Soooo Frustrating!!! Also a small update.

    Just when I thought I had this whole "photo posting" thing under control, it would seem that the computer gremlin has changed the rules on me.  Yep, I'm blaming a gremlin!  When I follow all the same steps on several different occasions and get a different response each time ..... then something is wrong! And I refuse to take all the blame! hahahaha
    The worst part is that its probably just a simple thing that I'm not computer savvy enough to understand. My "savvy" is in horrible short supply! chuckle
    Lots going on. Have acquired a couple of bottles of vintage Arpege by Lanvin. That led to receiving a sample of My Sin, also Lanvin. I was so smitten with that one, that I purchased a bottle from a dear Etsy shop owner. Holly has some wonderful vintages! I bought my Chantilly cologne by Houbigant from her.  
     Then there was my trip to the zoo. While I was there it became apparent that the male Clouded Leopard really liked my vintage Magie Noire perfume! Have some good pictures of him ~ that I would LOVE to share! BUT I'll have to slay the photo gremlin first.
     Was one of the winners in a vintage perfume sample give away. Got that package in the other day. I get to try and review 1. Vol de Nuit, 2. Chanel No. 22 edc and edt, 3. Fendi, 4. Bal a Versailles and 5. Parfum Sacre.  Thank you to Dana for her generousity.
    FINALLY found my Ruffles edp! There seem to be a couple of notes that are a bit off. But once it starts drying down its fine. A partial bottle of Rochas' Femme pdt has started me on a whole new "love affair". hahaha
     But my most ambitious effort is to try to go on a NO-BUY!  Haven't been doing very well with that so far........ but I keep trying to get back up on the wagon! lol   The money situation gets tighter in the Summer, but my animals still need food and care! So I chose my furry children ahead of perfume.  Anyway, I all ready have a lot I can review.    I just want to be able to post photos to go with them!!!    Love & Light to everyone!

Vintage Camot Soir

   I have a tendency to purchase things I know nothing about. hahaha  Then I try and research them. I find it really interesting! This lovely little bottle of perfume is one such item. The label on front says Camot, the back says Soir. I know the latter means "evening" and that's about it. I haven't had time to investigate further.

   It measures three inches high and just shy of two and a half inches wide. Approximately five eights of an inch deep. And its what I refer to as a "stucker"! Because the glass stopper is stuck like heck!!!  Since its arrival yesterday I've tried some of the basic tricks to unlodge the top, but no success .... yet! I've learned to be very patient. And persistent. That helps tremendously. Presently its sitting in a cool, dark place where it can just relax. I'm reading up on some suggested techniques for stopper removal and planning my next attempt.

   You see, its all a bit of an adventure. Vintages are, in the first place, a gamble. The bottles may have been poorly kept and the notes have gone "off" or the contents have just outright spoiled. If the name is not commonly known, then that adds a bit of mystery. If research pinpoints what the perfume is, then you have discovery, which is very gratifying!
   My warning stands: This can become addictive! chuckle  
  

Oh, the DESIRE TO ACQUIRE.

Third warning: You start looking around for what you can get rid of... so you have room for more perfume!

 
    I'm telling you, its all starts so innocently. But doesn't stay that way for long! I knew when I started getting back into the whole perfume gig that I wanted to get a good number of them to compare, research and write some reviews on.  Little did I know THIS would happen. I refer to it as the DESIRE TO ACQUIRE.   I keep reasoning with myself along these lines.... as long as I can keep it from becoming an out and out addiction then I feel like I'm retaining enough stability to continue purchasing every once in a while. hahaha  Yeah, right!
   Humans are funny creatures. We can convince ourselves of darn near anything. So it is with me and my perfumes. Its been quite a journey of self-discovery. I had no idea how good I was at making excuses!!! I can get really creative at times!
   Luckily I feel I'm at a point where I can start to organize and downsize. Yes, there are soooooooo many left to try!!! But I have a few favorites that I truly do cherish. And ones that are appropriate for certain social events in my life. Usually that does NOT overlap with my favorites. (I was a teen in the 70's and a young adult in the 80's, no one should be surprised that I usually like 'em  strong and loud.) 
   And that reminds me..... its just begun to really sink in that what I used to wear is now considered "vintage". How the hell did that happen??!!! When I say that word I'm talking about perfumes from the 20's, 30's and 40's.  Hmm, guess I'm back to that whole self-discovery thing. Ageing is an interesting process.....
   But back to the perfumes! You see this photo? That's only three boxes. There are five more like these. chuckle  And some random bottles here and there. Does this means that I've quit buying fragrance?  Of course not! The mass is great enough now that an ebb and flow motion has started.......  so its just beginning to get truly interesting. And since the moon is almost full, that means the tides will be more extreme.    Perhaps that explains the box that arrived today with eleven bottles of vintage Emeraude! Oh what fun!!!

Yes. It has begun.

Second warning: You'll notice you need more room for your perfumes.

   Hmm. And so it begins. Quite innocently enough. A few blind buys that you find at a good discount. A perfume you know you love on SALE! (And this little voice in your head yells "Score!") Then you start looking on purpose..... even making up some benign excuse to go out to your local discount retailer. "I need new bath towels! Yeah, thats right. New towels!"
    And when you first peruse through an online business that sells fragrance at below retail. Watch out! Its really easy to go overboard on spending.
    Places like Ebay are overwhelming! They have SO MUCH! And if you get caught up in a bidding frenzy...... with your adrenaline coursing through your body like a wildfire.... you're toast!  Or should I say, your credit or bank account is toast. 
    If, however, you're one of those folks that gets really nervous and your stomach starts churning and threatening to erupt when you are under that kind of pressure ~ in other words, you have a built in safety switch that shuts you down in order to keep you from doing harm to yourself ~ then go ahead and check out Ebay! Its great fun and a wonderful place to learn about fragrance.... and damn near every other thing ever made on the face of this planet.
    Think I'm kidding? Someone had a box of Kotex sanitary napkins from the 1950's or 60's up for auction. If I'm remembering correctly, the price was up over $50.00 last time I checked. It was just too absurd!!!!!!!  I know some people want to buy things that remind them of their past, but really? Sanitary napkins?? Who wants to remember THAT?!
    Anyway, the point I was trying to make with this post was that Fragrance Foraging can be lots of fun. Just use common sense and stick to your budget. It helps to save up some money JUST for this purpose. Get a friend who loves perfume too and plan an afternoon devoted to the hunt! Or if you have the stamina and the wallet... the whole day! Do some research beforehand. Know what you're looking at, have an idea of the prices (so you know if it really is a bargain or not) and make use of those tester bottles in all the stores!!! That way you really know if you like something or not. Most of all, ENJOY. 
   
   

I Really Need More Sleep!

Warning: This is what starts to happen!

   Oh my, spent last evening looking at perfumes on the computer. When I looked up and realized it was almost 1:00 a.m., I popped off an email to my friend that introduced me to Ebay. Told him he was "evil"! Spritzed on some Quelques Fleurs l'Original and went to bed.
   Its always interesting to see whats out there in the world of fragrance. So I typed in "vintage perfume" ..... there were over 10,000 listings! Whoa! I can only make a very tiny dent in that over the course of a few hours. But I never fail to learn new things. I find perfumes and perfumeries that I never knew existed. Heck, I could spend hours just looking at the bottle designs. Would love to educate myself enough so that I could tell what year(s) a fragrance was from just by looking at the bottle. And the box. Lets not forget that. With reformulations the box usually changes. Sometimes only in subtle details. Fascinating stuff!! Thats where online forums come in so handy. You can ask other people about such things. More often than not, someone has the answer!
    I can easily see where perfume can become an all consuming obsession! Make that "passion". Sounds so much better. Not nearly as desperate and with such a positive, life affirming connotation. haha 
    Life is an adventure and a learning experience. I say ENJOY it!

Remember to ask for help.

   Well, in the last post I told y'all my distressing story of parfum spillage. Now let me share what else has happened. The other evening I took that little bottle and used up the last few tiny droplets. I annointed my crown chakra, my third eye, heart and solar plexus ~ plus a tiny bit at the base of my skull. WHAT DREAMS I HAD!   Very powerful stuff!  
    Of course, after this experience I found myself fretting about not having anymore of that wonderous liquid. Whatever was I to do?  Well DUH! First of all, I had to get a grip and approach the issue from a higher vantage point. So I made a request to my Guides to help me either find some more... or something that would be an energetic equivalent.  Lo and behold, guess what I found on Ebay the very next day? A seller had not one, not two... but four!!! And at a very reasonable price.  Talk about getting a rapid response.
   This is a reminder that we need to ask for assistance! They're waiting to help us. But for a clear path or channel to be opened, a request must be made. So remember the next time you need help, of any kind, open that door and invite them in.

Oh damn, another reformulation.

(No photo for this one ~ yet. I broke my camera the other day.)

   Originally I started writing this post about one of my favorite fragrances that had been horribly altered, but then my worst fears were confirmed ...
I had heard "rumors" about it. Didn't want to believe it. But found out yesterday that Estee Lauder's KNOWING has indeed been reformulated.
    WEEP! WEEP! SOB! SOB! WEEP! Tears of despair and agony flowing!
Guess it has been for several years now. But luckily the bottle that I bought last year was an earlier one. How could they? KNOWING is, in my humble opinion, the BEST rose chypre out there. Actually the best modern chypre that I know of. Or, at least, she was!!!  Its a damned shame!
    I have to say it again ~ I really HATE reformulations.
    A few months ago I ordered a bottle of  my much loved Histoire d'Amour by Aubusson. I figured I'd better start packing in some back-up bottles, what with all the restrictions being imposed on the perfume industry in Europe. Well.... when I opened the box it just didn't look right. The juice was so pale. So I gave it a little spritz in the air and KNEW something was horribly wrong!  Grabbed up the box and started checking it..... oh oh, there was the dreaded list of ingredients on the back. And even worse, it now says "Made in USA". My old boxes all say "France". Well DAMN! They've gone and ruined another wonderful fragrance!
   So lately I've been sending out inquiries to any sellers I can find on Ebay, etc.. "What does it say on the box?" Always get the same reply ~ "Made in USA". Oh goodness! I was really getting worried. Then early yesterday evening my Spirit guides kept urging me to head to our local mall. (I rarely set foot in there) In my mind I kept seeing pictures of this one little perfume shop. Following their guidance, off I went..... and guess what I found there? Staring right at me from inside one of the cases was a big EDT bottle of..... drum roll please..... Histoire d'Amour!! I was so thrilled! So now I have one bottle for back-up.  Will need a few more though. Not only is this stuff darned good, but even in this concentration, its one of those fragrances that acts as a "connection" to my guides  and spiritual family on the other side. For that reason alone its well worth searching out!!!
    Quite a few months ago I found a quarter ounce bottle of the parfum! What a luscious treat that is!!! In this form it works extremely well as a "bridge". What a little treasure to have! But a few weeks ago there was a bit of an accident. Most all of the liquid was spilled! A little on me,  a drop or two on Blossom, a little on my bed pillows and most of it in a small oak jewelry box. That box is now consecrated for the task of safe keeping specific pieces of jewelry and other items! I figure theres always a reason for things that happen. And my guides and angels don't steer me wrong..... I just need to listen!