Furry, Leathery, Cozy, Warm Fragrances for rainy days

As we entered the Spring in Brazil, global warming has already pulled a few tricks and turned the season of flower blooming and bird singing into a gray Autumn. I have seen people saying that global warming does not exist, so how do they explain that in the beginning of October it feels like winter-autumn seasons?? Instead of walking hand in hand in the park, having picnics, or even wearing flowery dresses and Hawaiannas, we are confined at home, under the covers, with hot tea cups in one hand, popcorn in the bowl watching old cult black and white movies, and wondering when this rain is going to stop. 

I have already posted articles about fragrances for rainy days or for moody ones (click HERE, HERE, HERE), so this year I decided to make something completely different. In fact, I am doing something never done before here or by anybody!

Inspired by fabrics that we wear during the winter and autumn, I decided to bring some of the fragrances that are bringing the same sense of comfort, of touch these fabrics bring to our skin. Fabrics that feels warm, cozy or even sexy to wear in days like these ones. Liquid "fabrics" per say.

CASHMERE

aaahhh, the softness of a cashmere wool...warming the skin, fitting like  glove...so elegant and yet so simple. Cashmere cardigans, cashmere socks. Have you ever went to sleep wearing cashmere socks? Heavenly!

Cashmere wool is taken from the neck of Cashmere and other goats. My favorite cashmeres are from Scottish brand Ballentyne. There is no cashmere that lasts more than theirs. If you wonder where you have seen one...James Bond Pierce B. in Die Another Day wears a gray turtle neck Ballentyne pullover.

Photo credit: Rafael Astorga

Argyle cashmere cardigans are my favorite. Classy, dorky but with the right shirt and pants can be sooo sexy. In this photo it is super chic and very urban.

Embodying the cashmere experience, in liquid inspirations, I am bringing the obvious and yet cozy incense-y Black Cashmere by Donna Karan.

Vintage bottle

Updated version 
BLACK CASHMERE BY DONNA KARAN

Slightly sensual, dark and rich in texture, Donna Karan wanted to capture the feeling of wearing a black cashmere. "Woven" by Rodrigo Flores Roux in 2003 this incensed fragrance has notes of saffron, Massala spices, cloves, nutmeg, Crimson Red Marechal roses, Ethiopian Guggal incense, Pimento berries, white pepper Co2 extract, Mediterranean broom flower, patchouli Singapour,  Bois de Miel and Wenge - a type of wood found in Africa. Very urban, very stylish, with a smoky-spicy touch, it is a fragrance that makes one feel like going for the quest of the perfect Bond, or the perfect sleek pair of slacks... 

VELVET

Photo credit: Vogue Magazine

Velvet has a very distinctive touch. It feels like silky tapestry. Silk velvet is shinier and softer to the touch than the other types of velvet. It feels very sexy to wear. The body "slides" in it. I think of velvet gloves  - very kinky depending on the outfit and make up, or very very elegant. Corduroy is a rigged form of velvet and it is perfect for colder days. It was very common during the 70's, but I still love corduroy - the large tufted cord one.

 TIARE EDP BY ORMONDE JAYNE

Thinking of velvets, specially the most elegant type, the silky one, I have only one vision in my mind - Tiare EDP by Ormonde Jayne. Every time I wear I think of Eva Green wearing some amazing black velvet dress, or Halle Berry in the amazing Vogue editorial where she had that Charleston haircut.

Since I have already made a long detailed review of Tiare, I will link it HERE for you. I think what makes this liquid fabric a velvet is the combination of orris and patchouli, Tiare and musk -  some of the notes of this amazing chypre-floral perfume. Tiare EDP is sultry, and it has this sparkling appeal that silky velvets have when they shine.

LEATHER

Photo credit: Style.com

Gucci Fall 2011

Leather is one of the most powerful statements in fashion. It comes mostly from tanning process of cattle skin, but this fall python and exotic leather are the hit. It can be luxurious, fetich, sporty, rock and roller, very practical, very complexed. Easy to wear, it keeps us perfectly warm. I love the ultra used black jacket, but today as you can see leather in the Gucci Collection being explored in many other ways, such as in vibrant colors and exquisite textures. Leather boots... perfect for autumn and winter, but if you are under the equator like me- careful with raining days such as these we are facing. They are the biggest enemies of your fancy leather boots. My latest purchase was an amazing black leather purse by Marc Jacobs - if I could I would even take it to bed! I am in luve!

OUD EDP BY MONA DI ORIO

Leather was immensely explored by me in a serious of articles. Many fragrances were listed and described (click HERE to remember them and to get the links to all the listings). I have reviewed most of my favorites, but Mona di Orio's OUD was not included because it is an oud fragrance, AND it was only launched later this year. Fact is, although it is one of the many recent oud fragrances launched in the niche market, again Mona succeeded to surprise me: it is powdery and leathery and absolutely luxurious! 

The notes of the fragrance are: Elemi Philippines, Calabrian green mandarines, Paraguayan petitgrain, Indonesian patchouli, Chinese osmanthus absolute, nargarmotha from India, cedarwood Atlas, Laos oudh, musk and ambergris. I will review it as an OUD fragrance in another oportunity. Right now I wish to include the leathery facet of this perfume. It is animalic, sensual and very delicate. Powerful, but delicate. So it is not the leather from rock and roll or biker's jacket. It is not the leather of boots and acessories. Mona's OUD is constructed with exceptional quality materials that can be translated here in this list, as the fine leather that you will only see in haute couture, such as slink or chamois. You will also feel the rubbery note of the cedarwood and here, it brings you a warm sensation of being inside the house in a cold day. The woody notes and the smoked rubber-ness of this fragrance bring up you instantly indoors, to the fireplace. Musks and ambergris will add the final animal, feline roaring to your coziness.