My hubby Mark and I had a wonderful trip to the beach this past weekend. Getting away for a little sun and fun for four days was the perfect way to re-charge our batteries. Rehoboth Beach, DE is nice from the standpoint that it’s small enough so that it isn’t too crazy and crowded, but its big enough to have some fun shops and great restaurants. I now have a nice tan and about five extra pounds around my waist thanks to good eating and drinking.
As mentioned in my last post, Rehoboth Beach also has a niche perfumery, Penny Lane Perfumes. For such a small town, this is a great treat. As it’s been a few years since being in Rehoboth and this was my first trip to Penny Lane Perfumes. I’ll be back.
The Penny Lane Scent Bar
Mark and I sauntered into the store mid-afternoon on Sunday after being out on the beach for most of the day. When we arrived, we were greeted warmly by Cassandra, who manages the store. The store’s not big, but it’s perfectly setup with a scent bar and some beautiful displays. Once I got over my initial excitement of being there (which means that I acted like I had major ADHD by getting distracted by shiny bottles, etc.), we sat down at the bar and got down to business. As we were the only two in the store at the time, we let Cassandra lead us down the road to various fragrance families, starting with florals, then moving too some citrus scents, etc. Again as I was being ADHD, I was ready to start purchasing at first sniff!
The lovely Cassandra
In all, Cassandra sat with us for about 2 hours. By the time we were finished sniffing,my nose and throat were raw. But I could live with that. We had a wonderful time and we felt very special by the wonderful treatment we received. So you are asking yourselves, “what did you buy?”. We’ll I’m almost to that point. Both Mark and I ended up finding 3 fragrances that we wanted to test before we purchased:
Mark’s choices:
- L’eau Froide by Serge Lutens
- Sanguine by Keiko Mecheri
- Grand Siecle by Parfumerie Generale
Steve’s choices:
- Damascena by Keiko Mecheri
- Vanilla et Coco by E. Cordray
- Brulure de Rose by Parfumerie Generale
Are we in Paris?
After spritzing ourselves with our three choices, we headed over to the Mexican Restaurant down the block for happy hour priced Margaritas (which means that we had more than one each). We sat at the bar sniffing each other’s arms, trying to decide which we liked best. The bartender gave us a strange stare until we let her in on what we were doing and she joined in and gave us her opinions. After about an hour, we trekked back to Penny Lane Perfumes and told Cassandra what we decided on. To our surprise, we both fell in love with our respective Keiko Mecheri fragrances!
In all, it was a great and fun experience. And here’s a tip for all perfumistas; you’ll never feel guilty about spending money on fragrance if you include your spouse in your excursion! Thanks again to Cassandra for her wonderful assistance. If you ever get a chance to get to Rehoboth Beach, DE, be sure to check them out!
Well let’s get down to the nitty-gritty, why did I choose Damascena? here’s my review:
WHAT I SMELL: Damascena isn’t a complex fragrance. When first applied, it seems rather sweet and a little herbaceous. That sweetness is punctuated by juicy black current. It remains in this stage for some time. It’s almost edible without being heavy and it’s fresh and fruity without being artificial. As it dries, out comes the rose. It’s a modern rose that’s light and slightly sweet. It’s funny though, each time I wear this, it takes on a slightly different tonality. On the first day I wore this it reminded me a great deal like Kilian’s Rose Oud in its drydown. For men, some rose scents can come across as too feminine and some may argue that Damascena may as well. To me, I believe that it can work for both men and women alike.
Damascena Notes from Keiko Mecheri website: Dades Rose, May Rose, berries notes, musk
WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: When it first goes on, Damascena reminds me of a lovely garden; but a garden that’s not too formal or tended. In the garden, the roses and currents are a bit wild and overgrown and are fragrant in the morning sun and dew. The sweetness of the scent is pure happiness and joy.
THREE ADJECTIVES THAT DESCRIBE DAMASCENA: fruity, sweet, fresh
WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT DAMASCENA: Raphaella’s Roses
- Bone Rating: 4.5 out of 5 possible bones
- Scent: Floral Fruity
- Classification: Unisex – leans a bit feminine
- Expense: $115 for 75ml EDP
The Scented Hound 
July 11, 2012 at 9:49 pm
That sounds like great fun. How restrained of you both to only buy 1 bottle each. I love that you made a full afternoon and evening of it. It’s made me want to do likewise, I think a trip is in order.
Portia x
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July 12, 2012 at 6:00 am
I could have spent 4 days in there actually. One purchase was just the right amount. That gives me an excuse to go back right??!
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July 12, 2012 at 2:32 pm
I was going to say the same – 1 purchase?! That is restrained, but indeed a great reason to go back.
I see you are getting into your roses – the PG is a great choice too.
Fascinated by your KM choice – I’ve actually not tried a single KM fragrance! I will do when I’m in Liberty in a couple weeks when I’m back up in London. I love the bottles though – I need one on my dresser!
Glad you had a nice little vaykay, that shop looks lovely too 🙂
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July 12, 2012 at 6:34 pm
Do you and Portia think I’m made of money? Remember, nice FBs are not cheap. And in actuality, we did buy 2 bottles as Mark got one as well. This was my first time with the KM line as well. After this initial look into the line I’m excited to check out some of the other scents as I found them to be very elegant in their composition. As for the bottle? It is pretty. I love a pretty bottle, they always look so nice in one’s collection.
As for the PG, the reason that I didn’t choose that fragrance is because I found it a bit too heavy and sugary. Almost cotton candy like. And the day we were testing it was incredibly hot and it was just too much. Damascena complimented the very hot weather. It’s perfect for summer, but I think it will work well in the cooler weather as well.
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July 12, 2012 at 6:40 pm
Ow I’m only kidding Steve 😛 You did buy two technically. You have a Kilian for goodness sake – I assumed you bathed in money 😛 hahaha.
Yep I’ll definitely have to check out this line – hopefully find a lovely summer scent amongst it.
PG is very often sugar laden, the gourmands are some of the best out there because of that.
I’m jealous! The weather here is dire and you get to go to a beach – AND have a niche perfume store right there! 😀
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July 12, 2012 at 6:44 pm
Well, the niche store is 2 hours away which I guess isn’t that bad. But you have the Olympics coming there. I lived in Atlanta when they hosted the summer games. It was a blast!
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July 12, 2012 at 6:49 pm
Oh man you had to travel that far? No wondered you stayed so long – worth it in the end though – you got a pretty new perfume in your wardrobe 🙂
The olympics?!?! Oh man, I’m so un-excited about them. I think the country is more nervous about the terrorist attacks that are probably going to completely sabotage it :’) The security is unreal in volume (and hopefully enough!).
The idea of a niche fragrance shop in American by the beach is far more exciting to me haha.
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July 13, 2012 at 2:30 am
It’s great that not only you enjoyed you short trip but broght back something to remember it by.
I haven’t tried any of Keiko Mecheri perfumes yet but I read at least several positive reviews so I’ll try them one day.
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July 13, 2012 at 5:54 am
Please do. This was the first time I had sampled KM and didn’t realize that the line was as large as it is. She also had a new line Bespoke which intrigues me. So many things to try and not enough days in the week! We really did have a great time. I’m ready to move to the beach full time.
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July 13, 2012 at 7:16 pm
Il enjoyed reading your post very much. I consider myself a neophyte when it comes to the world of niche perfumes and as such, I have so much to learn. I LOVE Penny Perfumes! The collection they have available seems well rounded and accessible for “newbies” like me; sounds like its a treat for experienced noses like yourself, too. I like KM White Petals (still thinking about it…) and have purchased Amouage Ciel in a gorgeous bottle with a cerulean blue crystal on the lid. My recent visit last week found a bottle of Mona Di Orio in my bag. They work deliciously together, on the counter and on me, too!
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July 13, 2012 at 7:43 pm
Cathy – Thanks so much for stopping by. I, like you am a newbie as well. I only really started getting into this about 6 months ago. Places like Penny Lane Perfumes are the perfect starting place. As for the KM perfumes, my purchase was the first time that I even sampled the line! It looks like you definitely have a nose for quality, the Amouage’s are amazing and the Mona’s are top of the line and very niche! The best part of discovering niche fragrances is that sampling is easy and there is something out there for everyone. Would love to hear more about what you love and what you sample! Cheers, Steve
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August 6, 2012 at 3:44 pm
I was there last year. Cassandra was fantastic! As with you, I was the only one in the store. We had an amazing time!! I ended up with THREE bottles!! Andy Tauers LDDM which she had ordered in special for me, Montale Chocolate Greedy and PG Aomassai. The last two being my first gourmand purchases. I’l be going back next summer. I am going to try and behave myself and keep it to one bottle…….sure I will!! 🙂
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August 6, 2012 at 7:20 pm
Michelle – I’m all for buying 3 bottles at one time. Good for you! If I lived in Rehoboth, trust me I would probably be buying much more than one on occasion. I had heard such good things about Tauer LDDM, but it just didn’t work for me and I have yet to find my perfect gourmand. However, it seems if it’s in the citrus or amber family I’m on it! Thanks for stopping by!
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