In the last couple of days, I have come upon some "very" inexpensive designer frags that I had to dispense money on... to add to my already bloated wardrobe :P Anyway... here's how they panned out...
Tiffany For Men:
Probably my most pleasant surprise of the bunch. In it's unassuming blue box and Burberry like bottle I didn't expect much. Upon first spritz... it burst through with a powdery lemony beginning that was very resminiscent of Boucheron PH and D%G Masculine. This in itself did not impress me much.. <sorry, Shania for the blatent plug>. When the fragrance started to settle on my skin, it really started to shine through in a golden amber glow that caught be quite by surprise. The citric beginning knelt submissively as the florals started spread over it.. The Boucheron burst started to develop into a spicier fragrance.. less of a wood spice, and more of a flower spice that reminded me very much of a Chanel fragrance... in its nature and quality. For a very smooth and mellow fragrance, there is a lot of life in Tiffany for men. It's quite formal smelling, would be great for office wear AND romantic evenings - anytime you want to command attention and let others know you mean business. Upon a more recent sniff, I also feel as though the general smell of this fragrance bares some similarity to Coriolan by Guerlain... That being said... if Coriolan is Jason Alexander, then Tiffany for Men.. is, Goerge Clooney. Sexy, sophisticated, smooth... lovely fragrance. Good silliage and good longevity. Rating: A
Lacoste Cool Play:
This limited addition Lacoste fragrance doesn't break any ground, but also succeeds very well at doing what it intends to do - create a "fresh" summer fragrance.. that blends into the other mass market scents lining the shelves of the local department store counters these days. For a fresh scent, Lacoste Cool Play strikes me as quite dry on the opening. It starts with a close to "minty" quality.... that quickly blends into a rather sweet vanillic base that is spritzed slightly with spice to keep things for bordering on boredom. If I were to describe what other fragrances Cool Play might smell like... I might toss the following fragrances into a Cauldron: The fresh burst of L'eau Par Kenzo (and the slight vanillic drydrown) with a "pinch" of Givenchy Blue Label...with a healthy dollop od the synthetic zing of Echo by Davidoff, all stirred into a frosty, dilluted portion of Baldessarini's Del Mar. With that type of recipe, the results cannot possibly rank as anything "new" or "groundbreaking" but it is a scent I might turn to on a day where I feel the need for something of that genre.. which I can't say is very often. Bottle is very similar to Style in Play... but the juice is blue rather than red... oooooh.. how dynamic
Decent longevity, but wears very close to the skin
rating: C+
Marc Jacobs:
On itial spritz of MJ for men, I must admit.. I liked it quite intently.. perhaps it was the blend of fig and coconut that got my attention. Interestingly, something about this fragrance reminds me of "one" of the key notes from Geir, inferiorly blended, isolated... watered down, and then fed to us in a weak mixture that has no longevity.. at all. Within 10 minutes of applying, i was ready to move on to my next fragrance, without looking back. A shame really, for a fragrance with a lot of potential... nothing really happens. It's as though the perfumeur got restless halfway through and said.. "Meh, it will sell well enough, I'm going to starbucks!" Another summer scent that shouldn't offend much.... the bottle design is as dull as it comes... a squat bottle with no texture, nothing really to draw you to even "want" to pick up the bottle.
rating: C
Platinum Egoiste:
I had heard so much about this fragrance on basenotes, and I had quite high expectations going in. Upon initial apllication, this fragrance reminded me.. of Paco Rabanne XS. It has a similar, dry spicy-fresh beginning that is quite envigorating. Heavy on citrus and florals, moving into a woodier drydown. Quite classy smelling, but not stuffy in the least <it's hard to say whether or not I am influenced by the price or the house name>. Unfortunately, I found the longevity "and" silliage of this particular fragrance a little suspect, though not as poor as the previously mentioned Mar Jacobs. That being said, I feel as though it's a good summer day option as it is quite lively and pleasant to the nose. Would I reach for it often? Most likely... would I say that it lives up to the hype? Not really. Nothing fancy about the bottle, as is typical Chanel-fare.
rating: B
Amor Amor Homme: As Ron Burgundy once said.. this one "stings the nostrils" and starts of smelling slightly sour, and not that unlike "off" or "deep woods". Upon further development it achieves a spicy warmness that reminds me of Arpege PH without the vanilla-sweet gourmand quality. Not a bad scent, but it did not react very well on my skin at all. Nothing overly special, but at the same time, nothing to really dislike either. Very Nice "Hugo Dark Blue-esque" bottle... Indigo-tinged, curvy shape.. easy to spray.
rating: C
Kenneth Cole Reaction: Not worth my time. No longevity, no silliage.. fresh citrus done in a way that makes it feel like Signature's lazy cousin, which is in NO way an endorsement for Signature. Save your money and dispense it on something with a little character or depth.
rating: D
that's it folks...
a.
Tiffany For Men:
Probably my most pleasant surprise of the bunch. In it's unassuming blue box and Burberry like bottle I didn't expect much. Upon first spritz... it burst through with a powdery lemony beginning that was very resminiscent of Boucheron PH and D%G Masculine. This in itself did not impress me much.. <sorry, Shania for the blatent plug>. When the fragrance started to settle on my skin, it really started to shine through in a golden amber glow that caught be quite by surprise. The citric beginning knelt submissively as the florals started spread over it.. The Boucheron burst started to develop into a spicier fragrance.. less of a wood spice, and more of a flower spice that reminded me very much of a Chanel fragrance... in its nature and quality. For a very smooth and mellow fragrance, there is a lot of life in Tiffany for men. It's quite formal smelling, would be great for office wear AND romantic evenings - anytime you want to command attention and let others know you mean business. Upon a more recent sniff, I also feel as though the general smell of this fragrance bares some similarity to Coriolan by Guerlain... That being said... if Coriolan is Jason Alexander, then Tiffany for Men.. is, Goerge Clooney. Sexy, sophisticated, smooth... lovely fragrance. Good silliage and good longevity. Rating: A
Lacoste Cool Play:
This limited addition Lacoste fragrance doesn't break any ground, but also succeeds very well at doing what it intends to do - create a "fresh" summer fragrance.. that blends into the other mass market scents lining the shelves of the local department store counters these days. For a fresh scent, Lacoste Cool Play strikes me as quite dry on the opening. It starts with a close to "minty" quality.... that quickly blends into a rather sweet vanillic base that is spritzed slightly with spice to keep things for bordering on boredom. If I were to describe what other fragrances Cool Play might smell like... I might toss the following fragrances into a Cauldron: The fresh burst of L'eau Par Kenzo (and the slight vanillic drydrown) with a "pinch" of Givenchy Blue Label...with a healthy dollop od the synthetic zing of Echo by Davidoff, all stirred into a frosty, dilluted portion of Baldessarini's Del Mar. With that type of recipe, the results cannot possibly rank as anything "new" or "groundbreaking" but it is a scent I might turn to on a day where I feel the need for something of that genre.. which I can't say is very often. Bottle is very similar to Style in Play... but the juice is blue rather than red... oooooh.. how dynamic
Decent longevity, but wears very close to the skinrating: C+
Marc Jacobs:
On itial spritz of MJ for men, I must admit.. I liked it quite intently.. perhaps it was the blend of fig and coconut that got my attention. Interestingly, something about this fragrance reminds me of "one" of the key notes from Geir, inferiorly blended, isolated... watered down, and then fed to us in a weak mixture that has no longevity.. at all. Within 10 minutes of applying, i was ready to move on to my next fragrance, without looking back. A shame really, for a fragrance with a lot of potential... nothing really happens. It's as though the perfumeur got restless halfway through and said.. "Meh, it will sell well enough, I'm going to starbucks!" Another summer scent that shouldn't offend much.... the bottle design is as dull as it comes... a squat bottle with no texture, nothing really to draw you to even "want" to pick up the bottle.
rating: C
Platinum Egoiste:
I had heard so much about this fragrance on basenotes, and I had quite high expectations going in. Upon initial apllication, this fragrance reminded me.. of Paco Rabanne XS. It has a similar, dry spicy-fresh beginning that is quite envigorating. Heavy on citrus and florals, moving into a woodier drydown. Quite classy smelling, but not stuffy in the least <it's hard to say whether or not I am influenced by the price or the house name>. Unfortunately, I found the longevity "and" silliage of this particular fragrance a little suspect, though not as poor as the previously mentioned Mar Jacobs. That being said, I feel as though it's a good summer day option as it is quite lively and pleasant to the nose. Would I reach for it often? Most likely... would I say that it lives up to the hype? Not really. Nothing fancy about the bottle, as is typical Chanel-fare.
rating: B
Amor Amor Homme: As Ron Burgundy once said.. this one "stings the nostrils" and starts of smelling slightly sour, and not that unlike "off" or "deep woods". Upon further development it achieves a spicy warmness that reminds me of Arpege PH without the vanilla-sweet gourmand quality. Not a bad scent, but it did not react very well on my skin at all. Nothing overly special, but at the same time, nothing to really dislike either. Very Nice "Hugo Dark Blue-esque" bottle... Indigo-tinged, curvy shape.. easy to spray.
rating: C
Kenneth Cole Reaction: Not worth my time. No longevity, no silliage.. fresh citrus done in a way that makes it feel like Signature's lazy cousin, which is in NO way an endorsement for Signature. Save your money and dispense it on something with a little character or depth.
rating: D
that's it folks...
a.
