Recently in Perfume Category

I love to travel. Paris is my favorite city in the world to date but I have never been to South Africa and maybe I will change my mind when I do. I would rather travel than have beautiful handbags and even more than a gorgeous pair of shoes. (I'm more of a shoe snob than any other type of snob. I will gladly quit eating in order to save money to indulge in a new pair of Louboutin's or Jimmy Choo's.) I even carry my passport with me at all times, you know, just in case. So when I ran across this limited edition Coco Mademoiselle Purse Parfum by Chanel, I just had to tell you all about it. The problem with constant travel is that you have to live out of a suitcase or a bag. Perfume is the only part of my beauty regime that I have made mandatory. I even put it on right before I go to bed. But the problem with perfume is that if it spills onto your clothes, they will ruin. And my clothes are far too beautiful to run that risk ,so this travel perfume is my god send and I hope it will be yours also. Coco Mademoiselle Purse Parfum, $100.00, Chanel.com.

So everyone knows someone who just can’t make up my mind about what kind of perfume they want to wear. Sephora has come up with a fix for that with their Scent Sampler Gift Certificate. It’s a sampler of ten of their top selling scents that comes with a voucher for one full-sized bottle of any of the perfumes in the sampler. Once you’ve tried all the samples you can pick your favorite and enjoy. It’s a great selection of samples. From Stella McCartney to Vera Wang, it’s a good bet whoever you’re giving this too will be able to find a scent to suit them. It’s even great to buy for yourself if you’re looking for a new scent and want to test drive some out. $50 at Sephora.com.
Sephora Brand Scent Sampler Gift Certificate For Her

Give the Beauty Snob in your life the scent of luxury from Bond No.9. Exclusively at Saks for this season only! This exotic floral scent is in a fashion forward bottle made with 2,225 Swarovski crystals. The all-white bouquet of traditional gardenia with contemporary twists of jasmine, vetiver and vanilla make this limited-edition eau de parfum a sophisticated super-city scent with the downtown spirit and style of Bond No. 9. 3.3 oz. $550- Check out Bond No. 9 New York For Her Here

I am YSL obsessed, from vintage smoking jackets to this season's must have belted dress (not to mention the fab line of YSL bags), I am a YSL girl through and through. So when the house of Yves St. Laurent launched a new fragrance, I was first to jump on board to try it even though I am not one to seek new scents (I am a die hard Creed Millesime girl, it's all I have used for years and though I like buying perfume, most just sit on my counter as decoration!).

The first day I got my YSL Elle set I put the Eau de parfum on my wrists and neck, just to test out how it will wear on me. At first it was a bit strong but immediately settled into my skin. An aggressive nose with a heady floral scent (Peony – Pink Berries – Patchouli) combined with a slightly mysterious woody flavor, I was a bit overwhelmed. But as the hours wore on, it became warm and sensual, lasting almost the entire night. This is one sexy scent!

I gave the Shower gel to our Tot Snob Editor, Jori, and she reported that it was way to Gardenia-ish (but I love Gardenia!) so this is not for the girl who is afraid of smelling like a fragrant garden. The lotion fared quite well on me, almost like the perfume but a bit less aggressive. Overall, I like the new Elle scent from YSL, especially for our young and hip Beauty Snobs who not only want to be seen in the latest purple YSL Downtown bag, but also smell like the chic YSL girls in the ads. My advice is to use the lotion on a daily basis and save the perfume for evening or use use sparingly as a little goes a long way (I layered the lotion under the perfume this weekend and it lasted almost 12 hours- so you can go from work to play smelling fabulous!!) Definitely worthy of a try.... or would make great Christmas presents! The urban sleek bottles in sensuous violet hued glass are irresistible but it is the complicated notes of woody floral that will keep you coming back for more. Parfum $78 - $109, Lotion $45, Shower gel $40 at YSL.com

Sean “Puffy” Combs claims he knows how a woman should smell. That was the statement he kept giving out when promoting his fragrance line. There was a huge media hoopla over the racy ads when he launched, but I didn’t really take much notice. I figured it was probably decent – he’s a smart business man and I figured he lent his name out to a great perfume maker. Well, I was browsing through Sephora the other day and came across the Sean John display and decided to have a whiff. It was gross! Apparently Puffy thinks we should all smell the way the old dresser in the basement that your grandma keeps quilts in does. Seriously, the perfume smells like a citrus dryer sheet gone wrong. My roommate who was with me and the salesperson who saw me gag when I smelled it both agreed. This was nothing to be impressed by and definitely nothing to ever purchase! If you dig smelling musty it’s $55 at Sephora.com Sean John Unforgivable Woman 2.5 oz Eau de Toilette Spray

This is a luxurious bottle that would make a great gift to yourself! The unforgettable signature scent of Carthusia, originated in 1380 to honor a queen, embodies Capri’s exquisite flora with notes of wild carnation, lily of the valley and oak. The 1,000 Limited Edition numbered bottles are printed in pure yellow gold. Each bottle is handmade and finished with a yellow gold plated atomizer. Includes a certificate of authenticity. 24 fl. oz. Fiori di Capri Eau de Toilette $450 at Vivre.

I love to travel! It’s probably one of my favorite things to do. I love exploring and finding new palaces and I really, really love staying in hotels. No matter how old I get the thrill of staying in a really nice hotel never goes away. But sometimes when it’s a long trip a hotel begins to feel impersonal. That’s why I try to bring things like pictures or candles to put on the bedside. It feels a little more homey. Next time I travel I’m going to bring this set of travel candles from Tocca. There’s four different scents that range from fruity to floral to warm and will definitely make your hotel room feel like your home. (Or at the very least cover up any weird smells left by the previous inhabitant or cleaning supplies!) Plus they’re packaged super cute and come in really nice holders that won’t let the candle melt into any hotel furniture. $42 for a set of four at Sephora.com. Tocca Beauty Travel Candle Set

A reader shared her fabulous discovery on a recent trip to Dubai with me, Parfums M. Micallef. She said they were "All hand made perfumes in hand made bottles painted with 24 ct gold and/or embedded with Swarovski stones....And that's only the outside..... the fragrances even outsell Chanel and Dior. The scents last long on the skin and develop beautifully." She also said that the perfume is not available stateside, mostly because the owners are not eager to expand, yet.

Of course that got my attention immediately, I checked their website and am now dying to experience the scents! There are many to choose from, Le 4 Saisons, Les Exclusifs, Les Notes and Ananda. They also offer lavish crystal flacons which may be filled with all the fragrances from the various Micallef collections and, if required, decorated with special motifs, such as portraits, names, etc. You can also put other favorite perfumes in these unique 3 liter flacons. I love all of them! Would love to get my hands on one of each. Those of you who live in Cannes, Paris, London or Dubai, go check out their store! Go to Parfums M. Micallef.

Ever since I began wearing perfume, I’ve always gravitated toward scents that contained notes of vanila. The warmness of those tones have always complimented me the best and they just plain make me happy to smell. I recently picked up LAVANILA’s Vanilla Grapefruit perfume and it’s my new obsession! Vanilla and Grapefruit may not sound that appetizing when you think about eating it, but when the smells are combined it is amazing! The scent is both warm and light at the same time. It has hints of orange and other types of citrus in it. Every time I smell it, I feel like I smell a new layer of the perfume. If you like vanilla, but citrus isn’t your thing, check out Sephora.com for all their products! $56 LAVANILA Vanilla Grapefruit 1.7 oz Eau de Parfum Spray

I am currently obsessed with the Skin Deep Website, a safety guide to cosmetics and personal care products from researchers at the Environmental Working Group. I have been on it all weekend looking up every brand in my bathroom, it was shocking how many items in my bathroom are rated "high toxicity" and that may cause cancer, render me infertile amongst many other scary hazards! Go through the site and search for your favorite products to see what you come up with. I could not find my favorite luxury brands such as La Prarie, Natura Bisse, Sisley or La Mer on the site, hopefully it is because their products are tested extensively to avoid causing hazard? (or maybe they were too expensive for the scientists to buy and test?).

There seems to be a pattern of beauty companies across the board with body lotions being listed as highly toxic even if their other products are of low or no risk (For example, Skinceuticals C&E ferulic is safe but the Skin Firming Body Cream is a high hazard- I am throwing mine in the trash tonight!). In fact, I am so freaked out that I have decided to use my son's baby products from California Baby (rated 0- low hazard) on my body until further notice. I am not one to scare easily and often ignore the urban legends of lipstick accumulating in the stomach etc but this really got my attention! Of course I will do more sleuthing with doctors in order to validate the site's claims, let me know what you beauties come up with.

Here's a thought, perhaps the reason Aveda products tested so high for toxicity is because they do not do any testing on lab rats....