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Too Special for Words
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, 7th July 2011 at 10:13 AM (12947 Views)
Have you ever had a perfume that was so special, important or beautiful to you, that you put off writing a review, because you simply couldn't put it into words? l have, & l decided to attempt my first blog post on it, instead of trying to fit the story into a review.
For me, that perfume is Estee Lauder Private Collection Tuberose Gardenia.
ln 2008, after being into perfume pretty much all my life, l was seeing a guy from California who told me he disliked my "old lady" perfumes. Yes, l know, a very negative & ignorant comment, but wanting to please him, l asked him what kind of perfumes he did like. He said; "What's that white flower with the thick, waxy petals & that amazing smell?" Straightaway l said; "Gardenia?" "Yes, that's the one!" he said. "Well, it so happens l love that smell, too!" said l.
And so began the journey that led me to basenotes, & to owning more than forty bottles, where previously l only ever had two or three at a time! l searched on the net for "gardenia perfumes"; first l found the wonderful blog Now Smell This, & then l made it here & spent hours reading reviews. (lt was another two years of lurking shyly before l became a member!) Still being ignorant of how to get samples, l made three blind buys on ebay; Yves Rocher's Pur Desir de Gardenia, Elizabeth Taylor Gardenia, & PCTG. The other two have their merits, but well, l knew immediately that this was the one, & it still stands as my most successful blind buy ever! Beginner's luck, l suppose?
That guy & l spent a holiday together in Greece soon after, & l wore PCTG every evening. l have rarely felt so beautiful, classy & elegant. On a warm, sultry night, this perfume hangs in the air around me for hours & hours. Words like "radiant", "shimmering" & "pearlescent" come to mind. lt draws a lot of compliments, & many women want to know where they can get it.
So what does it smell like? l can hardly bring myself to try to dissect it, but it is a seamless blend of a very true gardenia with a translucent tuberose; so well blended that it's hard to separate them as notes. l get lilac & a touch of neroli in the opening. l'm not sure what rosewood smells like, so l can't tell you if l smell it here. The base comes so many hours later that l've never really paid attention to it, but the vanilla is definitely not-too-sweet, & like the other notes it segues seamlessly into the mix. l find l can only wear it when l'm on holiday in a warm climate, when lm tanned & relaxed, & want to feel at my most beautiful. l tried wearing it once here in the UK for an outdoor party, & on a cool evening it just didn't radiate in the same way.
The relationship with "that guy" came to an end, although we do bump into one another occasionally, & he still tells me l smell good, ha! But my perfume journey continues apace; from researching gardenias l moved on to tuberose, jasmine, ambers, tropical florals, florientals, etc., etc...
But PCTG will always hold a special place in my heart, for being the one that started it all, & for being so unutterably beautiful.
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