I am reposting this as I am thinking again Who on earth would name a perfume ‘Tramp?’ Also on my mind is The 1980s must have really smelled very strong!
When it comes to our senses, I think it is safe to say that most of us think mostly of sight and hearing. We mourn the deterioration and dread the loss of either, or both. When we have a cold, or in COVID times, we are very aware of loss of taste. We suddenly realise that there is very little difference between a raw potato and an apple when you cannot taste anything. But we quickly forget that once we get better.
Music can bring back memories of other times. But far more strong is the memory contained in our sense of smell. Smell is actually the most powerful of all our senses. While other senses travel and are registered more slowly via our thalamus, smell goes directly to the emotional and memory centres of the brain. This is why a slight waft of a perfume can transport us back to different places and times. We also react very strongly to the natural smell of our partners. The strength of your attraction to someone is strongly dependent on their natural scent. I am not sure if it is true for everyone, but it is definitely true for me.
There are also smells that make me happy:
- just-mowed grass
- sheets after having dried in the sun
- freshly-brewed or ground coffee
- freshly baked bread
- plastic dolls
- sun tan lotion
- Vicks Vaporub
- Johnson’s baby powder
- hot asphalt after a few drops of rain
- lilac, gardenia and jasmine in spring and summer
- carnations
My mother did not wear perfume. She used My Fair Lady talcum powder, which was very big in those days. Horrifying these days seeing as some talc has proved to be carcinogenic.
My first perfume ever was Tramp by Lentheric. I received it on my 15th birthday, which was also the day I could start wearing makeup. Now I look back and wonder who on earth would think of naming a perfume ‘Tramp’. Whichever way you look at it, it’s not good.
Then at school it was all about the Goya Aquamanda.
When I was 20 and engaged, I received a bottle of Charlie by Revlon as a gift from the jeweller where my fiancé bought the ring.
In my mid-twenties (no longer engaged), I spend time travelling around the world on a budget, and Max Factor Le Jardin is the perfume I wore.
Some years later, another boyfriend gave me YSL Paris. Now when I smell it, it is overpowering, as were many fragrances in the 1980s.
After that, another boyfriend got me into CK one, and Calvin Klein Escape.
After that, I tried and liked quite a few different perfumes
- Elizabeth Taylor White Diamonds – I really loved this perfume. It was the first celebrity perfume, and a huge success
- Esteé Lauder Pleasures – I adored this until it became ubiquitous
- Naomi Campbell – her first perfume was really nice.
- Elizabeth Arden – Sunflowers, Red Door, White Shoulders, Fifth Avenue (I received a gift set with all of them)
- Evyan – White Shoulders
- Body Shop Perfume Oils in Cosy Cashmere and Clean Cotton
- Body Shop Italian Fig
- Marks and Spencer Fig and Jasmine
I know you always read about Chanel No. 5, Shalimar, Youth Dew, Joy, Diorissimo, Fracas. But they have never appealed to me.
Nowadays I seldom wear perfume, and if I do, it is Antonia’s Flowers. It is hard to believe I used to use perfume daily. And liberally. I dread to think what I smelled like when I came back from lunch, after testing all the perfumes at the local pharmacy! Sweden has a high rate of allergies so strong-smelling perfumes are highly discouraged. I tend to use only lightly scented hair and body products.
Boys in my youth used to reek of Brut and Jade East, while my dad used Old Spice. I still love that smell because it reminds me of him.
Any absolute favourites among my readers? I would like something to go and sniff the next time it is safe to wander around the stores.
I love perfume! When I was a teenager, I was never without. Then I grew up, earned my own money and realised how pricey it had become. The first “perfume” we all had as early teens was called Eau Jeune. There were different scents and my favourite one was Senteurs Fraîches. You could find this perfume in any drugstore and it was so cheap!… Right now, my absolute favourite perfume is Acqua di Gio by Armani (for women). This is my absolute favourite perfume of all time! Armani later released Acqua di Gioia, which became more popular than Acqua di Gio, but I never enjoyed it as much as the original one.
Ooh I must have a sniff of this!
I’ve always loved Christian Dior’s Dune, which I have worn for over 30 years. I also like Issey Miyake ‘s L’Eau D’Issey. Both are fresh, light perfumes. Though I have noted perfumes smell differently on different people. My daughter wears strong perfumes like Poison or Opium, which I find overpowering, though not on her. On me it is awful. My mother wore 4711.
Like you, I wore perfume daily when I lived and worked in Australia, but here in Sweden I rarely wear it. Tgere are signs everywhere you go to ask you not to wear perfume because of allergies. Though I sometimes pass by groups of teenagers who have enough perfume on tio knock out an elephant!
I think my first perfume was Sweet Honesty (Avon brand that my mother bought for me when I was 15). My first “proper” perfume was Nina Ricci’s L’Air du Temps, bought by my boyfriend back in the mists of time.
I had forgotten about L’Eau D’ Issey. I love that one. I hear you about Sweden. I have to be careful to use only very lightly scented shampoo and body lotion because Swedes have a higher tendency to have allergies than South Africans. Over time though, I too have grown to prefer very light fragrances on other people. A male friend of mine wears Davidoff Cool Water which I like. In my days boys used to liberally douse themselves in Brut and Jade East!
Charlie always reminds me of Los Angeles and my second wife, Every time I use Kouros I am reminded of Tijuana Mexico, My Fair Lady and Tramp were the go to for my mom (she died in 1985). Brut reminds me of school, lazy summer days smoking in the woods near my school (instead of attending classes).
Kuss tolime Je Revien by Worn, but it g changeor mskjn did, and tbsmelt like. Tomcat per. I rccntlys see look t it t, and it smelt very heavy,
Hi Janet Carr, thank you for sharing! For me this article is very informative and I have learned a lot from your post and comments. Keep sharing!
I’m not much of a fragrance lady, but my now-husband bought me Poison by Christian Dior when we were dating, and much to my surprise, I really liked it.
I like a perfume that’s light and can’t be smelled across the room. The bottles I have a roll-on, which I like because you have better control of the amount you put on. I hope you like it!
That brings back memories. I also received a Charlie in my teenage years. I did not use perfume much until my 30s. I bought Sun by Jill Sanders, but I got stuck on Joop, Le Bains and have used that ever since, Almost 30 years now. I buy it when I visit family in Germany or order it online now. Nothing else smells as good to me. 🙂
For every day:
Elizabeth Arden, Green Tea
Jil Sander, Sunlight
Boss, Orange
Jil Sander, Style
For special occasions:
Donna Karan, Be Delicious
Jennifer Aniston “Luxe” and “Beachscapes”
I like perfume that’s light and can’t be smelled across the room. The bottles I have are roll on which I like because you have better control of the amount you put on. Hope you like!
I’m not much of a perfume girl, but my now-husband bought me Poison by Christian Dior when we were dating, and much to my surprise I really liked it.
Nothing much else prior to or after Poison, I’m sorry to say – neither my mother nor my older sister were perfume (or scented products like powders) aficionados, so there was really no influence to wear perfume.
It’s good to see your timeline on your perfume use – it’s actually a stroll down memory lane, something we all need nowadays to feel better, as our past holds wonderful memories!