Reviews by Bavard

Collection Grands Crus : Assam of India by Berdoues

A citrus and tea fragrance. In concept, I like it. Nothing overpowering, punishing, or offensive, but it doesn't quite catch my imagination, it doesn't quite capture the smell of a cup of tea, to my nose, and it reminds me of foamy hand soap from a dispenser, although for a foamy hand soap, this would be an especially good-smelling one, so I'm in line with Epapsiou in almost giving this one a thumbs up.

Crimes of Passion: Maxed Out by 4160 Tuesdays

This smells related to Buddhawood Box, to my nose. I'm finding the same Tang powder and/or Pop Rocks candy note, this time mixed with a fruit syrup type smell and a savory aspect. I like it.

The name holds a clue: Maxed Out. This one is edgy, arguably pushing the limit of what perfume should smell like, but I think it's done well, much better for me than Cadavre Exquis, as an example of something else I think smells intentionally edgy.

Crimes of Passion: Goddess of Love & Perfume by 4160 Tuesdays

Having tried over 15 fragrances from this house, this is one of my favorites. I like how the raspberry smells in this one more than the previous ones I've tried, it feels a little better executed - easy to like, wearable, smooth and rounded.

Silk, Lace & Chocolate by 4160 Tuesdays

I would have put strawberry in the name, because it's a great strawberry fragrance. Between silk and lace, I would go with silk, landing us with "Strawberry Chocolate Silk," a wearable gourmand.

Centrepiece by 4160 Tuesdays

Lightly sweet, wearable, and complex. It opens with the smell of a sweet cinnamon roll, then the green tea comes into the smell and makes it a beautiful, interesting fragrance. It turns increasingly into an almond-oil smell as it develops.

The Great Randello by 4160 Tuesdays

This smells typically like a 4160 Tuesdays fragrance with dry raspberry, lavender, and vetiver. Ambergris is listed for some others from this house, but I might actually be detecting it in this one, a warm, salty note.

A Kiss By The Fireside by 4160 Tuesdays

This is a sweet, warm, almost smoky, intriguing fragrance with the listed note of clove seeming to match the smell, and the wood note seemingly the other main one. This is nice and agreeable. A tentative thumbs up - it feels slightly too sweet at moments, and overly familiar in the initial opening, but it's too complex and agreeable as it develops to be less than a thumbs up.

Who Knew? by 4160 Tuesdays

I was happy to see the green tea note listed, to help me identify what I'm smelling. This perfume makes me think of the home furnishings and decoration shop Pier 1 Imports, with wicker chairs and potpourri, on a good day.

This is a natural smelling perfume, especially for something released as recently as 2013. It has dry, bitter, natural smells, that can almost be off-putting for a second, but immediately draw the nose back in, revealing a broader complexity where the bitterness is in harmony.

Doe in the Snow by 4160 Tuesdays

The opening reminds me of strongly-scented bath products, shampoos and shower gels, but I also get a texture from the woods (interesting to see oak listed), and even from the fruits, such as the listed peach note.

The best elements from the opening hold on, and it develops to become smoother, softer, rounder, and more delicious.

Crimes of Passion: Dirty Honey by 4160 Tuesdays

This could be a find for fans of beeswax and honey. It comes across as an effort at smelling natural, and not like typical perfume, perhaps even like a natural oils concoction sold at a farmers market or natural foods cooperative.

This has a base that goes on forever, and it gets better, or grows on me, over time.

Tokyo Spring Blossom / Urura's Tokyo Cafe by 4160 Tuesdays

Sarah's description of this one seems accurate to me. I like the raspberry note. This is a dry, natural-smelling, intellectual floral to my nose, unisex, and good for a business meeting.

The Buddhawood Box by 4160 Tuesdays

The opening is an interesting, unique wood fragrance, with a fruit candy smell similar to Tang powder and/or Pop Rocks candy. It's an interesting, perhaps memorable, fragrance, and could work for others, but didn't quite come together for me.

The Sexiest Scent on the Planet. Ever. (IMHO) by 4160 Tuesdays

I like this. Borrowing from others, it either smells like orange Starburst with a bunch of iso e super (seekritdude) or like lemonade and hot dogs (my daughter). I can see it both ways, although my daughter picked up the hot dog note in the opening and I couldn't find it until the base.

This smells synthetic, but soft and creamy. I'm usually put off by what I think of as synthetic woods and/or ambroxan, but somehow the same smells are working for me in this formula.

Mother Nature's Naughty Daughters by 4160 Tuesdays

This is a promising rose fragrance. The rose note is wonderful, but it comes in and out of focus. The candied-floral opening is fun. The sweet fruits competing with the rose make me wish the rose was slightly more prominent.

Evil Max by 4160 Tuesdays

I had hoped there would be a listed note to explain what I'm smelling, but I didn't find it.

Leather would be the best bet. Leather can be a catchall for various naturals and/or synthetics used in various leather curing processes.

This is a harsh one, sort of like Jovoy Private Label. I'm giving it a neutral. I find enough interesting about it not to give it a thumbs down.

A note that's not listed, that I like, although it can be challenging, and that this fragrance is reminding me of, is immortelle (everlasting flower).

The Lion Cupboard by 4160 Tuesdays

I like it pretty well. It's a thumps up for being a nice perfume, a solid effort, but it's somewhat underwhelming. I imagine I could be smelling the listed notes of mint, juniper berry, aniseed, rose, cedarwood, vetiver and vanilla (or rather benzoin).

It smells like a rose and wood combination, with sweetness from vanilla/benzoin, with notes such as juniper berry and aniseed, perhaps, giving it a bit of a twist.

The sweetness (sweet note?, benzoin?) and the woods (cedarwood?) give it a bit of a been there, done that feel, making it not overly exciting, although it's nice and wearable, warm and agreeable.

It reminds me of Aramis Calligraphy Rose and even Carven Homme.

Shazam! by 4160 Tuesdays

This has a lot of development over the first hour. It starts with a nice tangerine note, turns harshly modern woody-amber and frankincense, then settles into a lighter frankincense with citrus with a touch of sweetness, becoming faint surprisingly quickly.

Frankincense is a tricky note. It eventually works well here after a harsh period, with a hint of orange chocolate emerging. I'm giving this a neutral with the qualifier that I'm not a big fan of frankincense.

Sex Goddess by 4160 Tuesdays

There's a tart note I assume is blackcurrant, a little too sharp for me even after it dies down and fades into a sweeter, softer, fruity accord with the raspberry. I liked the raspberry more in the cream the way it was in Vintage Cities New York.

Wearing this a second time, I'm revising from neutral to thumbs up. The sharpness wasn't too much for me this time. I'm appreciating that it has so much personality.

The Vintage Cities: Rome 1963 by 4160 Tuesdays

To me, this smells like a warm, spicy, red leather. Another wonderfully interesting fragrance from this house.

I agree with Darvant that it's similar to Annick Goutal Mon Parfum Chéri par Camille, although I easily like this one more. I also feel like this could work as an upgraded version of Mona di Orio Cuirs.

What I'm smelling as leather I can accept as the listed notes of cedarwood, tobacco, and patchouli. This is delicious. It's rare to smell something so accomplished.

This is warm with a touch of smokiness. Again, I agree with Darvant, "really pungent but at same time gracious and hyper chic."

The Vintage Cities: New York 1955 by 4160 Tuesdays

It doesn't really smell especially vintage-y to me, or natural, whereas I expect a dose of nature in 1950s vintage, but it's interesting. It's supposed to smell like raspberry and cotton candy (aka cotton floss). From the little I've sampled this house (Raw Silk and Red Roses, which impressed me, and Doe in the Snow, which was more of an interest than love at first smell), I think this may have some familiarity as a housemate (or my memory could be playing tricks on me, and it's reminding me of something else).

This is striking me as interesting, impressively ambitious, and edgy, but not a shoo-in for stealing my heart. But almost.

I like the ambition, and it has intrigue, and a whimsical, artistic flair. Also, the base notes have some gravitas. These are deep dark, florals, and the musk must by synthetic, but it's tastefully selected. I do smell a raspberry note. Although cotton candy is a listed note, it's not too sweet.

Earthtones #5 : Tropical Lagoon by Neil Morris Fragrances

This smells like an air freshener, perhaps one of the plug-in models, not a bad one, but it's a such a typical, mass-marketed smell, it's hard to be excited about it.

After some of the marked air-freshener likeness has died down, there are some nice elements, mostly a nice dryer sheet smell, but also a hint of some fruity, summery smells, and I can smell how having "Lagoon" in the name fits. It's sweet and fruity with a hint of salt water.

Tuscan Soul Bianco di Carrara by Salvatore Ferragamo

There are no listed notes in common, but this reminds me of Dolce and Gabbana The One for Men (2008). I think they may share an unlisted aroma chemical, and it's one I like, maybe. I say maybe because I gave away my bottle of The One, and I'm giving this a neutral. In both cases, I think there is an ingredient with potential, and something more could be done with it. The problem, and perhaps it's fatal, is that it smells nice initially, and loses appeal fairly quickly, but it's worth exploring, I think, to see if a structure can be built around it that's more complementary.

Tuscan Soul Viola Essenziale by Salvatore Ferragamo

This is a nice, wearable fragrance. It has a nice iris (orris root) note. In a world with Dior Homme, this is more unisex than feminine. It smells modern and made from typical off-the-shelf ingredients circa 2013, but not cloying.

Iris Bleu Gris by Maître Parfumeur et Gantier

It has the smell of good perfume from the 1980s (or even 1970s), the kind of thing I like, although it could use some civet, and more oak moss (the version I'm trying) to hit the highest heights.

Explosions d’Emotions : Skin On Skin by L'Artisan Parfumeur

Any iris (orris root) in this perfume is playing a minor role. The smell of the opening reminds me of a consignment shop or second hand clothing store. The base is ok, sweeter and more agreeable.

Mon Parfum Chéri, par Camille by Annick Goutal

This does have the feel of an orris root fragrance, with quite a bit more going on. I suppose it's mostly the patchouli. It gives my nose the impression of peppery leather. I think it doesn't quite pass the litmus test of something I would wear from time to time, although the iris opening is promising, and it's an interesting, complex fragrance.

17/17 Irisss by Xerjoff

A big, straightforward orris root fragrance, somewhat similar to Serge Lutens Iris Silver Mist, with a distinct smell of roots, reminiscent of carrots. Not frilly. Some rose emerges in the base.

Oil Fiction by Juliette Has a Gun

The opening few seconds seemed like a promising, simple perfume, but it started going through a rough patch within a couple minutes, becoming more complex, or fractured, and smelling to me like cleaning product, with modern woody notes added. I found this period borderline offensive. Into the base, the woods and the floral notes came together more harmoniously, and almost worked for me, with maybe just one ingredient putting me off.

Khôl de Bahreïn by Stéphane Humbert Lucas 777

This is terribly modern smelling, missing a deft touch, relying on sweetness. There is an iris smell in the wall of sweetness. For someone interested in modern, sweet perfumes, this could be one to try. There's a hint of especially sweet graham crackers that could be appealing.

After an iffy opening, it gets worse, still sweet, but with a medicinal note emerging.

Iris Silver Mist by Serge Lutens

This has a strong, rooty, earthy, musty, orris root smell, reminiscent of dry hay and carrots. It smells like the the roots have just been unearthed, in a good way. It's wearable perfume fun.