It’s her smile you notice first.
You’re strolling across the Pont des Arts bridge in Paris on a crisp, clear spring day when you see her standing by the railing, a shy smile on her lips, her hair swept in a chic chignon. A scarf is draped effortlessly around her neck, and she’s holding a bouquet of violets by her side.
She pauses to take in the City of Light and the River Seine below, leaning against the railing with her hands tucked beneath her chin and staring off into the distance, her eyes faraway and dreamy.
Ah, you know that look…the look of first 
love, when the mere thought of your beloved awakens every cell in your body with a tingling that begins at your toes and works its way up through your spine.
A breeze turns toward you, bringing with it an intoxicating aroma of vanilla, rose, musk, black currant berries and violet.
The girl breaks from her reverie, caught by your gaze, and smiles warmly. You return the feeling, knowingly, as you pass her along the bridge, recalling another time, so many years ago, when you, too, stood in almost the same spot, basking all-too-briefly in the same glow with your American writer, so tall and beautiful, with his brown hair and hazel eyes.
Whatever happened to him? you wonder. Does he still think of you, like you think of him?
Almost across the bridge now, you close your eyes once again and breath deeply, drawing in as much of the scent as you can, letting it sweep you up in its loving embrace.
Another happy girl on the Pont des Arts bridge in Paris, 2005
Tocca Violette Eau de Parfum, $68
- The latest addition to the Tocca family of fragrances
- Inspired, Tocca says, by a whirlwind romance one spring in the 1940s between a young soldier on leave and a young girl at the fragrance counter of Le Bon Marche in Paris. Vibrant flowers bloom along the Champs-Elysees like first love awakens the spirit.
- The official top notes include Italian Bergamot, ginger oil, coriander (cilantro) seed oil; the middle notes, African violet, Bulgarian Rose and Black Currants (a type of berry); and bottom notes, creamy cedarwood, cashmere musk and benzoin (a scent similar to vanilla)
- Violette lingers on my skin longer than many of the Tocca scents I’ve tried. I get between 8-10 hours.
- I think it’s a little more sophisticated than Tocca’s last addition, Graciella. While both seem very feminine to me, Graciella reminds me of a carefree, small-town teenager to Violette’s young woman in her 20s, experiencing life and love in the big city.
- If you like Tom Ford Violet Blonde, Marc Jacobs Daisy, Ralph Lauren Romance or Prada Infusion d’Iris, you might also like Violette.
PRICE: $68 for a 1.7-fluid-ounce bottle
AVAILABILITY: Available now at Sephora stores and tocca.com
MAKEUP AND BEAUTY BLOG RATING: A
Because reading is FUN-damental
So, I was a little late jumping on the e-reader bandwagon, but now I’m fully on board!
El Hub was sweet enough to share his Kindle with me, so last week I borrowed it to read Bossypants, by Tina Fey, and it was so much fun!
I resisted ebooks because I didn’t think I’d ever get beyond missing the feeling of having a real book in my hands. I just love the heft of a real book, the smell of the paper (yes, I’m one of those weirdos who sniffs books in the library!) and the sound of the pages turning… There’s just something authentic and significant about real books, ya know?
Plus, I stare at phones and computer screens all day long, and I figured the last thing I’d want to do is stare at yet another glowing screen.
Turns out I was wrong.
I mean, I’ll always love printed books, of course, but ebooks are also pretty cool.
And the Kindle Fire’s screen doesn’t bother me as long as I turn the brightness way down…
That little finger swipe gesture to turn the pages? FUN! I can whip through the pages. Heck, I probably read faster on the Kindle than I can read a regular printed book, which is a very exciting prospect. 😀
How do you feel about e-readers? Have you given ’em a try?
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
I love ereaders because they use e-ink which doesn’t give that glare like phones and computer screens do. I was anti-ereader for at first, but they are so much easier to use IMO since I tend to lie in bed on my side to read, which would hurt my arms having to turn book pages. Paper books do still hold a special place in my heart though.
Hi Eight,
Okay, so I’m an occasional side reader, and I’ve noticed that when I’m like that, the text will jump between horizontal and vertical alignment! Truth be told it makes me a little crazy. Do you have any tips?
Love my e-reader, especially for travel! I love real books too though.
And ahhh, I’m going to Paris this summer and can’t wait. This just made me more excited.
Hi Chelsea,
Funny, I was just thinking how fun it would be to take an e-reader on a trip for pleasure reading. 🙂 For travel guidebooks, though, I’d probably stick to good old fashioned paperbacks, so I could write notes in the margins and dog ear the pages till my heart’s content!
How exciting, Paris! Are you going for work or fun?
Work, but there will be time for fun! Especially since I’ll be there during the twice-annual sales!
I love my Kindle Fire! 🙂
That’s what we have. I like it a lot, although I’m a little worried about reading outside with it because of the glare. I want to take it to the pool and read trashy magazines on it, LOL!
LOL … im stocking up on trashy magazines for a little trip we are taking next week — I intend to do nothing but read and eat when we go.
Ive used the Kindle Fire outdoors and the glare isnt that noticeable, which is a good thing. Otherwise, id be blinder than I already am. 😛
I love real books a tad bit more than e-books :). The reason: bookstores! There is something about browsing around in a good bookstore! Having said that, I am OK with the e-books as long as i am using Kindle, but reading e-books is NOT fun on an iPad :(.
Sadly, in SoCal, bookstores are going out of business one after another…
Hmm OK maybe this is not for me. I tried Tom Ford Violet Blonde, and it’s just not quite my type of scent. Too bad, because the description and images are so alluring!
I am still firmly resisting e-readers for more or less the same reasons. I just don’t think it feels “real” if I’m not touching some paper, also I stare at the screen all day as well…
Ah who knows? This looks like one of those things that I resist forever but at some point I’ll cave it, try, and never look back!
Another books sniffer here 🙂
I love reading real books so much I actually worked in a bookstore at one point as bookstore employees got 20% discount off all their books. Every time I got paid, I’d use half my salary to buy more books 🙂
I resisted getting a Kindle for a long, long time as I prefer reading from paper. The heft of a book and that satisfaction of finishing a really thick book is just priceless. Then, the bf lent me his Kindle once and I was taken aback by how soothing the screen was for my eyes. I could actually read it in broad daylight without any glare. Now I’m a bit of a 50% convert. I have a Kindle (the bf’s old one, since he got himself the bigger one) but I still buy printed books from time to time, just half as much as I used to. I think I like having the option to still buy printed books if I feel like it.
Timely post! I’ve been looking for a new perfume lately and would have never thought of checking Tocca, but this sounds right up my alley. Especially with the violette thing!
I had almost made up my mind for Lancome’s O de l’Orangerie but will give Tocca a sniff first. 🙂
As for e-readers, I’m still resisting! I’m with you on the paper sniffing thing (hmmm stationery and paper, I love thee) and love physical books too much. Reminds me of a classmate a while ago who wrote her dissertation (we did English lit) on the book as a physical object in Victorial literature – how interesting does that sound?! (or am I too geeky?)
Oh and glad you liked Bossypant! That book made me laugh so much!
As much as I love paper books, I super duper love my e-reader! I initially bought it because I commute a lot and it’s just so much easier to handle when on a crowded subway. The other reason why I love it is because it takes up less space than a regular book and I never run out of books to read 😀
I was in the same boat as you. I was reluctant about e-readers because I LOVE books. However, I love books so much that I buy way too many of them and I figured an e-reader would actually SAVE me money in the long run, since e-books are generally cheaper. So far, I really love it. It is also way easier for me to handle than the usual gigantic hardcover fantasy novels I’m usually delving into.
As usual, you have me reconsidering my prejudices. This time, not against things like lipstick, but against ereaders. I’ve resisted even trying one because I knew, in my soul, that I wouldn’t like it. For all the reasons you thought you wouldn’t like it. So, logically, I should at least give it a try. Still, something inside me screams “NO!” when I think of using one. 🙂
I resist eBooks because I love the real thing. Books are so tactile, and I love holding them while reading, feeling their weight and seeing how far along I am in the book. That said, for travel convenience I can see myself caving to a Kindle.
I have the exact same view as you do on the feel and smell of books, basically everything the e-reader doesn’t have. I’ve yet to give technology a try.. procastinating a bit I think! Aslo the lack of moolah. LOL