Having fun in Paris II

I don't know if I mentioned this before, but upon hearing I'm going alone to Paris, my mother said she'd like to come as well (she was never there).

I am so glad she decided to come, even though the 3 days aren't even close enough for someone who is there for the first time to see anything. But she had fun.

So, I spent the Saturday morning walking around (and getting a bit lost) with my mother, then headed to meet with Asali at 3, before we went together to meet Denyse for coffee.
We were meeting at a bistro at Palais Royale, the most easiest to find if you remember correctly the instructions from the email (which I didn't). But we found it (and a nice French guy even googled the location to help us). :)

And let me tell you, time spent with Denyse flies by. She wasn't as I imagined her from her blog writings, she is very gregarious, smiling, vivacious and interesting to talk to (or just listen to). I feel Asali and I were lucky as she brought with herself, two of the creations she tried at the IFF Speed-smelling lunch she talked about on her blog.
I was much more impressed with Citizen K than with Yamazaki Idylle, which I wouldn't mind drinking but well, the Idylle from the name is one of the Guerlains I'm not in love with. Citizen K on the other hand, I seriously hope will become widely available (if we're lucky).


After coffee, of course we proceeded to Serge Lutens.
I was there only once 3 years ago and I was the only one there. This time around, there were a lot of people inside and people kept coming and going. It was a bit crowded.

I wasn't interested in buying a bottle (except the Christmas present for my boyfriend) because as my company is located in Slovenia (the EU), SLs are always available for ordering.

I smelled many, learned I really like El Attarine and was careful not to get too close to Un Bois Vanille so it wouldn't follow me home. :)


Denyse suggested one more stop after Serge Lutens, so she took us to the Iunx shop. She and Asali kept talking about the name and I kept thinking, how come I've never heard of this line before?!
Well, that happens when all you ever do with names is read them somewhere and don't pronounce them. :)
Once we were in front of the shop and I saw the name in writing, everything fell into place.
(from now on, I'm pronouncing brand names loudly - except possibly for Xerjoff)

The shop only carries two lines - Iunx and Costes.

The Iunx perfumes are located in these strange tubes which release scent when you put your nose close to them. It's actually a great way for getting a good smell. Too great as I learned I really enjoy the tubes containing Eau Frappee, Eau Baptiste and Splash Forte.
The very good-looking girl SA told me that my choices range all over (which they do) but each of them is unique and interesting and now I need to get myself samples so I can get to know them better.

In the end I walked out with Costes 1. :) The winner of the day (and quite economical when compared to other perfumes I liked that weekend).

We said our good-byes to denyse and hopefully, there will be another chance in the future to visit perfume shops in Paris with her explaining all the details and background.