3 bones | The Scented Hound

March 27, 2012
by The Scented Hound 2 Comments

APOM Pour Homme by Maison Francis Kurkdjian

APOM, which stands for A Part of Me, is one of those “I just got out of the shower” scents. To me, it reminds me of the freshness associated with bathing and the wonderfully clean feeling that you have afterwards. So given that, what exactly does APOM smell like? The listed ingredients are simple, orange flower, amber and cedar wood. This to me is a pretty linear scent; it doesn’t change much and the orange flower is the dominating note. The amber does warm the scent and tone down the orange flower a bit, but it ultimately remains in the background. This to me is a safe fragrance; clean and fresh, but not very interesting. For those of you who like fresh; this would be a great fragrance. Me, I like it a little dirty and will stick with my Absolue Pour le Soir.

From the Maison Francis Kurkdjian website:

APOM (A Part Of Me), a bit of oneself that one leaves on others. A relationship inspired from the beauty of the Orient: movement of people, flavors, colors and scents rediscovered from Lebanon. A combination of softness and strength.

APOM Notes: orange flower, cedar wood, amber

Bone Rating: 3 out of 5 possible bones
Classification: For men, but leans unisex
Expense: From $155 for 75ml, EDT

March 11, 2012
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New York by Parfums de Nicolai

Fragrances have a tendency to take you back in time. Memories of your past can come rushing forward with just one whiff of a smell. New York by Parfums de Nicolai is one of those scents. This is a scent that takes me back to my younger days when I was just discovering my love of fragrance. I couldn’t afford the best, but always had a few bottles on my shelf. I don’t know which fragrance this reminds me of, but it reminds me of the early 1980s. Clean, fresh and masculine this scent opens with a rush of citrus. It doesn’t take long for that to move into a very gentle woody spice. But the citrus continues throughout as the dominant note. This is a fragrance for those men who like to feel comfortable in a scent. It won’t offend and will probably lend itself to comments of how wonderful you smell wearing it. Unfortunately it doesn’t have a “wow” factor. Overall a nice scent, just not an adventurous one.

From the Parfums de Nicolai website:

Top note : fresh, citrus, lemon, bergamot, aromatics note, lavender
Heart : spicy, woody, pepper, patchouli and cedarwood
Base : vanilla, leather and amber

Bone Rating: 3 out of 5 possible bones
Scent: Woody, Oriental, Citrus
Classification: Unisex, but leans masculine
Expense: $115 for 100ml EDT

March 4, 2012
by The Scented Hound 2 Comments

Les Nombres d’Or Cuir by Mona di Orio

Les Nombres d’Or Cuir was my first foray into the perfumes created by Mona di Orio who tragically passed away at the end of this last year. And what an interesting introduction into this line of fragrances. Les Nombres d’Or Cuir has an incredibly strong opening. And it’s an opening of smoke, cigarettes and burnt paper. This is considered a leather scent, but the leather is so hidden and disguised behind this screen of smoke. After about an hour the scent evened out to a sharp, almost green scent but with the smoke ever-present. This is an intriguing scent, but I am not sure when and where I would want to wear it. In the end though, if the other Mona di Orio creations are this daring, I am looking forward to sampling some more.

From the Mona di Orio website:

Opening with a whiff of Gauloise-like smoke it quickly becomes toasted spices and sweet absinthe before the appearance of the leather. Neatly straddling the line between biker and Birkin bag, the leather is almost carnal in its depth. In these days of anodyne scents and trans-fat free lives this is a welcome walk on the wild side that would be wonderful on a man. On a woman? Only one way to put it: Cuir is ruthlessly chic.

Cuir Notes:
Cardamom, Absinth, Leather, Cade, Resinoid Opoponax, Castoreum