EDP | The Scented Hound

April 14, 2013
by The Scented Hound 25 Comments

Hedonist by Parfums Viktoria Minya

I’m a sucker for pretty packaging. If the fragrance is wonderful and housed in a special bottle, then to me it’s even better. Hedonist, the first offering from Parfums Viktoria Minya, is housed in a beautiful bottle filled with hundreds of bohemian crystals and comes in a luxurious handmade wooden black box. OK, the visuals alone have my interest piqued. Let’s look at the fragrance itself…

WHAT I SMELL: Hedonist is a perfume that goes on cool to the touch and opens with a honeyed peach accord. Peach can sometimes overwhelm me, but when it’s not too sweet as it is in this case, it really can be lovely. As cool as it goes on, it quickly warms to a mysterious combination orange blossom and jasmine. The light tobacco and vetiver help to hold back the overly sweet side of the floral notes which eventually do come out, but when they do, they do so in a whisper and not with a shout. What you are left with is a sweet and brightly warmed apricot vanilla fragrance that is pretty without being over the top.

Hedonist notes:

Top notes: rum CO2, bergamot, peach

Heart notes: jasmine absolute, orange blossom absolute, osmanthus absolute, tobacco

Base notes: vetyver, cedarwood, vanilla

From the Parfums Viktoria Minya website:

A powerful and provocative perfume for a woman who dares to be true to her desires. Lush notes of jasmine and orange blossom absolute flirt with the dark intensity of rum and the world’s finest woods for a scent that is as captivating as it is unforgettable.

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: A summer breeze which catches the light smell of burgeoning flowers.

THREE ADJECTIVES THAT DESCRIBE HEDONIST: sunny, warm, peaceful

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT HEDONIST: Kafkaesque, smellythoughts, Eiderdown Press

BOTTOM LINE: I was expecting with a name like Hedonist that this fragrance would be over the top opulence. Instead, I found it to be well crafted, pretty and delightful. I believe that Viktoria Minya has made a wonderfully fresh and beautifully created first offering and I look forward to her next creation.

Bone Rating: 4 out of 5 possible bones
Scent: Woody Chypre
Nose: Viktoria Minya
Classification: Feminine
Expense: $130 Euros, 45ml EdP

Disclosure: Sample provided by Parfums Viktoria Minya.

February 24, 2013
by The Scented Hound 17 Comments

Daim Blond by Serge Lutens

WHAT I SMELL: I was just at the grocery store and I kept smelling Tide laundry detergent. I didn’t think much of it as I was at the grocery store, but let me explain that I loathe the smell of Tide. I would almost rather not wash my clothes than to have to use Tide because the smell is just nauseating to me. Well, as it turns out, when I got home I sniffed my arm and sure enough what I was smelling was me. Now, I spritzed this on about four hours ago and this was the result.

Let’s look at the beginning of this journey. Daim Blond went on so light that I barely could tell that I had put any perfume on at all. I got an initial whiff of cardamom, but then just a light touch of powder and then almost nothing. After what seems to be about 10 minutes, I started smelling a light sweet flowered apricot. It’s very sheer and almost candied sweet like Sweetarts candy. I don’t mind where the scent is at this point, but it’s so light that you wonder if it yourself that you are smelling or something else that’s in the room. Daim Blond is interpreted as White Suede, but I am not getting any leather whatsoever from this fragrance. But I have to admit that at this stage, Daim Blond albeit wispy is really quite pretty. It’s not until much later that Daim Blond transforms into Tide; which I won’t try to dissect!

From Fragrantica:

The top notes contain hawthorn, Ceylon cardamom; the heart includes iris, apricot kernel, while the base encompasses musk, heliotrope and leather.

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: Tide laundry detergent, but you already know that!

THREE ADJECTIVES THAT DESCRIBE DAIM BLOND: faint, sheer, wispy

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT DAIM BLOND: The Other Scent, The Scentualist, Les Tuileries

BOTTOM LINE: Just one word…NO.

Bone Rating: 2 out of 5 possible bones
Scent: Chypre Floral
Nose: Christopher Sheldrake
Classification: Unisex
Expense: Approximately $110 for 50ml EdP

February 2, 2013
by The Scented Hound 24 Comments

Montale White Aoud

WHAT I SMELL: There is something very disconcerting about the opening of a Montale fragrance. I have noted many to be start off being plastic and artificial like they were conceived from a test tube rather than through a perfumer’s nose and hands. White Aoud is no exception; it covers your skin like a latex glove that has a slight powder inside that allows you to slip them on easily. The saffron is evident as it tugs with the plastic which finally after a good while starts to give way to a pretty rose. However, I would not call this a “rose” fragrance, it’s far more complex than that as the agarwood and cardamon mix and start to spice things up a bit. But the journey does not to end there… what starts off as a latex glove turns finally into a lovely lightly powdered vanilla and patchouli floral beauty. It’s very comforting and very pretty, but not so much so that it doesn’t also work for a man.

White Aoud Notes: Rose of Damascus, saffron, agarwood, cardamom, jasmine, patchouli, sandalwood from Mysore, amber, vetiver, vanilla and labdanum.

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: Tina Turner in Mad Max Beyond the Thunderdome. She’s a woman living in a world ruled by petroleum and White Auod feels like it’s derived from petroleum. Even though it’s derived from petroleum, it’s the perfect solution from getting away from the grit and dirt.