Perfume Review & Musings Archives

      Starting with the pulling-off of the cap - I instinctively tend to smell closed perfume bottles when taking off the cap even if it is a spray bottle to get a sneak peak of the contents and...

 The new packaging and an older one for Night Magic Evening Musk by Avon (upper right-hand corner) Night Magic Evening Musk is said to be "the American version of Night Musk" according to a British Avon site for the direct-sales giant....

Pretty Woman is the debut fragrance of Barbara Orbison, the widow of singer Roy Orbison. It was named after the 1964 hit song "Oh, Pretty Woman" which was later made part of two film soundtracks, American Graffiti (1973) and...

Balmain (blue) and Piguet (pink) models in 1951 Calypso is the latest recreation by the Robert Piguet label which aims to offer the luxury of vintage flair in a world full of recent launches, by building in part on...

    Portrait of a Lady is the latest opus to come out of the house of Editions de Parfums Frédéric Malle and is signed by perfumer Dominique Ropion. If Malle likens his work to that of a self-described editor...

    The other day, as I was starting to jot down some notes about the latest Serge Lutens to be released, Boxeuses (an upcoming 2011 release Jeux de Peau has just been unveiled to the press), I realized I...

  Sartorial by Penhaligon's (see previous introductory article and the arty stop-motion video) opens on a burst of powdery gentlemanliness accented with a layer of shaving soap foam, like a woodier, sweeter, more animalic and more strongly typified Brut de Fabergé....

  Manoumalia was released in 2009 as the fourth permanent opus offered by Swiss perfume house Les Nez Parfums d'Auteurs founded by businessman René Schifferlé. The story and experience behind the fragrance, signed by perfumer Sandrine Videault, opens an interesting avenue...

Coeur de Vétiver Sacré (Heart of Sacred Vetiver) (see flacon here) is the latest fragrance to have been released by niche perfume house L'Artisan Parfumeur. The composition is signed by perfumer Karine Vinchon of fragrance company Robertet, who also did...

Aventus is the latest fragrance composition by the house of Creed est. 1760, originally a tailoring house in England. Later, they became - and this is little known - one of the chosen select to have the privilege of belonging...

Sensuous Noir by Estée Lauder ($48; $60) is the latest feminine launch by the beauty company. It arrives on the market two years after the original Sensuous which was seen as a move to step back from the floral...

Mary J. Blige My Life by Carol's Daughter is one of the latest celebrity fragrances to appear on the market and certainly the one which was most talked about in recent memory for its record-breaking sales on HSN on July...

As previously said, Bang is the new Marc Jacobs scent for men after an 8-year lapse in masculine perfumery since Marc Jacobs for Men. Coty reportedly approached Jacobs with the idea of a new men's launch. While the fragrance is...

The dark blue color of the sky above Deauville at dusk © The Scented Salamander Bleu de Chanel is the latest masculine to be launched by the luxury house of fashion. You can read more about the background story...

Nina L'Elixir is the latest addition to the Nina portfolio which was inaugurated in 2006 to popular commercial acclaim with Nina Eau de Toilette. Perfumer Olivier Cresp working in tandem with Jacques Cavallier then, continued doing with it in a...