smoky

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Fragile

Snow globe with gold glitter liquid and a black figure with Jean-Paul Gaultier’s iconic corseted silhouette.

There are few times I would ever recommend anyone not snatching up an adorable miniature vintage bottle from a brilliant costume and fashion designer, filled with tuberose and sweet smoky spice mixed by Francis Kurkdjian himself, that lasts at the most delicate arm’s length forever–

–but this mini Fragile is a pain in the ass.
The press-on tab lid on the bottom leaks, because gravity. The gold detail on the bottle on the bottle decomposes with alcohol, and since perfumer’s spirits are usually 190 proof, that happens quick. And the mouth, one of those irritating single drop orifices (orifii?) that essential oil bottles have, gets clogged up with glitter particles and has to be cleaned out with a pin.

So don’t.
Walk on by.
Keep scrolling.

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I do love me some Gaultier. His costumes in Fifth Element were amazing.

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Tuberose Flash

Tauerville black and white label bottle, casting prism shadows. I wish this one came in larger amounts–I’d buy it by the quart.

Tank Battle’s older sibling who drinks too much and swears a lot, and I’m obsessed.

A shot of benzoin bourbon out of the bottle and a heavy draw of labdanum smoke, and then slides easy into creamy tuberose. Sweet and lazy, it lingers close for the evening, a faint breath of patchouli keeping it just a little dirty.

Sexy as hell.

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The opening of this is fun–I love when musicians tune onstage.

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Encens

encens edgy
Really grainy pic of Scentbird decant spray on printout of Rag & Bone bottle.

This is the other guy in your MFA class–who rolled his eyes at the dude who started every sentence with “Actually…”
He smoked menthols, and cooked you dinner with five spice powder and wrapped his leather coat around you when the weather turned bad, and you never officially dated but once in a while you still get a postcard from Asia that smells of joss sticks.

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Memoir

Black Amouage mini bottle (that turns olive-ish when backlit) on stack of tiny books.

La, this is lovely.

Incense that’s been soaked in sweet wine, an antique spice chest with gilt hinges, a library of flowers pressed in rare books–

Fills the room at first, labdanum fueling soft animalics, then slowly fades to the skin. Wormwood takes the sweetness from the cloves to make them leathery and rich, but roses soften the edges, making it feminine.

Lasts all day, and even longer in the hair, vintage luxury at its best.

Emaan Zadjali is an American-Omani online sensation who calls her music “trap-soul.”
I like this smoky tune.

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Interlude

interlude
Cobalt blue Amouage mini on sheet music.

This one is a little bit genius.

First breath is sangria and smoke, a quick break between acts on the side door sidewalk of the theater, then sticky honey sweets to soothe the throat as the lights flicker–Places, please!–and meanders back to leather and walnut-wood seats and gaslight.

Stays close, and lasts on the skin with benzoin and incense for ages.

This is one of my favorite interludes-

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Oud Saphir

oud saphir
Sample vial on printed photo of bottle with maroon cap and marine blue label.

Moody woods and spicy leather. I like it.

The bergamot and pepper opens bright, then the suede turns up the volume. A hit of wintergreen fades into forest within an hour.

This might be marketed as unisex, but I find it very masculine, with smoke and dry musk between the trees.

I still like the original of this one.

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Timbuktu

timbuktu
L’Artisan Parfumeur clear bottle with turquoise label.

Sophisticated and warm–leans to the yang rather than the yin–it’s got outward force, this stuff.

Sweet spice at the opening, with a hint of rose, that settles into resinous green incense, heavy on the vetiver. Soft patchouli projection for half the day, with honey cardamom on the skin.

Has really nice organic alpha notes, with none of the usual chemical musks–for days when you need a little more power in the flesh.

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Fate

fate for women
Amouage iridescent glazed mini bottle on a pile of hot peppers, peppercorns and cinnamon sticks.

Fate for Women is the queen in an urban fantasy who reads your palm with a handshake and leaves you wondering if you’re going to be invited for a bedtime snack, or eaten in a stew.

Opens with cinnamon and pepper–almost itchy–then sweet incense flares with a breath of rose for an hour. Eventually the most gorgeous benzoin melts with vanilla into leather and lingers all night.

Incredible on silk scarves.

This cover of Screamin’ Jay Hawkins is spicy-smoky-amazing.

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Land of Warriors

Land of Warriors edgy
Decant vial on paper test printed with Land of Warrior’s red bottle with black and white painted horses.

Leather motorcycle gear in the sun.

Animalic asphalt, and a marvelous tomato leaf–this guy goes off-road, too. A bit of sour fruit and herb-y flowers round out the long ride.

I love the way the vibe switches back and forth from urban to rural.

Chevelle’s Take out the Gunman came out in 2014, too. A good driving song.

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Squid

squid zoo
Decant vial with sea blue eau de parfum, naturalist drawing of a squid, and test paper cutout of Zoologist bottle.

It’s blue! And weird and wet and marvelous.

Marine water and smoke out of the vial that darkens down to black fountain pen ink, dirtying up sea foam.
Algae blooms, delicate green, strangely organic and chemical at the same time, with big juicy sillage.
The ambergris rises to the surface an hour later, making it even wetter with ocean spray; benzoin sweetens it, turning it fresh again.

Six hours later and it’s still there, chaotic, never seeming to settle down to one depth; yet it’s oddly comforting and beautiful.

Gov’t Mule does a terrific jam cover of Jimi Hendrix’s 1983 (A Merman I Shall Be)–from Electric Ladyland–that goes deep under water around the 4:15 mark.