It really does smell that nice

I have no better title for today's post than this. Before I get on to what I want to say, I have to admit I have a serious credit card problem. It seems I order with abandon because yesterday I got a little package from Juliet Stewart which I completely forgot I ordered. :)

And this is where the title of this post comes into play. I've been reading around how wonderful her scent Juliet is. Hence, the title. It really is that nice. I don't even know how to describe it.

Here are the notes: Amalfi lemons, basil, bergamot, Sicilian orange, mediterranean herbs, Italian jasmine, vanilla, amber, precious woods.

I wish I could do it justice. It starts sweetly floral with hints of fruit and green freshness and you can barely trace hints of something herbal but it is not really a citrusy smell (all those citrusy notes made me think in that direction). And then, you get the jasmine but not like any I've tried yet (ok, my experience is not actually extensive, but still). A sweetish, fresh, lightly citrusy jasmine. Absolutely wonderful. The combination is at the same time fresh and floral, utterly feminine and energetic. My idea of it is a vanilla jasmine rendered light by the citruses. And at the end, the smell I was left with in my mind was the picture of amber.

Btw, I think my co-workers think I'm strange. I sniff my wrists all day long. :) Ok, maybe not since we're really a good bunch so we respect each others idiosyncrasies.

What I had on my other wrist was 5 o'clock au gingembre by Serge Lutens.

Notes: bergamot, candied ginger, honey, pepper, dark cocoa, soft cookies?!, gingerbread, patchouli, vetiver.

I believe I saw somewhere that this is a masculine scent? Anyway, I'd never have said that from the start of this but in the end I could understand why would one make it lean toward that category.

I smelled it before I had the notes. Honestly, if I read the notes before, I'd have thought it was some kind of a tooth-aching sweet cookie monster. :) It's not that. It's wonderful but, is it possible that the SL/Sheldrake combo has such a strong signature? I mean, it is recognizable as theirs if you smelled more than one of their scents. But never mind that - I like almost all of them. :)

For me the start is sweet and woody. I didn't get any of the notes listed at the beginning but thought it was a blend of Feminite du bois and Santal blanc or some of those boozy woody fragrances. I loved it! :)

Once it got into drydown I found lovely patchouli-vetiver mixed with a citrusy note (that could only be bergamot) that I could understand would be termed more masculine. But I liked it. I know I have a tendency toward "masculine" scents.

Pictures by: http://www.julietstewart.com/, http://www.community.basenotes.com/

P.S. I was wearing Love By Kilian today. No review, but I only wish Love was so sweet...