Gifts We Love to Give (and Get) from a Village Favorite

We discovered Aedes de Venustas several years ago.  A very stylish friend gave Ralph a birthday present of cologne from this elegantly over-the-top Greenwich Village shop.  Aedes de Venustas offers an Ali Baba's cave of unusual personal fragrances, home scents, and bath/body/skin care products that you won't find in department or drug stores.  

Departures magazine recently named it "The Chicest Store" and when you visit their expanded new digs at 7 Greenwich Ave. you'll see why.  Gorgeous flowers are everywhere, and it smells incredible!  The staff is unfailingly friendly and helpful.  It's a lovely shopping experience, and this time of year that's hard to come by.

By the way, all these years later Ralph's cologne is still Timbuktu by L'Artisan Parfumuer.  It always gets flattering comments, but seek out your own signature scent.  The essential oils react differently on everyone's skin.

Image courtesy of Timeout.com