Aliana

I bought this fragrance at Karstadt in its year of release and flew to Dubai the next day. Back then, I couldn't afford decent flights and traveled with layovers - first to Turkey with a budget airline, then on with an even cheaper Indian airline. I visited my friend, also a Bulgarian, who had been working for over 10 years as a nanny for a family in Dubai, helping the children improve their English and German skills. I was allowed to visit her often over the years, and I was always provided with guest rooms, as well as food and drinks. My son was kept busy with the three children of the family. I was driven by the chauffeur and was invited everywhere the family went. The family belonged to the Dubai middle class, which actually means rich by our standards. They were fascinated by my job, admired my courage to live alone in the West, and obviously liked me, even though they didn't fully understand me.

When I first wore Brit, both my friend and the hostess Adeeba sniffed me - they wanted to know what it was, and I showed them the newly opened bottle. The fragrance was sprayed, sniffed, and declared very exotic.
Indeed, for Arabs and those who have been socialized with Arabic fragrances, the opening comes from very far away - somehow green, somehow cool, somehow fresh and fruity, like a dawn in a wild garden. Then a beautiful floral note sets in, which is fine, bright, and seductive. I don't perceive this fragrance as sweet, but rather as lightly fruity, floral, soft, and elegant. Later, the scent warms up, becoming velvety and even softer. This softness and delicate floral quality, while very present, are indeed exotic for people living in a much more heavily scented world.
Even in the following days, the hostess repeatedly noticed and praised this fragrance. Adeeba had a boudoir like a dream and many hundreds of perfumes - the Indian housekeeper told us, I was never in those rooms myself. How many perfumes there really were - I will never know. So, after 2 weeks, when I was leaving, I gave Adeeba the Brit - along with the Feminite du bois by Shiseido, which she found even more wonderful, but not as foreign and therefore not as exotic.
I remember how we all lounged in the lounge the night before my departure, enjoying our last hours together - my friend, the host couple, the Indian housekeeper, and I. What I intended to do was a bit embarrassing for me. I realized how insignificant the two perfumes must be compared to what Adeeba was used to. But she had praised my fragrances a lot and even told her husband how wonderful I smelled. Moreover, she had made my time there unforgettable each time, and provided my child and me with a luxury I could never have afforded myself. Therefore, I put the two bottles in a discreet little bag and handed it to her. When she saw what was inside, her lip began to tremble. She looked at her husband, then at the others, and finally back at me. A tear welled up on her eyelashes, and that was all that was needed; I immediately started crying too. She came to me, knelt on the thick carpet to hug me while sitting. We held each other tightly for a long time, and the other women sniffled as well. Her husband poured us fresh drinks, and I think he smiled at us a bit. Then Adeeba let me go, spontaneously reached for her neck, took off her necklace, and put it around my neck! I was left with my mouth open as she hugged me again fiercely and then went to her husband, letting him hold her while she continued to wipe her eyes, pressing the bag to herself...
The next day, when they took me to the airport, she wore the Brit, winked at me, and said playfully that she was becoming more European :) Under her abaya, she often wore jeans and a T-shirt.
............
Back in Germany, I wanted to get the Brit again immediately. But somehow everything had changed. It had become a fragrance that belonged to another place, forever reminding me of Adeeba, my friend, and my time in Dubai. I never bought it again, so I wouldn't ruin that association.

I was more apprehensive about no perfume than I was about Red Door!
For a long time, I thought - no, I don't want to put myself through that.

Then I saw a tester bottle in a perfume shop and, without thinking much, asked for a spritz. On the paper strip.

From the very first inhale, I knew it: YES! A big YES!

Oh, this scent is beautiful! And lush! And full!
Like a sea of flowers made up of carefully selected, perfectly coordinated blooms, all in full bloom. Depending on which direction the wind blows, a different nuance wafts over me.
On some days, the composition is soft and warm, a bit languid, as if it were a warm summer day, still and sleepy. On other days, like today, the lily of the valley with its slightly fresher, more robust scent is more dominant, and the sea of flowers sways under a gentle breeze.

The flowers are all very self-assured and incredibly erotic. Erotic in a completely different way than I have experienced so far. Normally, for me, eroticism is very subtle and dark, very lascivious and final. Best expressed with amber, incense, styrax, labdanum, leather, smoke, vanilla, woods. A woman reclining in candlelight and under the scent clouds of resin, rubbed with precious oils and adorned with jewels. One night with her, and a man is forever enchanted.

But in Red Door, all of that is missing, and yet the scent is so promising. Red Door is a woman in the midst of a field of flowers, with flowing, open hair, a sunny smile, and in a floral dress with a deep neckline. She moves quickly and nimbly, her mane and full breasts bouncing with every movement so seductively that a man cannot take his eyes off them.
That flowers can be sexy is my personal insight; flowers have always represented purity and elegance to me, actually asexual.

But one never stops learning, and our horizons expand daily - thank God! What a beautiful scent I would have otherwise missed! Smelling it on myself almost sends me into a trance; with every breath, I want to inhale even deeper.
I will not recite the fragrance pyramid now. I don't like that. Surely all the molecules are present that belong to the scent of one flower or another mentioned. Everyone will smell something different.
What is most important here is the art behind it.

Because: I actually don't like anise, tuberose, honey, heliotrope, or peach. I actually don't like floral scents that are so rich. Actually. But this scent here - I could smell it until I get dizzy, and I have to be careful not to hyperventilate :) I don't detect any honey (that would be the worst), nor any anise. Perhaps that is the true art - to use scents in such a way that they are not individually perceivable but perfect the effect of other scents. Like olfactory glutamate, so to speak.

I look up who the perfumers are that created this scent - and discover that I also quite like other fragrances of theirs - Jasmin Noir by Bvlgari, Tobacco Vanille by Tom Ford, all the Diana Vreeland fragrances, Saharienne by YSL, the scents from Shanghai Tang, Prada Tendre, and Prada Amber...
It becomes clear to me again that I simply love the artist's style and not necessarily the ingredients. Just as I love how Renoir paints and not necessarily WHAT he paints. Even a mundane or kitschy scene becomes art when a genius paints it. Even scents that I don't like create a wonderful whole when a master mixes them together.

The only downside is that the longevity of this scent is a bit short - after 2 hours, the orgasms are so exhausted that the "cigarette afterwards" can be lit among the blooming perennials. And after a longer, cozy, quiet nap on his shoulder, it will be time again 4-5 hours later - Adio, amore mio! The beauty briefly gazes at his sleep under the late afternoon sun. She smiles contentedly, gently frees herself from his embrace, lifts her crumpled floral dress with nimble fingers, and disappears, gently swaying her hips, from his life....

Beauty Elixir is not a perfume.

Beauty Elixir is a setting spray, a refreshing spray enriched with essential oils from aromatherapy and care oils from cosmetics. The spray is applied to the face, neck, and décolletage, or if desired - to the entire body.
The mood and skin feel caressed, the scent is unlike anything I know. It vaguely reminds me of scent No. 1 from the same company, but:
This is not a perfume, but something ethereal, delicate, fresh, that immerses the soul in lightness and leaves a gentle feeling on the skin. The fragrant liquid that emerges is like a small mist cloud that envelops you. The fluid settles on everything it touches - and makes it feel fresh for about 15 minutes. For that long, you can smell this fine combination on yourself. On the skin, the delicate tension lasts a bit longer, for me about 30 minutes.
It has happened to me several times, for example in a café or on the train, that after I sprayed, people immediately asked me about it, and not a few have taken me up on my suggestion to spray them too :) Men and women are truly captivated by the warmth of the scent and its effect, and some have even composed real superlatives about the fragrance :)
I love this spray, especially because of its scent. The caring effect is minimal and hardly noticeable when used alongside other cosmetics. When sprayed on a clean face, you can tell that there are care oils in it. I have extremely sensitive skin, but I tolerate the spray well to very well - only once did I experience a brief itch, but I'm not even sure it wasn't the combination of everything - summer, heat, city air, perfume, sunscreen, day cream, makeup products, Beauty Elixir.... Sometimes a lot comes together.
I have always considered this spray to be a cosmetic product, as it is applied by spraying onto the skin to care for and refresh it. That it also smells so dreamy is simply wonderful!

The text on the packaging:
Pamper your skin with the M. Asam® Beauty Elixir for face and body. Experience the invigorating scent with essential oils of mint and lemon. The moisturizing spray is enriched with an active ingredient complex that can help make the skin appear more even and give the skin radiance and a youthful glow. The refreshing spray can be used several times a day.
Application:
Spray on face and body for refreshment. Keep eyes closed while spraying on the face.

P.S. It is also available as Beauty Elixir Orange.

What does success smell like?

And what does joy smell like? Or triumph? What does love smell like? What does eroticism smell like? What does longing smell like? Similarly, one could also ask what sadness, failure, heartbreak, or aversion smells like.
All questions whose answers are as individual as each one of us. What we associate with a feeling, life situation, or state ultimately depends on how and where in this world we have been socialized.

There are objections and criticisms below regarding the name of the perfume.
I find the name just as good or bad, just as pretentious or unassuming as perfume names that want to associate with love, eroticism, glamour, playgrounds of the rich, or whatever else.
Especially with love and sex, a lot of nonsense is played in the field of perfume naming, where Upper Ten is still very relative.

So, how does success ultimately smell? No idea!
But I imagine the scent of success would have the same qualities as the people who are successful. There are even studies about this (my friend, a psychiatrist in a psychiatric clinic, told me). American psychologists have collected data for decades to find out what distinguishes a successful person from an unsuccessful one. In the end, there was probably only one characteristic, only one circumstance that determined success or failure. The successful ones were not those who were more educated, more original, tougher, more elegant, more innovative, or cooler. The only thing all successful people had in common was the ability to seek help at the crucial moment. Those who were not afraid to admit that they didn't know what to do anymore and brought help on board were also the ones whose endeavors were crowned with success. Not the bolder, not the more brazen, not the prettier, not the more modern, not the more elegant, not the shinier. After all, success is not glamour.
So, according to this, the scent of success, in my opinion, should radiate humility. Being aware of one's limits, but also of one's strengths. Not imposing oneself, but also not shying away, being adaptable, and staying in the game.
Does the scent of this perfume do all of this? Yes, it does.

First of all, it is humble, but it is clearly present. Nothing loud defines the beginning, but the dry, astringent spice of juniper berry, surrounded by a balanced mix of citrus, floral, and spicy notes. A bit of everything. Not too much of anything.
Even after that, it does not get louder or more spectacular. It only becomes more individual.
For me, the scent quickly becomes woody; the flowers and fruits, if there are any, are so intertwined that nothing can be smelled individually. The scent is cuddly, has an incredibly interesting aura, and changes slowly, only gaining maturity. After about 6 hours, it is an amber scent with small foreign wood notes, dark, inviting, and still very present. And it lasts another 3-4 hours easily.
With my brother, you can smell something fruity, which is subtly sweet. The green-citrus scent like from freshly broken stems also lingers for a long time, and it takes almost an hour for the scent to darken. But then it really does, woods and even more woods, and a leathery accord, like from an old saddle. Even on my brother, the scent is still clearly perceptible close to the skin after 10 hours.
With a friend, it is also different - she first smells dry herbs and lemon, then somehow something indistinctly floral, and very quickly comes a scent like a Siberian herbal soap used in the banya - with birch tar and 40 herbs, feeling like 400. Shortly thereafter, the herbs fade, and a creaminess comes to the tar that I have smelled often, but do not know where it comes from.

As you can see - all different perceptions of the same scent. For everyone, it is beautiful (if you like such things), but it emphasizes the personality of the wearer rather than being front and center.
So much for the scent.

:) :) :)
I find the idea of creating a tribute to the working class just.
Only in this case, I am glad not to be a perfumer, because I could never meet the demands of political correctness!

If I were to interpret the scent of workers as a special, calm, wise scent, I would be accused of ignoring the class struggle and the pent-up anger of the exploited, portraying the workers as spineless wimps.
If I were to create a clean, simple, neat, fresh scent, people would say I am downplaying the harshness of the misery in which people have lived despite hard work.
If I were to express the significance of my tribute by using only the best, most exquisite, most expensive oils, my creation would be seen as a mockery.
If I were to truthfully interpret bloody sweat, soot, diseases, latrines, moldy food scraps, rotten teeth, and the months without water and soap in a scent, the fragrance would not be commercially viable.

One can debate for a long time who deserves more glory - the designer or the tailor. The arguments would be endless and all correct. But who says that the successful ones haven't worked hard?
This is not about communism or the dictatorship of the proletariat, but about a scent. Everyone can decide for themselves based on their feelings whether the marketing includes or excludes them.

The company M.Asam produces wonderfully compatible cosmetics made in Germany, and the couple does not see themselves as perfumers.
However, they recognized some time ago that many women who love a particular skincare line would also like to have the scent as a perfume. Thus, they have launched an exact or very similar fragrance for almost every one of their lines. They also release seasonal fragrances, as well as unique, limited-edition cosmetic series and their perfumes.

From Mirjam with love is a perfume that does not belong to any of the current series. There are a couple of such perfumes as well. After testing two other scents from M.Asam that I found really beautiful and repurchased, I ordered this one based on the positive comments on the website. And what can I say?

I am really glad I did!

The scent is beautiful. No, it is not JUST beautiful. It is MULTI-LAYERED and very UNEXPECTEDLY beautiful.
I always wonder in such moments what must be so wonderful in the soul of a perfumer when they are able to create such fragrances.
From Mirjam with love is truly like a declaration of love. As if love had been taken as the guiding theme and everything that makes a woman feel loved has been dripped into this bottle, drop by drop: affection, sympathy, human warmth, kindness. But also sensual femininity, and a lot of it!

After spraying, due to the alcohol, it smells for a moment like fruity, delicious vanilla-orange mousse. This association fades seconds later, but the opening remains delicate, despite the ethereal freshness and slight alcohol breath. Immediately afterward, a spiciness creeps in, which, together with the vanilla, slowly bids farewell to the citrus note and lets the fragrance glide into an incredible, feminine, sensual depth. Thus, the scent remains enveloped in citrus freshness for about fifteen minutes, but it is not constant; rather, it vibrates and releases more and more spices. Just at the moment when the citrus was no longer there and all the spices, some flowers, and the vanilla seemed to come alive on my skin, my friend walked through the door. After we hugged, she said beaming:
"Ah! You got it, the Shalimar Ode à la Vanille - Sur la route du Mexique! Congratulations!"
Then she sniffed me longer and said:
"On you, it's different, more floral and not so vanillic at all!" Slowly, her expression darkened, and she asked reproachfully:
"Or did you layer it?! Shame on you!"
It should be mentioned that she is a true Shalimar lover and has them all - the Shalimar fragrances. I used a word for her that she has also adopted - shalimarisch. If something is beautiful and reminds of Shalimar or would fit with it, it is shalimarisch - a scent, a feeling, a scarf, a piece of jewelry, an atmosphere. Everything revolves around Shalimar for her.
I was really surprised that this scent was so close to her passion; it is true - there is a similarity for me too, just not so concrete. In my opinion, From Mirjam with love is an independent, multi-layered fragrance. When the citrus is no longer there, gentle flowers, warm spices, and an incredibly mild, unsweet vanilla take the stage and prove their skill. The scent becomes more complex and refined with each passing minute. In some phases, it is truly shalimarisch; in others, it is a floral scent with spice, even towards the end, where it is soft as a feather.
Scenes flash before my inner eye, not real subjects, just isolated images.
A hammock under a leafy tree, on which a clematis is climbing, lending its floral splendor to the tree.
Two women on a porch, somewhere in the southern states... Their gazes dreamily directed into the distance, lost in a shared silence.
A soothing Ayurvedic treatment, with floral oils and spiced salves.
All images of inner peace and balance.
This goes on for several hours. After about 6 hours, the scent has faded to the point where I can only sense it on my skin. However, on my clothing, it is still very nice the next day.
At this price, you can also spray it on multiple times, especially since the development is very beautiful and you enjoy accompanying it again and again.
For me, this perfume is an unexpected discovery, and I immediately ordered another one.

..........
The bottle no longer looks like the one in the picture here. I find the new bottle worse....