.:: CybeleSays ::.

Anna Sui Says, “Hello Dolly!”

I’ve been sniffing quite a few fragrances to find a good one for right now and it got me thinking (here’s my Sex In the City moment): “If we don’t like a scent one month, does that mean next month we still won’t like it?” Just like the show, I won’t be able to solve answer that question right away, but I do know that I am liking ANNA SUI’s new Dolly Girl Lil’ Starlet Eau de Toilette Spray ($57/1.7oz @ strawberrynet.com). Every year, Ms. Sui launches a new Dolly Girl and this is our first experience with any of her Dollys. I love the way these bottles look back at you from the dressing table and this one is oh so Twiggy-like.

The scent is called a Floral Watery with top notes of marine accord, pink grapefruit, lemon and mandarin; middle notes of Madonna lily, pear and peony; bottom notes of sandalwood, amber and musk. The scent is fun and perfect for any thirty-something.

Roll On Scensoir Parfums

Why give all the major fragrance brands your business? There are some nice indie ones out there and I guess it’s our job to turn you on to them, right? So here’s one line you may want to consider.

The SCENSOiR Parfum de Reves line is made up of three roll-on fragrances that contain high concentrations of naturally derived notes infused with jojoba base, and not just any jojoba, 100% Certified Organic jojoba. Let’s address the “organic” claim with these. They stamp an organic symbol on the back of each box for the following reasons: each follows an 80:80 principal – 80% of each fragrance is formulated with at least 80% naturally derived ingredients, and 80% of which must be organic. So 80:80. Pretty easy to understand. From what I can gather, the organic symbol used on the packaging is created by them and not part of a bigger organization but the above is pretty straight forward and they don’t make any wild claims they can’t back up so that’s good enough for me.

The brand hopes to bet to 90:90 and higher in time. With regard to the other 20% of the ingredients, none of them fall into the category of this body scrub I came across recently. See their site for the “no’s” as in dyes, mineral oils etc. Mineral oil can be found in perfumes? Eeeks!

Anyway, let’s get to the actual scents. ce, em and el were each created for nighttime wear hence the collection name Parfum de Reves, which means “perfume of dreams.” And interestingly enough, these can be layered, something of which I am still have not done with any line, even one like this where it is suggested.

Scensoir ce: overall this is a citrus-floral
Top notes: lemon, orange & petitgrain
Middle notes: Egyptian chamomile and lavender
Base notes: sage, thyme and a sheer musk

Scensoir em: overall this Herbaceous-floral is “Delicate yet complex” hmmmm

Top notes: bergamot, grapefruit, mandarin, petitgrain and cedarlear

Middle notes: marjoram, clary sage, juniperberry and neroli

Bottom notes: ginger, black pepper, cedarwood and patchouli

Scensoir el: over all described as a clean woody-floriental

Top notes: chamomile and bergamot

Middle notes: jasmine, lavender, tuberose

Bottom notes: cedarwood, sanadalwood, vanilla and musk

Each roll on bottle can be purchased separately for $28/.33oz or in the Trio Set of perfume oil rollers for $69. I have gone back and forth as to which is my favorite but know that all of them seem to last on the skin for quite a long time, even in this hot sticky weather. Find them @ scensoir.com

Honey, Honey Part II

HONEY facts:

• In order to produce 1 pound of honey, 2 million flowers must be visited.
• Honey is fat free, cholesterol free and sodium free.
• Not only is it quite soothing on minor burns, but can help combat infection and minimize scarring.

So using HONEY in beauty products seems like a natural fit, right? Here are some we love that love us right back in Part II of our on-going feature on products that exploit HONEY.

1. TOCCA Body Wash in Cleopatra ($19/8oz @ tocca.com)
2. AROMA M Geisha Blanche Eau de Parfum ($80/1.7oz @ luckyscent.com)
3. JUNE JACOBS Pore Refining Oatmeal Scrub ($38/3.7oz @ junejacobs.com)
4. THE BODY DELI Oatmeal and Honey Masque ($24/2oz @ thebodydeli.com)
5. LUSH Bath Bomb in Honey Bee ($6.15/6.3oz @ lush.com)

Who's Desire-able? Me

Eau de Toilette. I’ve always shied away from them because they are too light and why bother wearing one if you can’t smell it? I used to think this. In the spring and summer, light and airy smells seem to be what we smile about and an Eau de Toilette is perfect because they are less concentrated than a Parfum, so it won’t be as strong or heavy greeting the nose. The one from Ineke really opened my eyes when it comes to how a scent is picked up from those around us. Don’t you really want those in your personal space getting the real essence of you anyway? If this is your new lease on life, may I present you with a recommendation - LiSE WATiER’s new Desirable Eau de Toilette ($60/1.7oz, $82/3.4oz @ 818-655-9922). Some of my favorite notes are the Lily of the Valley, sweet apple, tart wild berries and has a base of musk and sandalwood. It’s feminine without being too sweet so let this one whisper “hello” and “ooo, how are you?” to your closest friends.

Be What You Feel With Danica Aromatics

Starting a feature out by saying “I am not usually one for…”, I’m beginning to think I am “one for…” and just didn’t know it. It’s like that girl looking for love everywhere when it was standing in front of her the whole time. Such was the case with the I am fragrance line from DANiCA AROMATiCS. It’s a collection of 11 different empowering scents to help you make your statement. Each was created to combat negative thoughts in the brain via the olfactory glands. My pick of the litter is I am wild. I have always loved the oriental frags but not really ones with fruity notes. This one is a fru-oriental as in fresh fruits like peach and passion fruit and orientalized. Really nice! And the scent lasts on the skin.
So maybe we change what we like and don’t as time goes on and that it's not really set. That’s all I can conclude from this realization. Or maybe it's how the notes are mixed and order - what's on top, middle and bottom? I am puzzled. Any thoughts? Pick up any I am scent for $29/roll-on and $65/1.7oz @ iamdanica.com

Now I Can Wear Hard Candy

Wowee, wow-wow, is this one great! Then again, I should have guessed it would be pretty good because it’s HARD CANDY. While I have not been wow’d by all of their products, this Fragrance ($42/1.69oz, $55/3.38oz @ sephora.com) is pretty fab. It falls in the category of floriental and they describe it perfectly – “a hint of sweetness but with a bit of depth and mystery.” Spray it on and the nose detects the top notes of white tea and pink peppercorn (is that what that is??), middle notes of rose and jasmine and the base is a vanilla and cashmere musk. And it seems to last quite a while. Not one of those scents you put on and five minutes later forgot which scent you’re wearing. 

And the packaging? The slim bottle with black swirls around it is quite sleek and sexy and the top is like a pincushion with each size is represented by a different color – green for the 3.38oz and pink for the 1.69oz. How often does that happen? And I really liked the cardboard foil origami box it came in. Very colorful and the way it opened up was fun and unique.

Guess Which Fragrance This Is?

OK, bad title but it set this next product up perfectly, no?
I had an interesting conversation about fragrances with a good friend when we were at the mall the other day. She sticks to light or flowery scents for both day and night during the summertime. I still think you can mix it up in the summer with heavier and lighter scents. Take this GUESS BY MARCiANO Eau de Parfum Spray ($65/3.4oz @ guess.com). It’s a spicy floral or spiflo, as I call it, with the top notes being star fruit, grapefruit, orange curacao and cardamom (ginger), middle of pink honey suckle, peony and jasmine, and base of wood, vanilla, musk and dulce de leche. When I described this one to her before we hit one of the major department stores, she said she’d probably only wear it in the non-summer months as it sounded too heavy for hot weather. But I am happy to report she changed her mind when we sampled it at the counter. “This one is great for day or night and in any season. It’s soft and feminine but still has a slight sexy bite to it.” You heard her loud and clear.

Up Close And Personal

I’ve heard that when a woman wears a fragrance, only those physically closest to her should be able to smell it. It’s like her own secret that she chooses to share with a select few. And this next one is just up that alley and has great staying power. Please help me welcome INEKE’s newest scent Evening Edged In Gold ($88/2.5oz @ ineke.com). It is not overwhelming when I put it on and could only smell it when I waived my wrist about five inches past my nose. Wrangle him closer with top notes of gold osmanthus and plum. He’ll come a few inches closer when he smells that middle notes of angel’s trumpet, saffron and a dash of cinnamon. Know that he’s all yours when he gets whiff of the base notes of midnight candy, leather and woods. Also, check out their sample collection, which allows you to sample a 1/5ml vial before committing to the bigger sizes.

Footloose & Fancy Free Fragrance With Anna Sui

The first few weeks of spring force me to focus on a few of things – putting winter clothes away in storage, applying more sunscreen and changing my perfumes. Like some scents smell better depending on the time of day, others smell better in a particular season. I mean, you wouldn’t wear this one in the dead of winter, right? ANNA SUI’s new Flight of Fancy is one that will be sitting at the front of my dressing table this season. If you are a fan of the lighter scents then this is one you’ll want to investigate. I’m usually not a fan of sweet light scents but for some reason, I am quite taken with this one for daytime wearing. Inspired by Ms. Sui’s favorite bird, the peacock, this one layers litchi, yuzu, lemon, star magnolia, rose, purple rain freesia, amber crystals, skin musk and white woods.

And don’t forget the art of layering your scent. Start in the shower with the Shower Gel ($38/6.7oz), then before you dress, spread their Body Lotion ($42/6.7oz) all over your parts and then dab one of the three sizes of Eau de Toilette ($45-$72, 1.7oz-3.3oz). All @ annasuibeauty.com

Spritz Some Spring

Why am I such a sucker when it comes to fragrances this time of year? I feel like I have to try them all but I guess that’s a good thing since you reap the rewards of hearing about a good one! L’ARTiSAN PARFUMEUR L’ete en Douce ($135/3.4oz exclusively @ barneys.com) has “wear me with a spring dress” written all over it. It has top notes of mint leaves and rose essence; middle notes of orange blossom, lime tree, green hay and base notes of botany, white wood and white musk. Don’t you deserve a new fragrance this season?