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Monday, February 09, 2009

Czech & Speake Oxford & Cambridge

"If I am occasionally a little over-dressed, I make up for it by always being immensely over-educated." Oscar Wilde, The Importance of Being Earnest.


By the admission of the creators themselves, this is "a traditional lavender fragrance", "evocative of the English countryside, varsity matches and the great British sporting tradition." Note how the meaning of Oxbridge is thus reduced to sports, therefore proving Ambrose Bierce's statement that academy is a modern school where football is taught. Or rowing, cricket and rugby.

The sharp, nose-burning beginning is perhaps meant to put one off, as if saying, this is not the scent for the likes of you. In fact, it is as easy to wear Oxford & Cambridge as it is to be admitted into one or the other. I would know, as somehow I got accepted. Ever since then, as Groucho Marx and Woody Allen have been before me in regards of their clubs, I've been a little suspicious of the university that would have me as a member... But I digress...As the fragrance develops on my skin, it warms up and sweetens. Lavender acquires an almost fruity undertone. I am not sure where the candied note comes from but it counteracts very well the piney coldness of rosemary and the chilly aloofness of mint, making Oxford & Cambridge ever so approachable and lovable. Fresh, but not aggressively so, wearable and versatile, this lavender is a delight even for a lavender-ambivalent person like me.

Available at pharmacyny.com for a price that is rather too elitist considering the simplicity of the blend ($115.00 for cologne). But hey, you pay for the name, and I suppose it is worth it.

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11 Comments:

Blogger elle said...

God knows I want to love lavender scents and this really is a pretty decent one in the dry down, but although I keep on (and on and on) trying and hoping, I simply can't get beyond any need for lavender except for using lavender bath products and therein lies the rub. Lavender to me is inescapably clean and clearing and those are qualities that simply don't do it for me in scents. I need something deeply comforting or interesting and, for me, that comes from scents that have more skank (can almost never have too much skank), density or opaqueness to them. I think that may be why I do actually love SL's EeL - has a very appealing cloudy, opaque quality.

7:31 AM EST  
Blogger Marina said...

L,
I agree! But as far as non-deep, non-skanky lavenders go, very few are actually wearable for me, and this one is.

7:35 AM EST  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Thank you for this review. It sounds very clean and almost comforting. However, and I purposefully put a capital H on that and not only because it's the beginning of a new sentence, the price is desperately outrageous! I don't think this will be found in this house any time soon....

Lovethescents

8:51 AM EST  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

How funny......I've been craving "Annie Hall" all weekend.....and since Friday, I've been giving my DK Fuel a second/third chance and I LOVE it!!!

Guess I'll douse myself in Fuel and pull out the DVD -cause Lord knows, "I would never want to belong to any club that would have someone like me for a member."

Marko

11:12 AM EST  
Blogger Marina said...

S,
I agree, the price is "ivy league" and the scent is not quite so :-)

4:17 PM EST  
Blogger Marina said...

Marko,
Exactly, love that quote.
I am glad you love Fuel too.

4:17 PM EST  
Blogger Marina said...

Aw, Willie Wonka, don't minimize my achievements :-D

4:18 PM EST  
Blogger Marina said...

Natalie,
Magdalen? Or..?

4:51 PM EST  
Blogger Marina said...

St Antony :-)

5:52 PM EST  
Blogger Marina said...

I like that!! :-)

7:32 AM EST  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

.. it took me about 3 months to commit to buying this wonderful cologne because I'd never worn a "unisex" scent before! so it drew my awareness to a prejudice I wasn't aware I had--

but now I do buy this cologne. and I absolutely love it. I wear it every, single day. and have not tired of it (in over a year-)

happily, I receive lots of compliments, too! my favorites are from young children..

individual body chemistry continues to amaze me with its importance in choosing a scent: I own many lovely bottles of perfume.. that don't smell quite as good on me as this cologne does--

hope my post encourages any hesitant 'Ms' out there! to go for it

12:51 PM EDT  

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