Saturday, November 22, 2008

Le Galion parfums de sac, and decision-making time

Today I discovered another treasure at the local antique mall: a boxed set of Le Galion parfums de sac, almost complete, and in great shape. The set includes: Snob, Bourrasque, Brumes, Galion d'Or, Lily of the Valley, Jasmin, La Rose, La Violette. Sadly, there are two perfumes missing from the original set of ten. Tubereuse was probably one of the missing, and I would have loved to have smelled that one. Perhaps Sortilège was the other, since misplaced or emptied, bottle. Except for La Violette and La Rose, all the bottles are full or nearly full, and the bottle size is 1/5th oz.

I'd nearly given up on finding anything new at the antique mall when I walked over to one last stall for a quick glance, and saw some perfumes bottles in the corner. When I saw this set for $10, I smelled the Jasmin, and it smelled great, so I grabbed it and went straight to the cashier.

So far, my first impressions are: Jasmin is a yummy jasmine along the lines of Montale's Jasmin Full, Galion D'Or smells a bit like Le Dix--aldehydic violets, Snob smells like something along the lines of Baghari--fruity aldehydic, and Brumes smells very interesting indeed--herbes de Provence and jasmine, perhaps.

Those are just first impressions, and I could be totally off, so in the next few posts I'll probably go through them with more thorough reviews of my favorites, when I get a chance to test them properly and do some research.

I haven't been posting much due to work--our production cycle is in full madness right now, so posts will be thin for a while. I've also had no Internet connection at home for the last week. Although the Time Warner customer service representative would have happily set up a service call earlier, had I only been willing to sit at home from 8am-8pm on a weekday. Um, seriously? What is wrong with these people? Have they no concept of customer service for people who, shockingly enough, work 40 hours a week?

Speaking of working, I think I've been working hard enough to deserve a holidays perfume gift for myself. I've been so good! Really! So the very, very difficult choice I have to make is which perfume to get. I've narrowed it down to three options for which full retail price is nearly unavoidable, and therefore any of them would be a very rare treat for me:

Dzing! (the big bottle, which is the only one available)
Bois des Iles parfum (I hope I can get it if I call around the major Chanel stores)
Une Fleur de Cassie (probably the small bottle is all I need)

So hm, I'm leaning toward Dzing!, since Artisan Parfumeur is so slutty about tossing their treasures into the discontinued bin, and I've been craving it so this winter, that I've gone through my decant. So share your special holiday treats. C'mon, I know you're already plotting what to buy yourself, or what you'll ask for as a present...

Happy Thanksgiving week to one and all! Happy perfume hunting, too!

11 comments:

SIMONE SHITRIT said...

It is so nice to have these findings!
I loved this posting!
And most of all, I think it is great that you feel good about yourself and your work. To give a gift to oneself is really important. To say "I deserved it" it is so fulfilling. Bravo!
Happy turkey day to you!
hahahaha

Aimée L'Ondée said...

thanks, Q, Happy Thanksgiving!

ScentScelf said...

Woo-hoo! Another treasure find!! Nicely done...good reward for your patience & persistence, no?

Because of my purchases at the ChiCocoa Scentsation, I feel like I have indulged my worthiness with FB of perfume. ;) So I'll first be virtuous, and say "no thanks, nothing for me right now...my Bois des Isles is fantabulous and I am incredibly pleased to have it."

Which is true. Very true. But then, I can indulge a liiiittle bit, no? And say that I'm not sure if I'd go for a bottle of Bulgari Black (who knew? but thanks to a friend who shared some, I've found a fun vanilla), or Yvresse (thanks to same said friend, a delightful bubbly champagne cocktail), or maybe a decant of the Cuir Mauresque I just discovered via a swap. It all gets rather diffuse when I'm not focused on just one thing, since I know it will be NOthing for a while... :)

(Again, no complaints! I am rich with perfume.)

You have an interesting trio in front of you. If you end up selecting the Chanel, let me know; I can pick it up for you and mail it along...

melisand61 said...

Delurking to congratulate you on this interesting find. I adore Snob, which upon wearing a few times I found to be similar to Joy, due to the jasmine, rose, aldehyde notes, though it is less complex, intense and animalic. I love the edt, which just sparkles in the summer. Sortilege is also a lovely fragrance-too bad you are missing this one. As for the others, I haven't been so lucky as to try them!

Aimée L'Ondée said...

Thanks for the offer, ScentSelf, much appreciated! And oh, I love Bulgari Black!

Aimée L'Ondée said...

welcome, melisande! I just resniffed Snob, and you're right, it a jasmine/rose combo, like Joy. A bit soapy, in comparison, I think, but lovely. And I think after my #1 favorite perfume name, My Sin, Snob has got to come #2 in the list of fabulous perfume names.

Rose said...

Happy Thanksgiving week! That's a great find. Of those if it were me I would go for the Bois De Illes.

I feel like I am probably going to end up treating myself to something and I am thinking about Ormonde Jayne, Fleur de Sal by Miller Harris and Dan Tes Bras lots at the moment.

Alyssa said...

I owe you an email, dear, but just writing a quick comment to say I *love* the name Snob. I want a whole line of products with that name -- Eau de Snob, Snob Talc, Snob Lotion...Congratulations on your find!

And if you really want a small bottle of Dzing, I bet we could find one somewhere...

Aimée L'Ondée said...

Hey there, Alyssa! Great idea! Snob Lotion is awesome. :^)

ScentScelf said...

Hey, I'm back to report that there is a bit of a story behind the name "Snob." Google "perfume snob name" and you'll come across a chapter from a law book detailing how Le Galion was banned from using that name in the US because another manufacturer had copyright to that name here.

Reportage, all in a days blog surfing...

:)
Happy Thanksgiving!!

Aimée L'Ondée said...

Interesting, scentself! So there's potentially at least one other Snob out there! It's just so funny--I have to wonder if the word had exactly the same connotations that it does now.
Anyway, Happy Thanksgiving!