hermes | The Scented Hound

April 4, 2016
by The Scented Hound 24 Comments

Hermès 24, Faubourg

If you like to shop around and explore estate sales, you know that every once in a blue moon you’ll run across one that is truly special. Recently, I found a sale that mentioned a large collection of perfumes, but didn’t have pictures or brand names listed. I took a chance. As it turns out, the woman of the house was a former sales representative for Escada and Annick Goutal so there was quite the collection. No one at the sale was interested in the perfumes, so I snatched up a collection of 3 100 ml perfumes, a couple of fragrance brand candles and 12 mini perfumes for $90. One of those perfumes was a full 100 ml bottle of Hermes 24, Faubourg eau de toilette. Whereas some of the perfumes there were multiple in stock, the Hermès was the only one. I had to snatch it up. By the way, the next week, I noted that they moved the remaining bottles of perfumes that didn’t sell to another sale that was in walking distance from my house. Of course I had to go back! I managed to pick up two 125 ml tester bottles of Annick Goutal EdTs, Passion and Heure Exquise for $5 each! How could I say no to such bargains?!

Now before I get into my review, I should note that I did purchase a bottle of 24, Faubourg EDP a couple of years ago. As much of a fan as I am of white floral perfumes, I found the eau de parfum version much to cloying and heavy for my tastes. So buying the EdT was a gamble. Let’s see if it payed off…

WHAT I SMELL: 24, Faubourg opens with a vibrant, bright, a rather sugared ylang ylang which quickly moves to a warmer pulsating rapturous collection of florals which are seamless in their blending. After a short time, an ambered warmth sets base for a rounded bouquet dusted with oak moss and a spiced jasmine begins to dominate. There’s not much progression in 24, Faubourg, but in the end, the perfume resides in a pared down “big” floral heaven. 24 Faubourg is a striking beauty that falls into the big floral category like Ysatis and 1000. But 24 Faubourg is one of those perfumes that doesn’t play second fiddle to anyone.

From the Hermès website:

A novel composed by Maurice Roucel in 1995, 24, Faubourg is an invitation to travel, with the sun as its destination. A sparkle of white flowers in the top notes, the radiance of a floral heart enveloped in irises, woods and mystery, while vanilla and ambergris set the tone for the sillage.

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: A woman of refinement; Princess Grace in her later years.

THREE WORDS THAT DESCRIBE 24, FAUBOURG: radiant, warm, in-control

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT 24, FAUBOURG: Now Smell This, I Smell Therefore I Am, Olfactoria’s Travels

BOTTOM LINE: Whereas the eau de parfum version of 24, Faubourg was just too heavy for me, the eau de toilette version fits just right. I absolutely am in love with this floral beauty. This will be a mainstay in my collection for years to come!

Bone Rating: 5 out of possible 5 bones
Scent: Chypre Floral
Nose: Maurice Roucel
Classification: Feminine
Expense: $150 for 3.3 oz. Eau de Toilette

May 12, 2014
by The Scented Hound 11 Comments

New Release: Terre d’Hermes Eau Tres Fraiche by Hermes

WHAT I SMELL: Terre d’Hermes Eau Tres Fraiche opens with a very refreshing citrus and juicy grapefruit which sits atop the unmistakenly Terre d’Hermes cedar like wood. But given a couple of minutes, the cool citrus dominates. It’s refreshing, bright and rather happy. Soon enough the cedar makes a return along with the geranium giving it a bit of spice, but the citrus comes in and out rotating its place on the top with the woody components. Finally, Eau Tres Fraiche maintains this hue of wooded lightly bitter citrus that’s not too sweet, not too dry and is overall just an ease to wear.

Terre d’Hermes Eau Tres Fraiche notes:

Top notes are orange, citruses and water notes; middle note is geranium; base notes are woody notes, patchouli and cedar.

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: Summer camp. It’s fresh, it’s woody and feels like the morning dew with the sun hitting the surrounding lake and woods.

THREE ADJECTIVES THAT DESCRIBE TERRE d’HERMES EAU TRES FRAICHE: comfortable, easy, fresh

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT TERRE d’HERMES EAU TRES FRAICHE: Sorcery of Scent, Now Smell This, Grain de Musc

BOTTOM LINE: Terre d’Hermes Eau Tres Fraiche is a nicely done flanker and is perfect for the summer. Terre d’Hermes is one of my all time favorites and this makes for a nice addition to the line.

Bone Rating: 3.5 out of 5 possible bones
Scent: Woody Aromatic
Classification: Masculine, but leans unisex
Expense: $115 for 125ml EdT

January 5, 2013
by The Scented Hound 23 Comments

Really??! A Twisted Perfume Shopping Tale

I know it’s right after the holidays and it’s the beginning of the year and I wondered if I should make a posting that is somewhat negative, but what the heck, it’s an interesting story…well, I’ll let you be the judge of that.

We have our yearly appraisals at work in December. I found myself surprised that I was to receive a small bonus (yes, federal workers can get bonuses, but not large ones mind you) and decided that as a special treat to myself I would go ahead and purchase a small EdP version of 24 Faubourg by Hermes. Years ago, my hub bought this as a present for a friend and I have loved it from the first day I smelled it. Yes, it’s very feminine, but damn it… I like it too!

As it is more of a mainstream perfume, I trolled the web perfume site to find the best price. Now, most of the sites only had the EdT versions for sale, but I found a couple that had the 50ml EdP versions as well. I won’t name the site, but in addition to the good price, they had an additional 10% off coupon code and free shipping. Great…I’m in!

Three days later I receive my little treasure. When I open the box, the box the perfume in was a bit worn, but I thought, so what, maybe it just got damaged en route. I then open the box only to find that it was missing almost 1/4 of the juice. I could tell immediately that it had not leaked, because the package nor the bottle were wet. It was just used.

The Offending Bottle

I receive the bottle on Christmas Eve, so I called the company on the day after Christmas and told them of the situation and sent the picture to the right. They nicely apologized and said that I could return the perfume but that they wouldn’t be able to replace it as they didn’t have any more in stock. I asked about possibly getting the bottle for a reduced price thinking that they might give it to me for 50% off which would have been fine.

The customer service representative came back and said they could give me an additional 5% off. I told her that at least 25% of the fragrance is missing, why would they only give me 5% off? She said that I had already received 10% off of the purchase when I ordered it. I explained that 10% off was for the full bottle purchase, so in essence you would only be giving me 5% off a bottle that was 25% missing or 15% off a non-discounted full bottle for 25% missing! I asked to speak to her supervisor. She went away and came back (sans supervisor) and said that all they could offer me was either an additional 5% off or I could return the perfume for a refund. I was flabbergasted. Here they would want me to ship something back (at their cost) that they could not sell instead of giving me a decent price for a used bottle and still make some money!

Really??!!!

I shipped the bottle back and was credited the full amount. I still don’t own 24 Faubourg. Maybe I wasn’t meant to own a bottle?

Oh, what the heck, the company in question is perfumeworldwide.com.