unisex | The Scented Hound

April 25, 2016
by The Scented Hound 33 Comments

Les Exclusifs de Chanel Beige

WHAT I SMELL: Beige opens with bright aldehydes and then quickly moves to a soft, cottony mix of delicate flowers. The perfume is incredibly demure and unassuming and the freesia and frangipani are wonderfully muted. I often wondered if I could ever like a perfume that held frangipani…I think I finally found “the one.” The perfume doesn’t transform much, but instead, feels as if a ray of sunshine has warmed the perfume and made it grow oh so slightly. There’s a lovely combination of warmth and coolness at play; it feels tinged with sunshine, but there’s a cool breeze that provides for an underlay. After around 10 minutes, the perfume begins to dry and the perfume begins to powder. At this point, it feels like a light layer of talcum is covering your skin. The florals also begin to retain a woody texture, rather like a light balsa wood. After around 20 minutes, the perfume takes on a delicate sweetness of honey. It’s just the right amount of light sugar to make the perfume sparkle. Who knew beige could be so beautiful?

From the Chanel website:

“I take refuge in beige because it’s natural,” said Mademoiselle Chanel. An elusive colour with infinite variations, beige may seem quite ordinary. And yet, behind this apparent simplicity, it hides a discreet sensuality that builds slowly before revealing itself fully. This sensual outburst is interpreted by Jacques Polge through a bouquet of Hawthorn, Freesia and Frangipani, with shimmering hints of honey. A stunning blend of white petals and yellow gold…in other words, a breath of beige.

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: Central Park, NYC. The Upper East side social set meets the tranquility of the park.

THREE WORDS THAT DESCRIBE BEIGE: unassuming, elegant, effortless

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT BEIGE: Bois de Jasmin, Now Smell This, Perfume Shrine

BOTTOM LINE: I believe that I have overlooked Beige over the years due to the name. The name renders thoughts of cardboard boxes and abject nothingness. Instead, Beige proves to be an uncomplicated, subtle and beautiful understated classic. I’ll never think of beige as being boring anymore.

Bone Rating: 4 out of possible 5 bones
Scent: Floral
Nose: Jacques Polge
Classification: Leans feminine, but is rather unisex
Expense: $160 for 2.5 oz. Eau de Toilette (review based on the EdT version. Also available in parfum extrait.)

April 18, 2016
by The Scented Hound 21 Comments

New Release – Tauerville Fruitchouli Flash

WHAT I SMELL: Fruitchouli Flash does open with a flash…a flash of warm, peach, apricot and ripe fruit, topped with a nutty, rather carameled syrup. It is rich, thick, heavy and interestingly burnt. The perfume smells like a fruit and nut topping that you would put on an ice cream sundae. After around five minutes, the syrupy thickness gives way, but the fruity sweetness begins to really grow and project. At this point it’s hard to tell where the fruity ends and the patchouli begins as this is just, sweet upon sweet. After some more time, the fruity turns to floral. Though still sweet, it now feels like a bit of caramel has covered a bouquet of flowers vs. a fruit compote. As the perfume continues to develop, the sweets adds an undercurrent of creaminess and the perfume becomes smoother. After quite some time, the perfume begins to pull considerably back with the sweetness and the woody patchouli seems to air the perfume out. In the end, the fruity floral sweetness is still there, but it thankfully recedes to softer level.

Fragrance Notes:

Apricot, Peach, Rose, White Flowers, Musk, Patchouli

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: A deluge of sweet caramelized fruity cream.

THREE WORDS THAT DESCRIBE FRUITCHOULI FLASH: over-the-top

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT FRUITCHOULI FLASH: Now Smell This, Colognoisseur

BOTTOM LINE: I just dabbed on the smallest amount on my wrist and I think the sweetness travelled up to my mouth and I’m about to lose a couple of teeth. You really have to love sweet perfumes to like Fruitchouli Flash. It makes me feel like I just left the ice cream parlor and that sticky sweet bright atmosphere is still stuck to my skin.

Bone Rating: 2 out of possible 5 bones
Scent: Floral Fruity
Nose: Andy Tauer
Classification: Unisex
Expense: The price is very right at $63 for 30 ml eau de parfum.

April 11, 2016
by The Scented Hound 17 Comments

Still Life in Rio by Olfactive Studio

WHAT I SMELL: Still Life in Rio opens up like a basket of minty, citrus freshness. It’s delightful and feels incredibly bountiful. Quickly, the fresh moves to a more tropical with a creamy and buttery coconut taking over as if swathed with a butter knife over the perfume. The perfume is thickened without being heavy and it feels like it has been baked by the hot sun which pulls out a rather sweaty and salty element. At this point, the perfume is very subtle and unobtrusive and without a great deal of projection, so it feels as if it’s part of the sweat of your body. Slow to develop, after some time, a light rum note is added to the tropical coconut. The perfume then gracefully completes its journey very quietly, as if the tropical salty sweat of the day is like a lingering memory of the perfect day in Rio.

From the Olfactive Studio website:

Exotic and luminous, Still Life in Rio is a new and unique scent that opens with yuzu, ginger, mint and lemon essence. It blossoms and heats up with a blend of peppers, Jamaican hot peppers and coconut water, finishing with rum and Brazilian Copaiba essences.

TOP NOTES: Yuzu, ginger, mint, lemon, mandarin

HEART NOTES: Jamaican hot peppers, pink pepper, black pepper, coconut water

BASE NOTES: Rum, Brazilian Copaiba, Accord of White Leather

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: The concept behind the brand:

“OLFACTIVE STUDIO IS AN ENCOUNTER BETWEEN CONTEMPORARY ARTISTIC PHOTOGRAPHY AND PERFUMERY; BETWEEN THE EYE AND THE NOSE THIS IS THE FIRST TIME EVER THAT PERFUMERS HAVE TEAMED UP WITH PHOTOGRAPHERS TO DRAW INSPIRATION FROM THEIR OEUVRES. THEY SENSE THE IMAGES TO CAPTURE THEIR ESSENCE.”

This is an inspiration that I can feel akin to as my reviews always accommodate my association with a visual. I’m not going to mess with adding any additional visual to the perfume, so I’ll stick with the actual inspiration, the photograph Still Life in Rio by Flávio Veloso.

THREE WORDS THAT DESCRIBE STILL LIFE IN RIO: calming, tropical, easy

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT STILL LIFE IN RIO: Chemist in the Bottle, CaFleureBon, Now Smell This

BOTTOM LINE: There’s something about the perfume that is just so incredibly easy. When you wear it, you don’t feel like there’s a need to rush or be in a hurry. The visual inspiration is stunning and you can just imagine how wonderful looking over this city in all it’s beauty could be on a hot, humid and steamy morning.

Bone Rating: 3 out of possible 5 bones
Scent: Aromatic
Nose: Dora Baghriche
Classification: Unisex
Expense: $195 for 100 ml Eau de Parfum

Sample courtesy of Twisted Lily Fragrance Boutique and Apothecary. Opinion my own.