December 2014: Coming Home
Home is more than a place. Home is a feeling—a feeling of being where things are familiar and right. It's where we can be ourselves and love what we love. It's in the arms of people who know us. Home is everywhere our memories were made.
Even a new place—a place we've never set foot—can feel like home if its smells transport us to that place of familiarity. And there is perhaps no scent more familiar or comforting than vanilla. But wait: Don't get the wrong idea. Because in perfumery, vanilla is anything but plain. (Common? Yes. Plain? Never.) It can be light and playful or dark and brooding. It can be sweet or briny. Vanilla is a wingman, rounding out the harsher edges of certain notes and complementing their lightness with its depth. Vanilla can be a chameleon, but it always feels familiar.
We're moving into the holidays, a time that is all about homes, both literal and figurative. The kitchen fires burn as we churn out comforting meals to share with the people we love. And as our homes stay ever warm, the temperatures outside drop. That's why there's no better time to take a look at this delightful note that is almost always a part of our olfactory world, even when we don't realize it.
Vanille by DSH Perfumes. A perfect classic, Dawn Spencer Hurwitz's Vanille walks the line between gourmand and fresh. Warm, gently sweet vanilla notes round out the base while tart lemon and zesty bergamot offer a bright counterpoint. Read more.
Black Flower Mexican Vanilla by Dame Perfumery Scottsdale. Dark, rich, and as pure as a cut-open vanilla bean pod. Black Flower Mexican Vanilla is an exotic take on vanilla that has gotten rave reviews. Already purchased Black Flower Mexican Vanilla when we debuted it in August? You'll get an extra vial in your December collection—and a 2.25 ml sample of the new Desert Rose from Dame Perfumery Scottsdale in the mail very soon. Read more.
Wherever you're spending this holiday season, may it smell good—and may it feel like home.
8 comments
I don’t feel very sophisticated in vanilla scents thanks to a life’s worth of run-ins with cheaply scented candles. The Black Flower Mexican Vanilla was the most sophisticated of the bunch, and did not smell like a cheap room freshener (thanks for showing me that was possible, Olfactif!), but I couldn’t see myself wearing it outside of the house. I did fall in love with Lira. It was the blood orange that really pushed that over the edge. Sadly, it was out of my price range. A commenter on another fragrance website said that another fragrance, Tendre Madeleine, was “exactly the same scent at a fraction of the price.” Don’t be fooled! TM smells like a cheap, lemon cookie candle. I’ll just have to bite the bullet and save up for the real thing.
BLankin
And by “January” I meant “December”…
Jennifer Cupp
January was amazing. I just want to weigh in though, as someone who does not prefer extremely sweet fragrances. I know that sweet is ‘in’ but would also like to see less-sweet options. I usually can only use a very sweet fragrance one or two days in a row, then I have to back off to a men’s or unisex for some relief.
Jennifer Cupp
I love this month. I like vanilla, like I think most people do (it just smells good which is probably why it’s in everything). But it’s often done kind of badly or in boring ways (yes, I’m thinking of those bad cheap body mists too). I have loved trying these vanillas made with expert hands and getting to see the nuances. And that Lira, oh my God! So beautiful!
Amy
Unlike the other commenters, I am actually super stoked about this month! I love that you are giving us three different renditions of the same base note to allow subscribers to see the versatility and nuances of aforementioned note (vanilla). I love trying new things, and I appreciate the Olfactif team giving subscribers (including me) new ways to see notes that have been otherwise muddied by poorly executed perfumes/cheap body mists, etc. So, thank you!
Rachel
I also felt this month was a disappointment. I read the advice. If you think you hate vanilla, wear it to make sure. I wore all three scents, waiting for the “story to unfold” and all it did was tell me I still hate vanilla. This is my first month and I entered bright eyed and open minded. All the same base? Not a very thrilling novel.
Ellen Kay
This mounth is a big disappintment ! All 3 are Vanilla .
what a bummer !
valerie barnd
Black Flower Mexican Vanilla sounds delicious :-)
rosetta lenton
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