I really like citrusy fragrances for summertime, and summer has definitely arrived in Oregon! After what seems like months of rain, we finally have weather in the 90’s and sunshine, so what’s more appropriate than a fresh, citrusy fragrance to cool off with? L’Occitane’s new Verbena Summer Secret Eau de Toilette perfume is fits the bill perfectly.

I have never been a particular fan of L’Occitane’s original Verbena  Eau de Toilette. It has a lot of geranium in it, and I don’t particularly like geranium. I am rather fond of the Citrus Verbena version, with all its grapefruity goodness, but I think this Summer Secret wins the prize as the best one so far.

It opens with a burst of apple and some watery green notes with anise. It’s not a jolly rancher type apple, but is rather more tangy and less sweet. Then the mint and basil and verbena settle in, and the base notes have cedar and musk. There is a definite fruitiness to the fragrance, but after that wears off it definitely takes on a more masculine herbalness that I like.

This is a perfect hot weather perfume. It’s super-refreshing and has great lasting power for a citrus scent. I love the mint and basil, it’s like they trick you into feeling cooler even if it’s hot outside.

The Summer Secret collection includes a shower gel, lotion, and candle, all of which I’m just dying to have! Two thumbs up for this lovely summer scent.

The original FlowerbyKenzo fragrance has always been one of those that I *want* to like but don’t. It’s just a little too nose-tickling and powdery for my taste. The new FlowerbyKenzo La Cologne takes the powder down and notch and tosses in some bitter citrus notes that balances the whole thing out perfectly for me, so I’m in love!

Traditionally, cologne is a fragrance composed of citrus and herbal notes. The new FlowerbyKenzo La Cologne takes the original FlowerbyKenzo and mixes it up with the traditional notes of bitter orange leaves, bergamot, and neroli. All together, the notes are bitter orange leaves, bergamot, orange, mandarin, rose, orange blossom, neroli, musks, and vanilla.

The perfume opens with a burst of citrus-y freshness and the sharp, biting scent of bitter orange leaves. I LOVE this scent, so this is great! The floral notes are next, the rose and orange blossom, and then it all settles on just the lightest powdery vanilla base. This is a great summer perfume, not heavy or cloying, but rather a fresh, bright, cheerful scent.

I definitely recommend checking this out if you want something different and unique. I haven’t smelled anything quite like it! Two thumbs up!

I’ve got a lot of stress going on in my life right now, job stress mostly, and fun beauty stuff always cheers me up. So this 5 Things is about the stuff I’ve found lately that is just perking up my day!

1. Shrek by OPI nail colors. I am just loving these fun, bright colors! I have Who The Shrek Are You? on my toes and I’m going to do a mani today with What’s With The Catittude?

2. Aromaleigh Victoria’s Revenge Limited Edition Eyeshadows – I was lucky enough to receive samples to review and share with all of you, and boy howdy are they GAWGEOUS! Expect multiple posts soon.

3. The new Badger Balm Lip Tints & Shimmers are so fabulous! These double-ended goodies boast beautiful sheer lip tints with ultra-moisturizing cocoa butter and olive oil. Love them!

4. FLOWERBYKENZO La Cologne is Kenzo’s newest fragrance, a citrus twist on the original FLOWERBYKENZO scent. I like the bitterness of the petitgrain paired with the powdery notes of the original. I’ll be reviewing this in full soon!

5. Fyrinnae’s new Lip Lustre shades are so pretty! I ordered Puppy Love and Ultra Phantom, and of course now I notice there are another FOUR new ones! Gah!! Next order, next order…

I really love peonies. I think they are such pretty flowers, and they are a favorite fresh flower scent, for me – right up there with roses, and lilies. Rarely, however, have I met a perfume claiming to be peony-scented that I thought actually WAS peony-scented. Until now – L’Occitane’s latest offering is Peony Eau de Toilette, and I think it’s great!

Peony is a fresh floral scent, with a generous dollop of citrus in the top notes and some rose to beef up the peony scent. It also has some green notes that remind me a bit of fresh cut grass. Officially it has sandalwood and musk, but honestly, I don’t get a lot of either of those notes. This fragrance is all about the top and middle notes, without out a lot of base notes – which is also my one complaint.

Peony is lovely. It’s a floral that manages to remind me of actual fresh cut flowers, lightly misted with dew, and it is just one of the most cheerful and happy perfumes I’ve run across in a while. I just wish it had more staying power – it fades too quickly for my taste.

But not to fear, there is a portable roll-on handy for frequent touch-ups throughout the day. Also, you can spray yourself liberally with the EDT and it won’t be overpowering. This will be a great fragrance for summertime, when the weather gets hot, as it never gets heavy or cloying.  It gets an enthusiastic two thumbs up from me!

I was messing around in my perfume collection the other day and realized I’d never written about this perfume! Gasp! I really like it a lot, so I’ve been totally remiss in not sharing it with all of you.

I bought Queen by Queen Latifah perfume back in February. I have admired Queen Latifah for a long time – she’s a great singer, actress, and beautiful woman. I was really excited to check out her perfume when it launched last fall – I figured it wouldn’t be another boring fruity-floral like so many other celebrity perfumes, and I was right! Queen is warm, rich, sweet but spicy, and not boring at all. The notes include golden tequila and cognac, bergamot, mandarin, baie rose, jasmine noir, coriander, patchouli, sandalwood, vanilla, tonka bean, incense and musk.

Queen is a gourmand fragrance that nevers goes too far into cupcake territory. The bergamot and mandarin make the opening lively, and the florals keep it pretty. The vanilla stays present throughout the scent but is more sophisticated and not too sweet. Queen is a sexy perfume, and one of the few that I own that really says EVENING to me as opposed to daytime. I spray on Queen after work, when it’s time to relax and enjoy the night.

I don’t love the bottle, but its not that bad. I listened to an interview with the Queen in which she said she wanted the bottle to be bold and strong, like her. The dark red, square shape with gold accent is definitely bold, and matches the fragrance well.

I give Queen by Queen Latifah two thumbs up. Incidentally, it smells good on men too

I’m not a big fan of fruity-floral fragrances, having pretty much overdosed on them as a youngster. But occasionally the thing that just fits my mood is something CHEERFUL and quite often cheerful means FRUITY! Celebrity scents are rather famous for being fruity-florals, and Britney’s perfumers pretty much stick to this mold. After having such luck with Hidden Fantasy, I decided I needed to give Circus Fantasy a try.

Circus Fantasy has notes of raspberry, apricot blossom, blue peony, waterlily, red orchid, sweet vanilla wood, creamy musks, and violet candy. Mostly, I get the raspberry, then the watery florals, and it dries down to a vanilla-musky fragrance on me. It’s good!

Circus Fantasy is what it is: a fun fruity-floral that will definitely remind you of summer days, happy times, and sunshine. It’s easy to wear, being light and fresh. The more I wear it, the more it grows on me. Unlike so many fruity-floral scents, this one doesn’t descend into candy-land. It’s never too sweet, and the peony and waterlily add a touch of sophistication that I like. It has pretty good lasting power, but doesn’t have as much oomph as something with stronger base notes. This one is all about that initial burst of fruits and watery florals.

If you want somethat to remind you of summer on a cool rainy day, or something that won’t overwhelm on a hot summery day, try Circus Fantasy. It’s perfect for both kinds of weather. Two thumbs up.

Kenzo will launch new Perfumed Beneficial Waters later this month, and they are FAB! These are moisturizing mists that contain plant extracts, and a delightful scent corresponding to Kenzo’s body care lines – Sensual Rice MMM, Relaxing Lotus SHH, Energizing Bamboo Splash, and Blissful Ginger Fizz. I’ve been using MMM and I love it!

Sensual Rice MMM contains rice extract and the super-yummy scent of rice steam. It really does have a close resemblance to the wonderful smell my rice cooker makes when I’m doing up jasmine rice! I just love the scent! Every time I wear it, my sister asks “What smells so good? Is that you?” which cracks me up.

The fragrance strength seems really close to an eau de toilette to me, but isn’t quite as long lasting. (Although I’ve tried plenty of EDTs that didn’t wear as long as this!) I am thinking it would layer beautifully with other fragrances, something I intend to experiment with very soon. The plant extracts also mean that this should be good for my skin, a total bonus!

The Waters will be available on Kenzo’s website, and will retail for $45 for 3 oz. It might seem a little pricey at first, but given the staying power of Sensual Rice MMM anyway, I think it’s a pretty good deal. Also, the glass bottle is really pretty and elegant! These are definitely SPLURGE WORTHY!!

It’s finally starting to look like spring around here, despite all the rain we’re having in Portland. I start pulling out all my fruity-floral-girly scents in the springtime, so here’s a list of five that I like.

1. Hidden Fantasy by Britney Spears is a happy, fun fragrance. Lots of citrus and cake to cheer you up when the weather is bad.

2. Kenzo 7:15 AM in Bali is also a citrusy vanilla scent, with more flowers than Hidden Fantasy. It’s super-refreshing and happy.

3. Dreaming by Tommy Hilfiger is a great peachy-floral fragrance. Fabulous for springtime.

4. Diesel Fuel For Life for women: Berries and weirdness. One of my favorite perfumes!

5. Wrapped With Love Hilary Duff is definitely a spring scent – its aggressive fruitiness is a bit much for me unless I’m really in the mood.