The Scented Hound

Perfume blog with abbreviated perfume reviews & fragrance reviews.

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New Release: Savage Garden by Thorn & Bloom

Savage.Garden.naturalperfume

WHAT I SMELL:  Savage Garden’s opening is warm and inviting yet cool to the skin and the florals are rapturous right from the first spritz.  The herbal notes ground the florals making them more earthy and real.  After a few minutes the mint begins to radiate making the perfume very comforting.  Savage Garden is so grounded in nature that wearing it makes you feel like you’re in the middle of a garden even though you might be in the heart of the city.  After some more time, a moistened soil comes into play and the perfume transforms from herbal to more green.  This helps to lighten the initial radiating warmth.  What was once more comforting is now more light and joyous.  In the end, Savage Garden is just that, a wild garden full of herbs, spices and flowers that seem to transform with each step down a path.  At times, it feels more floral and then it turns more herbal.  Whatever step you take it really is a tranquil beauty of a stroll.

From the Thorn & Bloom website:

Verdant, cool and lush, this spring garden is brimming with unruly sensual delights. Creamy white narcotic blooms of Ylang Ylang andTuberose explode against a backdrop of tangled green foliage, minty herbs, damp earth and young wood. The bouquet is refreshingly vegetal, herbal, floral and earthy. Reminiscent of lilies in full bloom.

Notes: Bluegrass, Tarragon, Ylang Ylang, Tuberose, Vetiver, Orris Root, Sandalwood

garden pathWHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME:  The perfume is named perfectly…beautiful, untamed, with a new discovery around every turn of a path.

THREE ADJECTIVES THAT DESCRIBE SAVAGE GARDEN:  herbal, natural, comforting

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT SAVAGE GARDEN: None found as of yet.

BOTTOM LINE:  Jennifer Botto’s just launched new line of perfumes is a must for anyone who loves natural perfumes and for anyone who loves perfumes that feel like a work of art.  Each perfume in the collection is unique and stunning in their own right.  My other favorite in the line is Wild Rose.  Where I always think that I have had enough of rose based fragrances, I am once again corrected!  Jennifer’s introduction to the perfume world makes me excited as to what we’ll see of her in the future.

  • Bone Rating:  3.5 out of possible 5 bones
  • Scent:  Floral
  • Nose: Jennifer Botto
  • Classification: Unisex
  • Expense: $200 for 30 ml or $65 for 7.5 ml Eau de Parfum (thank you Jennifer for the smaller sizes!)
  • Available exclusively at the Thorn & Bloom website.

Samples courtesy of Thorn & Bloom.  My thoughts and opinions are my own.


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Postcard from Nicaragua

nicaragua mapThe Hound has been rather quiet these last few weeks…and with good reason as we recently took some time off to travel to Granada, Nicaragua.  On our continued journey to find the perfect spot for retirement, we had heard that Granada was a beautiful colonial city that offers everything we’re looking for; low cost of living, warm weather and an adventure to be had.  Never having been there before we were surprised and delighted with our visit.  Situated on the shore of Lake NIcaragua and sitting underneath the dormant Mombacho volcano, this beautiful town will be fondly remembered by me for the following reasons:

  • Lovely and wonderfully friendly people.
  • The incredible heat of the afternoon made bearable with an ice cold beer (or 2 or 3…heck they were only 1.50 each!) on the restaurant row of Calle La Calzada.
  • Going to the top of the Mombacho volcano to take a hike.  Only a 20 minute drive from the city, you might as well have been in another world in the cool climate on top of the volcano.
  • Learning to love a good cigar and being able to watch them being hand rolled.  I just wish we would have purchased more than just a few cigars to bring home with us.
  • For a perfumista, Nicaraguan Don Juan Cacao Liquor not only smells like the most exquisite of perfumes, but tastes even better and is the perfect accessory to a wonderful cigar.
  • Stripping naked to have myself slathered in chocolate for a body scrub and massage at the Choco Spa.
  • Going on a zip line for the first time in my life.  I proved to be braver than I had anticipated by going hands free and doing some special dives.
  • Taking a lovely horse-drawn carriage taxi ride through the town.  The carriages are a signature of the city.
  • Nicaraguan beef is like no other.  At home we eat beef approximately once a month.  I couldn’t resist eating it almost every night; it was just incredibly tender and flavorful.
  • A slower way of life is life worth living.

I am horrible about taking pictures on vacation, but I hope the following highlight the beauty of this wonderful place.

Off the main city square.
The horse drawn carriage taxis.
The view from our hotel. balcony
The beautiful interior of our hotel.
The ruins of a 19th century city hospital.
Lake Nicaragua with Mombacho in the background.
The Hound and hub ready for our zip line adventure!
The top of the Mombacho volcano
Mombacho in the distance.

So is Granada our perfect retirement destination?  I’m not quite sure, but I would love to go back someday as it’s a very special place.  For more information on Granada, check out the Wikipedia page here.

And don’t worry…I’ll be back with a review later this week.  In the meantime, thanks for coming along for the ride!

The Scented Hound