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Do you know some dry ,woody and non-floral fragrances?

post #1 of 21
8/26/10 at 12:51pm
Thread Starter 
Hi everyone

I'm new in the community and very happy to join you!

I need your help concerning some good woody fragrances.
You have to know that floral and overly gourmand perfumes don't go well with my skin so I'm looking for something dry , deep , somewhat mysterious and with character.

My favorites :

Féminité du bois (Lutens) : flawless but last only 4 hours on my skin
Bois d'Arménie (Guerlain) : too expensive
Dolce Vita (Dior) : delicious but the cumin note kills it for me


Sorry if my English sounds weird it's not my mother tongue.
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post #2 of 21
8/26/10 at 10:00pm
Hi, I have Bois D'armenie, love it!

i'll throw a few out for your perusal: Caron's Alpona. Dry, raspy chypre like. I love this one (I'm going to wear it tomorrow, now that i think of it).

Parfumerie General's Papyrys de Ciane. My next planned purchase; also a unisex, ala Bois D'armenie (I'm assuming you like green woodies here)

you are listing things with a little spice kick. Hmm... you may want to dabble in Sonoma Scent studio, Tabac aurea. For more hard core sampling try Vera Profuma's Onda (this is too pricey for what you get, but it's fun to try). good luck!
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post #3 of 21
8/26/10 at 10:08pm
Parfumerie Generale's L'Ombre Fauve comes to my mind.
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post #4 of 21
8/26/10 at 10:18pm
These two high quality dry woodies would need a very confident and beautiful/cute/sexy (any of the 3) woman to pull them off:

Padparadscha
Tam Dao


But they could work as they're both lovely and elegant, albeit extremely dry and woody.
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post #5 of 21
8/27/10 at 1:04am
Thread Starter 
Thank you thank you!

BayKAT you have some very good suggestions here. Tabac Aurea seems incredible.
And I quite like tabacco scents (like Tabac Blond , vintage of course ).

Larimar : thanks to you I've just "discovered" Bois Blond ( Parfumerie Generale).
Tobacco, amber, musk, galbanum and cedar... all right ...I have to try it!

DULLAH : beautiful/cute/sexy... that sounds just like me ! All three!! Kidding
Tam Dao
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post #6 of 21
8/27/10 at 1:18am
Bois Blond is really a very unique fragrance I can't get out of my mind, but it does not take me where I hope it could. It has a somewhat "sweet-sourish taste" to it, which I don't mind, but you might? Anyway, so unique and worth trying or have I misunderstood you and you already know it? L'Ombre Fauve is great and one of the few that does not have the house's sweet and opulent underlying note, which usually does not work for me.
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post #7 of 21
8/27/10 at 1:21am
Chanel Bois des Iles
Parfums de Nicolai Vanille Tonka
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post #8 of 21
8/27/10 at 1:27am
A beautiful woody scent that smells of sandalwood, pepper, incense, and ambergris, with perhaps a hint of iris, is Les Nez Let Me Play the Lion. It has only moderate sillage but lasts a long time, and smells absolutely beautiful on both women and men.
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post #9 of 21
8/27/10 at 1:33am
Thread Starter 
Larimar : No you've understood me perfectly I haven't tried Bois Blond yet.
If it's too opulent it might bother me.
I'll try Ombre Fauve.
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post #10 of 21
8/27/10 at 1:44am
Thread Starter 
Sculpture of soul : That sure sounds promising ! "Let me play the Lion" is a somewhat embarrassing name but why not ?

donna : unfortunately Chanel perfumes don't agree with my skin. Too sophisticated and abstract for me perhaps? I prefer raw (and precious) materials .
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post #11 of 21
8/27/10 at 1:56am
Hi there, glad to see you posting on Basenotes!
I too love Feminite Du Bois (the original) and have
recently purchased Donna Karan's Wenge, which is
a resinous, woody fragrance with a hint of incense and a warm
hazelnut base. It is a touch on the quiet side for my liking
but I enjoy it in the evenings to help me relax.
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post #12 of 21
8/27/10 at 2:09am
I did not mean to say that Bois Blond was opulent. It has to my taste a sweet-sourish note. Try it - it's really unique!
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post #13 of 21
8/27/10 at 3:29am
I am also a FdB fan. One very similar fragrance is Miller et Bertaux Parfum Trouve #1, you could try it to see if it lasts longer on your skin. CdG Sequoia and Palisander are also great, dry woody scents. You could also try all the other Serge Lutens Bois scents. They aren't as dry as FdB though.

Some other ideas for sniffing (not in the style of FdB but who knows, you might like them):
Ormonde Jayne Orris Noir (deep, dark, mysterious - just what you're looking for ;-) )
Ormonde Jayne Tolu - an ambery resinous blend
Ormonde Jayne - Ormonde Man
I Profumi di Firenze - Ambra del Nepal (a really well-done, darker take on amber)

If you want it "dark and mysterious", you could also look in the direction of smokey, incensey scents. A few ideas:
The three Annick Goutal Les Orientalists scents
YSL Nu EDP (NOT the EDT)
Bois 1920 Vento di Fiori (wonderful, rich spicey leather)

Good luck with finding new fragrance loves!
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post #14 of 21
8/27/10 at 3:49am
Comme des Garcons Hinoki

Welcome to Basenotes!
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post #15 of 21
8/27/10 at 7:06am
Thread Starter 
kewart : thank you ! I've never had the opportunity to try the original version of Feminité du Bois . I don't want to torment myself
Donna Karan's Wenge ...ok! I'll try cashmere mist too.

Larimar : yes I'll try it

bonsai : what a list! Thanks! And you're right I've tried Bois et Fruits and Bois de Violette , I've found them beautiful but a little too wet and more sugary than FdB.
Ormonde Jayne Tolu and Orris Noir tempt me.

petruccijc : thank you!
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post #16 of 21
8/27/10 at 7:23am
Welcome to basenotes, DuduTheFlapper!

It seems to be rather polarizing, but I think Christian Dior's Dune is a masterpiece and should always be included in any list of dry and not-so-floral fragrances. There are florals in there, but they provide roundness, softness and interest more than flowers, if you know what I mean. It's definitely deep and mysterious, but I find it woody/ambery rather than straight up woodsy. It's possibly a bit more opulent than what you're looking for, but it's simply one of the most fascinating fragrances I've ever come across - highly recommended.
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post #17 of 21
8/27/10 at 8:12am
Bois D'Argent (Dior) and Lacroix Tumulte Pour Homme.
Dior Homme is also nice.
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post #18 of 21
8/27/10 at 8:17am
I agree with Dune. If you don't mind a bit of vanilla, test out Givenchy Organza Indecence and Estee Lauder Sensuous. Molinard Bois Precieux is great but not great lasting power. If you don't mind trying men's fragrances, you should definitely give Caron Yatagan a try and perhaps M7 as well - the oud is fantastic. If you have access to Montale, try their oud scents, you may very well find one or more. Yves Rocher Neonatura Cocoon is technically not woody, but the combination of cocoa, vanilla and patchouli is rather dry and woody on my skin, not foody. If you don't mind a bit of citrus, give Azzaro Azzura and Etro Shaal Nur a try. Gres Cabotine is dry and woody, but also green.
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post #19 of 21
8/27/10 at 12:51pm
Thread Starter 
I've read so many negative reviews about Dune and I admit it put me off trying this perfume.
I'm probably wrong.

lodz : Bois d'Argent !!! I have to try it too! I read somewhere that it's a little bit like Bois D'Armenie but less powdery.Thanks to remind me of this!

jacona : Organza indecence has changed a lot since its reformulation and unfortunately the drydown is too sweet for my tastes. Thanks anyway
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post #20 of 21
8/27/10 at 9:37pm
The first thing that came to my mind was Hermes Amazone.
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post #21 of 21
8/27/10 at 10:17pm
Yes, Hilliare gave a good example, and Amazone can be found at most high end department stores (nordies, Macy's, OK, high end for me)

Just curious is anyone has tried the he-wood she-wood line? Anything here worth recommending?
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Basenotes › Basenotes Forums › Fragrance Discussion › Female Fragrance Discussion › Do you know some dry ,woody and non-floral fragrances?