Fragrance Reviews by DJBadger

The good news, right off the bat, is that the bottle is extremely cool. The bad news is that the contents aren't.
I'd read great stuff about Ultraviolet Man on Basenotes, so I took a chance and mail-ordered it without trying it first. The first few sprays stuck in the tube smelled positively VILE, with an acrid odor reminiscent of some cheap, stinking, probably toxic rubber alien toys I owned as a child. (Long story.) I worked like crazy trying to get the smell off my skin and it just wouldn't go away. I seriously felt nauseated by the scent.
However, having spent so much money to order this stuff (plus, having a bit of a masochistic streak), I decided to keep giving it a chance, and it actually got better. After I got those first few sprays out... it started smelling more like a cologne and less like frog vomit or some sort of biochemical agent. The scent actually began to resemble (as tacky as this sounds) Lemon Pledge!
It's definitely distinctive. These days, I can wear it comfortably and sometimes I even enjoy it, but I can name over two dozen fragrances in my arsenal that I like more than Ultraviolet Man. I have never gotten a compliment on it, and when I was bold enough to ask a female companion what she thought of the scent, she didn't think it was disgusting, but she wasn't highly impressed by it either.
I did notice the comparison between this fragrance and Paloma Picasso's Minotaure here on Basenotes, but I don't see much of a resemblance, as Minotaure is one of my favourite fragrances ever and this is just... well... barely above adequate, especially for the price tag. Were it not for the design of the bottle, there wouldn't be anything about Ultraviolet Man to really "wow" me, and frankly, I don't make a habit of taking my fragrance bottles out on dates with me. Frankly, I regret paying so much for it, and I would recommend that prospective buyers get experienced with this scent before making the same mistake I did.

I first smelled Higher in a magazine advertisement a while back and recently invested in it. This fragrance isn't for everybody, but in my opinion, it's fantastic. It exudes a sweet and brilliant aroma of citrus, along with a considerable hint of spice. The scent stays on my skin for quite a while, though I still feel compelled to spray more on because it smells so great. The aura it creates is strong, playful, and - though this may sound strange - "smart." The packaging is quite unusual and definitely stands out; the metallic housing is topped with a layer of rubber, the center of which hides the trigger for the fragrance. It's a very creative package matched with a genuinely wonderful scent, good enough earn me a few compliments. Higher has quickly climbed up towards the top of my favourite fragrances. Highly recommendable!

212 was a fragrance that I set out to buy specifically after reading all the wonderful reviews on Basenotes. Even though I'm giving this one a thumbs-up, I have good news and bad news about it.
The good news is that the scent is indeed incredible. It's hard to define, but I catch a refreshing yet "dark" citrusy feel from it. Straight-out, the scent is a winner. And, yes, the packaging is way cool. The base of the cap is magnetic and pulls the cap down when you put it back on. Want to have some fun? When wearing 212, leave the cap off, then ask someone who doesn't know about the magnetic cap to close it for you. When the cap "snaps" down, it'll freak them out for a second and it's worth a cheap laugh.
Anyway, on to the bad news. On my skin - and I realize it may just be an issue with my skin - it doesn't last very long at all. I've even applied numerous squirts of the stuff to my neck before going out, and the scent just doesn't last very long on me. It's really a pity, considering what a high-quality fragrance 212 possesses. I still give a "thumbs-up" to 212; despite its inability to stick around, it's still a very high-quality fragrance.

When I recently started collecting fragrances, I read a good deal of reviews on Basenotes as well as elsewhere online. At one point, I read a lady's review on UseNet which stated that she wanted to rip her boyfriend's clothes off whenever he wore Odeur 71. Needless to say, my interest was immediately sparked. When I found the list of very unusual fragrance notes, I was fascinated and extremely curious. I even told some of the fellows at work and we began humourously referring to the fragrance as "Dust on a Hot Lightbulb."
I made an substantial investment/gamble and ordered a bottle of Odeur 71 online. It does indeed smell unlike most fragrances, and I have to spray on a bit more than usual because it's a bit faint and tends to disappear quickly on my skin. The responses from others have ranged from mediocre to favourable, and nobody has said that they disliked it. When I visited my parents, my mum said it smelled like sewing machine oil (and then admitted that she actually LIKED the smell of sewing machine oil). Personally, when I smell it on me, I am reminded of the times I spent in libraries and bookstores when I was a young child. Odeur 71 has the same musty yet pleasant atmosphere.
It doesn't seem like an incredibly romantic fragrance; it's more of an odd, industrial scent. When I've worn it on dates, the ladies have said that it wasn't bad, but they weren't racing to rip my clothes off either. Overall, I'm glad that I added this unusual fragance to my arsenal, and I give it a "thumbs-up" for the high-quality, novel approach to create a strangely "modern" and "urban" fragrance.

Pi was a "fragrance gamble" I ordered online before actually smelling it, after reading favourable reviews on Basenotes as well as elsewhere on the Net. When I first opened the order, I took a whiff of Pi and I was immediately reminded of Coty Musk for Men, which was one of my favourite fragrances when I was very young. As I got to know the fragrance a bit better, though, I noticed definite differences.
On my skin, Pi is a rich, sweet, and smooth fragrance, which at times has reminded me of either hot buttered popcorn or hot caramel corn. (Yes, it's an unusual comparison, but a valid one nonetheless.) It also exudes a palpable amount of musk and vanilla; the overall feeling is quite warm, enticing, and "creamy." Although I haven't worn it on many dates, I definitely see this as one which would radiate a comforting and romantic feeling. It's not an absolute favourite, but I still really enjoy and recommend Pi.

Sometimes I like to take a "risk" online and order fragrances which I've never tried before. A*Men has been the most successful such gamble that I've made so far, and has quickly become tied with Paloma Picasso's Minotaure (which has nothing in common with A*Men, I assure you) as my favourite fragrance. I had read numerous reviews of the fragrance both on UseNet and here on Basenotes, and I wanted to give it a try. So, I ordered the full 3.4 oz size in the massive metal flask before I ever smelled it.
WOW. This stuff is awesome. It's definitely an "edible" smelling fragrance. I don't think that it's too sweet; the sweetness that it exudes on my skin is definitely alluring. Does it actually smell like cotton candy and chocolate? In some wonderfully indefinable way, yes; it manages to smell like both. However, there's so much more to this fragrance. It is rich and alluring, highly sensual, "playful" without smelling cheap or cheesy, and HIGHLY addictive. Plus, on me, it lasts like crazy and it just makes me "feel good" about myself.
When my original order showed up, I took one whiff and I was hooked. In my experience, the chicks definitely dig it. Two different female co-workers gave me compliments on it right away. I wore it out to a female acquaintance's apartment, and even though there were other people there, she kept nuzzling my neck to smell it, grabbing my shirt collar to pull me towards her, and telling me that she wanted to spray A*Men all over her apartment so she could smell it all the time. She assured me that this was a very wise investment, and I wholeheartedly agreed. Other more recent experiences (heh heh) have strongly reinforced that opinion.
A*Men is wonderfully unusual. Although it's not for everybody, I personally think it's a masterpiece. I can't say enough great stuff about A*Men.

I'm a big fan of Minotaure. At the time of this writing, this is tied with Thierry Mugler's A*Men as my favourite fragrance. I received my first bottle of Minotaure as a gift, mailed to me from Puerto Rican from a model I knew back in 1995. The scent is at once spicy and sweet, sophisticated and extremely sensual. The overall effect is phenomenal. Plus, yes, the bottle rocks. It's a bit more expensive than many other fragrances out there, but in my opinion, the expense is justified.
I have had numerous EXTREMELY pleasant reactions from women while wearing this scent, and I've received more compliments about it than I have any other fragrance I've ever worn. I recently heard that Minotaure had unfortunately been discontinued, so as soon as I could, I bought another 4.2 oz of it. However, it appears that it's either still in production for the time being, or it wasn't discontinued after all. In any case, this stuff is absolutely wonderful.
According to a David Bowie fan site, http://www.bowiewonderland.com, Bowie is especially fond of Minotaure. (Note: I dug Minotaure long before I found that out.)