Tea Perfume
When I like a perfume, I often don’t know exactly what it is that I like about it so I go to:
http://www.basenotes.net/fragrancedirectory/
You can search for scents by name or by fragrance notes.
I think that L’Artisan is mostly very good; Demeter does not last very long on me.
Cumming is my favorite perfume for winter—it’s fairly intense:
Top Notes Bergamot, Black pepper, Scotch Pine, Whiskey.* Middle Notes Cigar, Heather, Douglas Fir.
* Base Notes Leather, Highland Mud, Peat Fire & White Truffle.
It has a nice smoky affect—not like tobacco but more like Jackee Muntz or a smoky lapsang.
When I was reading the notes, I exactly thought: Jackee Muntz!!!
I have to go and sniff Cumming – I love Alan Cumming! I went to New York once especially to see him in Cabaret in the old Studio 54 building. I also loved his novel – it was so tightly crafted, had a ton of heart, and was sooo funny!
I can’t believe it took me this long to see this thread! Perfume has long been my primary, um, enthusiasm (sounds so much nicer than “addiction”), and I’ve commented to my fraggy friends on the many similarities between fragrance collecting and tea collecting — the sharing of samples and “decants,” the posting of reviews, the impulse to catalog one’s collection, etc. Even the Traveling Tea Box reminds me of some traveling perfume boxes that have made the rounds via flat-rate Priority Mail.
Anyway, when it comes to tea fragrances, I have the same preference as with tea itself: black over green. My favorite black tea scent is Elizabeth W’s Sweet Tea, which has a twist of lemon as its iced-tea name implies. My favorite (nominally) green tea fragrance is Bulgari Eau Parfumee, which to me smells more like “clean” spices — cardamom and white pepper — than green tea. I don’t love Earl Grey tea, but I do like bergamot in fragrances, and it’s in the topnotes of many.
::contemplates starting a Spritz ‘n’ Sip special interest group::
A “Spritz n Sip”? Love it! Neat name. :) Have you heard of Mandy Aftel’s (of Aftelier Perfumes) new collection of perfumed teas? There’s one in particular that sounds especially good: GABA Oolong with the finest hojary frankincense. I wonder how frankincense would taste like?
This looks lovely! The sweet tea and the rose look incredible. I might try to order some of the purse sizes to try them out :) I would love to be part of a spritz and sip, but I have only a total of 3 perfumes at the moment and would be a horrible trader. I have much more sip than spritz!
I’m not sure what frankincense would taste like in tea — smoky? In perfumes I can tolerate only the merest hint of incense, like the one in Chanel No. 22. When it’s front and center it smells too “churchy” to me (though I do enjoy the scent of incense in a church).
Ayala Moriel is another natural perfumer with a small tea collection, and though I love some of her scents, I haven’t yet tried the teas. The Roses et Chocolat tea sounds delicious: two kinds of China Black, blended with rose petals and cacao nibs.
Jacqueline, in my experience the Elizabeth W folks are lovely to deal with and generous with samples, so don’t hesitate to ask for some when you place your order. I hope you love the Sweet Tea as much as I do!
Etsy just emailed me this so I thought I’d post it
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=43174884&utm_source=bronto&utm_medium=email&utm_term=Image&utm_content=etsy_finds_022710_N&utm_campaign=etsy_finds_022710_N
@ JacquelineM : CB – I hate perfume Russian Caravan tea and Tea/Rose. I have had both of them and they are amazing. CB is my favorite perfume company!
Thank you! I was thinking of ordering the small sizes to try them out. There are also two violet ones (wild pansy and violet empire – I am perhaps more violet empire-ish) and I’m crazy for violets. Lavender tea also looks great… He seems like a really neat person as well :)
I just ordered the Tea/Rose as a little treat :) I love his blog! I feel so similarly to him about so many things!! Thanks once again.
Christopher is extremely nice, humble, intelligent and talented – I’ve met him once (I made the website for Alan Cummings Fragrance a few years ago, that’s how we met) Anyway, the small perfume bottles last a long time so it’s a pretty good deal. If you like violets (and who doesn’t) you may want to try
http://www.strandtea.com/shop/shop-for-teas/flavored-and-scented-teas/violet-39-s-tea/prod_324.html
Violet tea: Bookmarked!
I am wearing the Tea/Rose today – I am going to post a little review at the end of this thread :)
I am wearing i Profumi di Firenze Bergamotto Calabro today. It’s a delightful spritz but does not have the staying power of some of their stronger scents.
The CB I Hate Perfume Tea/Rose came yesterday, and I am wearing it for the first time today!
I knew the vial was going to be small – I know how much good rose oils cost – but I will warn you if you are thinking about it, it’s really, really small. Just so you know :)
When I first put it on I smelled delicious rose, and cut green. Like a rose stem and leaves – if you’ve ever grown roses you know how the stems and leaves are rose smelling but green smelling too? That’s exactly it…it’s not grass at all but rose stem and leaf. Very natural and wonderful. I’m not getting any tea at all.
Interesting: When I put on my dog’s leash, he sniffed at my wrist and then looked at me with a loving look! It is good to know Beni Beagle approves of this perfume!!! Some of them make him sneeze and grimace!!!
About an hour later: getting a slightly deeper yet almost lemony addition. Could this be the tea trying to come out? It never really makes it…
About two hours later: faint delicious roses and that almost but not quite tea smell.
I will admit that I was a little stingy with the application, but next time I think I will take the perfumer’s suggestion and apply an unscented lotion, then apply the perfume with a bit more of a heavier hand. I am disappointed that I’m not getting much tea, but this is the nicest rose scent I’ve ever worn. I wonder if some layering with the Russian Caravan would bring out more tea? I will try that in the Winter, but tea or no tea, this is DEFINITELY my spring/summer perfume!!! I’m a fan!!!
I love Shanghai Tang’s “Mandarin Tea”. It’s supposedly unisex but I think it leans more on the feminine side and smells much better on ladies.
The first note that hits you is the mandarin orange citrusy scent, but after you leave the perfume on a while the green tea note gets stronger after a bit. Smells good enough to drink I think :)
Bought a bottle as a Christmas gift in the duty free shop at the Hong Kong airport, it went for around HKD $400 which comes out to about USD $50.
Just got this in my Sephora newsletter today and thought I’d share! Tocca’s Bianca:
Oooooh that looks nice! I love Tocca! I have the Florence wash for delicates which is so lovely – orris root and rose :)
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