fragrance | The Scented Hound

March 15, 2014
by The Scented Hound 26 Comments

Yes Virginia, there ARE plenty of vintage perfume lovers out there!

Once again, I found an estate sale up in Maryland where there was going to be some upscale perfumes for sale. As the sale was to start on Saturday morning at 8am and they were taking numbers for first in the door starting at 7am, I made sure that I was up early to head 30 miles away to stand out in the dark to get one of the first numbers. To my surprise, my hubby wanted to come with me (getting up at 5:30am…I think my crazed madness for this all provides some amusement to him) and we were standing at the door at 6:45. You think that I would have been number 1, but instead my number was 9. The people in front of me seemed to be pretty innocuous and I was hoping that they were. My hubby for the past week was asking why we needed to be there early because who want to buy old perfume? He probably was right, no one but me.

So 8am sharp the door opens and who wants to buy perfume? Everyone wants to buy perfume. There was a mad dash by 4 people in front of me and they were hogging the space getting first grabs (OK, they were first so they got first dibs, but from my vantage point…well, you know). In any case, I ended up getting some sweet items, but what I really wanted was the unopened vintage Magie Noire’s, which there were 2 parfum extraits. I had to settle for the 7.5ml used version with the missing top. But for $5, who cares.

So what else did I get? A 7.5ml bottle of vintage Molinard de Molinard parfum extrait in a Lalique bottle that was still in its cellophane. It is a beautiful gem of a bottle and I love the juice, all smokey and leathery in the beginning, only to turn into a light fruity breeze in the end. I am more of a Habinita fan, but I love this little jewel.

I also got a 7.5ml bottle of vintage Lagerfeld, KL parfum extrait. Again, still in the cellophane. Deep rich and rather manly, I have the feeling that I’ll be wearing this alot.

And then there’s the 30ml bottle and 7.5ml bottle of Guerlain Samsara parfum extrait. I only had a tiny bottle of vintage Samsara EdP as part of my collection, so this was a real treat. And to be honest, I don’t need the 7.5ml bottle, so if anyone in the US is interested, I may be willing to part with it. Just drop me a line. Funny, I was able to check the codes to see what year they are from and both are from 1989. However, the large box has no bar code and the small box does, so it’s right in that period where bar codes started coming into existence.

Overall, I’m glad I got up early to get to the sale. But since I now know that there are other vintage perfume hunters out there, I’ll make sure that I get there at 6:30 next time rather than 6:45!

And I need your help on naming some perfumes. The following photos are for a sale coming up right around the corner in a couple of weeks. I believe the yellow box is L’Air du Temps but can anyone identify what else is on the table?

March 11, 2014
by The Scented Hound 7 Comments

VINTAGE REVIEW: PARURE by GUERLAIN

WHAT I SMELL: Parure starts off deep and when first sniffed it hits the back of your throat with an initial blast of heavy plum with a layer of bergamot on top. It’s somewhat medicinal and rather antiseptic, like what you expect a cleaning product for a doctor’s office would smell like. After a few more minutes it becomes almost lemony and fizzy and it begins to grow larger in its projection. To me, it’s very warm and cool at the same time as the green keeps it cool, but the rose and amber keep it warmed on the bottom. After around 15 minutes the fragrance loses the coolness and the oakmoss comes to the surface drying out the scent with it’s familiar woody powder. Add that to a very noticable, but sudued rose and that’s very pretty and a bit spicy. Funny, after around 30 minutes or so, the warm base begins to retreat but the fragrance retains the floral spiciness. In the end, it’s a very calming and pretty floral chypre that is not too dry. Wait!!! After around almost 1.5 hours the oakmoss really dries the fragrance out, but no worries, it’s still pretty and rather proper. Parure is perfect for the coming spring as I don’t really see that as a winter fragrance.

Parure Notes from Fragrantica: plum, bergamot, green notes; lily of the valley, rose, iris, lilac, jasmine, narcissus; and oak moss, spices, amber, rose and patchouli in the base.

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: A pretty spring day, where there’s a dry breeze flowing through the flowers.

THREE ADJECTIVES THAT DESCRIBE PARURE: calming, pretty, reserved

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT PARURE: Yesterday’ Perfume, Eiderdown Press, Perfume Shrine

BOTTOM LINE: I have read so much about this discontinued Guerlain treasure and since I love my chypres I had to seek it out. I’m not disappointed as I love the fact that it’s not an uber chypre, but instead it is wonderfully subdued. Why did they discontinue it? Who knows, but I’m glad I got my hands on some. Now all I need to do is to find some of the parfum extrait!

Bone Rating: 4 out of 5 possible bones
Scent: Chypre Fruity
Classification: Leans feminine
Expense: Varied through eBay and other sources. Review is based on the Eau de Toilette version.

March 9, 2014
by The Scented Hound 24 Comments

NEW YORK MUSK by BOND NO. 9

Let me first say that I have avoided Bond No. 9 fragrances. I don’t know what it is, the plastic looking bottles with garish and bright colors? Or could it be that they seem to be like rabbits wherein they breed and multiply as quickly as you can turn your head. In any case, I really have had no desire to check them out. But as it would happen, a lovely friend sent me a nice size sample of New York Musk, so of course I had to check it out.

WHAT I SMELL: New York Musk opens with juicy black currant tinged with a slight citrus. It’s not quite edible, but extremely pleasant, yet seems somehow manufactured, like a smell that is part wood and part plastic like the inside of a shipping container…no, it smells a bit like a new outdoor jute rug…no, kind of like the inside a tweed coat. Whatever the case, it didn’t last all that long. I was expecting the opening to be overwhelming, but instead it’s relatively subdued. After a few minutes the patchouli really starts to flourish along with a hint of cocoa. At this point, New York Musk is nice and soothing. After around the ten minute mark, the fragrance starts to build in projection and the patchouli boldly takes center stage. The vetiver woodiness keeps the patchouli in line, not allowing it to completely explode. What I like is that there is a just a hint of nutty sugar that sits on top that makes it slightly gourmand. However, I do think to myself that if it stays in this state wearing it could tire me out. But after around an hour, the gourmandish patchouli makes way for the linen like musk which tends to flatten the overall fragrance, and also gives a slight wet and dirty tube sock finish. Unfortunately, in the end you’re left with a pretty pungent sour musk.

New York Musk Notes: grapefruit, black currant, osmanthus flower, green lilies, nutmeg, musk, patchouli, sandalwood and vetiver

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: A wig. Why? Because this sits on top of your skin, it’s pleasant, adds some dimension, and like the right wig, it adds a nice finish to your ensemble. But then a wig can also sit on your head slightly askew and that means it’s just not quite right.

THREE ADJECTIVES THAT DESCRIBE NEW YORK MUSK: dichotomous, innocuous, semi-sugared

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT NEW YORK MUSK: Scentrist, CaFleureBon

BOTTOM LINE: I can’t really figure out what’s going on here. I like part of it, don’t mind some of it, and am left scratching my head with the dull dirty sock like finish. In other words, I’m not running to the Bond No. 9 counter any time soon to check out more of the line.

Bone Rating: 2 out of 5 possible bones
Scent: Floral Woody Musk
Classification: Unisex
Expense: $260 for 50ml EdP