September 9, 2016

Guerlain Shalimar Eau de Cologne Budget Beauty Pick Perfume Review

L'Esperessence Budget Beauty Pick, Guerlain Balsam For The Soul, Balsamic, Comforting, Glamorous fragrance, Jacques Guerlain, Oriental, Sexy, Vanilla 3 Comments

Guerlain Shalimar Eau de Cologne was not a super bargain but it still comes at a fairly decent price given it quality. It has become one of my most cherished bottles this summer due to its smooth vintage vibe and beautiful older designed spray bottle. My Shalimar edc was produced in 2015. But scenting it, one would say it was in the 80 ties. When my favorite Shalimar Parfum de Toilette was produced. My personal fantasy is that at a Guerlain factory they still had some old juice lying around in a wooden barrel, watered it down a bit and sold it as edc.

On my skin Guerlain Shalimar Eau de Cologne is much smokier than the Shalimar I scented last year at the Guerlain counter in a department store. I find the newer Shalimar’s to be too much watered down and tamed. Although it says Eau de Cologne on its label, the fragrance lasts a whole day on my skin.

If you do not know Shalimar, grab your chance and get this edc bottle while you still can to experience this beautiful fragrance in its full glory. You never know how much more it will be altered by its producing company LVMH, given the financial driven and certainly not perfume loving decisions which are being made lately. If you like and love Shalimar buy this version, you will not regret it.

What does it do? It takes away rough and hard edges due to its balsamic properties acting like balsam for your soul. For me personally it works also comforting and sometimes I wear it to sleep.

How does it make you feel? Like a movie star in the nineteen twenties, with natural glamour and being sexy in an elegant way, like wearing a low cut black satin evening dress and feeling very comfortable and relaxed wearing it.

Notes: (source Michael Edwards Perfume Legends) Top: Sparkling Bergamot, Heart: Fleeting Rose and Jasmine, Base: Seductive Opopanax, Vanilla, Iris and Tonka Bean

Launched: 1925 at the International Exhibition of Decorative Arts in Paris

Perfumer: Jacques Guerlain

Sillage: Medium

Longevity: Medium

Perfume Family: Oriental

Produced by: LVMH

Origin of bottle: my own together, bought for 47 euro at a Dutch web shop, I own other Shalimar versions and flankers as well

Photograph: my own

Much has been written about Shalimar, I have chosen to keep this review fairly brief. If you would like to read more about Shalimar, read more on this iconic fragrance on: Monsieur Guerlain and Perfume Shrine. Read another review of this marvelous Guerlain Shalimar Eau de Cologne at Australian Perfume Junkies written by Val.

NB: this is a Shalimar Eau de Cologne review with the box on the photograph, not about Shalimar Cologne EDT made by perfumer Thierry Wasser which can be sold at stores at this time.

November 13, 2015

Nicolaï Maharadjah Room Fragrance

L'Esperessence Lampe Berger Fragrances, Nicolaï, Parfums, Room Diffusers, Scented candles Autumn fragrance, Cinnamon, Clove, Comforting, Cozy, Jean Kerleo, Lavender, Longevity, Orange, Osmoteque, Throw off, Vanilla, Warming, Winter fragrance 0 Comments

The best image to illustrate the scent of Nicolaï Maharadjah is the painting What will tomorrow bring? made by Henriette Hackenberg. The colours in the painting are found in the home fragrance Maharadjah. The blue from the lavender, brown from the cinnamon, dark red from the clove, gold for the warm vanilla and orange for the overall feeling of comfort. The roomspray and scented candle give me a cozy feeling of enjoyment in my house like the painting. They are a perfect match.

Nicolaï Paris is a French perfume brand which was founded by the French perfumer and president of the Osmoteque in Versailles, Patricia de Nicolaï. One could say the Osmoteque is a perfume museum and archive where one can attend lectures, have private consultations and scent old classic perfumes. It was founded by former Jean Patou perfumer Jean Kerleo.

Nicolaï has a large home fragrance collection including room diffusers, room sprays, scented candles, catalytic lamp liquids (for Lampe Berger burning lamps) with at this moment 25 different scents and 3 Christmas fragrances.

It has a perfume line as well, as most of you already know. Except for two, Just un Reve and Rose Oud, Nicolai perfumes do not work on my skin. Her perfumes are not my taste as I find them a tad too sweet.like adding one cube of sugar to my coffee which then overdoes it in sweetness. So I prefer the room fragrances for my home as most of them are perfumed treasures on their own.

Nicolaï Paris has a home fragrance line consisting of candles, room sprays, reed diffusers, essential oils, lamp liquids. It has a bath line as well. My favorite room fragrance is Maharadjah. It is very well suited for autumn and winter and a bestseller in the Parisian Nicolaï shops.

The best image to illustrate the scent of Maharadjah is the oil painting is my living room, What will tomorrow bring? made by my dear friend Henriette Hackenberg. The colours in the painting can be found in Maharadjah. The blue from the lavender, brown from the cinnamon, dark red from the clove, gold for the warm vanilla and orange for the overall feeling of comfort. The roomspray and scented candle give me a cozy feeling of enjoyment in my house as does the painting. They are a perfect match.

Maharadjah comes as a scented candle, reed diffuser, essential oil, lamp liquid, room spray and used to be sold as eau de parfum. I have tried them all. It comes in a more intense version as well, with the same scent but a bit more intensified. The reed diffuser is my favorite.

This is not a fragrance if you are looking for a subtle home scent as its throw off and longevity are amazing. But this is what I personally enjoy. The reed diffuser lasted almost a year. I find it to be well worth its price of 46 euro.* As it is a high quality fragrance and a magnificant scent, a perfume bottled as a room fragrance giving pleasure for a year. What more would one want for one’s home ?

Have you tried Nicolaï home fragrances ? Or do you use other home fragrances ? Which one are your favorites ?

All room fragrances can be ordered on the official Nicolaï website and the Perfume Lounge in The Netherlands.

More paintings on: Henriette Hackenberg’s website

Disclaimer: All products mentioned in this article were bought by me.

*Note 1: But price is always personal and what you are willing to pay for a (room) fragrance.

*Note 2 : This review discusses Maharadjah not the other scent from Patricia Nicolai Maharani, which is different.

May 22, 2015

Hilde Soliani Luce A brand new day !

L'Esperessence Hilde Soliani Comforting, Joyfull perfume, Powdery, Relaxing 3 Comments

Some months ago I tested many Hilde Soliani fragrances. I really loved scenting these perfumes as they are so different from other fragrances I have tried before. Hilde Soliani is an Italian perfumer with a passion for teatre and Italian haute cuisine. The Hilde Soliani Facebook page shows her many times near a master chef and helping him with his cooking. Hilde Soliani has 4 different perfume lines. Profumo e gusto in liberta was inspired by haute cuisine dishes. Teatro Olfattivo di Parma was inspired by local theatre in Parma. Ti amo was inspired by flowers and Gli Invisibili was inspired by emotional events in her personal life. Some bottles might seem a bit odd. At first I was put off a bit by the bottles of the Gli Invisibili line with a crucifix on them.

What struck me most about Hildes fragrances was the joy they brought me and probably the pleasure of Hilde making her fragrances. They are different from anything I have tried before, very original and fresh. Their structure does not seem very complicated. They do not change a lot on my skin as other perfumes might do. But their simplicity might be deceiving. They are really well made. Hilde is very original in her combination of scents like strawberry and salt in Fraaagola Saalaaata and custard cream with cherries flavoured leaves of tobacco in Doolciiisssimo.

One of the fragrances I enjoyed most was Luce of the Profumo e Gusto in Liberta line. Luce means light in Italian and was inspired by the birth of a child of a friend of Hilde, a new born child bringing light to the earth and joy to the ones around him/her. Personally I would find it more logical if Luce would have been in the Gli Invisibli line, a liquid emotion and not in the haute cuisine line.

Luce is all about powder, baby powder. Somehow it reminded me of the almond coated sweets given to visitors when a child is born in Spain and maybe other countries too. It would be very suited to scent a birth announcement card with Luce. Hilde Soliani keeps her notes/ingredients secret like a master chef who does not convey his recipes. The emotion Luce brought me was of pure joy, the same pleasure I experience while watching the scene brand A brand new day (everybody rejoice) in the movie The Wiz (1978). But at the same time Luce is very relaxing and comforting. A very interesting combination, bringing delight and cosiness at the same time.

Luce is sold in a 100 ml bottle. I really wish Hilde Soliani would introduce a discovery set of her fragrances or smaller 30 ml bottles as Parfums de Nicolai does. Swiss perfumer Andy Tauer recently introduced an explorer set and the French perfume brand Jul et Mad small 5 ml bottles.

Give Luce a try if you like other (very different takes on powder) perfumes like:

Lorenzo Villoresi Teint de Neige

Laura Tonatto Dama

Parfums de Nicolai Kiss me Tender

Guerlain L’Heure Bleue (according to Patricia de Nicolaï, perfumer and the president of the

Osmothèque perfume conservatory, the universal symbol of the word powdery in perfumes)

A sample of Luce was provided for pr purposes. This did not influence my review.

Paintings Taking flight 2011 and Birth 2010 are both made by Henriette Hackenberg.

Originally published November 4, 2013

update march 12th 2014 : Hilde Soliani informed Luce is from the Momenti line

A brand new day / Everybody Rejoice The Wiz