1 – Puredistance

1 opens with a translucent, tangy black currant, subtle rose and jasmine – just a pinch of powdery mimosa and a pale greenery. It’s blended to a point where not a single thing stands out, super smooth – light as a feather, with a kind of ozonic accord running through it that whilst doesn’t smell marine-like or aldehydic, surprisingly makes the opening of 1 smell desperately synthetic despite its infamous “quality”.

Magnolia seems to dominate after just a minute or two – not the heavy green, waxy magnolia of Mito, not the boozy, fleshy, glamorous magnolia of Zelda, but something almost a touch soapy/lactonic – and I can’t help but both like it (yes just like) and find it to be no greater than the smell of a decent quality hand cream.

Once the body cream image is in my head, it sticks. It smells chemical, floral, ozonic and lactonic… with a total lack of texture – it becomes almost mundane, despite the obvious hidden complexity. As a result, it almost feels like a wasted bunch of great ingredients (after just ten minutes) – the jasmine isn’t indolic of full – it’s not what I want jasmine to smell like. The magnolia has little personality and the tartness of blackcurrant is nowhere to be seen. Instead this slightly green, fruit-floral gets a little bitter as the salted, ozonic accord gets a little stronger and more irritating and the powder of the mimosa de-sweetens, and similarly to M, amber takes over all too quickly.

The amber underneath isn’t vanilla heavy, nor is it particularly resinous – it’s a little washed out, more of a colour than anything else. A white musk comes in – not a hint of animal, human, or sexual suggestion, no – it’s a “fuzz”. A fuzz of laundry, clean, sterile to give throw and little more. Gosh I sound so negative! I’m trying hard not to be At first I like it, then I think about it – and all “like” vanishes…

What’s left on my skin after just 20 minutes is what takes 1 throughout the rest of its life. It’s a relatively flat, slightly lactonic/ozonic floral hand cream fragrance that doesn’t even have the advantage of moisturizing my skin. A touch of rose and magnolia, the subtlest green imaginable and a neither here-nor-there musky amber (with a touch of castoreum)… Such a shame, such a headache-inducing shame.

1 17.5ml parfum extrait Puredistance - $198 Luckyscent

Cologne Reloaded – Bogue Profumo

Bogue Profumo is a new line – brilliant marketing, a fascinating and confusing website with a bit of a mishmash of ideas that leaves me baffled – but totally keen to find out more!
I have got a big sample kit, consisting of something from a “Tailor Collection” which are all lettered instead of named… and two named fragrances. The named ones are obviously a little less intimidating so here’s where I begin.
I quickly looked up Cologne Reloaded on the Bogue website – the perfumer goes on about all these vintage raw materials etc – interesting stuff that I’m not going to bulk up my blog with but head over to the link below for a read…
SO! How does it smell…

Holy. Shit. Instant “Oh my God”.
Bringing to mind something from the O’Driu lineup – this herbal, citrus, smoky opening knocked my nose clean off my face with a smile. What have we got here! Lemongrass and herbal lavender, bergamot and bitter orange… a soiled, damp smell of rotten rind with just a hint of freshness remaining. All this piled atop a heavy animalic smoke of castoreum and tobacco.

A herbal hit of something like eucalyptus… or artemisia, slightly mentholates the heart, and an abstract nuttiness that brings to mind pistachio leads into a bundle of bitter resins and a touch of old-school powder. There’s rough black leather, birch tar and animalics - taking over any remains of citrus (the opening short-lived like any classical cologne). Whilst the merest hint of vanilla gives the tar-laden base a touch of sweetness (without becoming a cloying mess a la Patchouli 24).

P’Eau D’Espagne comes to mind when sniffing this, as does the opening of Lonestar Memories – only in reverse order… the powerful opening of both being the late drydown of this. Whether there are florals in here, I’m not sure… if anything there’s a bizarre ylang vibe – but at least at this stage, totally drowned in a thick, black base. The herbal notes still persist – although now much darker. Slightly culinary, it reminds me of rosemary, along with something like “Vicks vapour rub” – a herbal, soothing, mentholated scent. It’s totally comforting to me. The herbal notes add a natural astringent quality to Cologne Reloaded – perfectly tying the breathtaking opening into the ridiculously long-lasting base.

The base is where more magic happens – at first I get hints of animalic smoke atop an aged-smelling amber and a touch of something earthy… patchouli? – all smothered in a transclucent tar. However… a huge 180 occurs at some point in the late drydown at the blink of an eye – too fast for me to catch. It turns Cologne Reloaded into something clean, powdery, classical and masculine – no soap, but a touch of coal and a huge scattering of powder - baby soft on the skin, a touch of feminine florals, bringing to mind the classic powder-filled bases of the old-school Guerlain’s. This is how it stays for the remainder of it’s life on your skin – a familiar, slightly melancholy powder – clean, subtly smoked, tinged with vanilla – feeling dandified, classical, and to me almost heart-wrenching. Mesmerizing. An outstanding perfume.

Cologne Reloaded – Bogue Profumo – not yet available? Not sure… this brand is a mystery.
http://bogue-profumo.com/cologne-reloaded/

The First Response to Smellythoughts’ Blind Sniff 2013!

Well! Fumerie Hilaire (Freddie) was the first to tackle my blind sniff challenge (Oh and apologies for the lack of posting I’ve been so into this YouTube blind sniff that I had abandoned my blog for a few days!).
Here’s his video – a little long, but very fun to watch

I’d like to say also that Freddie, just today, figured out what “Power” was – and is so close to figuring out “Stone” I’m on the edge of my seat waiting for him to say it!
He’s also figured out “Spirit” much better than I could of but I’m worried that the uber-niche-ness of it may make it difficult to guess – he’s got all the accords right though!

But yeh, I can’t name what “Power” is on here yet just incase Raj has a snoop around and finds out

But enjoy guys! New reviews to come soon – I’m up to my neck in things to write about!

Freddie xxx

YouTube Video: Smellythoughts’ Blind Sniff!

Hey guys – quick update!
I’m doing a little blind sniff thing with two other local reviewers (London and Dublin) – sending them a little sample set to get their nose on.
Here’s the introductory video (excuse my tipsy-ness), and be sure to keep a track on their channels for updates! Should be fun
Hope everyone is keeping well
xxx

Encens Mythique D’Orient – Guerlain

MMMMMMM! Unexpected love for this opening! I expected a standard Arabian incense, dry and peppered – I got something not too dissimilar to Putain Des Palaces by Etat Libre D’Orange.

I get a tangy, violet-laden aldehyde with a hint of leather underneath – candied sweet and again, not too far from Cuir Amethyste by Armani Prive. There’s just a hint of bright citrus’ up top, like a sugar-coated lemon peel, but quickly the sweet violet and high-pitched orange blossom take over. It has a sherbert-y texture to it, literally fizzy and almost “pink”.

There is incense under there – a light, ever so slightly metallic smoke – blended harmoniously with the now turning resinous violet.
As the violet effect begins to settle a touch, a rose seems to take over. Clean, with just a hint of exotic spice, and a slightly paper-y texture like the roses of Ormonde Jayne’s Ta’if… they are completely different fragrances but the texture of the rose feels the same. Some jasmine – just a hint of rot but as good as clean, ripens the roses and bulks out the floral accord. The florals don’t dominate at all though… what does, is this hint of smoke, a sweet, candied amber-y base, and the leather!

Leather? Well, it’s a super soft suede in the style of Bottega Veneta, or Cuir Ottoman at a push… it’s supple, skin-like and a little salty. This is given a hell of a lot of lift and life by a musky ambergris and civet. The civet adds a plush richness and the ambergris makes the whole fragrance become this translucent-ish, multi-coloured hologram of a composition. Sweet shit, I sound like I love it don’t I? I kind of do.

It’s very nice – sharing similarities with a few fragrances I really love – but for me once the aldehydes burn off and that violet-thing going on at the beginning, it loses it’s buzz just a touch. I love the salty, musky, leathery base (although it’s much lighter and more gentle than I’d have loved to smell it)… still – it’s pretty gorgeous. The rose drying out into the leather, the hint of salt, a little sandalwood, the high pitch incense without a trace of pepper… well done Guerlain – you’ve impressed me.

Zelda – EnVoyage Perfumes

I had been very, very excited to try this… a new release from Shelley Waddington of EnVoyage Perfumes. I have only little experience with her line (a few inclusions in the Primordial Scents project) – but loved everything I tried. However, I didn’t have my hopes set too high as I hadn’t tried any of her other fragrances - so I didn’t read too much preliminary info about this one.
The backstory behind this fragrance can all be read over on CaFleureBon, the inspiration behind this scent being the life of Zelda Fitzgerald – a great read!
Anyway – I’ve lived in my sample for a few days now…

Holy crap. What an awesome opening!
A bizarre, instantly vintage-inspired citrus/green/spice opening of galbanum, lemon, orange, bergamot – with a touch of warm clove and cinnamon, has a creamy/lactonic quality to it giving way to a sweet, boozy vanilla. It’s not at all “fresh” as it sounds (green/citrus) – neither is it remotely “cologne-y” with the inclusion of typically masculine/culinary spice - the almost gourmand like quality underneath and the hidden florals (gradually getting louder and louder) make this tooth-achingly rich, full-bodied and feminine. An oriental to die for.

Rich is a word I could use over and over in this review, from the start until the end – it has a white-chocolate-like quality to it – overlaid with waxy, white florals and a ganache-like civet texturixing Zelda… it’s ridiculously smooth and harmonious but extremely powerful.
The florals as they come in are dominated by magnolia and a brilliant rose. The magnolia, totally unlike the green treatment of the magnolia in the gorgeous Mito by Vero Profumo, concentrates more on the creamy, slightly candle-wax-y, lemon-y (y – y -y I know, excuse the poor adjectives) aspects. It’s beautiful – and slightly old-school-glam.

The galbanum in the openings adds that touch of greenery but Zelda from here on is definitely not “green”. It’s a spiced vanilla underneath, the memory of the culinary spices of the opening staying there throughout. The rose I mentioned earlier is a bright, pink rose… smelling dry, innocent with just a touch of pink-pepper spice and a honeyed sweetness. A butter-soft tuberose underneath bulks up the florals more so, totally clean with a fur-like texture that certain natural tuberose oils seem to have.

This gorgeous, smoky, spicy vanilla/benzoin/tonka thing that came out first is here until the end, still a touch boozy – like a great liquor (with a touch of syrup). There’s a tobacco note that I surprisingly love (not usually being a fan) – the sweet, dry smoke is there (enhanced with a bit of castoreum?), without the overload of dried-fruit notes that usually go along with it. There are hints of resins (labdanum), a heavy dose of sandalwood (super smooth and not too dry) - and a clean musk that throws Zelda off the skin for hours and hours. The civet is about as rich as it can get – working with the gourmand notes and florals to amp everything up into an almost unbearably rich, musky floral drydown.

In the late hours of wear, it dries out more-so, getting darker and even a touch leathery. The smoky resins burn, and turn just a little bitter (not a bad thing!), whilst managing to not taint the whole fragrance. It stays sweet, smoky, woody, lactonic, waxy and classical throughout – perfect <3

Zelda 15ml EDP $55 EnVoyage Perfumes www.envoyageperfumes.com

Antonia – Puredistance

I love the opening to Antonia. It is a beautifully intense, green, floral, soap. Undoubtably soap – no easy way to go around that one. I like soap notes these days – not sure why… Maybe I was too young to like it before

Anyway! It’s hard to describe this beginning… I get hints of violet, hyacinth, jasmine, rose and carnation atop green – smelling almost aldehydic and abstract. The violet-tinged jasmine (clean!) seems to dominate – along with the slightly pepper-y hyacinth, the rose bulking it all out underneath (very clean and translucent), and the carnation adding a subtle clove-y spice that pairs exceptionally with the snap of bitter greens. The greenery of galbanum and listed ivy, brings to mind Bandit by Robert Piguet - only much more feminine without the isobutyl quinoline underneath – but I definitely smell a similar accord.

The squeaky bar of soap underneath is something that isn’t going anywhere so if you don’t like it, that’s it for you unfortunately. However the shapeshifting florals should be enough to keep in interesting. I get hints of lily of the valley popping up, the carnation disappearing and reappearing, the rose getting more potent than vanishing. Then after all that I kind of stop over thinking and realise it smells exactly the same as five minutes ago. Stop tearing this one apart Freddie!!!

Ok. I don’t love it. Bummer. But it’s nice – I can’t help but think if it came from the house of Comme Des Garcons and was called “Soap” – it would be judged differently. Maybe that’s unfair – it’d still be a beautifully balanced perfume – but after the initial complicated arrangement of the classical opening (read: dated), it settles into this relatively linear fragrance with a drydown that is much less interesting after the one hour mark.

The floral soap leads all the way through until the end, the florals blended impeccably so that nothing dominates. The greenery settling into something smooth – what started cool and crisp ends warm and mellow when a vetiver joins in. It sweetens a touch with some vanilla – which brings in a kind of ylang-ylang style tropical floral accord but extremely minimal underneath the leading florals. Still – the warmth from the drydown is undoubtably gorgeous and the fragrance reminds me of Bandit, with the leather underneath replaced by a few sprays of Guerlain’s Lys Soleia (vanilla/ylang ylang/lily). In the drydown I realise that sprayed from a drugstore bottle, I wouldn’t give it a second sniff (at this point of the development). I don’t consider it a masterpiece, but it is a nice perfume that I’d enjoy wearing (although tire of quickly as the day goes on).

Antonia 17.5ml Parfum Puredistance - $198 Luckyscent

What you do get, Puredistance, is my number 1 spot for horrific advertising.

Update from Freddie :)

Hey guys hope everyone is keeping well.
Been working on some new YouTube vids – which got kindda wasted because my video editing software has just all failed on me for no reason – majorly sucks.
Anyway – got tons of reviews coming up I just need to manage my blog, the YouTube channel, and the masses of work I’ve got to draw up for people at work! Thought I’d brighten the post with a new picture for my About Me section (lemme know what you think!) - and a really cute tattoo I did on my friend Laura yesterday at work (off topic I know sorry but gotta give you something to look at here).
BYEEEE <3

“You’re too young to like it”…

Hey guys – I’d LOVE to hear your thoughts on this debate I had with a fellow fragrance “lover” on Facebook the other night.
It came about from me briefly sharing my thoughts on Puredistance M – to which this guy said I was basically too young to like it… I got pissed

SMELLYTHOUGHTS and BONKERS ABOUT PERFUME’s blind date…

Hi guys

Well, the other day myself and fellow fragrance lover, blogger and fountain-of-knowledge Vanessa, from Bonkers about Perfume, decided to hook up for a drink and a quick sniff of various things. I’d love to write an in-depth diary entry about this, but Vanessa has beat me to it (or I’m just lazy) and has written a charming little account of our drinks and sniffs, in words much more elegant than I could have put together.
We had a great chat about pretty much everything, shared some perfume loves and had a right good slag-off about everything perfume and blog related. Perfect company! <3

Enjoy!

A Bacchanalian Sniff-In with Freddie of Smellythoughts