All posts filed under: Parfum

Acqua Di Parma Colonia Ambra

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When talking about iconic perfumes, most people immediately have these images of Chanel No 5 and Shalimar spring to mind, or can’t help but think about Thierry Mugler’s Angel or Jean Paul Gaultier’s Classique perfectly curved bottle. My thoughts however turn to one image only, that breathtakingly classy (and classic) statuesque packaging of the original Acqua Di Parma Colonia. Intense, bright yellow like the afternoon sun in the Italian skies, black, sturdy yet refined lettering and a bottle exuding the same impeccable elegance as the scent itself. A true classic! No classic would be complete without having inspired a family of related fragrances, a kinship of sorts, and the Colonia was followed in it’s footsteps by the other fragrances of the Colonia Ingredients family, ie Colonia Intensa, Colonia Oud, Colonia Essenza and Colonia Leather. Latest addition is the Acqua Di Parma Colonia Ambra, a fragrantic embodiment of the leather roots of the brands setting off y from Venice to discover the scents of The Silk Road. Stepping away from the leather-y notes that support the freshness of …

Kenzo Is My Tribe and Blue Is My Totem

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Kenzo has slowly but steadily been taking over our hearts and minds as the ultimate urban brand, cool and sassy but also wearable. Tongue in cheek form and function! I still mourn not getting my hands on those drop dead gorgeous neon yellow espadrilles this past summer, and who can forget their infamous tiger sweater? For their latest fragrance drop, they felt like a little shake up of the current perfume traditions and go about creating it a little bit differently. Starting from their desire to create a scent that would introduce unisex scents to the large public, noses Antoine Lie and Jean Jacques followed their urban hearts and came up with not one but three scents to represent today’s generation. Three wayward but universal scents that can be worn by both men and women, depending on their mood, interests and personalities. All three named Totem, but with a subtitle to refer to their characteristics: Woody Citrus (yellow), Woody Floral (orange) and Woody Fruity (blue). Completely against my usual preferences (lilies all the way!!), I …

Everyday handbag essentials

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“Show me your handbag and I’ll know all about you”. If you take one look at my handbag and it’s contents, and you’ll see immediately that I am a big control freak, and like to be prepared for just about anything that could happen. Less is more definitely does not apply to what I lugg around on a daily  basis, and while the exact content might vary from day to day, these are the absolute essentials I always need with me! Bobby pins and elastic bands for my hair are a no brainer, I love wearing my hair down but can not stand it falling in front of my eyes when I’m working on my laptop… A lip balm is a year round necessity as well, the Kenzoki Balm for Lips to Kiss is a new discovery that has my lips loving it. A transparant, hydrating, buttery texture that sinks in easily, perfect for on-the-go touch ups. Another Kenzoki favourite is the Kenzoki Cream with a Sheen, for those moments my skin needs some extra …

Fading into an Andalusian Fall with Sisley Soir d’Orient

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Fading into a new season has always been some of my favourite parts of the year. The previous season still is lingering around for those last moments, but the promise of a new season is already peeping around the corner, with the allure of cashmere knits, steaming hot drinks and warmer scents filling the air. This next fragrance may have entered my life right before summer, but to me, it is the ultimate first step into an Autumn state of mind. No one does rich warmth and opulent luxury like Sisley, and the new Sisley Soir d’Orient fragrance only adds to their legacy. Inspired by her childhood holidays in Sevilla, South of Spain, Isabella d’Ornano created a fragrance that will take you straight to a sunset walk through the gardens of the Alcazar, the air heavy with warmth, sensuality and dreamy mystery. First thing you smell are fresh hints of iran galbanum, bergamot and saffron, before evolving into a warmer heart of geranium, heady Turkish rose and black pepper. Later on it settles into a somewhat …

One last hurrah at the beach with Bobbi Brown

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Some fragrances come, some go just as quickly, and every once in a blue moon, you find yourself falling in love with a sent, spritz after spritz, so that it remains a staple in your morning ritual, bottle after bottle after bottle. Ever since it’s launch in 2009, Bobbi Brown Beach has been of of those fragrantic loves for me, making me long for sultry summer days that seemingly go on forever in wintertime, and making me cherish the afternoon summer sun on my skin on a perfect, hot day at the waterside with friends and family. One little spritz is all it takes to go back to the beach, with it’s notes of sea spray, sand jasmine and mandarin creating a luscious, sweet yet salty scent that just makes you feel the salt in the air, the sand under your feet and the sun on your skin. The only little peeve I have with this fragrance is that it doesn’t last overly long on me, it disappears after a few hours, so I need …

Karl Lagerfeld Takes You To Paradise Bay

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Karl Lagerfeld has the Midas Touch! After the succes of the Karl Lagerfeld for Him and Her fragrances last year, King Karl shows again that he still reigns supreme with his follow up number, Karl Lagerfeld Paradise Bay. From a hard day’s work straight to an exotic beach, it’s something we all dream about, me included…. Bora Bora might have to wait a few more years, but Mr Lagerfeld has brought that exotic beach a bit closer. A little spritz every morning, I close my eyes, and away I float. A heavenly white beach, crystal clear water as far as the eye can see, your very own secret hiding place to escape your daily life. The pitch for this new fragrance duo was clear, the exoticness needed to be awe-inducing yet not too much, not to sickly sweet, but layered and sophisticated. Karl Lagerfeld Paradise Bay for Women, created by Serge Majoullier and Cécile Matton, is a fruity floral scent with green touches. It inmediately opens with exotic waves of litchi, pinneaple and peaches so …

Spotlight – Clarins Eau Des Jardins

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How about go about things a bit differently today? How about, instead of raving about the tenth great new fragrace launch this year, we rave about one of the launches that has proven it’s worth and stood the test of time? A little trip down the Hall Of Fame?  A product deserving of some extra time in the spotlight?! Clarins Eau Des Jardins is the ultimate summer fragrance! A clever hybrid of a summery scent, aromatherapy and even a dash of skincare, the citrus-y scent will boost your mood (perfect for those early mornings!) and even work a little magic on your skin. Etheric oils of  orange, grapefruit, lemon, bergamot,  wild rose, bay leaf and dry oils from cedar, vetiver and white musk make it the ultimate fresh summer scent, while the blackcurrant bud (soothing), beech bud (moisturizing) and the sorcier bud (illuminating) give your skin a little va-va-voom. Added bonus? It is the absolute only fragrance I can wear without getting  burned when it is really sunny outside (trust me, I’ve tried…and suffered…). Clarins Eau …

Givenchy Ange ou Demon & Accord Illicite

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Perfumes may come and go, especially with us beauty bloggers, but some enchant us so much that they remain a constant force in our fragrance collection. Like your favourite sweater or blanket, it offers warmth and comfort like nothing else.  Givenchy Ange ou Démon Le Secret is that safety  net for me, a touch of coming home with each sniff. Love at first whiff made me curious about the other fragances in the Ange ou Démon family, but where the original fragrance is just so-so on me, the latest embodiement of the Givenchy woman, Givenchy Ange ou Démon Le Parfum & Accord Illicite*   is supposedly so audacious and on trend that I can’t help but be intrigued. All salacious clichés of what a woman’s sensuality is supposed to be and smell like aside, the new Givenchy Ange ou Démon Le Parfum is above all a new play on layering fragrances, a new way of wearing perfume that has gone maistream these last few years. After spritzing the Le Parfum, you’re supposed to up the ante (and …

Leen Travels – An Even Lighter Body Care Menu

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Yesterday you could read all about me being proud of myself for packing only the skincare essentials (major over-packer here!), but the rest of the toiletries proved to be even more difficult. Not wanting to lugg around a different set of toiletries for everyone, I chose multifunctional over fancy personal preferences, and went for the troupers that work for Mr B, the little ones and me. The Avène XeraCalm Lipid-Replenishing Cleansing Oil  is the one all rounder that works for everyone in the LeenLovesStyle household. Soft and gentle enough for me and Little Miss C yet thorough enough to get a kid clean after a day outside. Hair is covered by good old Nivea, with a little touch of Aussie for me, I’m taking the 3 Minute Miracle Reconstruction Mask to fix that dried out pool / sun hair situation.  After showering, a lick of  the La Roche-Posay Lipikar Balm AP+ does wonders for all of us, from Little Miss C’s atopic skin to Mr B’s man’s legs. Also coming on this trip is the …

Guerlain La Petite Robe Noire Eau Fraiche

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When Guerlain launched La Petite Robe Noire in 2012, everyone fell head over heels in love with this little black dress, at times sweet, at times smoky, but never too sultry or over the top. Like a true little black dress! This Spring, Guerlain decided to create a little sidekick to the original, a lighter, airier and greener flanker to the original, et voila: La Petite Robe Noire Eau Fraîche/Ma Robe Pétales*. Developed by legendary Thierry Wasser, La Petite Robe Noire Eau Fraîche/Ma Robe Pétales* fully focuses on the fresh green floral tones reminiscent of Spring, fresh air, the first flowers peeking through and blossoms colouring the streets a pale pink. With notes such as bergamot, mandarin, rose, freesia, jasmine, pistachio, almond, tonka bean, white musk and patchouli, there is a clear mix of the green-ish, clean and flowery notes. The white florals create a buzz right after that first spritz, a little fresh hum with a just a hint of vanilla,  before heading into a somewhat warmer, more gourmand finish. The pistachio does not come across very …