Help choose perfume for a fresh start

Good for you, Restlessoul! We all have to follow our hearts and
as far as I am concerned, a happy mother = happy children.
Do hope your new start is to your liking!
May I suggest you treat yourself to one of the Chanels or
Diors. They are all high-class, womanly, scents with a presence.
Try them in the department store first - Dune (Dior) and Chance
(Chanel) are both lovely, as are most of the older scents (Miss
Dior, Coco, Cristalle etc.)
Happy hunting and good luck in the future.

Dear restlessoul, OF COURSE you are NOT selfish, don`t even think that thought!!! My suggestion for you is to go get Flowerbomb by Victor&Rolf.
Sic! Good luck

:toppie: GOOD FOR YOU!!! I've been staying home for a year now.....not loving it too much . I agree with Kewart about going with a Dior or Chanel. Dior Diorissimo seems perfect for a fresh start since Lily of the Valley is an early spring/renewal flower and Chanel in any form seems like a luxury.

Hey restless soul, just looked at your profile - I was born in Canada too!
(I also live here now).

No, you are not selfish. Selfish would be to stay home and compain and make everybody feel bad because you are a stay at home mom and you are sacrificing your life for them. (Not that I am saying that this is what you have been doing, but this is one of the definition of selfish mothers for me, besides those obvious ones that never care for their children at all if those exist).

This is the best thing you can do! By being happy, strong and independent you are giving your daughter example. By taking care of yourself you are giving her example. You can't give and be positive if you are drained out. The rule for moms in order to stay good moms and stay healthy and be able to care for their families for long years to come (and there lots of those ahead of us!) are to first of all make sure you are healthy, rested, happy and strong.

Anyways, back to your perfume question - my suggestions are not unsimilar to those before me -

Miss Dior

No. 5 parfum (I don't recommend the other forms)

Allure EDT (Chanel)
Narciso Rodriguez EDT

Allure EDT (Chanel)

Narciso Rodriguez EDT

Songes by Annick Goutal (I don't know if that's considered niche anymore, it in all of our department stores; if you have access to it I say go get it - it's one of the prettiest perfumes I had in a long time!)

Spring Flower by Creed (Again, I am not sure of availablity, they are seen so often everywhere, that I think they might not be so hard to get in Greece)

Pierre Balmain Ivoire

restlessoul -
It's so brave of you to speak as you do, and assert you need more in your life for the health of yourself and your family.

Trust me - I'm the voice of experience on this issue. Sacrificing your interests and heart's desire for your family will work for a while, but will come back and bushwhack you at some point in the future. It happened to me - marrying the wrong person for my little daughter when I became widowed, thinking I was doing the best thing by her, then waking up one morning 25 years later, realizing I'd sacrificed my whole life, didn't know myself, and worst of all, my daughter would have been happier if I'd been upfront from the start about my own needs, even if the family had to accommodate them a bit as the years went on (my daughter told me this later). :-(

It's not an issue of selfishness, so don't use that awful word again, especially around your husband or children. They need to be expected to respect your decision. Urges like yours are signs of destinies that are not being fulfilled. Anyway, I'm happy now doing all the things I should have done years ago (don't ask!), and have the best relationship of my life with my daughter, ironically enough, after I got a divorce (I'm not advocating divorce - it's better to have a husband you love, and still be fulfilled!). End of sermon :-)

I second the recommendation about Chanel Coco or #5. If you're a chypre lover, you can get the classic dry Bandit by Robert Piguet on ebay very reasonably priced. Ivoire by Balmain is a versatile but distinctive cool green floral. Dior Addict is kind of fresh and sassy, but rich. Tiffany is a timeless, classy floral bouquet if Chanel #5's aldehydes get to you. It's kind of hard to give recommendations without knowing your tastes - what sort of fragrances have you liked to this point?