Biehl Parfumkunstwerke gs03

Another sampler from Jeffrey Dame at Hypoluxe. I wasn’t sure what I was expecting after gs02, though I was pleasantly surprised when I tried out gs03!

gs03

gs03

In Bottle: Nice, soft white florals with an layer of woods.

Applied: Slight citrus kick on spray but quick to dissipate as it’s replaced with a smooth white floral fragrance with an under layer of woods to back it up. The opening is fabulous. Very airy white florals, a slight spice to tie it together. It’s mid-stage is marked with a more prominent woodsy showing with those white florals layered on top. The dry down sees a smoother wood note, less florals and more soft warmth from a vetiver with a mild return of the citrus that disappeared in the top layer. This reminds me of laundry or very nice soap. And something in it also reminds me of something my mother used to wear. Nice, lovely and soft.

Extra: gs03 is a new launch from biehl parfumkunstwerke targeted both men and women. It was composed by by Geza Schoen, like gs02.

Design: A similar minimalist bottle design as gs02. Nothing flashy or outrageous. After having seen some of the latest celebuscent bottle designs, I appreciate simplicity like this a lot.

Fragrance Family: Floral Woodsy

Notes: Mandarin, orange blossom, neroli, pepper, juniper, rose, jasmine, iris, cedar, vetiver, castoreum, oakmoss, benzoin, tonka bean, musk.

Very nice, though a couple of times during the midstage I got a little worried about the cedar. That note doesn’t behave for me, but it did fine in gs03 as it was light and well done in this fragrance. Overall very nice and I prefer it over gs02 for its softness.

Reviewed in This Post: gs03, 2013, Eau de Parfum.


Farmacia Ambra Nera

Another sample from the truly awesome, Steve from The Scented Hound. Ambra Nera is a parfum concentration amber scent that smelled pleasant from the sampler vial.

Ambra Nera

Ambra Nera

In Bottle: Smooth amber with a blast of eucaluptus and a hint of patchouli and touch of cypress.

Applied: The first thing I got from Ambra Nera was the eucalyptus, followed by the amber and a nice sense of warmth. The cypress rolls in during the midstage giving the scent a touch of woodsiness without being too overwhelming, the fragrance as a whole takes on a slightly green feel near the end of the mid-stage as it rolls into a lovely powdered amber with a hint of sweetness. Very pleasant, exquisitely sophisticated, and rather surprising as I was expecting something a bit more bold from this, but its softness is very appealing.

Extra: Ambra Nera was the brainchild of Farmacia SS. Annunziata dal 1561. It’s available on Lucky Scent.

Design: Pretty simple bottle, but gets the job done. Looks nice, simple and modern. Nothing garish on this so it can sit anywhere and suit just about any style.

Fragrance Family: Oriental

Notes: Cypress, eucalyptus, amber, benzoin, vetiver, vanilla, patchouli.

Very pleasantly surprised with Ambra Nera, I enjoyed the subtle sweetness of the amber and its nice soft progression.

Reviewed in This Post: Ambra Nera, 2012, Parfum.


Histoires de Parfums 1804

Okay, no more silly celebrity stuff for the time being. I went a little crazy for Histoires de Parfums. Gimmicky as the concept might seem sometimes, I can’t deny for a minute that it hooked me. So I went and got a few more years from the line.

1804

1804

In Bottle: I really didn’t expect the pineapple to be quite so prominent, but it’s just about the only thing there on first sniff.

Applied: Yep, pineapple. Very tropical, quite sweet with a juiciness to it that I want to attribute to the peach. The pineapple note is very strong and quite loud. I rather like it as it screams holidays and summer at me. Strange because I expected something entirely more subdued from 1804, still feminine, still fruity but not screaming fun and sun like it is right now. All confusion and expectations aside, 1804’s pineapple opening is pretty delightful. It’s sweet and girly and fun. It rolls into a mild floral bouquet with a sweet and clean finish at the end. I was looking for the spices the whole time, but they never made themselves known. Not elegant, but not at all bad. I quite like it.

Extra: 1804 was inspired by Amantine Aurore Lucile Dupin, who might be more recognizable by her pen name, George Sand.

Design: Designed in the same way as most other Histoires de Parfums bottles. I would love to have a full set of these, lined up in a neat row. I would finally be able to pretend I’m some sort of chemist with impeccable taste.

Fragrance Family: Fruity Floral

Notes: Pineapple, peach, gardenia, jasmine, rose, lily-of-the-valley, cloves, nutmeg, sandalwood, patchouli, benzoin, vanilla, white musk.

Probably not an instance where I’m dying to throw money at it, but 1804 remains a very pleasant, very feminine fragrance. If I had a hankering for pineapple, I think it would be the first thing I go for.

Reviewed in This Post: 1802, 2012, Eau de Parfum.


Thierry Mugler A*Men

Lots of thanks to Undina from Undina’s Looking Glass for the sample of this fragrance. A*Men has been one of those scents that I kept hearing about but never got around to trying.

A*Men

A*Men

In Bottle: Sweet and a bit dusty, I get a lot of woods out of this but at the same time, I’m smelling the gourmand too.

Applied: Sweet upon application, lavender with a bit of milk and honey and lots of caramel. The fragrance introduces its woodsier side rather earlier as I get patchouli mixed with cedar that blends in with the caramel and milky notes. The mid-stage is marked with a noticeable addition of spices and woods, I swear I can smell cinnamon as the fragrance gets a bit more coffee like with this dusty coating of woods following it. The dry down is warm with a sandalwood base and a sweet toffee-like backdrop. I’ve seen people absolutely love A*Men and other people who can’t stand it. I was all ready for a gourmand but I was more surprised by the prominence of the woods in this. It makes the fragrance more oriental in style with a creamy, sweet caramel scent accented with a lot of woodsiness.

Extra: A*Men was introduced in 1996 and comes in two bottle styles. One metallic bottle and a rubber bottle.

Design: I’ve never been much of a fan of Thierry Mugler’s bottle designs. I often found them too chunk or too alien-looking and I can’t say I really like the bottle designs for A*Men either. It just doesn’t strike a chord with my sensibilities.

Fragrance Family: Gourmand Oriental Woodsy

Notes: Coriander, lavender, fruits, spices, mint, bergamot, honey, jasmine, milk, caramel, lily of the valley, cedar, patchouli, sandalwood, tonka, amber, musk, benzoin, coffee, vanilla.

I don’t think I’m that big of a fan of A*Men. I wasn’t sure whether or not I liked the gourmand bits of it, or the oriental bits, or the woodsy bits. It just all melded together into one big “blah” for me, though it does have really fantastic longevity.

Reviewed in This Post: A*Men, 2012, Eau de Toilette.


Madonna Truth or Dare

With the way work has been ramping up lately, I haven’t had the chance to get my nose wrapped around much but my usual standbys. So, when I discovered the local mall had a bottle of Madonna’s Truth or Dare sitting out, I shrugged my shoulders and thought, “Well, why not? I’m here already.”

Truth or Dare

Truth or Dare

In Bottle: Wow, tuberose. I get a very strong floral presence that’s predominantly tuberose.

Applied: Yikes. Tuberose. I know this scent gets compared to Fracas–the cheeky Tuberose Queen and I definitely get that impression. Truth or Dare opens up with a powerful hit of sweet tuberose followed with a barely-able-to-contain-itself gardenia note that furthers the floral interpretation. The fragrance is so sweet and floral that it obliterates any other smell to my nose can pick up and starts to smell like plastic a couple of minutes into wear. By the time hour two rolled around, I was trying to scrub it off because I smelled overwhelmingly like plastic. And of course, like with most fragrances that don’t agree with you, this just wouldn’t come off. So I did the only logical thing; I sprayed some more on, in a different location, went home and sat out the fragrance so I could at least take notes on it, review it, and never touch it again. The longevity is fairly good, lasting quite a few hours on me before it tried to exhibit any other kind of personality. Truth or Dare gets a bit less tuberose near the end of its mid-stage and focuses a bit more on this nice creamy, vanilla with some plastic stretched over it. But for as long as I could still smell it, there was that sweet plastic tuberose note dominating the entire scene.

Extra: Truth or Dare was launched earlier in 2012. The fragrance was composed by Stephen Nilsen.

Design: I can’t say I see the beauty of this design. The bottle is a white glass, but looks like it’s made of plastic until you touch it. The cap is a gold plastic, molded with these little studs, it looks a bit inappropriate and doesn’t quite do the fragrance any favors. All right, I admit, the thing is downright ugly. I think those studs or raised bumps on the bottle are taking it from “plain but looks all right” to “fugly” territory. I’m just a fan of the aesthetics this time.

Fragrance Family: Sweet Floral

Notes: Neroli, gardenia, tuberose, jasmine, benzoin, lily, vanilla, amber, musk.

I was actually hoping this one would work out, having heard how classical it was supposed to be. Having heard how similar to Fracas it was. But unlike Fracas, it overdoes the tuberose and not in a good way. I think I’ll stick to Fracas.

Reviewed in This Post: Truth or Dare, 2012, Eau de Parfum.


M. Micallef Vanille Marine

I’m delighted to be wearing a vanilla fragrance on any day. As much as I love Jasmine and honey, the vanillas keep me coming back. Up today is M. Micallef‘s Vanille Marine, a pretty aquatic with a bite of citrus and a smooth vanilla personality. 

In Bottle: Sharp citrus and marine with a tempering of flowering vanilla. It’s quite an interesting mix of sharp and soft that forms to make a fairly nice fragrance.

Applied: I get an initial spear of citrus and sharp marine notes. It makes the scent smell quite strong and reminds me a lot of soap. While the opening might be harsh, Vanille Marine settles down quickly into a softer interpretation lending much of this progression to the florals and that awesome vanilla. I had my reservations about an aquatic vanilla fragrance. I hadn’t tried any before that I thought worked out very well, but Vanille Marine makes the concept very appealing. There’s a clean edge to this from the marine that mixes well with the soft floral vanilla. It makes me think of delicate vanilla flowers floating in the ocean. This is clean, fresh and warm all at the same time as you settle into its mid-stage. Where Vanille Marine gets really good is near the end where the marine notes have time to settle into the skin and work with the vanilla to give off this beautiful smooth vanilla and aqua fragrance.

Extra: M. Micallef’s vanilla collection showcases the many faces that vanilla can take. I’m extremely happy that fragrance houses are using vanilla in different ways than the standard recipe of throwing it into a gourmand or spraying it all over the base notes of some fruit floral and hoping for the best. I never thought an aquatic vanilla could work out this well, and I’m happy to be proven wrong.

Design: Vanille Marine is packaged and presented in much the same way as Vanille Orient. I’m still not a big fan of the aesthetics and think Micallef’s other work is more attractive. Still, the bottles and the design are nice interpretations of fun, natural and organic aesthetic.

Fragrance Family: Sweet Aquatic

Notes: Lemon, blackcurrant, marine, vanilla, white florals, benzoin, musk, woods.

I though Vanille Orient would be my favorite from this batch of vanillas, but I’m thinking Vanille Marine might have it beat. I’ve smelled a lot of good oriental vanillas and while Vanille Orient is up there on the list, Vanille Marine was a pleasant surprise.

Reviewed in This Post: Vanille Marine, 2012, Eau de Parfum.

Disclaimer: The fragrance sampler spray reviewed in this post was provided to me for free for the purposes of review. In no other way am I receiving pay or compensation for this review. This review was written based upon my personal experiences and opinions of the product.


Parfum d’Empire Cuir Ottoman

Cuir Ottoman was a leather recommended to me by a friend who said that if I wasn’t already obsessed with leather then I would be once I smelled this.

Cuir Ottoman

Cuir Ottoman

In Bottle: Leather, nice and smooth with a warm and soft quality. A bit of floral layering in the back that helps the leather pull away from its often “too strong” personality. The mix is very nice.

Applied: Leather, soft and smooth and yielding. This isn’t too strong or too evident as the florals in this–a jasmine with iris blend–help temper the leather even more. The leather is definitely the star of the show though as it reminds me of a well-loved old leather jacket passing through a field of flowers. It’s one of the better done leathers out there, that actually mimics the real scent very well. It is also a very good balance in almost every category, making this a good unisex fragrance. As the scent heads toward its end stage, there’s a smokiness that amps up that I’m guessing is the resin and incense giving the leather fragrance a smoky quality.

Extra: Cuir Ottoman is very nicely done and really well-balanced. I have no complaints about its composition as it’s just so nicely done. The fragrance was released in 2006.

Design: Parfums d’Empire’s bottle designs seem pretty similar to each other. Tall glass, an accented cap. I can’t complain about the functionality, but the form was a little bland. Still, the same thing could be said about most niche houses. You buy it for the juice and not the design. Unless you’re buying an Agonist perfume, then we all know.

Fragrance Family: Floral Leather Oriental

Notes: Jasmine, leather, iris, benzoin, balsams, resins, incense.

So Cuir Ottoman is definitely worth a shot. It’s a great scent that’s wonderfully composed. But in so far as making me obsess about leathers, we’ll have to wait on that one.

Reviewed in This Post: Cuir Ottoman,  2010, Eau de Parfum.


Givenchy Pi

Having completed a recent move, I am slowly coming back to the smell game and starting off with Givenchy Pi, a men’s fragrance toting itself as a woody oriental.

Pi

Pi

In Bottle: Mandarin with a vanilla and herbal scent up top. A pleasant if somewhat strange combination.

Applied: Mandarin right away with a nice wave of herbs coming in soon after it. I smell the rosemary rather predominantly. Almost as fast as the opening rolls in, I get a big whiff of almonds and vanilla and the fragrance sweetens up almost immediately. It’s kind of a shame that almond and vanilla and generally considered feminine fragrances because if given enough of a chance, Pi could make anyone of any gender smell good. It’s certainly a bit of a change from what I usually see with men’s scents. I rather like that it started off typical enough then takes itself into a sweet vanilla direction. The fragrance wears on with sweet vanilla and almond until the woodsiness comes up and mingles with the vanilla. The end product is a rather pleasant vanilla woods.

Extra: Pi was released in 1999 and has since split into a few flankers. You can still easily find Pi at department stores and even some drug stores.

Design: Serge Mansau strikes again with this bottle design. It reminds me a bit of Ancient Egyptian architecture with its even, straight form and coloring. The bottle is rather hefty, a little difficult to hold, but it is otherwise a beautiful, interesting piece to have.

Fragrance Family: Woodsy Oriental

Notes: Mandarin, tarragon, basil, rosemary, tonka, vanilla, benzoin, almond, brown sugar, cedar.

Pi is like a fragrance exploring the three concepts of fragrance gendering. It starts off masculine, evolves a bit into the feminine, then ends on a rather unisex note.

Reviewed in This Post: Pi,  2010, Eau de Toilette.


Escada Magnetism for Women

Magnetism by Escada is an easy to like and easy to wear sweet floral oriental with a stroke of pure fun.

Magnetism

Magnetism

In Bottle: Sweet vanilla blended with a fun fruity and juicy opening coated with flowers.

Applied: Sweet and green rather crisp and juicy up top with a distinct fruitiness that blends well with the fragrance. The scent delves into this floral mish-mash that comes out smelling distinctly flowery but keeps a rein on its strength. There is a sweetness throughout this fragrance that doesn’t take away from the fragrance’s purpose. In the end, it is a sweet sandalwood with an earthy vibe and a strong sweet vanilla finish.

Extra: Magnetism for Women was introduced in 2003. It’s a fairly decent fragrance though it’s not in any way groundbreaking. It does smell good and does the Escada brand some fine justice.

Design: Not too wild about the design of the bottle but then Escada’s bottle designs have always seemed a bit off to me. Magnetism is a hot pink curved glass bottle. It’s vaguely unpleasant and looks a bit too suggestive for me to take it seriously.

Fragrance Family: Sweet Floral Oriental

Notes: Pineapple, black currant, melon, berries, cassia, litchi, magnolia, orris, green leaves, freesia, basil, jasmine, caraway, heliotrope, lily of the valley, rose, sandalwood, amber, patchouli, musk, benzoin, caramel, vetiver, vanilla.

So in the end, Magnetism isn’t attracting me, but it is doing a good job of trying. If you want a nice, wearable floral oriental with a dollop of sweet then this might be good. As a bonus, Magnetism can be purchased from several discounters for a rather fair price.

Reviewed in This Post: Magnetism for Women,  2010, Eau de Parfum.


Prada Candy

Prada’s well-done and mostly well-received Infusions line was a big hit with me and its non-Infusions fragrances are fabulous too. So when Prada came out with Candy, I was a bit leery from the name on its own. But every fragrance gets a fair sniff.

Candy

Candy

In Bottle: Warm and musky with a sweet hit of benzoin and burnt caramel.

Applied: Sweet caramel and musk hello! The benzoin follows in afterward and the fragrance takes on a creamy, burnt quality. I hope you like that scent because the rest of the fragrance is pretty much that with a fading of the musk first, then the caramel, then the creamy vanilla for me. The caramel in Candy is a little bit better behaved than the burnt caramel notes in other fragrances like Flowerbomb or Pink Sugar. I still don’t know if I like it, but it isn’t too bad in this. What is too bad is how rather dull Prada Candy is. It wants to be a gourmand but the musk is holding it back. It wants to be an oriental but aside from being rich and deep and full of benzoin and warmth, I hesititate to give it that. In the end, it smells strong, it smells sweet, and while it’s not complex or interesting it does do caramel a lot better than any other caramel-based contender so far. Heck, at the very least, I’d pick Prada Candy over Flowerbomb despite Prada Candy being significantly simpler.

Extra: Prada Candy was released mid-year in 2011. It was composed by Daniela Andrier (Prada Infusion de Vetiver, Prada Infusion d’Homme).

Design: The bottle is a bit retro. Reminds a little of the 80s and I suppose that would be Prada Candy’s way of channeling the orientals of the 80s into its sweet caramel self. As for me, I’m not much of a fan of the bottle design. I don’t like the colors or the shape and would prefer something a little less retro.

Fragrance Family: Oriental Gourmand

Notes: Musk, benzoin, caramel.

As unimpressed as I was with this, I need to remind that this is a good fragrance. It’s several steps above Aquolina’s Pink Sugar and Viktor and Rolf’s Flowerbomb. If you want a high end fragrance with a focus on caramel and a little bit of grown-up personality (not much, just a little) then give Prada Candy a sniff.

Reviewed in This Post: Candy, 2011, Eau de Parfum.