Fragrances -L'Artisan Fragrances - Patchouli Patch
smellslikeleaves 5/4/2005 11:26:00 PM
I am not a lover of patchouli. But, as far as patchoulis go...this one is nice. Applied sparingly, it evokes the earthy, pleasant smell of fresh mulch, as opposed to sweaty armpits (like bad patchoulis). However...I am not a lover of patchouli. So no purchase.
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Fragrances -L'Artisan Fragrances - Ambre Extreme
smellslikeleaves 5/4/2005 11:18:00 PM
Amber is a hit-or-miss note for me...sometimes it's gorgeous, but often it's too sweet and kinda sickening (and gives me unpleasant flashbacks to an amber necklace I wore in high school in a sorry attempt to bewitch men...you can read the full story about that in my Ambre Narguile review). This one by L'artisan is more of the latter. I'm not fond of nutmeg, so that makes the fragrance all the more unpleasant for the first couple of hours. The eventual drydown is warm, sweet, and very amber-y...nice, but again, kinda sickening. I'll revisit this one in the fall, but my feelings are obviously mixed. Lasting power is great on me--I still smell it on my hand almost 12 hours later. However, it's no competition for my HG amber, IPdF Ambra del Nepal.
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Fragrances -Fresh - Index Collection - Pear Cassis
smellslikeleaves 5/3/2005 12:38:00 AM
Juicy and tart, mostly cassis and citrus with little pear. A fragrance with some bite, which would be nice for high summer when sweet and heady fragrances can become overwhelming. Lasting power is surprisingly good--it's still going strong after 6 hours on me. Not a must-have personally, but if I received this as a gift, I'd use it.
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Fragrances -Bond No.9 - Chinatown
smellslikeleaves 5/3/2005 12:30:00 AM
Stunningly beautiful on cavewoman, chattykathy, and dare I say it, myself. It opens with a sweet floral blast of peach blossoms, peony, and tuberose, which are quickly grounded by an AMAZING spicy woods base. Cardamom, one of my favorite spicy notes, is deliciously prominent. After a couple of hours, it's predominantly spice and woods, and this phase lasts well over 12 hours on my skin. I concur that this may be more appropriate as a fall/winter scent, because it has the fuzzy warm softness of fine cashmere. In any case, I adore this. The Bonds keep getting better, and this one is the best so far. Believe the hype.
4 out of 4 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Fragrances -Bond No.9 - Wall Street
smellslikeleaves 5/3/2005 12:16:00 AM
You know, I think that the newer Bond scents, for the most part, are much better than the older ones--both in quality and in capturing the feel of the New York neighborhoods. Wall Street IS reminiscent of ubiquitous men's marine colognes, such as Cool Water, but nicer than most. It's very strong, masculine, clean, and powerful. I can totally imagine this on an investment banker, briefcase in hand, ready to conquer the world...or when he's on his yacht, the salty ocean air ruffling his perfectly coiffed hair. I gave this a "3" and a "no" to repurchase, since it's totally not my personality, but I think it's a great fragrance for the right person. It's very sexy in a masculine way...not to say that ladies couldn't rock it. But it's not a fragrance I could personally carry off. It's way too preppy, too "Wall Street" for me. Heh.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Fragrances -Jo Malone - Vintage Gardenia with Cardamom and Myrrh
smellslikeleaves 5/3/2005 12:03:00 AM
While this smelled lovely on Karen (liongirl), it does nothing for me on my own skin. It starts off with a ripe, buttery quality (perhaps reminding others of bananas), which settles down into a sort of green sourness which I find wholly unpleasant. And then it disappears altogether in an hour. Even through the unfortunate evolution of this fragrance on my skin, I can detect an old-fashioned feel, like antique lace. Works on some, but not for me. At all.
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Fragrances -I Profumi di Firenze - Spezie de Medici
smellslikeleaves 5/2/2005 11:54:00 PM
An unusual spicy scent which is just not me. It smells very strongly of clove and ginger, which are two notes that don't really appeal to me as a personal fragrance. As others have said, this is reminiscent of a fall or winter room fragrance, or of potpourri. I also thought of mulled cider when smelling this. Perhaps I'd like it more in the autumn, but I'm not feeling this at all right now. For those who love warm, spicy autumn/winter scents, though, this might be worth trying.
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Fragrances -Guerlain - Aqua Allegoria Pamplelune
smellslikeleaves 5/2/2005 11:29:00 PM
The worst thing I have ever smelled, bar none. Granted, the bottle in Sephora may have turned, but I will still never forget the horror of having this on my wrist. Words can't describe how foul it was...seriously, like the nastiest, dirtiest bathroom smell imaginable. I scrubbed my skin raw trying to get rid of it. I won't dare try this again.
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Fragrances -L'Artisan Fragrances - OEillet Sauvage [DISCONTINUED]
smellslikeleaves 4/30/2005 5:50:00 PM
This smells exactly like carnation to me--peppery, soft, green, and delicate, with vanilla and powder in the drydown. I found this very feminine and pretty, even though I don't usually care for carnation fragrances very much. Lasting power was about 4 hours on me, which is mediocre. It's not quite as vibrant as the CdG Carnation, but is a great choice for someone who wants a pretty, feminine, fresh floral which an alternative to your typical heady jasmine/rose/tuberose/gardenia fragrance.
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Fragrances -Demeter - Banana Flambee
smellslikeleaves 4/30/2005 4:53:00 PM
This is a very nice foody comfort fragrance...it smells exactly like baked banana custard. Lasting power is poor as with all Demeters, but this is one of the few I'd actually consider buying. Yum.
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Fragrances -Chanel - No.19
smellslikeleaves 4/24/2005 3:16:00 PM
While this opens with a blast of harsh green notes, it quickly dries down into a soft powdery orris fragrance on me, with a touch of rose, woods, and leather. Oddly enough, it strikes me as a softer, much more accessible RP Bandit (due to the galbanum and leather, perhaps). It's warm, soft, comforting. A lovely skin scent. I don't find it "old lady" or perfumey at all, actually. It's so very, very sophisticated. According to ozmoz, Gabrielle Chanel used the number 19 because she was born on the 19th of August. Top notes: Galbanum, Hyacinth, Neroli, Bergamot. Middle notes: Jasmine, Rose, Lily of the valley, Orris Base notes: Vetiver, Sandal, Leather, Musk.
3 out of 3 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Fragrances -Chanel - Cristalle
smellslikeleaves 4/24/2005 2:29:00 PM
Back when I read Seventeen magazine, I was obsessed with the Cristalle ads, and sniffed them obsessively. It was by far my favorite scent strip, but I felt light-years away from buying and wearing a Chanel perfume (back then I wore drugstore stuff and The Body Shop's Fuzzy Peach). I finally got the chance to try the fragrance in a Sephora, but it was the EDP, which was very bitter and green on me, not like how I remembered the scentstrip. I forgot about Cristalle for awhile until I read on the boards that the EDT was the original, and was different from the EDP. I then sought out the EDT to try, and it's gorgeous. Yes, THIS is what I loved to smell in my teen mags. Beautiful citrus and floral topnotes (I detect hyacinth and honeysuckle), and an oakmoss/woodsy drydown. It's fresh, green, clean, sparkling, and slightly powdery (in a good way). I don't get overwhelming lemon or Lemon Pledge from this at all. It's very sophisticated, yet lighthearted. Womanly but with girlish charm. It makes me think of Audrey Hepburn in early movies (e.g. Funny Face). This fragrance is so tied to my teenage years that I'm not sure I'd want to wear it now. However, it's a classic, elegant fragrance which is more than worthy of the Chanel name.
5 out of 5 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Candles -Tocca - Candle in Tara
smellslikeleaves 4/23/2005 3:36:00 PM
After smelling all the different Tocca candles cold, this one attracted me the most. I picked up a candelina of this at Bergdorf's, and was very pleased with the fragrance when lit. It's a lovely, creamy ginger lily scent which strikes me as very clean. I'm not a candle expert at all, but the "throw" is fine to me...it fills up my whole bedroom with its creamy, sweet, slightly spicy (ginger) scent. Lovely.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Fragrances -Etro - Vetiver
smellslikeleaves 4/23/2005 1:15:00 PM
I'm not a huge fan of vetiver-dominant fragrances, but this is quite lovely. It's woody, grassy, and herbal in a refreshing way. Like the previous reviewer said, this smells exactly like the outdoors in a mountainous region (it reminds me specifically of Vermont in the summer). I find this fragrance to be perfectly unisex, equally beautiful on a man or a woman. A must-try for vetiver fans.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Fragrances -Etro - Palais Jamais
smellslikeleaves 4/23/2005 11:21:00 AM
Egads. At first it's very green and herbal (which I didn't care for, but was toelrable), but then the drydown evoked a burning trash heap. It really does smell like something is burning. I like smokey fragrances, but this was too much for me. Maybe it could work better on a guy...but on me, this is dreadful.
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