Latest Perfume Reviews

Spice and Wood by Creed

Very nice.
Indeed wood with spices and a citrusy /apple opening.
What is done well is that this is a wood fragrance than does not scream wood which is often 'wooden' and overpowering and can make you feel you are in a freshly sandpapered sauna.
Masculine, powerful yet subtle. A great statement. Lovely from start to finish unlike Creed Viking which has that challenging opening but then settles to pure poetry.
Horrifically expensive but then it would have to be as it would outsell most of Creed's other connoisseur's offerings -which does not by inference give them mass appeal.
It is a distant cousin of Frederic Malle's excellent French Lover which has more pazaz and as such is less subtle but dare I say it may seem too austere for cold days. This one works.

Fragrance: 8/10
Projection: 7.5/10
Longevity: 6.5/10

Slow Explosions by Imaginary Authors

The opening is an abrasive rose with oily leather. The sweetness from the apple is also there but is gone after the opening. The rose note in the beginning and bitter, heaviness of the leather makes it feel like a Montale with the oud-rose combo. Also, the saffron + leather reminds me of Tuscan Leather a little.

Has average projection and longevity.

One Man Show Oud Edition by Jacques Bogart

"Je ne crée que pour l'homme" (I create only for men) has been the modus operandi for Jacques Bogart since 1975, and when the age of the powerhouse masculine fragrance ended roughly in the early 1990's, Bogart said "Hell no, we won't go!" to that paradigm shift and kept on making powerhouses, with adjustments in style as relevant over the decades. This has made the house something of an unsung hero among colognoisseurs, particular vintage fragheads who miss the days of stiff oakmoss and virile animalic masculines that were anything but subtle or polite. For the old man who never left the 80's, or the young man who romanticizes about the period in fragrance history when the loudness of your fragrance was equal to your jock cup size, Bogart is your house. With that having been said, there has still been a lot of modernity and progressive thinking on display from the "real" house of sillage over the decades, and I believe One Man Show Oud Edition (2014) displays that nicely. The original One Man Show (1980) is a castoreum-fueled scrotum sac nightmare that you either love (like me) or hate (like many) which put the house in the early runnings alongside Jacomo with their Jacomo de Jacomo (1980) for the animalic oakmoss loudness war that is the previous generation's iteration of the ambroxan/norlimbanol war men's fragrance started experiencing in the 2010's. True, YSL Kouros (1981), Chanel Antaeus (1981), Bijan for Men (1981), and other "Class of '81" powerhouses would more or less stick both Bogart and Jacomo on the B-list bench the very next year, but the reputation of the "jus" remained intact. Bogart began tinkering with One Man Show flankers with One Man Show Gold Edition (2011), a Middle East-inspired scent because the loudness factor of Bogart overall made them appealing in that sector of the world fragrance market. They kept on with One Man Show Ruby Edition (2013), which stayed in that lane, until finally going full-blown-oud with this creation. All of them share the DNA of the original One Man Show, so liking that scent is something of a prerequisite to enjoying this.

One Man Show Oud Edition is of course a synthetic oud, especially since it barely tops $40USD at retail unless somebody is trying to rip you off on eBay, and it's usually half that if you're going for testers or unboxed items. However, it is a very natural-smelling synthetic oud which doesn't fall into the medicinal trap many in this price range shoot for, having a touch of the barnyard stink and aromatic warmth that you'd have to normally spend over three digits for with something containing trace amounts of the real deal. Oud carries the opening, alongside sharp bergamot and galbanum which tie it into the original One Man Show. There's thyme in the note pyramid, but that oud just stomps all over everything else so beats me how it survives that onslaught. Geranium, sage, saffron, coriander, and nutmeg all inhabit the middle, which is where the oud technically does too, but it was at me from the jump so it stands apart from the rest of the pyramid in my opinion. The base is warm patchouli, a petrol leather note, tobacco, and a small hit of that castoreum funk also making a reappearance from the original One Man Show, pulling this oud variant into chypre territory in particular with the leather and oud adding thickness the absent oakmoss usually provides. Supposedly there is papyrus here too, but again, it gets tossed around by the oud. Sillage is intense, projection is downright nuclear, even for a Bogart fragrance, and longevity needs not be mentioned. This stuff will last as long, if not longer, than you want it to, trust me. One Man Show Oud Edition is the 1980 strut of the original trading in its corduroy pants and vest for a thobe, igal, and sandals. I'd say wear this wherever you dare, as like most intentionally-loud fragrances, One Man Show Oud Edition will not bow to the concept of context or appropriate usage, so be proud about it will ya? I find these kind of aromatic and dry leathery scents to work better in winter, but they'll not smother too much in summer as they aren't really sweet at all, which also makes this a charmer compared to the modern sweet amber woods massacre that is the modern mainstream male powerhouse aesthetic.

One Man Show Oud Edition is loud, proud, and even a bit lewd, presenting the best facets of an in-your-face oud perfume without relying on the oft-paired rose accord. I might say this even makes itself a more-restrained alternative to Christian Dior Leather Oud (2010), as both scents focus on virile leathery oud dry downs, but the Bogart scent is actually for once the more conservative scent compared to it's usual competition, so for those thinking the Dior is nice but a bit too "extra", this might be their ticket. There's also the elephant in the room of the Dior costing about ten times the price of the Bogart, so it may also be a more frugal option that can be backed up with abandon. I really like this scent, but I can see how it is polarizing to people, especially those not used to oud, or expecting something more complex, as the linearity of the wear is the only real fault I can find in the experience. I've tried a lot of Western ouds from the likes of Avon and Jovan, all the way up to John Varvatos, Yves Saint Laurent, and Diptyque. I'm not surprised that the Bogart version ranks highly among such variegated company which pitches and haws between cleanly medicinal and skanky hanky panky. One Man Show Oud Edition is warm, dry, aromatic, rich, sensual, all those things a type-A guy wants in a good old-school night out fragrance, just done with a modern synthetic oud note which puts this flanker more-solidly in the game than any recent Bogart before it save maybe the erstwhile One Man Show Gold Edition. You get tons of bang for your buck with Bogart as usual, and this by no means smells cheap, so reputation secured in that regard, so the only thing left to do is give it my thumbs up for a job well done. Bogart really is a criminally under-praised house in this price segment and this little gem is another prime example of why. Try before you buy, because not everyone is going to appreciate what this kind of oud has to bring. Cheers!

BCBGMAXAZRIA by Max Azria

Big berry fruit on top. Girly. Tart strawberry. Jasmine & lily of the valley move in next. I get a peach vibe briefly. Strong orris root that is bitter. No rose but, I do smell violet. The "girliness" of this perfume doesn't last, in the teen-fruit bomb sense. More of a "mature" fruit thing. Violet begins to soften as musk appears. Soft strawberry lurks still. Good summer scent.

Lakmé by Filigree Parfums

Very unusual, when first sprayed. Lychee, peppercorn, orange blossom, and rose - all together, seem dark. Seems musty. Slight bit of a booze accord. Smells "old school" 70's. Underneath, something smells of old paper.

Dirty jasmine rises. It is blended with a rich, earthy musk. There is an almost old, wood furniture odor - an antique whose surface hasn't been properly dusted or waxed in years. This is dark, sultry, and a throwback to another time, not too long ago.

Collection Grands Crus : Assam of India by Berdoues

Simple.
No gimmicks.
Fresh-squeezed lemon juice.
Grate of zest.
Soapy note, next.
Fragrant, warm cup of tea - unsweetened.
Sandalwood seems effervescent to me.
Easy to wear.
Good juice.

Vetiver by Guerlain

Excellent citrus on top.
Great lemon.
Humble Neroli.
Touch of coriander.
Good, solid vetiver. Whiff of tobacco. Smattering of spices. This one's been on my radar for years. Thanks to a buddy here, I received a sample to try. As a chick, I can easily wear this and be comfortable about it.

I get a slight bell pepper note, much later on.

Gilded Fox by Pinrose

Massive chocolate dessert. Very strong and dominating note of cacao. I'm enjoying it. A shot of rum is here underneath. A teaspoon full of buttery flavor later on. The chocolate remains a long time but, eventually a bit of green & wood develops under it all. This, is one of the better "chocolate" perfumes I've tried.

Bois d'Ascèse by Naomi Goodsir

Tobacco right from the start.
Cigar tobacco.
Whiskey, on the rocks.
Ultra light cinnamon.
Something dark underneath; woody, smoky, incense-like.
Mostly, I smell tobacco.
Manly.

Niki de Saint Phalle by Niki de Saint Phalle

Big, green notes.
Slight sharpness.
Touch of fruit.
Has that big, 80's vibe.
I've owned NDSP many times before. I'd forgotten how the notes played out. The heart notes are what I look forward to. The carnation here is delightful - not too bitter. Patchouli, jasmine, ylang ylang, and old rose sidle up. Rose sings louder, but with Artemisia chanting in the distance.

The base is light - a skin scent. A Combo of sandalwood, amber, and musk.

L'Anarchiste by Caron

Revolting.
All I get is sickeningly sweet sandalwood and musk and a hint of cinnamon.
Linear, offensive, found myself grimacing and fanning the air. Washed off with a whince.
You have been warned.

Fragrance: 2/10
Projection: 7/10 -unfortunately-
Longevity: 7/10

Terre d'Hermès Eau Intense Vétiver by Hermès

Too unisex.
Sweet orange and cinnamon. No detectable vetiver.
Initial grapefruit buzz is promising but quickly settles down to something sweet and just a bit too heavy. At least on my skin.
I don't like the original Terre either.
However the Tres Fraiche is very nice and strikes a perfect balance of masculinity and freshness but it only lasts an hour before disappearing.

Fragrance: 5/10
Projection: 7/10
Longevity: 8/10

Vétiver Extraordinaire by Editions de Parfums Frederic Malle

What a let down.
Especially after the masterful French Lover and Femme Sous La Pluie (or words to that effect).
It has some of the solid back bone of French Lover without the soul instilling the uncomfortable feeling that it has been sucked out leaving you staring into an abyss and yours is about to follow. Almost like the cologne you'd expect a dementor to wear at a black tie (well black gown) event that being the last thing you remember as he turns to you to introduce himself.
It may be vetiver and woody notes and indeed there is a bit of promising fresh fizz right at the beginning which hurries away in fright leaving something stripped down and lifeless. Nothing inspiring or noteworthy apart from the price.
As a piece of Tate Gallery Art perhaps this has a place. As a credible masculine fragrance its a complete dissonance to its name.

Fragrance: 2.5/10
Projection: 4/10
Longevity: 6/10

Charlie / Charlie Blue by Revlon

Ahhh.. Charlie (1973), that tender sweetheart of a perfume every high school girl and young twentysomething woman wore in the 70's and 80's. Charlie is a cultural watershed fragrance to be sure, and sadly not often talked about on perfume sites, which are admittedly focused more on niche, ultra high-end compositions, and trendy designer releases anymore, leaving anything mass-market out of the equation. Despite it's high degree of influence and artistry, Charlie gets ignored not just because its price segment has taste-makers considering it dreck before even a single spritz is released from the nozzle, but also because it belongs to a class of perfumery ironically almost extinct outside of artisinal and niche perfumes: the chypre. Most who enjoyed Charlie in it's day did so without really knowing all the where-tos and why-fors of the perfume, as it was marketed most successfully by Revlon as a "lifestyle fragrance", embodying the care-free, tomboyish, emancipated woman unafraid to strike her own path or flirt with gender-bending. This was rather groundbreaking marketing in the early 1970's, and it spoke to generations of young girls who didn't want to grow up to be housewives under the thumb of a breadwinner, or stuffed into a neat little dress and shopped to employers as a secretary, maid, or nursing assistant. Looking back on Charlie, it's because the stuff was in the drugstore/mass-market segment that the truth about its composition was never uncovered, as people in that demographic (no offense) usually drink the marketing Kool-Aid hook, line, and sinker, never exploring outside the box constructed for them. If they had, ladies might have realized that Charlie riffed rather close to a number of masculine-marketed chypres from the mid-century through the 60's, and really wasn't very womanly at all, even with tomboy aesthetics discounted. Sadly, like most Revlons, we don't know who the nose behind this scent was, but they sure knew what they were doing.

Charlie has a lot in common with citrus-led aromatic chypres marketed to men, but in particular, Cappucci Pour Homme (1967) bears a striking resemblance, which was awash with bright lemon, anise, herbs, and a fruity floral middle 6 years before Charlie, and had a dandy-like quality to it for that reason. Indeed, Charlie shares this same hesperidic and anisic fruity floral chypre development, with bergamot, lemon, and prominent anise in its top. The anise sits as equals alongside the citrus, not only recalling the Cappucci, but presaging scents like Azzaro Pour Homme (1978) and Aramis Tuscany Per Uomo (1984) with it's use. Cappucci uses basil while Revlon's Charlie swaps out for tarragon, but we're really splitting hairs at the difference it makes. The middle of Charlie has peach as the fruity note, while Cappucci rides in with nondescript pectin. Charlie is also joined by a larger host of mostly white florals than what is found in the Cappucci masculine. Even then, rose, jasmine, muguet, cyclamen, and carnation are all florals that appear in dandy-themed masculines anyway so it still isn't much of a push to the feminine side of things outside of the distinct peach. We soon turn towards a traditional chypre base, again like Cappucci Pour Homme, but not as dry or academic in execution, since the sandalwood, oakmoss, cistus, and cedar are joined by a touch of soft white musk and vanilla, but it still really isn't enough to shed the massive unisex potential Charlie has, the same unisex potential I also opined that Cappucci Pour Homme possesses as well. In fact, one could easily substitute for the other, as the underlying differences are Charlie is tweaked towards a bit more fruity sweetness, and Cappucci Pour Homme is tweaked a bit more towards dry herbs and leather, which in the 21st century doesn't make a huge argument since both are past-tense. One thing that hasn't changed much perceptionally is the casual nature of Charlie, and it provides 8 hours of fun-loving and easy-going sunny aromatic chypre pleasure for any time of year. This stuff screams "weekend" to me, and does a good job of communicating it's upbeat message in the development of the citrus, anise, florals, fruits, and its crisp semi-sweet chypre finish.

Gender paradigms sadly shifted as the decades went on, polarizing the sexes in the mass-market segment and killing most genderbending potential by putting men onto boring clean citrus aquatics or sugary amber woods tropes, while women sprayed themselves with "fruitchouli" kiddie punch or ozonic fabric softener florals that smelled like everyone's favorite variety of Gain laundry soap, meaning anything remotely green, mossy, or sharp that previously swung both ways was now too butch, and anything too spicy or rich in the oriental category was "too perfumey", lending Revlon to do a major re-orchestration of Charlie into the sweeter "Charlie Blue", releasing a full line of other colored flankers to try and revitalize the line for younger women. Charlie Blue is a scary metallic cyborg of synthetic lemon drops and florals underneath the skin of the now-dead original Charlie, so go vintage if you want to smell like what I described above. Women who dig vintage styles, and love old chypres for their sharp, sporty qualities will be enamored with Charlie, as it was every bit on par with the Estée Lauder chypres of the time, although the "real good stuff" like what Dior or Chanel were pumping out will still trump it. On the other hand, I'm surprised more guys aren't all over Charlie, as it does smell so uncannily close to a lot of the chypres men were dousing on just a decade or so before Charlie came to be, that it could be worn in a crowd of guys sporting Monsieur de Givenchy (1959), Moustache by Rochas (1949), Monsieur Lanvin (1964), or even Yves Saint Laurent Pour Homme (1971) while not standing out much at all. In fact, the anise and white florals are so nice that I reach for this when I want a "less dark Azzaro" with similar oakmoss bite, minus the barbershop fougère roundness, of course. Charlie is clever, sassy, upbeat, and a lot of fun, which are all things I aspire to be after I've had my morning coffee, so it's a huge thumbs up. Any ladies sporting (or still sporting) the original Charlie in the 21st century, you keep holding that torch up high, and maybe Revlon will have enough sense to kill that nasty "Charlie Blue" and bring the real Charlie back to shelves, albeit in IFRA-strangled form.

The Cobra And the Canary by Imaginary Authors

I don't really like the usual, popular leather scents but I like this, so take that into consideration when deciding if this is worth your time.

Spiced, buttery opening. The heart is leather dominant but the leather note should be accessible to many and not as polarizing as some other very strong leathers that I've smelled before. There are also nice florals that compliment the leather. Just speaking from my own experience, I don't usually like leather as the main note but this one is nice and I enjoy it.

Good projection and longevity that lasts all workday.

Lust by Gorilla Perfume

Lush perfumes are paradoxically simple to understand, but difficult to talk about, as Mark Constantine perfumer/owner was never a classically-trained perfumer, and like Roger "Roja" Dove, has his background in makeup and marketing. However, after discovering that the fragrances he contracted out to chemist firms for his homemade bath products weren't always as naturally-derived as he would like, he took it upon himself to start mucking about with perfumer's raw materials and in essence became an early crude form of the one-man operation perfumers we have in niche circles now. Problem is, many so-called bedroom companies have folks who've studied perfume if not academically, at least from a hobbyist standpoint, for years before diving in, but with Mark and his Lush, he just decided to dive right in as he had done with homemade cosmetics years before alongside Liz Weir. Thus, some of these perfumes are very child-like in their simple interpretation of a theme, while others are accidentally elegant in their simplicity, and still others downright shocking. Lust (2010) falls into the latter category.

Lust takes the theme of the late 19th century "fallen women", and focuses on the heavily indolic jasmine perfumes they often wore, much like women's orientals and chypres did in the immediate postwar period. Key difference here is Lust focuses almost exclusively on the jasmine indole and nothing else, diming the volume on it and building the rest of the fragrance around that. Jasmine indole wielded like a cudgel is the gist of Lust, period. The opening lacks all citrus and literally is just a blast of jasmine hedione with a churning heart of indole underneath, which quickly comes into view in under 5 to 10 minutes. The rich, fatty, dirty indole is shored up by rose and ylang-ylang, but they're suffocated into the indole before they have time to separate from the main accord too much. Sandalwood, vanilla, linalool, and coumarin make up the base. Of course, I don't know what kind of compound is used to imitate the mysore here, but it's of that creamy Chanel Égoïste (1990) variety. Longevity is insane and sillage can also be a monster too.

Fans of primal animalics will fall in love with Lust, and the fragrance layers well with other jasmine-forward fragrances like Dior Eau Sauvage (1966) or Diptyque Olean (1988), providing a deep indolic vanilla sandalwood backbone to the flighty and fleet nature of jasmine hedione perfumes known for sometimes poor performance. I definitely think Lust is a winner but jasmine this rich usually doesn't find favor with most CISHET guys used to their clean citruses, laundry musks, or spicy sweet amber woods, which comprise the bulk of their modern palette. Therefore, Lust stays thoroughly feminine to my nose, only to be explored by masculine folks really into jasmine or already crossing silly gender boundaries in fragrance with their choices. Wear this pair of soiled panties where you dare, but one thing is for sure, you definitely do not wear something like Lust to the office! I find a floral this heavy smells best in cold air, so it's particularly useful in northern regions or winter months. Thumbs up!

Ginsberg is God by Bella Freud

Tried this by chance in a store. The scent caught me by surprise when I sniffed the cap.

The opening was quite strange but at the same time somewhat familiar. A quick spritz to the hand and it is very clear that this is almost identical to CdG 2 Man, which is an incense-rich and cedarwood scent. It's packed full of ISO E Super, which gives the pencil shavings-like odour that is all too often referred to as 'cedarwood'.

All in all, this is a love it or hate it scent. I get no leather or incense: just a slightly aromatic 'cedarwood', albeit a strong one. For me this is a thumbs down as it fails to deliver something unique or even something with a development of some kind. Other than a brief opening and a long-lasting strong cedarwood, this is nothing to write home about.

If you really fancy this, you are better off getting the much cheaper CdG 2 Man scent.

Baldessarini Nautic Spirit by Baldessarini

Pleasant, clean, and light dryer sheet/fabric softener scent great for casual/daytime wear. There's also some very nice, subtle fruity-sweetness. Would be great for office use as it is light, not abrasive or loud.

I don’t get anything nautical but it’s nice nonetheless.

Projection is average and longevity is good when sprayed on clothes. Doesn’t get cloying so over spraying should not be a big problem.

100 - 1914-2014 by E. Marinella

Piney/leathery/musky/citric perfection. No words to describe the beauty of this "immane" piece of italian sophistication. One of the veritable most sophisticated leather-based creations of the worldwide olfactory panorama. Fir resins, barks and greens provide a quite moody/restrained classy vibe. Musk and pink pepper enhance a markedly woody (rosewood?) masculine twist. A melancholic citric-woody suede, rich, elusive and royal. The balance's holy peak.

Timeless by Avon

I sort of wondered how something like this gets around so much when so many other Avon feminines from the period never left the decade in which they were created, but I think I finally understand why. There is some real appreciable wit in the creation of Avon Timeless (1974) that all it's low-key fans understand, but that might be missed by the casual observer. It is a feminine perfume that is still perennially in production by Avon, but debuted in 1974, and isn't timeless because of that, since it was given the name "Timeless" all those years ago from the start. Rather, it is a snapshot of what Avon thought were timeless qualities in perfume, and has subsequently now become manifest as literally timeless due to its long-term success thereafter. To fully "get" Timeless, one has to reach back to before WWII, and look at the perfumes women wore then: animalic, oriental, provocative things that scintillated with sharp tops, indolic hearts, and smothering bases. Perfumes like Guerlain Vol de Nuit (1933) or Coty Emeraude (1921) seem to be the biggest root inspiration for Timeless, and its biggest competition of the day were other smouldering oriental chypre/fougère hybrids like Estée Lauder Youth Dew (1953) or Revlon Ciara (1973), which both straddle the same lines of green and indolic, with the latter being more fougère-like. What then is Timeless? Well, it's aldehydes and white florals up front, not too dissimilar to the stark Topaze (1959), but it's also the virile patchouli and indole of Occur! (1962) in the middle, with the best-executed "Avon amber" base of the house's long history and healthy tonka to pin it all down. Men can totally wear this if they fancy stuff like Aramis JHL (1982) or Calvin Klein Obsession for Men (1986), but also if they already gender-bend with fragrances like Guerlain Shalimar (1925) or Yves Saint Laurent Opium (1977), which this actually predates. Fans of old-school heavy perfume will take note of this, as this is one heavy, heavy perfume that will cut through chill air like those electric carving knives you're given for Christmas and really only use at Christmas to carve the ham.

Timeless opens with aldehydes, a whiff of allspice, galbanum, bergamot, lemon, and a subdued gardenia note, that last one being the big test of a man's mettle if he's playing with female-marketed perfume. To me it's no big deal, I always loved gardenia anyway, and it fades quick in the might of the midsection, which is where all the muscle on this one resides. There's a bit of a ghost peach note in transition to this middle, but once there, warm patchouli and cedar are met with jasmine indole to make a knockout animal punch that is balanced by soapy iris, orris root, and a touch of that dreaded fake rose Avon loved to use outside of Roses Roses (1972), which was the first time they went for a real rose. I can deal with the latter because the rest of the middle is so good, and the base is even better. Vanilla, coumarin, a bit of that lipstick/foundation powder smell, Avon amber cranked up to near-ambergris levels of stiff (higher than anything else I've smelled by them), oakmoss, and good ol' olibanum round out the finish. Very late in development a rich non-laundry musk shows up, pretty fatty like the one used in vintage Wild Country (1967), and earthy bits of opoponax, with whatever shreds of soap that existed in the heart long gone. Timeless is a dirty girl, and unlike some of her higher-class designer peers of the day, she doesn't try to hide it at all. This stuff is pure grit and will either remind you of sweaty garter belts, or your grandma's house, depending on your upbringing. This is another misleading "cologne spray" with parfum longevity and tight, concentrated sillage. You won't broadcast across the street, but people getting near will be taken in. I'd keep this to night use, winter use, romantic evenings, or solo snuggles with your favorite blanket, as something like Timeless might be intoxicating to the right partner, but cloying and annoying to a stranger that only has business or casual interest in you, as it's almost impolite with its indolic development.

I said a few things a long time ago when I first started gathering up reviews for all these unsung vintage Avons, starting with the men's because I feel they are even more unsung due to the male tendency to shop fragrance for displaying of status and "results" rather than personal enjoyment, and they are: Avon is really good at the things they know well, the things developed on their own without reverse-engineering the competition on a dimestore budget. They're amateur to mediocre at literally everything else they try in the perfume sector, and sadly have tried more things they ended being just okay at than making the things they're really good at, because their business model is economy and variety rather than a consistent house image. This can be amusing, but is exacerbated when you're dealing with a company that releases multiple perfumes a year every year for over a century, and proves to be a hard-pass for many hobbyist perfumistas who wade into Avon like a poppy field full of landmines, stepping on all the weird stuff and missing the real gems, then chalking it up to the price tag. Men don't even bother because they believe the negative hype that it's all crap and just let Johnny YouTube push the newest designer flanker or prestige scent down their throats. Folks not into this kind of density or richness won't like Timeless, regardless of their stance on cheapo perfume or vintage stuff, but if you like making an entrance with your trail, and perhaps entrancing onlookers while you do it, Timeless is as good as any other in this long-dead genre. In fact, something like this would be considered quite niche nowadays if dished out by Tom Ford or one of the limited-batch bedroom operations that get around Etsy or LuckyScent, just make sure you look for the diamond-cut original bottle and not the rectangular re-issue, as that's where you'll find all the ugly good stuff IFRA says we can't have anymore. Definitely for the daring regardless of gender, but also oddly comfortable too. Thumbs up!

Tokyo Bloom by The Different Company

On cool Spring road to
Original Vetiver
A girl at a well.

Royal Water by Creed

Another shockingly bad fragrance hiding behind a ludicrous price, a brand and political correctness.
Stale candy and potpourri.
Awful.
Wash off job.
You have been warned.

Fragrance: 2/10
Projection: 7/10 -unfortunately
Longevity: 7/10

Black Sugar by Sixteen92

It pains me to give Black Sugar a neutral thumb, but it's just too modern/masculine for me. GAH! That such words would ever come from my mouth.

The top note is distinctly plastic and off-putting to me. It doesn't take long for a smoky sweet vanilla to overcome that impression, but then I have to deal with the mineral bite of the dirt note. At some point, this fragrance was fabulous to me, about the time I think I detect berry, but then later during the dry down and there's a sense of fresh granite or possibly some metal. Never my favorite note anywhere, it seems to dominate the >4hours drydown and last entirely too long, IMO.

Altogether too masculine and unusual for me to settle down and enjoy, this one hits the ziplock bag.

Stetson Fresh by Stetson

No sharp edges in
Easy-going country Chrome
Wind, but not Windex.

Crème Brûlée by Ava Luxe

I've been wearing this in the evening and to bed for a week now, and have enjoyed it very much. It is sweet, as in the namesake, but not overtly so. The smooth and milky notes blend to a comforting scent rather than a sweet sugar tooth mess. The oil version, which is what I have, offers soft sillage and projection. The caramel is present, and like the candy, is sticky at times, but smoothed out into a comforting smell. Gourmand lovers will find what they are looking for without an overdose of sweet. Lovely for what it is, rather than trying to be a perfume it is not.

The One Sport by Dolce & Gabbana

I've been resistant to fully sampling and reviewing The One Sport based on quickly smelling in stores and reading lots of bad reviews but I figured I'd give it a full wearing to be fair.

Starts off very generic, not bad, not good. Later, the drydown starts to remind me of Dior Homme Sport, but not as rich. Has that salty, citric, greasy smell that I get from DHS. I don't smell anything in this that reminds me of the Original The One. There is a spiciness that exists from start to finish.

Projection is average to below average but longevity is good, lasts all workday.

Stetson Black by Stetson

Black hat, black leather.
Smoky wood and gasoline.
Fahrenheit Dark Light.

Windsor pour Homme by English Laundry

Sweet cinnamon and clove opening, kinda like Spicebomb but more mature. Has something like an old aftershave smell. I'm blaming the oakmoss because that's the only note that seems to feel old school. There’s definitely things I like about this in the modern fragrance sense but it’s very grounded in old school, mature.

Average projection but really good longevity. Lasts all day.

The Peradam by Apoteker Tepe

A stunning, compelling scent. For me it is an animalic iris sandalwood, the lily isn’t very prominent or long-lasting on my skin. Truly unique, and sadly discontinued. The whole Apoteker Tepe line was very interesting and original, I feel lucky to own four of the scents.

Leather Man by Dame Perfumery

I spray my faux suede jacket with Dame's Leather and get decent results from it. I also spray the inside collars of my leather jacket with Dame's Leather. It's cloth material , and I also get decent results from it. You will need to decant for the day with this one, but the cost is attractive.
Do I enjoy the smell ? Yes, it's a very easy fragrance to wear.
No one in any checkout line is going to be offended by it.
I've received compliments by doing so.
If you're looking for a fragrance that's going to remind people of a growling bear, than look elsewhere, but if you want smiles on a frosty night to light up and warm festive hearts around you, then give Dame's Leather a sample see.

best holiday seasons ahead to all