Perfumes

[iammatt]

In no way do I mean this post to be insensitive to others who like to wear a scent...

Every time I have tried to wear a scent, I cannot stand the feel of my own collar. I get an overly warm, almost stuffy feeling rising up from my neck, and I start to get light headed. Now, before you assume that I am putting too much on, let me tell you that I have tried more, less and almost none, and I still get the same feeling. I also get it inside my shirt cuff.

I only mention this, because I hate the idea of not being able to use something if I want to. Is this a common feeling that some people cherish, and I find unsettling? Is there a characteristic of some parfums that causes this feeling (I have used mostly Acqua de Parma)? Is it possible that I am simply allergic or oversensitive? Any suggestions would be most appreciated.

[uppercase]

It's great to learn of these niche perfumes!
I never leave home without a spritz but alas, all that I have found of perfumes are generally the larger, mass brands.
Of the smaller makers, I have only come across Lutens (vetiver), Helmut Lang (cuiron), and Etro.
I must say that the scents of even these semi-mainstream makers take much getting used to after one's nose has become accustomed to the mass brands. They are not easy to accept.
I would say that , as in bespoke clothing, one must educate oneself in all matters of taste and perception when it comes to exclusive, out of the usual perfumes.
Finding and wearing such niche perfumes can be as interesting as learning about bespoke clothing.
Perfume becomes a part of one's grooming and dressing ritual and so, adds immensely to the experience.

[whittaker]

Thus far, I've settled on Trumpers Spanish Leather as the scent that "feels right" to me. But I am a noviciate scent user.

[Incroyable]

Does anyone use Knize Ten?

[alden]

I would say that , as in bespoke clothing, one must educate oneself in all matters of taste and perception when it comes to exclusive, out of the usual perfumes.
Finding and wearing such niche perfumes can be as interesting as learning about bespoke clothing.
Perfume becomes a part of one's grooming and dressing ritual and so, adds immensely to the experience.

As in his choice of clothing, a man’s fragrance selection should be discrete, in good taste, fit him well, and be appropriate for the place and season of usage.

Above all, it should be discrete.

Sillage, a French word meaning “wake” as in a ship’s wake, is used to describe the trail of a fragrance that remains in a ladies path. A man’s scent should be perceptible, as Luca Turin has said, “only at the moment of a kiss.”

The question of good taste is subjective but suffice it to say that a fragrance should not be effusive or common. Natural products assembled with the kind of care and attention to detail we expect from all artisans will be preferred over mass produced, chemically constituted concoctions.

Every person’s skin reacts differently, so a fragrance needs to fit just like a fine suit. Like fine wines, whose olfactory pleasures open over time with exposure to oxygen, perfumes evolve over time as well. Exposure to the skin will release the positive or negative attributes of a naturally made fragrance in the same way. Take the time necessary to test a fragrance prior to purchase to make sure it works well for you.

Finally, a wardrobe of fragrances will contain essences for all seasons and occasions just as a bespoke wardrobe does. Light colognes will match a linen suit to perfection in the warm months. In winter, more heady fragrances will compliment tweeds and flannels.

Those who appreciate fine food, wines, the smell of coffee, tea, tobacco, olive oil etc will naturally be attracted to a measured and elegant use of fragrances, one in which the whole is more than the sum of the parts and where no one part dominates.

[uppercase]

Well, Michael, all the more reason to visit to Paris for a tour of the niche parfumeurs!

Actually, pursuit of the unique, special and rare, and developing ones tastes and standards, whatever the pursuit, can be extraordinarly satisfying.

Perfume, being only one.

Many thanks for putting this LL site together and this excellent venue for exchange of information and views!!

[alden]

Knize 10 (1924) is a tobacco/leather fragrance in the same family as Tabac Blond (1919), Cuir de Russie (1924), Bandit (1944), and Habit Rouge (1965). It reminds one of walking into the smoking parlour of an old English club furnished in leather furniture, a fire and a few cigars or pipes burning away and the distant smell of Oriental incense smoldering in the background. In the case of Knize 10, you can add the smell of a beautiful lady who has entered the smoking parlour wearing a floral perfume.

Knize 10 is about as masculine a fragrance as is made these days. In fact, it was worn by one of the very last masculine US actors, Orson Welles and one imagines Rita may have enjoyed it as well.

If Tabac Blond is pure tobacco and leather, then Knize 10 is a more subtle version of same due to its floral components. There is always a bottle of it in my wardrobe waiting for those days when Tabac Blond gets a day’s rest.

[Incroyable]

Yes, I had been meaning to acquire a bottle of the Knize, however there has been a lack of availability. Apparently the stoe, Caswell & Masey in San Francisco had no inventory left.

Yet, in the range of classic fragrances I feel that certain Robert Piguet scents as you had mentioned Bandit would be rather suited as a unisex perfume.

Sometimes I also favor the Imperial by Guerlain. It was said that Napoleon would have an entire bottle of Imperial poured on him in the mornings by his valet.

[uppercase]

I'd be interested to learn who makes those classic scents?

I am only familiar with Habit Rouge by Guerlain. And I understand that Tabac Blond is by Caron.....how about the others?

BTW, I am surprised to see that this topic of perfumes is one of LL's most popular with 1,300 + hits.

Must be alot of perfume wearers out there!

[Incroyable]

I'd be interested to learn who makes those classic scents?

I am only familiar with Habit Rouge by Guerlain. And I understand that Tabac Blond is by Caron.....how about the others?

BTW, I am surprised to see that this topic of perfumes is one of LL's most popular with 1,300 + hits.

Must be alot of perfume wearers out there!

Bandit is made by Robert Piguet who also makes the iconic Fracas, another elusively elegant scent.

Cuir de Russie, I understand is by Creed who initially created it for the Emperor Napoleon III and his wife Empress Eugenie who had a penchant for masculine scents.

Knize Ten is by Knize, an Austrian haberdashery with a store designed by Adolf Loos, a bit of a fashionplate himself.

[alden]

The Cuir de Russie I am referring to is a 1924 Chanel fragrance by Ernest Beaux. It was re-edited in the 1980s by Polge and is now available in a limited edition at the Chanel boutiques in Paris, Rue Cambon and Avenue Montaigne.

[uppercase]

I wonder what is the best way to apply a cologne, particularly one not in spray form.
What is the shelf life of perfume. And how best to store it?

[alden]

Like many products we enjoy (wine, olive oil, spirits), perfumes fear light and heat. Keep them in their original boxes, in a dark, cool place and they will last indefinitely. They will age like your wines and become more concentrated, but they will last a long long time.

[Incroyable]

I wonder what is the best way to apply a cologne, particularly one not in spray form.
What is the shelf life of perfume. And how best to store it?

One can purchase an atomizer or a flacon where they have a dabber attached to the top. Asprey used to have these in sterling and a glass interior.

However, I've also found the practice of a perfumed handkerchief to be pleasant as well. Rather the Comte d'Orsay's habit of dipping his watch band into a bottle of Houbigant perfume.

[rip]

Every time I have tried to wear a scent, I cannot stand the feel of my own collar. I get an overly warm, almost stuffy feeling rising up from my neck, and I start to get light headed.

I get a similar feeling, coupled with a slight swelling in my throat when I wear certain scents. I have always attributed it to some type of allergic reaction, but it only happens with certain scents, not with all, and not only with colognes, but also with some deodorants. You might want to try a variety of scents (most inexpensively done by visiting the cologne counter at a good store where they have testers) and hopefully you'll find one, or some, that you both like and can wear.