juicy couture now, monica). and no one is snotty to you like at the department store perfume counters. you can try everything (i cannot wear the juicy couture, for example and both me and everyone who had to sit near me on a recent flight to singapore wished i hadn't tried it). and you're quite unaccosted and unmolested by sales people (except in singapore, where they must be on commission, but you can deflect them by walking around on your mobile phone), which i like. i want to see what catches my eye and spritz it on myself, not have someone else trying to force something on me. i must have my own opportunity to commune with the perfume. to bond with the pretty bottle. to swoop myself in the heady scents.
ever since my summer voyage on the volga river from kazan to moscow, in which i was wearing white linen breeze, i've realized that perfume and memory are intertwined. to this day, when i catch a whiff of white linen breeze, i am instantly transported to the volga. so, what is now quite possibly an unhealthy obsession started innocently enough.
when i started my last job, i went on a familiarization trip onboard an LNG carrier. i knew i would want to remember it, so i fittingly bought ralph lauren's blue, since i would be sailing on the blue of the mediterranean. on my first trip to korea and the shipyards, i was so excited that i bought kenneth cole's black (the one i replaced in the past couple months, because i love love it so much) in order to trigger a scent memory later. it worked like a charm.
so, it seems that whenever i've gone somewhere special, i've bought a new scent. sometimes i get one because it's a small size and will fit nicely in my makeup bag for traveling. somtimes it's because i've read about it in that infernal sunday lifestyle magazine. but mostly, because i'm a bit obsessed.
what are you obsessed about?
3 comments:
I love the b&w photo with this post. Even a lovely scented woman like yourself has a childrens book on her vanity, though!
Take care, Tara
I used to collect fragrances, too, and just lately have given many away, only because my little vanity is too crammed and I never wear most of them.
My nicest giveaway is the one that hurt the most to part with: an almost full bottle of Hermes 24 Faubourg. My mother discovered it recently and was so excited to try it in her local store. But I knew she'd never pay the big $$$ to get it, so I gave her my bottle because even tho I love it, I hardly ever wear it. Yesterday, she smelled so lovely, and I knew that's what she was wearing. And she was so happy.
For me, it's Chanel No. 5. Or Love's Baby Soft. That pretty much covers all my bases for now. ;-)
I love your comment about scents triggering memories. The scent of lavender always brings sweet memories of my grandma and the scent of Chanel #5 never fails to remind of my sister who passed away three years ago. I still have two of her sweaters in my drawer scented with Chanel # 5 and whenever I'm missing her I slip one on and wrapped in the scent and warmth, I can feel her near me.
Wonderful post. Barb xo
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