What's that smell?

I am pleased to announce that I am going to be a regular guest poster at Perfume Smellin' Things. Every third Tuesday, you will be able to find my featured guest post right there in black & white. (The rest of the time, you will have to be content with Columbina, her wickedly amusing Mr. Columbina, the charming Tom, and the other guest posters... so don't wait 'til a rainy Tuesday to visit. They're delightful.)

My review of Andy Tauer's delicious, unreleased fragrance L'Eau d'Epices, currently being tinkered with by Andy, will be the first to appear there. His other fragrances, particularly Lonestar Memories, are controversial and seem to be love-or-hate things with no room to kinda-like. I am keen to try Lonestar Memories because evidently it is a fierce thing of smoke, dust, leather, and tar: eau de highway. Excitingly different, though I might not be the right person to wear such a thing.

I will be acquiring even more fragrance samples, now that I can justify spending money on my odd passion for scents to myself... it's a legitimate hobby now, don'tcha know? (Those of you who see me regularly will soon be aware that I will smell weird-- okay, even weirder than usual-- in my spare time.)

As of now... well, I cannot recommend Sel de Vetiver by The Different Company highly enough. It comes with quite a price tag, which is normally enough to send me whimpering, but in this case, I might bite the bullet and go for it. It is unisex, austere, and reminiscent of the outdoors. A warm, rooty, earthy freshness of vetiver softened by candied grapefruit, iris, ylang, cardamom, and the teensiest touch of patchouli ever. (I can't even smell the patchouli.) This scent does not trail after or emanate from the wearer. Instead, it seems to surround him, barely detectable except for brief, beautiful, strangely salty hints. Try a sample if you are curious; it might delight you the way it does me.

Yes, a sample. You can try small samples of fragrances from many perfume shops -- I rather like Luckyscent. Or visit the holy grail of sample and decant shops, The Perfumed Court. But beware... that way lies addiction.

Edit: If you are apt to be captivated by sniffing things, but don't know where to start, read this post at Perfume Posse... even if you don't go smell them all (and goodness knows I have not) it's a delicious post.