Categories
Fragrance Reviews

Chantecaille Kalimantan Fragrance Review

* The fragrance kicks off with a dry blend of incense and patchouli.

* Kalimantan is the Indonesian name for the island of Borneo which is the third largest island in the world.  The island had the oldest rain forests in the world which have been deforested at a rapid rate.

* Out of nowhere, the scent goes massively and aggressively skank with a strong mix of cedar, cumin and oud.

* When I say massively and aggressively, I mean the volume gets turned up and it projects wildly.   Its the first fragrance I’ve tested that gets louder the longer you wear it (heart notes are stronger than the top notes.)

* After about an hour, the skank starts to tone down and it gets a little sweeter.

* The base notes are a nice vanilla and sandalwood blend which lasts for 8 hours on my skin.

Summary:  Chantecaille is a luxury skincare / cosmetic line for women.  The fragrance bottle is quite pretty with etched/raised glass and a mirrorball like lid.  While this might fit the other fragrances in their collection (Frangipane, Tiare, Petales), it doesn’t make any sense for the beast known as Kalimantan.  I say this with love because I bought a full bottle of this monster just because it is so animalic, aggressive, and almost comically over the top.  This scent would fit better in the line of Serge Lutens or even Etats Libre D’orange line.  I am just imagining a rich lady sitting at the Chantecaille counter in a Neiman Marcus or Nordstrom getting her make up done.  She reaches over and absent mindedly sprays some Kalimantan on her skin.  The first whiff is pleasant but then a few minutes lady, the skunk hits and she starts screaming.  I would love to be there to see this.  Kalimantan is clearly not office friendly and I strongly recommend skin testing it.  Even if you don’t plan to ever buy a bottle, get a sample and experiment with it.  I am not comparing this to the shock value of say Secretions Magnifique, but the skank definitely comes out of nowhere and lets itself be known.

Chantecaille Kalimantan is available at Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus, and Barneys New York.

 

Categories
Fragrance Reviews

Lush 25:43 Fragrance Review

* 25:43 kicks off with a sweet burst – lime and caramel, with an herbal green haze covering it.  Those notes may sound a bit odd together, but it works really well.

* The wedding of his son Simon inspired Lush perfumer Mark Constantine to create 25:43.

* As the lime fades away, the caramel is joined by some dense resins with a subtle, light floral shading.

* I am not sure just exactly what 25:43 represents – possibly a Bible verse?  Can anyone quote a scripture that would fit?

* The sweet yet dry vanilla/resin base lasts a long time.

Summary:  Lush 25:43 was an impulse buy for me that I am quite happy with.  I was in the Aventura mall store and was taken by the lime caramel candy top notes.   While the fragrance is sweet, it isn’t TOO sweet.   The scent is advertised as a romantic fragrance, and with the sweet notes you would expect it to be very feminine, however a guy could easily rock this – even at work.   The initial 30 minutes is kind of loud- so if you want to wear this at work, put it on early and allow it to settle before you walk into the office.  When you are ready to leave work for the day, you will have a really nice vanilla/resinous skin scent that will be a great base for just about anything.

Lush 25:43 is available at Lush stores and on the Lush website.

 

Categories
Uncategorized

Taking a break

I will be taking a brief break to go on a family trip.  Look for new updates to appear again around March 29th.

Until then – please enjoy the Fragrance Review Archives, Getting Started, and these other Great Fragrance Sites.

Categories
Fragrance Reviews

Serge Lutens Cuir Mauresque Fragrance Review

* Cuir Mauresque kicks off with a big punch of rubber and leather mixed with sweet resins.  No, it really does smell good.

* Serge Lutens is a french fragrance line known for their strong and powerful oriental fragrances.   Although the bottles are identical, each one is wildly different.

* The top notes take the back seat as amber, cinnamon, and incense sweeten things up.

* When I first got into fragrance,  Fille en Aguilles was brand new and my first exposure.  I sniffed it in a store and thought- pine needles, big deal.  About a year later, I stopped and sampled just about every scent in the line and starting kicking myself at how much I loved so many of their scents.

* Musk and sweet leather are the main parts of the base, though there is a bit of cinnamon and nutmeg in there as well.  The base lasts a long time, even through a shower.

Summary:  Cuir Mauresque is the equivalent to a WTF track.  When I hear a track and say to myself, WTF was that — this was the reaction I had to the first sniff Cuir Mauresque.  It’s strong, dark, and evil in a sexy way- so it’s easy to see why I’ve gone through almost a full bottle of it already.  Not office friendly, though if you put it on the evening – when you wake up in the morning the sweet leather base notes will still be there (and make you very nice to snuggle up to).

Serge Lutens  Cuir Mauresque is available from Luckyscent, Aedes,  and Barneys New York.

Notable Scents – Page 55 – A DJ Ron Blog
Categories
Fragrance Reviews

Chantecaille Kalimantan Fragrance Review

* The fragrance kicks off with a dry blend of incense and patchouli.

* Kalimantan is the Indonesian name for the island of Borneo which is the third largest island in the world.  The island had the oldest rain forests in the world which have been deforested at a rapid rate.

* Out of nowhere, the scent goes massively and aggressively skank with a strong mix of cedar, cumin and oud.

* When I say massively and aggressively, I mean the volume gets turned up and it projects wildly.   Its the first fragrance I’ve tested that gets louder the longer you wear it (heart notes are stronger than the top notes.)

* After about an hour, the skank starts to tone down and it gets a little sweeter.

* The base notes are a nice vanilla and sandalwood blend which lasts for 8 hours on my skin.

Summary:  Chantecaille is a luxury skincare / cosmetic line for women.  The fragrance bottle is quite pretty with etched/raised glass and a mirrorball like lid.  While this might fit the other fragrances in their collection (Frangipane, Tiare, Petales), it doesn’t make any sense for the beast known as Kalimantan.  I say this with love because I bought a full bottle of this monster just because it is so animalic, aggressive, and almost comically over the top.  This scent would fit better in the line of Serge Lutens or even Etats Libre D’orange line.  I am just imagining a rich lady sitting at the Chantecaille counter in a Neiman Marcus or Nordstrom getting her make up done.  She reaches over and absent mindedly sprays some Kalimantan on her skin.  The first whiff is pleasant but then a few minutes lady, the skunk hits and she starts screaming.  I would love to be there to see this.  Kalimantan is clearly not office friendly and I strongly recommend skin testing it.  Even if you don’t plan to ever buy a bottle, get a sample and experiment with it.  I am not comparing this to the shock value of say Secretions Magnifique, but the skank definitely comes out of nowhere and lets itself be known.

Chantecaille Kalimantan is available at Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus, and Barneys New York.

 

Categories
Fragrance Reviews

Lush 25:43 Fragrance Review

* 25:43 kicks off with a sweet burst – lime and caramel, with an herbal green haze covering it.  Those notes may sound a bit odd together, but it works really well.

* The wedding of his son Simon inspired Lush perfumer Mark Constantine to create 25:43.

* As the lime fades away, the caramel is joined by some dense resins with a subtle, light floral shading.

* I am not sure just exactly what 25:43 represents – possibly a Bible verse?  Can anyone quote a scripture that would fit?

* The sweet yet dry vanilla/resin base lasts a long time.

Summary:  Lush 25:43 was an impulse buy for me that I am quite happy with.  I was in the Aventura mall store and was taken by the lime caramel candy top notes.   While the fragrance is sweet, it isn’t TOO sweet.   The scent is advertised as a romantic fragrance, and with the sweet notes you would expect it to be very feminine, however a guy could easily rock this – even at work.   The initial 30 minutes is kind of loud- so if you want to wear this at work, put it on early and allow it to settle before you walk into the office.  When you are ready to leave work for the day, you will have a really nice vanilla/resinous skin scent that will be a great base for just about anything.

Lush 25:43 is available at Lush stores and on the Lush website.

 

Categories
Uncategorized

Taking a break

I will be taking a brief break to go on a family trip.  Look for new updates to appear again around March 29th.

Until then – please enjoy the Fragrance Review Archives, Getting Started, and these other Great Fragrance Sites.

Categories
Fragrance Reviews

Serge Lutens Cuir Mauresque Fragrance Review

* Cuir Mauresque kicks off with a big punch of rubber and leather mixed with sweet resins.  No, it really does smell good.

* Serge Lutens is a french fragrance line known for their strong and powerful oriental fragrances.   Although the bottles are identical, each one is wildly different.

* The top notes take the back seat as amber, cinnamon, and incense sweeten things up.

* When I first got into fragrance,  Fille en Aguilles was brand new and my first exposure.  I sniffed it in a store and thought- pine needles, big deal.  About a year later, I stopped and sampled just about every scent in the line and starting kicking myself at how much I loved so many of their scents.

* Musk and sweet leather are the main parts of the base, though there is a bit of cinnamon and nutmeg in there as well.  The base lasts a long time, even through a shower.

Summary:  Cuir Mauresque is the equivalent to a WTF track.  When I hear a track and say to myself, WTF was that — this was the reaction I had to the first sniff Cuir Mauresque.  It’s strong, dark, and evil in a sexy way- so it’s easy to see why I’ve gone through almost a full bottle of it already.  Not office friendly, though if you put it on the evening – when you wake up in the morning the sweet leather base notes will still be there (and make you very nice to snuggle up to).

Serge Lutens  Cuir Mauresque is available from Luckyscent, Aedes,  and Barneys New York.