Strange Smells: Chandler Burr Article in New York Times

15 Comments

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  Tania: Wait till he tries Jardenia with that cheese note. August 28, 2005 at 1:30pm Reply
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  BoisdeJasmin: I would love to hear his take on that one! August 28, 2005 at 2:56pm Reply
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  Anya: I may brew up a Katerina ‘fume and send it to him, I’m sure it will meet all his strange expectations. As the storm started here Thursday night, I detected an ozonic, musty, decay, floral scent. Ahem. At first I thought it was me! The preparations had taken a toll on my schvitz factor, but as I sat by the open window, and the rains fell, and the wind blew, this off-putting, yet hypnotic scent kept hitting me in waves.

  A couple of exploratory sniffs later, I confirmed it wasn’t me, but Katerina. Yes, she is a real stinker.

  In reference to the cheese note — all clothing in a hamper in Miami smells like cheese. Don’t ask me why. Guess I’ll have to start tincturing the cotton dresses or the Camembert. Where will it end?

  Day Four – no air conditioning. No TV. I’m delerious.

  But at least I’m not Chandler Burr, hee hee. August 28, 2005 at 4:43pm Reply
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  Katie: There’s also a bit with Burr in a fragrance article in this month’s Allure magazine. It reads a lot like a bit of a cat fight in some ways, which is pretty funny I think. No online links for the article, though, sorry! August 28, 2005 at 6:34pm Reply
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  Laura: Interesting article, once you ignore the Great Me Intrusions. August 28, 2005 at 6:43pm Reply
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  BoisdeJasmin: Anya, that sounds like a strange smell. I recall the weirdest scent in the year two years ago when we had a hurricane. It was extremely disconcerting.

  Wishing you to regain your power as quickly as possible! No a/c is just bad bad news for me. August 28, 2005 at 8:55pm Reply
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  BoisdeJasmin: Katie, I caught bits of that article. Somehow that was odd overall, but perhaps I have not read Allure in a long time. August 28, 2005 at 8:56pm Reply
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  BoisdeJasmin: L, it made me want to retest Diorella (even though my olfactory image of Diorella is a peach crushed in a leather handbag). August 28, 2005 at 9:01pm Reply
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  Tania: I also couldn’t help but notice that he’s milking the same Luca Turin quotes in piece after piece. It’s really disconcerting if you’ve read so many of his pieces on perfume, as we (we being the freaks) all somehow end up doing. But it’s also fascinating from a writer point of view—that you can keep selling the same story over and over until the well goes dry!

  (It’s like those old cookbooks that told the harried housewife how to make a week of meals out of a single Sunday roast. Actually, I kind of admire it. It’s smarter than what I do with *my* writing—i.e., publish it for free on my blog, get zero audience, and never stay on the same topic long enough to carve out any sort of niche for myself.)

  I also don’t think Fresh Sugar and Fresh Sake are all that unusual. In fact, I can’t remember either one in the slightest. I’ve tried them both countless times, waiting for an impression to register, and one never does. Well, as always, YMMV. August 28, 2005 at 9:28pm Reply
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  Tania: By zero audience, I mean, of course, zero audience not previously known or related to me. 😉 August 28, 2005 at 10:11pm Reply
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  Katie: Hey V – finally I’m not alone! Yay! I don’t care for any of the Fresh fragrances I’ve tried either. (At best, they’ve left me indifferent.)

  The Allure article kind of was odd overall, and I don’t know if its the way the editing went or the way the writer spliced together his/her (?) interviews. Still, the “Bullsh**! You tell him bullsh**,” comment made me giggle at the over-arch seriousness of it all. August 28, 2005 at 11:52pm Reply
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  Tania: Aw, I want to see this Allure article. I can’t believe you guys are actually going to make me read Allure. Can’t anyone say to hell with copyright law and post it really quick? 😉 August 29, 2005 at 10:24am Reply
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  Tania: Ugh, I just read the Allure piece during lunch. What a lot of twaddle. Reminded me of why I never read women’s magazines. They assume we’re all brainless zombies who need someone to tell us what’s chic. And Sophie Grossman came off sounding like the worst kind of narrow-minded ninny. I wonder if she really is one or was just edited to sound that way? August 29, 2005 at 1:43pm Reply
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  Tania: Funny, my comment didn’t show up. I just wanted to say I bought the Allure over lunch and read the article and was reminded of why I don’t read women’s magazines. They think we’re all brainless zombies shuffling along waiting for someone to tell us what to wear. Sofja Grossman came off like a ninny, too. I love that women like her are still around, because it makes my staid little life seem rebellious. It’s wonderful to know I can still upset someone by spraying on a little vetiver. Ha! August 29, 2005 at 4:58pm Reply
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  Tania: Ugh, OK, now my previous comment shows up. Please feel free to delete one of them and this comment too. :p August 29, 2005 at 4:58pm Reply