The Scented Hound

Perfume blog with abbreviated perfume reviews & fragrance reviews.


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New Release: Puredistance Sheiduna

puredistance-07-sheiduna-perfume-01b-hr

WHAT I SMELL: Welcome to the bazaar…Sheiduna’s opening is full of light and glistening peppery citrus and fruits that feel as if they were dried on top of a warm, sun-kissed sand.  The perfume is dry, but it has an undertone of a rounded vetiver that sails along the top of an ambered plane tinged with the most beautiful incense.    The dried fruits, along with the spice and the warmed florals feel like an invitation to an exotic table set in a tent in the middle of the desert welcoming guests in from a long, hot journey.  As the perfume develops, the citrus and fruit begin to make way for a more linear vanilla infused base.  The perfume feels very stratified with hidden layers of amber, vetiver, vanilla and myrrh…each feeling separate from each other, but each riding along this magic carpet that glides so effortlessly above the warmed sand dunes which are now becoming cooler as the hot daytime sun is beginning to set.  The sweetened patchouli and vanilla really come to the forefront as the perfume cools and becomes more comforting and cocooning.  Sheiduna never forces herself on you, but carries you along with mystical enchantment.

From the Puredistance website:

SHEIDUNA is a rich and intense Perfume inspired by the panoramic views and feel of golden sand dunes in the desert during sunset – soft, female curves changing from deep gold to warm, orangey red – embodying a promise of sensual comfort and silent seduction.

Wearing SHEIDUNA, one wafts sensuality, and intense colour waves of Persian rugs touch the senses. The perfect marriage between Sensuality and Style.

Sheiduna notes:  Lemon, tangerine, blackcurrant, aldehydes, Bulgarian rose essence, geranium, clove, vetyver, patchouly, amber woody, incense, benzoin, myrrh, tonka bean, vanilla pods and musks.

valentino-the-sheik

Rudolph Valentino as The Sheik

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME:  Rudolph Valentino as The Sheik…mysterious, seductive and so very smooth.

THREE WORDS THAT DESCRIBE SHEIDUNA:  tempting, mysterious, alluring

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT SHEIDUNA: Bonkers About Perfume, Parfuminstans blogg, Suzanne’s Perfume Journal

BOTTOM LINE:  Sheiduna in all of its oriential splendor is a wonderful departure for Puredistance who has some of the most exquisite florals in their line.  Sheiduna is the perfect antidote for the pending cooler months as its desert warmth will keep you surrounded by its exotic and comforting mysticism.

  • promotionBone Rating:  4 out of possible 5 bones
  • Scent Oriental Spicy
  • Nose: Cécile Zarokian
  • Classification: Unisex
  • Expense: 175 Euros for 17.5 ml parfum extrait from the Puredistance website.  60 and 100 ml sizes are also available.  And through November 30th, if you purchase a 17.5 ml bottle of Sheiduna you’ll also receive a 5 ml refillable travel spray as well!

DRAW:  Puredistance is offering 3 readers of The Scented Hound a 2 ml sample of this exquisite oriental parfum extrait.  The draw is open to all parties around the globe.  All you have to do to enter is to:

  1. Leave a comment below why you are excited to experience Sheiduna or what your favorite Puredistance perfume is, and
  2. Be a current or new subscriber to the The Scented Hound, and
  3. “Like” the Puredistance Facebook page

The draw is open until midnight, November 3, 2016, EST.  Winners will be chosen via random.org and will be announced on this website.

Sample of Sheiduna provided by Puredistance.  Opinions my own.


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The 7% Solution by En Voyage Perfumes and Sherlock Holmes Inspired Draw

15ml-bottles_1024x1024WHAT I SMELL:  The 7% Solution opens with a buttery, warm and intoxicating osmanthus and the deepest almost wild mandarin that’s feels like it’s been boiled and concentrated.  The creaminess in the perfume feels like a lullaby with peppered florals that are being rocked to sleep under a warmed flicker of a candle.  The perfume stays in this dreamlike state with none of the flowers taking dominance besides a soft and pretty tiare.  You can picture the damp, cool rain from the gray skies outside your window…but The 7% Solution is like a woolen blanket of comfort keeping you warm and secure.  As the perfume slowly develops, the creaminess once again turns more towards the buttery as if remnants of hot buttered rum (without the booziness) were lingering in a mug next to the fire.  In the end, the perfume resides in this warmed creamy and lightly spice dreamlike dimension with softened florals dancing down an autumn path.  The 7% Solution is liquid opium for your skin.

From the En Voyage website:

Legal at the time, heroin and cocaine allowed Holmes to relax and refuel. Sherlock alternated between morphine and cocaine, which he always took in a 7% solution. Transcendently stimulating and clarifying to the mind, such drugs were regularly taken by aesthetes of the day, including the poet Colridge and even Queen Victoria herself.

TOP NOTES: Wild Oranges, Mandarin, Green Citron, Osmanthus, Curacao

HEART NOTES: Tiare, Frangipani, Narcissus, Summer Blooming Flowers

BASE NOTES: Sandalwood, Vanilla, Amber, Oak, White Woods and Musks

holmes-and-watson

Cumberbatch and Freeman as Holmes and Watson

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: I will not argue with perfumer Shelley Waddington’s inspiration of Sherlock Holmes.

THREE WORDS THAT DESCRIBE THE 7% SOLUTION: easy, comforting, calming

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT THE 7% SOLUTION: CaFleureBon, Megan in Saint Maxime

BOTTOM LINE:  I fell in love with this perfume when I first smelled it as a judge for the 2015 Artisan Salon Fragrance awards.  It’s a perfume that is truly unique, interesting and like no other.  Shelley Waddington captures perfectly a dreamy state of comfort.

  • Bone Rating:  3.5 out of possible 5 bones
  • Nose:  Shelley Waddington
  • Classification: Unisex
  • Expense: $60 for 1 oz. eau de cologne.  Review based on eau de parfum version.

DRAW:  For US readers only, one 15 ml bottle of The 7% Solution Eau de Parfum to be chosen via random.org.  To enter, please provide a comment below stating who your favorite actor portrayal of Sherlock Holmes is…or list your favorite En Voyage perfume and why.  Drawing closes at midnight EST on Thursday, October 27, 2017.  Good luck!


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New Release: Amouage Lilac Love

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WHAT I SMELL:  Not surprisingly, Lilac Love opens with a soft sweet powdery lilac which quickly turns to cocoa…which smells like milk covered Count Chocula cereal.  But that only lasts for few minutes as it moves towards a powdered floral that’s quite dusty and dry.  After some more time, the perfume gains a lightly sharp sandalwood bite.  The cocoa that was once front and center now seems to pop in and out of the perfume which makes the perfume much more alluring and moves the fragrance away from the gourmand.  As Lilac Love continues to develop, a soft sweetened patchouli appears that’s pretty and rather demure.  Without any big twists and turns in the development, Lilac Love leaves with you with very little lilac, but instead, you get a soft and powered slightly sweet sandalwood perfume. Lilac Love, like many Amouage perfumes, lasts a long time…but what’s different with this release is that it’s not a powerhouse.  And that’s a pleasant surprise.

Notes from the Amouage website:

Top notes: lilac accord, gardenia, peony and heliotrope

Heat notes:  orris, cacao and tonka bean

Base notes:  sandalwood, patchouli and vanilla

Pic: Parmalee by Sophie Gamand

Parmalee by Sophie Gamand

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME:  Puppies and purple flowers*

THREE WORDS THAT DESCRIBE LILAC LOVE:  soft, fuzzy, ladylike

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT LILAC LOVE:  Colognoisseur, Kafkaesque, Brooklyn Fragrance Lover

BOTTOM LINE:  I found the cocoa opening a bit disjointed, but eventually the blending of the florals and the chocolate are more in sync.  What started off as a little strange, ends up being a soft and light sweet dream.

  • Bone Rating:  3.5 out of possible 5 bones
  • Scent:  Floral
  • Classification: Leans feminine
  • Expense: $400 for 100 ml eau de parfum

* I’m not sure why visuals pop up in my head with a fragrance, but they do.  With Lilac Love, my first impression was of labrador puppies romping in a field of purple flowers.  In trying to find such a picture in Google Images, I ran across some wonderful pictures of pit bulls in flowered headdresses which then led me to the website of photographer Sophie Gamand.  Sophie created a series of photographs entitled “Flower Power, Pit Bulls of the Revolution.”  This series was designed to provide a softer look at the much maligned pit bull.  Each of the photographed subjects is/was up for adoption.  For more information on this series, as well as Sophie’s cause, check out her website at:  www.sophiegamand.com.  Seeing these beautiful creatures memorialized with such love, respect and warmth will bring a smile to your face and joy to your heart.