eau de dingsbums
I am not sure what the proper translation for dingsbums is… “thingummybob” maybe? That’s what leo, the online-dictionary, proposed. Dingsbums means “something, that I can’t remember the name right now, something not so important”. May neighbour who teared me out of my dreams when passing by her yesterday evening on the street, could have said so. She came accross something “extrĂŞme” and wondered whether this was mine…
You would not believe how many clients ask for the “L’air pour elle” or something similiar.
And even the W.-factor and me we sometimes talk about “eau d’extrĂŞme” ;-)
Names are tricky.
I am sitting in front of a little piece of paper with eau de dingsbums on it. I showed it to Vero, too. A couple of days ago we both found it better than the original version of a while ago. The base is untouched, but the head notes miss some of the spices’ sharpness. It is more pleasing. Easier. Nicer.
And because this is so, I decided to buy the remaining stock (not too much left) of orange flower absolute from my preferred supplier (You never know!), that is nice enough to give me all the certificates for the European superpower of bureaucratic dingsbums.
November 18th, 2008 at 8:25 am
Dingsbumswasser, Eau de Truc, Eau de Machin (not machine oil), Eau de Thingumajig, Eau de What-d’you-call-it. That’s what my dictionaries would suggest as translations. But this could just as well be the Eau de Gingerumabob, the anticipated Eau d’Epices, that you seem to be making more pleasing and nicer. I’m looking forward to the day when my nose could judge this in its own right. Keep going on.
November 18th, 2008 at 11:05 am
In Dutch this is probably “eau de dinges”, if Aromax agrees ;-) .
November 18th, 2008 at 12:33 pm
Eau de Sei Lá in Portuguese.
Eau de Ein li Mussag in Hebrew.
November 18th, 2008 at 3:24 pm
…excitedly squirming in my seat…. Could it be???
November 18th, 2008 at 7:17 pm
Hi Andy, Eau de Dingsbums gefällt mir sehr gut. Wobei man manche Dinge gar nicht zu übersetzen braucht - allein der Versuch macht die Sache meist noch komischer und man hat viel Spaß dabei. Wenn Du mal später nach Berlin kommst, dann gehen wir zusammen zum Burning-Castle-Gate. :-)
GruĂź Erik
November 18th, 2008 at 8:29 pm
Dear Erik
hmmm… es ist late und er ĂĽberlegte und ĂĽberlegte .. ah! und er hat’s gerafft. JA. sehr,sehr gerne!
Dear Kelly
I am feeling like Hitchcock…hehehe…
Dear Simone
Ein li Mussag . This sounds familiar somehow. Nice!
Dear Marianne
Eau de dinges is cool. and it seems related to dingsbums….
Dear Stefan
Oh..Eau de Truc is ultra-cool. So you said Spring, right? I guess this will be at latest the time when you sniff it.
November 18th, 2008 at 11:33 pm
AromaX would agree completely - De Dinges Water… OR Je-weet-het Water
And English? Would it be You know it Water? Or water with a kind of smell in it?
Names are tricky, Andy… and the way you can insult someone by spelling, pronouncing, saying it wrong… a tricky world…
But if people talk about “L’air pour elle” or “eau d’extrĂŞme” than it’s a sign. It means that you simply have to make such fragrances once…
Like “L’air pour elle” could be a nice name for a new fragrance that you might present at your Fleur d’Oranger apero in december 2009 ;-)
November 19th, 2008 at 2:13 am
In the American flavor of English, thingamabob or thingummybob or sometimes thingummy means the same as dingsbums. Other related terms are doohickey, whatchamacallit, and thingamajig. These are all terms whose usage is often associated with an older generation by humorists. As in, “pass me that thingamajig, won’t ya, and I’ll give ya these hyacinths?” … something your friend the mechanic might say. :)
November 19th, 2008 at 3:13 am
There is a phrase in English when you are in the middle of searching for the word for the thing…you start in, and then say, “you know,” to replace the name (and you hope the other person does know, because your brain is desperately scanning for the term…)…
Which means you can add “Eau de You Know” to your list of fun names. :)
November 19th, 2008 at 7:27 am
Hi Andy, und für den Fall, daß Dir mal die namen ausgehen, kannst Du gern meine Idee für einen Weihnachtsduft verwenden. Ich komm damit ohnehin nicht aus der Hüfte: Eau de Fröhliche.
GrĂĽĂźe, Erik
November 19th, 2008 at 7:51 am
Guten Morgen, Erik
Ei sieh an: Nochmals ein Frühaufsteher! Oder ein Spät-ins-Bett-geher?
Eau de Fröhliche ist cooooooool!
Dear Aromax
Excellent idea. I see that I get ready by December 2009…
Dear Scentscelf
Thank you! Eau de you know This brings me back to an idea I once had for a fragrance name… but I think I will have to talk about this in a separate post ;-)
Dear Vasily
I am glad that my friend the mechanic has not been captured by the US politicians yet.
Imagine…. Joe, the mechanic with his hyacinth…wants a tax cut! and free hyacinths for the rest of his live.
November 21st, 2008 at 6:46 am
Orange Blossom Absolute…sigh!! How lovely Andy.