Friday, December 9, 2016

{Smell} Being more feminine blog series

A Christmas present to myself... the third bar is already in use.




I love to feel feminine, and am always creating my own inspiration.  I find that introducing little pockets of femininity into my day helps everything run smoother.  I feel more ladylike and life is enjoyable – even when I’m doing mundane tasks.

The third post in this series is on using the sense of smell to be more feminine.

Wine ‘tasting’

You may already know that I don’t drink, and haven’t for a number of years now (you can read my blog posts about that here and here).  But, I still love to smell the bouquet of wine and pick out different notes.  I  know this sounds strange, but wine is like perfume to me now in that I am happy to smell it but have no desire to drink it.

My husband is a wine enthusiast and likes to try different wines, so whenever he has something a bit different he always offers it to me to have a sniff of.  It’s quite fascinating how many notes there are in wine, and a helpful thing to do is either read the description on the bottle to see if you can pick out the notes, or google that particular varietal to see what common characteristics are.

But just how is this feminine?  When I sniff for wine notes, it feels a little bit artistic, a little bit slow-living.  It’s taking the time to notice the details, and that in itself feels quite feminine.  Living life deliberately, moving graciously, taking your time, and not rushing.

Fragrance

I couldn’t do a post on being feminine with the sense of smell without mentioning perfume.  Every day, no matter what I am doing, I wear perfume.  Sometimes it is ‘perfumey’, sometimes it is a fresh and light 'skin scent'.  I even put perfume on to go for a walk.

I’ve been experimenting with perfume oils lately, both essential oil type ones and inexpensive fragrant oils such as White Musk from The Body Shop.  I usually prefer a little more ‘volume’ than an oil can provide, however they are fantastic to wear at work or when you are getting into a car with someone.

Remember how your mother or grandmother used to just about gas you with their heady 1980s perfume just before you went out as a family?  Sorry mum, but actually it was more nana who loved those spicy perfumes that would have us all winding down the window (may you rest in peace dear nana, rocking that pongy perfume in heaven).

Another nice way to subtley fragrance yourself is with a perfumed body lotion.  Some are so long-lasting that you don’t need to add perfume.

Scented candles are quite commonplace these days, and beautiful of course, but for a change I like to burn incense sometimes.  There are pretty, not too hippy smelling incenses you can get – I love rose, vanilla, ‘fresh linen’ and sandalwood.  Lighting incense always gives me a relaxing yoga/spa retreat type feeling.

Quite a few years ago L’Occitane sold incense in sticks and cones, and as with everything from this company, they were gorgeous.  Sadly, their incense range seems to have been discontinued.  A freshly cleaned house with soft music playing and an incense stick just list = divine.

Soap too: I love nice soap.  While I’m on L’Occitane, I opened this week a bar of their Lemon Verbena soap.  So delicious!  It’s weird, I’m quite thrifty with some things, but I’ll happily buy a bar of French soap for myself.

Are you a soap girl or shower gel?  Incense, candle or nothing?  And I’d love to know, could you handle sniffing wine and not drinking it, or is that just oddball me?

fiona

PS. If you live in the northern hemisphere, take a look at my newest book 'How to be Chic in the Winter: Living slim, happy and stylish during the cold season'.  Here's what lovely reader Karen had to say about it:

'Great encouragement for anyone.  I've really enjoyed reading "How to be Chic in the Winter." I've been surprised by how thoroughly Fiona Ferris considered the subject and all of its facets. She managed to make many very useful and thoughtful points while writing with a casual, accessible style.

Fiona had my attention early, when she wrote "Please do not wish away the cold season, because that means you are wishing your life away; why not enjoy yourself instead?" This book isn't just about winter, folks! It's about our attitudes and our choices at every challenging turn of life. Fiona's suggestions can apply even if you enjoy the cooler months -- her themes hold true if you hate hot weather instead, or if you're struggling in a less than optimal workplace, or dealing with a chronic illness. Her ideas and encouragement to THRIVE in all circumstances can apply to anyone. I will definitely be re-reading Fiona's book and sharing it with my friends.'


40 comments:

  1. This is such a lovely post, Fiona, and like you - and while I've never had any kind of drink problem as I've never liked alcohol that much, nor had a bladder for the capacity that some people consume, let alone the head for it! - husband and I have totally given up on wine these days. OK, we had a very small glass at or son's wedding in September, but when a friend gave us a bottle recently for a birthday and we opened it, we just didn't enjoy the taste even though it was a 'good' wine. I used it in a sauce instead!
    I still like a glass of beer, though - not bottled gassy stuff, but draught bitter as we call it here in the UK, a quality beer which tastes of hops. Can't stand lager which husband enjoys, a taste of the '60s there (lager & lime!)
    But perfume ... that's quite another matter, and I posted about this recently. I love perfume but few modern ones come up to snuff (no pun intended!) I have a few favourites, but even those have changed because of the ingredients which are perhaps either too expensive or have been outlawed for one reason or another.
    And I love good soaps and have posted about those, too. I love L'Occitane soaps - there is a L'occitane honey soap in the shower as we speak - and also Roger & Gallet soap - there is a rose Roger & Gallet soap on the basin - so I need no conversion to good old-fashioned, triple-milled, quality soap. I don't like modern soap, though, you pick up for next-to-nothing in the supermarket, it's as different from quality soap as good wine is from rotgut and usually goes as slimy becuase it's not hard like triple-milled soap. I've tried a shower gel, even a quality one by Penhaligon's, but I just don't like the feel of gel. However, the bottle is pretty, so it sits on the shower room shelf, all forlorn, never to be used!
    I'm not keen on scented candles or insence or those scented oils with sticks in them, nor even plug-in room scenters. I love fresh air, the scent of my soap in the bathroom, good perfume, and flowers. Whenever I light a scented candle (and I have one in the sitting room which was a gift, so don't feel quite so badly about literally burning money!) I find the scent overpowering and cloying, I can only stand it for a few minutes. Nothing beats a bunch of freesias in a room, and they're less expensive than a candle (without the fire risk, too.)
    Margaret P
    www.margaretpowling.com

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    1. For many of us it's not a 'drink problem' thing, it's just a health and happiness thing. Once I passed forty, even one or two glasses of wine made me feel unwell the next day.

      I love Roger & Gallet soap too)

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  2. Yay, a fragrance post! I love talking fragrance, and I love good soap, and I absolutely agree with Margaret P's comment above about loving a soap-scented bathroom.

    I start with Nesti Dante soaps. I used to buy the Romantica collection, but there are a couple in there that don't thrill me, so now I buy individual bars in my fave fragrances - the rose and peony is utterly divine, and the lily and narcissus is not far behind it.

    I'm beyond delighted to find the rose and peony is now being offered in shower gel and hand/body wash; I will gift myself both of those when I put in my Christmas gift order this weekend. I'll also buy the set of three different rose fragrance soaps for perfuming my linen cupboard and wardrobe - the fragrances are heavenly, they last for ages, and I think it's a lovely way to nurture your femininity, to open a cupboard in your home and be greeted with a fragrance you adore. A moment of bliss!

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    1. I have seen the Nesti Dante soaps around - the packaging is so pretty - but haven't tried any so I will make sure I do :)

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    2. I could not resist them - I've now ordered some Nesti Dante soaps ...
      Margaret P

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  3. Another way to have smell is a Scency Warmer. Do you have those in New Zealand? Its a warmer that melts the scented wax. Most light up also so it's sight and smell in one! There are some nice creamy bottles of bath wash out there but they are expensive and it seems like I can never get the last quarter of the bottle out. I decided to stick to bars of soap in the shower instead.

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    1. I haven't seen that product around Carla, but I do use up the last bits of scented candles by putting them in my oil burner - the type where you put a tealight candle in the bottom, and water and a few drops of oil in the top to vapourise - When I use leftover scented candle pieces I don't use any water. It sounds like the same concept as the Scency.

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  4. Like you I love the L'Occitane line for many of their products...
    from their soaps to the super moisturizing almond milk.
    I am frugal in many areas but I do indulge in a few feminine items, lingerie, lovely scented Diptyque candles and Hermes perfumes.

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    1. That's what it's all about it isn't it - saving on things that aren't as important to you, so you can splurge on the things that bring you feminine happiness :)

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  5. Ha ha! I know what you mean by being gassed by perfume. I remember when YSL's Opium premiered, someone I knew would spray it on, ahem, very liberally. It is such a heavy, cloaking scent I could hardly breathe when I was around her! She also wore Dior's Poison, which had the same effect, just on the opposite spectrum. One was potently spicy and the other was horribly sweet.

    I've read somewhere that perfume, according to the French, is to be worn discretely and subtly - meaning only to be detected by someone greeting you with a double kiss on the cheeks for example (or a more intimate situation).

    On the soap vs. body wash/gel, I am mostly definitely prefer a bar of soap. I've tried gels but they don't work as well for shaving.

    D.

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    1. oops, typo - I meant 'discreetly'.

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    2. I am sure I have gassed people in the past (present?)but it's that particular genre of fragrance that is too much for me - Poison and Opium are in it!

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    3. Oh my goodness, how about Angel? Someone who shops at my local supermarket sprays on half a bottle at a time, and when I go there and she's in the store, I can smell it in every aisle. Gassing out a whole supermarket, now that's an achievement!

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    4. I always thought Lauder's Youth Dew overpowering, too! Never wore it as everyone else seemed to be wearing it in the 1960s/1970s.
      Margaret P

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  6. I'm a bar soap person. I don't appreciate the chemicals used in gels.
    I am amused to see some of my childhood favorites in the French parfumeries recently: lilac, lily of the valley, vetiver, rose. What goes around comes around.

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    1. I love all those fragrances too, and had a small and pretty bottle of Yardley Roses when I was about ten, which I treasured.

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  7. I love perfume. Aerin Lauder's fragrances are gorgeous. I have her lilac scent and it's lovely. I enjoy using a nicely scented body wash as well, nothing too expensive. Right now I have a peony and cream scent by Dove.

    For home fragrance, I like to always have a nice scented candle burning in the living room. On my bedside table I have an essential oil diffuser - I love picking one out and diffusing it before bedtime. It's so relaxing :)

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    1. I love Aerin's aesthetic and wish we could buy her products here! Your home fragrancing sounds pretty :)

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  8. I'm with Margaret here....nice soap, freesias...heavenly...I am also the fresh air queen, & although I do light incense occasionally, I am really fussy about it, as I can't handle some of the cheaper versions. Sandalwood is my favourite, & sometimes I'll get sandalwood soap too. I don't light candles as I know 2 people whose homes burnt down from candles....! adore the smell of vanilla so use a vanilla perfume at the moment. And I love the old fashioned perfumes...they had more oomph! Strangely I also love going into an Indian supermarket as their Lux soap smells like Lux smelt when I was young!

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    1. just as a humourous aside: Karma Sutra oil disturbs me,it almost gives me a headache, & one of best friends & one of my daughters, love it!! And Angel perfume makes me gag...my other daughter used Angel for years.

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    2. I agree, cheap incense is dire. Kama Sutra is not me either :) (although I don't mind Angel in small doses)

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  9. Yes! A soap & fragrance post, two of my favourites! I adore fine perfumes since early childhood and have ever since I can remember, desired to become a perfumer. Unfortunately, that was not considered a 'real, honourable job' for a good girl. Once I finally got rid of economic and emotional dependence from my family, I embarked on a whole new journey of making my own fragrant soaps. It has been 7 years now since I started with this hobby, and it has brought me so much pleasure and delight. Since almost no one in my immediate surroundings could understand that I wanted to make 'something you can buy' I started blogging about my hobby. By staying passionate and honest, I created a fateful following, loyal customers and have been featured in the finest lifestyle magazines in my homeland. And most importantly, I discovered that it is never to late to follow your dreams. Now I am actively saving for a full professional training for a perfumer in France.
    Little sensory pleasures can bring so much joy into our everyday lives, so ladies go for it!

    Many greetings to you fiona & all your lovely readers! I discovered your blog a few months ago and ever since, it has been a pleasure to read through your archives as well as to anticipate new posts.

    Best wishes for the 2017,

    Ksenija

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    1. What a fabulous story you have, Ksenija, and so inspiring. Good for you sticking to what you love, and I think the internet is so fabulous that we can connect with others like us. Truly a modern day blessing!

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  10. If you like perfumes Fiona you should try Molecule 01. Not many people have heard about but it was Liberty's best selling product this year. It's unique because it works with the chemistry of your body; so it smells different on everybody. I wrote in my latest blog post how I have been stalked by women around stores waiting for an opportune moment to ask me what perfume I am wearing ;-)

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    1. That sounds intriguing, Vannessa, I will look out for it! Thank you :)

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  11. Hi Fiona, thank you for this series. As you already know, I have a signature fragrance for years and I use it daily, not only on myself, but also sometimes around my home and scenting my cards and packages that I sent to others. It's just alittle personal touch. And literally my calling card!
    Ahhhh.... By the way, like your Nana, I have been known to be too heavy handed with my perfume when I was younger... *guilty*
    I love Lavender oil too and nightly, I will generously use the oil on my bed before I go to sleep.
    I use to like shower gels but have switched to beautifully scented soaps, mainly from France or Japan. I love my shampoo and conditioner to leave my hair lightly scented too. Do you?
    Sometimes, when the aroma or aesthetic of a meal or even a cup of beverage can be so enticing, that I would take a sniff before indulging in my palate. As for wine, even if I did, I will drink it... Hehehehe...
    I love to smell books too! Now, I wonder if I am the oddball here...

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    1. I smell books too, and magazines :)

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    2. Hi Princess, I love Japanese soaps like the brand Cow, and Lux (though I think the American version of Lux is completely different). I am in our local Little Tokyo in Los Angeles almost every other week to shop in the Marukai market there where it is a cornucopia of Japanese everything! Being of part Japanese descent, the scents of certain shampoos, and so on are nostalgic for me. My daughter will be traveling to Japan and Korea soon and I've already got a list (a small one) of things I want her to pick up for me there!

      D.

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    4. Hi D, thank you so much for sharing. Isn't it exciting that you can browse in the Marukai market almost every other week? And soon, your daughter will be back with the most amazing Japanese and Korean things to enjoy. I go crazy in Japan's drugstores... Do you? Ah yes! I have tried Japanese Cow soap brand too.... I think practically everything in Japan is high quality and I stock up on all essentials when I am there!

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  12. I am such a sucker for a lovely scented soap with dense lather. It's so hard to not buy them!

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    1. Especially since soap is a consumable which you can *legitimately* buy even if you are minimising:)

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  13. I am definitely a soap girl, my favorite is a fragrance-free oatmeal. That may not sound so luxurious, but the oatmeal itself is soothing and it's a pretty, creamy round soap with a nice texture. Plus, all natural and good for us sensitive-skinned ones... The rose incense idea sounds lovely, I've got to try that-- but I am a candle girl. Thank you for reminding me, have been lighting them up again every day. I prefer soy candles with natural scents... Also essential oils such as lavender, and rose water is divine! Would be nice if they were a bit stronger, but they're enjoyable to reapply and know they are good for my skin and soul. Jen

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  14. I am a soap girl. I love using the pink "Dove" bar. It is my favorite! I agree with Karen about your comment about not wishing the winter away. I thought the same thing when I read it some weeks ago and here we are in Indiana getting our first "taste of snow" for the season. Why not enjoy it right?

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    1. My dad always told us not to wish our life away and it has stuck! Enjoy the snow, Mrs Shockley :)

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  15. That was a very nice post, and I thought I should comment and thank you. I read your posts about alcohol a bit ago, and they gave me the resources I needed to stop drinking too. I've read Alan Carr, and then Jason Vale and Annie Grace. I too wasn't a heavy drinker, but not happy about my moderate drinking for health reasons. I've always been a Francophile too, and you were so key in demonstrating that a chic woman doesn't have to hold a glass of wine! Thank you so much. I'll really be forever grateful that you shared this. Oh and I did enjoy sniffing my husband's glass of wine the other night too, with no desire to drink!

    As for fragrance, I'm a "signature scent" kind of gal, and this appeals to the pleasure I get from simplicity. I love a lily of the valley fragrance.

    I also love the idea of old fashioned soaps, but we have really hard water and man do I hate soap scum! So I therefore tend to stick with modern detergent cleansers. Not so romantic, but they rinse cleanly and can have gentle ph balances if you choose wisely.

    Thank you again!
    Rochelle

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    1. Hi Rochelle, thanks so much for your lovely comment. I am thrilled that have I helped you in that way. I still do have nostalgia for the act of holding a glass of red wine in the winter or thinking about a sip of champagne when I'm in France one day, but I still have no desire to drink. Instead I shall enjoy my bubbles (Perrier) from a flute.

      I love simplicity too, but it seems that I love perfume more.

      With your hard water, of course you need to be practical, and there certainly are many nice shower creams and gels around.

      Thank you for commenting, and I love your blogger name :)

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  16. 當您在生活中遇到棘手的問題,無論是感情、外遇、債務、財產等各類生活難題,台達徵信社便是您最值得信賴的夥伴!

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  17. Hi Fiona. I wasn't able to comment on your instagram picture for some reason. I'm sure it's user error lol but my comment was about your clothing and are you planning on posting your summer capsule wardrobe for us to see? Thanks, Carla.

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Merci for your comment. Wishing you a chic day!

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