HS3

I tried it at Saks yesterday and while it was interesting and evolved quite a bit, it was a bit over the top and would be hard for me to pull off. It opened with a tart Juicy Fruit gum note that lasted for quite a while… I even had two other SAs there laughing when they made that connection. I took the card with me (along with a few other various scents that I’d sprayed on cards… all neatly separated of course), and left it in the car when I went back to work. Hours later, the car smelled strongly of it and it had overpowered the others, so kudos on tenacity and lasting power. It had dried to a sweet, almost powdery (I’m guessing from the amber note/accord) floral thing. It’s not bad, but I think it would be immediately cloying and a bit much to handle if slightly over applied or worn in humid heat.

I really love orange blossom scents. They really seem to agree with my skin and are perfect in summer heat. I wear it to the beach, to work, you name it. My two current favorites are Fleurs d’Oranger by Le Labo and Orange Blossom Cologne by Jo Malone. Naturally, I sought out more to add to the genre. I thought I’d explore the world of Neroli – the blossom of the bitter orange tree, a spicier, slightly less floral cousin to the sweet orange blossom so common here in Florida. I ordered samples of Diptyque L’eau de Neroli and Profumum Neroli from Luckyscent.

Diptyque L’eau de Neroli. It started perfectly – this was it… the bright, light sweet orange blossom scent that I love, with a touch of zing from bitter neroli and verbena. The verbena added something extra in the opening that was gorgeous. In about 10 minutes though, all that was gone. The scent got sweeter by the minute, and creamy (luckyscent says that’s the beeswax talking). It’s a nice scent, but I’m not after orange blossom with a creamy musk base. I want the crisp and tart, but light and floral take. Next.

Profumum Neroli. This started in a huge classic way – traditional EDC notes led by sharp citrus, and less about blossoms. It stays crisp and dry throughout, never veering the creamy sweet way the Diptyque did, but I’m looking for something a bit more about the blossom, and less about the sharpness classic citrus structure.

The search continues!

I often put a bit of a fragrance on the back of my hand to sniff during the day at work and sample. Today, I decided to grab a random Bond out of my desk drawer at home – I grabbed Astor Place and thought I’d give it some more attention since I’d only briefly smelled it in the store up til now.

When I first put it on, I got a pleasant, but not exceptional plummy fruit note. It seemed nice enough and I thought perhaps it could be something the GF would like when she wanted something light or girly. By the time I had gotten to work, it had fallen flat. I’m not sure exactly what the culprit is, but it’s turned into the smell of shampoo. I lived with a number of girls one year in college, and this is the smell of their just-washed hair while getting ready to go out for the night. I think the freesia may be to blame, but I can’t be certain. What I get now is nothing more than wet Pantene hair. Every now and then, I get a pop of citrus, likely the mandarin sticking its head out for a breath of air.

I wrote most of this earlier and then headed to a meeting. Astor Place did evolve some, but not much. There were a few minutes that I felt like it was going to turn into something better, more tart – but then it settled back into a shampooed head. The juicy mandarin is smothered with the hammering freesia and white florals.

I’m left pretty disappointed for the most part. It’s a pity – the bottle is quite a sight, and the real location seems to be very cool. Perhaps that intersection has a lot of recently washed heads of hair.

I generally don’t have much experience with reformations. Usually, the version I have is the version I know and enjoy. I have bottles that have batch differences, but they’re generally differences that I might notice because I’m me and obsess over little things, but they’re generally not noticed by others.

Well, I’ve finally really encountered a real, true reformulation. And I love both versions. I recently ordered a 90ml bottle of Route de Vetiver from Perfume Country. I even emailed after the order to confirm that it was in fact the 90ml size, which I was assured it was. I couldn’t wait. It arrived, and much to my dismay, UPS had treated it with as much love and care as a used diaper. The bottle’s cap had been broken into two and the nozzle had popped off with it, losing almost a quarter of the liquid inside. I was heartbroken. I emailed the company and received a quick apology back. They did the paperwork to submit the loss claim to UPS and within the hour, they told me my replacement was on my way.

In the meantime, my handywork (and the help of superglue) put the first bottle back together and it was functioning and on my shelf.
Today, the replacement came. I quickly opened it, holding any satisfaction at bay until I had the undamaged bottle in my hand. This time it was double wrapped in bubblewrap and packed tight with foam peanuts. I opened the box and pulled the (WHAT?) 100ml bottle out. I couldn’t be upset since I’d repaired what was left of the first bottle and doubted I’d be finishing two bottle of the rich, earthy vetiver anytime soon. I sprayed it on my elbow just for the pleasure and thought, hmm, something’s different. I grabbed the other bottle and sprayed the other elbow. YES, they’re totally different! Like, one has gritty, earthy vetiver root and the other (newer) is a slightly soapy, floral vetiver. I can draw similarities, but they’re different enough that I wouldn’t balk at the idea if someone told me they were two scents from two companies. Fortunately, I’m really digging both. One is the rich, austere vetiver root, and the other is a more modern twist with a floral touch that give much more versatility. It’s like two great scents for the price of one.

They’re only in their first 20 minutes now, so I’ll probably add some better thoughts here later (and pics too!).

Looks like I’ve managed to have two Nasomatto entries back to back. I swear, when I first tried the remaining dribbles out of a used Duro sample, I enjoyed it, but I didn’t think I would end up with my affinity for the line. I don’t even wear them that often, but I sure do enjoy sniffing them from the bottle. Perhaps I don’t want to see the dwarfed 30ml bottles lose any of their precious liquid. Yet, when I do wear them, I get a lot of good attention, and the GF loves them all (except for Absinth… she thinks it smells like dirt and unwashed bodies). Go figure.

Anyways, I recently made it through my vial of China White, and decided it needed to find a home on my shelves. I had full plans on calling my favorite SA at Barneys LV, but with her out on medical leave, I had to wait. Lucky for me, one popped up on eBay, and I snagged it for almost half the retail price. Thank you, Sir eBay.

It’s such a mesmorizing scent. I don’t know what heroine smells like, but if this is it, I suppose I can better understand the allure. It has a gorgeous leathery aura – for those familiar with Nasomatto, many of their scents have an incredible note that shimmers and teases, much like aldehydes, but a whole new take. The leather in this one reminds me of Tom Ford Tuscan Leather (that many have said smells of cocaine.. perhaps my nose has a problem?). It’s a dry, yet powdery style of leather. There is a gorgeous floral note, almost creamy in nature like that in Costume National 21, combined with the scent of the lining of a smoker’s leather coat.

This one is, as they say, strangely addicting. It’s complex, strange, and completely wearable. My kind of scent.