A "Lightweight" Oriental

I love big, gorgeous, heavy orientals like Opium, Tabu and Youth Dew. Used with caution (don't overdose yourself unless you're home alone alone or spouse likes the stuff as much as you do.)

But there are times when something lighter will be more appropriate. Like when you're working in an office all day, going to a friend's house for dinner (where you don't want to compete with the smell of food) or going to a movie where you'll be sitting next to a perfect stranger for the next two hours.

Jaipur Saphir is a great compromise between the self-indulgent luxury of a gorgeous oriental and the sophisticated, elegant, inoffensive ladylike daytime cologne.

It has the woody, mysterious notes that you expect from the best Orientals, but they are "hidden" behind light, powdery, soft notes.

"Jaïpur Saphir can serve as a model of refinement and proportion." said one reviewer

My Favorite of the Day - Byzance by Rochas

My favorite of the day-
Byzance by Rochas



Do be careful with this one- you may not notice because of the cobalt blue, nearly opaque bottle, but this fragrance is actually purple. It may stain clothing.

I broke a miniature bottle in my gym bag and stained some socks. But I'm almost glad I did because my bag has smelled delicious for weeks and the socks were a small sacrifice.

Warning aside, Byzance is a woody, heavy, gorgeous oriental with a little sparkle of citrus in the opening notes. It is also unusual enough that isn't something that everyone will recognize. You won't find this one at Wal-Mart or on anyone else at a party.

I also love Opium, another heavy, gorgeous oriental, but I don't like the fact that many people recognize it. I think some of the less commercially popular fragrances are great just because they're more mysterious. People can't immediately recognize them and don't already have other associations of people and events connected with them.

Clash of the Oriental Titans - Shalimar vs. Samsara

Vs.

I’ve had a couple of people ask me whether I prefer Shalimar or Samsara. It’s a fair question – they’re both by Guerlain, they’re both Oriental, and if you’re short on cash or on dresser space, you might only want one.

Samsara -

Guerlain introduced Samsara in 1989 and it definitely has a new-age feel to it. The road to inner peace, Samsara is Sanskrit for eternal rebirth and is symbolized by the wheel of life. An Oriental comprised of jasmine, tonka bean, and sandalwood --- instant serenity, sensuality, and certainty.

This is a heavy, gorgeous scent that would keep you warm on a winter night.

Shalimar -

A classic since 1925, Shalimar, like the Taj Mahal, is inspired by the Shah Jahan's legendary love for his wife. Starts with a fresh citrusy top note and drifts into the sensual warmth of a bergamot, iris, vanilla, and tonka bean base.

If Samsara is warm, then Shalimar by contrast is cool and elegant. I also noticed roses in the middle notes of this one. Another gorgeous fragrance to wear with your cashmere sweaters.

The Verdict -

So, which would I buy if I could only buy just one? I would probably buy Samsara since I love them both, the deciding factor would be that I enjoy unique scents and don't want to be wearing something that everyone would recognize. Shalimar has been around long enough that many people have a memory of some kind attached to it. This can be a good thing, but I like unique fragrances because I like to create new memories and associations.

Of course, what's important to you in a perfume may be entirely different, and I hope it is. That's why we sell over 600 different products. Wouldn't it be boring if we all smelled the same?

3 Great Fragrances TO Wear to Work!

With the caveats from the last post, (wear fragrance VERY sparingly, and do not reapply in the office!) here are three great fragrances that will lighten your mood, if not your workload, while you're at work.

Must de Cartier - This is a very elegant, understated, green fragrance. It was created by Cartier to fit an atomizer that was part of a very elegant set of accessories, including the famous Cartier lighter.

As one would expect from a jeweler, the scent is very expensive. (Actually, it only smells expensive - the EDT is very moderately priced. But everyone in your office will think you got a raise.)

CE SOIR OU JAMAIS by Annick Goutal is a sharp, flowery fragrance. This feminine scent is composed of sparkling flowers. It is recommended for office wear.

Annick Goutal was a pianist who rebelled after many years of studying music to become a model. After a chance encounter with a perfumer, she opened her own perfume house in 1981. She created more than 25 fragrances before her death in 1999. Her daughter Camille Goutal runs the perfume shop, which has become associated with the Taittinger group (which includes fine Champaignes and Baccarat crystal.

EDEN by Cacharel is a refreshing, floral, oriental fragrance. This feminine scent is composed of spicy, oriental, and floral notes. It is recommended for office wear. Cacharel founder Jean Bousquet was the son of a sewing machine seller. He trained to be a tailor at a technical college, and worked two years as a designer before returning to Paris to found his own fashion house. The success of his first collection inspired him to create Cacharel.

Cacharel designs are known for their youthful style, femininity, lightness, refinement and use of bright colors. The introduction of the seersucker blouse, and a front cover in ELLE magazine in 1963 launched Cacharel onto the international stage.

So, go ahead and make your office a nicer place.

What NOT to Wear to Work

I was discussing fragrances with some friends recently, and someone mentioned being "trapped" in an office cubicle next to someone wearing noxious perfume. This lit off a spate of complaints from everyone about their least favorite scent, and in almost every case it involved a scenario where they were in an enclosed space (usually at work) with someone wearing it.

When you work in an office with other people, you're essentially cooped up for about 8 hours with a limited air supply. Under these circumstances, you want to smell like nothing at all, or like something very subtle and universally pleasant. Even things that may smell nice at the first whiff or two can get really annoying by the 4th, 6th or 8th hour.

Perfumes that you love to wear socially, drifting in and out of parties, on a date, shopping with friends, running errands with family, or even to the theater can be too much for the office. (In a theater you're only next to someone for an hour or two at a time, and the ventilation is usually better!)

Some people have reactions to fragrances that you wouldn't expect. Strong, distinctive odors like patchouli or carnation can be offensive in the wrong circumstances, but there are some subtler fragrance ingredients that give people problems. A few days ago, was wearing a subtle, high-quality floral scent that I don't normally wear, and my husband got a splitting headache. He usually loves the perfumes I wear (with rare exceptions) and I was really surprised that this one caused a reaction. It was days before I could get him to smell anything without having a headache. I can imagine him stuck in a cubicle next to someone wearing this scent. Egad.

So, here's my list of tips for cubicle dwellers. Your fellows will thank you!

• Practice impeccable personal hygiene if you work in an office.
  
• Use unscented or subtly scented shampoo, hair products and other toiletries.
  
• Go to www.westofparisboutique.com, and enter the word "office" in the search window on the upper left for fragrances that are subtle and nearly universally pleasant and therefore recommended for office use.
  
• Even with these, be very careful to use a light touch.
  
• DO NOT REAPPLY at your desk! (Especially with sprays.) Even if there's no one around at the moment and you think no one will notice, your office mates will notice a cloud of scent when they return.
  
• This is one circumstance when EDTs (the lightest form of scent) are much preferable to EDPs or perfumes.

An Overlooked (but great!) Jasmine Fragrance

Just today I sampled Givenchy's Organza EDT for the first time - the manufacturer's description didn't sound appealing to me (honeysuckle, nutmeg, vanilla and gardenia.)

But the bottle design is SO BEAUTIFUL and unique that I just had to try the fragrance.

The fragrance itself is pretty sweet - lots of jasmine (I honestly can't tell the difference between jasmine and honeysuckle) and vanilla on top. And the nutmeg, which I didn't think I would care for in a fragrance, actually lends a unique and interesting note that is actually kind of appealing.

And actually if I'd tried it sooner I would have included it in this months' Jasmine selections!

This is much sweeter and lighter than I would expect from an oriental, or even a "floriental." I personally enjoy darker, heavier orientals. But a very beautiful, elegant, feminine fragrance that is perfect for many women I know.

Perfume in the Middle East

Many of the worlds arts and sciences were born in the Middle East. Many people believe that the art of perfume began in Egypt. French perfumers, particularly Guerlain (who developed Shalimar) and others took their cues from the Middle East.

Current world politics aside, I was particularly cheered by this report from a Cosmetics Business newsletter that indicates that the perfume industry is recovering in the Middle East. This is good news for the region, for our fellow perfume lovers across the globe, and for the industry as middle eastern perfumers have always been innovative and added to the art.

I've reprinted a section of the report below . . .

In the perfume sector, European and American brands still dominate the market, particularly in the Levant. But major oriental perfume manufacturers in the UAE, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia report surging demand, with average growth of over 20% as packaging improves, the number of outlets increases and interest by non-Arab consumers rises.

“At one time oriental perfume was sold only to Arabs, but now 70-75% goes to Arabs and the rest to Pakistanis, then westerners, primarily Germans and the English,” says Abdullah Ajmal, assistant general manager of Ajmal Perfumes in Dubai. Feeding perfume sales is the region’s penchant for cosmetics and perfumes, estimated at US$334 spent annually per person in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries of Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the UAE.

In a survey carried out by Ajmal, the company found that the average male or female customer has between six and eight bottles of perfume at home. “It is a three times a day habit, even carrying perfume in the car. People in the GCC use five times more perfume than their western counterparts,” says Ajmal.

The "Iron Chef" Show of Perfume

I was explaining to a friend how the West of Paris Boutique selects a theme each month and three fragrances that best showcase that theme. "Oh!" she said, "Like an 'Iron Chef' of perfume!"

If you're familiar with the Food Network television show "The Iron Chef," you know that for each episode, the Chairman, with a malicious cackle and a great flourish of a sequined tablecloth, reveals the theme ingredient at the beginning of the show. The chefs compete to "best express the unique qualities of the theme ingredient."

Of course, the "theme ingredient" is often jellyfish or persimmons, making it a less than completely practical cooking show for the likes of myself. But fun to watch and actually quite educational - I had no idea so many things could be made into ice cream.

In any case, my friend was correct. That's basically what we do at the West of Paris Boutique. I know that selecting a perfume can be overwhelming, and information is best absorbed a little at a time, and a "theme" is a great way to go about picking a few fragrances to highlight so that nobody's nose or noodle gets overtaxed. There's a lot of science, history, chemistry, politics and art in perfume. And yet there's also a lot of "nonthinking" about perfume as well- it's a very subjective judgment of what we like, what we feel, what memories are evoked, and so on.

So, for July, the theme ingredient is (may I have a drumroll please?)

JASMINE!

There's a lot to tell about jasmine, but I will save it for future posts.

Seven Things You Didn't Know About Roses

Did You Know?

France and the United States share a passion for roses. Here are some facts about roses in the U.S. and in France

• If you read the book the Da Vinci Code, (a popular novel in the U.S. that takes place partly in Paris) you know that roses are always based on a five-point structure, no matter how many petals they have.
• In 1986, then President Ronald Reagan signed legislation making the rose the official National Flower of the United States.
• Roses have been grown in France since the 13th Century, and were brought there from the Holy Land during the Crusades. (That first rose was of the Damask variety - great for perfume!)
• George Washington experimented with new hybrids of roses at his home in Mount Vernon.
• The Empress Josephine (the wife of Napoleon Bonaparte) was a famous grower and collector of new species of roses. Despite her husband's war with the English, she was able to import some new varieties that had not been grown before in France. She popularized rose gardening throughout France.
• Over 900 acres of greenhouse roses are harvested in the United States every year.
• Columbus' crew picked a rose branch out of the ocean on October 11, 1492. This signaled the presence of land. The very next day, Columbus discovered America

We've found some of the best fragrances from France that feature the scent of roses, and put them into a gorgeous sampler that will make a great gift for yourself or for someone special!

The sampler will still be available, but the free gift (a full size Shalimar scented body lotion) is only available through the end of June, so hurry!

The False Economy of Settling for Less

American women who settle for less than what they really want aren't doing themselves (or anyone else) any favors.

American women fall for eating Hostess or Snackwell cakes (which they perceive to be cheaper and/or healthier) when they really want an indulgent brownie made with real butter, real sugar, and real dark chocolate. The problem with this is that one of those little cakes is never enough. (Believe me, I've tried, and ended up eating half a box!)

Mireille Guiliano expressed this concept very well in her book, French Women Don't Get Fat

The premise of her book is that American women, in particular, need to slow down, acknowledge their needs, ask for what they really want, and indulge occasionally without making everything a to-the-death fight between puritanical self-sacrifice vs. overindulgence. This should be a balance, not a battle. Our little treats should make us feel great, not guilt-ridden!

If you go for quality rather than quantity, you can enjoy your occasional, small, exquisite, real brownie with a clear conscience.

The same goes for clothes - we American women tend to go to the Outlet Stores and armloads of "suitable" or "practical" clothes at 70% of retail, rather than that one really well-made, high-quality, perfect-for-you suit that you can have tailored with the money you saved from your outlet shopping trip. The women getting back from the Outlet malls now have a closet full of stuff, but nothing to wear, while the women who bought the suit she feels marvelous in can wear it anywhere with a slight change of accessories and feel really great about how she looks.

American women have gotten too used to settling. It's okay to buy eat a great brownie, buy a great suit, and really enjoy life. It's taken me awhile to come to this conclusion.

If you go for quality rather than quantity, you won't feel the need to eat 12 brownies (vs. a week of Slimfast bars and water for lunch) or to go on a huge shopping binge (vs. pinching pennies for months at a time.) If you stay balanced, you don't need to battle. And you have better things to spend your energy on!

AUTHOR:	Jessie Belle Rittenhouse (1869–1948)
QUOTATION:	I bargained with Life for a penny, And Life would pay no more, However I begged at evening When I counted my scanty store; For Life is a just employer, He gives you what you ask, But once you have set the wages, Why, you must bear the task. I worked for a menial’s hire, Only to learn, dismayed, That any wage I had asked of Life, Life would have paid.

In the words of the L'Oreal (Paris, of course) ads, "You're Worth It!"

Ahhh, Roses!

Not long after John and I started dating, he showed up at my door one evening with a bundle of thorny sticks with dirt and burlap.

He had that expression on his face that my cat sometimes gets when she's extremely pleased with herself, so I knew there had to be more to this than a bundle of sticks with dirt and burlap.

Well, I planted that bundle of sticks in a whiskey barrel and it turned into a beautiful red Mr. Lincoln rose that has bloomed more magnificently every year since then, and has followed us to our new house, where it has been joined by 5 other Mr. Lincoln roses that line our sidewalk strip. I have a vase of roses on my desk nearly every day from June until it freezes every year.

So, things are not always what they seem and roses are definitely more than they appear.

In the Da Vinci Code, Dan Brown explores the geometry of roses as a five-pointed star multiplied a number of times. All roses have a petal structure that opens from this structure. (If you look at a rose, you'll see that they have five sepals, or green leaflike parts that cover the bud when it's new. These sepals open to reveal the eventual structure.) Although some roses seem to go on forever and have an infinite number of petals, they all multiply (or divide) down to this simple five-point structure.

The scent of roses is unmistakable. The next few posts will be devoted to our favorite "rosy" fragrances.

A Sommelier of Fragrance

Our idea, when starting West of Paris, was to be a plain-language sommelier of French perfume.

According to wikipedia -

A sommelier (pronounced /sɔməˈlje/ or suh-mal-'yAy), or wine steward, is a trained and knowledgeable wine professional, commonly working in fine restaurants, who specializes in all facets of wine service. The role is more specialized and informed than that of a wine waiter.

Their principal work is in the area of wine procurement, storage, and wine cellar rotation. They are also responsible for the development of wine lists and are responsible overall for the delivery of wine service and training for the other restaurant staff. Working along with the culinary team, they pair and suggest wines that will best complement each particular food menu item. It could be argued that the role of a sommelier in fine dining today is strategically on par with that of the executive chef or chef de cuisine. A professional sommelier also works on the floor of the restaurant and is in direct contact with restaurant patrons. The sommelier has a responsibility to work within the taste preference and budget parameters of the patron.

In modern times, a sommelier's role is considered much broader than working only with the wines, and must encompass all aspects of the service, with an enhanced focus on wines, beers, spirits, soft-drinks, cocktails, mineral-waters and tobaccos.

We had a great sommelier for our wedding at LaCaille, a restaurant up Little Cottonwood Canyon outside of Salt Lake City. We knew nothing about wine. Our sommelier helped us find good pairings with the selections on the dinner menu. He based his advice on three things

• The occasion (A May wedding with a full dinner, followed by ballroom dancing)
  
• Our preferences (my preference for sweet, sparkly stuff and John's preference for less sweet and less sparkly)
  
• Our budget.
  

Within those parameters, he found the perfect things for us. And we had a great time.

My intention is to become an online sommelier of fragrance - to help people find what they're looking for based on

• The occasion
• The customer's preferences for particular fragrance notes (such as citrus, vanilla or patchouli)
  
• The customer's preference for particular forms of fragrance, like eau de toilette (EDT) vs. pure perfume vs. other things like shower gels, body lotions and talcs
• The budget

My objective is to help a person who visits our website find the perfect thing based on those factors.

I wanted to help people like me.

My experience with French perfume until my trip to Paris, and subsequent research was very limited. I live in Tooele, Utah. We don't even have a full-service department store with a perfume counter!

I knew a very few perfumes that I loved - generally ones that are easy to get in the U.S. I've loved Opium and Tabu for as long as I can remember, since I first smelled them on aunts and older cousins, and received them as presents and used them myself.

But I also didn't want to smell like everyone else, and wanted to move a bit beyond what you find at Wal-Mart.

I don't speak much French (all the French I know comes from reading the tourist guides, and a Rosetta Stone program that I keep starting over because I've forgotten the last chapter.) But I've spent the last few months researching fragrances, buying and smelling things, (it's a tough job, but somebody's got to do it!) and creating a search feature (with John's help) that lists key words.

We have a way to go, but so far, I think we still have the easiest-to-use French perfume shop online that I've ever seen!

Why we Don't Like Celebrity Fragrances

I have nothing against JLo and Britney Spears. They have things that they're good at. And their fans certainly love them. But I wouldn't buy perfume from them!

Associating a fragrance with a person has been done before- probably the most famous example was when Marilyn Monroe answered a reporter's question by saying the only thing she wore to bed was two drops of Chanel No. 5. But there are two differences between Ms. Monroe's endorsement of her favorite perfume and celebrities designing and marketing their own fragrances.

Firstly, Monroe was not paid (or even solicited!) by Chanel to make that statement. Although a lot of women may have gone out and bought Chanel No. 5 because they were inspired to emulate Marilyn Monroe, that was not the intention of the manufacturer.

Coco Chanel was a legendary fashion designer and perfumer from 1909 through her death in 1971. She commissioned six perfumes from a famous perfumer Ernest Beaux to make six perfumes, (numbered 1-6.) Number 5 was Chanel's favorite and she initially gave it to clients free at her boutique. Chanel had pioneered many revolutions in the fashion industry by 1921 (when Chanel No. 5 was introduced) and had created a style that was worn by many famous French and American celebrities.

Secondly, celebrity perfumes create a culture of "wannabe-ism" that I don't believe is healthy. We all have role models that we like certain things about, but the idea of capturing the essence of a person in a bottle does not do justice to the person being captured or to the person buying the scent. Most of us have different moods. Most women I know have a dresser topped with 8 or 10 bottles of scent that they enjoy for different occasions and moods. I would imagine that is true of JLo and Britney Spears as well. In fact, if I had the money celebrities make, I would have a hundred bottles on my dresser! As it is, I need to be a bit more selective.

Women (and men) should find scents that capture a particular mood or feeling for them, and do it very well, rather than portray an image of a particular person they want to emulate.

Third, I'm kind of particular, but I've not found a celebrity fragrance that is really worth the money. I'm conjecturing, but I think this might be because they are rushed to market to capitalize on a particular person's popularity, and more attention is paid to marketing than to developing the very highest-quality product.

For myself and my store, you won't find any celebrity scents on me!

Why we love the way the French Think!

Photo - the Champs d'Elysees on a rainy spring night.

1. They don't have a lot of hangups about work, food, and relationships.
   
2. They take long vacations.
   
3. They enjoy their meals rather than eating in the car.
4. They take long walks and hold hands.
5. They use half the closet space and still look better than we do. (They only buy really good things and they wear them many different ways.)
   
6. They don't have hangups about sugar and butter and salt, and still don't get fat (see Mirelle Guliano's book!)
   
7. They drink less Red Bull and more wine.
8. They are more focused on enjoyment and less focused on accomplishment.
   
9. Even when they argue, they sound so civilized!
10. They spend less money on houses and cars, and more money on flowers and perfume!