Chris Rusak has launched two captivating perfumes in 2023, including the unique Caji, a modern scent with vintage nuances. Descriptions fail to capture its dualistic essence, making it a transformative experience with notes of jasmine sambac, hay absolute, real orris butter, and aged civet. Rusak continues to impress with his distinct, experiential fragrances.
Reviews of Cala and Bosc from the Spanish perfume brand Bravnariz. These are unconventional, hyper-natural scents with minimal projection and longevity that may disappoint those seeking traditional styles of perfume. Bravnariz might appeal to people who are very committed to using only natural products, and those who lead rugged, outdoorsy lifestyles.
The writer expresses a love for smoke, particularly in flavors and scents, highlighting a fondness for smoked foods and spirits. Intrigued by the idea of Lapsang Souchong scented perfume, the writer purchased and wrote a review of Eustache perfume, inspired by French filmmaker Jean Eustache. Eustache perfume captures the essence of Lapsang Souchong through smoky, leathery, and earthy notes, evoking an authentic sensibility akin to Eustache’s cinematic style.
The blogger describes their experience with sampling various Arquiste perfumes, engaging with an enthusiastic and open-minded perfume discussion group. While they provide candid reviews of each scent, often unfavorably likening the fragrances to an array of non-perfume-related odors and textures, they appreciate the honest dialog among the group. The blogger also commends Arquiste for their posted COVID-19 precaution policy, a rare act of responsibility in the fragrance industry.
Perfumer Chris Rusak has published a zine entitled “Survey of Liturgical Incense” which details fourteen types of incense from eight brands. This is a brief review of the zine and accompanying set of liturgical incense samples, sold separately.
I love original Fracas, so I was always going to have strong feelings about a flanker. I can really only love or hate it. It must be genius or it shouldn’t exist at all. I’ve been intrigued and repulsed by this perfume since it was released in 2012. Would it make me swoon, or would I hurl it across the room in a fit of rage? I was afraid to find out. Until now.
The imagery of pagodas, junk boats, lotuses, and cranes being used to sell Do Son seems like unmistakable Orientalism. This film and ad campaign are presenting a fantasy of Vietnam to sell a French perfume. The Vietnamese people won their freedom from French colonial rule in 1954, at the end of the eight-year French Indochina war. Diptyque was founded a few years later in Paris in 1961. The company started as a “bazaar” where the three owners sold textiles and objets d’art collected during their travels of the world.
Orientalism and Primitivism peaked in the 1960’s. Fashion and trends were based on inspiration from cultures and locations that designers perceived as “exotic.” Often these ideas are presented as the Western “discovery” of non-Western cultural phenomena. Orientalism and Primitivism are inextricably linked to cultural hegemony and European imperialism. Cultural appropriation without considering the context of the appropriated design and Western exploitation of other cultures to sell goods was always wrong. Fifty years later we all should know better, and it’s reasonable and ethical to expect people and companies to do better.
ETA: I found this draft that I wrote in September 2019. I was quite sick at the time; I wanted to write this, but it took most of my energy…
A review of Lostmarc’h Ael-Mat, feeling joy in troubled times, adjusting to a new life in Los Angeles, and how perfume fills the gaps.
Most of my perfume bottles have been packed away for weeks (months?) as I moved across the country. Now that I’m here, I haven’t found a cabinet that I want for storage, so they’ve stayed in the moving boxes. I kept out a huge bag of samples, thinking that this would be the perfect time to try them. Instead, I find myself not wearing perfume at all. I don’t forget; I look at the bag of samples and it’s an assemblage of other people’s choices, and I don’t want that for myself. More than ever, I want only what I feel a connection with, only that which I’ve chosen to acquire and retain.