Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows, Part 2.

As you all probably know by now, I'm a huge Harry Potter fan.

So, of course I had to watch the last movie as soon as it started playing here, which was yesterday.

Basically, I am content. :)

I've had serious misgivings about The Half-blood Prince movie, but both Deathly Hallows movies were great.
Now, I have no misgivings regarding the changes they made to the story as it works great in the film, every part of the book I consider important is in this movie and in the midst of all that destruction that is the end of the Voldemort-Potter story, the movie managed to put in some scenes that make you laugh.
In my case, there are also scenes that make you cry as well.  But it's never pathetic and the love causing them feels real.
And speaking of scenes, I don't know what rating this movie has, but I wouldn't recommend children watching it. It is rather brutal and dark.

I've had no problem following the story and understanding why things happen and who did what, but again, I can't help but wonder how do people who never read the books manage to follow the story and how much do they actually get out of it? I have to think not as much as the readers of the books.

I'm not going to give any spoilers as I don't want to ruin the experience of those who didn't watch.
I just can't help but feel a sense of closure I didn't really feel after reading the book.
I guess that's due to the fact that I wanted it to go on and in the mean time, I had enough time to come to terms that the story is finished and now that I saw it on the movie screen, it finally feels done.
And I mean that in the best possible way.

As I'm already planning when to go see it again. :)


P.S. I need to add one observation more. I think Daniel Radcliffe is an outstanding actor as there are parts in the movie when one might consider his acting stilted when actually he is portraying the HP character as he is supposed to. Harry doesn't feel comfortable in all the situations happening in the book/movie and that is portrayed by Daniel's acting.

Peach and Love - a guest post

Dear readers, I am very proud to present my first ever guest poster. :)

Asali is a friend I've been given by our lovely perfume community. I'm really happy she commented on my blog and from the on, we've been sharing thoughts on perfume and perfumes themselves, sending emails and packages galore. :)
And now I am happy to say she agreed to write a post for my blog.
(I do hope to get her to write some more as I love her thoughts on perfumes, maybe even get her to start a blog of her own, but I'll temper my exuberance for now). :)

So, here it is.


Peach and love,


I am really honored that the wonderful Ines, will share the space of her redheaded blog with me. Not that I am surprised that she wants to share, since she must be one of the most generous perfumistas in the blogosphere as I am sure that most of you will readily agree on. She taught me before anyone that perfume love goes around.

Talking of love, I have for some time now been smitten with peach. I feel that peach done well is a treat which tends to give an aura of luxury to the fragrance and its wearer. My peach love started with a decant of vintage Rochas Femme, and after that, peach has sought me out everywhere I went.

On my recent trip to Paris it came to me in the shape of Fath de Fath. Jacques Fath launched the original back in 1953, but it has since been updated twice, most recently in 2010 and turned into a sumptuous oriental by Mark Buxton.

So why would I want to write about an oriental in July? Well, first of all I can always wear/buy/write of/think of /sleep in/etc orientals, second, June has been terrible here, cold and rainy, so comfort scents have been called for. And third, if ever there was an oriental to go well on (cooler) summer days this one might be it, with the layers of ripe fruits, like those that surround us at this time of year.

The bergamot and a little green start out, but wink and you’ll miss it and a mixture of fruit notes bloom before settling with plum and peach. Those two are delicate and at this stage the perfume almost goes gourmand, although never so gourmand I want a bite of my arm. I feel that the tartness of the fruits really is singing a duet with the resins and the amber making me unable to detect where the fruit stops and the amber begins. Later in the heart of the scent, there is the orange flower which is perhaps the easiest detectable, but all the way down to the fragrance’s last ambery chords, you keep getting whiffs of flowers; heliotrope, and hmm, was that perhaps some jasmine? The dry-down is an oriental proper, amber and vanilla, and it lasts 6-8 comforting lovely hours. It’s a beautiful fragrance which takes you on a journey- and it also holds your hand all the way.

For this golden, lush oriental, really the price is a steel 58euros for 50ml, and should it become true love for you, you can get 100ml of extrait for 98euro! Get it amongst other places at http://www.parfumsjovoy.com/

Top notes: Black Currant, Peach, Tangerine, Plum, Bergamot, Green Notes
Heart notes: Jasmin, Lily of the Valley, Rose, Heliotrope, Tuberose, Orange Blossom
Base notes: Patchouly, Cedarwood, Vanilla, Benzoin, Ambergris, Musk, Tonka Bean

Sabrina Jeffries: The Forbidden Lord

I have to say I am immensely happy that this whole genre exists (romance) because when my life gets too stressed, they are the ones I reach for.
Something easy to read and relax, without having to concentrate much on the intricacies of the story and possibly losing a crucial information along the way.

Ok, so, what I just wrote doesn't sound particularly positive but that's not how I meant it. :)

I've tried a lot of different romance authors but there are some I know I cannot go wrong with. And Sabrina Jefrries is one of them.
For some reason, I skipped the first novel in the Lords series as it sounded like there wasn't aristocracy involved but as that couple is referenced in subsequent novels, I can see I'll have to go back.
Not that that would be a hard thing to do. :)

So, the story is well, typical. :) Wherein lies the beauty.

Jordan doesn't believe in love, having bad experience of his parents marriage but meets a rector's daughter Emily by accident and is intrigued by her but as that was an accidental  meeting, there's not much chance of them meeting again.
That is, until she is forced into a scheme by a mean lord and has to play a part that goes against everything she believes in but has to do it to save her father.  Too complicated for me to explain but the story is easy and fun to read.

So much so in fact that I had tp start with the next one in the series, The Dangerous Lord even though I have exams to deal with.

Comforting thoughts

- In a week from now, my exam flurry will be over.

- Also, by that time, I will have watched the last Harry Potter movie (an extremely happy and comforting thought).

- Only three weeks are left until my 3-week long summer vacation.

- It's barbecue season.

- Tomatoes finally taste the way they are supposed to.

- Beer tastes better in the summer.

- I might finish my post-graduate studies by the end of the year (finally).

- Short-haired is how I feel best in the summer.

- And one that isn't comforting (but makes me feel lazily happy) - it's too hot to exercise and I just can't do it until temperatures fall back under 30 degrees Celsius.

Les Nombres d'Or: Tubereuse and Amber

It takes some time to get to know perfumes by Mona di Orio and even then, you cannot say for sure they aren't going to surprise you sometime in the near future.
I've been happily testing the Nombres d'Or line and I love them all. Some more, some just a little bit less, but if I had them all, I would happily wear them. As I don't see that happening any time in the near (or even distant) future, I'll give my samples all my love. (btw, I ordered mine from Aus Liebe zum Duft and they might seem expensive but they are also big). :)


Tubereuse

Notes: pink pepper, bergamot from Calabria, green leaves, Indian tuberose absolute, Siamese benzoin, heliotrope, amber, coconut milk, musk

Honestly, I really shouldn't be reviewing any tuberose perfumes. So far, I haven't encountered a single one I didn't like. Tuberose is one note I cannot get enough of and I enjoy it immensely.
In this case, I'm happy to say, I found one that would work great in my collection, as it's a refreshing, green tuberose. In the beginning.
It's lightly sharp on the nose due to the pink pepper and citrus, and greenery is there too, hiding the tuberose  bathing in the coconut milk. At no point in development does tuberose take over and the greenery remains there, not perhaps as obvious as in the beginning but there to make this tuberose light for wearing and something tuberose haters might give a go.
Also, it made me realize how wonderfully (for me) tuberose works with coconut (this is not the first perfume where the pair is featured but perhaps the most obvious one). Which brought me to the idea that perhaps Love Coco and Vamp a NY might work well together...  Hmmm, I should give it a try...
(of course, if it doesn't work out great, I'll never mention it here and I'll just pretend I didn't try it) ;)


Ambre

Notes: Cedarwood from Atlas, Ylang-ylang from Comores, Benzoin, Tolu, Absolu Vanilla Madagascar

As much as I could tell the notes in Tubereuse, I can't really say the same for Ambre.
It smells like the epitome amber. Lightly sweet, lightly burned, vanillic, somewhat musky and for a little while powdery. Ok, so that last part might not sound like amber, but it works for me (and I'm not a fan of powderiness).
Of all my ideas as to what might work to provide powderiness, none of them appear in the notes.
Anyway, my boyfriend assures me I'm wrong, but I smell similarities between Ambre and the drydown of Shalimar (which is a very good thing in my opinion).
This amber has me baffled. Each time I smell it, I smell something different and it's all good. :)
It's just a great, lightly burned and woody amber. There would definitely be a place for it in my collection.

Like Birgit says, there is always a place for another amber.


Notes and pics by: http://www.luckyscent.com/

James Rollins: The Devil Colony

I feel reviewing Sigma series novels by James Rollins no longer serves any purpose. They are all good. :)

Equally good. If I had to name one that was my favourite, I'd always go with the last one in the series because that one would be the most fresh and action-packed in my mind.

I might put some spoilers in this but they will be small ones.

What I admire about Mr. Rollins is the research that obviously goes into every one of his books and the fact that he comes across so many different intriguing ideas and puts them together into a fictional story that could so very easily be true.

I want to know why I can't read random facts and combine them in my head in such incredible scenarios?!
I mean, after reading how he combines them, it feels logical everyone should be able to. And that is in my mind a good sign that the research for the book and the writing were solid. Ok, that sounds lukewarm. They were more in the hot category than lukewarm.

I do wish I had more time on my hands so I could read the books recommended at the end of The Devil Colony. Those books were the basics from which this novel sprung.

And I'll give you a quick idea of what's it about. Again, the Guild and Sigma are opponents, Crowe Painter gets a more prominent role as this novel centers around Native Americans, Founding Fathers and nano technology.
If you can't imagine how nano technology combines with the first two, read the book. Although, you should start at the beginning of the series in order to get the right idea.
But, if you did read the series so far, I'd also suggest reading the short story featuring Seichan - The Skeleton Key - as it's a good lead into the novel.

And I finally got some answers about  Gray's love life I was wondering about in the last book. So, it wasn't Seichan in his bed by the end of the last novel (so mean of Mr. Rollins to tease us so) and the relationship between Gray and Seichan won't bloom suddenly as this book was want to show but something is building there.
And this time, the kiss was on Gray's initiative. Not that it counts a lot regarding the situation. (that was my spoiler for the day)

Jardin du Poete - where summer's heat dissipates

Sometimes I wonder why I even try reviewing perfumes when my opinion of the same perfume tends to vary. OK, it's not like I go from liking something to hating something, but it's not rare for me to think I absolutely love something, then to testi it again and think, yes, it's ok, I like it, but why did I think I loved it so much?

Luckily for me, that part of it's good but not great didn't last long with Jardin du Poete. It was only a blip on the screen (or arm to be exact). :)

I find this to be invigorantingly refreshing. Not sweet in any context. Perfect for summer but also the thing I crave in the spring as it's green!
I mean, it smells green.
Green, grapefruity and well, cypressy, but in my case, every tree of the evergreen sort translates in my mind into fir-like. :) OK, so I still can't tell the difference. I'm learning...

This is also the perfume where it became obvious for me that I really work better with deciphering perfumes when I have no access to notes.
If I see the notes, then I keep trying to smell them and transfer my experience into them. When I don't have them, I write down what I can smell.
In this case, what I smelled was green, bitingly citrusy, I thought lemon peel, until I caught the grapefruit smell. And well, like I said, fir-like. Only the fir I smelled was actually a cypress. :)

It slowly loses the initial intensity while retaining the initial notes until it hits the real drydown where the warm, hay-like vetiver gets in.
It sort of fills the whole between what cologne should smell like if it were a perfume.
I love it for the freshness it brings. It instantly makes the heat back away and it lets you get some fresh air into your lungs.
It's perfect for the summer but in my case, it will also be perfect for my spring quest for greenery and freshness.

Notes: orange, grapefruit, basil, angelica, immortelle, pink pepper, cypress, vetiver, musk.


pic by: http://www.punmiris.com/

A Midsummer Night's Dream - Peaseblossom by Justine Crane

With this review, ends my participation in A Midsummer Night's Dream blog event. I had the greatest time reading the play and smelling the entries and I'm glad to be ending this with Peaseblossom.

Especially since it wasn't what I expected. Here are the notes I gathered from the list of ingredients (I love that I got the whole list of what is in there).

Notes: wheat grass, oakmoss, ambrette, oakmoss resin, enzoin, lavender, clary sage, carnation, tonka bean, vanilla bourbon, rose gulab otto, patchai ellai, tea rose otto, Mysore sandalwood, vetiver, honey, jasmine sambac, rose geranium, vintage tolu balsam, rose otto.

This is an edt and when you look at the notes, you cannot but wonder how Justine made them in such light and refreshingly warm perfume. The notes are so well combined and blended you cannot (well, I cannot tease them apart).
I can smell the oakmoss and lavender and rose and vetiver and resins but they are all light on their toes and they play around on this warm, sweet breeze.

Here is the inspiration:

Peaseblossom, quiet fairy be, shyly collects dewdrops

to steep the petals which he

passes,

On his merry way through the sylvan woods

A sweet perfume to present to his

Golden Fairy Queen.

What I found interesting was the fact that this perfume conveys to me the feeling of seriousness. Peaseblossom is going about his very fragrant business in a serious manner, after all, his work will get to be worn by the Fairy Queen (lucky her).

Btw, my notes ended with me calling this a meadow green perfume - more green than meadow, but that is the feeling I have when smelling it. And I love perfumes that are reminiscent of meadows. :)

A Midsummer Night's Dream - Night Queen by JoAnne Bassett

Night Queen isn't a perfume based on a character from a play but on the idea of what a night perfume would smell like - "unique fragrance of what night time scents are out there to fascinate your nose". (quote from JoAnne Bassett)

Well, if you ask me, night is obviously the part of day meant for easy seduction.
Just by reading the notes, I knew I was going to be seduced.

Notes: night queen oil, rhododendron, peru balsam, rosewood, damask rose oil, neroli, tuberose, vintage jasmine sambac, frankincense, yuzu, clove bud, tulsi, frankincense noir, vetiver, violet leaf, ylang-ylang.

It starts off refreshingly warm and sweet. There is that light pepperiness to tease your nose and make you lose track of the sedcution in the air following close behind.
The opening is at the same time refreshing with the yuzu, clove bud, neroli and rosewood but you can smell the sweet flowery and jasmine hints underneath. The thing is, even though you'd think the opening notes would make it a light-hearted thing, to me it smells serious. And I keep wondering how do you manage to convey that through a perfume?

So, while your nose is being teased by the refreshing notes, the creaminess of the white flowers sort of creeps upon you and gets you to relax and let go. The night has you and you are enjyoing its warm, creamy and flowery tendrils while the starry night settles around you.
This is the part where it smells most tropical to me, with unbelievably but very true to my nose, a creamy, Thai rice note waving through the perfume. And believe me, it smells incredible.

The Night Queen seduced you and you didn't even know it was happening.

And even though you're seduced, the night doesn't end for you. You might be enjoying your night amid sweet creamy florals but the morning will come, the fragrant and warm night air will start cooling and when the morning comes, the night air will no longer be warm and sweet with flowers but cool with remembered hints of the beginning of your night's adventure.

A Midsummer Night's Dream - Titania by EnVoyage

I thought the best way to review the perfumes for this blog project is by the order I received them.

So, I'll start with Titania by Shelley Waddington of EnVoyage perfumes.

I've had some problems putting my thoughts on Titania in order as each time I smell it, it seems to behave differently. I love that it keeps me interested in smelling it again and again and finding something new each time.
I have to say, it seems a lot of thought went into this perfume. I kept enjoying the opening with its piney, summery, and lighty sharpish feel and wondering how much of that fits into the idea of the play. Here is the referenced part:

"I know a bank where the wild thyme blows,
Where oxlips and the nodding violet grows,
Quite over-canopied with luscious woodbine,
With sweet musk-roses and with eglantine."

 - Oberon, describing Titania's bower, where she sleeps


I'm glad I decided to read the play otherwise I wouldn't have known it's taking place in and around Athens. And Athens being Mediterranean, pines abound, as well as fragrant shrubs, plants and well, the air around Midsummer's Eve is probably saturated with the fragrances of the plant world.
I think this perfume gets it great.

It's not really a straight feminine perfume but then again, Titania sleeping in such a fragrant corner of the world would be hard to distinguish from the nature. And her corner of the world is dark green, deeply hidden in the forest and mossy as well. There is an underlying warmth and femininity in this but it's just out of your reach, teasing you through the canopy of fragrant air.

I can't really say I smell all the notes, I never can, but pine, lavender and geranium are hard to miss. And the underlying warmth achieved by aromatic woods, nuts, wild rose and honey isn't distinguishable by note but by their warm presence throughout.
Truly a delight to smell as it must have be a delight to see Titania sleeping in her bower.

Top notes: fir needles, spice and citrus
Heart notes: basil, mint, geranium, lavender hidcoat, ylang-ylang, wild rose and heliotrope
Base notes: juniper, Ho wood, aromatic woods and nuts, moss, fern, savory leaves, iris and honey

Pictures and notes were provided by Shelley Waddington except for the first picture by Amanda Feeley.

P.S. I forgot to include a link where you can follow what's happening on other participating blogs.

A Midsummer Night's Dream Blog event

It finally arrived!
The next 10 days (but I guess it won't take us all so long as the perfumes are very interesting) several bloggers will talk about different perfumes that were sent to us as creations based on Shakespeare's play.

Here is where you can see who already talked about which perfume.

This is where I'll add I am very happy I'm participating as I got to smell perfumes from perfumers whose work I never tried before and I finally read the play (watching movies and plays doesn't count if you don't read the original).

Here is the list of participating blogs:

Bloody Frida


WAFTbyCarol

EauMG

Perfume Smellin’ Things

Feminine Things

Perfume Pharmer

Le Parfumeur Rebelle

Scent Hive

The Windesphere Witch

Fragrance Belles-Lettres: The Magazine


And here is the list of participating perfumers:

Charna Ethier ~ Providence Perfumes


Lisa Fong ~ Artemisia Perfumes
Yuko Fukami ~ Parfum Phyto

Shelley Waddington ~ Envoyage Perfumes

JoAnne Bassett ~ JoAnne Bassett Perfumes

Ambrosia Jones of Perfumes by Nature

Libby Patterson of Libby Patterson Organics

Ane Walsh ~ Artesã Perfumista

Justine Crane ~ The Scented Djinn

Lisa Abdul-Quddus ~ Blossoming Tree
Ayala Moriel ~ Ayala Moriel Parfums

Ankica Milic ~ Be-Bellatrix

Tanja Bochnig ~ April Aromatics
Alfredo Dupetit ~ BioScent

Jane Cate ~ A Wing & A Prayer Perfumes

Amanda Feeley ~ Esscentual Alchemy

I'm looking forward to reviewing mine very soon!

Lois McMaster Bujold: A Civil Campaign

I feel so pleased with myself for deciding to re-read the Vorkosigan saga, this time in English. I don't mean to say anything bad about the Croatian translation but original is still original.

I know I haven't been reviewing the books in the series but I just didn't feel like to - I enjoyed them immensely and just didn't feel I could do them justice in  reviews. It's one of the best science-fiction series out there if you ask me. The way Ms. Bujold writes is just incredible. She can convey everything through her words and honestly, I don't feel any translation can ever do her good unless done by an equally talented writer.

The reason I wanted to review this particular book, which is almost at the end of the series is because the whole series sort of coalesces in it. I've been having laughing fits over situations in this book which are the culmination of all the previous books and the fact that you got to know the characters so well that you can imagine completely the scenes that are happening.
So much irony, sarcasm, characters' characters clashing, funny scenes, it's wonderful how many situations that make one laugh ended up in this book. It's the book where Miles is wooing Ekaterine, without her actually knowing it's happening while everyone else does. Well, you can see where the funny  aspect can come from...
It was pure pleasure to read it. :)

I'm looking forward to other 2 novels left (and a novella) and then it's the end of my Vorkosigan jaunt.
There are other worlds that await me but Barrayar is the one I know I'll be coming back to.

I've been thinking

I'm learning to go with the flow.  I mean, I have so many things in my head I want to do but realization is dubious as I don't have enough time to do everything and get a good night's sleep (even not going through with everything I want to, I don't get enough sleep).

I don't really feel I accomplish much, I usually just feel lazy and therefore add more pressure on my already tired self. That is why I said I'm learning to go with the flow (but I still can't help but want to change it). :)

This of course applies to perfume reviews. I keep writing notes but I constantly feel I need to work more on them so I don't post anything. And then the longer I don't write, the more I feel like it's no good what I'll write so I just postpone it again.  Ok, this week even if I wanted to write, it would have been difficult.

That's why I get so jealous of Birgit of Olfactoria's Travels, she has 2 little children and manages to write each day (sometimes more than once!). :) I'm happy if I get 3 posts a week.

Anyway, I can see I'm rambling without any clear goal (I tend to do that sometimes).

My conclusion is this, I won't force myself to write but I will try my best at writing as often as I can because then it really flows easier. Because if I make a break, it's always hard to get back into writing.

And I'll leave you with a useful advice you don't need because you all probably already know this but I got a free sample so I tried it.
Lacoste's Joy of Pink (and it's NEON pink) is that terrible fruity-floral (more fruity than floral) synthetic musk concoction springing everywhere these days that just seems to get more force the longer you wear it.
So, I guess it will probably sell well.

Charlaine Harris: Dead Reckoning

I don't know what to think.

I love the fact that some of my favourite characters get to star in novel after novel but I also wish those novels would be on par with the beginning of the series.
I am not terribly happy with this installment of Sookie Stackhouse adventures, especially after having the series in my mind, which I have to admit that even though they don't really stick to novels, are very well done in my opinion.

The moment that made most impact on me in the whole novel was the part where Sookie thinks about sins and says that she doesn't think  a child molester and a person who doesn't pay taxes make for equal sinners and goes on to say that you can't choose what to obey when it comes to not sinning.
But I can't help but agree that not all sins are equal and you aren't supposed to choose yourself which sins you are going to commit, you're supposed to do your best not to make them.
This is all in deliberation of what she is about to attempt and there might be some who might not agree with her thoughts. I can't really say what my thoughts are on the subject as I'm having problems understanding Sookie's character as it is. Although I've known this for some time now, I just don't understand her frame of reference.

But that has nothing to do with how much I like the book. It's just feels like taking advantage of the fact that series is so well known (not a new thing in the publishing world to be sure). I can't seem to gather much enthusisasm about it. Yes, I read it as fast as I could as I love the series, and I will certainly buy the next one as soon as it's out but it didn't make me feel exhilarated and anticipating the next one as I feel good books should.

I sincerely hope this changes with the next one.

The smell of early summer rain

Tonight, I was going home with my boyfriend after a light dinner with friends (on his motorcycle) and that was after a short shower.

I'm aware it's not officially summer yet but you wouldn't be able to guess that here these days.

As I'm writing this, there's thunder outside but it's not raining at the moment.

The whole time we were riding home on his motorcycle, I couldn't help thinking how wonderful the city smells.
The trees all are in full bloom as officially, it's still late spring. It's very warm each day and the air is saturated with humidity.
And then it rains.

You can smell the wet dirt on the asphalt mixed with humid smell of all the trees and flowers blooming in the city at the moment. Especially when on a motorcycle after a late spring shower.
It's all there - the humid air, the ozone feeling of the approaching thunderstorm, the greenery of all the trees in the city, and the sweet smell of their flowers, the smell of dirt on the asphalt and eventually it hits you - the smell of budding optimism and well-being.

I wish someone would make a perfume out of this smell. Not the exact thing, but something evoking it. Because to me, it's one of the best fragrances in the world.