review | The Scented Hound

June 18, 2013
by The Scented Hound 23 Comments

Tom Ford Sahara Noir

You would think by this time that I would have learned that when wearing a Tom Ford fragrance that less is more. In other words, a little Tom Ford goes a long way. So now that we established that I overspritzed, that set the tone for the rest of my experience with Sahara Noir.

WHAT I SMELL: Hay. It smells hay like that has been sitting in a barn for some time. The smoke from a nearby fire has been absorbed by the hay. There’s incense and what may be a hint of bergamot, but mostly smoky hay. Nothing really happens much after this except that the hay becomes a bit dryer and woody and maybe just a tad sweeter; but I think that’s just wishful thinking and my mind playing tricks on me.

From Fragrantica:

Sahara Noir is an oriental-woody scent based on incense. Bitter orange, Levantine cypress (known as one of the plants growing in the gardens of the 1001 Arabian Nights) and cistus essence Orpur® (Orpur® are high-quality natural ingredients of extraordinary purity, developed by Givaudan) open the composition. The heart blends frankincence essence Orpur®, cinnamon, cool papyrus extract, rose absolute from Morocco and Egyptian jasmin with honeyed and animalic shades of beeswax from Burma.The base centers around warm amber notes – made of labdanum absolute and ambreinol (an intense natural labdanum fraction), cedar, frankincense resin, benzoin, vanilla, oud and balsams.

OK, I am seriously missing something here because Sahara Noir is incredibly linear and I am missing what I wish I could smell, like the rose absolute, jasmine and other notes that could brighten this a bit.

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: Of course, I can only say…smoky hay.

THREE ADJECTIVES THAT DESCRIBE SAHARA NOIR: boring, dull, there (I know, there is not an adjective, but Sahara Noir is just “there”)

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT SAHARA NOIR: Adventures of Barberella, Scents of Self, Notable Scents

BOTTOM LINE: When I first put on Sahara Noir I found it promising. I thought that it would develop and morph into something interesting. Unfortunately, it ended up sitting on me like a log. By the end of the work day I was incredibly tired and worn out from wearing this fragrance so much so that I just couldn’t wait to get home and put something else on. Uggggh.

Bone Rating: 2.5 out of 5 possible bones
Scent: Oriental Woody
Classification: Unisex
Expense: $150 for 50ml EdP

June 16, 2013
by The Scented Hound 21 Comments

Naomi Goodsir: Cuir Velours & Bois d’Ascese

Cuir Velours

WHAT I SMELL: The initial opening of Cuir Velours is cool and slightly astringent, but this lasts for a microsecond before it moves into a boozy rum and almost chocolately suede. It’s ever so sweet and gourmand and to me it feels like a layer of brown sugar on top of a really fine layer of suede. I love this phase, it’s completely yummy. After a bit, a light incense comes forth which pares down the light sugar. At this point Cuir Velours becomes ethereal and translucent like a light sheen of leather floating in the air. In the final drydown, Cuirs Velours gets a bit sweeter in an almost fruited way, like sniffing a full-bodied fruity red wine. Unfortunately, Cuir Velours disappears all too quickly on my skin and that’s a shame.

From the Naomi Goodsir website:

A deep & textured perfume, that evocatively encases the skin like soft velvet suede. A tobacco atmosphere supported by notes of rum, cistus labdanum, incense & fleur d’immortelle.

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: The prettiest pony.

THREE ADJECTIVES THAT DESCRIBE CUIR VELOURS: soft, sugared, comfy

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT CUIR VELOURS: Persolaise, Smellythoughts, Perfumeniche.com

Bone Rating: 3.5 out of 5 possible bones
Scent: Leather
Nose: Julian Rasquinet
Classification: Unisex
Expense: $150 for 50ml EdP

Bois d’Ascese

WHAT I SMELL: Bois d’Ascese opens smelling like wet burnt campfire wood. There is just a hint of cinnamon and whiskey to give it a bit more rounded sensation. Bois d’Ascese doesn’t transform much. The smoky incense dominates and pushes everything else to the back. To me, this needs a little more whiskey and cinnamon and less smoke. Most surprising to me though, in the end I found this very much to be a comfort scent.

From the Naomi Goodsir website:

A captivating & reassuring smoke. Notes of tobacco & whisky, are supported by cinnamon, amber & cistus labdanum. Oakmoss, smoked cade wood, almost burnt, prolong the incense of Somalia with power & elegance

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: A KOA campground circa 1968.

THREE ADJECTIVES THAT DESCRIBE BOIS D’ASCESE: smoky, linear, woodsy

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT BOIS D’ASCESE: Now Smell This, Sorcery of Scent, The Scentualist

Bone Rating: 4 out of 5 possible bones
Scent: Incense Woodsy
Nose: Julian Rasquinet
Classification: Unisex
Expense: $150 for 50ml EdP

BOTTOM LINE: I had not heard of Naomi Goodsir prior to Freddie from Smellythoughts providing me with these samples. Both of these fragrances are very unique in their own way and their quality in composition makes me curious about the 3rd offering this house is launching, Nuit de Bakelite, which the Naomi Goodsir website says is coming soon. BTW, the website and the packaging are par excellence.

June 10, 2013
by The Scented Hound 24 Comments

Vintage Opium Parfum by Yves Saint Laurent

WHAT I SMELL: Opium opens with a spicy bang. It’s peppered with a sweet honeyed striking bite of cloves and cinnamon with hints of citrus. It’s almost overwhelming in its richness and depth. It makes my head swirl with the intoxicating jasmine and dare I say a bit of carnation which is a much hated note by me, but in this case it’s entwined with the other notes and doesn’t dominate. When I hold my arm close to my nose, the peppery spice notes almost burn the insides of my nostrils. There’s a slight smoky incense like layer on top of the floral spice giving it increasing depth. Opium is exotic, powerful and in charge. After a while the cascading full and rounded notes start to even out and Opium becomes dryer with more amber. At this point, Opium is still a spice bomb, but it ‘s now just a bit sweeter, but this is not sweet by any means. Opium never calms all the way down but becomes a bit more woody…it wants to be taken notice for hours and that’s just fine with me.

Opium Notes from Fragrantica:

Top notes are coriander, plum, citruses, mandarin orange, pepper, jasmine, cloves, west indian bay and bergamot; middle notes are carnation, sandalwood, patchouli, cinnamon, orris root, peach, lily-of-the-valley and rose; base notes are labdanum, tolu balsam, sandalwood, opoponax, musk, coconut, vanilla, benzoin, vetiver, incense, cedar, myrrh, castoreum and amber.

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: Whoever named this perfume, named it perfectly. It’s intoxicating and habit-forming and I can’t get enough.

THREE ADJECTIVES THAT DESCRIBE OPIUM: mysterious, seductive, passionate

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT OPIUM: Kafkaesque, Perfume Fountain, Yesterday’s Perfume

BOTTOM LINE: Once again I can point the finger at Kafkasesque for leading me down the eBay path to buy this beauty. I think I have put some on now for the past 5 days in a row and I continue to fall in love with it. Now mind you, I think you can find some good deals on the EdT versions on eBay, but the vintage parfum is a bit pricier. Even though I paid a lot for this love, it was still a relatively good deal at the price I got. I have done some research and it seems that my version is from somewhere between 1995 and 1999.

Bone Rating: 5 out of 5 possible bones
Scent: Oriental Spicy
Nose: Jean Amic and Jean-Louis Sieuzac
Classification: Feminine
Review based on vintage parfum
Expense: Varies on eBay