Come Spring Fling with us

On the SOTD thread many people asked that those of us who went share with you. So, I guess I'll take the first stab at that:
Well, where to start. It's still dark and you're rolling out of bed. You briefly flirt with the idea of choosing a fragrance, but quickly realize that you need to go scentless - so you'll be ready. You have a cup of coffee and head for the train.

Midtown is a ghost town at 8:00 AM on a Saturday. On some streets you can hear your own footsteps. You walk past huge and famous stores, their windows still dark. Bergdorf's looks forbiddingly quiet until you turn the corner and approach the side door. An employee gives you directions to the cafe downstairs. You might briefly flirt with the idea of being the lone shopper as you walk through accessories on the first floor, but you're better behaved than that so you head downstairs. There are flocks of sa's on the lower level, and a low buzz and the smell of food coming from a staircase to your left. As you walk in a woman smiles and hands you a bag.

You see Neil Morris before anyone else. He's bigger and more beautiful than everyone else in the room. That man has great energy. But you don't really know Neil Morris so you don't shout, "Neil! Neil!" from the steps. You find a seat. You have some nice coffee, a danish and some fresh squeezed orange juice and try to decide whether to paw through your goodie bag immediately or wait until you get home and can really play with it. I waited, but let's look now:

You got a Holiday candle from Nest. The box is a gorgeous velvet.Samples of :
Caron - Pour Un Homme De Caron
Caron - Infini
Tom Ford for Men Cream
a very generous 1.6 oz of Gucci Flora cream
and a lot of skin care samples and gold bag.

The presenters pass around paper strips and displays. Tom Crutchfield of Annick Goutal is especially charismatic. And the gentlemen from Amouage give samples of the newly rereleased Ubar.

Then they turn you loose after telling you the first 30 people to visit Jo Malone will get a little gift.
The gift from Jo Malone includes samples of the new fragrances, cream and body wash. It comes in a lovely black bag.
You find Karen Adams who gives you your beautiful gold satin bag of samples , your sniffapalooza pen, your lunch tickets, and your name tag. She also gives you a warm welcome. Karen is adorable. She's tall and lanky and cool.Throughout the weekend she's tweeting.

I can't speak for you, but what I found most exciting were the new Sisley perfumes, and brand I had never heard of - I'm finding out who they were.

What is exciting at Bergdorf? Well, you buy an AG roller of Un Matin d'Orage you are entered in a lottery for a butterfly bottle filled with the fragrance of your choice (but you don't win) and you get a half ounce of Ambre Fetiche Eau de Parfum.

Then Lunch. Lunch is nice. The apple tart at the end, is amazing. The speakers include a elegant gentleman from Molinard. He has a heavy accent and they keep asking if you want coffee while he's talking, but after everyone assures you that you heard correctly. He did in fact invite all of you to visit him in Grasse.

At Takashimaya you buy a bottle of Divine for $49.00, They had Miller Harris Couer d'Ete on sale as well, but you didn't get that. Some other fragrances on sale as well. You have a cupcake that is to die for, with pieces of orange. Nice ice tea. Then Neil Morris signs the bottle of Takashimaya that you buy, with a beautiful silver pen.

Sadly you have to go to Bendel and Spafumerie with someone else. I ran out of steam at 3:30. I'd had a cold all week. The dayquil was wearing off. I had to go.

Sunday is far more relaxed. Bond 9 puts our a gorgeous continental breakfast. The store is a long narrow space, with ceilings high enough to hang tapestries (with a picture of the monalisa if I recall correctly) like a tent. There are fountains of their fragrances (though not all) and arrays of bottles on long glass tables. The staff is cheerful and attentive. When you leave they hand you a bag, it's filled with their samples, wrapped like candy, and a bon bon of Astor Place. Sunday, downtown is relaxed and you can go where you want in the order you choose. Let's go to La Labo. You arrive too late for the samples but still get to check out their selection. Were you standing beside me I would have pointed out the Tuberose and the Bergamote to you. I liked those best.

Then off to Lafco. I love Lafco. It's big and airy and smells good. It's got a thousand things to smell, candles and potpouri and even candy. And of course perfume. You might find out you love Santa Maria Novella. You might even buy shaving cream or mouth wash. I was most intrigued by the Santa Maria Novella and the Eau D'Italie, but maybe you would have been more intrigued by the Lorenzo Villoresi.

We have to hurry to Bloomingdales Soho, because they have gifts for us! They've gone all out. Jo Malone loads you up with samples, lots and lots of samples. There are creams and samples and all sorts of wonderfulness.

Before we go to L'Artisan and lunch, come with me to the Space NK counter because they are doing something interesting. First their perfumes are gorgeous, light airy and they smell like flowers not chemicals. But they are doing something amazing. They are offering little bottles for $30. You don't have to hand over your retirement money on a bottle you many never use. You can buy a little one, for a reasonable cost. Wow.

At L'Artisan you might be standing next to me when I fall in love with the limited edition Fleur de Narcissus. Oh my.

At lunch Gerald Dubose made the women swoon both with his fragrances and with his poetry. The salmon cake was amazingly delicious.

Now we are off to Aedes de Venustas, which is one of my favorite places. They get you tipsy on bellinis, sell you beautiful perfumes and load you up with the samples of your choice.

Whew. Ok, if I haven't exhausted you, hopefully some others will chime in and show you everything I missed.

Clearly I need an editor to come in and clean things up, before I ever hit send. Please bear with me.

I've left things out, like how Neil Morris smells delicious. And Dawn Spencer Hurwitz gave samples of Viridian, Cyan and Quinacridone Violet. She's one of the most charming people you'll ever meet. Both Karens are warm and make time to make everyone feel included, and it's a busy weekend for them, Gerald Dubose makes gorgeous perfume. We smelled two. They smelled like frankincense to me, but there isn't any in either of the ones we got to smell. I am forgetting other things too.

Chaya must fill in the gaps.

Neil is about six and a half feet tall, and his wrists are as thick as small trees.Not a fat man, at all, but he's solid and big. He's bald as an egg - and he wears Takashimaya beautifully. On him it's very dry and a little smoky. He will hug you. He did not launch a new fragrance at the event, but when you speak with him, it's clear he's still plotting perfume persistently. (I have a weakness for alliteration. I apologize.)
As Veuve AmiotTwolf points out they (the Sisley) are called 1, 2, and 3. I believe that is permanent, so that each wearer can assign their own name. 1 is a light pretty citrus floral. I liked it. I did not however think it was their most interesting. 2, they say, is more masculine. It is a unisex, I think. What I loved about it was the basil. The basil was clear and very much a star of the composition, where usually it gets relegated to the chorus. Let's call it a unisex, ok? 3 was also very beautiful and spicier. More feminine. If I were going to buy just one I would end up at the counter wavering for a long time. The packaging is cheerful and kind of makes me think of European stoneware, with fruit painted on a white background in bright colors. I tried Eau d'Campagne for the first time. That was beautiful. I almost took out my wallet and bought a huge bottle right away. I didn't and it turned out to be a good thing, because it did not dry down as nicely on me. It kept the hebal quality I liked but developed something kind of mushroomy or cheeselike on my skin. However, if it dries down nicer on any of you, I volunteer to follow you around and sniff you.

Gerald is the perfumer behind G Knight Perfumes. He is a huge, very dark man, with long dreads and the most cherubic face you have ever seen. Kinghtfall and Knightfall Maiden blend orange zest and spices in a way that is not redolent of a christmas potpourri. There is a quality that I found reminiscent of frankincense, but he assures me it isn't. He also assures me that the impression is not ridiculous. The woman's has a much stronger emphasis on the jasmine, but the two are very much related. You might want to check out his website: http://www.gknight.net/ His poetry is reads fast and deep and is romantic without a drop of saccharine. I have absolutely no background in poetry and don't understand the craft, so I can't do better than that with the description. I can only say I liked it.

Apart from the lunch seatings on the second day (because the restaurant is not a huge one) time on everything was fairly fluid. You could arrive a little late, leave a little early, run over to another nearby shop if you really wanted (and if you're only in NY for a weekend you might very much want to) So, toward the end people start trickling out and drifting toward the next destination. Everything is in walking distance of one another. Though I didn't envy Chaya her poor foot.

Tdem, what company was the man in the yellow pants, with the tulips (the man not the pants) from?

Yes! Thank you!

Maybe color coded scarves or funny hats. Or some really strong perfume. Ok, maybe not the really strong perfume.