The Scent Rises In The East

2009-10-14T14:17:11-07:00

Experiencing The Orient with Oriental Fragrances

Oriental scents, with their fragrant spices, deep musks and resins, exotic flowers, and sweet warm woods, instantly conjure up images of the Eastern world—- of narrow-aisled markets selling bright fabrics and grains in large bins, of exotic cuisines and colorful architecture. It is the heaviest fragrance family: warm, rich and sultry.

Oriental fragrances rely heavily on intense and intoxicating notes like amber, musks, vanilla, and exotic resins, flowers and spices. Depending on the concentration of these notes, scents of this fragrance family can be further broken down into sub-categories like Oriental-Green, Oriental-Fruity, Oriental-Spicy, or Oriental-Woody. Oriental perfumes have long been a staple in the realm of sensual and romantic scents.

“The Orient” is a geographical representation, the borders of which have shifted significantly throughout the centuries as explorers pushed further and further East towards the Pacific Ocean. Generally, The Orient refers to Eastern Asia—- from India and Pakistan to the furthest beaches of Japan. The term “Orient” comes from the Latin word “oriens”, meaning “east” and “orior”, which means “rise”, referring to the sun, which always rises in the East.

No need to worry about the 18-hour flight, when you can relax here and let Perfume.com experts take you on a voyage through some highlights of both The Orient and the Oriental fragrance family.

Start your tour in INDIA, where the colourful, bustling city of Mumbai will perk you right up after the flight. Catch an authentic Bollywood movie in the birthplace of Indian cinema and afterwards, grab some fresh curried mango at a restaurant overlooking the Mahim Bay. Sport some ambery-spicy Youth Dew by Estee Lauder to complement all the aromas of Mumbai’s large and busy street markets.

Next, try CHINA for some great architecture and delicious dumplings. It’s easy to soak up culture and tradition here in the land of this ancient civilization, and a stroll around the Forbidden City or atop the Great Wall is a great reflection of some of the amazing feats and abilities of the Chinese people throughout their long history. Try a once-forbidden Oriental scent, the carnal Shalimar by Guerlain, to match the adventure inside Forbidden City walls.

THAILAND is a great place to take in sights and sports, from the country’s renowned floating market to a showing of the popular Muay Thai style of boxing. Don’t forget to schedule in a few days for some strict beach time too though—- Thailand is globally popular for its scenic sand spots, and is in fact where Leo DiCaprio: filmed the popular movie The Beach. Get fresh with Oriental-Green perfume, Vivenne Westwood’s Boudoir.

Next take a tour through MALAYSIA, where you’re able to sun on some of the best beaches and then trek right into the jungle rainforests for a trip full of unbelievable adventure—- and maybe some monkey spotting. For a much needed concrete break afterward, visit the thriving metropolis of Kuala Lampur, where you can enjoy some of Eastern Asia’s best spicy cuisine. Wear spicy “Opium”: http://www.perfume.com/yves-saint-laurent/opium/women-perfume to dinner.

Visit the villages of VIETNAM for a warm and culture-rich experience you won’t soon forget, where locals are eager to teach visitors their many customs and traditions. Vietnam offers a number of islands to explore as well, full of hiking trails, caves, and historical landmarks. Soak up the culture with one of the Oriental fragrance family’s historical treasures, Dior’s Hypnotic Poison .

End your tour of The Orient in JAPAN, where you can ride your bicycle through busy city streets or along the coast of the peaceful Pacific. Explore Tokyo, the world’s largest metropolis at a population of 12 million people, before you retreat into the back country to take in the country’s lush landscapes and unique architecture. Mimic Japan’s sensual and mysterious Geisha culture with deep and mysterious Obsession perfume.

If you can’t get away to another continent, spritz some Oriental perfume, close your eyes, and let your imagination take you where your legs can’t.

The Way Autumn Falls

2009-10-16T10:06:59-07:00

Explore Vermont

The only place to be in the fall is in the North-East. Nowhere else do trees transition into winter in quite the same way, maples exploding with luminous oranges while oaks fill their branches with brilliant reds. Autumn also carries its own scent, as well as landscape: a fresh and slightly damp aroma with hints of winter crisp, a musky cider laced with rotting bouquets.

One tree in particular, the Cercidiphyllum japonicum with no simpler name to share, gives off a distinctive smell that has come to help personify the scent of autumn. The tree, which originated in Asia, is known for its multi-coloured displays of brilliant fall foliage, as well as for the scent of its fallen leaves, described as having an aroma like burnt sugar or fairground candy floss. This sugary perfume is also emitted in the spring, when leaves emerge out of branch buds as a rich copper-green.

The scent is most apparent when standing over beds of fresh leaves, where the smell will waft upwards and overcome you. If you scoop up a handful of wet leaves and push them under your nose, they won’t be as pungent, the equivalent of smelling a floral bouquet on a table versus locating the source of a perfume oil within the throat of a flower.

In Vermont, different types of trees change during different periods—- just like a fragrance’s notes, by mid-September the foliage’s “heart notes” explode when full ranges of autumn colours begin appearing in the same way, starting at the northern edge and wafting south (unlike a perfume, which wafts up). This “full color” period can last from late-September through mid-to-late October.

Try these woody colognes from Perfume.com:, perfect for cooler weather and the spicy brilliance of autumn:

ALLURE BY CHANEL
Allure by Chanel perfume for women is a multifaceted fragrance that mixes notes of the Orient with abstract flowers. The concept of allure was Coco Chanel’s ideal: an innocent seduction without artifice, an unforgettable elegance transcending words and conventions. It is a simple jewel that combines six complex notes — bergamot, mandarin, water lily and magnolia, jasmine and May roses, vetiver and the velvety sensuality of vanilla.

BIJAN BY BIJAN
Bijan by Bijan perfume for women is a refined, oriental, woody fragrance. This feminine scent possesses a blend of sandalwood, oakmoss and orange flower. Bijan for Women perfume contains 173 precious ingredients, while the eau de parfum contains 157. The ingeniously designed circular glass flacon bottle with an open center and a dividing web visually defies gravity—when half full, the fragrance fills two separate chambers.

CK’S CONTRADICTION FOR WOMEN
Launched by the design house of Calvin Klein in 1997, CONTRADICTION is classified as a refreshing, oriental, floral fragrance. This feminine scent possesses a blend of pure pepper, rose, satin wood and sandalwood. It is recommended for daytime wear.

ESCADA BY ESCADA
Escada by Escada perfume for women is an oriental floral fragrance. This feminine scent possesses a blend of oriental spices, sandalwood, vanilla, and orange flower, sparked by a fruity duo of coconut and peach.

ARMANI DIAMONDS FOR WOMEN
Emporio Armani Diamond by Giorgio Armani perfume for women is very classy, glamorous scent that pays homage to “a girl’s best friend.” This sexy gourmand floral potion involves notes of rose, raspberry, and litchi in fusion over a sexy trail of amber and woods.

JAIPUR SAPHIR BY BOUCHERON
Jaipur Saphir Pour Femme is the latest women’s fragrance introduction from the renowned Parisian jeweler-perfumer, Boucheron. This exquisite fragrance derived its name from the celestial blue Kashmir ‘sapphires’ – a name that means most beautiful thing. A sensual and contemporary woody floral scent, Boucheron’s new fragrance combines the harmony of blue with the magic of jewelry to pay homage to today’s femininity.

VERSACE FOR WOMEN
The floral, vibrant and sensual bouquet delicately emphasized by a gentle marriage of jasmine and azalea. The fragrance is finally enveloped by the silky softness of a veil of musk, wrapped by the preciousness of warm and delicate kashmir wood and Moroccan cedar wood.

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The Scent Rises In The East

The Way Autumn Falls