Reviews by Jestersinthemoon

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    Jestersinthemoon
    United States United States

    Showing 1 to 15 of 15.
    rating

    Lemon Sorbet by Etro

    If you want a great fresh and true lemon scent, go for Art of Shaving's Lemon EdT. While it may be punctuated by some white flowers, it is still a very fresh tart and clean, lemon scent that lasts all day long.

    I often lean toward being very forgiving when grading Citrus scents, as Lemon/Lemon Blossom, Neroli, Bergamot, Petitgrain, and Orange Blossom tend to be some of my favorite fragrance notes. I really enjoy most predominantly citrus based scents.

    However, Lemon Sorbet was a huge disappointment to me after AoS Lemon and others that successfully captured the freshness and clarity of citrus notes. It may have started out ok,though even the initial lemon top note doesn't have the tartness and sharp pop that I want. From there it was a disaster. Not only did it fail to last more than about 2 minutes on my skin, but it dried down to a kind of rancid, rotten woody smell, which, thankfully, could not be detected unless one put their nose directly on my skin.

    Not impressive..........at all.

    5th December, 2010.

    rating

    Nautica Bermuda Blue by Nautica

    I really like this perfume on my fiance. Its fresh and clean, reminiscent of white blossoms, fresh oceans, with a hint of fruity sweetness. This fits into my favorite category of scents on women. My all time favorite was Cool Water for Women, so if that is the type of scent that you like, then this will likely appeal to you, as well.

    I also personally own the male counterpart to this - Nautica White Sail - which I really wish Basenotes would put into their directory, as I would like to leave a review of it, as well.

    24th August, 2010.

    rating

    Green Tea by Thymes

    I happened to find two 7ml rollerball bottles of this at my local TJ Maxx and got them for $4 each, which, as it turns out was a great price considering this is discontinued and selling for nearly $75 a bottle on ebay.

    It seems that most of Thymes stuff is for women or unisex. This actually smells quite masculine on me. It strays far from any Green Tea or other Vert cologne such as Bulgari Vert or L'Occitane's Green Tea...........its got some sweetish citrusy and grassy notes on top, followed by a strong green fig note. In fact, this is probably my favorite fig note that I've found. Its fresher than Marc Jacobs, kinda woodsy underneath, with a hint of white flowers.

    I can see where this could smell feminine on woman, but it suits me very well. I don't wear it that often, but it makes a great summer scent to keep in the pocket and roll on in the heat. Refreshing, and every time I put it on someone comments on how great it smells. If you can find it for a good price, then I would recommend it.

    24th August, 2010.

    rating

    Artisan by John Varvatos

    As soon as I read the pyramid for this scent, I knew I wanted to try it. Finally found it in stock at the local Sephora and gave both arms a good spray along with bringing home a sample.

    First off, let me say that I am biased. I'm the type of person who has no qualms about wearing clean fresh citrus frags year round. I don't, but I would have no problem doing so. I love all citruses, but particularly bergamot, neroli, and lemon..........especially when done right.

    Anyway, I wasn't a big fan of the original JV, or Vintage, but this one is a clear winner in my book. Huge blasts of multifaceted orange and citrus washes over you as soon as you spray it. It is very artfully done, with just a hint of sweetness. The ginger brings a slightly candied aspect to the scent, but its definitely not overly sweet. Its not as tart or pithy as I prefer some of my citruses to be, but that doesn't take anything away from the fragrance. The bottle is classy, and honestly, this is one of the few frags I've found lately where I feel like the bottle is a perfect representation of the fragrance found within.

    After a few minutes, the orange settles without disappearing, but is accompanied by the ginger, some light florals and some soft woodsy notes. The woven basket covering of the bottle reminds me of sitting in a wicker chair on the porch of a Caribbean beach house, white linen everywhere, with a basket of freshly cut oranges,a Mimosa at hand, and the scent of fresh white flowers on the breeze ..........take away any hint of salt or oceanic smells from that scenario and thats exactly what this fragrance smells like.

    An excellent fragrance. Of course, being a citrus, it does not last forever, but as I am a advocate of this particular type of scent, I have gotten used to carrying around a 2ml atomizer of whatever I happen to be wearing in order to freshen up when necessary. Now, this is not a power fragrance or something to wear in order to get noticed, by any means. Even if you doused yourself with this stuff, it would still be very unimposing. Great for those wanting to smell good without burning your associates nose hairs.

    Try this. I think many people with love it.

    1st May, 2009.

    rating

    I am King by Sean John

    I am King is absolutely revolting. Any King that smelled like this would never father any heirs to the throne, as no woman would be able to come near him without dry heaving uncontrollably.

    When I first sprayed it, the bitterness did not jump out, but after only a few moments, I was completely overwhelmed by a bitter, pithy, grapefruit..........almost like taking a huge bite of an unripe grapefruit and chewing it up, skin and all. Then that horrible citrus is attacked by a horrible synthetic metallic and alcoholic accord that made me want to do nothing other than wash it off as quickly as I could before my gag reflex took over.

    I guess "Puffy" can only design successful fragrances when he's copying scents designed by the "real" geniuses at the House of Creed and then marketing them to the urban scene who would never know they were blatant, second-rate copies in the first place.

    A total bust. Sad and pathetic.

    25th April, 2009.

    rating

    Kenzo Power by Kenzo

    Did not care for this......and it came as a shock. I tried this out on a test strip at Sephora and loved the initial blast of citrus and light florals. Its seemed like a good fit for me as far as the types of fragrances I've been going for lately. So, instead of getting a samples of a few other colognes that I had been interested in trying......namely Burberry The Beat, Guerlain Homme, etc ( which I have since tried and loved, edpecially the Guerlain ) I had the SA make me a sample of this.

    The next morning, with great excitement, after shaving and getting dressed, I gave my wrists and the front of my neck a good spray............and within minutes was back in the shower and changing clothes. I thought this smelled great on paper, but it was HORRIBLE on my skin. It totally lost the citrus freshness and light florals and traded it in for some overly sweet florals and a huge dose of powder. Now, if you like powder.......baby powder, talcum powder, then you'll love this, but I HATE powdery smelling colognes with a passion.

    I don't know how you can call a cologne that smells of a freshly changed and powdered baby holding some flowers drenched in sugar "POWER", but I guess nowadays the names aren't there to tell you anything about the cologne. They are simply a marketing ploy.

    8th March, 2009.

    rating

    Guerlain Homme by Guerlain

    While I have only tried about 6 or 7 Guerlain fragrances, I happen to be a fan of Guerlain Homme. I got a sample of it from the store yesterday and am trying it on for the first time today. Now, I'll admit, it is of a very different vein than Coriolan, Habit Rouge, L'Instant, and even Eau de, which may be why many of the Guerlain purists dislike it, but I think that if many of them focused purely on its merits as a scent, they would like it much more. I am a fan of mint, and the peppermint comes across strongly while still wet, but it fades into a creushed mint leaf scent that even the most inexperienced nose could identify.....In fact, if you can't find the crushed mint leaf scent, I would find another hobby. The citrus and soft powdery woods take a bit of a backseat. Over time there are some soft white florals that come into play. I am a fan of light clean fragrances. I have an herb garden with fresh mint and rosemary and I often wear Lemon fragrances. This scent combines the two and then adds a dash of florals, a hint of sugarcane ( but its not sweet IMO ), some really soft woods.........and I love it.

    Its been a long time since I've found a fragrance that I've been this enamored with on the first try. A winner.

    3rd February, 2009.

    rating

    Santal Impérial by Creed

    I have the same problem as SirSlarty in that I find this fragrance exceedingly light. To even get a notion of its true essence, it must be applied with a heavy hand. Of course, it is one of the few Creed fragrances that is an Eau de Toilette, not an Eau de Parfum. Once you are able to smell it, however, it is quite appealing. It is a sweet sandalwood layered over a super prominent ambergris base. In fact, on me, after about an hour, the sandalwood is completely gone and I can smell nothing but ambergris hovering about an inch above my skin. Now, this might be a problem for some, but I happen to love it. I don't know if I'd fork out the big bucks for this, but I love the sample that I've got and would love to have some more.

    21st October, 2008.

    rating

    Blue Sugar by Aquolina

    Why any self-respecting man would want to smell like this is completely beyond my ability to comprehend. This smells like sickeningly sweet cotton-candy flavored bubble gum. If anything, this smells like something a 5 yr-old girl would be wearing......or eating. Bleh.

    25th September, 2008.

    rating

    Minotaure by Paloma Picasso

    I've never been a fan of gourmands anyway, but to me, this smells like a chocolate cake doused in orange juice, spices, and vanilla syrup. So far, this is my second least favorite fragrance ever.....after A*Men. It smells like one of those cheap, sweet and musky pseudo scents found near the shaving section at a discount store.

    24th September, 2008.

    rating

    Gucci pour Homme by Gucci

    There is something about this fragrance that is very odd.......and slightly offputting. I don't know if it affects anyone else this way, but it recalls a memory of something unpleasant , to me. Actually, there is an odd almost plasticy accord in there that every time I smell it reminds me of...........get this, burning plastic and vomit. I know that sounds foul and I don't know if its actually that scent or if maybe it reminds me of that special sawdust crap that janitors would put on the mess when a kid in school puked in class or somewhere in a building. You would think that with a scent that reminds me of puke, I would hate this fragrance, but I really don't. I just find it VERY unusual, and actually, I'm kinda drawn to it in a weird way.....I have the same strange attraction to Dirty English. I usually dislike musky scents with tobacco and leather, but for some reason I have this undeniable attraction to Dirty English.....the main difference between the two is that with Dirty English the attraction is enough to make me buy it, wear it, and smell my wrist over and over again. With Gucci I, its enough for me to put a drop on my arm when I'm at home alone, smell it a few times trying to figure it out, but then I spend 20 minutes trying to wash it off. I'll tell you one thing. If you do like this scent, then you're in luck, you can't wash this crap off with Lava Soap and a belt sander. It lasts forever, and you can't cover it up with other scents either, It shines right on through. So, this one is incredibly strange, actually quite intriguing to the point of being a conundrum, but I would never wear it.

    19th September, 2008.

    rating

    Dior Homme Sport by Christian Dior

    This really isn't the type of citrus that catches my nose. To me, the opening comes across like a sickly sweet orange push-pop odor, underscored by a light musky base with some light autumn spices. As it dries, the sweet orange fades, and I get a strong pumpkin pie aroma. Some may love this, but I would never call is a summer or sporty scent.......or wear it, for that matter.

    15th September, 2008.

    rating

    Mugler Cologne by Thierry Mugler

    I do like Creed's Original Vetiver and while I do notice a small similarity, there is also a significant difference. While I prefer OV, this is still a very nice fragrance for the short time that it lasts. Its very fresh and clean. Perfect for a summer day or for just hanging out in shorts or jeans and a t-shirt. It just smells fresh and slightly grassy. I like it alot. Moisturizer helps with the sillage.

    15th September, 2008.

    rating

    A*Men / Angel Men by Thierry Mugler

    This is one of the extremely few fragrances that I have ever smelled that initiated a nearly automatic gag reflex upon the first whiff. The biggest mistake was spraying it on myself. I happened to see two guys at Sephora talking to the SA. They both raved about this scent and she gave them a few samples of it. I was on my way out, but slowed down and she gave me 3 or 4 sample cards of it, too. As I was walking to my car, naive as I was, I gave one of the samples two good sprays on my forearm. I had to smell this sickly sweet, putrid odor until I got home, and then, even after a shower and nearly rubbing the skin off of my arm, I could still smell it. It smells like a terrorist blew up a candyshop and a Starbucks and this is the stuff raining down upon the poor innocent bystanders. Horrible stuff.

    15th September, 2008.

    rating

    Derring-Do for Men by Ineke

    This is definitely my new favorite scent. One reason I like it is because no one has ever heard of it and most folks that I know don't know where to find it. Lately, I try to be somewhat unique with my fragrances. Its clean citrus and watery fresh smell ( but not oceanic ) on top of a powdery, mossy, fresh musk base. Its not overly crisp and definitely gets warmer over time, but the fresh rain notes lasts well over 4 hours.....I don't really find EdP's for men very often and I find it makes a significant difference in duration and projection. I don't like sweet, musky, or extremely powdery fragrances, and while this has a very slightly sweet lavender/powder scent on the drydown its still clean and fresh. Every girl that has smelled this on me says it makes them want to get naked under a fuzzy warm blanket. If that doesn't make it a winner, I don't know what does!

    21st August, 2008.

    Showing 1 to 15 of 15.

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