There aren't too many icons of glamor that are bigger and bolder than Tiffany & Co.. The robin egg blue boxes, the instantly recognizable store, Audrey and her breakfast...
Years before I had my first piece of Tiffany jewelry or even set foot in one of their stores, I owned a bottle of their original perfume. A bottle of pure femininity, glamor and mystique, which made my 22 year old self feel larger than life.
I knew very little about perfume back then, and couldn't really recognize notes. I didn't have much of a defined taste (other than realizing that peachy-fruity scents made me gag) and could barely recognize scent groups. I can't remember if I knew back then what's in the juice, but I knew that this one was BIG.
Tiffany perfume is, indeed, a big floral. Not as heady as tuberose based scents, but floral all the same. It's beautifully blended, so none of the flowers takes center stage. The notes are: rose, jasmine, iris, ylang-ylang and orange blossom. Like with other old favorites that I've been wearing for many years, I can't deconstruct the fragrance and analyze it even semi-objectively. I don't see notes. I see memories .
The elegant femininity of the bottle and the scent were what I craved when I first came across it. It was my evening and special occasion fragrance, and I still treat it as such. You have to dress and act like a lady when you're wearing Tiffany. And it gives you the confidence to do and be so. But, don't mistake it for an aloof, formal, Jackie O of a scent. It has warmth and sweetness that feels almost like vanilla, just not quite as simple. It's approachable and comforting.
Tiffany used to be more readily available than it is now. I've always bought bottles of the EdP, either from Sephora or online. Now it seems that you can only find it at Tiffany's website. everyone else is only selling the EdT if they have it at all. Tiffany also has a pure parfum version , and I'm seriously considering getting that one once I finish my current EdP bottle. I adore this scent as much as ever, but I wear it less often because of all the other bottles I have in rotation (not to mention my sampling habit). This is why I'm thinking that a tiny bottle of the pure essence might serve me well.
Original artwork by Fifi Flowers on Etsy.
Ditto, lovely post ! I feel totally the same about this fragrance and although I don't wear it often, I cannot drop it either. It's so big that it accessorizes all by itself, like a piece of Tiffany jewellery.
ReplyDeleteHi there, would you be so kind as to recommend a light fragrance for a 15 year old girl. She has tastes that are far more sophisticated than her tender years, but it should still be 'girlish' but not sickly. So no Britneys or the like, I tried a sample of that and it made me completely nauseous. I thought of Chanel's Mademoiselle but then I know nothing about all this! Many thanks.
ReplyDeleteSilvia- You're right, and I'm always happy to meet another Tiffany fan. There aren't that many of us around lately.
ReplyDeleteJo- My first thought as I read your request was L'Artisan Le Chasse Aux Papillions. But, I know that you mentioned that you live in a more remote area, so it might not be as readily available. Most of the floral fragrances from L'Occitane would probably work.
You can't really go wrong with Chanel. I might not be the biggest fan on Earth, but they are all good and a great introduction to the world of fragrance. I think that Chance was created to appeal to a younger crowd than their usual fare.
Some of the classic Lauders might also do. Both Beautiful and Knowing are very pretty and well blended. I'd stay away from the last decade's releases. They're generic and uninspired.
I'm with you on most of those celeb scents. I can't stand any of the Britneys and J-Los, and there's no force in the world to make me come anywhere near a Paris Hilton fragrance. The only exception is the Hilary Duff perfume. It's original and not at all what one would expect.
Many thanks! I'm only a couple of hours from London, I've made a note of those and I'll have a good sniff around in Selfridges :-)
ReplyDeletei had no idea tiffany even made perfume...it sounds nice though!
ReplyDeleteHi Gaia,
ReplyDeleteWhat would you recommend for an "aloof, formal Jackie O of a scent" kind of woman? I would love your input!