aromatic | The Scented Hound

August 15, 2016
by The Scented Hound 9 Comments

Madrona by House of Matriarch

WHAT I SMELL: Madrona opens with a moist lavender that’s creamy and lightly sugared. A light leather and birch bring a little bit of sour into the perfume along with a hint of burnt rubber. The initial feel of the perfume is quite outdoorsy and masculine while at the same time it’s also rather smooth with just the right amount of toughness. A smoldering woodiness creates the base which makes the fragrance feel strong and steady. As the perfume develops it begins to soften, while still confident, it adds a dimension of contentment as the lavender becomes more powdered and a woody vetiver begins to take over as a radiant base.

From the House of Matriarch website:

A fragrance born of the Northwest. Dream-inducing lavender fields mingle with towering cedar trees swaying gently in the misted Pacific breeze. An underlying sense of exploration, imbued through a Vetiver base note, keeps this ancient Northwest spirit youthful and exotic. Madrona, whose bark itself look like it was forged of polished bronze, lends more than just a note to this fragrance — it lays the roots of its name.

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: The perfume made for Lewis and Clark…at the journey’s end where the tall trees meet the cool ocean of the Pacific Northwest.

THREE WORDS THAT DESCRIBE MADRONA: secure, aged, solid

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT MADRONA: perfumesilove

BOTTOM LINE: What started off as rather manly, in the end becomes a real comforting and easy to wear scent. The perfume is not large in its projection which makes this a perfect fit for an office setting.

Bone Rating: 3.5 out of possible 5 bones
Scent: Aromatic
Nose: Christi Meshell
Classification: Unisex, but leans masculine
Expense: $120 for 15 ml parfum

April 11, 2016
by The Scented Hound 17 Comments

Still Life in Rio by Olfactive Studio

WHAT I SMELL: Still Life in Rio opens up like a basket of minty, citrus freshness. It’s delightful and feels incredibly bountiful. Quickly, the fresh moves to a more tropical with a creamy and buttery coconut taking over as if swathed with a butter knife over the perfume. The perfume is thickened without being heavy and it feels like it has been baked by the hot sun which pulls out a rather sweaty and salty element. At this point, the perfume is very subtle and unobtrusive and without a great deal of projection, so it feels as if it’s part of the sweat of your body. Slow to develop, after some time, a light rum note is added to the tropical coconut. The perfume then gracefully completes its journey very quietly, as if the tropical salty sweat of the day is like a lingering memory of the perfect day in Rio.

From the Olfactive Studio website:

Exotic and luminous, Still Life in Rio is a new and unique scent that opens with yuzu, ginger, mint and lemon essence. It blossoms and heats up with a blend of peppers, Jamaican hot peppers and coconut water, finishing with rum and Brazilian Copaiba essences.

TOP NOTES: Yuzu, ginger, mint, lemon, mandarin

HEART NOTES: Jamaican hot peppers, pink pepper, black pepper, coconut water

BASE NOTES: Rum, Brazilian Copaiba, Accord of White Leather

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: The concept behind the brand:

“OLFACTIVE STUDIO IS AN ENCOUNTER BETWEEN CONTEMPORARY ARTISTIC PHOTOGRAPHY AND PERFUMERY; BETWEEN THE EYE AND THE NOSE THIS IS THE FIRST TIME EVER THAT PERFUMERS HAVE TEAMED UP WITH PHOTOGRAPHERS TO DRAW INSPIRATION FROM THEIR OEUVRES. THEY SENSE THE IMAGES TO CAPTURE THEIR ESSENCE.”

This is an inspiration that I can feel akin to as my reviews always accommodate my association with a visual. I’m not going to mess with adding any additional visual to the perfume, so I’ll stick with the actual inspiration, the photograph Still Life in Rio by Flávio Veloso.

THREE WORDS THAT DESCRIBE STILL LIFE IN RIO: calming, tropical, easy

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT STILL LIFE IN RIO: Chemist in the Bottle, CaFleureBon, Now Smell This

BOTTOM LINE: There’s something about the perfume that is just so incredibly easy. When you wear it, you don’t feel like there’s a need to rush or be in a hurry. The visual inspiration is stunning and you can just imagine how wonderful looking over this city in all it’s beauty could be on a hot, humid and steamy morning.

Bone Rating: 3 out of possible 5 bones
Scent: Aromatic
Nose: Dora Baghriche
Classification: Unisex
Expense: $195 for 100 ml Eau de Parfum

Sample courtesy of Twisted Lily Fragrance Boutique and Apothecary. Opinion my own.

March 2, 2016
by The Scented Hound 7 Comments

Limited Edition New Release: Stones by Atelier de Geste

WHAT I SMELL: Stones opens with a bright, dry and uplifting galbanum. It’s beautiful and earthy, very vegetal and pulsating with life. There’s a great deal of movement with the perfume as it seems to breathe, move and dance across my skin. The perfume resides in this lyrical state for quite some time which is just fine with me as it’s incredibly beautiful. After around 20 minutes or so, the perfume adds an additional earthiness of moss. A woody vetiver, which was there from the beginning, starts to take root at the center of the perfume. Still very radiant, the perfume continues to feel very alive as it adds a minty ginger to the composition. After some more time, the perfume begins to dry and become more powdered, but still ever radiant. Stones is an incredibly beautiful perfume.

Notes: Galbanum, Geranium, Physalis, Tomato, Pine, Ivy, Lotus, Ginger, Vetiver, Moss, Lichen (nightshade), Vetiver root, Muguet flowers

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: A mossy and earthen forest that’s tinged with rays of cooled sun.

THREE WORDS THAT DESCRIBE STONES: lively yet serene, earthen

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT STONES: None to be found.

BOTTOM LINE: Stones is the more earthy cousin of Chanel No. 19. The opening is breathtaking and it ends up as this equally as pretty earthy powdered beauty. Stones is a limited edition of 200 hand painted bottles, each which is numbered and signed. Stones is easily full bottle worthy.

Bone Rating: 4.5 out of possible 5 bones
Scent: Aromatic
Classification: Unisex
Expense: $125 for 50 ml Eau de Parfum

Sample courtesy of Twisted Lily Fragrance Boutique and Apothecary. Opinion my own.