To Boldly Go….
Mini Reviews by Marla, the Nerd Girl
First, I want to express my pride over owning Star Trek Fotonovels. They are awesome, and the cover of my favorite is gracing this article.
OK, now on to the mini-reviews. The gracious and tasteful Musette of Perfume Posse agreed to send me some samples of things I’ve been dying to try, in exchange for bits of some of the more unusual items in my international perfume collection. I’ve been having so much fun! Yes, there’s the good, the bad, and the ugly, I love trying them all. Here are mini-reviews of eight.
The Good:
1. Beyond Love by Kilian: I don’t think I can call myself a tuberose-hater anymore. No, this really isn’t me, but it’s the most radiant bit of tuberose fabulosity I’ve ever smelled. Calice Becker is a Floral Goddess. Anyone who loves tuberose can buy this perfume and put it in the center of their home tuberose shrine. Incredible work!
2. L’Artisan Parfumeur Batucada: This is summer fun in a bottle. What I really like is that perfumers Karine Vinchon (French) and Elisabeth Maier (Brazilian) have created the quintessential summer beach perfume with a little (drumroll) SKANK. Yes, there is a touch of sweaty, tanned skank in the drydown of this sweet, citrusy aquatic, and that makes all the difference. It’s supposed to be about Brazil, but to me, it’s pure South Beach.
3. Tom Ford Violet Blond: The demure cousin of Amaranthine that would never make out with a mysterious stranger in a dark hallway at a party. I love it, but I’m keeping Amaranthine for evenings….
The (Maybe, Kinda, Not Sure) Bad:
4. L’Eau Serge Lutens: More wearable to me than Aqua Universalis Forte, but why do I want to smell like clean, fresh laundry on steroids? I don’t like doing the amount of laundry that I do, and this perfume gives me nightmares about Zombie Laundry, coming alive, climbing the stairs to get me at night….
5. Bond No. 9 High Line: Sweet greens without the skank. Very similar to Batucada, but without the fun. Pleasant to wear, no complaints, but why bother?
And the Ugly:
6. Le Labo Gaiac 10: I barely smell anything, and what I do smell, briefly, is distinctly unpleasant. No creativity, no artistry, but it costs mucho. Yuck!
7. L’Artisan Mon Numero 10- And who cursed the number 10? Was it IFRA?? This is a not-so-charming mix of apothecary herbs, old wax, and horse liniment. Nice for a barn ambience spray, but not for people. A million light-years from Mon Numero 1, the tap-dancing pear and mimosa, and my favorite of the series.
8. Chloe EdP Rose Edition- Truly the Worst of the Worst. I wouldn’t put a sheet of this in with my laundry. Then again, if it was Zombie Laundry, I would, because it would kill them.
So what have you tried lately? Please leave a comment with a one-or-two sentence Mini Review, and make me happy! |
posted by Marina |
12:00 AM
28 Comments:
LOL - love the Zombie Laundry imagery! I don't want to smell of laundry either, and it mystifies me why anyone would. That said, I think L'Eau is probably the BEST "clean" fragrance I have ever smelled - the apotheosis of the art, as it were.
One of my recent discoveries is
Memo Manoa: a friend sent me a sample after I mooned over her description of it. And it was love at first sniff, a languid, heavy tropical floral with a lot of s-e-x in it - almost literally. I think it's safe to say that this one will not be going to the office anytime soon. ;-)
I'm just about to order the Caron sample pack from Luckyscent. I can't wait to try the whole line, I love Yatagan and Nuit de Noel.
Flora,
I think I tried Memo Manoa very briefly back in Europe, and loved it, but then got pulled away to lunch and never found it again. There were some rave reviews about it, too, I remember!
-Marla
Katherine,
Those are two of my favorite Carons as well. I also love Pour Un Homme and Parfum Sacre'. Great line, though I don't care for some of the reformulations.
-Marla
I love mini reviews... they're often more fun than the full-out deal.
Yesterday's sample, Aftelier Lumiere: Lemon and Pine-Sol, how innnnnnteresting that to some people this smells like perfume.
Tom Ford Black Violet: Completely unisex goth violet with a rich brown-velvet platform underneath. On a guy, this would make me swoon. Sadly, my husband refused.
OH! and meant to say, I lurve me some old-school Kirk, so thanks for the illustration!
I've tried Batacuda and actually liked it too. I must admit that I quite like Mon Numero 10.
mals86,
You can tell your DH that Nerd Girl completely approves him wearing TFBV. ;-)
And yeah, I love the Classic Kirk!
-Marla
Michael,
You're not along in liking No. 10, and I'm glad some folks are getting a different impression than mine! Mine was not positive....
-Marla
Michael,
That was meant to be "not alone", not, "not along"- I should not reply to comments when there are little children jumping on my back! Please forgive....
-M
Love mini reviews, thanks Marla!
Recently I've tried the new Hermessence , Santal Massoia and I can sum it up in 2 words "milky woods". I think you'd like it.
Also By Kilian's Amber Oud which is an addictive ambery vanilla with a blast of animalic oud at the beginning.
Tara,
I really want to try those two- I love massoia, I have a bottle of the eo, yummy!
-Marla
I tried Histoire de Parfum Ambre 114 and noticed the difference between a "quality" amber and the ordinary stuff immediately.
I loved the mini reviews! Cutting to the chase is never a bad idea.
sybil,
Sometimes I have a lot to say about a perfume (my new Malle samples, for example). But sometimes, brief is best!
-Marla
I think High Line has a tiny little bit of skank. Just a tiny little bit.
I tried Violet Blond and promptly reshelfed it at Sephora, quite chemically to my nose. On the other hand, thanks to Luckyscent I have discovered a Caron I can love in Infini, pure feminine gorgeousity. I can now forgive Caron for Tabac Blond and Parfum Sacre, which I might use for zombie laundry if I wanted them to die from boredom. Might try Nuit de Noel and Farnesiana next hmmmm. . . .
Dear Anon,
There's a little bit of salt in High Line, a suggestion of bare skin. In Batucada, it's much more obviously skank (in a good way).
They're both green and sweet, pretty and fun.
-Marla
Anon,
Hee hee! Parfum Sacre-and Tabac Blond- scented zombies! I love it! If you don't much like those two, though, you probably won't care much for Nuit de Noel, either. Infini is very pretty, isn't it? Caron has a lot of great choices,
-Marla
I love mini-reviews! On the more commercial side, i weas surprised to sort of almost like Versace's Yellow Diamonds, which has (among other things) vetiver. I wasn't surprise to like vetiver, but i was surpised to find it in this line, which to my nose is composed of screechy obnoxious florals. I'm still not at all sure Yellow Diamonds is me, but it was definitely an improvement.
maggiecat,
I've never tried Yellow Diamonds, but I've heard so many good things about it, that I may have seek it out. I'm a complete vetiver nut.
-Marla
LOVE the mini-reviews!
Here are my first attempts at them:
Chloé Eau de Parfum Intense Spray: WTF is that top note? It ruins what could otherwise be an office-friendly scent. Nice bottle, though.
Jubilation 25: I keep seeing this categorized as a fruity-chypre. My nose was clearly not trained at The Osmothèque. I get rich, glorious, cuminy-aldehyde Heaven. I'll take two bottles and a body creme, please.
Viva La Juicy: Avowed gourmand hater eats a lot of crow. I don't smell dessert, just something incredibly warm and scrumptious. Husband later winked at me and proclaimed "Viva La Juicy" as he escorted me upstairs.
Tammy,
Great mini reviews! Thanks for the tip on "Viva La Juicy"- I do hear it's a great favorite with the gentlemen (when they smell it on their ladies)....
-Marla
Kilian Amber Oud: This makes me sad. Where's the Amber? Where's the Oud? All Benzoin, all the time :(
kareng,
I know! I've seen any number of so-called Ambers lately that are almost entirely based on benzoin. I love some benzoin, but it's like a sledgehammer in excess. But it's a very cheap natural ingredient, maybe that's why it's being a little, ahem, overused? Good labdanum and natural vanilla are very expensive.
-Marla
Different ornaments that gives beauty.
Nice mini reviews - thanks!
Mine would be:
Dior Diorling reissue - disappointing. We know they CAN still sell proper chypres, else Diorama would not still be in their lineup. So why ruin the memory of Diorling with this dull little floral?
Eau de Chloe - surprising pleasant, summery, with a nice waft and no obvious laundry vibe. Not much like (the revamped) Chloe, which to me is a good thing.
I like this one, but I've seen it described as a chypre, and it's no such thing - not to my nose anyway.
Yay for Start Trek photonovels! I have the whole series, though they are looking a bit time-battered nowadays. Rather like Shatner... ;-)
Funny thing, I was really broke a while ago & thought of selling them on eBay. But I couldn't find a single example to set a price by. Loads of other Star Trek novels were listed, but not these. It's as if they never existed. Or perhaps people just don't want to part with them, which I completely get. They are awesome!
Tania,
Ah, a proper chypre'! You pretty much have to go vintage, indie, Asian (old Shiseidos or Arabian), or make your own to get a good one now.
And I'm so glad you have the photonovels, too! Love 'em, never sell 'em!
-Marla
Tania,
I don't know where Star Trek photonovels came from or where they went, but they are extremely cool, and I've been (very slowly) collecting the whole set.
-Marla
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