I was recently chatting with a dear friend and editor of a great perfume blog (Michelyn Camen of CaFleureBon) when in the course of our conversation she mentioned to me that in these challenging times (as they are for so, so many) we crave fragrances that are light of heart, pretty, loving, bright and joyful and just make us happy. Yes, I thought. She’s so right. And I must have already been getting that message from the Universe too, because when I started considering the Spring launches for DSH Perfumes, I kept coming back to light, pretty florals… plus, the re-imagining of what I used to think of as a late Summer / early Autumn scent, Fire Opal. I’m sure that many of you already know all about the incredible benefits of orange oil for uplifting the mind and spirit, alleviating depression symptoms and giving one a sense of joyous, youthful exuberance. Like grapefruit, we associate oranges with happiness. And I can tell you right now, this new Fire Opal makes *me* HAPPY. Every time I sniff it (and I’ve taken to carrying a mini-sprayer of this in my pocket everyday), I smile and just want to huff it in one more time. It’s kind of addicting. Now, It’s not to say that I didn’t really like the older version, but there’s something about the green blast in the topmost notes that sends me right over the edge into bliss in a way that the first variation didn’t. And really, there is something essentially Springtime about this scent… I have moved the calendar for Fire Opal and it’s back in its youth.
In re-imagining a design, it’s not always about updating, but about a creative shift (although that is many times at the heart of the matter for large companies: to create a new audience of younger customers). Redefining is what has been passing through me these past couple of years and I’ve found it very refreshing and renewing, creatively speaking. For Fire Opal, I wanted to really focus on the sense of iridescence that a fire opal stone has. It’s sometimes a bit milky in its translucence and refracts the light in brilliant, sparkling orange with hints of fiery red, but also at just the right angle a surprising hint of cool green. That’s what I wanted to say with this new design: that ‘s still Orange and even fiery (spicy) in places but also there’s that surprise flash of green-ness which makes the overall effect juicy, bright, a little sappy and very happy. Of course, I had to give it a dash of earth, since I was flying so high to the sun. I didn’t want to have my wings singed. So, there’s the oakmoss, to give the whole thing a sense of elegance and decorum…plus, that effervescence could be too fly away if I’m not careful and needs some grounding.
What I’ve found is that the 2014 Fire Opal lifts me up, sails me away and then brings me softly down again, onto mossy earth still with little shimmering flecks of orange and green sparkling about. It’s just what I needed and wanted. Mmmmm: Happiness.
image credits: fire opal gems here; fire opal with green flash here; cute orange here
*** For three lucky readers, I would love to share some bliss: a 3 ml mini-sprayer of your own to carry in your pocket. Just leave a comment about the scent(s) that speaks of happiness for you (it may be a perfume or not) and you will be entered into the drawing. The drawing will be open until midnight : April 7, 2014.
For some reason, bergamot always makes me happy and I have found that there a few Hermes scents that always do the trick: Jour d’Hermes and Un Jardin en Mediterranee. Fire Opal sounds like a wonderful scent for spring transition into summer. Thank you for offering the sample draw!
Hello, Stacey! Oh yes, bergamot.. one of the premiere anti=depressant oils! And one of the notes in just about every perfume on the market. It’s so wonderful! Thank you for your comment and good luck in the draw!
Scents that speak of happiness to me are also citrus, whether the food or a perfume (just smelling a Meyer lemon is inoculation against daily doldrums), tea scents (again, beverage or perfume) tend to give me happiness in the form of a sense of balance and well-being, and lilac, whose heady purple lightness douses you with pure joy.
I can’t wait to try Fire Opal, as it sounds breath-taking. Thank you, Dawn, for the lovely giveaway! 🙂
Thank YOU, Devon, for the fabulous images your comments evoke! Oh I love all of those aromas, too! I am happy just thinking about them! Good luck in the draw and happy Spring!
Anything reminiscent of spring usually smells like happiness to me, green, dewy grass, the first flowers, the still cool but sunny and fragrant air because everything is in bloom.
I also think the fact that it’s finally sunny outside is a huge help to my overall feeling of happiness these days.
Hi, Ines~ Oh yes, that dewy green and cool but sunny vibe that Spring has… It’s perfection. (Can you tell that I love Spring, too ?? 🙂 ) Thank you for the image as well and good luck in the draw!
Happiness – ah! Many varieties of ‘happiness.’ The scent of cookies warm from the oven; the scent of bread baking; the aroma of fresh dirt as the earth awakens each spring; the scent of lilacs on a warm spring breeze; the smokey aroma of a distant bonfire; the smell of the ocean; the scent of freshly brewed coffee (ok, I think that might be my favorite! LOL!) And, of course, the scent of a beautifully crafted DSH perfume – that ALWAYS makes me happy! ; )
Hi, Shirley~ You are so kind to include me with such delights as fresh baked bread and cookies from the oven… OH YUM! 🙂 Good luck in the draw and thank you for the wonderfully evocative comment! Happy Spring!
What a lovely rumination on Fire Opal, orange, and the idea of scent and happiness, Dawn. I was just reading Michelyn’s piece and as always, the descriptions of your new (and new-to-me) creations make me very much want to try them.
The fragrance of hyacinth never fail to make me happy — it speaks of spring, and takes me back to childhood memories of Easter at my grandparents’ house, and that general feeling of coming out of cold, gray, Northeastern winters.
How nice of you to have a draw opportunity here. Thanks,and best to you!
PS: Those gemstones are gorgeous and mystical somehow.
🙂 Thank you, Joe, for your comments! And how wonderful to see you here at my little blog! I am so glad that the new designs sound like something you would want to try (and will, hopefully, make you feel as happy as they make me feel). I love your personal ‘happiness smells’…I feel like we all have some incredible happy smells that we all share but wouldn’t necessarily know it. How fun to get to talk about it and conjure up some bliss! Good luck in the drawing and big hugs to you! ox
One of my favourite smells is of potato bread cooking on a griddle. I inherited my grandmother’s griddle when she passed, and it has been in service every weekend since 1976! This is the smell of a saturday morning to me! Potato cakes with sweet butter, dry cured bacon frying and Sumatran Blue lintong coffee brewing. I would not want a perfume made of this though! It would lose it’s meaning for me, taking something earthy, ephemeral and immediate, into the realms of the abstract. and portable. Better to keep it for just those saturdays. Thanks for the draw!
Oh, Stephen, how fabulous your Saturdays sound (and smell, I am sure)! I don’t know all of these scents first hand but they sound delectable! Yum! And you are right to want to keep these smells as ephemeral in the moment- right in front of you smells. That is surely part of their magic. Thank you for sharing and good luck in the draw!
Springtime happiness for me is when the smell of the cottonwood buds fills the warming air, and you get that first whiff if heaven.
Thank you, Karen, for your comment! I will have to get to know the smell of the buds on the trees (alas, I am allergic to the pods as they fluff) but I wonder if it is the cottonwood (of the poplar genus) that poplar bud absolute is made. Hmmm… I do know and love that smell! Good luck in the drawing and happy Spring! 🙂
this sounds lush. I have no clue if I am in key for this or not. I am loving that song “happy” and it makes me want to dance so much more than I do. I think Michelyn is right on the money with her comment. For me “happy” is a scent of fresh cookies (shortbread or whatever) being baked; fresh toast with butter and preserves, lemongrass and/or a tea scented with some citrus or jasmine, a rich fresh coffee, fresh tulips, daffodils and gerberas (reminiscent of flowers i recently purchase). Fresh pineapple always does it for me — before it’s cut!.. Been a while since we talked DSH!
Hi, Stevie!!!! 🙂 How fun to find you at my little blog!! So happy! I love your ‘happy’ smells; they sound so delicious. I hope that you love the new designs and what’s happening at DSH! oxox
Omgosh, Fire Opal sounds like just what I need after this stupid winter! 🙂 What makes me happy and content is the smell of my kitteh’s fur. I also can’t wait for the smell of peonies under the kitchen window.
Thank you for this fabulous chance!
Hi, taffyj~ Thank you! I soo needed what Fire Opal does after this crazy winter; yes! I think you are right. And oh, you reminded me of one of my favorite happy smells: the smell of my budgie’s feathers (RIP) with your kitten’s fur comment. Oh yes, the pet scents. They are love aromas for sure! Good luck in the drawn and happy Spring!