Two Winners – Review: Atelier Cologne Bois Blonds And Trefle Pur

Posted on January 18, 2011 by Olfactoria

The first Atelier Cologne perfume, Orange Sanguine, I reviewed yesterday was a winner for me, its perfect orange happiness made my day.

Reason enough to take a look at two more of the currently five fragrances offered by New York based niche brand Atelier Cologne.

Bois Blonds (not to be confused with Parfumerie Generale’s Bois Blond without the s) is a cologne absolute with a concentration of 20%, the highest of the five, and was created by Jerome Epinette. Notes feature Tunisian neroli, pink pepper, Moroccan orange flower, incense, blond woods, musks, and vetiver from Haiti.

First of all the impression that strikes me most: this is really long wearing. Really. In Bois Blonds the concept of the cologne absolue concentration is fulfilled, longevity and sillage are considerable and impressive.

The fragrance – after a typical cologne opening of citrus and peppery notes –  is a light and airy composition of vetiver and woods, incense and orange flowers sweep in and out of my awareness like columns of smoke. It would be beautiful on a man, but equally so on women. It reminds me of Malle´s Vetiver Extraordinaire (Malle again!). It is cool and fresh but at the same time retains that typical vetiver warmth, that dualism renders it very attractive as well as unique.

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A second Epinette creation is Trefle Pur. Clover is an interesting note, not often found, therefore I was the most curious about that one.

It has a perfume oil concentration of 18% and its notes include bitter orange, cardamom, basil, clover absolute, violet leaves, Tunisian neroli, patchouli moss and musk.

Trefle Pur is my second favorite, although it is hard ranking these perfumes as all I have tested yet are outstanding and highly interesting.

Again a classic citrus opening awaits us, but the clover is already around the corner hot on the heels of bitter orange that braces us for what is to come. Fresh green clover, cut grass, leaves, fresh wet soil, this is a summer meadow complete with sunshine, only the butterflies are missing (the mosquitoes as well, so that is all right ;))

It is reminiscent of Eau de Campagne by Sisley, but the distinct clover note sets it apart and makes it hard to refrain from including Trefle Pur in my collection.

It is long wearing as well, just as promised and blooms with greater than average sillage even in the cold outside.

The three Atelier Cologne fragrances I purchased samples of here, were all winners in my opinion. The only regret I have is not having gotten samples of the remaining two as well. 😉

But that mistake can and will be rectified.

Picture Source: ateliercologne.com, Colorful Trees on River courtesy of http://www.photos8.com/view/colorful_trees_on_river-other.html Clover Leaves courtesy of photo8.com, some rights reserved, thank you!

Posted in Atelier Cologne, Citrus, Fragrance Reviews, Green, Woods | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 35 Comments

Incense With A Smile- Review: Heeley Cardinal

Posted on January 18, 2011 by Olfactoria

I heard many good things about Heeley Perfumes in general and Cardinal especially. So what else can the devoted Perfumista do, but get in gear and try to acquire a sample.

I was haunting The Perfumed Court for a very long time, filling my wishlist with gallons of perfume, but always refraining from ordering, because I was afraid of maybe having to pay custom duties. But I took the leap and all went perfectly smooth and quickly. (I realize I could have gotten Cardinal easier, it is available at First in Fragrance, but I was ordering other things too, so into the basket it went.

I am impressed by the lovely metal capped and neatly labeled samples, very professional. For Europeans still afraid of ordering there, I can highly recommend The Perfumed Court.

But enough sidetracking, we are here to talk about Cardinal.

I love the name and as studies show (my own, results may vary ;)) when I love the name, the fragrance is good in 85 % of the cases.

Cardinal was created in 2006 for the niche house Heeley, the brand of Paris based British designer James Heeley. Notes include incense, cistus, grey amber, patchouli and vetiver.

It starts out almost cheerful, and although there are no top notes listed I seem to smell something sparkling upon application, like pepper that gives way to a rich and almost warm incense. It is not particularly dark or heavy.

I see a church before my inner eye, light flooding through stained glass windows. It is vast and silent, full of light and quiet peacefulness. In me, Cardinal induces happiness of a quiet contemplative kind, an inner calm. Yoga in a bottle.

The drydown is a little earthy from the patchouli and ambery sweet. It ends up being one of the warmer and sweeter Incense perfumes I have tried yet.

How does it compare to other incenses?

It is warmer and less outdoorsy than Tauer Perfumes Incense Extreme, in the Comme de Garcons Incense series (reviews upcoming soon) I have tried to date, I detect more wood and less of an amber sweetness that characterizes Cardinal.

I would say Cardinal is an easy to wear incense that is meditative, but not gloomy or goth in the least. There is a warmth and brightness to it I find enchanting and has its time and place in my mood spectrum.

I can’t find a better description than saying this is a smiling incense fragrance.

Which – despite its name – would fit a lot better in the buddhist tradition than the roman-catholic that favors a guilty expression over a smile at all times.

Picture Source: fragrantica.com, Inside St.Catherine´s Church in Bethlehem courtesy of Photos8.com, thank you!
Posted in Fragrance Reviews, Heeley, Incense | Tagged , , , , , | 29 Comments

War of The Oranges – Atelier Cologne Orange Sanguine vs. Frederic Malle Bigarade Concentrée

Posted on January 17, 2011 by Olfactoria

I am a longtime fan of Bigarade Concentrée by Jean-Claude Ellena for Editions de Parfums Frederic Malle released in 2002. It is the most uplifting and happiness-inducing perfume in my collection. It never fails to elicit a smile upon spraying that first burst of bitter oranges on my skin. It is appropriate for any season, cooling and refreshing in the heat and bringing a bit of sunshine to the darkest and dreariest of winter days.

But the unhindered reign of Bigarade Concentrée could be endangered now.

There is a new man in town, one that is hard on Bigarade´s heels for the title of most beloved orange scent in history – that new contender is Atelier Cologne´s Orange Sanguine.

How do the two fare in direct combat? Which one will emerge as the winner? The longstanding favorite or the newcomer? Read on for the Battle of the Oranges! 🙂

Atelier Cologne is a relatively new brand based in New York who quasi invented a new perfume category – the cologne absolue.

Staying in the cologne genre but extending the life span of the scents by upping the perfume oil concentration considerably from about 1-3% in regular Colognes to up to 20% for the Colognes Absolues, Atelier Cologne gave us interesting and beautifully crafted fragrances that combine the coveted freshness of a cologne with some serious sillage and longevity.

A concept I am totally on board with. My greatest concern with fresh citrus perfumes always was the wear time, but of course that came with the territory. Obviously a fact Atelier Cologne was not prepared to take for granted any longer.

Orange Sanguine was created by Ralf Schwieger and is concentrated at 15%, top notes are blood orange, bitter orange; heart notes: jasmine, geranium; base notes: amber woods, tonka beans, sandalwood; (according to the company website).

That first spray blows you away!

The top notes are so amazingly life like, it is like cutting open a ripe and juicy blood orange, no I take that back, cutting open twenty oranges at once.

There is nothing else to do but enjoy that blast of sunshine. It smells like the olfactory equivalent of a commercial for Florida.

It has to fade eventually as all good things must, but it delights me for a good hour before finally yielding to the softer and more quiet tones of faintly orange-y floral woods that form the base.

EDIT: Feb 24 2011, After two months of bitterly cold winter that elicited the regular use of Orange Sanguine, I want to amend my initial statement a little. I have found Orange Sanguine to have excellent tenacity and staying power, it is really not all about the top notes. As disconcerting it is to say I was wrong, (as obviously this is a very rare occurrence indeed ;)) in the interest of a wonderful perfume, I will say so now: Please invest in Orange Sanguine, if you are looking for a truly uplifting orange scent that stays the day too.

I would spend the rest of the day with a soft and understated scent. I say would, because the temptation to reapply is to high anyway, to experience much of the drydown on its own, this is a fragrance I am glad to reapply frequently during the day, also I have yet to encounter someone offended by the scent of oranges. (But undoubtedly those people exist, I apologize to each and everyone who felt disturbed by my sillage of happiness!)

What about Bigarade Concentrée in direct comparison?

The opening of BC is equally fresh and life-like, only there is more bitterness in evidence, these are bitter oranges after all, not blood oranges. It is less sweet, a bit drier, but still gloriously mood lifting. In the development the two begin to diverge in different directions. The Ellena creation (notes include Bitter Orange, Rose, Hay and Cedar) shows a more complex construction, there is more going on here, the heart and base is more developed and make the perfume more balanced as a whole. Bigarade Concentrée holds its own a lot longer with a lot more presence.

Ultimately I would say that both Atelier Cologne´s Orange Sanguine and Malle´s Bigarade Concentrée have their place in my collection. They are sufficiently different to warrant that place.

If I had to choose I would stay with my old favorite though, not out of sentimentality, but I feel that it is a more complete creation, a rounder more threedimensional perfume than Orange Sanguine, that shines primarily because of those top notes.

The question is whether you want to invest in those top notes alone, for Orange Sanguine does not come exactly cheap at 145$ for 200ml/6.7 fl.oz. There is also a mini size (30ml/1 fl.oz for 50$) available as well as a soap and a candle. (That candle calls my name, maybe I need to invest in the name of investigative journalism, there is a Saturday post for PST to write after all. ;))

For now I will be wearing and enjoying both.

Both have the potential of being clinically relevant in the prevention of depression, what more could you want? 🙂

Picture Sources: editionsdeparfms.com, ateliercologne.com, Big Oranges courtesy of Photo8.com, mentalhealthnews.org, some rights reserved, thank you!

Posted in Atelier Cologne, Citrus, Fragrance Reviews, Frederic Malle | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 47 Comments

Monday Question: What Was Your Introduction To Perfumeland?

Posted on January 17, 2011 by Olfactoria

This Monday Question is inspired by this post by Krista, who told us about her first niche fragarance, which happened to be Serge Lutens Ambre Sultan. I commented that encountering this one first would probably have had me running a mile. I don´t think I would have been prepared for this fragrance, I couldn´t have appreciated it.

That gave me pause – would my decent into Perfumeland never have happened if my first encounter with niche perfumes were any different? Would I still be untouched by this all-consuming mania, that has influenced my life in so many ways?

I will never know. I am happy that En Passant by my lovely Olivia Giacobetti took me under its gossamer wings, not that Uncle Serge hit me over the head with a moroccan fist. (I think differently about Lutens work now, as you all know, but I still remember that it can be a bit difficult to get into, when unprepared. It is like the difference of being used to hear a single flute playing a lullaby and hearing a symphony orchestra in full romantic cast performing Beethoven. Fortissimo.)

So, what was your first niche perfume?

What drew you in?

How did you proceed?

Do you still like that first one?

My Answers:

The first one was En Passant, as I said above. Its clarity of presentation of an image, a place, a mood, a feeling was fascinating. It is soft, clean, uplifting, inspiring, interesting and simply beautiful. I still love to wear it. My tastes have vastly branched out from there, but I come back to En Passant time and again and feel myself transported back to that sense of wonder and discovery I felt when I first smelled it.

I went on to explore many of Malle´s other perfumes, and as I wrote only recently, I have yet to be disappointed in the line. It is easily my favorite, because with no other brand I have such a track record of successes.

I went further from there, my blog is testament for that, and I am glad I did. Perfumeland welcomed me with open arms and gives me so much joy every day, through experiencing the perfumes, getting to know similarly afflicted people, getting the opportunity to write. It is all good, I wouldn´t want to go back, my life would be much the poorer. Like my pocket book is 😉

Now it is time for that Lutens…

Posted in Monday Question | Tagged , , , , , , , | 19 Comments

Happy Birthday, Boys!

Posted on January 16, 2011 by Olfactoria

Today is my husband’s and my older son Paul’s birthday.

I had Paul four years ago on my husband’s birthday, needless to say, I didn´t have to get him anything else that year 😉

But he never got a better present since, and I doubt he ever will!

The Birthday Boys plus Baby Boy

Happy Birthday to my two men! Kisses and Hugs!

Mom

Picture source: quite obviously my own, bad quality and all 😉

Posted in Ramblings | Tagged , | 11 Comments

Last Week In Perfumeland – Weekend Link Love + Giveaway Reminder

Posted on January 16, 2011 by Olfactoria

Last week I had trouble keeping up. So much to do, so little time. Then the whole family got sick. But there is an upside to lying in bed – so many nice posts to read.

Check out a few I really liked last week:

Denyse of Grain de Musc wrote a very moving article about her chosen country – perfume.

Donna reviewed Puredistance M on Perfume Smellin´Things. Lovely!

Dee on Beauty on the Outside gets lucky again and again with her unsniffed purchases. Find out why!

Tarleisio writes about a beautiful memory of her mother and a special perfume, read it on Scent Less Sensibilities.

And finally, there is a new blog in town: Ashleigh started her own blog called Scent Rebel, you should make sure to visit.

Have a great Sunday and don´t forget to enter in my By Kilian Giveaway, there is still time until Wednesday, 19 January, 8am GMT.

Picture source: Vintage Ad Browser, some rights reserved, thank you!

Posted in Weekend Link Love | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Olfactoria on Perfume Smellin´Things – again :)

Posted on January 15, 2011 by Olfactoria

It is that time of the week again, I am posting on PST today.

I hope to see you over there!

Posted in Ramblings | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Olfactory Oasis – Perfume Shopping at “Duft & Kultur” in Vienna

Posted on January 15, 2011 by Olfactoria

After a trip to Le Parfum last week I want to show you the second important destination for the discerning perfume lover in Vienna, Duft &Kultur. The store’s name translates from German as Fragrance & Culture and that is exactly what the friendly owners of this gem in the first district of Vienna, strive to provide for their customers.

Knowledgable and competent service are a matter of course at Duft & Kultur. The brands on offer include Annick Goutal, L’Artisan Parfumeur, Serge Lutens, Caron, Parfums Coudray, Diptyque, Comptoir Sud Pacifique, Maitre Parfumeur et Gantier and many more hard to find and niche perfumery lines as well as many body care brands, home scents and accessories.

The store is a treasure trove of items you never knew you wanted or needed, so one should calculate more time than anticipated to browse all the hidden gems to be found. It is probably best to leave husband and children at home, or at least outside. There is a very good ice cream parlor right around the corner, which has proven very helpful, time and again. 😉

If you are ever in Vienna, make it a must on your visit!

Dimitri of Sorcery of Scent did a wonderful post about Duft&Kultur featuring markedly better images, last year. Head on over for a closer look.

Picture source: my own, including glare and all, when I was there to make the pics it was closed 😉

Posted in Shopping | Tagged , , , , | 9 Comments

Olfactoria In Dreamland – Why I wear Perfume To Bed

Posted on January 14, 2011 by Olfactoria

Do not fear! This is not going to be a TMI post. 🙂

I love to select a perfume at night to wear to bed (to sleep!), just as I select one in the morning before I start my day.

I got into this habit around the time I started the blog, because I had so many perfumes to try for reviewing, and such an enthusiasm for the topic, that I figured it was a waste of time and skin space to spend half the time of each day unscented.

When I went to sleep wearing perfume, I soon discovered how much I loved it.
Falling asleep on a soft cloud of fragrance surrounding me is wonderful. The darkness enhances my sense of smell and with every movement, my perfume circumvents my consciousness and delivers a little puff of wellbeing directly to my brain, or soul, however you want to call it.

Every night I go to my little (okay, large-ish) box of samples, or the bottles currently in rotation and choose a sleep scent.
Usually I know exactly what I need. Incense is high on the list of favored notes for the night and so is Iris, both are calming and clearing my head. But there are also nights when I crave Shalimar or Tolu or some other oriental, that warms me up and satisfies a craving for something sweet.

Before I go to sleep, I go to my older sons room and sit him on the potty, to avoid nightly accidents. He mostly stays asleep during the whole thing, but in his half asleep and dazed condition he always snuggles into my throat and sniffs, then grunts peacefully. I love the thought that this is creating some powerful olfactory memories of his mother that stay with him for life.

When I move in my sleep, I get a whiff now and again.
When I have to get up because the baby is crying, I smell it.
It always makes me smile. It makes me feel comforted.

Getting into the habit of wearing a Scent of the Night, was a good thing. I wouldn’t want to miss it anymore.

Do you wear perfume to bed?

Which one(s)?

Picture source: myvintagevogue.com, Vintage Ad Browser, some rights reserved, thank you!

Posted in Ramblings | Tagged , , , , , , | 24 Comments

Lady Of The Roses – Review: Editions de Parfums Frederic Malle Portrait Of A Lady

Posted on January 13, 2011 by Olfactoria

I was a bit apprehensive when I thought about trying Portrait of a Lady, the latest issue by Frederic Malle. I have an exceptional track record with this line, and I didn’t particularly long to encounter a Malle fragrance I didn’t like.

Dominique Ropion’s 2010 creation is described as an oriental rose. Reviews have been mixed. All in all, I was feeling a bit underwhelmed and not extremely interested in Portrait, so I put testing it off for a while.

Aside from my starting difficulties with Musc Ravageur, I only ever loved everything Malle has offered until now. I didn’t want to change that.

But after my dear husband procured a sample for me (he has an uncanny ability to separate unwilling SA’s from their scarce samples, without his charm, I would have a lot less to talk about on this blog), I had to face the truth: Another winner from Malle, or the first scrubber for me?

Portrait of a Lady starts with a fruity note, closely followed by a flood of rose. You really have to like rose, because there is no going around it here. Rose is there right from the start and in your face all the time until the extreme drydown, where it fades out slooooooooowly.

The omnipresent rose’s best friend is patchouli. The two make up the majority of this rich composition. The latter propping up the dew-heavy rose petals like an earthy and dry scaffolding. Musc and sandalwood complete the oriental accord of the drydown. The promised benzoin and incense I do not smell every time, to my disappointment. I could have used a bit more sweetness and darkness to counterpoint the magnified rose. After several wearings though, the deeper, smokier layer of the base was more noticeable to me, maybe I got used to the BIG rose, or I learned to see more than this one facet to Portrait. It is definitely a perfume that needs time. Time to be appreciated in its entirety, not one of those you fall for at first sniff. At least for me.

The wear time is excellent, Portrait accompanies me for at least seven or eight hours. Sillage is stronger than average in the beginning, although it calms down considerably about twenty minutes into wearing.

When I close my eyes and breathe deeply I see the eponymous Lady before me, clad in the finest fur, wearing an adventurous hat, preferably with a veil attached, her lips are crimson, her beauty considerable, but stern. She is funny, but a little cruel, she is endlessly sophisticated, but she is the first to fling her high heels into the corner when coming home. She is restrained in public, and lets loose under circumstances, where she feels safe, which is not often. She loves red roses and always has a big bouquet at home, but she forgets to change the water, or expects someone to do it for her who forgets, so the water is murky and stale, and the roses are still holding on, but on the brink of giving it to neglect and letting their petals droop – but not quite yet.

So how do I like it?

After the first day of wearing, I thought it nice, I would gladly take it if I got it as a gift, but felt no need to own it.

After the second day of wearing I felt the first pangs at the dropping level of my tester vial.

After the third wearing, I started to be cross when life forced me to separate my nose from my wrist in order to function.

On the fourth day of wearing it gave me a bit of a headache – setback!

On the fifth day, my nose was back at the wrist, all was well with the world.

I let you draw your own conclusions.

Picture source: editionsdeparfums.com, myvintagevogue.com, some rights reserved, thank you!
Posted in Floral, Fragrance Reviews, Frederic Malle, Oriental | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 40 Comments