A week of DSH Pefumes
When I was in junior high and early high school, I had a wonderful best friend, Marti. Marti was smart and funny and sharp-tongued and beautiful, like so many teenage girls are, and we could talk on the phone for hours after school after spending almost every class together. We grew apart in high school, in same the way I was systematically isolated from everyone by the growing random horror of my home life and my inept and desperate attempts to deal with it (hello, cycle of violence), but I never forgot Marti. Years have passed now, and we've reconnected thanks to ye olde intertubes, and I'm happy for that. It's nice when technology occasionally brings people together rather than isolating them from one another.
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| Never turn your back on Mother Earth. |
If you're reading this, Lillian, thanks for always being kind to me after my mom left. I never forgot it.
Monday: DSH Perfumes Spring Moss - A dewy moss with subtle cool melon and cucumber nuances. Notes: Cucumber, Melon, Moss.
This is a bright, fresh scent that on me is almost spearmint-y. I know the notes say melon and usually that would be the death knell for me, but in this case it is light and fresh scent with the melon no where to be found. It lacks the decaying earthiness I'd have expected from a moss, but maybe that's what is Spring-like about it. Spring Moss is very much a new growth scent and great for warmer weather, so I suspect it wears very well at the cusp of Spring's change to Summer. I'll be sure to try it around that time next year. A solid 3 of 5 nods for scent, 5 of 5 nods for longevity (like all DSH perfumes oils, a little goes a very long way - 6 to 8 hours), and 5 of 5 nod for pricing (1/3 oz pulse roller on sale for $18), which for me was a whooping $14 for what I suspect is a three to five year supply with frequent use of this Fond Farewell item.
Layering Experience: I tried layering Spring Moss with Jo Malone Red Roses, after thinking I'd like a fresh green rose and finding the combination of Red Roses and Jo Malone Fresh Mint Leaf left me wanting a stronger green aspect. I found the combination a huge success, the Spring Moss being strong enough that a few pulsepoint dabs balanced very evenly with a light spritz of Red Roses. The effect was is a youthful and fresh rose scent that makes for nice wearing in warmer weather.
Tuesday: DSH Perfumes African Violet - A powdery, almost candy-sweet, violet flower note. Notes: Violet, Orris, Violet, Violet Leaf Absolute, Orris Concrete, Orris Root.
Well, helllllllllo violet. Attention lovers of soapy, powdery violets. Do not be fooled by the description, because this is definitely not the sweetest or most candied violet I've tried. No this is the kind of violet that once made me opine that violets were hard for me to love. That was on September 30, 2009, almost two years ago. My, how things change. Had I tried African Violet back then, I would have hated its intense soapy powdery florality. Now I think it is really quite pretty, though, it is not in the vein of violets I tend toward (like CB I Hate Perfume Violet Empire or Serge Lutens Bois de Violette.) Despite my newfound affection for African Violet's soapy, powdery beauty, I still prefer those less traditional violet approaches; turns out my nose is, at times, pretty consistent. But if you want a voluptuous violet of the soapy, powdery bent, I insist you look no further. 3 of 5 nods for the scent (based on my preferences, not the quality) and again, amazing longevity and price point (1/3 oz pulse roller on sale for $19).
Wednesday: DSH Perfumes Sweet Gardenia - A thoroughly tropical interpretation of gardenia with island flowers and a hint of sensuality in its base notes. Notes: Coconut, Orange Blossom, Gardenia, Tuberosa, Ambergris, Musk.
The opening is, as promised, very tropical. I think the tropical aspect comes from a balanced overlay of coconut and tuberosa, though the tuberosa is supposed to be a base note. This is one unusual gardenia, and more what I expected from Pacifica Tahitian Gardenia than what I got. Also, and this is a bonus for me, I get the rubbery part of the tuberuse/gardenia combo, which I truly enjoy. If you want a pretty gardenia for a beachy date, this is a nice option. Also a Fond Farewell item; 1/3 oz pulse roller on sale for $14. 3 of 5 nods.
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| Filmed in Oregon! |
Hemlock spruce, as it says right there on the label. To me, this reminds me of the many, many, many hours spent in Decembers of my youth wandering around car lots full of fresh Christmas trees, if someone had dressed all the trees with decorative balls made of various kinds of peppercorns. In other words, it has a great scent memory embedded, and really makes me miss those times. Though I find it very sexy for anyone, there is wonderful potential here to sell a perfume-adverse man on a scent that feels like it goes with the latest episode of Ax Men. Personally I love it and will be leaning on it heavily when we get closer to the holidays. 1/3 oz pulse roller on sale for $19. Again, a Fond Farewell item. 4 of 5 nods.
Friday: DSH Perfumes Almond Blossom - A delicate floral scent with hints of almond in the top note and warm lily/musky nuances in the dry down. Notes: Bitter Almond, Jasmine, Lily of the Valley (Muguet), Amber, Musk.
Almond Blossom is an attempt at the floral and not the food, and the result is sweet but not too sweet and very almond, in an almond extract way, not a roasted nut way. It lasts forever, and is as delicious as it is pretty, but not nearly as sticky sweet gourmand as DSH Perfumes Lush Honey. The floral notes ensure you get a sweet scent that runs less toward the almond food and more toward the flower, as promised. 1/3 oz pulse roller on sale for $18. Available for a limited time and quantity. 5 of 5 nods.
Layering Experience: I tried layering Almond Blossom with Jo Malone Orange Blossom, and it turned out to be another wonderful surprise. The dryness of the Orange Blossom kills almost all of the gourmand aspects, turning it into a decidedly lovely floral combination. This is a combo I will be revisiting with some frequency. If you have the two on hand, give it a whirl. Two to three generous dabs of perfume oil to one full spray works for me.
Winner of the Week: I'm not going to pick this time. Every one of them are truly lovely and available for less than $20 each. I am pleased to say I own a third ounce off them all, which I suspect will last me a blissfully long time. Also, with that kind of variety, you can hit almost an mood, weather or seasonal inclination, and all for under $100. Definitely shop the DSH Perfumes specials and sales while you still can to find all of the above at more than reasonable prices."Love is crooked as the teeth in an old man's smile,
as the stones in the graveyard, as a country mile,
but I'll drive all night to get there if you let me stay awhile.
Your heart is empty as winter in a tourist town.
Your heart is dark as a hemlock grove."
~ "Hemlock Grove," Mark Erelli
