Question:
A friend and myself were fortunate enough to have an afternoon in NYC and hoofed it on down to Aedes in the West Village..our trip to the velvet draped haven became the highlight of our weekend.
Upon entrance, we both thought and said the same thing...we wanted whatever that bewitching fragrance was that was wafting in the air, but of course it is a melange of all the delightful scents that surrounded us.
I must say that the owners and creators of Aedes de Venustas, Robert and Karl were truly remarkable hosts, friendly, attentive and knowledgable, sharing suggestions and histories of specific fragrances. I gave Karl my top five list and he managed to find a scent that I have fallen in love with : Annick Goutal's Songes. Some of the notes are: ylang ylang, vanilla, sandalwood, frangipani, frankincense and jasmine. Karl slipped this in my sample bag and I discovered it that evening back at the hotel. He either has amazing intuition or he is a mind reader.
I have also found my official Holy Grail fragrance: Jalaine's Patchouli. It is opulent, divine, and earthy. I feel somehow transcendent wearing my sample of it, as if I should either be in the act of worship or being worshipped myself, while wearing it.
I also found a Creed frag for my man: Himalaya, with Bois du Portugal coming in at a close second for him. My friend fell HARD for Silver Mountain Water. We were at a conference and kept sniffing one another all day today! I wonder what those around us thought?
I highly recommend a visit to Aedes du Venustas. What a wonderful, wonderful experience.And when I mentioned basenotes, I felt as if we had an immediate common base which was really nice.
Almost forgot, I also sampled People of the Labyrinth's Luctor et Emergo. This is an absolute must try for incense lovers. Very earthy, grounding and the drydown on me made me feel as if I were in a church.

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So jealous!
My man got me my birthday gift from Aedes last year & the little booklet they mailed with the package showcased all of their fragrances so nicely I immediately wanted to fly up there & check it out. It's one of the few places where so many of my favorite fragrance houses are all under 1 roof.
Did you get a chance to sniff that 'exclusive' candle they have, with L'Artisan Parfumeur? Interested to hear your thoughts, if you did...
p.s. - I really wanted to like Songes when I spritzed it on me at Neimans about a month ago, but I kind of felt a little overwhelmed with the florals upon application and almost came close to scrubbing it...perhaps I should re-test. Was it the EDT that you sampled?

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Wow, you found a holy grail. Praise be!
Yes, that "melange du boutique" needs to be bottled. There never seems to be a bad note in it. Thanks for sharing. (You didn't take pictures???)

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Sounds like you had a marvy time and I am trying very hard not to be envious. Very hard.

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Quote: Originally Posted by Taolady Sounds like you had a marvy time and I am trying very hard not to be envious. Very hard. well, come on up here, y'all! I mean, really! Come on up!
Mike , yes, it was the edt, maybe the edp is headier, all I know is that the edt is DIVINE and a gorgeous veil which is bringing to mind for me a mix of Samsara and Nirmala... the ylang ylang and jasmine really come forth in this.
Quarry, no pics, sorry, but it will not be the last time I go, next time I must remember to bring a camera.
And I must confess that I LAYERED the Songes with dabs of the Patchouli which is, as I mentioned, OPULENT and luxurious. The softness of Songes is a perfect backdrop for the richness of the Patchouly. There is a sweetness to this that makes it very velvety.
I wish you all could have been there, I could see a handful of basenoters making a glorious day in the village there. Aedes had an intimate atmosphere, rich, but not intimidating. I really enjoyed myself.

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Love Aedes! They understand how to make fragrance exploration relaxed and fun. Karl is great to talk with and so nice. It's been awhile since I've been there. I didn't know they carried POTL. I've been curious about that one. I'm also eager to try the Escentric Molecules line. Enjoyed reading your report.

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Great report! Also very curious about the Escentric Molecules line. Might be time for a visit...

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Aedes is the best customer service in town! and it 's so nicer to be shopping downtown than in the upper east side at big crowded department stores.
have you tested Rousse by Serge Lutens? I bought a bottle of it last week, I m so crazy about it, it 's really one of the best Lutens, a revelation for me.

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Quote: Originally Posted by pierre obsidienne Aedes is the best customer service in town! and it 's so nicer to be shopping downtown than in the upper east side at big crowded department stores.
have you tested Rousse by Serge Lutens? I bought a bottle of it last week, I m so crazy about it, it 's really one of the best Lutens, a revelation for me. Karl gave me some Lutens testers, the one I am wearing today is Cedre, " a woody musk with tuberose..." and I am really enjoying it. It has an incense like drydown, the tuberose seems to be primarily in the topnote for me. For me, it fits in the same family as Feminite du Bois and Ambre Sultan but rather more understated. I have a sample of Rousse from a fellow basenoter, and have only given it a brief taste. Nearly all of the Serge Lutens line resonates with me...isn't it wonderful to find a fragrance you can be crazy about?
love, love, love, love....
did not specifically sniff any candles...I was reflecting today how I need to go back there soon and be very leisurely .... such a wide array. They definitely have more of a selection than is represented on the website. More Creeds, more Serge Lutens.

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I definitely definitely want to go back to Aedes! Such a beautiful store. And it's so intimate, and jam-packed full so much stuff. I could easily spend an entire year's salary in there...