I have never been able to remember my dreams in detail like most people. The most I can recall is usually how I was feeling at the time I awaken, but nothing more and nothing less.
I dream with my eyes wide open. When faced with the impossible, I create a picture in my mind's eye and see myself achieving my goals, whether they are personal or professional. These reveries are conscious and the power of of visualization has motivated me to move through some rough times.
Some people turn to self-help books or advice from a friend, but fragrance and the positive feelings it can evoke cannot be underestimated.
As a perfumista, I have bottles of fragrance to suit my every mood. Yet, there is only one fragrance that I wear when the going is rough and the world seems dark – Songes by Annick Goutal. (Songes translated from the French means "dreams"). Since my purchase of Songes in 2005(the year it was launched), it is my constant companion when l feel out of balance and need to create a different reality.
Songes was created by Camille Goutal (the daughter of Annick Goutal) and the Company's Fragrance Designer, Isabelle Doyen. Many of the notes in Songes have aromatherapeutic properties of restoration when used as essential oils; ylang-ylang alleviates tension, frangipani restores harmony, jasmine absolue creates a feeling of euphoria and tiare flower soothes a restless mind.
Songes is a fragrance, not aromatherapy, but I cannot help but notice that a single spritz seems to lift my sprits and help my fly past the obstacles that block the fulfillment of my hopes and aspirations.
It is fitting that the unique bottle that has a top in the shape of the crescent moon. For me, Songes is all about letting your dreams manifest into reality and doing so with style and grace. The sweetness of this fragrance and the magic of the bright moon in the sky will keep hope alive for you and turn the impossible to the possible.
– Felicia Hazzard, Contributor
Felicia is the Founder & Editor-in-Chief of Fragrance Belles-Lettres, a newsletter dedicated to perfumers and perfume houses of the 16th-19th century