New reviews return tomorrow. But on this feast of the Epiphany the return of a wise but solitary woman. With thought for all of you under ice in America and being blown away be winds in Britain.
That first thaw was nothing but a false promise of Spring.
A few days of green, smelling almost chemically fresh after a winter’s absence, and then the ice re-descended.
In heavy boots she makes her way across frosted grass its bright coloured hope still visible through translucent water now made glass.
Through dawn’s shivering shimmering light she sees a foolhardy wild lawn, bleached mosses, snowdrops, the odd unfortunate purple crocus, miniature iris pushing up against a cold ceiling. Beneath the frozen pane white primulas pretend being gardenia, their pastel cousins ape tulips.
And though they are already deceased and just deep freeze preservatives of their former selves, she minds her step, careful not to carelessly crush scarce beauty.
At the lake’s edge its solid expanse deceives with a pledge of permanence. She knows a few weeks hence and it will be ebbs and flows, freeform and fluid again.
‘Ice Woman’…
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The Perfumed Dandy. 
Dear Mr Dandy
I very much want to try Ma Griffe. I like musty mossy greens- would I like this?
Your friend
IScent
Dearest Iscent
I wouldn’t describe Ma Griffe as musty, it has a abstract almost otherworldly quality. Also, though undeniably green it is comprised of a good part aldehyde.
Since I published the review, Carven have reformulated the scent and… shock, horror.. improved it.
The quality of the ingredients has improved and the perfume is now richer, fuller somehow.
That said, the incarnation pictured above is a fragile, yet remarkably long lived thing of its own particular beauty and an absolute steal. I have both!
Certainly worth a sample or decant I’d have thought.
Yours ever
The Perfumed Dandy
Dear Mr Dandy
A reformulation that is an improvement? Now tehre’s a rare bird. I would never turn down a green aldehyde and shall be putting Ma Griffe on the Hunting List. I see it’s easily available and I have a birthday next month.
Your friend
IScent
Dearest Iscent
I believe the new version is now at House of Fraser nationwide so it may be possible to sample.
The last version can be found cheap as chips on line so could be the birthday equivalent of a stocking filler. Winks.
Yours ever
The Perfumed Dandy
Dear Mr Dandy,
I’m on the case. Thanks for the review and the handy shopping tips! It will be mine.
Your friend
IScent
Dearest Dandy,
It’s 10.3 degrees in my mossy little village this morning, and your lovely review has made me want to reach for Ma Griffe and spray it madly.
It’s a scent that I wear for days, and then not for months, and when it’s ‘right’ it’s really ‘right’.
Many thanks,
Cheryl
Dearest Cheryl
I know exactly what you mean.., I saw pictures of all that snow and ice across the Atlantic and I just felt myself reaching for this fragrance.
By the way have you tried the newest version? Carven have invested heavily in new packaging and improving the quality of the ingredients and I think it has paid off handsomely. It’s now smelling better than t has for years!
Yours ever
The Perfumed Dandy
Dearest Dandy,
I haven’t tried the newest version, but your high regard, has just placed it at the top of my 2014 list. Thank you!
Love,
Cheryl
Dearest Cheryl
I re-tried this today, just to ensure that I hadn’t inflated how well thought through I believed the reformulation to be… and I think I still like it very much. It is smoother, more refined than some of the other recent incarnations and so much more plush. An odd combination of luxuriant and sparse…. something Jean Claude Ellena has been reaching out for years for!
Yours ever
The Perfumed Dandy
I love Ma Griffe and I love your review. I have a vintage pdt. Like Cheryl, I seldom wear it but when I do I love it. The new version isn’t bad at all, but I prefer the old one.
Dearest Lily
Have you seen the newest of the new versions? The bottle after the one pictured in the review?
It’s well worth seeking out as I was just saying to Cheryl. It was on very limited release here until a little before Christmas, but seems to be more widely available now.
Definitely worth trying if some comes in your direction.
Yours ever
The Perfumed Dandy
No, I haven’t tried the most recent version. I wasn’t aware there was one after that one pictured above. I had that one but I gave it away. I’ll try the newest if/when it crosses my path – BUT…it had better sit up and sing Dixie if it’s going to woo me from my old juice. 😉
Dearest Lily
What an image!
Don’t let the product designers know or before you can say ‘Dixie’ the next Britney or Beyonce juice will have a digital tune built in.
Here’s an unbiased (he never tried the original) and well written review of the ‘new’ Ma Griffe from fellow blogger the very lovely Candy Perfume Boy… http://thecandyperfumeboy.com/2013/09/25/a-classic-signature-carven-ma-griffe-2013-perfume-review/
I’m still laughing at the notion of a singing scent though!
Yours ever
The Perfumed Dandy
Oh dear. It’s just an expression but we should be careful what we say in public, you’re right. Can you imagine — a singing bottle like one of those singing greeting cards? I’ll check out Candy Perfume Boy’s review.