Where I work, there is no place for perfume. No scent allowed, due to sensitivity, and no acceptance of aroma of any kind.
Please understand. I totally respect the need to be mindful of my fragrance adverse friends and colleagues. However, despite certain geographic and atmospheric limitations, I still want to locate and emanate a signature smell.
When roaming the corridors of cubicles, I do – of course - refrain, but when an appropriate occasion calls for a sniff of something sublime, I want to be prepared.
So, for the last little while, I’ve been searching high and low for the right scent to represent my essence. I am in no rush, because sampling can sometimes be stinky, but I have been determined to discover “the one”.
As a child, I used to hang around and watch with admiration as my mother got ready to go out for the evening – dinner with my dad, a trip to the theatre, or the annual Christmas office party. No matter what the outfit or occasion, her ritual always ended in a gentle spritz of Nina Ricci’s classic “L’ air du Temps“. Never overbearing, this light and feminine fragrance signaled her intent to make the event a special one.
These were the nights when she was all woman, and when she treated herself as she deserved to be treated. By doing so, my mother was conveying that she had a life beyond my world, and that strong women who take care of themselves are better able to love those around them. While perhaps not consciously, this simple act of indulgence taught me more about womanhood than any “when you grow up” pep talk ever could have. To this day, whenever I catch a whiff of L’air du Temps, the memories come rushing back and I am grateful for what I learned from my mother in the presence of her perfume.
“The legendary accord of spicy carnation and gardenia is subtly tinged with rose and jasmine from Grasse and caressed with sandalwood and iris for even more sensuality.”
- Description from Nina Ricci.com
Now, I find myself with a daughter. When I think about what she might take away from our short time together as mother and little girl, I am conscious that more than my words, it is my actions that she will learn from most. And, because she deserves it, I try to show myself respect. Rather than a rationalization for self-centeredness, this is my modus operandi. Someday, I hope my little girlaboutOtown will love herself as much as she does those lucky enough to be around her.
So, it seems I am in need of a signature scent…
