Perfume Review | The Scented Hound

October 17, 2016
by The Scented Hound 23 Comments

New Release: DSH Perfumes Chinchilla

WHAT I SMELL: Yowsa…so musky, so lusty and so full of sweet delicious honey…Chinchilla’s introduction is amazing. At its core, the perfume’s opening is set with a delicious honeyed floral civet that’s lightly waxy and full on scintillating. And just when you thought it couldn’t get any better, the perfume becomes a bit thicker as it feels like a light honey is being dripped over the burgeoning florals. In a short while, what started off as pure sex, begins to move to the more sensual. The animalic notes are still there, but they begin to tone down and tame. I’m not going to try to pick apart any notes because they are so seamlessly blended, but I do notice just a hint of cinnamon peppering the honeyed florals. In the end, Chinchilla lightens to a wonderfully soft semi sweet honeyed floral that leaves a perfect trail of come-hither behind you as you wear it. Chinchilla is a stunningly sexy and sensual perfume.

From the DSH Perfumes website:

A ‘retro nouveau’ floriental/honey musk animalic fragrance. It’s gorgeously sexy, and yet so very cozy and comforting.

Chinchilla notes include hyrax, ambrette (musk mallow), bergamot, vetiver, oakmoss, carnation, castoreum, rose de mai, cinnamon, civet, beeswax, gardenia, honey, musk, nard himalayan (jatamansi), tonka bean and white pepper.

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: The art of seduction.

THREE WORDS THAT DESCRIBE CHINCHILLA: alluring, tempting, magnetic

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT CHINCHILLA: The Fragrant Journey, Scent Hussy

BOTTOM LINE: Chinchilla is a beautifully smooth seductress. It has just the right amount of animalic elements without being over the top; which means it whispers it’s seduction rather than screams it. The other plus is that Chinchilla could easily be worn by a man or a woman, being easily captivating on both.

Bone Rating: 4 out of possible 5 bones
Scent: Floral Woody Musk
Nose: Dawn Spencer Horowitz
Classification: Unisex
Expense: $125 for 1 oz. eau de parfum. Available in various sizes and concentrations. Check out the DSH Perfumes website for the full line.

Sample courtesy of DSH Perfumes. Opinion my own.

October 11, 2016
by The Scented Hound 15 Comments

New Release: Amouage Lilac Love

WHAT I SMELL: Not surprisingly, Lilac Love opens with a soft sweet powdery lilac which quickly turns to cocoa…which smells like milk covered Count Chocula cereal. But that only lasts for few minutes as it moves towards a powdered floral that’s quite dusty and dry. After some more time, the perfume gains a lightly sharp sandalwood bite. The cocoa that was once front and center now seems to pop in and out of the perfume which makes the perfume much more alluring and moves the fragrance away from the gourmand. As Lilac Love continues to develop, a soft sweetened patchouli appears that’s pretty and rather demure. Without any big twists and turns in the development, Lilac Love leaves with you with very little lilac, but instead, you get a soft and powered slightly sweet sandalwood perfume. Lilac Love, like many Amouage perfumes, lasts a long time…but what’s different with this release is that it’s not a powerhouse. And that’s a pleasant surprise.

Notes from the Amouage website:

Top notes: lilac accord, gardenia, peony and heliotrope

Heat notes: orris, cacao and tonka bean

Base notes: sandalwood, patchouli and vanilla

Parmalee by Sophie Gamand

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: Puppies and purple flowers*

THREE WORDS THAT DESCRIBE LILAC LOVE: soft, fuzzy, ladylike

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT LILAC LOVE: Colognoisseur, Kafkaesque, Brooklyn Fragrance Lover

BOTTOM LINE: I found the cocoa opening a bit disjointed, but eventually the blending of the florals and the chocolate are more in sync. What started off as a little strange, ends up being a soft and light sweet dream.

Bone Rating: 3.5 out of possible 5 bones
Scent: Floral
Classification: Leans feminine
Expense: $400 for 100 ml eau de parfum

* I’m not sure why visuals pop up in my head with a fragrance, but they do. With Lilac Love, my first impression was of labrador puppies romping in a field of purple flowers. In trying to find such a picture in Google Images, I ran across some wonderful pictures of pit bulls in flowered headdresses which then led me to the website of photographer Sophie Gamand. Sophie created a series of photographs entitled “Flower Power, Pit Bulls of the Revolution.” This series was designed to provide a softer look at the much maligned pit bull. Each of the photographed subjects is/was up for adoption. For more information on this series, as well as Sophie’s cause, check out her website at: www.sophiegamand.com. Seeing these beautiful creatures memorialized with such love, respect and warmth will bring a smile to your face and joy to your heart.

October 3, 2016
by The Scented Hound 5 Comments

Berdoues Oud Wa Ward

WHAT I SMELL: Oud Wa Ward jumps out of the bottle with a sweetened patchouli and luscious bold and juicy red rose with a soured and lightly biting oud. There’s a bit of a metallic edge to the perfume, but overall it is what it promises to be… a rose oud perfume…well, maybe add just a hint of incense to the mix. After quite some time, the sweetness begins to dissipate and a lovely understated woodiness takes over making the perfume a bit more grounded. But what used to be bright and free-spirited in the beginning after 30 minutes turns to the more serious and the perfume gets bigger, bolder with the honeyed, smoky and slightly dirty oud now fully in charge. But overall, Oud Wa Ward delivers a nice rose oud and patchouli sweetened fragrance that’s not too heavy, but with just enough sexy and exotic to make this a fun and easy wear.

Fragrance Notes: Patchouli, Turkish Red Rose, Oud

Skateboarding Shia LeBeouf – pic: Just Jared

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: A smooth, easy and rather sexy perfume that doesn’t take itself too seriously.

THREE WORDS THAT DESCRIBE OUD WA WARD: sweetened wood, kickin, fun

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT OUD WA WARD: None to be found.

BOTTOM LINE: Oud Wa Ward takes you on quite the ride although it doesn’t do it in short sprints; instead it really takes it time. The perfume starts off fun and carefree, but in the end you’re left with something that’s much more serious and a little bit dangerous, but still incredibly beautiful. This is a perfume that begs to be challenged with a cool attitude. Oud Wa Ward is a hip perfume at a reasonable price to boot. What’s not to love?

Bone Rating: 3.5 out of possible 5 bones
Scent: Woody Oriental
Classification: Unisex
Expense: $140 for 100 ml eau de parfum