review | The Scented Hound

November 6, 2013
by The Scented Hound 21 Comments

Atelier Cologne: Gold Leather & Silver Iris

GOLD LEATHER

WHAT I SMELL: Gold Leather opens with a warm and boozy rum. It’s juicy and it heats the back of your throat when you drink in the fragrance. The rum is tinged with sugar and cinnamon and its so good you want to eat it, like a decadent sugared rum frosting on the best cake you’ve ever tasted. In a bit, the leather starts to make an appearance , but it’s nice and soft. There’s nothing screaming with this leather, it’s like a purring pussycat. Gold Leather is big in that it’s beefy, not loud. The fragrance feels substantial and somewhat gourmand and it’s a fragrance that when you wear it, it makes you feel bold. The warm leather and boozy stage of the fragrance lasts for a long time. Only after a few hours, does the fragrance become a bit more woody and dryer. Gold Leather is destined to be one of my favorites for this fall and winter!

Notes from the Atelier Cologne website:

Top notes : bitter orange from Seville, Indian saffron, Jamaican rum

Heart notes : plum, davana from India, eucalyptus from California

Base notes : fraction of gaiac wood from India, fraction of cedarwood from Texas, leather & oud accord

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: A matador in the center of a sun filled stadium.

THREE ADJECTIVES THAT DESCRIBE GOLD LEATHER: confident, sexy, bold

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT GOLD LEATHER: Chemist in a Bottle, Scents of Self, Men’s Journal

Bone Rating: 4 out of 5 possible bones
Scent: Leather
Classification: Unisex
Expense: $175 for 100ml Cologne Absolue

SILVER IRIS

WHAT I SMELL: It’s funny, out of the bottle, Silver Iris smells ungodly sweet, like sugar that has been freeze-dried. However, when it’s applied on my skin something completely different happens. Silver Iris goes on with this flattened layer of woodiness…it’s almost devoid of any depth, but instead is this singular layer of muted musk. After a bit, a slight leather appears, but again, it sits on this muted layer that I wonder is ever going to progress to anything else. After about 5 minutes I note a bit of iris and violet. But these florals are anchored in the ground, although they aren’t rooty, but are earthy in the sense that you see them as derived from a field rather than a gorgeous bouquet. After some additional time, a bit of pepper makes an appearance and the fragrance begins to bloom. The flattened opening starts to disappear like a bottle top has been opened and the genie has been let out of the bottle. As Silver Iris starts to grow it becomes bigger, spicier and a bit sweeter. There is an edge of sugar to the fragrance, but it’s more a sprinkle mixed with spice. After around 40 minutes or so, the sweetness takes over, but the fragrance never throws off too much power that it overwhelms. I wore this to the office the other day and it was the perfect scent for mild projection without objection. Silver Iris to me is one of those fragrances that smells better from afar which means, it smells better when my wrist is not up to my nose for a close up sniff.

Notes from the Atelier Cologne website:

Top notes : tangerine from Italy, pink pepper from China, blackcurrant from Burgundy

Heart notes : violet leaves from Grasse, iris Pallida from Tuscany, mimosa from Grasse

Base notes : patchouli from Indonesia, white amber, tonka bean from Brazil

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: An iris cupcake.

THREE ADJECTIVES THAT DESCRIBE SILVER IRIS: sweet, cheerful, likable

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT SILVER IRIS: Perfume Posse, Bois de Jasmin, CaFleureBon

Bone Rating: 3.5 out of 5 possible bones
Scent: Oriental Floral
Classification: Unisex
Expense: $175 for 100ml Cologne Absolue

BOTTOM LINE: Both of these “Collection Metal” fragrances are winners and both in very different ways. Recently released, both of these are suited well for the cooler weather and will no doubt be used heavily by me this fall and winter.

November 4, 2013
by The Scented Hound 19 Comments

Enslaved Parfum by Roja Parfums

Please pardon me while I gush…

WHAT I SMELL: Deep and sweet, not sugary sweet, but sweet wrapped up in warm honey that seems to bellow up from darkened chasm. It’s intoxicating and hypnotic. The top notes are listed as citrus, but I’m not getting that so much as the lavender seems to absorb the sharper edges of what we typically experience with lemon and lime. Quickly the prominent jasmine takes the stage where it seduces you along with the ylang-ylang in a pool of heavy and heavenly juice. There’s so much depth to Enslaved that it literally creates this floral force field around you. Then add the rich and glowing labdanum and ambergris, Enslaved pulls out even deeper floral force field. Eventually the oak moss begins to dry out the juiciness, but it never leaves you out in the desert. Of course, everything is blended so seamlessly that picking apart the notes really is rather silly as in this case, it doesn’t really matter as I am completely intoxicated with its beauty.

From the Roja Parfums website:

“With Enslaved I loved the idea of falling in love so deeply and passionately there was no escape. In an old family dictionary, one definition of Ensalved was described as, to become a prisoner of love. I wanted to create a scent that enslaved both its wearer and those who smelt it on them: a scent with no escape where you become the wearers prisoner of love” – Roja Dove

Notes: bergamot, lemon, lime, lavender, carnation, geranium, Jasmine de Grasse, orange blossom, rose, ylang-ylang, cedarwood, oakmoss, patchouli, ambergris, labdanum, musk, vanilla

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: Floral hypnosis.

THREE ADJECTIVES THAT DESCRIBE ENSLAVED: seductive, addictive, breathtaking

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT ENSLAVED: I only found comments on Fragrantica.

BOTTOM LINE: I was lucky enough to be introduced to Enslaved at Sniffapalooza and then a wonderful perfumista sent me a sample which I am guarding like a grand jewel. I am addicted to this perfume and can only hope that even with the hefty price tag that Santa or the Perfume Fairy will make this mine as we were meant to be together!

Bone Rating: 5 out of 5 possible bones
Scent: Oriental
Nose: Roja Dove
Classification: Feminine
Expense: $435 for 50ml Parfum; also available in EdP

November 2, 2013
by The Scented Hound 5 Comments

John Russo Photograph for Men

WHAT I SMELL: Photograph for Men has a sparkling and zesty citrus opening which is energetic without being sweet . Funny, after a couple of minutes the fragrance seems to dissipate and it almost disappears. I’m thinking to myself… really? Is this it? All I get is a lightly fresh and sweet layer that smells good, but there’s not much there. After around 10 minutes or so, Photograph for Men starts to reveal its true self as it begins to bloom with more spice and hints of lavender. After some more time, the fragrance becomes richer and warmer with a light amber. This is no powerhouse scent, but it’s clean, neat, and somewhat spicy which gives it a bit of oomph. And for an eau de toilette, the development of the fragrance is remarkably lengthy and three-dimensional.

From the John Russo Fragrances website:

Photograph for Men is an ambery, earthy, green, woody type with top notes of mandarin, orange, bergamot, lemon, and bay oil, middle notes of lavender, ginger, leather, and clove, with an amber, woody musky smoky, tobacco note.

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: John Russo is trying to capture the essence and glamour of old Hollywood. The picture on the box cover conveys the fragrance’s character very well.

THREE ADJECTIVES THAT DESCRIBE PHOTOGRAPH FOR MEN: smooth, effortless, put-together

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT PHOTOGRAPH FOR MEN: Photograph for Men is so new that I only found one review on Fragrantica.

BOTTOM LINE: Not quite a celebrity fragrance, but bordering on so as John Russo is a famed celebrity photographer, I was a bit skeptical as to what to expect. But Photograph for Men is well put together and a very pleasant surprise overall. Nicely done.

Bone Rating: 3 out of 5 possible bones
Scent: Aromatic
Classification: Masculine
Expense: $65 for 100ml EdT; available from the John Russo Fragrances website

Disclosure: Product for review provided courtesy of John Russo Fragrances.