HS3

Comme des Garcons has some really quirky packaging. From the plastic dummy bottles in the Guerrilla series to the unfolding metallic box in the LUXE series, their packaging (though not the most luxurious, is definitely some of the most original. Comme des Garcons EDP, released in 1994, is no exception. It comes in a simple white card stock box with plain black printing on it. Open the box and the bottle is presented in something you might expect to save meat in the freezer with. The “as-seen-on-TV” style pouch seems to cover all the bottles of the same shape from CdG that I’ve tried. I’m still not completely sold on the bottle shape – though it serves its purpose quite well, it has a hard time sitting next to others in a collection. It ends up just being plunked there in the front.

As for the scent, it can certainly hold its own. This 1994 EDP is a melange of spices, loaded with clove and hot cinnamon. It advertises itself to work like a medicine and behave like a drug – though I don’t find the opening quite as medicinal as some, it is undoubtedly intense and slightly medicinal, perhaps due to the camphorous notes that you’ll find in the top. I find a good bit of rose throughout, but it’s never overly floral – merely a supporting note. It settles nicely into a smoother cedar and sandalwood-rich scent with the black pepper present through most of the day. Longevity on me is superb, which is not a surprise with its nearly 20% concentration. Sillage is above average for me on this one – I wore it yesterday and felt at times that I was leaving a trail a bit more tenacious than I usually like to. 12 hours into it, the GF (wife in a month – woo!) had her interest piqued and pressed her face into my neck to exclaim how good it smelled.

From what I gather, this scent was reformulated and the new version is now made in Spain. Some reviews point to the reformulated version as being lighter and less intense, but I’ve only tried this version (French made version), so I can’t compare. There don’t seem to be many good pictures of it online, but the ones that I have seen of the newer one (on Luckyscent and Dover Street Market sites) look considerably lighter in color. Of course, that doesn’t necessarily always point to a noticeable shift in ingredients.

These are beautiful scents in beautiful bottles. This Modoc is the silk bag presentation (I believe it also can come in a presentation box as well). The bag is surprisingly plush and well made – It’s extremely thick and padded with gorgeous cords to cinch up the top. The boxes have hand written edition numbers and are sealed with a sticker for each scent.  Here is a series of photos, both indoors and out to give you an idea of what you’ll be getting with a purchase of one of the wonderful Shooting Stars scents. (I wore Modoc yesterday for the second time; it truly is a magnificent scent!) Be warned – this is a long post

Xerjoff is an Italian house that makes gorgeously packaged scents using the highest quality of ingredients I’ve encountered in a line. I’ve yet to find one that truly disagrees with me and have been enjoying slowly sampling a number of them. Here are some quick impressions of some amazing Xerjoff creations. You’ll see that I’m quite impressed with these first few I’ve reviewed.

Xerjoff Modoc – stunning iris with an intense indolic note up front that brings to mind the smell of sex and sweaty bodies. The musky animalic note steps back to to let other notes come in after a short time, but while it’s up front, it will have your attention. The earthy Haitian vetiver balances the scent through the middle and settles into a dusty vetiver root and is quite incredible. This is like no other iris scent you’ve tried and you can be sure it doesn’t smell like a purse of lipstick.

Xerjoff Dhofar – wonderful blend. It’s basically a traditional masculine fougere done in a classical style with fabulous ingredients and superb blending, but with a twist. It has a spicy base what seems like a dose of cumin under the pine and lavender opening. As I’m reading the listed notes, cumin isn’t mentioned, but perhaps the labdanum mixed with carnation is what I’m detecting. It never assaults the nose, but adds just enough to make this something that you would stop and want to smell again. If you’re looking for a strong masculine fougere with marvelous ingredients and a spicy base, this is worth checking out.

Xerjoff Mefisto – absolutely gorgeous. I don’t find it very hugely similar to Silver Mountain Water as some have found, but there are certainly some shared ingredients – this I find has a plumper, bright opening and the bergamot and soft lavender are incredible. There is a smooth tea note that extends throughout with an incredibly long lasting bergamot. Add this to the must-try/buy list of Xerjoff. I very much see myself adding a bottle of this to my collection.

Xerjoff Homme – I’ve only swiped Homme so far, but I can say that it’s one of the most incredible leather scents I’ve ever encountered. It sits nicely in between Knize Ten and Indult Reve en Cuir. If you enjoy those two, you’ll definitely want to try this one. Incredibly natural, gorgeously aromatic, and definitely top notch quality. This is no suede, but a leather rich with tanning oils as star, with the aromatic spices, ylang ylang, and herbs playing second chair. The GF thinks it smells like an outhouse so it’s certainly not for everyone, but those looking for a leather holy grail must give it a try.

I’ll be taking some more photos of Modoc  in the silk bag presentation this weekend, so check back in a couple days to really get to know a Shooting Stars bottle.

I recently got a sample of this in the mail (thanks Nathan!) and finally got a chance to give it attention. It’s made by natural perfumer Dawn Spencer Hurwitz and is an oil. It is from 2002 as a holiday release. Here are the notes and description from her site:

An ancient aroma of sacred incense…the Holy Smoke of the Midnight Mass rises with a blessing for the coming year.
Top notes: Bergamot
Middle notes: Mastic, Oppopanax, Sandalwood
Base notes: Brown Oakmoss, Frankincense (Olibanum), True Arabian Myrrh

I really thought it would be a dry, churchy thing, but what I got was a warm, enveloping scent that opened with the tartness of bergamot and warmth of oppopanax and slowly developed over the entire day. If you’ve ever had a hot toddy, that’s exactly what this reminded me of for most of the morning. It develops well throughout its life, with pops of frankincense taking turns with a sweet sandalwood. A full 12 hours later, it was still quite detectable but evolved fully from what it had started out as in the morning. That’s incredible with it being a natural perfume. I’d highly recommend giving this a try if you’re looking for an introspective, warm fragrance – I can totally see this as a perfect scent by a fire at Christmas (and any other time of the year, for that matter).