Scentzilla!

Dear readers,

I and my dear friend Marina are extrememly excited to introduce you to a new project, a collective effort between Nobi Shioya (of S-Perfume), Scentzilla, and Perfume Smellin’ Things. It is called Made by Blog (http://madebyblog.com) and is a blog devoted to describing and discussing the process and creation of two special new perfumes. One will be created by Laurent le Guernec for Katie, and the other by Clement Gavarry for Marina. Both perfumers involved have previously worked together in the past on Sarah Jessica Parker’s Lovely. The blog would more or less reflect the development and evolution of the perfumes in “real time.” We invite everyone to try samples of the trial fragrances as they are made available, as well as the final products, and to read and comment at your leisure at Made by Blog. Your feedback will prove most intriguing to read, and will be much appreciated. Registering to comment is as easy as clicking the “register” link on the sidebar at right, and we look forward to hearing your thoughts.

Love,
Marina and Katie

Please stop by and visit Ruby’s Perfume blog today. It is Swedish Mother’s Day, and she has endeavored to also commit $1 for any comment made on the blog to the Adoption Centre. Please visit her and wish her a very “Happy Mother’s Day.”

On another note, with the situation in Indonesia, please consider making a donation to NW Medical Teams or Mercy Corps. Both are incredible organizations. I have donated $28 (via Network for Good) to NW Medical Teams, as I find their mission to bring both emergency and non-emergency health care wherever it is needed most in the world to be impossibly inspiring. They already have skilled people near the area because of their ongoing work in Banda Aceh, and their ability to address the needs of the injured in the affected area is immediate. Please, if you are able, consider making a matching donation to them either directly at their own site, or via Network for Good. Even a small donation such as this, or even smaller, can make a huge difference when everyone gives what they can.

I may or may not be internet connected over the coming week, so the new reviews will remain a bit erratic for a while… Take care everyone, and thank you!

A final round-up of the total amount of money (as expressed in US Dollars) raised through Benevolent Blogging on Mother’s Day… Together we raised just under $1200! Seriously! Wow! I am so, so proud to say I am associated with all of you who took part - you are all such great folks. Thank you, and congratulations. Also, I’d like to repeat my appreciation for those of you who stopped in and commented, especially those who took the time to visit all the bloggers who were participating. Muchas gracias to everyone.

Ach, moving is tiring. Even the dog is beat. This is an older picture of him, but it’s how he usually prefers to sleep when he has the bed all to himself. I had to move the pillow out from under his head in order to photograph him. I don’t think he lays like this because he thinks he’s “people.” No, I get the impression he considers us all dogs, and has learned this behavior from his loving pack of two-legged dogs.

Packing up the perfume was kind of fun, although I am terrified that everything I love best will break or spill. I revisted and resniffed at many, turning it into an enjoyable activity instead of a chore. I thought I’d mention a few of my vanillas today.

When packing, the newer acquisitions of course got boxed first since they were the ones easy to get at. J&E Atkinsons’ Vanilla Tales is a scent I’d heard only a little of, but I liked what I did hear. I’d stalk the auction sites from time to time, hoping to see it, but it eluded me. Finally, a winning bid on a set from a UK eBayer secured me a chance to finally find out what those few fans were talking about. It proved not to be quite the romance I was hoping for, but it was worth the trouble of stalking. The first few minutes set my teeth to clench. What is this? Some stupid Hypnotic Poison dupe?? I was waiting for this?? Then the bitter almond-vanilla-Play Doh burns away to reveal a curious little thing. Milk! It doesn’t smell “creamy” or “chalky.” It is the scent of cold milk… with vanilla, of course, and a strong dose of anise doled out like medicine on a teaspoon. I am not particularly a fan of anise, but I can see where the appeal for Vanilla Tales lies because of it. Of any of the vanillas I’ve tried lately, Vanilla Tales seems the best suited for wear during the summer.

I also uncovered and then packed up a decant a dear friend had given me of Parfums de Nicolai’s Vanille Tonka. It’s one of those scents that sneak up on you. At first you just think, oh this is nice, but pay no real mind to it. Then slowly you realize you’re leaning into yourself over and again to get repeated whiffs. Slightly creamy vanilla is the obvious theme, yet on my skin, it is the loud open-mouthed smack of Juicy Fruit gum which both attracts and repels me. Citrus fruits and frankincense are apparently among the fragrance notes, but I don’t perceive them as such. There’s more the smell of a thick cutting board, dirty from slicing up fruit and garden goodies. The dry down opens up a small jar of whole cinnamon sticks from the spice cabinet, which occurs like an interesting twist in a novel. It catches you off guard, adding interest to an already good plot. For some well-written reviews, please check out the ones at Now Smell This and Bois de Jasmin I could kick myself for not digging into the decant of this scent earlier. It would have been perfect for soggy old spring, but since I am in the Pacific Northwest, Vanille Tonka luckily only has to wait for soggy old fall.

The first vanilla-specific perfume I ever bought myself was Victoria’s Secret Vanille Musc, one of four vanilla themed fragrances from their discontinued (a decade ago, roughly) Essences de Voyage line. Before packing it up, I had to take a quick spray. I bought it my first year of college, and while I don’t think it was really so spendy (it was less than twenty bucks I am sure), at the time I sweated bullets over the price. I knew I should be saving all my money to pay my upcoming term’s tuition, but I loved the line so! Well, except for the apricot-vanilla one: that smelled too much like jam to me. The other two in the line were a vanilla caramel combo, which I decided against as there was something unhappily burnt smelling in it, and a fourth, which I am guessing must have been a plain vanilla. Vanille Musc is not the most unique composition, but it still smells as seductive and easy to wear as it did when I first bought it. The powdery aspect of the musk, once faint, is slowly taking over with age unfortunately, but I still love it. Sure do wish it were still around so I could stop acting so damn precious about the contents my old bottle. The vanillas of this line do come up occasionally on eBay, but they go for a pretty penny, so I must not be the only who still loves them.

Naturally, because I am an obsessive, I concluded I must take a break from boxing up the ones I own to head to the mall for some quick sniffas of new ones, too.

On my trip to the mall, I decided I ought to try the newest of Britney Spears’ In Control. Oh golly. It was unimpressive upon the air and paper, so like the GIANT idiot I am, I decided to give it the skin test. After all, Victoria at Bois de Jasmin was relatively kind to it, though not exactly approving. See? GIANT idiot, I am. So there I was stuck with the smell, and there was nothing I could do about it. I felt like uselessly screaming “KHAAAAAAAN!” in displeasure. It’s not exactly an evil perfume, but it absconded with my good mood. I’d say it’s pleasant enough for those who go in for this sort of sugar-rimmed thing. It’s sappily sweet aroma stands squarely at odds with Ms. Spears’ statement at a recent press apperance that, “This perfume is for empowered girls who want to take over the world forget about the men! […] It’s more demanding, it’s more sensual, it’s black, it’s about being in control. That’s cool and inspirational … girls need that.” It is not demanding. It is not particularly sensual. She’s correct that the bottle is black (looks like a plastic carnival prize, something you’d win at a ring toss) but the juice lands in the pastel color schemes of My Little Pony. More than anything else, it’s NOT about being in control. In Control is about being cutesy, with a confused but mostly safe expression of burgeoning naive sexuality that comes with being a young and less-than-wordly adolescent. I perceived In Control as being composed of vanilla, french vanilla, a rather well done caramel note, and what seemed like the way left-over cotton candy smells when you’ve already eaten too much of it. I later waved my wrist under my husband’s nose without telling him what I was subjecting him to, in order to see what he’d think. “What does this smell like to you?” “I don’t know, it’s really juevenille… it doesn’t smell like any thing, it just smells little kid-ish.”

He then compared it to the only other fragrance I had ceded real estate to that day, Eddie Bauer’s Adventurer, which he pointed to as an example of what does smell good. On me it was a warm and leathery scent. I am wondering if I really smelled what I thought I smelled: a reviewer at Basenotes has left me unsure, because unlike him I did not find it sugary in the least. I felt Adventurer was surprisingly wonderful. Okay, so it did begin as if it might turn into a cheesy “male” cologne, but the drydown was all woodsy musky leather. I had not realized that Eddie Bauer sold fragrances. There were two women’s selections that also seemed rather nice: Balance, a light citrusy floral, and Pure, a pale, almost creamy white floral. But they did not grab me by the nostrils so strongly as Adventurer. I liked it well enough to consider a purchase at some point. It is quite afforable, too.

I sniffed a few other new-ish items as well, all terribly forgetable. Well, aside that is, from the friendly saleswoman trying to push Euphoria on me by cheerfully asking me to sniff her arm. Oh dear. I’m not particularly a fan of that fruity-ambery concoction, but I am not surprised no one was buying it that day. Sadly, it smelled awry on her. There’s this weird little funny note in the base that smells of stale silk flowers on me, but on her it was not nearly so benign. I have few, if any, social graces, so I struggled to bite my tongue and refrain from telling her that base in Euphoria made her smell as if something had crawled onto her skin and died. More precisely, to quote Barney from The Simpsons, “It didn’t die.” THAT at least was memorable. I am pleased to report, however, that the Clackamas Meier & Frank (Portland area) is carrying the Amarige Harvest Collection fragrance. They lacked testers for it, but I assure you it is worth buying. The longer I have owned and been wearing it, the more I am in love with it.

Images: At top, Vanilla Plantifolia photo, which is in the public domain as a work of the US Federal Government, via wikipedia. My Little Pony picture made by using Hasbo’s offical site, through the “Ponyville Sticker Book.” Eddie Bauer Adventurer photo from fragrancex.com

I think sometimes people are at a loss to understand how one can admire without liking. Pictured here is a small wasp nest tucked under the eaves of my house. Look at that perfectly mathematical eye-pleasing form. Isn’t it gorgeous? I admire it. But I do not like it, for wasp nests mean wasps that sting. In my own way, this is how I experience Lancome’s Tresor (1990 version.)

Tresor presents a view of femininity suited for ladies, not women. Cross your legs, mind the posture, take that gum out of your mouth, be pleasant and smile when people are talking to you, and please have a little pride and wear some makeup, but not too much! I make a lousy lady; Tresor has never fit me well. Its powdery sweetness, amaretto-like rose and apricot combo, all add up to something that smells like a lie on me. Oh but I do admire it. Let no one say the lady Tresor possesses no depth or power. The richness of its aroma is made all the more remarkable by the simplicity of composition. I think in some ways this is perfumer Sophia Grojsman’s most audacious fragrance. Tresor seems almost radical with its expression of hyper-femininity. I simply cannot wear it: it overwhelms and oppresses me because it turns into cloying treacle on my skin.

Consequently, I felt skeptical about my chances of pulling off the newly introduced Eau de Printemps (Sheer) version of Tresor. I couldn’t for the life of me figure out how anyone could alter and lighten Tresor while retaining its basic character. It appeared to be a preposterous prospect. Ah, but what do I know? The Eau de Printemps is entirely Tresor while proving much more wearable. The major difference between them is that the powdered sweetness has been stripped down, though not removed altogether. Rose and fruit are married in as pleasing a manner as in the regular Tresor, but without the heaviness. Interestingly, Eau de Printemps has a slightly more palpable green woody feel in the base. The ambery, slightly vanillic oomph of the original remains intact, but is transposed into veil-like transparency. Tresor Eau de Printemps… fits me. I think it is a fine addition to Lancome’s line up, providing a wonderful option to those like myself who would love to finally be able to wear Tresor. It’s a waspless nest, if you will. I am unable to guess at what lovers of the original will think: will they take exception to the changes?

My only beef is with the packaging. Like Kimora Lee Simmons’ Goddess, Eau de Printemps also comes with a ring seated around the bottle neck. Unlike Goddess, this rose engraved ring is an elegant design element to introduce. But it sure ain’t functional. I am not going to wear it, and I like the way the bottle looks with it on. However, due to the fact that it is loose, it wants to plop off whenever I remove the cap to spray. It’s annoying, and like with Goddess, I must protest this Happy Meal approach to packaging. Do not give me cheesy prize trinkets with my perfume. Spend the money on a complimentary purse atomizer, or better yet, please just sodder that lovely ring as a permanent piece on the bottle.

Tresor Eau de Printemps (Tresor Sheer) is a limited edition offering. If it at all piques your interest, best to try it out now before it is gone.

*The Tresor bottle in the photo is my mom’s. I wasn’t kidding before, it really looks almost unused. Waiting endlessly for “special” occcasions that never happen. If you squint you can see a vacation picture of my parents in the frame in the background.

If I were a better blogger, I would devote all my posts to whatever was hot or edgy. If I were a better writer, I would cultivate a manner of writing that fit proper English standards, rather than my usual break-the-rules style to reflect conversational speech. But then if I did that, this blog would no longer be quite so “me.”

This is really where the motivation for blogging, or any creative activity begins: a particular sort of arrogance that people may be interested in what I personally have to offer. I do not believe this arrogance is necessarily a bad thing. The greatest artists, authors and musicians quite thankfully have it, and we get to enjoy their work consequently.

However… my great fear is that the arrogance that leads me to write how I feel and what I think will overtake me; that I might become so enamored of my brain that I cease to be able to recognize and and acknowledge other people might have big giant brains, too.

I have no sure prescription on how to avoid that fate. My own chosen method is to give credit when and where I can, to shine my own small spotlight on those whose work I admire and devour, and to offer small gestures of apology when I have failed to deliver upon those practices.

I have been inadvertently guilty in the past, through both accident and ignorance, of failing to tip my hat to others whose images I used when I first began my other blog. It’s something I am embarrassed and ashamed of. I should be. As you can tell from my posts here, I sedulously run credits on the bottom to let everyone know where I got my images (that are not from my own effort) or music samples from. I make clear when I am quoting others. I provide hyperlinks to those whose work I admire or find interesting. In short, I name names. Because whatever it is I think of my own big brain I refuse to allow myself to succumb to the folly of my own arrogance. I will not fall so deeply in love with my own talents, however meager, that I descend into the worst sort of solipsism: the self-made cult of my own “muse,” which is really just myself in disguise.

In Greek theatre, the hypocrite was a character who would don a mask and mimic other characters. I do not wish to be a hypocrite, and I do not wish to pin my identity as a human being upon wearing some mask to avoid facing up to who I really am: a person riddled with insecurities, felicities, and flaws. A person who is just like everyone else, in other words.

To that end, this is why I am so grateful to all of you who participated in the Mother’s Day mass-blog event. You ALL have my sincerest thanks. It is really you who made such a fun and slightly unusual holiday celebration a success. Thanks to all of you, whether you blogged and donated, or took the time to comment. I feel extraordinarily thankful that the world is not so cruel as one often suspects it to be, for there are people like yourselves around to remind otherwise. I did not think to try to organize it because I thought I alone would make a difference, but because I knew there were many of you who would be willing and able to do so. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Each and every one of you are awesome for contributing in whatever way you could.

This post is also written as a slightly obtuse “fuck you” to an insecure someone too emotionally wrapped up in themselves to perceive that one’s own good behavior is never predicated upon the behavior of others. That sense of kindness comes from within, and at the very least, it is a matter of honor. This person, who knows who they are, (and fyi, me and my big fucking brain knows using “they” as a gender-neutral term is incorrect) should have better to offer than extrinsic, emotionally needy and self-exclusionary excuses for their behavior. I cannot change you; I cannot change who you are. I can only remind you that though the efforts and achievements of others may seem small and petty to you, they may well mean a great deal to the person who made them. To wit, I am (as all of us are) regularly bombarded daily with products for purchase through advertisements, groceries, malls, and boutiques, but this would not excuse me to slip some small trinket into my pocket and shoplift it. Sure, I could rationalize my actions and point out that stealing is not as bad as murdering, but that does not really forgive me for what I did. None of us can avoid making mistakes, nor can most of us avoid making errors of judgement. We cannot change what we have done in the past, but we are able to make amends where we can. And we all should, whatever our striving ambitions for success might be. To quote Ted Leo in his song Sword in the Stone, “I’m not impressed with your desire to be the biggest in the bowl, you’ll still just be a little shit in a world that’s just a big shit hole.”

My arrogant little self apologizes for the soapbox, and will resume writing arrogant little posts on wonderfully smelly and pretty things again shortly!

So that I don’t end this on a negative note, I would like to acknowledge all of you who commented yesterday. I have decided that I will donate my due $56 to FINCA International, and additionally make a matching donation to the OFA. My thanks to everyone, again!

Today is Mother’s Day, and for every commenter who stops in today and says “hello” or “good luck” or “this blog sucks,” I will be donating $1 to FINCA International. C’mon - make my wallet groan in pain! UPDATE: Only four hours left! If you are reading this and haven’t said hi yet, don’t tarry! I’d really love it if we could reach a total of at least one hundred different commenters by midnight! De-lurk! De-lurk! COMMENTS ARE NOW CLOSED. THANK YOU TO EVERYONE!

My twins were a tad disappointed that rather than receive a present, Mommy wanted to give money away to other people as a gift. Consequently they wanted to help with my gift. I asked them to draw me some pictures please, and they came up with the idea (all on their own, too, clever boys) that they would draw their ideal perfumes to give to mothers. They were terribly concerned that someone might steal their pictures or ideas, so I told them about copyrights, and then promised to remind everyone that the artwork below is the intellectual property of Zeke and Henry Voll-Taylor. You’ve all been warned, heh!

The first triad of perfume bottles is by Henry. His idea was that “the bottles are talking, so that when all the mothers put their perfume on they hear the nicest things to say.” I’m not sure if the words will show up on all monitors, so the first bottle is saying “I love the world,” the second says “I love you,” and the third “I like you.” They indeed are nice things, though he forgot that one of the nicest things to say to anyone is “Congratulations, you’ve just won the lottery!” Well, come to think about it, it’s a nice thing to say as long as you’re not living inside a Shirley Jackson novel. He wanted me to especially draw your attention to the heart on the bottom corner of the second bottle - it changes colors when you spray it he says. He’s very proud of that idea. As am I of his creative little self.

This second design is Zeke’s… the heart shape bottle shows the heavy artisic influence the Escada perfume house has had upon his work. He said the best part of his design is that because it’s heart shaped you can give it to mothers on ANY day you like for a little valentine. I tried to sharpen part of the picture so you could read the name of the perfume. It’s written in pencil on the box beneath the bottle, but it’s still not quite clear after my effort. He calls his perfume “Super Rose.” I asked him about the name. He said it was the best rose perfume ever, and it would make mothers fly. And then I simply lost it and got all verklempt. His perfume is made of pencil, crayon, and paper, and it smells better than any other perfume I’ve owned. Am I flying? Well, not by his standard, but I got the effect and I didn’t even need fancy tights or a cape to do it: I’ve got a super rose.

Since they were in a perfume-y mood, I asked them to pick the perfumes they thought would be the best ones for moms. Henry selected Fendi Theorema. He’s really got the most challenging and interesting taste for a seven year old - bear in mind this is my guy who also loves the polarizing Miss Dior. He never fails to surprise me with how sophisiticated his nose is. Zeke picked Escada Ibiza Hippie. When I pointed out to him that his own Mommy never really wears it, he admitted that he just likes it for himself to wear because it’s the one that smells like “breakfast strawberries.” Upon some prompting for a selection for moms rather than for himself, he responded that moms like breakfast strawberries too, then gave me a rather dismissive look for even asking.

Roughly ten years ago, I tried to give my own mom a Super Rose. I knew how badly she wanted a bottle of Lancome’s Tresor, and when I made a trip to Canada, I picked it up for her on my way out the duty-free store going home. She was so tickled and pleased with it, and to this day that bottle sits in a place of honor on her dresser. But she’s barely touched it. If you didn’t look closely you’d swear it was full. She keeps telling me she saves it for “special” occasions. She also saves a set of silverware for use only with “special” occasions: we’ve never used it in the umpteen years she’s had it. There’s a tablecloth that sat unused in her linen closet for, oh let’s say 15-ish years, that was also “special.” We finally just took it out one year on Christmas without telling her and set the table so she wouldn’t know until it was too late to do anything about it: and she was so flipping happy about how pretty it was. I keep urging her to use the stupid bottle: I got it for her to use WHENEVER she liked. But alas, my arm twisting has no effect. The perfume has aged. While it still smells sweet and lovely, it sadly has lost some of its sparkle through the years. Waiting for something special to happen. So, Mom? Every day is a special one. Moreover, every day with you is an especial one. I have spent all my life trying to figure out how to give you a Super Rose, too. Even at my worst, when I was a ragingly annoying teenager, I wanted you to have one. I can only keep telling you the nicest things to say, and hope you realize what a wonderful mom you are when you hear them: I love the world, I love you, and I like you.

And, thank you.

If you’d like to visit some more benevolent bloggers, please click on the links below. They are all wonderful people, and they will love to see you!

• Beauty Addict for Orphan Foundation of America
• Blogdorf Goodman for FINCA International
• Brain Trapped in Girl’s Body for FINCA International
• A Girl’s Gotta Spa for Orphan Foundation of America
• MonkeyPosh for Humane Society of the United States and Muscular Dystrophy Association
• Mother Hen’s Place for Aga Khan Foundation Canada
• Legerdenez for Orphan Foundation of America
• One Child Left Behind for Heifer International
• Perfume Posse for Orphan Foundation of America
• Perfumery for FINCA International
• Perfume-Smellin’ Things for Orphan Foundation of America
• The Scented Salamander for Orphan Foundation of America
• Scenteur 7 for Orphan Foundation of America *Participating May 10th through the 15th!*
• SmellyBlog for FINCA International
• The Soap Blog for UNIQUE
• That Obscure Object of Desire for FINCA International
• Urban Chick for Womankind Worldwide *Participating May 12th ’til she returns from holiday in a few weeks*
• Victoria’s Own for FINCA International
• Yankee Family goes South for Orphan Foundation of America

WWD Beauty Biz

Scenzilla was recently featured in the lastest issue of WWD (Women’s Wear Daily) BeautyBiz! I’m so jazzed and so honored to be amongst all those other great sites. I’m feeling thrilled, and my thanks to the author Lauren Salerno for including me!

Also, another big thank you to Beauty Jones for taking the time to scan the article and email it to me. I really appreciate it.

Other blogs honored by WWD:
Beauty Addict
The Beauty Newsletter
Blogdorf Goodman
De Lush
eBeauty Daily
Jack & Hill
Jolie in NYC
Product Girl
Shake Your Beauty
Shave Blog

Congrats to the other bloggers in the article. But really, there are tons of wonderful beauty bloggers out there, and many of the best are those will find in my link list in the sidebar at left.

More Benevolent Bloggers You Ought to Visit on Mother’s Day

Please don’t forget to cruise by here and say “howdy” on May 14th, Mother’s Day. For every commenter who drops in and leaves a comment on my Mother’s Day post, I will be donating $1 to FINCA International. If you ever needed an excellent excuse to de-lurk, here’s a great one, *hint-hint*.

Here are some more wonderful folks whose sites you’ll want to visit as well:

Brandon, the maddeningly talented writer behind One Child Left Behind will be donating to Heifer International for every comment left on his Mother’s Day post. Heifer International seeks to “change the world” by offering people economic means to sustain themselves. To accomplish this, clients are provided with food and income sources via livestock, education, and training. Brandon’s one of those authors who can make me laugh or make me cry. Often he manages to cause both at the same time, which is surprisingly painful, because it hurts to guffaw when you’ve got a big old lump in your throat. In my wildest dreams, I will someday grow up and be able to write like him.

The Soap Blog is written by Heather, who is the proud owner of Eie Flud. She hand crafts her products, all with a level of care that no line-factory produced product can ever be made with. This becomes quite evident after reading even just one of her posts on her blog. The time and consideration she clearly gives each and every item she sells is inspiring. As a reader and a consumer, I can’t help but wish every businessperson were more like her. Heather has long been a staunch supporter of Unique. Unique has a mission “to inform, support and alleviate the isolation of anyone affected by a rare chromosome disorder and to raise public awareness.” I think reading the aims of this organization poignantly demonstrtes how much help and support are needed for those individuals and families affected by rare chromosome disorders. Heather will be promoting Unique on May 14th, and I strongly encourage you to say hello to her, discover her lovely line of fragrant goodies, and learn more about Unique!

Yankee Family goes South may sound like a self-explanitory title, but its about so much more than simply a move. Who knew there could be real estate problems because of diverging accents? Who knew anyone would ever get into their head to not only deep-fat fry a Snickers bar, but to actually serve it others? In a restaraunt. She even covers a hairstyle nearly as horrifying as the dreaded mullet, and certainly more dated than the Dorothy Hamill: the bouffant. Please visit this charming lady to read her stories on Mother’s Day, when she will be supporting Orphan Foundation of America.

That Obscure Object of Desire is a relative new kid on the blogging block, but it’s already off to a fine start. Pretty clothes? Check. Pretty decorating ideas? Check. Pretty toiletries and cosmetic goodies? Check. So many lovely objects, so little time! The author Jennifer will be supporting FINCA International to celebrate Mother’s Day, so please pop in and say hullo!

Mother Hen’s Place is… well, you know, it’s just flat out cozy. The kind of place where you want to pull up a good chair, sit down with a nice cup of tea, and chit-chat with one of the most charming and kind individuals you’d ever get the chance to listen to. Her topics of choice vary from post to post, and even the things she swears aren’t interesting become interesting the way she tells it all. On May 14th she will be supporting Aga Khan Foundation Canada, a non-profit international agency that supports social development programs in Asia and Africa.

Shannon, the author of A Girl’s Gotta Spa, has such a fun enthusiastic way with all manner of self-pampering and girly routines. She’s written some great product suggestions, ranging from those found in the big department stores to those of the very cute line she reps for called Country Bunny Bath & Body. She’s also inspired me with some nifty ideas for making over my own bathroom after seeing the pics of hers.

SmellyBlog is the personal journal of Ayala Sender, the amazingly knowledgable perfumer behind Quinta Essentia. Her practice of natural perfumery is thoroughly rooted in her deep appeciation and love of the natural world. Her blog’s reflections and information about the smells of the world around us are both touching and engrossing. Please stop by and visit her on Mother’s Day, where she will be supporting FINCA International. For one lucky commenter that day, she will be giving away a bottle of Altruism, one of the signature scents she created for Quinta Essentia.

Blogdorf Goodman is THE essential fashion and beauty site for any would-be style maven. As many of its readers have already agreed, “Blogdorf Goodman is better than Allure.” And better than Vogue, too, I might add. Annie’s snarkily hilarious when she disapproves of a product, and sometimes even when she likes it. Her passion for the subject of fashion and beauty is infectious, so please don’t miss out on all the fun there! She will be supporing FINCA International.

The full list (thus far) of participants is viewable at BenevolentBlogging.com.

It’s not too late to participate just yet! Please just send me an email before noon (PST) on Friday, so that I can include you in the full link list I will be sending out to everyone that’s contributing.

Scenzilla is temporarily taking some breaks from writing about smelly things during this month, so that I can discuss another fun beauty obsession, mascara. I’ve got some keen faves, and some not-so-keen faves.

My favorite drugstore mascara is Physician’s Formula Retro-Glow. It’s the closest I’ve ever come to looking like I’m wearing false lashes without actually having to wear false lashes. It thickens, it lengthens, and it oomphasizes (portmanteau of oomph and emphasize… patent pending!) every last lash. It’s got one drawback: the wand. It sure does look cute, but I worry it might be a pain for some folks, since holding it is akin to grasping at the end of a bubble-blowing wand. I don’t personally feel it’s really that tricky to use, but I figured I better mention it. I do like the brush on the end, so I skip using my own wand for it. The mascara tends to smear a bit by the end of the day, but not too badly.

Sadly, all the other mascaras I’ve tried by Physician’s Formula, aside from the Retro, are simply horrendous. Their Lash-In-A-Tube? More like Suck-In-A-Tube. The “tube” is a meaningless gimmick that has no bearing on the performace of the product; the brush is so huge it seems to have been sized for the eyeballs of people straight out of Margaret Keene paintings; the forumla would be fine were it not prone to flaking off like so much asbestos on a 1970s popcorn ceiling. Both their Eyebrightener and To Any Length mascaras perform equally as ignominiously as the Suck-In-A-Tube. While the brushes get no complaints from me, the effect from either one looks like I just coated my lashes in some random dark gunk I pulled out of a broken sink drain. That’s all I got out of them. Both went into the trash the same week I bought them. I really do not understand how they managed to create pure awesomeness with their Retro-Glow, and then fail with these others. I wouldn’t have even tried them all in vain had the Retro-Glow not been THAT awesome.

The absolute cheapest mascara I like is N.Y.C’s (New York Color) Lengthening Mascara. I can usually get it on sale for a buck to a buck-fifty. It will not do a thing for thickening or volume, so please don’t go looking for that in this product. But it does lengthen all right, and it looks remarkably natural. Sadly, it does smear and run on me within I’d say around four or five hours, but this is something I like to correct with a much more spendy product…

… the Smashbox Layer Lash Primer. Yes, buying a $14 mascara primer pretty much defeats the purpose budget-wise of buying a $1 mascara, but I swear the combination of the two is awesome. This primer works best with mascaras that have slightly wet formulas, like the N.Y.C Lengthening (or Smashbox’s own mascara.) I think the best way to use it is to go eye by eye, rather than layer by layer, if that makes sense. I coat only one eye’s lashes in the primer, then let it set for about 15-30 seconds, and next apply my mascara while the primer is still just a bit wet and sticky. THEN I move on to the other eye. No matter which mascara I use, the Smashbox primer seems to keep any smearing in check, so I don’t wind up with undereye smudges that make me look like the world’s most unlikely football player. It lasts all day and all night, too, with no need to “refresh” anything. It may not be waterproof, but unlike waterproof mascaras this primer does not dry my lashes out.

You CAN get some drugstore selections that come with both primer and mascara. The only one I’ve tried is Revlon’s Lash Fantasy. Oh, how I wished this had worked well on my lashes. Alas, if this is a fantasy, then it’s the fantasy of someone who is so timid they can’t be expressive even in their own dreams. The mascara half was slightly too dry, and flaked off like crazy, both with the primer and without. The primer is slightly better, actually, but it’s too gunky and thick for my lashes, and the brush didn’t help matters because it clung to the gunk and then deposited it as chunks of gunk. Which meant I had to pick through my primer-coated lashes with a comb before applying mascara. This meant extra drying time for the primer, and I feel primers work best when the mascara is put over them when still just a tad wet rather than when dry. I suppose it might work for someone with thinner lashes than mine? I’m not sure. I bought this on a buy one, get one free deal, and gave the other tube to my sister, who was even less enthused by it than me. I think she may have even actively hated it.

So on the related topic of lash combs and mascara brushes, there are some I would like to single out as particularly well done.

My favorite ever combination lash and eyebrow brush is Shu Uemura’s Synthetic Eyebrow Brush. It’s nicely sized for travel, and a slight thickness towards end of the handle makes it easy to hold. The brush is quite soft and non-irritating, and while they say the comb is good for brows, I think it works pretty good for combing through the lashes, too. At $10, it’s one of the better deals on high end make-up brushes, second only to CARGO’s kick-ass Kolinsky eyeliner brush. (As a sidenote on the CARGO brush, yes I know it got two crummy reviews on Beauty.com. I can’t imagine why. The only trouble is that the handle is too long by half, but for that price I don’t care. The quality of the brush head is superb. When washing and drying your brushes, please remember to reshape them while still wet, and please dry them with the tips hanging out on the edge of a box or a counter so air can move evenly around the brush head. Or dry them hanging upside down if possible. When washing, DO NOT EVER pull on the hairs, because you will eventually start to loosen and pull them out of the spot inside the ferrule where they are tied and glued. Uh, sorry. Mini-rant about proper brush care over now, I promise.)

The absolute best eyelash comb I’ve ever used is Tarte’s metal comb on the end of the Lash/Mascara Comb. I’m bummed that I can’t buy the comb as a single brush, rather than as a double brush. Nevertheless I’m glad to have that puppy around.

I have two favorite mascara brushes. One might question why anyone would need to buy these, but I’ve found that while some mascaras have a great formula, they may not be packaged with a very stellar brush. Moreover, they are handy for when one simply needs to brush through a botched mascara application rather than needing to pick through it.

One I really like is the one made by Versace. The brush is so soft, but full, and the wooden handle is so thin and strong that I have yet to encounter the mascara tube it doesn’t fit into. No wait, I take that back. Pout’s mascara tube is too skinny for it to fit into. But that’s okay, because you can totally skip their mascara anyhow. Ha! The Versace makeup line has been steadily disappearing from sight, which is heartbreaking because they made some killer products. Luckily for those who don’t already have this brush, it is being sold at a discount via Strawberrynet.com. (And get their blush brush, too - holy cow! It’s, like, so perfect it’s practically makeup zen.) Neiman Marcus used to carry the line, but I don’t see it on their online site anymore, sigh.

The other mascara brush I love, that I can’t find anywhere at ALL now, is Anna Sui’s Eyebrow Brush #1. Sure, it says for eyebrows, but really, it’s a mascara wand. It’s so gothicly girly like much of Sui’s beauty line, but because the handle gets thicker in the middle it’s quite ergonomically correct, too. It’s probably the easiest one to use that I’ve found, and it was quite reasonably priced, too. I dimly recall that I may have paid just under ten US dollars for it? While I can’t find it here in the States anymore, I’d be willing to bet those who live near any of Sui’s Asian outlets may still be able to get ahold of it. If Anna Sui still makes it, that is. Sigh. It’s fab, I hope it is still out there somewhere.

More mascara madness will follow on this blog later throughout this month, including reviews of some mid to high end mascaras. Because I’m addicted to beauty tools and brushes you’ll see some more of those too, including a tweezer that can, *gasp*, knock Tweezerman off its golden tweezer throne!

Much thanks goes to my friend Annie from Blogdorf Goodman for dreaming this May Mascara Madness idea up and organizing it. There are several other marvelous bloggers participating, so please check them all out! The list includes:

http://www.beautifulmakeupsearch.com/blog2/
http://beautyaddict.blogspot.com/
http://beautynews.blogspot.com/
http://blend10.blogspot.com/
http://thedailyobsession.wordpress.com/
http://beautydiary.blogspot.com/
http://www.ladybuglife.blogspot.com/
http://monkeyposh.blogspot.com/
http://thenonblonde.blogspot.com/
http://scentzilla.com/
http://after-so-much-thinking.blogspot.com/
http://victoriasown.blogspot.com/

On another and WHOLLY RANDOM topic, this cracked me up harder than anything I have ever seen. Well, anything I’ve seen this week anyhow, and that even includes this. My favorite line has to be ““I have included in this drink everything I could to strengthen the body.” Wow. I thought that was pure bloat on him, but it’s all strength, baby! Water-retaining, fatastic strength! No word yet on how the drink might affect fey little ponytails. It seems like only yesterday he was singing his own praises as a holyman/lama/whatever you say dude, and selling his organic snake lavender oil. According to that site, now he’s actually singing and cutting an album. WTF? links both via Defamer

Images: Top from physiciansformula.com. Second from newyorkcolor.com. Next from smashbox.com. Next from shuuemura-usa.com. Fifth from strawberrynet.com. Last one of Anna Sui brush from this eBay seller who is luckily willing to ship to the US! Whoo!

Nothing is quite so frustrating as writer’s block. To shake myself out of it, I thought I would try writing poetical rather than lamely attempting to wax poetical. Goofus that I am, I like my poems to rhyme. It’s not that, say, the haiku doesn’t have intristic beauty, of course. I just happen to personally favor the limerick structure. I kind of hope it catches on for perfume reviews. Wouldn’t that be awesome? Especially if were done by folks who know what they are doing instead. (I also am wishing that eventually limerick movie reviewing will catch on someday as well.)

Lulu Beauty ~ Lulu Mae
Lulu Mae rolls out freesia and musk
It’s wearable from dawn until dusk
I wear it for summer
The only bummer
Is it’s as tricky to find as whale tusk.

Robert Piguet ~ Bandit
There once was a woman from Nantucket,
Who’d wear her Bandit by the bucket
Her leather flower smelled raw,
But in the haunting style of Degas,
If Degas had used a dirty hand to pluck it.

Man, I tried to make a Nantucket limerick that wasn’t dirty because I thought it would be funny, but as it turns out you CAN’T make a Nantucket limerick clean.

Diptyque ~ Philosykos
In search of the perfect fig
Philosykos might flip your wig
To reveal my own bias,
Compared to L’eau de Figue Mathias,
It’s only but lipstick on a pig.

It’s actually quite creamy and nice, I just happen to *personally* like the green rindiness of Creation Mathias’ L’eau de Figue better. But this one is good, too. Really! Unfortunately, the limerick form does not particularly lend itself to moderation.

Lolita Lempicka ~ Lolita Lempicka
Lolita Lempicka’s bottle is neat
It opens misleadingly sweet
Further down the path
Is the dry down math
50% Play-Doh, 30% armpit, 20% feet

The Body Shop ~ Dewberry
Dewberry pretty much kicks ass
Pine sap and berry, but alas
It can smell like cat pee
If your skin isn’t on me
Still… don’t give this one a pass

Stella McCartney ~ Stella
Stella is the girl who’s perfectly tanned
Who has the perfectly manicured hand
She sure can entice
Since she’s perfectly nice
To me she’s just perfectly bland

Dior Jules paints bold dark tones, using accents of rising green to highlight its umbra theme. Deeply woody down its very core, the fragrance features pepper and tobacco notes that smell almost dense. They’re not featured as playful spicy notes, instead they add a brown upon black feel to the composition. Black leather is the omnipresent undertone, and the leather is dry and uncompromising. You either like it, or you don’t: I doubt many folks have mixed feelings over Jules.

In fact, the poor dear does get some incredibly mixed reviews over at Basenotes. I think both the negative and the positive reviews are all correct. Jules DOES smell dated to me, though admittedly I would pin its character to something from the late 70s rather than describing it as a creature of the color scheme-challenged, shoulder-padded, no sock-wearing 80s, despite the fact that it was released in 1980. However, if one were to simply eschew everything that smells dated, there are many fine fragrances that would be unforgivably missed, including Jules. Jules may not smell modern (whatever that means, I suppose) yet its strict woody leather aroma gives me great pleasure.

Similarly, I can think of a number of songs that sound quite dated, yet my enjoyment of them is not diminshed. I thought I’d share this “dated” cover of a song that is even more dated. When we think of Macarther Park, we usually think *disco*, and call forth visions of Donna Summers wailing how she’ll never have that recipe again. Then we shudder. In horror. But what if it’s done in a two-tone style, such as that used by the “old” band The Specials? It’s awesome, you guys. This style also sounds slightly dated to me, but I’ll be damned if it doesn’t bring a smile to my face.

The song was covered by Morgan Fisher in 1979, right near the same time Jules was released, under the guise of it being performed by an imaginary band called The Burtons. There’s a nice article about his Hybrid Kids V.1 album on the BBC’s site. The only place I found that still has the album available for order in the US is via Tower Records.

Alas, Jules is even harder to find than this record - insofar as I know it has been discontinued. However it does pop up on eBay now and again. EDIT: Hey! Look at that: While I was forced to look overseas for Jules, it now appears that Imagination Perfumery is selling it. I know it’s not much of a discount, but yeesh is it a tricky little bugger to find. Grab it while you can!

Image via parisposters.com. Jules’ ads, like many of Dior’s iconic ads, were created by well-known artist Rene Gruau, who worked with many of the most famous design names we still know.

Update on another participant in the upcoming Mother’s Day Benevolent Blogging event:

The Scented Salamander is Helene’s perfume blog. Her very thoughtful reviews often muse on the stories of notes and names. She also writes posts covering intresting perfume news and tidbits that may well have otherwise been missed by readers if they only scan the headlines in their daily papers. I especially love how she digs up obscure perfume references in literature and pairs them with a carefully chosen art image. It’s a lovely, peaceful blog, so do please stop by and say “hello!” to Helene. On Mother’s Day she will be supporting Orphan Foundation of America, and will hold a drawing for one very lucky Mother’s Day commenter to win a bottle of Eau de Patou!