-
Carnal Flower for Frederic Malle: Fragrant Thoughts to Enter 2018
Since my last post in October I have had a fairly unadventurous time. I’ve worn much of the same fragrance. A bit of Jicky, lots of Vol de Nuit, a handful of summertime colognes … But, Carnal Flower is decidedly my new and most worn smell, and it’s delightful. I…
-
Monthly Musings: In Absentia, October 2017
The other week I sat on the edge of the Yarra River, which runs right through the central business district of Melbourne. I undid the middle button of my double-breasted jacket – Loro Piana – mid-grey and riddled with a black and blue check. As I undid my button and…
-
Discovering India: Vaara by Penhaligon’s
There is the dual mind present on this blog: Olfactics and Liam. Olfactics is quite decidedly an armchair rationalist, formulating and challenging epistemic attitudes towards fragrance-cum-aesthetics. Olfactics is excruciatingly severe and takes the deeply hard stance towards all things fragrance. My two Gabrielle posts saw Olfactics front and centre, and…
-
Monthly Musings: Discordant – Why Pessimism is Okay and History Matters, September 2017
Discordant: Why Pessimism is Okay and History Matters. This post is a reply to In Defence of Gabrielle, which is an objection to my earlier post: The Chanel Problem (In Reference to Gabrielle by Chanel). I am holding this as an academic exercise; a dialectic process, and therefore it goes…
-
Call to Arms: The Chanel Problem (In Reference to Gabrielle by Chanel)
Some food for thought. I call this the Chanel problem. They’ve done this to themselves. The initial reaction to Gabrielle hasn’t been overly enthusiastic, to say the least. In fact, it has called for a retreat into perspective. What perspective? The general consensus has been drawn: “It’s perfectly fine for…
-
On Patchouli: Velvet Haze by Byredo and Brutus by Orto Parisi
It has been too long since I’ve smelled an interesting patchouli fragrance – something that goes beyond the typical archetypes that consist of oud, rose, amber, chocolate, and any mixed variation of that set. Byredo has left me pleasantly surprised, producing a patchouli of pronounced clarity and definition. Velvet Haze…
-
Monthly Musings: In Response, July 2017
Before I even dare utter the word justified in this musings, let me just address something I egregiously forgot to do in June’s post! It’s been one year since the musings format first launched, and as you’d expect from anything me, it’s a glorious mishmash – sometimes fiercely intellectual, sometimes fiercely…
-
Extravagance Russe by Diana Vreeland
Up until I explored this range of fragrances, I had never heard of Diana Vreeland. Consider it a fashionable faux pas – I am guilty! I will treat this ignorance as a fortunate opportunity to attempt to test my internalist/externalist discussions in fragrance. Does smelling either Extravagance Russe alone or…
-
Fashion, Fragrance, and Edward Sexton: Noir Anthracite by Tom Ford
If one had only ever been exposed to Tom Ford the fashion brand, then one would expect auxiliary fragrances that nod towards the past. Tom Ford demonstrates that most creative exercises are essentially the result of clever copying, or, in this instance, some sort of synergy, where an old style…
-
Aromatics Elixir by Clinique (With a Footnote on Context)
Does anyone smell a scent like Aromatics Elixir for the first time and actually like it? I am not so sure, and I continue to be dubious. But why? Aromatics Elixir, to me, represents the pinnacle of good classic perfumery in a number of strong ways. Aromatics Elixir is a…
-
Subscribe
Subscribed
Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
Olfactics 