I Think I'm Kissing a Horse - The Diary of a Perfume Lover
*September 2016*
I received various samples from Sonoma Scent Studio. Very nice perfumer/owner Laurie Erickson, very beautiful nature-connected (experience) scents... Equestrian, the horse scent, particularly captivated me. Immediate daydreaming (as it should be :)) - a wooden stable full of hay with warm late summer air, an overturned apple basket, leather boots, and a resting (clean) horse. An almost chypre-like, subtly animalistic scent. Great. Could be a candidate for purchase...
*November 2016*
I'm pondering Yatagan's comment... So, how do I actually come to the horse? What creates this association? Do I unconsciously jump onto the track set by the creator? New test. Whatever is in this scent - I want to smell like that! Wish list. Still great, still horse. But how do I know what a horse smells like? Aside from the neighbor horse of my in-laws, who enjoys being visited, petted, and spoiled with the mysterious apple (or carrot) by us and our children at the fence, my horse (stable) experience is limited. To do list: sniff a horse from as many angles as possible in its human-made habitat, while holding leather boots and an apple at nose level. Will that get me labeled as crazy?
*February 2017*
I have to say, the horse in the snow smells different. Almost not at all. I noticed this several times with my two-year-old at the in-laws' fence. Maybe the frost has glued my nasal hairs together and paralyzed my smell cells. To do list postponed...
*May 2017*
Winter is finally over. The neighbor horse is still happy about our visits. Very nice moments when the lilac-black eye looks at you under long eyelashes, the flaring nostrils draw in the air, and the soft lips "kiss" your palm as they grab the treat you brought... The fact that the animal occasionally has to relieve itself of its intestinal contents delights my little one even more.
*August 2017*
Ta-da! I knew it. Today we were in a horse stable. A hot day. I stepped inside and knew - this is where Laurie Erickson drew her inspiration. Or even captured the air, transformed it into scent liquid through a magical alchemical process, and bottled it. The rough, red wood of the walls, warmed by the midday sun, contrasted beautifully with the leather saddles hanging on it. Bitter grass, slowly transforming into sweet-spicy, almost fruity hay in the stables as late summer progresses. Dry, compacted earth. Still, scent-soaked air. Warm animal skin. Security and coziness... I sat here for a long time on the bench, nostrils flaring, grinning widely, and now knew without the apples that Equestrian definitely smells like horse with all its trimmings...
*September 2017*
While having tea with some friends/acquaintances, I mentioned - I can't even remember how we got on the topic - that horses, unlike cows, don't smell at all. I received incredulous looks. Luckily, one of the attendees (a former horse owner) confirmed my statement. Before I could continue with my enthusiastic report, a friend said, "You mean to say there's a scent that smells like horses and you want it?!"... Am I so easy to see through in my scent (obsession/fine) sense?
*November 2017*
"Darling..." I'm in the mood today :) "Darling, you asked what I want for Christmas... I didn't think long. I want a new scent. It smells great, like horse and stable and hay..." He looks at me to see if it's not (hopefully) a joke. I'm dead serious (and to be honest, I love his helpless look :)). He says nothing, but his eyes say a lot, reflecting a little, cheeky girl who just wished for a pony. Why not just ask for an elephant, he asks. "That's coming next. I haven't gotten to the samples of Elephant and Camel yet. I've already tried all the other Zoologist scents. But this horse scent is from a completely different great brand and..." A loud sigh interrupts me. He turns around and leaves, mumbling something like: I must really be crazy and why can't I just smell nice "normal" scents. And if he had smelled a horse on me back then, he couldn't guarantee our future together... I smile. His good-natured grumbling means that the scent will soon be moving in :)
One of my sisters built her stable along with a mini saloon with her boyfriend, all by hand. It's a great place to enjoy the scents and celebrate. As a child, I also had a horse and often mucked out cow stalls just for fun. Wow, so many blisters on my hands! Cows don't smell, only dirty stalls do. The same goes for horses. I had to laugh at your husband's comment, so sweet!
I like horse scents, as long as they're not too harsh, like Muscs Kublai Khan (that one got given away far away). Elephant scent? Now that would be something :-)
Hi there, elephant scent. :-D Beaver (2016) by Zoologist is also kind of amazing... horses, of course (I’m just saying Muscs Kublai Khan). A wonderful description, fingers crossed for new additions soon!
He'll love you even if you smell like camel and elephant, trust me, ;-). The man by my side has long stopped giving me weird looks - now he's on his own niche trip and has to deal with strange looks himself...
I know the scent you're describing very well. I used to ride a lot, and the smell of horses is one of the most beautiful scents of my youth. It must be a fantastic perfume. Your comment is fantastic too!
It was a lot of fun to read, even though the scent isn't making it onto my wishlist. Thank you! And congratulations on your good-natured buzzing treasure!
Well, at least you set the apple basket aside. Too many apples can kill horses. It drove me crazy during my time as a horse owner, all those people ruining horses with treats. I don’t feed the neighbor's kids or dogs without asking either. If I want to smell like a horse, I want to embrace it, and then the scent comes for free, even in my clothes and hair. But you can and should be allowed to "fall in love" with bizarre things and scents. Trophy
The extension is pure amusement.
I still don't like the smell of horses, though. :-D
A wonderful description, fingers crossed for new additions soon!