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Sweet'n'Sour Arpège pour Homme by Lanvin - A Review by Dusan Z
December 30, 2006. 17:51 Glancing nervously at my watch and realizing with horror how late I am, I start cursing myself for always doing things at the eleventh hour. The stride quickens into a run and with the last breath in the chilly December evening I make my way through crowds of rushed people to the doors of the department store. 17:54 “I am sorry, we are closing”, the security guard informs me. “But I have to go in, and the perfume store is still open, look!” Again he apologizes but will not yield. “But it isn’t six yet. For God’s sake, man, let me buy a New Year present for my girlfriend’, I lie shamelessly, ‘it won’t be a minute’. Rolling his eyes, he mutters a curse or two, but opens the door. Victory! I dart into the perfume store and make a beeline for the preciousss. Within minutes I am paying for my New Year gift to me, while the pissed SAs are looking daggers at me. “Yeah, whatever”, I look back, mentally sticking out my tongue and blowing the loudest, New Year raspberry at them. Just for a split second though I wonder if I really should be institutionalized, but the cold wind swiftly dispels this foolish idea. Having spritzed myself with the Preciousss in a dark corner of the street, I give a blissful sigh and step into the frenzied throng, toweringover each and every head on my way home.....
Continue reading "Arpège pour Homme by Lanvin - A Review by Dusan Z {Perfume Review & Musings} {Men's Cologne}" »
 Sécrétions Magnifiques (Magnificent Secretions) seems to have the words "Hazardous Biological Material" written all over it. It tends to provoke a gag reflex in you if you smell it from too up close. My first impression of it was, I must say, like receiving an olfactory punch in the stomach. Each subsequent inhalation I would take would be followed by an exclamation and deep exhalation to recover from the experience. The perfume is repulsive - especially in the first stages - but interesting also because it is a perfume that obviously goes against the grain of perfumery and society conventions and for that reason alone should be experienced. It makes two important statements: 1) that no notes are taboo 2) that a perfume does not necessarily have to be nice and smell good, be a "sent-bon" (a smell-good) as the French say in a bit of a familiar or even derogatory manner regarding fragrances that lack any artistic ambition, soul, or complexity....
Continue reading "Sécrétions Magnifiques by Etat Libre d'Orange {Perfume Review & Musings} {Men's Cologne of the Week}" »
M.A. Sillage de La Reine is a project of historical reconstruction of one of the most fragile cultural artifacts to exist, perfume. The project takes place in the context of the recent restoration and opening of Marie Antoinette's domain at Château de Versailles in July 2006 and the new interest - and shall we say adulation for her in France - that has come to replace the collective feelings of distrust by the French that led her to the guillotine in 1793. As Mona Ozouf has pointed out it seems that what is taking place today is the opening of a beatification process for the former French queen and Austrian princess. The recent publication of a critical edition of Marie Antoinette's correspondence by Evelyne Lever has led a critic from Lire to conclude that despite the new evidence that is now presented "One will never know who Marie Antoinette really was and this is all to the advantage of her legend."Indeed M.A. Sillage de la Reine follows that logic by seeming to shed light on Marie Antoinette's tastes and personality only to reinforce the myth. The re-creator of the perfume, Francis Kurkdjian, explained himself that the queen could not have been expected to wear just one scent nor wear exactly the same one over time as fragrances were unstable due to the naturalness of the ingredients....
Continue reading "M.A. Sillage de la Reine by Château de Versailles {Perfume Review & Musings}" »
 In the emails I receive from readers I am often asked questions about rose fragrances. These requests make me realize that despite the fact that many people might think rose fragrances are a bit passé, not original enough harking back to the days of yore when women wore flowery hats and scented their kerchiefs with violet and rose scents, that in spite of that stereotype there are many amateurs of rose perfumes.
I also realize that the slight prejudice that exists against rose fragrances amongst people who seek rarer scents may stem from the fact that many rose fragrances smell a bit dull and conventional to the nose or appear to never smell as enthralling as the natural flower. A recurring request is that the desirable rose scents smell both natural and have an interesting touch to them. Oftentimes I find that rose scents strip down roses of their character, their earthiness, their verdant freshness, their aqueous quality, their woodiness, in other words, of their complexity. Too often we are reminded of the flattened unidimensional scent of a rose soap. In this manner a rose scent can easily be perceived to be boring due to its enduring popularity and typification......
Continue reading "A Rose by Inis {Perfume Review & Musings}" »
 My perfect Christmas scent for 2006 is Gaultier2 by Jean Paul Gaultier. A little surprised? So was I. Francis Kurkdjian the nose who created the perfume in 2005 once described it in no uncertain terms as a perfume supposed to evoke sex in the dark. Then I forgot about this characterization. Having dug out the quote again, I see that the nose was very explicit about it "The request for a new feminine fragrance came from the market. But Jean Paul Gaultier felt less than inspired by this request: for him there exist only beautiful aromas. He wanted to make a perfume for everyone that would evoke the smell of two bodies in the dark, that of a caramel between two mouths, that of "ass" but clean ass.".....
Continue reading "My Perfect Christmas Scent for 2006: Gaultier2 by Jean Paul Gaultier {Perfume Review & Musings}" »
 Luv by Sharon Bolton Scents, a perfume company from Santa Barbara, California, is described as an intoxicating and feminine scent showcasing tropical flowers and in particular "...rare pink gardenia, lush Hawaiian white flowers, and a hint of creamy vanilla with a delicate whisper of white musk." Having sojourned in tropical and equatorial countries for many years, I am always interested in finding a fragrance that captures the sensuality of the atmosphere in these countries and I must say that I am thrilled with my new discovery. First of all let me tell you that receiving a package from Sharon Bolton Scents is an excellent visual preparation for what is to come next. My items arrived in an elegant shiny black hat box wrapped around with a black satin ribbon. Inside, the lovely items packaged in a minimalist modern and clean style were showcased in a contrasting hot fushia silk paper. I also learned afterwards that all the packaging is recyclable.....
Continue reading "Luv Perfume Oil & Body Lotion by Sharon Bolton Scents {Perfume Review & Musings}" »
 Dear Reader, Lately I have been rereading a stunning little book, Raymond Queneau's Exercises in Style, which inspired me to offer you three different interpretations of the same perfume, the melancholy La Myrrhe.
Serge Lutens La Myrrhe, a fragrance review by Dusan
ANALYTICAL
Created in 1995 by Christopher Sheldrake for Les Salons du Palais Royal Shiseido, La Myrrhe features notes of myrrh, lotus, mandarin, jasmine, spices, pimento berries, honey, bitter almond, sandalwood and musk. As might be expected from the Serge Lutens line, this is yet another fragrance that easily fits into the category of ‘love-it-or-hate-it’ scents.
La Myrrhe starts off slightly sharp and heady with silky aldehydes, iced mandarin peel and a lovely, clean jasmine note that weaves in and out of the composition. This opening has been described variously on different fragrance boards as ‘aldehydic’ and ‘soapy’, inviting comparison with Chanel #5 as the mother of all aldehydes; yet there is nothing distinctly warm or floral about this stage, which serves as a chilly backdrop for the gentle unfolding of all of La Myrrhe’s subtleties.....
Continue reading "La Myrrhe by Serge Lutens {Perfume Review & Musings}" »
 The agarwood in M7 is pervasive, dark and swirling with complexities. It has rich sweet resinous and slightly fruity overtones with a good dose of raspberry and lighter nuances of burnt caramel and honey. It is a perfume that starts off warm and thick like the unfurling texture of dark molasses or better still it is thick like a heavy hanging wall tapestry from the middle-ages evoking men's quest for hotness and fire in the midst of winter.....
Continue reading "M7 by Yves Saint Laurent {Perfume Review & Musings} {Men's Cologne of the Week}" »
The red velvet box finally came. I smelled it before opening it as I was wondering whether all put together the perfumes created an interesting dissonant or harmonious smell that might have transpired through the walls of the coffret. One end of the box smelled moldy, you will know why later, the other one was neutral....
Continue reading "First Impressions of the Thierry Mugler Coffret Based On Perfume The Novel by Süskind & Perfume The Movie by Tykwer {Scented Thoughts}" »
 I have been wanting to review Ore by Zents for some time now and realizing that it would make a great gift for Christmas/the Holidays, I am finally making it happen. My first encounter with Ore was in a store in Harvard Square that is now, alas, defunct but that was then chock-full of beauty and health products. It was called Harnetts. At one time, I am reminded with nostalgia, they also had a juice bar. Fast-forward to last spring. As they were liquidating their goods several months ago, I saw the industrial juicer amidst empty shelves and later even its future proprietor laying his eager and happy hands on it. Ah well, all this no more now....
Continue reading "Ore by Zents {Perfume Review & Musings} {Men's Cologne of the Week} {Holiday Gift Idea}" »
Intriguant Patchouli (Intriguing Patchouli) is my favorite scent so far amongst the offerings of Parfumerie Générale, a niche perfume house from France founded by perfumer-composer Pierre Guillaume. PG are the initials both for the perfumery and the perfumer's name. The perfume created in 2005 contains top notes of mandarin, lemon, and Persian apple. The heart is particularly rich showcasing patchouli accented with ginger, cinnamon, sandalwood and further paired with a group of animalic notes that includes, civet, castoreum, and musk. The base rests on an accord of amber and musk enriched with benzoin and vanilla....
Continue reading "Intriguant Patchouli by Parfumerie Générale {Perfume Review & Musings}" »
This is part I of my review of Perfume: The Story of a Murderer. I will devote a second part to the perfumista's point of view when watching the movie. In this first part, I offer a more general analysis of the movie. The movie Perfume: The Story of a Murderer is both a hyper-realistic and flamboyant adaptation of the novel by Patrick Süskind initially published in 1985, a story that for a long time was famously deemed impossible to adapt by the likes of Francis Ford Coppola and Martin Scorcese. After years of tribulations, German producer Bernd Eichinger ( In the Name of The Rose) succeeded in securing the rights from reclusive author Süskind, apparently convincing him that his own vision would be up to the challenge. It is reported that the German writer would have ideally liked to see Stanley Kubrick do the adaptation. Director Tom Tykwer ( Run Lola Run, a must-see) who was brought in later then had to overcome two main obstacles. First a classic one, the challenge of adapting a suspenseful thriller that had been translated in this case in 45 languages and read by millions worldwide. The second one, more daunting, more original, more creative, and more historic, that of adapting an "olfactory novel" on-screen....
Continue reading "Movie Review of Perfume: The Story of a Murderer (2006) by Tom Tykwer, Part I {Perfume/Film Review & Musings}" »
Absolument Absinthe (Absolutely Absinthe) is the name chosen by its creators to visibly convey the sense of individual passion that motivated the creation of a perfume inspired by the mythological wormwood-based drink resurrected in France in the early 1990s. The name, like that of L'Artisan Fou D'Absinthe (crazy for absinthe), puts the stress on the atmosphere and mythology of excess that surrounded the consumption of the emerald-green liquor with high alcoholic contents - up to %75 - ultimately leading to its prohibition in France, Switzerland, and the US by 1915. The popularity of the drink, which was due in part to the pleasurable ritual accompanying it, of slowly imbibing a piece of sugar over a glass partly covered with a slotted spoon leading to the "louching" of the absinthe which would then turn from deep green to cloudy green, also contributed to the demise of quality standards and the proliferation of toxic distillates. By the end of the 19th century, absinthe as a drink had come to symbolize bohemian Paris and anti-bourgeois culture, but also degeneration and death reaching in this manner a final stage in its transformation from a regenerative tonic and cordial to a drink symbolizing the flaws and destructive impulses of humanity....
Continue reading "Absolument Absinthe by Absolument {Perfume Review & Musings}" »
Recently a reader from Greece contacted me to ask for some assistance in finding information about Borsari, a venerable perfume house based in Parma, Italy and in particular about one of its perfumes, Rosa Thea. This person was looking for a full bottle of it, a much more difficult task it seems than finding a miniature version of it. Seeing such enthusiasm for a perfume is always contagious and it made me want to seek out the fragrance and see by myself what all the fuss was about.....
Continue reading "Rosa Thea by Borsari 1870 {Perfume Short - Express Perfume Review}" »
Déclaration by Cartier was created in 1998 by renowned master perfumer Jean-Claude Ellena. The French nose also created most recently Terre d'Hermès and Paprika Brasil which show the development of his art in the direction of minimalism. Top notes for Déclaration are bergamot, coriander, mandarin, artemisia, neroli. Heart notes are cardamom, pepper, jasmine, cumin, orris. Base notes are cedar, vetiver, leather, and amber....
Continue reading "Déclaration by Cartier {Perfume Review & Musings} {Men's Cologne of the Week}" »
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