A birthday weekend (and Spiriteuse Double Vanille)

Some of you who read my blog from time to time may have detected a slight apathy towards Guerlain's Spiriteuse Double Vanille. The issue I have with this fragrance from a venerable perfume house is not the actual smell, idea or construction. In fact I actually do like it, while it lasts that is. I mentioned it before - I think my skin chemistry plays havoc with SDV as it barely lasts an hour, if that. However today was a little different. I splashed about half a vial of the stuff on my wrists, determined to give it a better chance. And you know what? It does last a bit longer on me, albeit still fairly subdued. 

I must say that conceptually, this is a lovely perfume. Arguably no one understands the use of vanilla in perfume more than Guerlain and this fragrance is an ode to vanilla. Lots of people mention the boozy aspects of SDV but I honestly do not detect much booziness at all. I get a lot of good quality vanilla that smells like the best cooking extract money can buy, a teeny weeny bit of booze to start, and just enough subtle smoke and incense to cut the vanilla. Ultimately SDV is a very simple perfume, understated and oozing sophistication and quality, but this simplicity is deceptive, as it is actually quite complicated to deliver this in the fashion Guerlain does.

As a side note, when I first put on SDV today, my wife mentioned that it smelled like a synthetic apple! Later, when I got back to the house, she walked up to me and said that I smelled gorgeous, like best-quality vanilla extract. Believe me, coming from her that is a major compliment indeed and probably as good an endorsement of SDV as there can be!


Oh, and the birthday weekend in the title? It was my older daughter Hannah's fourth birthday yesterday (the 15th). Happy birthday my little darling!

Image credit - http://www.punmiris.com/