I’m not quite sure why, but the first post of the new year always seems to be one of the hardest.  I think it might be that I think I’m supposed to have learned some epiphanyish life lesson in the previous year and therefore, moving forward into the new year I should be taking on a new philosophy or direction in life.  Of course that’s never the case.  If anything, I am mired in the fact that I imbibed way too much during the holidays and I now feel 10 pounds heavier and more tired and listless.  I can tell you however, that every year the cold winter months wear on me more and more.  And although this winter has not been all that cold, it has been cloudy, rainy and depressing.  I am governed by the sun.  A bit of sunshine can elevate my psyche more than anything else.  Adding to the gloom is the declining nature of my oldest girl Francie, who we are now giving fluids to every other day to combat her failing kidneys.  And each day she exhibits more Alzheimer related behaviors where she is providing some tragically comical antics which are just a foreboding of what’s to come.  But don’t get me wrong, it’s been a good year and a lovely holiday despite the bumps, but I know that 2015 is going to be a great year… for one thing it just sounds so futuristic; “2015,” how can it not be amazing?!

But before we get to 2015, I’ll pull some observations from this past year.  While many bloggers post the best and worst of the year, I found that I can’t really make such pronouncements as I don’t have access to all the new releases and therefore I could be missing out on many great perfumes.  So these observations are just that;  observations.

2014, The Year of the Big White Floral – I keep thinking that my true drag queen self was trying to come out this past year as I couldn’t get enough of the big white floral fragrances, especially in the midst of the hot summer months when they have the opportunity to go full bloom on my skin.  My year’s favorite was Byredo’s Flowerhead.  It’s big and heady without ever becoming a screecher.  Another surprise for me was Hiram Green’s Moon Bloom.   Moon Bloom is the perfume that made tuberose palatable to me.  What I love about Hiram’s work is that there is a distinct signature that is all his, easily recognizable and incredibly magical.  Moon Bloom mixes the florals with a delicious finish that’s rather spicy and full on gorgeous.  If it was not for Moon Bloom I would not have even thought about checking out Caron’s Tubereuse.  Tubereuse is a bit sweeter and fruitier than Moon Bloom and like most Caron’s perfume extraits, you need to let it settle down on your skin before it becomes this rich, smooth and beautiful “adult” perfume.  Tubereuse has become my “home from work” perfume for 2014.  Another nice suprise for me was discovering Jean Patou’s 1000.  Incredibly feminine and glamorous, this jasmine and rose radiant beauty is on the top of my list for a repurchase now that my small bottle is about to be drained.  However, not all big white florals were to my liking, Coquillete Moramango was a scrubber for me.  This big, over the top, suffocating (and in a horrid bottle) white flower mess was the kind of perfume that made me run from tuberose in the first place, which leads me to the next category…

My “What Was I Thinking” Perfume of 2014 – Tauer Perfume’s Sotto la Luna GARDENIA which I gave a 4.5 bone rating to and then ordered a bottle for myself, decided to turn on me.  The big floral gourmand sweetness turned headache inducing and incredibly cloying.  I think that the effect can be mitigated by temperatures, etc., but I received too many a nauseous wears with this one.  My updated bone rating would be a 2.5.

2014, The Year of “I Don’t Give a Damn” – Given that I’m a middle aged male and that I love these big florals, at the begininng of the year I would have shied away from wearing them, but finally gave in and decided that I don’t give a damn if they are traditionally feminine, I’m going to make them my own.  So I started wearing them when i felt like it and that included at work.  Apparently I can pull it off because no one has ever stated that I can’t (or maybe I’m just blissfully unaware).  Although a co-worker told me that my Portrait of a Lady was on a bit thick one day which could easily happen with one or two too many spritzes.

2014 Vintage and Discontinued Discoveries – “I Am Shalimar” is what I kept saying to my husband as I would obnoxously twirl around him after putting on a lethal dose of this magnificent fragrance.  I have no idea why I ever poo-pooed trying this masterpiece, but I am now forever hooked and to me it works best during the hot, sultry summer nights.  A few months back I was lucky enough to receive a small decant of the now discontinued Caron Alpona.  This masterful chypre had five coworkers at the holiday Christmas party ask me where they can get some.  They can’t…and 5 compliments in one day is unheard of.  This dusty floral is now on the top of my list to wear for special occasions.  More recently, a $3 find at a local estate sale, D’Orsay Divine, is the prettiest retro violet floral that I have found that’s easily wearable without making you feel like you’re stuck in 1950.  Of course, I had two vintage mishaps this year, the first is accidentally leaving the cap off of a small bottle of Magie Noire, thus drying up the contents.  Then I also had half a small bottle of Miss Dior open in a suitcase on a trip to Mexico.  Thankfully, both have been replaced and they both continue to be my top favorite vintage perfumes.

So what’s in store for 2015?  I’m not quite sure, but I do have some perfumed resolutions that I am making for myself:

1.  No more blind buying!  Enough already.  I have spent a small fortune on blind buys and most of them I have liked, but not loved.  I know this resolution will be broken at some point, but if I say it enough times, the number of blind buys will decrease.

2.  Only buy it if I ABSOLUTELY love it.  Similar to the resolution above, I have perfumes in my collection that I really like, but don’t love and therefore they sit on the back shelf or are relegated to my husband for his collection.  Perfume is too expensive to make these “like” purchases.

3.  It’s all about the finish.  I have found that my taste in perfume has moved towards wanting a silkened finish product.  In other words, a perfume doesn’t have to morph all that much and in fact, less is more in my book as long as the product is smooth, well blended and refinely finished.  Does that mean that my taste is leaning towards some more commercial products?  I’m not sure.

4.  Fresh tuberose in the house.  I need to find a florist where I can buy fresh tuberose at a discounted price all year long.  When we were in Mexico, we went to the local market and found fresh tuberose for a few dollars.  The flowers only lasted for a few days, but even as the blooms fall off the stem, they remain fragrant so you can put them in a small bowl and continue with the loveliness.  I want my house to be filled with this treasure all year long.  I still have yet to find a cheap source however.  Still searching…

So past that, I’m not sure what 2015 has in store, but no doubt it will be fragrant and interesting.  Do you have any perfumed resolutions for the new year?