Basenotes - Reviews by Jiffysquidd

Canada

Showing 1 to 8 of 8.

Stella by Stella McCartney

I love the first stuck-my-face-in-a-real-rose blast. It smells light, airy and natural. Like a real rose it wilts a short time later. The drydown smells pleasantly like the bottom of the glass of red wine you finished 15 minutes ago. But so what? Spray some more! It's like an eau-de-cologne really, a pick-me-up. I love to waltz about the house getting my chores done in a rosy cloud of it. It's perfect for what it is! If you want intensity, sultriness, sillage for days, you're out of luck, but that's why it's nice to keep more than one perfume in the cupboard.

5th February, 2011.

Report Review

Opium by Yves Saint Laurent

The EDT and EDP versions of Opium are a waste of time and nasal passages. Half-sprays are really difficult to execute, and you can't go around in a dense Opium cloud without causing distress to people who were over-exposed in the 70's and the new generation of noses to whom smoking and deep sillage have never been acceptable in public. And why would you want to? If you need to mist something bright to waltz about in as a pick-me-up, that's what Aqua Allegoria Pampelune and Stella are for.
Opium is a heavy, ancient-feeling scent. This is not at all a bad thing: the gentlest of dabs from the tiny tasseled parfum stopper is a private epic through thousands of years of resin-and-spice perfumery. A subtle, carefully-considered dose will harness the intense and powerful beauty of this (relatively) modern culmination of the perfumer's attempt at immortality.
An ancient Egyptian ruler might have worn it daily. Unless you are also a god-like immortal who must decide the fate of nations, doing so is expensive and pointless. But we all have our days. The notes of this composition have been discussed to exhaustion, so I won't bother.

5th February, 2011.

Report Review

Parfum de Maroc by Aftelier

Sultry, deep, full of self-respect.....Frankincense and rose! But not too musty or wistful.I love it. Being a natural perfume, it requires re-application, and no worries about punching people out with your sillage, which can be quite a bonus in this era of scent-sensitive public. And I mean no offense, I had my days of swaggering around in a cloud of Angel. This is sort of the opposite.

22nd March, 2010.

Report Review

Dior Addict by Christian Dior

Addict by Dior! I have yet to smell it due to the horrific ad campaign from it's launch. With incredibly poor taste (our city has a major heroin problem), the biggest downtown department store had giant "Addict" banners all over the windows with the gaunt, weird looking models. Right in front of those windows were real addicts, sleeping, sparechanging, doing their addict things. I understand that Dior marketing was probably not intending to imply that their perfume would make you into a more glamorous junkie, but that's sure what it looked like!

22nd March, 2010.

Report Review

Parfum Privé by Aftelier

I desperately wanted to love this perfume. It is quite expensive, with some of the rarest notes in perfume history. Ambergris! Osmanthus! I 'd read all about it, imagined it, anticipated the package. I eagerly opened the bottle, brought it to my nose, and- dried apricots! With a big slosh of Helichrysum. Not my favorite things, then again not the worst things in the world either. But wait- am I just having an off day- isn't this really a gilded palace in the tropics, full of exquisite rarities? Perhaps for some cultured noses, but for me, nothing except a rusty bowl of dried apricots soaked in brandy and beach flotsam, mixing with my tears.

3rd June, 2009.

Report Review

Absinthe by Aftelier

I received a sweet little 2.2 ml bottle of Absinthe as a free "gift" with my Aftelier order. I find these perfumes are best given a bit of concentration, so after a few days of reveling in Cacao, Cepes, and Rose Maroc, I opened the Absinthe and dabbed a bit on.
It's a cocktail party! The first mouthful is straight vanilla extract, a bit surprising, and the second is a blast of Pernod with lemon, you feel enchanted and a bit poisoned all at once. Suddenly, someone sprays you with Shalimar, demanding that you down a shot of straight vodka! Overwhelmed, you retreat to the sauna, which is made of salty cedar. You are wearing nothing but emeralds, which makes the hangover bearable.
This perfume would be perfect evening wear if you had to attend something boring, and wanted a little dramatic story you could escape into. Like the other Afteliers, it is subtle, strange, elegant, and fun.

3rd June, 2009.

Report Review

Cacao by Aftelier

At first dab, you're eating chocolate fudge on a giant pile of orange peels- awesome! After a second, it turns to elegant sorbet- blood orange and mandarin, spreading out into warm, sweet, resiny roundness. A delightful gourmand romp! If it had high sillage and synthetic ingredients, it would be an unbearable mimicry of orange Tootsie Roll pops, which sadly probably exists and is quite expensive. Because it is a natural perfume, subtle and short-lived, it is a brief but genuine personal pleasure, which does not wear out it's delicious welcome.

3rd June, 2009.

Report Review

Eau de Givenchy by Givenchy

I owned this in the US in the late nineties, and recently got one of the last available mall bottles of the Givenchy Mythiques re-issue. I know that tastes change, memories too- but have they reformulated this, as well as changing the bottle (which was a perfect complement)? The initial hit seems harsher, the mids sweeter, and slightly more chemical than I remember. It could also just be the time and place....
But it is still a lovely, delicate thing to spritz on a summer day before the heat sets in.

2nd June, 2009. (Last Edited: 22nd March, 2010.)

Report Review

Showing 1 to 8 of 8.