Basenotes - Reviews by robinhoo

United States

Showing 1 to 3 of 3.

Café Noir by Ava Luxe

When I put this on, I instantly feel as if I've spent an evening sitting in an English Victorian-era coffee bar with a man who's met me there after a trip to an opium den. As others have noted, the coffee scent here is darker than in other coffee fragrances. To my nose, it smells less like fresh espresso, more like too-strong regular coffee that's been sitting around a while. I also smell tobacco in the first moments. As it dries down, lavender comes forward -- ordinarily a scent I don't love, but here it's quite nice, not overly strong. The whole is under-girded by patchouli. If you're not a fan of patchouli, don't be put off; it's not strong here, even though it's present at each stage. The dry-down blend of lavender and patchouli gives a very licorice-like effect. This isn't my favorite fragrance, not even my favorite coffee scent, but I still really like it because it so clearly evokes a particular mood for me. I would prefer this on a cool autumnal evening, not on a hot summer day. Very Lauren Bacall.

8th July, 2009.

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Mûre et Musc by L'Artisan Parfumeur

I'm a huge fan of L'Artisan, but this is one fragrance that fails completely to work with my body chemistry. I'm actually jealous of the reviewers who talk about the jammy quality of the berries here, because on me, they're completely absent. I get a slightly (unpleasantly) soapy light musk that lasts for less than an hour... and that's it. There's no dry-down, no development, no sillage at all. I'm hoping for more fruit from the Extreme version.

5th July, 2009.

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Fleur d'Oranger by L'Artisan Parfumeur

(Please note that L'Artisan re-released this fragrance in 2007. From what I've heard, the 2005 and 2007 aren't that different, but be aware that I'm talking about the 2007 version.)
I am completely in love with this fragrance. I've been searching for the perfect orange-blossom fragrance for summer, and this is it, no contest. It starts out with a sharp, almost acrid green, like a flower that's just about to burst into bloom. But on me the green only lasted a moment, and then the orange blossom was in bloom. It's a lovely dry orange blossom, not overly sweet, and it absolutely doesn't smell like bathroom cleaner or wood polish. In just another couple of moments, the honey and beeswax notes come forward. They complement the orange blossom just beautifully, and overall the fragrance evokes a sunny orange orchard bordered with honeysuckle... except it's not quite as floral-sweet as honeysuckle would be. The dry-down is not as orange-y and the honey dims, too, but it's still just beautiful. I have to reapply it every few hours, and like most L'Artisan fragrances, the sillage is not AT ALL overpowering.
Perhaps the best compliment I can give it is that my boyfriend keeps coming back to sniff me. :)

3rd July, 2009.

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