Creed Tabarome - Unusually Nice

Hello again everyone! After a bit of a hiatus I have decided to take time to begin writing about and reviewing these marvelous fragrances again. Tonight I bring you a fragrance called Tabarome from the house of Creed.

When I first started wearing this I could not help but think to myself that I might never review it because of how odd it seemed at first. Upon first applying it, you are greeted with the strangest concoction of sweet citrus, ginger and clean leather and while it isn't exactly off-putting it will certainly make you think to yourself, "what the hell is this?" The first full wearing I gave it still did not do justice to this supremely ambiguous fragrance.

There is a story behind this fragrance, as is with most Creed's, that I find fairly interesting. The original formulation was requested and made for Sir Winston Churchill and is now known as Vintage Tabarome. Apparently he requested that Mr. Creed create a fragrance which would remind him of his home and what was within it's walls. His fondness of ginger root, tea, pipe tobacco and leather were translated into liquid and blended to his liking and thus Tabarome was born.

This fragrance, as stated before, starts out as one of the most odd fragrances I've ever put my nose to. What should be spicy ginger root is actually turned sweet by a note of citrus thereby confusing an untrained nose into thinking it may be something else while a clean leather note sits in the background giving the entire beginning some ambiguity. It is however around the 3-4 hour mark on my skin where this fragrance comes into its own. The tobacco slowly comes to the top and dominates the sweet ginger and clean leather. It is so deceptive that the first time I experienced it I thought I was actually smelling someone else. It wasn't until I was once again alone for about 10 minutes that I realized I was smelling myself...and I was utterly speechless. The tobacco, leather and ginger hang on for hours and hours, gently wafting around you without ever taking control of your surroundings. Don't be mistaken! This is no synthetic mess, it is a true tobacco scent that is as close to anything as I've ever smelled. The leather compliments it, giving it the old-world feeling that I've been searching for...for as long as I've been wearing cologne. The ginger keeps it from becoming smokey and dry. All in all it is a full-bodied fragrant experience that will live by your side until you decide to wash it off. Truly wonderful.

This fragrance, while enthusiasts may know about it, still remains under the radar and it's clear why. This is a persistent enthusiasts fragrance. It takes a few days of living with it to decipher the beauty blended into this potion but once it becomes clear, it is utterly pleasing. A great fall, winter and early spring fragrance and absolutely bottle worthy. Thank you for reading.

Perfumes or Colognes, Whichever You Choose.

Hi everyone, been a while since I've exercised the literary part of my mind and the past few days I've had a hankering to write and what better choice to write about than my hobby? I had mentioned in few previous posts about  being taken to particular landscapes/settings through my olfactory senses when smelling a particular fragrance and how strongly I felt about the emotional tie it creates.

I recently received two samples, one of which I have been waiting on for 2 months, the other was a surprise. They are from the famed house of Hermes (makers of my favorite, Terre d'Hermes) and a part of a non-designer line called Hermessence. From my understanding, Jean-Claude Ellena, who is the in-house perfumer for Hermes, wanted to create a line of fragrance that dared to set a new bar in design-house fragrances. The entire line is marketed as completely unisex and dares to be different in the light of crowd pleasers. Instead he boldly takes his creations into translations of pure essences of plants and memories of places traveled. He combines memories from his own life and weaves them together, essentially taking one part of the world and harmoniously connecting it with another...just as our world should be anyway.

Upon smelling these two fragrances (I have not finished the samples as they are generously sized) I was instantly transported. Poivre Samarcande connects me with memories of my own life whereas Vetiver Tonka takes me to a place I've never been with elements from different parts of my youth. Both of these fragrances achieve a standard that I believe has not yet been set in the world of designer fragrance and I absolutely must commend Hermes for allowing Jean-Claude Ellena to create these fragrances under their name. These are marketing changers in the long run and testaments to what an imagination can do when given the appropriate resources combined with a mind and talent completely unique. I will do further in depth reviews of both Vetiver Tonka and Poivre Samracande in the days to come.

If interested, here is a link to my youtube channel in which I also review fragrance...though it seems I have a knack for getting lost in my adventurous spirit. https://www.youtube.com/user/gallataki16/videos

Thank you for reading!

Creed Aventus - My Critical Review

Hello readers and fragrance fans alike, thanks for joining me again. It's 5 AM and I've spent the past two days wearing Aventus both on my neck and wrists and it really has just been a pleasant experience from start to finish. Official notes are as follows

Top note: Finest blackcurrant, Italian bergamot, French apples and a burst of royal pineapple.
Middle note: Exquisite roses with a complement of dry birch, Moroccan jasmine plus a hint of patchouli.
Base note: Musk with a touch of oak moss for depth, then ambergris and a dab of vanilla.

A great thing about this fragrance is that it only took one evening for me to get used to. That is to say that I enjoyed it as if I had been smelling it for a long time. While I could not find every note in a single wearing, over time as always I found more and more coming to the surface. From the two decants I've had, it starts out with a seriously authentic pineapple note but the pure pineapple only lasts a few moments. Very quickly a smoky scent comes in that is quite dry, dark and harsh, which as stated in my previous review I attribute to the birch and blackcurrant. After about two hours on me there is a new sweetness though that gradually works it's way in. The scent of the french apples becomes clear and sits beside the pineapple while the blackcurrant continues it's harsh impression making for an overall fresh yet deep and dark fragrance. It is extremely masculine and evokes the feeling of strength. All of this promotes a feeling of energy within me as I catch it drifting around me for the first hour or two. At the ending stages, I detect an awesomely sweet ambergris mingles perfectly with my skin for a clean and natural scent and if the weather is warm, the vanilla is there too.

I have found that this fragrance must be applied while my skin is freshly washed and clean otherwise it turns into a terribly nasty smell...which is quite unusual for me. Another note is that while I have received compliments on this, they have been compliments from afar, point being that when my wife smells this she doesn't give me the wow factor that I was expecting from all the hype. It appears that this is a fragrance to be enjoyed from a distance rather than having your face right up in it. The strength in this fragrance is also quite surprising. On my skin it just goes and goes and...oh wait, yep it's going some more. I can apply it at 9pm and I will still get a compliment at 3-4am and the person won't exactly be, "all up in my business."

If you're into fragrances, give this a try...but do not blind buy because this one is risky business. As always I hope you have enjoyed reading my blog and I hope you join me again soon.

Thank you for reading!

Creed Aventus - Power and Energy

Hello everyone and welcome to an entry that may rival my Original Vetiver and Terre d'Hermes posts. As stated in the title, this is the infamous Creed Aventus. Claimed by the company itself to be the most popular and sought after fragrance in the perfume house's current 254 year life span...and I can quickly begin to understand why. Before I say anything else, this fragrance has been reviewed over and over again, each with a different take on the scent and no two quite the same on overall results. With this fact in mind the first time I sampled it, I thought I knew what to expect as far as top notes go because usually those are quite similar on each person...although at times different notes come through at different times. Aventus shocked me and not in a good way either. It was right around noon and I had worked the previous night but did not shower after work so my skin was still quite dirty. I excitedly took my 3 milliliter decant out of it's packaging and applied two sprays to my wrist. It was god-awful. Dry and pungent, smoky and dirty in the worst way with no hint of fruit as the notes claim. It reminded me of the wooden floor smell of an old rollerskating rink. This was literally the most bizarre fragrance I had EVER smelled and was sincerely disappointed from the start. I continued to smell my wrist on and off for the next hour to the point of having a headache, so I took some medicine and went to bed and it was still so strong that it wafted up through the bedsheet. That night I woke up headache free and got in the shower. Over and over in my head I asked myself, "Take the chance...or go with Terre d'Hermes?" I made my mind up, one more try for the legend that is Aventus...bingo.

One spray inside each elbow and one on the back of my neck to play it safe with my previous headache and I can safely say that I was almost literally blown away. My olfactory senses were so bedazzled that my brain went into joyous overload. Surges of energy were flowing through me as I drank my coffee and smelled the bright, fresh pineapple float into my nose. Soon after it was joined with a dark, smoky smell that I can only attribute to the finest blackcurrant and dry birch combining with each other. Smoky, birch-like pineapple now mingling with rich french apples, another sensory overload in the best way. I got to work with a sensation I had never known. Was the scent actually fueling my adrenaline? Without question, I knew I smelled good...end of story. An hour passed, I'm on the floor stocking my freight, blood pumping causing the fragrance to gently project throughout my entire area. A group of younger folks come within 10 to 15 feet of me, one immediately looks up and points at me, "You smell GOOD! That is you, right?" An older woman at least 20 feet away in another direction looks to him and says, "Yes that's him, I smelled him when I came around the corner and it is amazing." I was blushing profusely and could only say, "thank you," a few times as they continued on their way. I was ecstatic.

Same night, new area which was a little more confined, still stocking freight on the main floor and now aware of how powerful this fragrance is. A group of girls and a middle-aged woman come through but say nothing which is the usual case. However, they wouldn't leave. Two of the ladies kept walking back and forth in front of me over and over again, never speaking to me yet hovering somewhat quietly. A literal 20 minutes went by and they were still there simply pretending to stare at the same shelves time after time. It was when I noticed the time and how much freight I had stocked that I began smiling to myself once again, having to stifle a few laughs. I left the area to take a break with my co-worker and came back to an empty area...almost thankfully.

Folks, I have never experienced a fragrance such as this one. It is quite simply the best personal experience I have ever had with a fragrance. The compliments themselves are nice but they will eventually stop and that is when it is up to you to decide whether it is worth it or not. This fragrance is. Each time I wear it I appreciate it for hours on end. It gives me a boost of energy throughout the night and it just feels good to know that I am wearing and smelling of something that feels as if it is of the highest caliber.

I will bring you a post with how the notes work with each other later on but I felt that this entry was a good start. You can at least imagine slightly now how this smells in the beginning and how powerful it is. I do hope you enjoyed as I know this was a longer post than usual. Please join me again for my critical review of this incredibly refined fragrance.

Thank you for reading!

A Look Back On My Favorites

Hello everyone, I'm back again with an entry that will focus not so much on a review of a specific fragrance but more of what I've learned about my favorite fragrances in my collection. As time has passed I have actually began to wear my fragrances based on the weather and my mood, which the weather has a profound impact on. It seems in my collection/rotation of fragrances I have developed a taste for strong and unusual yet pleasant smells, all very different from each other in terms of scent yet all equally pleasing to myself and those around me. In light of my love for writing about my collection and fragrances I have sampled, I have actually started to approach my coworkers and ask them directly what they think of what I am wearing/sampling that night. To this day I have yet to openly offend anyone with any of my fragrances or receive a terribly negative comment and I believe that is due to the amount of research I put into each bottle before purchasing/sampling. This is why I always tell people that if they want help choosing a scent or even simply get started, to let me know...I am sincerely enthusiastic and glad to help.

Now to start with my first fragrance love, Terre d'Hermes. I have worn this fragrance more than any other in my entire life. It is indeed the first full bottle I have ever gone through and I am now enjoying my second. This fragrance along with one other which I have not reviewed, is the scent I want people to know me by. It's strong and brash in the beginning and then dries down to a masculine scent that keeps going and going. In my review of this fragrance I describe it as having heavy wood and mineral notes and while I still hold that opinion as being the driving force of this fragrance, I have since learned to pick out the more obscure notes that make this one so unusual and likeable. In the initial stage on my skin I can now smell a strong grapefruit note which seems to sit on top of an old-school vetiver note. It makes for a predominately sour and smoky scent that I believe makes this fragrance so powerful and masculine in the beginning. As time goes on, cedarwood comes out and takes over as the vetiver calms down. Along with the cedar, a mineral type of scent described as gun-flint also comes out. I can now make sense of this note because of the underlying smokiness of the vetiver, giving the mineral note a burnt smell beneathe the cedar. The three working together continue to make this fragrance cut through the cold wind of fall and winter. To wrap up on this one, those notes hold true until the end when an effervescent type of scent which I believe now is a note of benzoin comes out. The smokiness now gone, it takes on a fizzy feeling to your nose as the cedarwood becomes sweet and the grapefruit reappears bringing back that delightful sourness which ends in a fizzy-like, predominately sweet with a touch of sour scent. This fragrance is a masterpiece.

On to Original Vetiver from Creed. First and foremost, this vetiver is different from Terre d'Hermes. It is the vetiver leaf and not the root, which gives it a green and grassy scent. When I first smelled this on my skin I simply could not detect a damn thing other than it's amazing green smells that wrote stories in my imagination as time went on. Now that I have had time to wear this over and over again I can now detect the most predominant note on my skin, ginger. Yes, on me this fragrance is a sweet ginger bomb and I love every single moment all the way until it is gone...and then I want to wear it again. Upon initial spray, the vetiver leaf dominates with it's superb natural earthy and green grassy scent for about 30 minutes...and then...oh man this stuff is magic. The vetiver takes a back seat and supports the amazing ginger for the next few hours. I have never smelled ginger in another fragrance and I probably never will simply because I will always have this bottle in my collection. As time goes on the spicy ginger is sweetened with cedar and ambergris and the combination is nothing short of astonishing. The quality of this scent is unrivaled in it's smooth refinement. There are no other words for this second masterpiece in my collection of fragrance.

I will end this entry for now but soon there will be a second part featuring one fragrance that I have wrote about and another which I have not. As always I hope you have enjoyed and if you have any questions about fragrance please feel free to contact me.

Thank you for reading!

Pino Silvestre - Tried and True Classic

Where do I begin with a fragrance that is older than me...? I wasn't totally sure how to judge this when I first started thinking of writing up a review because this is another one of those more deep, mature fragrances rather than a fresh, light and easy-to-compliment one. Well to start I'll give a bit of history.

Pino Silvestre, as the name and bottle suggest, is scented with conifers and wood in mind. It is the Italian name for the Scots Pine tree which is native to Europe and East Asia, covering a huge mass of land in between the two. The original formula was introduced in 1955 by Lino Vidal. In Italy, it became a huge hit for what I can only imagine is it's classy quality combined with a fairly cheap price. Like Stetson in the States, Pino Silvestre could be found on the shelves of pretty much any normal drug/grocery store and often was sold in the same package as it's bodywash counterpart...which allegedly is also top quality in the scent department. One day I'll get around to trying the soap out.

Pino Silvestre is marketed as a masculine fragrance and from the first spray until the end of the day, it's obvious why. It has top notes of bergamot, lavender and apparently...lemon. Might as well throw the lemon out and make way for the lavender and bergamot because let me tell ya, the lavender is strong and about as fresh as any I've ever smelled. I keep a vial of lavender essential oil in my medicine cabinet and the beginning of this fragrance smells as pure as the oil in that vial. Now as you would assume, the scent moves on to it's heart note of pine which is balanced out by hints of geranium and clary sage. For the less discerning nose, just imagine a very pungent pine sap scent with other deep and mildly fragrant greens to smooth it out while the lavender continues it's soothing role in the background. Towards the end, notes of cedar-wood and musk come out and are again somehow very elegantly balanced out with even more green foliage notes that you would find in the woods.

I've never been completely baffled by this scent no matter how many times I apply it and I think that is due to it's cleverly disguised simplicity. That is not room for dismissal though. In my opinion this fragrance is extremely soothing to the mind and under an equally relaxed scenario I believe it could provide a substantial background for entering a creative scene. I believe this would make a fantastic fragrance to wear with your loved one out to a nice restaurant with another couple...or even by yourselves. The lavender in this fragrance suggests in my mind that the best time for wearing it is in the evening when you want to unwind or take a relaxing night with someone. The pine, cedar-wood and musk help add to the masculine side while it's extra notes keep it smooth and seductive.

All in all, this is a year-round fragrance with decent performance and a couples mindset (meaning those close moments may last just that much longer =D). The woodiness allows it to work in winter while the lavender and bergamot give it a refreshing quality that will suit even the hottest summer days. A well thought-out fragrance that deserved the attention it got. Give it a try and wear it a few times to really get to know it. It's cheap and I sincerely doubt you will be disappointed!

Thank you for reading!

Tommy Jeans

Hey fragrance fans, today I want to write about a fragrance that I've been familiar with since I was a child. My father got this probably 12-13 years ago during one of the first few summers we lived in North Carolina and it was a complete departure from what I was used to smelling on him. I was very used to the musky and more deep scents from his Polo aftershaves and small collection of others that I can't remember which I believe is why this stayed in my mind year after year. A fitting name for a fragrance in his collection too because he most certainly was a jean-wearing kind of man.

There is not much use in listing a makeup of official notes for this fragrance because it seems to be extremely linear (not in a bad way though). This is a pure and sour type of citrus directly on your skin which doesn't seem to sit quite right with me for an extended period of time. I think this might actually be the only cologne I've ever worn that I cannot wear for more than a few hours before washing off...which speaks for it's lasting power and projection. The ending drydown seems to be very strong on me and my nose just cannot take it. However, this is also one of the only colognes that I do not become anosmic to in the slightest (meaning that my nose does not ever get used to it) which again speaks for the power of the formula in a good way.

For the summer time, this scent is damn near perfect for those dry sunset evenings spent at a ballpark with your friends or when you want to host a small outdoor bar-b-q for your family and neighbors. An extremely pleasant scent that has enough power to get you noticed but not so powerful to make people keep their distance. The few times that I have worn this, I have received compliments on how nice or clean I smell. I really feel it does evoke the sense of warm, blue skies in the summertime with it's extremely bright and sour citrus notes.

Unfortunately this fragrance is no longer in production so if it sounds like something you may like, make sure you get it from a reputable source as I'm sure bottles are scarce and some may be fakes. I hope you've enjoyed another entry from me and please leave a comment below if there is a fragrance you'd like to see reviewed or if you have any questions about any of my previous reviews.

Thanks for reading!

Polo Double Black - Stylish and Smooth

Hello everyone and thanks for taking another moment from your day to read about what I believe to be the superior of the two fragrances from the Polo Black line. Take everything I said from my last post, except for the iced mango, and throw it to the wind because this fragrance, while it maintains the Black in it's name, does not resemble much of it's sibling. I'll list the notes early on here, although I still believe them to be quite irrelevant in the overall effect.

Top Notes

Mango, Pepper

Middle Notes

Roasted Coffee, Indonesian Nutmeg

Base Notes

Rich Woods, Cardamom, Juniper Berry

Now right off the bat I will say that again this smells like a well-blended fragrance that doesn't change much on my skin. Keyword there is much. Unlike it's little brother, Double Black actually has some complexity to it and it's not only worth noting for a review but also noticeable to the casual wearer (When I first started using it I had no mindset of reviewing any fragrance ever and considered myself a casual cologne user). Upon the initial hour or so of wearing it, I get the notes of mango, pepper and coffee...and it smells fantastic. It's strong, masculine and classy without being invasive. Like it's predecessor, Black, the mango note here feels icy and pronounced but the pepper and coffee quickly come in to balance out that icy sharpness with a warm and inviting, "come here and touch me," feeling. I have had a few compliments along the lines of, "sexy and subtle...I love it." As well as a few strangers simply telling me I smell good or ask what it was that I'm wearing. Again, like most of my fragrances, this one most certainly appeals to a female crowd older than myself which I am perfectly ok with.

Now on to the stage where it settles down and lingers on you for the rest of the day/night. The mango scent is pretty much gone at this point as well as the pepper. From here on out for me it's a mix of dark roast coffee beans, nutmeg and a nice tame woodsy scent. Not a dirty woods, more like that of fresh cut lumber that has a very deep and rich scent. At this stage, Polo Double Black is an absolute winner in my collection. My wife loves it, women elsewhere have never said anything bad about it and men alike appreciate it's rich coffee-like aroma. What's more is that this scent will last for a solid 8 hours on my skin.

Unfortunately when I smell this, a lot like regular Black, I do not have images or stories summoned into my imagination. To me this is just a great smelling fragrance that will please your partner and those around you and is sure to be a crowd pleaser for many years. As a final note, I also have the full sized matching bottle of aftershave and deodorant and all three go hand in hand. The quality really seems to be there in the entire line.

Thank you for reading!

Polo Black - Come and Get Me

Hello and welcome back if you are indeed joining me again in reading about our world of smells. Tonight I've finally decided to write about Polo Black, a scent which has brought my ears and mouth more attention than my nose. I'll start by saying that this cologne is not the usual enigma of smells in which I need to spend hours with pulling apart every discernible detail in order to make sense of what I'm smelling. No, this is a nice blend of notes that on my skin project almost perfectly to those around me and I can safely say it has drawn a surprising amount of non-solicited verbal compliments.

                                                                   Top Notes 
                                        Iced mango, Spanish sage, "Green effervescent accord" 

Middle Notes 

Silver armoise, "Lush Liquid Accord". Hedione 

Base Notes 

Patchouli Noir, Sandalwood, Timberol, Tonka Bean (provided by basenotes.com) 

Now as far as all those notes go, I seriously doubt you'll ever smell all of them. In part because of it being blended well together so you can't single out every one of them but also in part because this cologne does not seem to evoke a sense of, "I must smell myself!" This is most certainly an attention grabber and holder and more than likely will be popular among certain types of men for years. I however am not one of those types. What I and others seem to smell though is the very first note of iced mango. It's a very strange sounding smell, I know, but once you've worn this enough times to be completely used to it, you smell the cold that's worked into that mango note. It's like taking your first step out of the door on a cold winter day and inhaling quite deeply...the cold sensation going from your nostrils to your throat is in that iced mango scent. Unfortunately I've not gotten much more out of this scent than that as far as smells go. As time goes on, the patchouli noir and tonka bean seem to calm the intensity down without destroying the projection. All in all, this is a perfect scent for attracting a woman who already knows you. It adds an air of mystery in my opinion and I completely endorse this is an occasional/long lasting fragrance.

P.S. The aftershave is a perfect compliment or even stand-alone in this line. The deodorant on the other hand, sucks. 

Thank you for reading!

Guerlain Coriolan - Unrecognized Quality

Hello and welcome back to my little corner of the interwebs in which I indulge myself and a small audience in my fragrance fantasies. Today I bring you something from a house I had known nothing of until watching a documentary on the contrasts between designer fragrance and private, niche fragrance houses. Coriolan by Guerlain is most certainly a contrast (I typed that while chuckling to myself) to fragrances of it's time. This is another daringly different scent and it's short-lived life on the shelf holds true to that statement because as most don't  know about this fragrance, with a storm of style, this one does not conform to a consumers society...but first, a little background.

The name Coriolan is derived from a legendary Roman general named Coriolanus. To quote one of my sources, "Coriolanus has inspired Shakespeare, Plutarh and Beethoven. He was the man who accomplished all of his goals, not because of his glory, but because of a woman he loved." Apparently the story of this man inspired Jean-Paul Guerlain to create a scent to celebrate such passion, strength and knowledge. Now on to the technical side of things.

This fragrance was released in 1998 and soon after was discontinued, the year in which is was discontinued as well as the reason remains a mystery to me. The presentation and bottle itself, while at first may seem feminine due to it's shape, begins to take a refined masculine tone once the fragrance itself is experienced. All of the shiny pieces you see on the bottle are said to be made of real bronze and when shone in the correct light, reflect that claim due to the rainbow of color that is shown while the top of the spray nozzle is engraved with Guerlain's symbol. When held in hand the bottle feels like something of a small gunpowder flask. Projection and sillage on this fragrance remain a bit of a mystery to me as well although I have received a few compliment only after two wearings. Longevity on the skin though is absolutely fantastic given the age of the fragrance, staying on my skin for over 8 hours while working. That speaks volumes of it's quality.

Top notes: bergamot, lemon leaf, neroli, sage.
Heart notes: ylang-ylang, absinthe, pepper, juniper berry.
Base notes: vetiver, patchouli, benzoin, everlasting flower.

In the end, I make my own conclusion about this fragrance and why it is no longer offered. To me, this is not an everyday fragrance. It is not fresh from either top notes or bottom notes to my nose. Instead it starts out rich and peppery with a hint of thick semi-sweet lemon leafs, progresses to an even fuller, richer statement while the pepper almost completely disappears and patchouli makes it's never-ending statement and VERY slowly dries out to a close romantic scent where the patchouli is met with the slightest earthiness of the everlasting flower giving it an almost tangible texture. Mid-way through this scent though, on my skin, I catch a whiff of what I can only describe as sex. I know it sounds strange but my god is it provocative. The rest of the notes are not important to me as this formula is so extremely well blended that one cannot possibly point out all of the notes within.

Absolutely elegant fragrance that never received the notoriety I believe it should have, and for that I am thankful. It is unheard of, unique and therefore another winner in my collection. Now we'll just have to see what the wife thinks when she gets back from her vacation. Thank you for reading!

Fragrances of Today (my opinion anyway).

It is now 10:55 in the morning, lovely weather today and a fairly good mood as well. I was just outside a few moments ago thinking about my daughter, my future son who is on his way and my wife who are all down in Arkansas for a few weeks. Out of the blue though I caught a whiff of the Original Vetiver I had put on last night around 4:45 in the evening and something occurred to me. Fragrance truly has become a fashion statement rather than a personal extravagance and I too have fallen victim to such trends.

While it's true that I will not wear a fragrance that I don't personally enjoy (why would anyone do that?) I have found that when it comes to big brand-name scents, I look for the, "will this get me noticed?" factor. In my collection of big-brand American scents, I own various kinds such as: Polo Black & Double Black (Deo, cologne and aftershave for both), there is also Tommy Jeans, Nautica Classic, and Banana Republic Slate and Classic. The point I'm trying to make with listing these scents is that they are obvious fashion statements in the big picture. Marketed towards fashionable young men and women who want to be noticed through something that projects an image...and this is not why I was initially interested in fragrance. Alas as stated before, I fell victim to it with the Polo series. Polo Black being the big winner on compliments.

My redeeming factor happened when I was searching for a not-so-well known scent in the States so that I could be set apart from all the Acqua Di Gio and Polo that everyone wears. Terre d'Hermes was that redeemer and over the course of a month it became my signature scent and everyone who knows me, knows me by that scent. It is mysterious yet familiar in it's earth-like tones and I feel like that compliments my personality perfectly. Two other fragrances since have taken me on the olfactory journey that I began searching for and that is what I believe personal fragrance is meant for. I suppose what I'm getting at is don't wear cologne/perfume for fashion, wear it because it makes you happy. Wear it because it takes you back to when you were a child or perhaps even to a place you wish to go. None of us can have the idealistic worlds we want, but perfumery and imagination can bring us closer than we ever thought possible.

Creed - Original Vetiver Review Video

Interlude (Creed Orignal Vetiver Conclusion).

Hello all, just felt like writing a bit this morning since it's been near a month since my Creed Original Vetiver post (which I am actually wearing on my wrist right now). I will soon be reviewing a cologne which I received a generous sample of that lasted 3 wearings but for now I am waiting on the bottle to arrive so I can have an appropriate picture to provide with my review =). It is Dolce & Gabbana's Light Blue. For now though I will finish up from what I had previously started on my Original Vetiver by Creed.

For me, Original Vetiver has become an at-home/car ride scent and it is very very much a staple summertime scent. I honestly cannot imagine wearing or smelling this any other time of the year, it just would not smell right. To sum up the elaborate imagery from the last post, the only other things I have gathered are (keep an open mind here) humidity and spice. Take the smells from my last post and combine those heavy natural scents with a hot and humid summer day. That is the clearest way I can break down the image of, "it's as if the sun appeared and instantly vaporized the moisture from within the foliage and brought it out to hang in the air around you," which is a direct quote from my last post. The spice obviously comes from the vetiver leaf oil and ginger which are used in this scent. Vetiver scents themselves when used in cologne/perfume are generally taken from the root rather than the leaf and thus you get a much woodier result. What seems to happen in this bottle is the leaf tones down the spice/wood and brings a bit of green/fresh grass scent into play.

It simply is remarkable.

The two boys left early that morning. Being so young, it seemed to him that he lived in the heart of the Appalachian Mountains and this trip he was taking with his best friend only brought him closer to what he knew as his majestic home. The promise of morning dew on the fresh grass, mid-mountain with the old log cabin. He remembers the front porch that ran along the entire length of it, the garden that sat in front and the descent which gave way to the small opening in which they began their adventures. As the day passed on the dew would hang in the air, wild apples littered the ground and baked openly in the sun behind the cabin, fallen just a bit too far from the shade of that lone tree. Each time he passed under it, the moisture from the air seemed to hold the scent in place. He remembers the time spent sitting in the open sun next to his friend in what they called the hay-field. The thick green grass waving under the breeze and a clear blue sky spotted with the occasional white cloud. On one side the mountain would slowly tower, it's skin completely immersed in greenery and tall, lush trees...the other was simply horizon made mysterious by an unforgiving forest. Only hindered by where the two boys' two-wheeled machines would take them...never did he realize how much he would appreciate what was before him.

...that is what this scent does for me, and this is why I wear cologne.

Creed Original Vetiver Pt. 1

Hello everyone, please pardon my tardiness on this post but a few weeks ago when I announced that I would review this scent I did not foresee the complexity of what floated within it's beautiful glass bottle. (If you would like to see the full size image, simply click the picture below)

I would like to say that this may be a two or even three part posting for reasons that will be obvious as I go on. First of all let me start with the presentation and functionality of this bottle. It is on a standard of it's own. The atomizer (spray nozzle, pump and tiny straw) should be something that every high-end, complex scent should have, it truly is that brilliant. Just below the pump spring sits lodged a small ball-bearing and it seems to disperse the liquid into the spray nozzle itself in such a way that it wastes nothing. No drips and no raindrop style, large, wasteful sprays. It simply is something you have to see for yourself and I will provide a clip of it being sprayed onto my wrist. Bear with me while I do my best to explain what the smells inside this bottle do for me. Mind you it will be quite detailed. 

The way in which this scent interacts with my skin and different environments is nothing short of astonishing. I simply can't begin to properly describe yet what this cologne does as the hours pass and it settles into your pores. Original Vetiver does not invade you or anyone else's nose, instead it gently opens your olfactory senses for a trip into a multitude of settings, memories and visions. Never have I been witness to a scent that so consistently changes back and forth and then moves on to something else without so much as a warning to it's transition. As any cologne/perfume enthusiast should know, there is always a list of defined notes for each bottle of scent which can generally help a less experienced wearer make sense of what they are smelling on themselves or another and Creed's Original Vetiver is no different because they are extremely proud of their ingredients. I will list the official notes later on but for now I will give my first impressions as well as some family and friend's.

The initial gathered opinions of family and friends have been nothing short of positive. "Rich, fresh, powerful, bright, green, and full of class," in my fathers observation. My brother told me that he caught the scent of woods even and used the word presidential. A colleague and very dear friend from work said, "it seems soft and very personal." When I open the cap I immediately get what I can only describe as the probably the freshest, most green scent possible from a manufactured cologne. As the open air makes contact it's as if the sun appeared and instantly vaporized the moisture from within the foliage and brought it out to hang in the air around you. It is simply incredible the imagery that is provoked upon smelling it before it's even on my skin! It is an instant transport to a sunny field at the base of an old, worn mountaintop of very thick, untamed grass everywhere with spots of decaying blades worked within each patch. I want to point out that occasionally you'll hear people describing things such as wine in such a way that make no sense to the ordinary and because of this, it seems to give them the trait of a fantastically bloated ego or even that of a snob. However, I am here to bear witness that someone truly passionate can appreciate beautiful craftsmanship and complexity and I write this with the absolute unbiased opinion that Original Vetiver is deserving of such notoriety.

I honestly hope you enjoyed reading this first entry on what promises to be the most exciting cologne I've ever owned. Join me next time as I find a way to write a more discernible and comprehensive entry into this amazing piece of work.

The House of Creed

Hello, to those reading, I am simply making a quick entry to both sate my enthusiasm and inform a few people who keep in touch with my hobby of scents. I recently announced on my facebook timeline that I indulged in one last high-end fragrance for the year as a special treat to myself before my next child makes it's appearance. As I await the arrival of the fragrance, which I won't reveal until I find I know enough about it personally, I wanted to give a little information as to help illustrate why I am so utterly excited to receive and review it.

As the title suggests, it is from the House of Creed which was founded in 1760 by James Creed. Since then the technique used in the private yet world renowned perfumery has been revered as the scent of royalty and reserved for only the highest of the high-class society. James Creed and his technique quickly gained such notoriety as to become a favorite of Queen Victoria and soon after was appointed as the official supplier of fragrance to the crown. As the fame of his fragrances' sophistication, originality and quality continued to rise so did the demand. As one article states, "Creed quickly became the fragrance of choice for all the Courts of Europe: from Napoléon III to Empress Eugenia, Francois Joseph to Elizabeth of Austria-Hungary, and Queen Christina of Spain."

Now all the way down the line in our current time, the house has reached it's sixth generation in perfumery with a man named Olivier Creed who has made his way by not only releasing Creed's most popular scent, Aventus, but also by making his line of fragrances available to the public. Anyone who knows me will understand that I appreciate timeless pieces of history and this is bound to be one of them that I cannot let pass. Not only from the name do I derive the timeless tradition...but the scent on it's way to me was worn by one of our most adored U.S. Presidents many years ago.

I hope you'll join me on my next review which has generated enough hype in me it could be likened to a gamer's obsession with obtaining his masterpiece collectors edition box on it's first day of release =).

Eau d'Orange Verte Concentre

Well it's been far too long and I had all but forgotten about this blog I started until recently when I received a compliment while wearing the scent in my original post, Terre d'Hermes. This time I will be bringing you another scent from the Hermes line, a newer cologne based on the original recipe from Hermes which is in turn influenced by an ancient recipe. I'm talking about the wonderful summer scent called Eau d'Orange Verte Concentre. In English this simply means green orange concentrate.

Originally this scent was a simple cologne with plenty of natural notes such as lemons, mandarin oranges, papaya and mango and finishing with a distinct patchouli and oakmoss mixture. To someone who samples a range of high-end fragrances, one could appreciate this cologne and it's different changing notes mostly because they are so noticeable when worn close to your nose or smelled often from one of your body's pulse-points. The, "Concentre," version I have is all of what I have described with added longevity, meaning it will last much longer on your skin.

First and foremost I must admit that the sillage, meaning that after you've left the scene the scent lingers, is not a selling point for this cologne and if you're looking for something that's projects for a full workday then this is not for you...but please read on as you may yet be swayed.

I received this particular scent as a gift from my father a little before Christmas last year and of course I had to open it and try it on right in front of everyone. I was so struck by the clarity of each note, each one discernible and obvious as it traveled through each stage...which brings me to the most exciting point for my experience. I've sampled many scents, both male and female (on other women of course for the latter) but none have EVER struck me as being so simple while maintaining such class! Every single bolstering note in this bottle is directly on point with it's designers description and it's so brilliantly done. This cologne does not offend anyone, it wears close to the skin for a FAR more personal experience for both you and a loved one. I absolutely cannot see nor begin to understand why anyone would complain about this scent if they are looking for a personal experience.

In closing I will type out my personal experience in the exact way it happened as it is extremely personal to my memories.

When I was younger I lived in East Tennessee and family was a big part of life, especially on the weekends. I can remember going to my grandparents (father's side) quite vividly and even more-so I remember the house and what was in it. Picture with me a single-story house with a nice sized living room, a large wall-length window behind a couch, coffee table in front and a soft, fabric recliner to the right. Next to it sat a sort of end-table with a lamp on it which housed a dim light. Everything else in the room was wooden; regular tables, coffee table, desks and floor, even the television had wooden trim around it if I remember correctly. Both of them smoked as well so at times there was a smoky haze which the sunlight pierced in the evening. Lastly, my grandparents had personalities to match giants. I mention this because the most important notes in Eau d'Orange Verte bring me back to that house. The bottom (longest lasting) notes of oakmoss and patchouli are deep, smoky and remind me of old but well-kept wooden furniture with just the slightest tinge of musk. It's almost as if those notes were intentionally kept close to your skin so as to make you want to smell yourself in order to relive those reminiscing moments. Pure, fresh class in a bottle. Thank you for reading.