Tags
Amber, aroma, perfume, personality, Ralph Lauren, Sandalwood, scent, sex, Tobacco Oud, Tom Ford
Scent is my absolute favourite sense and I think whatever perfume you choose it says a lot about you. I won’t go a day without dousing myself with my perfume of choice and if I’ve left the house having forgotten to spray I’ve always got a 10ml backup waiting in my purse for those save the day moments. With perfume on I feel it’s added armour, a secret weapon, an added layer just as important as make-up and the clothes I wear. It’s added confidence and tells someone who you are without having to speak a word. Every skin types react to perfumes differently so you’ll never have one fragrance smelling exactly the same on any two people, knowing this I feel it sets me apart from everyone else and that makes me feel quite smug. Perfume can change a person’s mind-set, whether there heading into that all important business meeting or a first date, it gives you that extra layer of mysteriousness and desire that only you know about.
Some women will build a relationship with one perfume and stick with them through thick and thin, never-changing, never venturing to pastors new but staying 100% loyal to that scent. Others and this includes myself have changed, adapted and played with different brands, fragrances and smells. I don’t think this want of exploration will ever end, as I grow, experience and change so will my perfume choices… there is another category of course and sadly these are women who can’t physically wear perfume. This includes my sister Abigail. She’s tried but every time fails. Her sensitive skin rejects all scents but her own, she has headaches and fells suffocated by the over powering smell and even taste …I feel for her because it’s so ingrained into my everyday life that it would feel very wrong if I had to give it up.
‘A woman’s perfume tells more about her than her handwriting’ – Coco Chanel
MY FIRST – Eau De FCUK
I remember being given my first perfume around 15 years old. Eau De FCUK. £12. It’s cool, tangy flavour is perfect for those early years into adult-hood. I used it sparingly, wanting to savour every last drop. I’d never had anything so rich, spicy and grown-up before. It was so differenct to the floral and sickly sweet perfums my friends were wearing that a bond between me and spicy scents really began here.
Now when I smell it again it takes me back to my old bedroom at my Mum’s, not quite an adults room but no longer owned by a child. It reminds me of difficult times struggling with parents who ‘never understands me’ and romances who also actually ‘never understood me’. I happy to leave this perfune behind but very appreciative of the memory’s it still gives me.
‘A woman who doesn’t wear perfume has no future’ – Coco Chanel
AU NATURAL – Amber – A hard block of amber
Sandalwood – 5ml bottle from India
We need to remind ourselves where all these smells come from and how perfumes were first created. I was lucky to be given a block of Amber by my best friend Erin. She was helping a stylist on a catwalk and they had blocks of amber galore. If you’re in close proximity to it you’ll pick up its talcum powder, sweet and subtle fragrance. I like to rub it on my wrists and remind myself throughout the day that I’m wearing the same material that appears on my amber ring and earrings.
The other natural scent I love is Sandalwood, an oil extracted from the wood to create a fragrance that has been highly respected and valued for years. It’s creamy yet strong of citrus and floral notes are best kept for yourself… I dab my neck with this one usually and keep it close.
MY ONE TRUE LOVE – Tobacco Oud by Tom Ford
Tom Ford, I’ve fallen in love and I’ve fallen hard. The strong woody and spicy fragrance of Tobacco Oud hypnotised me, reminding me of those ever familiar notes of Sandalwood, tobacco and whisky. This is not for the weak, this fragrance is strong, confident and extremely sophisticated… if worn right. The first time I wore this I has absolutely no idea what I was playing with… it was the last thing I did before leaving the house so I had no idea of its potency. I briskly walked to the tube, all was fine… until I boarded a train and was trapped with a cloud of the strongest perfume I’d ever experienced. I had sprayed two too many and ten minutes into the journey was choking from it… Not sexy and not the message this perfume portrays so a note to all… it only needs one, two at max.
If you think Tobacco Oud sounds over baring but love the strong Eastern influences you should go for the Sahara Noir… It’s still dominant and heavy but better suited for summer… and sexy as hell. The image below shows one of Tom Ford’s promiscuous advert campaigns.
Mr Ford explains the aroma perfectly…
“Middle Eastern culture has an extraordinary appreciation for the luxurious, emotional and memorable qualities of fragrance; perfume is worn there in a way that feels very familiar to me. Sahara Noir is my interpretation of this heritage. It is a deep and substantial perfume that caresses the senses.” Tom Ford
Shop the Tom Ford Fragrance collection here. 
TIP – If you want to test or trial any of the above before buying I suggest purchasing a 10ml taster bottle from Ebay. Your skin will be the only judge of what it smells like.
I went perfume shopping with a friend once and walked out of John Lewis higher than an 1980’s raver… so go slow and cherish every moment, memory and emotion you and your perfume will go through!
LOVE TAN… Smelling great right now ; )
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