Today is my mother Linda’s 51st birthday! So if y’all don’t mind, I would like to offer a tiny tribute to the most beautiful, talented, and generous woman I know.
My mother was the first woman in her family to go to college. She speaks four languages, like me. She converted to Judaism at age 22. She is a partner in a D.C. law firm, much to the dismay of the male bosses who called her “Little Girl Weinberg” when she was working her way up the ranks. She specializes in international trade law, but she also takes on pro-bono cases for women who have experienced domestic violence. She works harder than she should, usually until 8:30 every night. This means that she’s never been the one to pick me and my brother up from school or cook us dinner at night. But my mother’s unrelenting work ethic allows us to go to great schools, and gives my father the financial stability to be self-employed while he does his important cancer work.
My mother helped me learn how to read and write. She bought me a set of Bob Books and helped me get through the whole thing in one day. She was never too busy to offer some crucial point about my high school essays, even when she really was too busy. She saved the post-it notes on which I wrote terrible sixth-grade poetry. My best writing is plagiarized from her college short stories. Someday my mother is going to write an amazing sci-fi novel, and you are ALL GOING TO BUY A COPY.
My mother went to each and every one of my high school acapella concerts, despite the fact that I never once had a solo. She came to my sorority initiation, even though she was never involved with greek life and probably thinks that sororities are kind of dumb. I’m honestly sobbing into my cat right now, thinking of all of the amazing things that my mother has done for me.
I love and admire my mother so much, and I am so proud to be her daughter.
Now for the perfume tie-in! Many perfumistas have stories about the Shalimar and Arpege that their mothers sprayed on before going out at night. My mother has never worn perfume, due to my father’s alleged allergies. (I say “alleged” because he also claims to have lost his sense of smell in a car accident.) If she ever were to wear a perfume, I think I would want it to be Guerlain Jicky. They both have that same sparkling beauty, and Jicky was famously worn by French author Collette (my mother was a French major).
What perfumes did your mother wear? Which perfumes do you think would suit her best?
SCENTS OF SELF 
A beautiful tribute Ari! You are blessed with an amazing mom 🙂
I would scent her in Mona dio Orio Musc, because it is like a warm, cozy embrace— which I’ll bet she always had time for!
Thank you so much, Dee! My mom is the best mom in the entire world, and I refuse to be convinced otherwise 😉 I think I’m going to have to sample that Musc based solely on your description!!
Hello Ari and Ari’s Mom (we nearly the same age – I’m a wee bit older than your mum) My mom (aged 81) currently wears Beautiful, and I dislike it A LOT – I would love to purchase Vero’s Kiki for her as she did sniff a sample of it and loved it (she loves lavender) and I would enjoy it on her!
Well, what’s stopping you, lady?!
Wait, I take that back. Just looked up the price. Now I see what’s stopping you! I haven’t tried Kiki, but it’s a lavender fragrance, right? I’m sure a cheaper lavender perfume could be found! You can’t have your mom smelling like something you hate- it would create bad associations where there should be none!
Hey Ari,
Mum used to have lovely bottles of Joy EDC, Chanel No 5 refillable, shared Byzance with my sister and the ubiquitous Shalimar. We knew she was going out when the glamour wafted through the house, day or night.
In her handbag though for the shops and golf she had Charlie, Tweed and Gorgio though. Extreme? Yes she was.
Thanks for reminding me to be grateful.
Portia xxx
Wooow! Your mom had an impressive collection! I just found Charlie in a thrift store yesterday! It’s soft, powdery, and very pretty.
Happy Birthday to your mother, Ari!
Perfumes I remember my mother wearing – Dior’s Miss Dior and Diorella (both my current favorites) and discontinued Dior Dior. I do not know which perfume would suit her better now but I’ll think of something soon since I plan to buy her a bottle of perfume as a gift (and I’ll have to do it “blind” and bring with me on my trip).
Thank you, Undina! Your mother has such wonderful taste, I love the sample of Diorella you so graciously sent me! Since she has a clear preference for Diors, maybe she’d like one of the perfumes from their new boutique line?
Happy Bday, Ari’s Mom! Just had a visit with my mom – she came out from MD to SD to visit my brother and his wife’s new baby. I don’t ever recall my mom wearing scent. When I would go in her bedroom to mess with her makeup, the only things I recall were a pretty black (maybe refillable?) bottle of something Chanel and a honeysuckle solid, probably from Avon. The Chanel looked so elegant. I don’t ever remember her using it – she was not a fancy lady and probably thought something like Chanel would be reserved for very special occasions. I do remember giving her some Coty Muguet de Bois for a Mother’s Day or birthday gift wen I was very young as someone must have told me she lied LotV – we did always have some growing in a shady spot in our backyard. After I started getting into scent (just in high school and college, getting mainstream crap from Marshall’s), I would give her stuff that I didn’t like and she would always enjoy it.
Mazal tov to your brother and sister-in-law!! Now, do you recommend this Muguet de Bois? It’s been on the shelf at my local thrift store for awhile, but for some reason I haven’t tried it yet (actually, there is a reason: the shelf is out of my reach!!)
This was a very very long time ago, so I don’t really have any recollection of the scent. I imagine it’s a pretty simple LotV, but who knows if it has aged well?
Another fellow-blogger-older-than-your-mum here… : – ) Yours sounds like an incredibly accomplished lady and all-round good egg. Many happy returns to her!
My mum wore Lentheric Tweed, which suited her love of rugged scenery, general outdoorsy-ness and shades of sludge and taupe. Somehow she acquired a bottle of Opium though, which is now well and truly vintage, and I have been giving away small decants of it to interested parties!
A very lovely tribute to your mother. Now I see where you get all your heart and talent. When I was growing up my mother was a big lover of
Tweed, all the Coty’s that were on the market, Tigress,Woodhue, Aphrodesia by Fabrege and her very favorite was Sortilege by LeGalion. My dad would give her a crystal decanter of that perfume every Christmas. She was so sad and disappointed when the company discontinued the fragrance. I keep her present perfume collection well supplied with all the heavy orientals that seem to be her favorites. She is as special to me as your mother is to you, so I take off my hat to all the special moms that we all have had and loved.
Ari, once again you got me all teary and smiling at the same time.
I already love your mother, and yes, I’ll buy a copy of her book even though I don’t read sci-fi 🙂 but I will find such a reader in my life!
My mother wore J’ai Ose by Guy Laroche, Diorissimo by Dior, she did not like one of my perennial favorites — Climat by Lancome, she never did like Chanel #5 (which I also love and which is my Aunt’s signature) which were popular and available at the time. Now she wears La Chasse aux Papillons — guess who helped her choose her new signature scent! I had to have quite a bit of patience and had to step on some ideas about which ones would be Mom-appropriate. I followed her reactions and we together chose a scent that she enjoys most and wears every day, as far as I know.
I love you lovin’ your mom, speaking both as a mother and as a daughter. It is truly wonderful to appreciate the good qualities of the woman who means the most to each of us!
My own mother is a fan of Tailored and Elegant, though she has on occasion given in to grandmotherly peer pressure and worn holiday sweaters… the scents I associate most closely with her is Chanel No.5 and Jovan Musk for Women, her perennial choices. She is awesome.