Searching For The Perfect Rose...

Years ago I had a cottage and dreams of a rose garden...

I was able to enjoy two huge and beautiful bushes of rustic roses but just couldn't seem to nurse any interesting cultivars to their full potential. Although these beauties can thrive in colder climates the ones available here weren't strong enough to sustain the winter cold a few hours north of Montreal. 

Sad, just sad.

Done with trying I left the rose behind and forgot about it but then last year, started to look at it again but this time not for it's legendary beauty but for it's glorious fragrance.

One doesn't have to be a perfumista to know that the rose has been a major part of the perfume industry and whether you can detect its notes or not, it's one of the most, if not the most used flower in the production of fragrances. 

Looking for the perfect rose...

I love rose water especially in the summer on a hot day. I keep some in a small spray bottle and it's such a pretty refresher but sadly its fragrance lasts barely a few minutes. Last summer is when I really started to consider a rose perfume. A uniflora but one that would include just enough of other components to carry its beauty forward. A rose garden in a bottle is what I'm looking for. Not powdery, not musky, just a simple beautiful rose garden!

The contenders...

Serge Lutens, Sa Majesté La Rose: Oh how I was thrilled to finally be able to sample not only a fragrance by Lutens but this one in particular and oh how surprised I was! Not a summery garden in any respect and there's nothing old fashioned about it. At first I just couldn't figure out what was so different about it and I didn't like it's opening much. After a few hours I was impressed by it's complexity. This is a brilliant fragrance and it's quite unforgettable so there's a good chance I might get it in the fall. Although an ode to the Moroccan rose, for me this is a winter rose due to the clove, musk and sweetness of the white honey but depending on one's tastes, it could be enjoyed on a very hot summer night. This one is a whopping $135.00 so there'll be lotta thinking if I do take the plunge!

Atelier Cologne, Rose Anonyme: I won't extrapolate too much here but at first spray it's a beautiful burst of Turkish rose that quickly changes and is joined by among other things, bergamot, ginger, Indonesian patchouli and Indian papyrus. Now I have no idea what this last component smells like on its own but hey, the combination works. This one I found would be quite nice for this time of year, a nice transition from winter to summer. Although I did enjoy it I don't think I'll consider a full size at $85.00 but might get a small purse spray.

L'Occitane en Provence, Rose Quatre Reines: Such a nice surprise! Not the true uniflora I'm looking for but somehow reminiscent of one. Lightly fruity without being powdery, it's the kind of rose every woman can truly enjoy. I tried it at the end of the day and found it quite uplifting and energizing. In other words, perfect for those mornings I would rather stay home than go to work. After about three hours I could notice the hint of musk a little more and this made it quite sexy. This one is very affordable at $48.00 but it also comes in a small roller ball Eau de Toilette at $28.00 and in a small size solid perfume at $14.00 which means there's a good chance I'll pick it up.

Rose de Chloé: This is the "walk in a rose garden" fragrance par excellence! Perfect, just perfect! I keep going back to Sephora for samples of it and just can't get enough! This is summer but this is also the perfect antidote to winter blues and wearing in on snow storm days have helped my morale tremendously. Can you tell this is my favorite so far? A burst of rose with a hint of green leaves is my first impression and then bergamot and magnolia come to play before giving amber and white musk all the toys in the box. Although this one lasts about six hours on me it's the one so far! Only problem is, it's $105.00!!! *cries*

Notice how the colors are in perfect harmony with the picture of roses shown above. 

It truly is a beautiful rose fragrance with the perfect feminine presentation. 

Why am I searching for the perfect rose these days more than before?

Recently I've had a song playing repetitively in my head interpreted by Bette Midler. It came out when I was very young and it was the title song of a movie loosely based on the life of Janice Joplin. I never saw it but the song has remained a favorite of mine. This time around it seems to be taking a new meaning. 

The Rose

Some say love, it is a river
That drowns the tender reed.
Some say love, it is a razor
That leaves your soul to bleed.
Some say love, it is a hunger,
An endless aching need.
I say love, it is a flower,
And you its only seed.

It's the heart afraid of breaking
That never learns to dance.
It's the dream afraid of waking
That never takes the chance.
It's the one who won't be taken,
Who cannot seem to give,
And the soul afraid of dyin'
That never learns to live.

When the night has been too lonely
And the road has been too long,
And you think that love is only
For the lucky and the strong,
Just remember in the winter
Far beneath the bitter snows
Lies the seed that with the sun's love
In the spring becomes the rose.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JzisVBFMMdE

I don't know about becoming a rose but it's spring time, a year alone has gone by and I've recently realised that I'm more than strong for having lived through it. I wouldn't have been able to do it alone, Catherine has been there every step of the way and this song is for her as well...

Resilient is what we are!


Do you have a favorite rose scented fragrance? I need recs, I need to explore more...