Hi my lovelies, how are you today? I don’t know about you but I can’t wait for this week to be over. I’m really looking forward to be travelling again come Saturday morning (NYC -> Frankfurt -> Hamburg -> Sydney -> Singapore). I’ll be away from Tokyo for a month this time and I’m in a frenzy preparing for my departure. That usually means prepping scheduled blog posts, cleaning the house (don’t want my part-timer to work in filth), packing my luggage, paying bills etc. I have a couple of catchups with friends because I haven’t seen them all year and if I don’t this time, it would mean I wouldn’t see them till May. Time is just screaming past for me this year but it feels exciting.

What’s even more thrilling is that I’ll be attending IMATS New York on April 14th Saturday — SQUEEEEEEAAAAL! If you are also attending the show, don’t hesitate to drop me a line if you want to meet up.

So let’s move onto today’s Fragrance Love post. I’ve to say this perfume seriously “had me at hello” simply because my mother used to wear the original Chanel No.19 perfume way back in the 70s and 80s. It is filled with nostalgia for me because I think my mum’s perfume collection might have ignited the fragrance fiend that I have become.

I must have been barely six or seven and I’d love watching my mother get ready for a wedding dinner or attend a work function with my father. She would spray Chanel No.19 on her wrists and I never tired of her telling me that it was her favourite perfume. In fact, it was the first perfume my father ever bought for her on a business trip. My dad had always travelled frequently for work and would bring back gifts occasionally. But I think Chanel No.19 was their little tradition for years…

I would inhale the crisp green notes deeply and sigh at the romance of my father toting back a bottle of elegant perfume for my mother. It looked so expensive and precious and my mother would warn me not to drop it when I insisted I wanted to hold the bottle. She then developed a taste for Chanel No.5 and showed me the few tiny bottles she bought for herself or asked my father to get at duty-free. I never got sick of smelling and re-smelling these two perfumes so I think that’s why these two Chanel fragrances would forever be etched in my memory because of this ritual I shared with my mother.

So when I walked past the Chanel counter at Mitsukoshi, I had to have a sniff. I decided that the updated Poudre version was more suitable for me because it’s less strong but still retains most of the original character of Chanel No.19.

I think the powdery iris note makes this more wearable than the first one which can be an acquired taste for some because of its dazzling angular notes. It’s been often said that Chanel No.19 is the conservative “outdoorsy” sister of the glamorous Chanel No.5 but the Poudre is definitely a comforting and feminine version so it’s no wonder that this perfume can be worn as a daily scent. The notes include mandarin, neroli, iris, jasmine, galbanum, vetiver, musk and tonka bean. I just love it!

Do you remember what perfume your mother loves? And do you remember special moments through fragrance?

I buy perfumes for all sorts of different reasons and I may even have a story or two up my sleeve on the procurement of these precious flacons of mine.

But what remains the same in the way I buy perfume is that it is almost always fueled by impulse. The moment always grabs me and it’s as if the perfume clings onto me and never lets go. Yes, not the best way to buy perfume, but it feels very exciting, nonetheless.

I end up with lovely buys sometimes, but I also have a number of duds. Maybe I’ll share these stories in time to come…

Today’s perfume was not quite an impulse purchase at all but it was still a temporary obsession I couldn’t get rid of. I had watched this brilliant BBC documentary on perfume (go watch it, seriously, it is so fascinating) late at night last summer. I sat through all the episodes in one go (there are three episodes but they are each broken up into four 15-minute parts, so three hours in all) and I had a newfound appetite for perfume (that’s says a lot because I’m always up for perfume). Not just any new fangled scent that is hogging the headlines but classics that were mentioned in the documentary.

A large part of the documentary was dedicated to Hermes’ perfume maker, Jean Claude Ellena, and the journey of his classic Un Jardin Sur Le Nil was so charming and riveting that I nabbed this baby at the airport on the way to Taipei. I took only a mere sniff to decide I would have it because I had already made up my mind to get it.

But the other perfume that was highly lauded in this documentary was Tommy Girl by Tommy Hilfiger, which was apparently a “well-constructed” fragrance admired by fragrance experts, such as New York Times perfume critic, Chandler Burr and Luca Turin.

What sets Tommy Girl apart from all the fruity-floral perfumes on the market is the unique tea note which gives this a somewhat dry character as opposed to something juicy. It really does smell elegant and wears very well in humid weather. The branding I’m not a fan of (I’m not proud of toting a bottle around that says Tommy Girl), and you’ll be surprised at how adult and sophisticated the scent comes across.

The notes are black currant, camellia flowers, apple blossoms, blackcurrant, mandarin, tangerine, grapefruit, citrus orchards, crisp green notes, honeysuckle, butterfly violets, desert jasmin, cherokee rose, magnolia petals, dakota lilies, cedar, sandalwood and wild heather, according to Base Notes.

Back to my Tommy Girl story: Three months later, I was still hunting this perfume down as it wasn’t that easy to buy since it was launched in 1996. I definitely couldn’t find it in Tokyo, the land of all things new, and so I searched in Singapore. I found it at Sasa, a discount beauty store chain, but the packaging looked roughed up and there was only one 50ml bottle. There were 100ml bottles but I thought getting a 100ml one was just too much for something that was more of a curiosity than love. Furthermore, I couldn’t find it anywhere that allowed me to spritz it before deciding if I really wanted it or not.

Finally, I spotted it at Changi Airport at one of the smaller duty-free shops that were closer to the departure gates as it wasn’t to be found at the large shops right after you go through immigration. I thought it was my lucky day and promptly bought one after sniffing it for 10 seconds. I still don’t regret this at all and I’ve been loving this perfume more and more.

It is so versatile because it withstands hot weather with its crispness, and it’s light enough for casual wear, but elegant enough for night-time. The only other fragrance in my collection that is this versatile is Jo Malone’s English Pear & Freesia which actually has a sweet top note that makes it just slightly less sophisticated.

I suppose this is also a story about not judging a perfume by its cover and I would highly recommend you having a sniff of this if you ever come across it.

Do you love a scent that has “questionable” branding/packaging? Come on, out with the stories!

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Like my cosmetic preferences, I like to mix it up with cheap and expensive products when it comes to perfumes too. I would say I’m a perfume fanatic who is picky about how I smell but that doesn’t mean I am a complete snob — there are times when I come across lovely fragrances at reasonable prices. And I’m also not too quick to write off celebrity perfumes if they are really good, e.g. Sarah Jessica Parker, Gwen Stefani, and Britney Spears, though I would hastily point out that these stars are backed by excellent perfume house Coty Inc. who knows what they are talking about. So now you know where I stand in the perfume world lol!

Today’s perfume was a surprise for me as I never thought much of the Escada scents and they churn out one every year so they all seem to smell more or less the same. Another similar perfume that plays on the same theme but tweaks each release just a little bit is Ferragamo’s Incanto series. They are not bad at all — sweet and fruity, but all kind of the same.

There’s a little story behind how I stumbled upon Escada’s Ocean Lounge…

I attended a charity event held by a friend of a friend and there were a ton of raffle prizes to be won. I actually nabbed a hair cut at a chic salon in Azabu Juban while my friend won three perfumes and a pair of Roberto Cavalli sunnies. She was kind enough to share her loot and passed me the Escada one since she didn’t like sweet scents. One woman’s cast-off is indeed another’s treasure…

Luckily, Escada Ocean Lounge gels very well with my skin chemistry and the luscious fruity top notes are not so citrus that make it yet another boring fruity floral and the dry down is quite full-bodied for such a fresh scent. Here are the list of notes (source): plum, pear nectar accord, strawberry meringue accord, violet petal sorbet, mimosa blossom, jasmine, amber, sheer vanilla, teak wood.

I don’t know about you but strawberry meringue accord sounds either very scary or very delicious, and in this case, it’s good. I’ve to warn you that it is very sweet, so those who like gourmand scents might be drawn this perfume more. Oddly, I enjoy wearing this in winter precisely because it’s got such a happy tropical vibe — it feels like, I may be donning a boring turtleneck but I’m rocking the beach from the inside…

Do you wear “out-of-season” scents? Or just tell us what you are sporting this winter!

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Hello my beauty warriors, I’ve been having a good week so far — I’ve been trying out more workouts over at Bodyrock.tv and I love it when I feel energized from exercise and I sleep a whole lot better (and earlier, too!). Before I get into today’s post proper, I’d like to give a special shoutout to one of my regular readers, Julia who blogs at Colour Me Cute, for giving Beauty Box a “Best Blog Award”. Danke shoen, girl! I’m so honoured to be picked by you!

So today, we’re going to talk about fragrance — I dug into my dungeon (that’s what Mr BB calls my perfume collection) and rediscovered an “oldie but goodie” — Guerlain’s Lovely Cherry Blossom Gold Sparkles that was an Asia exclusive in early 2006.

This catapulted me back to remembering how I procured this precious flacon of delight. I was on a business trip in Hokkaido in late April 2006 and Mr BB had already moved to Tokyo by then. We were talking about me moving to Japan but he wanted to see if things would work out for him job-wise before I handed in my resignation. So on this trip, I remember feeling enormously excited to meet Mr BB at Haneda Airport for a coffee and a gelato. It was a bitter-sweet parting as we both missed each other terribly but it was very lovely to see each other for an hour before I boarded my flight to Narita Airport and then back to Singapore.

After our fleeting date, I bought this perfume to remember my mixed feelings about Japan. I thought it was exotic and intoxicating but yet highly developed and sophisticated as a country. This elegant perfume has notes of “bergamot, green tea, lilac, jasmine and red fruits” (via Now Smell This) to emulate the smell of cherry blossoms (which apparently have no scent in reality) which are the ultimate symbol of Japan.

It’s light enough for daily wear but it’s definitely very elegant and work-appropriate. I always pick this one up for serious occasions like a wedding or an interview or a business meeting. It sounds very mature but it’s far from “old lady” territory — it’s got that citrus-floral combo reminiscent of Chanel’s Coco Mademoiselle but has no flirtiness or playful girlishness to it. But I still love breathing in this scent as it always gives me that “I’m a woman; I need to put on my big girl panties” boost when I need it.

What’s your go-to fragrance when you need to be taken seriously?

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If there is such a thing as lust at first sight that blossoms into long-lasting love, then it’s my relationship with Jo Malone’s English Pear & Freesia Cologne.

I actually never buy 100ml bottles anymore but I caved for this one because it is a very light fragrance so I tend to spray twice as much as I would an eau de toilette, and also, I have been using this almost everyday for the past month. The more I wear it, the more I love it which is not often the case with me and my perfumes.

I know Wild Bluebell is the latest Jo Malone fragrance but it didn’t smell that fabulous on me — in fact, quite ordinary on my skin though I do love the marketing campaign (photos here). It also seems it’s an interpretation of what bluebells smell like since it is impossible to extract the scent from the flower. So, I really prefer to buy something that I will like for a long time, as opposed to getting something that is in fad right now.

It is very pricey but I think well worth the investment because Jo Malone’s fragrances are simply elegance in a bottle. They are timeless and even some of them are quite “artful” in my opinion, e.g. French Lime Blossom and Pomegranate Noir. They sound like they would be a bouquet of citrus and fruit but they are absolutely not and smell very much more complex and darker than they sound. But there are very “straight” perfumes in the Jo Malone collection like Red Roses which really smells like roses.

The other intriguing thing is that you can mix and match their perfumes (they have a Fragrance Combining page on their website) which would appeal to those who like to “make” their own blends that are unique.

The packaging alone is swoon-worthy and I still keep my bottle in its box. For one, I’m very anal about preserving my perfumes so that they can last longer. I always keep them in the cupboard with the doors shut because heat and light affect their formulas and some of my perfumes which are 6-8 years old are still going strong but I have been known to toss out ones that have gone bad without a single shred of regret. There is nothing more dismaying than wearing rotten perfume.

The main notes in Jo Malone’s English Pear & Freesia are pear, freesia, rose, patchouli, amber and white musk. The first spray is definitely pear, very fruity but crisp, and the dry down is a quiet sensual floral that eventually turns a bit milky due to the white musk. It is very wearable all year round — the fruitiness and lightness are perfect for humid weather but the pear note is very autumnal as well. I love my heavy musky vanilla filled perfumes but I just can’t wear them everyday, but this Jo Malone one, I could.

This is definitely a prized possession in my fragrance collection and I am tempted to purchase more Jo Malone but in 30ml sizes!

Would you like to see more of my perfume collection? I do have strange taste and I’ve been through several phases which I was drawn to different types of fragrances…

Do you have a favourite Jo Malone fragrance? If so, do share what it is and tell us why you love it.

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I love foodie scents, girly fragrances, and soft powdery ones, but once in awhile, I love me a big bold perfume that is not my usual “everyday” me but actually the real me I want to be but don’t dare to be.

….And that scent is Diptyque’s Virgilio. The overpowering top notes scream basil, and then the cedar rushes in, but after half an hour or so, the herbal scents warm up and settle a bit, and the dry down unfolds into this pillowy melange of sexy vetiver and other mysterious ingredients. I also sniff a bit of mossy undertones that remind me of a dense Medieval forest and it oddly makes me feel alive with all these strong green notes clamouring for attention…and spring is about re-birth and celebrating life.

I started wearing this at the tail-end of winter when there were spring-like sunny days and I was wishing for even warmer weather and blooming flowers…I got my wish because Tokyo is in full fledge spring mode and I’m deliberately leaving behind somber shades like black, navy, and dark grey.

The bottle is rather unassuming in its signature Diptyque bottle, but if you look closely, there’s a naked man in the picture. Bold, indeed! My kind of perfume inside and out! It’s also a very unisex scent but it doesn’t have your typical men’s notes like sandalwood or mint or bergamot. I feel so confident and brave when I wear this fragrance….

How did I lay my hands on such a precious find? Believe me, I do not have the most exotic of tastes even when it comes to my beloved perfumes. I actually got it in a Makeup Alley swap in one of my various attempts to offload discarded decanters for new fangled elixirs. I didn’t like Virgilio at first but like anything worth keeping, it truly grew on me and I can’t bear the thought of giving it away.

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Hello gorgeous ones, I know I haven’t been publishing non-Beauty Box News posts recently but I promise there is something very special coming up. I’ve still got to put the finishing touches on it and here’s a little pre-launch flash: it’s close to my heart and the first e-book I have ever ever ever written (!!!). I’ve been working on this for a few months and it’s finally almost ready.

In the meantime, I’ve got something to show you. By coincidence, I bought two black-and-red things that I love….

This is the fall limited edition Majolica Majorca perfume. It comes in a cute red goth-inspired bottle with a stick applicator, instead of a spray. The fragrance is much like an essential oil type so it’s a little bit viscous and not extremely liquidy like spray perfumes.

Can I say it’s very lovely. The more I wear it, the more I like it. It’s got an intoxicating blend of citrus, berries, vanilla, rose, and sandalwood. For a drugstore brand, I would say this is pretty good quality. I was a bit hesitant buying it because rose accents in bargain products are something I hate because they end up smelling so cheap and nasty. Alas, this was not the case for the new MM perfume because you can hardly smell any rose fragrance at all!

Conclusion: Great for everyday fall wear but probably too heavy for summer.

Next up, I couldn’t resist nabbing this cute Agnes B. eco bag and the magazine, Steady, had a bonanza puchipura (affordable) cosmetics spread so I was curious to read it.

Look, the back comes with a pretty heart-shaped hook for your desk…

It makes me almost want to be an OL so I could use this in my cubicle – lol!

Steady is obviously for women in their early 20s or even teens because there were some Sanrio-related editorials that were a wee bit too cute even for me.

How is your Monday so far?

PS: Don’t forget to shop till you drop at our Christmas Sale — spend USD200 and get 10% discount off your entire bill!!

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Hey gorgeous people, it’s mid-week and I’m just getting into the groove of my schedule. Alas, my summer travels have come to an end and I’m badly in need of some self-pampering.

But first, let me show you my mini-holiday haul. As a general rule, I try not to shop while travelling — I usually have no space in one small carry-on luggage, plus beauty products tend to be liquid so that makes things difficult if you don’t plan to check-in your luggage. And I really want to just buy products when I need them, too. Why don’t I just put a halo over my head right now, you must be wondering! Well, I used to hoard beauty products like no tomorrow so it’s an on-going resolution to live light.

But I broke a couple of rules when I was transiting at the Dubai International Airport en route to Singapore from Moscow.

I got this:

(more…)

One of the things on my to-do list in New York was to visit the flagship Bond No.9 store in Soho. Of course it was number 9 on Bond Street and I walked into a fantasy living room of faux old furnishings in what looked like a flamboyant library of perfume bottles.

I had mixed feelings about Bond No.9 when it first got my attention — the perfumes are named after famous streets in New York City, which is bodaciously tacky or brilliant genius in terms of branding, depending on how you see it. But the crux of the matter at the end of the day is, do they make really good perfume?

And after sniffing sample vials in Tokyo department stores, my conclusion was a big resounding yes. The complex layering and unfolding of ingredients in each scent definitely makes it a serious perfume brand and there isn’t a hint of cheapness even if you may not like any of the Bond No.9 scents.

My faves are Chinatown (the bottle is so pretty it’s to-die-for; read review here), Andy Warhol Lexington Avenue, and Saks Fifth Avenue For Her, in order of preference.

I didn’t buy a thing but I’m still considering if nabbing a bottle at the flagship boutique is something I should do. A 50ml bottle is USD150 and a 100ml bottle is USD210 and that’s a lot to spend on perfume, even for me. Sigh, decisions decisions.

There’s been a flurry of excitement in the beauty blogosphere: Japanese designer Issey Miyake has a new perfume out — A Scent.

The minimalist lines of the bottle remind me of the early stripped down nineties. Remember Calvin Klein’s CK One?

But I’m sure the juice will be completely different. Apparently A Scent is green and I adore fresh green scents especially in hot weather.

His classic signature fragrance made 17 years ago didn’t sit well with me. I had to possess it, but being the foolish teen I was, it was too late when I realized the oceanic (or “watery”) notes just didn’t suit my sweaty skin in humid Singapore.

The only downer is this gem is not available now: it will be available in August for a short while, and then it launches officially in October.

Waiting with bated breath,
Yu Ming

PS: There is a moving excerpt here about Issey Miyake’s experience of Hiroshima when it was bombed in WWII and why he’s speaking out now. Powerful, indeed.