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Favorite Rainy Day Perfumes?

post #1 of 44
7/12/12 at 9:04am
Thread Starter 
It's raining, raining, raining where I live now, in Louisiana. Big summer thunderstorms of rain, and also gentler summer showers - persistent and drenching.

What are your favorite perfumes to wear on rainy days?

In the summer?
Spring?
Autumn?
Winter?

My favorite autumn rainy day perfume is Le Parfum de Therese - somehow it just speaks to me of a rainy day in a beautiful city in the fall. Wet cement and old buildings all around.

But it doesn't fit for summer! I'm at a loss. My first thought was En Passant - which would WORK if I liked it, which sadly I don't. On me there is a distinctive "mothball" note to the lilac - and it is just overall too wan for me. But it might suit another woman wonderfully.

Can't wait to hear your thoughts!
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post #2 of 44
7/12/12 at 9:26am
In spring and summer I like to wear Marc Jacobs Rain from Tropical Splash Collection, it's light, joyous and smells like fresh linen & clean laundry. I don't own a bottle, only a sample, but it's nice in such a weather.

On autumn and winter days when it's raining or snowing I like to wear something warm and cozy so I often reach for Dsquared2 Potion which is a really embracing fragrance. Now, that I have access to niche those choices may change in some time.
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post #3 of 44
7/12/12 at 9:28am
China Rain is my favorite for rainy days, no matter the season.
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post #4 of 44
7/13/12 at 4:09am
What a beautiful thread!
Well, for me it all depends on what I want to express with my fragrance in a rainy day: if I want to underline and accentuate the wet effect- mostly from late Spring to early Autumn- I choose Fleur de Liane, with its damp earth and woods. In Winter and colder months I generally look for the opposite effect: something burning hot, smoky, dry and comforting, like Bornèo or L'Eau Lente or an amber...
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post #5 of 44
7/13/12 at 4:54am
I love rain... My favourite rainy day scents are LArtisan Parfumeur Voleur de Roses for autumn and Annick Goutal Un Matin d'Orage for spring/summer. I would also add CB I Hate Perfume Black March for anytime of the year.
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post #6 of 44
7/13/12 at 5:14am
I love vintage Opium on cold, drech, rainy days. All warm and cosy. Latest Opium is too loud and brash for daytime wear.

I do wonder how the latest reformulation will age. When wearing Opium from a fresh bottles in the late 70's early 80's I do remember it as being a foghorn and lacking subtlety whereas my bottle from that era is soft and sensual. I remember a BN post a little while ago where someone had left there contemporary Opium alone for some months finding it too strident, then tried it and found it had mellowed considerably. Maybe maceration is the answer
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post #7 of 44
7/13/12 at 7:22am
narciso rodriguez edt
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post #8 of 44
7/13/12 at 8:15am
+1 for Un Matin d'Orage in spring & summer.

For autumn & spring, Flower Market by Lush/Gorilla Perfumes.

ln winter, like many others, l need something warm & ambery, like Amber Absolute.
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post #9 of 44
7/13/12 at 8:25am
With the rain, I need something to cut through the humidity. When it's cold, Bandit's sharp leather and greens work perfectly. And so does Knize Ten. But it's hard to imagine these in a hot New Orleans summer. For that, I'd go for my usual heat go-to perfumes, strong vetivers, especially Vetiver extraordinaire, or Sycomore.

cacio
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post #10 of 44
7/13/12 at 8:28am
Spring: Guerlain Apres l' Onde
Summer: Chanel Beige
Autumn: Divine L' homme Sage
Winter: Annik Goutal Encens Flamboyant
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post #11 of 44
7/13/12 at 9:19am
L'Ombre Dans L'Eau suits me during a summer thunderstorm. Something about the vegetal smell-- like rain pelting down on tomato plants, on our roses and blackcurrant bushes....perfect!
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post #12 of 44
7/13/12 at 9:30am
I always thought that I didn't change my 'fumes with the seasons or weather, but it's been so dreary and wet in England over the last couple of weeks, and I have taken a look back over what I have worn to see if I can detect any trends. In rainy summer weather I appear to have turned to my Chanels (which I always find comforting), leathers (Cuir Ottoman) and gourmands (Like This, Chinatown, Angel, Traversee du Bosphore, Jeux de Peau). Usually I'd expect to be wearing more greens around this time (Bel Respiro, Envy and Private Collection) or citruses/florals (Cristalle, Osmanthus), but evidently it's all gone to pot this year!
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post #13 of 44
7/13/12 at 9:44am
On rainy days there's nothing like Parfum D'Habit for me....
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post #14 of 44
7/13/12 at 11:55am
What a great thread! And much needed this summer in Britain...

L'Artisan Parfumeur Batucada and Ralph Lauren Ralph Rocks have both been brightening the rainy gloom for me, with their sweet, fruity, summery joy. At least I can smell like summer even if the weather isn't acting like it!
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post #15 of 44
7/13/12 at 12:04pm
Encre Noire by Lalique or creed cypres musc
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post #16 of 44
7/13/12 at 3:34pm
Boucheron Trouble is perfect for rainy days.
Guerlain Samsara edp too.
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post #17 of 44
7/14/12 at 4:30am
I love Annick Goutal Un Matin d'Orage and Guerlain Après L'Ondee on rainy days.
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post #18 of 44
7/14/12 at 7:49am
Mitsouko is great in the rain for me.

Also, in winter rain I like Ferre and Arpege.
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post #19 of 44
7/14/12 at 7:58am
Recently having moved away from Seattle, I greatly miss nearly every day being rainy. So moody! If only I had been a perfume-lover there--the possibilities of cocooning up in scent in such weather.

Since taking up the love affair with scent a short while ago, there has been one and only one rainy day. I wore En Passant, and as Pussinboots suggested, it was perfect (for those of us who happen to like it)--fleeting, warming yet suggesting a cool influx, atmospheric.

Silences by Jacomo and most of the CDG Incense series strike me as perfect for the Seattle weather I miss. Something really warming would be an excellent shelter from the storm, but what? Alityke's Opium seems like a fine suggestion.
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post #20 of 44
7/14/12 at 11:37am
Thread Starter 
Anomie et Ivoire - my husband is from Seattle, and so I know the rain, rain, chilly but wonderful rain there. So atmospheric! Your selections make so much sense for that climate and offer lovely shelter from the storm.

To those of you who suggested Un Matin d'Orage for a summer rainy day - thank you! It is perfect for this climate! As fate would have it, I had ordered a sample already (I am still on the white flowers quest from that "Southern flower" thread I started back in late May, lol).

Un Matin d'Orage arrived this morning. I'm wearing it now - it's perfect. Not too cloying, but the gardenia/jasmine is dense enough that it seems to float on top of the humidity, without getting lost in it - but not SO heavy that it becomes a dense flowerbomb. This absolutely conjures the smell of Louisiana gardenias after a rain.
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post #21 of 44
7/15/12 at 7:22pm
I am only answering the summer rain query. I find that light chypres suit the wet summer days and thunderstorms.
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post #22 of 44
7/15/12 at 9:42pm
Today I picked Annick Goutal Eau du Ciel.

Other faves: Guerlain Après l'Ondée, Frédéric Malle Angéliques sous la pluie and En passant, L'Artisan Voleur de Roses.
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post #23 of 44
7/15/12 at 10:30pm
It's been non-stop rain here with very few breaks for as long as I can remember. Also cold, so I've been wearing the warm fuzzy perfumes: Bois des Iles, Tom of Finland, L'Occitane's Labdanum. Today I might go with Calamity J.

But I like Cacio's recommendations and may go with Bandit or Knize Ten. Or Sycomore!
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post #24 of 44
7/16/12 at 1:26am
Quote:
Originally Posted by pussinboots View Post

To those of you who suggested Un Matin d'Orage for a summer rainy day - thank you! It is perfect for this climate! As fate would have it, I had ordered a sample already (I am still on the white flowers quest from that "Southern flower" thread I started back in late May, lol).

Un Matin d'Orage arrived this morning. I'm wearing it now - it's perfect. Not too cloying, but the gardenia/jasmine is dense enough that it seems to float on top of the humidity, without getting lost in it - but not SO heavy that it becomes a dense flowerbomb. This absolutely conjures the smell of Louisiana gardenias after a rain.

So glad you love it, puss! Your description is very apt. Enjoy it in good health!
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post #25 of 44
7/16/12 at 1:33am
NR For Him
Grey Flannel
Bois de Turquie (not sure why, but this does it for me in the rain!)
L'Artisan Iris Pallida
Washington Square
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post #26 of 44
7/16/12 at 1:49am
There is something about sombre grey rainy days that make me reach for one of these:

Serge Noire
Memoir Man
Grey Flannel

Must be a mood thingie...
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post #27 of 44
7/16/12 at 4:34am
Samsara
Parfum Sacree
Attar de Roses (Mecheri)
Shem-el-Nessim
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post #28 of 44
7/16/12 at 8:05am
a&i, we seem to have similar draws in the rainy weather.

Spring: Une Fleur de Cassie
Summer: En Passant
Autumn: Cadjmere or Aomassai
Winter: Avignon or Black Cashmere
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post #29 of 44
7/16/12 at 8:21am
It's been raining for two days here. Rain in Alaska is generally cool, probably autumn like for the South, so I'm like most of them here about those conditions. I like the warming fragrances, ambers, spices - trying to build up the heat, not cut the heat...
Musc Ravageur, Brandy, Piper Nigrum...
Opone really does it with that dry, dusty vibe. It sort of dries me out.
L'Heure Bleu is great - it matches the rain mood, if I'm indoors. But if I'm out and about, it starts making me feel cold. And the new formulation just isn't as rich or good as the vintage. I don't wear this one as much anymore in general.
Mitsouko
Spezie by Villoresi - a summer spice, nice
Nuit de Tubereuse, one of my new favorites, an ambery tuberose, is doing well in the cold wet. I've already used up my sample.
Many irises - sort of powdery, cuddly and dry.
But my favorite, the one I'm wearing now, is Musc Ravageur.
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post #30 of 44
7/16/12 at 9:01am
Good call on L'Heure Bleue, flathorn. l have only discovered recently that this one works really well on rainy afternoons/evenings at home.
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post #31 of 44
1/31/13 at 2:06am
I look for specific scents on rainy days only during the colder months. Today is miserable, grey and wet and I'm doused in Chamade and its promise of spring and feeling great.
Pentachords Verdant also brings a welcome touch of the outdoors and the natural world when I am stuck inside.
From the replies above, I can see how the bitter greens of Grey Flannel would probably also suit me on a cold rainy day - must try it then.
One I wouldn't go for would be Apres l'Ondee - that would just make me miserable, I think. I'd save that for other days when the mood doesn't need lifting.
I don't go for anything specific when it rains during summer months (maybe things like L'Ombre dans L'Eau or Eau de Campagne a bit more), because the rain doesn't really bother me then.
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post #32 of 44
1/31/13 at 2:24am
Shame on me for forgetting who it is, but one astute BNer in their review of Bois des Iles, said something to the effect that it is the perfect antidote to a rainy day. I wholeheartedly agree !
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post #33 of 44
1/31/13 at 9:36am
Serge Lutens' Chene is my go-to for our massive monsoon rains!
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post #34 of 44
2/2/13 at 12:40pm
Rainy days can require a fragrance that blends with the atmosphere or one that offers a contrast or release from the over-cast dampness. Mitsouko reminds me of musty, leather-bound books and of a day spent indoors reading. On the other hand, La Chasse aux Papillons Extreme evokes a sun-drenched field of flowers and provides a sunny pick-me-up. Also, and this is probably strange, Quelques Fleurs l`Original reminds me of freshly washed hair—I find this scent comforting during rainy weather.
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post #35 of 44
2/3/13 at 11:29am
Fleur de Rocaille (1993) and Eau Premiere Chanel.
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post #36 of 44
2/9/13 at 4:16pm
If it's rainy and cold and I'm looking for coziness and warmth, I like Hypnotic Poison. If it's rainy and I want to evoke sunshine, I like Dyptique Oyedo or sometimes Guerlain Herba Fresca. And, to echo others, Sycomore seems to work for me in all seasons and all weather.
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post #37 of 44
2/10/13 at 5:44am
I enjoy Hermes Un Jardin En Meditarranee on rainy summerdays.
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post #38 of 44
2/15/13 at 8:09am
My favorites for a rainy day are Guerlain Apres l'Ondee and Guerlain L'Heure Bleue.
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post #39 of 44
2/15/13 at 11:04am
I love to wear rose or iris perfumes during
rainy weather:
Voleur de Rose
Fleur de The Rose Bulgare
Rive Gauche
Ferre
Iris Poudre
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post #40 of 44
2/15/13 at 11:14am
L' Instant edt.
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post #41 of 44
2/15/13 at 12:16pm
+1 for Bois des Iles
Also any deep leather / smoky / non sweet tobacco's will be grt IMO.
I like Bandit / Tuscan Leather / NR for Him / Knize 10 to name a few...
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post #42 of 44
2/15/13 at 7:19pm
Aimez-Moi
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post #43 of 44
2/16/13 at 9:21am
Definitely Mitsouko
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post #44 of 44
2/16/13 at 6:18pm
Being that I live in the Seattle area it's always a rainy day. ; )

Usually it's things that I'm not totally comfortable with wearing out of the house or am still learning to love. Rainy days are often a good time to experiment. If it's a stressful rainy day then I wear Amazing Grace since it reminds me of a specific time in my childhood when I felt level and protected.
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