Monthly Archives: June 2012

The Basil in the Bottle

Posted on June 30, 2012 by Blacknall Allen

Foodies have a built in problem with perfume in that many scents just clash with whatever it is you’re cooking.  In fact and to get specific about it, perfume often squares off, in the nose, against the whole process of … Continue reading →

Posted in Perfume, Plants | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

She Wore a Raspberry Puree

Posted on June 27, 2012 by Blacknall Allen

Raspberry season is coming on now in New Jersey.  You can’t miss it, there are little green paper boxes at the farmer’s markets full of raspberries in that bluish red shade so beloved of  foodies.  I’ve seen them in all … Continue reading →

Posted in Perfume, Plants | 6 Comments

Smounds! Gadzooks!

Posted on June 25, 2012 by Bruce Ware Allen

The history of science has from time to time turned up  a number of – to us – strange lines of inquiry that run the gamut from crackpot to fraud.   The academy tends to keep out the former better than … Continue reading →

Posted in Bruce Ware Allen, People, Perfume | Tagged , , , | 10 Comments

Two Scoops of Vanilla

Posted on June 22, 2012 by Blacknall Allen

Vanilla does not sound very promising in the heat, but summertime is one of those seasons when you bend the rules. What is surprising about vanilla is that you can get away with wearing it even in adverse conditions. I … Continue reading →

Posted in Perfume | Leave a comment

Sumer is a Cumin In

Posted on June 20, 2012 by Blacknall Allen

Chypres are a flickering presence in the perfume world these days.  Whether you see them or whether you don’t, may have to do with what your definition of a chypre is in the first instance.  If you’re a purist, then … Continue reading →

Posted in Perfume | 8 Comments

The Black Orchid Underground

Posted on June 18, 2012 by Blacknall Allen

There is something internally subversive about the productions of Tom Ford.  He is so charming and so practiced in the seduction techniques he uses on his public that it is almost camp.  Every Tom Ford perfume has something about its … Continue reading →

Posted in Perfume | Tagged , , , , , , | 4 Comments

The Scent of Churchyards

Posted on June 16, 2012 by Blacknall Allen

My father was fond of scaring us all into hysterics when we were children by  humming a dirge that began, “There was an old woman, all skin and bone…” in a sepulchral tone.  The whole piece was about old lady … Continue reading →

Posted in Perfume, Plants | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

Location, Location, Location

Posted on June 12, 2012 by Blacknall Allen

Are there regional preferences in perfume in the US?  The thought occurred to me just the other day because a fellow blogger, Olenska at Parfumieren, has started a blog about perfume and all things fragrant in New Jersey. It got … Continue reading →

Posted in Perfume | 10 Comments

Contempory Casablanca: Play It Again, Sam

Posted on June 11, 2012 by Blacknall Allen

Soliflores are really hard, as I’ve had occasion to write before. I think they’re as hard for perfumers to produce as comedy is hard for writers and actors, and in the same frustrating way. The perfumer is just reproducing the … Continue reading →

Posted in Perfume, Plants | 2 Comments

Three’s a Party

Posted on June 8, 2012 by Blacknall Allen

This is my  way of expressing a piece of advice I came across in an old perfume book.  The Book of Perfume (Barille and Laroze, 1995)  suggests ways in which to keep some aesthetic order in your perfume collection. The … Continue reading →

Posted in Perfume | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment