A year ago today, I plunged into this blog’s inaugural entry with no preamble whatsoever. So I think it’s right that I mark the first anniversary of Persolaise.com by going straight to the heart of today’s post: a special, celebratory competition.
I’ve raided my personal collection to create two prizes for you. The first is a sample of each of the following:
However, in addition to the above I thought I’d include small vials of dilutions of a few natural raw materials and aromachemicals, partly as a way of acknowledging their importance in the creation of our bottled treasures, and partly as a way of indicating the direction in which this blog will hopefully go over the course of the next twelve months. So Prize #1 will also contain some:
Vannila absolute
Synthetic castoreum
Exaltolide
Tonka bean absolute
Synthetic civet
and Atlas cedarwood oil
Prize #2 will contain samples of:
as well as dilutions of:
Vanilla absolute
Synthetic castoreum
and synthetic civet
If you’d like to enter, please leave a comment in which you complete the following sentence: Perfume is important to me because…
Prize #1 will be awarded to the person who leaves what I consider to be the most interesting, attention-grabbing response. Prize #2 will be awarded to a randomly chosen entrant.
Please read the terms and conditions below carefully as I’ve had to tweak certain aspects of them since the last time I held a draw, especially in relation to what you have to do if you become a winner.
Finally, I’d just like to say a massive Thank you to all of you for continuing to read my blog and taking the time to share your views and thoughts. It’s been a pleasure exchanging ideas with each and every one of you. I hope you’ll all stick around for at least one more year!
Competition Terms & Conditions:
i) the competition/draw will be open until 10 pm (UK time) on Thursday 17th March; ii) the winner of prize #1 will be selected by me; the winner of prize #2 will be selected at random; both winners will be announced on this blog; iii) if a winner has not made contact with me before Saturday 26th March in order to claim his/her prize, an alternative winner will be selected; iv) readers from anywhere in the world are eligible to enter; v) by entering the draw, you indicate that customs regulations in your country permit you to receive an alcohol-based perfume / perfumery product posted from the UK; vi) if the prizes are lost in transit, it will not be possible for replacements to be sent; vii) the address of the winner will not be kept on record, nor will it be passed to any third parties; viii) I take no responsibility for the composition of the perfume samples, as regards potential allergens and/or restricted materials.
Good luck!
Persolaise.
Perfume is important to me because it changed my life for the better. Perfume made me more aware of myself, my likes and dislikes, my moods and emotions in an immediate, direct and absolute way that mere words could never convey.
Perfume functions as a part of me that projects my feelings to the world, at least the part of the world I let come near enough. 🙂
Perfume also opened the way for me into the land of writing. I always wanted to write and was held back by many things. Perfume never even looked at all those oh so important reasons and just made me write about it. Now the harder part is being able to stop for air sometimes. 😉
Perfume is important to me because through the wold of blogging about my passion, I met the most wonderful group of people, many of whom I now consider friends.
That something so intimate and personal like the sense and sensation of smell can be transmitted in such a seemingly impersonal medium as the internet, through shared experiences is a feeling that I do not want to miss any more.
I could go on, but I believe I have made the most important points. Perfume is important to me because I love it. In the end it is as simple as that.
Hi Persolaise!
I do not want to be entered into the draw, I just want to say Happy blogoversary and thank you for the interesting blog.
Hi Persolaise,
Happy blogging birthday! I'm very happy to have came across it as it is one of the few blogs I can put up with, and keep up with!
Perfume is important to me because… I can't imagine my life without it. I wouldn't get to experience a thousand hands labouring over one creation. I wouldn't get to explore worlds stored in little glass vials. I wouldn't get to appreciate a vast open sea, an expansing tibetan field or a smoky temple, an orange grove in rome or the impression it leaves of a person… that person's smell, it can knock you to your feet…
Happy blog birthday Persolaise!
Perfume is important to me because… it cured me of my sinus problem! But more importantly it was my companion. For all the times I was happy or sad or somewhere in between and didn't have anyone to talk to, I was able to share it with my perfume – from the melancholy of Apres L'Ondee to the exuberance of Pink Sugar. I learnt not to be afraid of feeling but to immerse myself in the mood of the moment and just be.
Perfume is important to me because it's art for the nose, possibly our most neglected sense, and art, be it music, perfume, or a painting, makes us smarter and happier.
Very fun and generous draw! Happy anniversary.
Happy blog birthday, Persolaise! You are appreciated, read and anticioated – and much more than you know! 😉
Perfume is important to me because it defines and delineates the many facets of who I am on any day and in any mood. Siren or sinner, light and dark, minx or muse, writer and woman, creatrix or monument – there is a perfume for each mood and every sparkling facet of who and what I am. In every fragrant trace I leave behind, there is a memory and a color, yet another facet of -me.
Perfume is importation to me because it triggers fond memories of my past.
Driving by a field of fresh mowed hay, spring bouquets of lilac and hyacinth and my grandmothers secret fragrance are just a small sample of some special memories.
Perfume represents people, places and things that are significant is our lives.
Happy 1st Anniversary!
Olfactoriastravels, thanks very much for your entry. You're in the competition.
Undina, thanks very much indeed. I appreciate your kind words.
Liam, you're in the competition too; thanks for your entry.
Do you mind if I just ask: what do you mean about being able to "keep up" with my blog? Are you referring to the fact that I don't upload new posts every five minutes?
Cutecandyhearts, you're in the competition too. Thanks for your entry.
Elisa, your name's on the list too. Thanks for taking part.
Tarleisio, thanks for your sweet words. You're in the competition too.
Cherie, thanks for your entry. You're in the competition.
Perfume is important to me because it fulfills my life in a manner nothing else seems to be able to. I don't know why it alleviates stress, makes me feel happy, sexy, relaxed, philosophical and many more other things. Choosing one to smell opens a door into new experiences.
Happy blogoversary! 🙂
Perfume is important to me because it is soooo beautiful in all it`s parts!! From the box to the flacon to the `juice`, just looking and admiring is a rich, emotional expierience 🙂 BUT THEN you spritz or sensuously dab the scent onto your skin, and AHHHHHHHH……There is this bit of heaven on earth that can only be named Perfume!! 🙂
Ines, thanks for your entry. You're in the competition.
Linda, your name's on the list too. Thanks for your words.
Perfume is important to me because it almost never fails to raise my spirits. It's afforable art and has a fascinating history .It's also a more approachable art , Andy Tauer answers comments etc. I don't think I'd see as many interviews with or "talk" to so many painters , composers etc.
Many Happy Returns for your Blog, Persolaise:-)
You've posed quite a question there!
Perfume is important to me because I have quite a keen sense of smell so I like to choose different scents to accompany me through my life; I enjoy the challenge of discovering what works for me.
cheerio, and I hope you are celebrating in style for your blog's birthday,
Anna in Edinburgh
Persolaise, congratulations on the occasion of the first anniversary of your blog. I've always enjoyed reading what you have to say and I sincerely hope you keep it up for a long time to come. I also look forward to the outcomes from your own perfumery work.
I don't wish to be entered in the draw, as I have won here before, but for me, perfume is important obviously for a number of reasons, but primarily because it makes me feel good. Simple as that. It may be a slightly selfish motive, but in a world where there is a lot of unhappiness, something that consistently makes me feel good is surely a lovely thing.
Congratulations Mr. Persolaise, on your one-year anniversary!
Now, for my entry in the draw. Perfume is important to me because it affords me the opportunity to recreate myself every day. I compensate for my shortcomings, celebrate my eccentricities and push the boundaries of my comfort zone by surrounding myself with fragrances that fill in the gaps of my emotions (or shave off the excess). Perfume is my tool for transmogrification, my drug of choice.
Oh how fast has a year gone by! Congratulations on making it and here's to many more =)
Perfume is important to me because it is a part of who I am. Besides my outward appearance, my behavior, and actions perfume helps convey a sense of who I am. Be it the tiny bottle of Chanel No. 5 I found as a little girl in the depth of my mother's closet, stealing my aunt's Diorissimo to wear while I played basketball as a junior high kid who must of smelled REALLY good… to BBW Country Apple of a silly 16-yr old girl who just got a taste of first love, then the wide-eyed, very tired college student who received her first swap of Nina Ricci Premier Jour Lucky Day and thought wow someone out there really LOVES me… countless scents are tied with countless memories that will forever be a part of me.
I am also really glad to have met, interacted with so many perfume lovers out there who share the same passion and has helped me grow tremendously through swaps, splits, blogs and other forms of contact. I know you guys without ever having met you in person. For that I'm eternally grateful.
So again, here's to another year!
Perfume is important to me because it never ceases to fascinate me.
I often wear it as it as a soul-soothing companion, a chosen aura, an impalpable realm of beauty that colors my days.
Like a true spirit, perfume is untouchable yet present in ways words often fail to express. It goes further and beyond our ordinary lives , it connects us to the ancient roots of our beings.
I see the world of perfumes as reflecting some of our essential contradictions: the desire and difficulty to share likings or tastes with others, the immediacy and earthiness of bodily experiences that make us struggle with words to express it, not to mention the inevitable search for our own idealistic beauty in a money-dominated space.
You see, to me perfume is not a mere pleasure I seek for my own self-satisfaction. It is the exploration of a long forgotten realm, a quest, a way of re-enchanting the world, my world, drop by drop.
Perfume is important to me because while it speaks to me as an art form — one that is fully as engaging as visual, musical, or literary art — it seems to bypass all of my emotional and intellectual defenses and directly touch my core in a way that art, music, and literature cannot do. Against them, I mount all sorts of filters and barriers. Perfume, I just… let in.
Thank you for this wonderful blog and happy anniversary.
Angela, thanks for writing. You're in the competition.
Anna, thanks for your words and good wishes. Your name's on the list of entrants.
Michael, thanks very much indeed for the encouragement and for continuing to read my blog.
Carrie, thanks for your entry. You're in the competition.
Womo531, thanks for your entry. I'm also really grateful for the opportunities the Net has given to interact with other perfume lovers.
Isayah, thanks for your entry. You're in the competition.
Olenska, thank you for taking part. Your name's on the list of entrants.
Perfume is important to me because they bring me memories, sometimes good memories, sometimes bad memories.
Only love and perfumes can bring this kind of emotions.
Congratulations for the blog, i want to be here for the special giveaway for 10 years anniversary!
Perfume is important to me beacuse it manages and highlights all my moods, joys, sorrows and happy moments, nostalgia and love, simply my day-to-day state of mind and body. I cannot imagine living without perfume. Congrats and many thanks for entering me iin the drawing. Alica – alica@cleis.net
Perfume is important to me because it transports me through time and space.
Each fragrance is individually connected to a situation regardless of where or when it happened, like déjà vu in a bottle.
Congratulations! Happy blog birthday Persolaise!
A year! Quite a milestone. I like the idea of featuring materials in upcoming posts. Will keep visiting…
My entry (I hope):
Perfume is important to me because it speaks. Just as the sight of green leaves fills me like a shout. And the flavor of tart apples entertains me like a well-timed joke. And the hiss of the tea kettle announces five minutes of peace. And the feel of damp curls on my little boy's head whispers childhood memories. If everyday experiences speak through the senses, then perfume is essential to the conversation.
Alastair in the Arabian Gulf
Perfume is important to me because without it, I'm not quite sure of who I am.
Congratulations on your anniversary!
Perfume is to me what ketchup is to pizza.
They can be separated but something is missing. You put them together and it is a totally different world.
That applies to me too. Give me my bottle of good perfume and you will say that I am stoned. It completes me. To go out without perfume is like going out with no clothes on me.
The perfume is magnum opus of beauty and style. It does not matter if you dress with the world's most expensive clothes if you do not have a perfume to complement you then is in vain. Perfume is the invisible visit card. The perfume gets in the room before the clothes and stays there after you are gone… like an unsee presence.
That's why perfume is important to me.
Daniel, thanks very much for your entry. The 10th anniversary of Persolaise?? There's an interesting thought… 😉
Alica, thanks very much for your entry. You're in the competition.
RRomani, thanks for your contrbution.
Alastair, thanks very much indeed for your entry; you're in the running too.
StyleSpy, thanks for writing. Your name's been added to the list of entrants.
Paul, thanks for your submission. You're in the competition too.
Perfume is important to be because of what it has become. Perfume used to be a simple spritz before I walked out the door without a thought given. Perfume has become an exploration, or maybe an expression, of mood, memory and sensation. Some days it is an antidote, good medicine for whatever is ailing me. How do I feel today? Do I need that last layer to keep me warm enouh to face an icy wind? I can wrap myself with amber and spices or wood smoke. Do I need to feel the Spring sun shine down on my face? I can wrap myself in a soft fragrant floral. Do I need to cool down after the tenth day in a row of 100 degree heat? I can drench myself in a cool aquatic. Am I feeling old? With a single spray I can bring back a Sunday morning from years ago when my mother sprayed toilet water on me and my sisters before we were off to church. Do I need an escape? Then I'm off to Morocco or to the mountains or the beach or maybe even the rainforest with a little dab on my wrists. Am I feeling sad, missing my mother so many years gone? I can spray on her perfume and let her give me a hug. Am I feeling nostalgic? I can pull out a bottle of the scent I was wearing when I got my first kiss, or the one when I found out I was accepted into law school, or the one I was wearing when I met my husband. Perfume has also become a connection to people and places far away (some who know we are connected and some who do not.): A new friend in New York who sent some of her favorite vintage juice–just because; another in Austria who inspires me to try this one or that one because her description of it is so divine; the independent perfumer in his home/office making art in a bottle. It has become the means to reconnect with several lovely women from my past; one to whom I sent one a sample of her old favorite juice that was lost to the ages-or so she thought; one to whom I sent a sample of Lonestar Memories which I think suits her life of trucks and cattle and dirt and growing things on her Texas ranch to a 't'. Finally, perfume has become the inspiration for an entrepreneurial spirit I had never had before; a new business idea which might possibly change my life. It has become so much more than that spritz before I walk out the door.
Perfume is important to me because it never fails to add color to the white canvas of my everyday life.
I'm not particularly talented at creating art so perfume is important in that it allows me an(mostly) affordable way of doing what I am talented at-appreciating art and the creativity of others!
I love music and books and enjoy sharing my favorites with friends, but since the world of good or interesting perfumes is so much less well-known, it is an absolute blast to introduce others to this wonderful art.
I tend to be a bit of a hermit so it's difficult for me to connect with people when starting a job or moving to new towns and I've found talking/sharing perfume to be a great ice-breaker – and that's REALLY important to me!
I enjoy reading your blog, persolaise, and am wishing you a heartfelt 'Happy Birthday'!
I have poor manners – I apologize! Congratulations on your 1 year blog anniversary! I look forward to following you in year 2 🙂
Hello Persolaise,
That is exactly what I mean. Some blogs in general are rampant with updates – after a while it becomes this soup of information and the right information gets lost. Your blog takes it's time – personally, that's what I prefer!
Alice, thanks very much for your entry. You're in the competition.
Marie, thanks foe entering… and don't worry, there's no need to say sorry 😉
Cymbaline, thanks for your words. Your name's on the list of entrants.
Liam, thanks, I was hoping that's what you meant. I find it very difficult to keep up with some blogs too.
Hey Persolaise, Happy Bloggaversary!
Perfume is important to me because it brings me joy in so many ways. I love the anticipation of trying a long awaited new release from one of my favourite houses or perfumers. I love how a scent can jump out of the bottle and come alive on my skin. I love sitting down with my overflowing box of samples and spending hours deconstructing scents and jotting down my thoughts. I love the confidence a big and bold perfume can give. I love the lively discussions I have with other perfume lovers on Twitter and Basenotes. I love that I love so many things about perfume.
I just wanted to say Happy Bloggiversary!
I enjoy your commentary and the relaxed pace at which you post. It's nice to be able to sit and READ the posts instead of skim since you have another 6 to get through for the day.
Why do I love perfume?
It moves me, it is a meaningful ritual for putting myself in a healing and wonderful aromatheraputic headspace. Like the old offerings to the gods.
I hope you have many more years of sharing!
Perfume is important to me because it helps create an environment for emotional peace and clarity. Also, it is a treasured tool for wordless communication, as are many art forms.
Voyagetocythera, thanks very much for your entry.
AbsintheDragonfly, thanks for your entry, and also for your kind words about my blog. I often wonder if I ought to increase the weekly/daily number of posts, so it's encouraging to learn that some readers actually prefer blogs with fewer entries.
Queen_Cupcake, you're in the competition too. Thanks for your entry.
Perfume is important to me because…..it is a piece of conceptual art and storytelling that is always present, wherever I am and in whatever situation. I work in the arts, and like most artists I've had many office temp jobs to keep me going financially! Many a day I spent, stuck in a windowless NHS office, bereft of humanity, warmth, beauty and magic. I found that perfume was a way to connect me to my artistic side, my humanity. I enjoyed sampling many fragrances each day, and discovering them unfold and evoke reactions and feelings. I read the Blogs and learnt how each perfumer conceptually approached their construction. Perfume was my life line! Now I am doing other kinds of work, but my day is enhanced by perfume none the less. THANK YOU FOR SUCH A TANTALISING PRIZE DRAW!!! All my digits are crossed…….
Blimunda, thanks very much for your entry. You're in the competition.
Perfume is important to me because along with the sheer pleasure of wearing it, it has drawn me into a whole new world of smell and all things associated with it. I am a gardener by profession and when I sniff flowers I now enjoy trying to identify the different components of their fragrance. My interest in botany and growing scented plants has been restimulated. I read about smell, perfume and how perfumes and the raw ingredients for perfumes are made. (even trying to get a bit less scared of chemistry!) I have been on a day's perfume making course and would love to do more.
Thank you for a thought provoking draw and congratulations on your anniversary.
Chrisb, thanks very much for writing. You're in the competition.
Perfume is important to me because it helps me to forget about daily life and its problems. It inspires me and makes me more complete- if I accidentally forget to put the perfume, I feel strange and almost naked! Scents also improve my perception of the world and fragrant memories can immediately transport me to places I have visited.
Many next years of blogging and thank you for that contest!
Happy Blogiversary to one of the best-written and entertaining perfume blogs there is. Congrats, Persolaise!
*******
Perfume is important to me because it helped me wake up my nose. Like so many people, until recently I took my sense of smell completely for granted. Not only did I not bother to entertain or challenge my nose, I simply didn't care! I was so bad I didn't even notice really awful smells – and certainly not the good ones!
Once I started paying attention (thanks to perfume) I realized exactly how much I had been missing. Needless to say, my days are more interesting and more beautiful now.
I'm teaching my daughters to stop and smell the… everything! And their lives will surely be richer for it. Thank you, perfume! It's going to be a fragrant life…
*Jen, thanks very much for your kind words. You're in the competition.
THE COMPETITION IS NOW CLOSED.
Thanks very much indeed for all your wonderful entries. The winners will be announced on Persolaise.com within the next two days.
Ela, sorry, I should have said that you're in the competition too. Thanks for your entry.
The winners of the competition have been announced on http://www.persolaise.com
Please note the winners have until Friday 25th March to contact me at persolaise at gmail dot com to claim their prizes.
Have been away so am very late to the anniversary party, but I just wanted to say congratulations on a year of Persolaise – sorry I only found you half way through, which was all thanks to Harrods!
Vanessa, welcome back and thanks for your good wishes.
Finding me half-way through is better than never finding me at all 🙂