Visar inlägg med etikett Donna Karan. Visa alla inlägg
Visar inlägg med etikett Donna Karan. Visa alla inlägg

måndag 29 juni 2015

Arquiste - Quick Impressions 3(3)


My final entry regarding my quick impressions of the Arquiste line.
Picture: Aleksandr Pushkin (1799-2837)
AuthorV.A.Tropinin (cc) Wikimedia commons
Aleksandr: Inspired by Aleksandr Pushkins last duel in St.Petersburg  January 1837 Aleksandr highlights fresh green notes in a cold context, notes as fir,neroli, violet leaves and leather. The fragrance is elegant and subtle but to md the mixed ingredients almost smells like a smooth anise over soft suede and a fine vanillanote. An easy to wear everyday scent, classified as masculine but could also be worn by women IMO. Sillage is close and longevity for almost a day.

Picture: Still life with lemons, oranges and rose, 1633
Painting by Francisco de Zurbarán (1598-1664)
Wikimedia commons
L'Etrog: Inspired by Medieval Calabria, October 1175, where a family gathers to celebrate a good harvest. Starts with a sunny, yellow true smelling lemon, followed by a light, fresh in the same time a bit dark, ripe, fruity sweet note which ends up in a scent similar to fresh tobacco. Then L'Etrog softens in the lemony impression and get green and woodier during the drydown. A pleasant lemony, green-leafy-woody scent but unfortunately with a bad stayingpower. 

Overall the fragrances in the Arquiste line are well made and very wearable.My favorites are 1) Fleur de Louis, 2) Infanta en Flor followed by 3)Flor y Canto, 4) Anima Dulcis, 5) L'Etrog, 6) Aleksandr.
The fragrances are composed by perfumers Rodrigo Flores-Roux and Yann Vasnier who in a earlier colaboration has created (with Calice Becker) the much underappreciated Donna Karan GoldTaken as a whole, the Arquistes have almost something of a polite and dimmed down Parfume Generale style, which make them wearable to a wider audience than the more distinctive Parfumerie Generale line. The latter is also more affordable than the Arquistes. Arquiste (samples and bottles) are aviable on Aus Liebe zum Duft

lördag 12 oktober 2013

Puredistance - Black

Picture: Odette and Odile
Photo: City Ballet of San Diego (c)
A short break in the ongoing Guerlain-cavalcade as I feel I have to share my impressions of a new beautiful perfume: Puredistance Black is created by Antoine Lie for the top notch niche house Puredistance and will be released in November/December 2013. In the marketing blurb Puredistance ask us just to relax, enjoy and not analyze. Therefore the notelist is not disclosed which of course even more triggers a true parfumista to analyze what could be in that little sample vial.

It would be intriguing to know the notes and I hope Puredistance will disclose the notelist later on. I'm no "notepicker" but I think at least I smell as follows: To my nose Puredistance Black starts with a fine incense and some gentle spices, followed by a dark, ripe plummy note underscored with the woody notes of old oak cognacbarrels and a subtle oud. As the composition proceeds, it suddenly becomes colder and greener, I can smell what I think is pine balm, some traces of an almost fizzy geranium and some velvety, dark in the same time contemporary but clean patchouli over warm resins. On my skin Black goes from warm and dark notes to colder, greener even if still dark, dark like muffled mossgreen velvet worn in a cold, starry winter night.Further on in the second part of Black, the boozy, woody cognac notes appears again togehter with the dark plum, the fragrance gets warm, cozy and comforting in the later stages of the base. I pleasant, subtle smoky note (no harsh edges) also appears in the late dry down and together with the other notes, stays close to the skin for the rest of the dry down.

The vision of Puredistance Black is to be the dark and more masculine equivalent to the bright and light feminine I.  IMO this vision has been fullfilled, this is like Odile and Odette, resembling each other, beautiful and graceful, but in the same so time different in character. Both Black and I are subtle and refined fragrances, Black dark and mysterious, I bright and shining. Black also deliver on the promise to slowly unfold its layers and this proecess is continuing during the whole extended drydown, longevity is minimum 24h for me, when showering of the pefume after one days, it's still unfragmented and full in its texture..

Even if not particularly original as a composition, Puredistance Black is (as always with Puredistance) a very well made and wearable fragrance, of high quality ingredients and with good sillage and longevity. It's interesting to wear and a fragrance which wins in the long run. Black is definitly unisex even if lending slightly to the masculine side. The first part of the fragrance is more feminine than the second, Black becomes more masculine when the (which I guess is) pine and geranium notes appears. In it's third stage, where the warmer notes are re-appearing Black becomes more feminine again.  When it comes to resembling fragrances I think the first part contains elements from and reminds me in style of Serge Lutens Boxeuses (swe) (but without the leather and less sweet) and Annick Goutal  Mon Parfum Cheri, par Camille (swe) but drier in texture than the latter. In the cooler part of the drydown I find traces of Robert Puguet Oud but Black is more gentle and quiet in style. Another fragrance which comes to my mind when wearing Puredistance Black is Donna Karan Black Cashmere and the great Le Parfum Couture Denis Durand for M.Micallef but clean, polished and well behaved in character compared to the dangerous latter.

Rating: 5

Notes: Not disclosed but woody oriental - see my guesses above.

onsdag 4 september 2013

Mission completed!


An adventurous colluege and me couldn't resist (despite all negative sayings that it's not possible to see the President) going to this institution not far away from our office where Barck Obama made one of his visits. Here he is, in the Beast, photographed by my colleague (all credits to her for the picture:-), we saw him waving when passing the crowd.
It will be fun reporting in the office tomorrow - We did it !!!

SOTD: I dug up my sample of Tommy Girl from Tommy Hilfiger, I'm a little weak for this sort of honest, american applepie, american dream, styled scent, Calice Becker did a good job here, as almost always. And Barack Obama is indeed the image of the american dream, the regular guy who through hard work reached the highest position in the world. Mr Parfumista also chosed american but a more sofisticated style: DK Man in its original 90s version.

tisdag 3 september 2013

Welcome Mr President!

Picture: President Barack Obama
Official photo from whitehouse.gov
Tomorrow, the most important visit in the history of Stockholm (so far) will happen: The President of the United States of America, Barack Obama will visit our capital for one days. Stockholm is under surveillance and there will be a gigant traffic jam as early as hours before Air Force One is approaching Arlanda Airport. The President will visit an institution a few hundred  meters from my office and today we have debating  whether or not we have a chance to see a glimpse of him if going there. Unfortunately it's just to realise it's better watching the webcast but it's so irritaing having the most powerful man in the world as near as tomorrow and not beeing able to see him :-(

To celebrate this great event tomorrow there will of course be an american SOTD, something from Estee Lauder, Donna Karan or why not my favorite american Amoureuse from Parfums DelRae.

fredag 14 december 2012

Frapin - Caravelle Epicée

Picture: The Noord-Nieuwland in Table Bay, 1762, oil on canvas
by anonymous artist, Cape Town, South Africa
Caravelle Epicée is a fragance that I tried some years ago and liked very much but than went on sampling other frags and havn’t come to test it again than recently. And I have to say that like this beautiful spicy creation at least as much this time. Caravelle Epicée is a unisexfragrance in my book and its created for the perfumehouse of Frapin, not for the beveragesdivision J by Jeanne-Marie Faugier.

Caravelle Epicée starts with a gentle, very true, spicy accord. I can smell different shades of pepper, cummin, saffron, nutmeg and other spices in a wellblended mix where the spices are interacting and none is dominating over the rest. The accord is in the same time soft in character. After a while CE:s spicyness becomes creamy in texture, there are also woody notes which balances the spices. There are also notes of dry coconut, as the smell from the coconut shell from a unopend nut. When Caravelle Epicée reaches the basenotes there is a slight sweet woody note, putty in character, probably from sandalwood. In this stage, Caravelle Epicée reminds me of an unsweet Bois de Paradis by Parfum DelRae, without the sweetened berry and plummy notes of the latter. There is also smilarities with the basenotes of Yves Saint Laurent NU Edp and also something similar to the base of Donna Karan Black Cashmere. Caravelle Epicée has a dark, rich and vevety dept in the basenotes that triggers the imagination. Caravelle Epicée mediates something vintage. Not exactly a vintage smelling perfume but the images of times that have gone. More exactly the image of an elegant lady from the Jugendera (Art Noveau) dressed for the winter season in silkvelvet in muted colors and fur. Or the image an old sailingship “Caravelle” carrying the valuable spices over the oceans on the old spice route.

Caravelle Epicée is one of the best spicy fragrances I have tried, if not the best. It’s wellcrafted and balanced, comfortable, feels very natural, as the percieved notes where the real spices and wood. Caravelle Epicée is a fragrance which creates images and makes the wearer daydreaming of sailing ships carrying its precious cargo over the oceans or about elegant art noveau ladies. There is something in the overall impresson that reminds me of a sort of soft Opium by Yves Saint Laurent but with much more spices and without carantion and cloves. Also Idole by Lubin comes to my mind but that one is airier and somehow lighter, more of a sommer spicy fragrance.

As indicated above, Caravelle Epicée is perfect for winter, and espceially as a Christmas fragrance, with its delicious, spicy apperance. Sillage is close and longevity good, for a day at least.

Rating: 5

Notes: Nutmeg, coriander; chili pepper, pepper, caraway, guaiac wood, sandalwood, amber, patchouli, tobacco.

söndag 2 januari 2011

Mer av Parfumistans reviewer - Designerdofter

För att underlätta läsandet så länkar jag i det här och följande inlägg direkt till de reviewer som jag skrev på Parfumistans dagbok i våras/somras. Har delat in i kategorier för att förenkla sökningen. Börjar med kategorin designer-dofter:

Burberry (original): http://blogg.expressen.se/parfumistansdagbok/entry.jsp?messid=592834 , http://blogg.expressen.se/parfumistansdagbok/entry.jsp?messid=592832

Miss Dior: http://blogg.expressen.se/parfumistansdagbok/entry.jsp?messid=597125

Dior Dune: http://blogg.expressen.se/parfumistansdagbok/entry.jsp?messid=598149

Dior Escale à Portofino: http://blogg.expressen.se/parfumistansdagbok/entry.jsp?messid=598785

Donna Karan Gold EDT: http://blogg.expressen.se/parfumistansdagbok/entry.jsp?messid=597707

Bulgari pour Femme: http://blogg.expressen.se/parfumistansdagbok/entry.jsp?messid=597788

Eaudemoiselle de Givenchy: http://blogg.expressen.se/parfumistansdagbok/entry.jsp?messid=598001

Prada Eau Ambreé: http://blogg.expressen.se/parfumistansdagbok/entry.jsp?messid=598782

Prada Infusion deVétiver: http://blogg.expressen.se/parfumistansdagbok/entry.jsp?messid=599456

Eau de Sisley 3: http://blogg.expressen.se/parfumistansdagbok/entry.jsp?messid=598786

Sisley Soir de Lune: http://blogg.expressen.se/parfumistansdagbok/entry.jsp?messid=614604  http://blogg.expressen.se/parfumistansdagbok/entry.jsp?messid=614606

Romeo di  Romeo Gigili: http://blogg.expressen.se/parfumistansdagbok/entry.jsp?messid=603876

Thierry Mugler Cologne: http://blogg.expressen.se/parfumistansdagbok/entry.jsp?messid=614609 
http://blogg.expressen.se/parfumistansdagbok/entry.jsp?messid=614611

I följande inslag niche-reviewer.

OBS: Eventuella kommentarer på något av inläggen lämnas här då jag inte checkar av Parfumistans dagbok

söndag 16 maj 2010

Dagens doft - Donna Karan Gold EDT

Donna Karans Gold är en företrädesvis trä och liljedoft med en lätt kryddighet som tyvärr blev mycket kortvarig i den svenska butikshyllorna. Inte heller internationellt blev den här fina doften konstigt nog någon försäljningssuccé. Gold anses av parfymtyckare tillhör de bästa liljedofterna i linje med Frederic Malles  Lys Mediterranée och Serge Lutens Un Lys. Har inte luktat på Un Lys men har provat Lys Mediterranée och på mig är Gold den överlägsna av de två. Gold är skapad av Yann Vasnier, Calice Becker och Stephen Nielson. Calice Becker tillhör för övrigt "doftprofessorn" Luca Turins favoritparfymörer och har bland annat skapat några av det hypade huset By Kilians dofter.
Gold är strikt elegant och blir inte tung och sövande som vissa liljedofter. Den behåller en lätt spritsighet under hela dagen och är ofragmenterad fram på kvällen. Jag bar den under två dagar på raken i veckan under tuffa förhållanden båda dagarna, och ändå denna hållbarhet. Doften en lätt genomskinlig men ändå guldig känsla, ungefär som ljuset en solig men lätt disig sommarkväll. Färgen på Gold illustrerar perfekt de intryck som doften förmedlar.

Gold är tillhör segmentet "bättre mainstrem" sk designerdofter. Men den är som sagt  i klass med nischhusen Malle och Lutens liljedofter och långt överlägen mycket som produceras av sk nischhus. Donna Karans dofter (ej DKNY linjen även om den är en bra "mainstreamlinje") är generellt mycket bra och av hög kvalitet så här kan man få motsvarande bra nischdoft till bra pris. Eftersom Gold säljs ut så är den för närvarande mycket prisvärd. Men den kommer säkert att bli dyr framöver när lagret sålts ut. Ett investeringsobjekt med andra ord.

Betyg: 4+

onsdag 4 juli 2007

Dagens doft - Cashmere Mist


Bild:Perfume Empoirum.com
Cashmere Mist från Donna Karan 1994 är en doft jag inte blir riktigt klok på. Jag gillar den på ett sätt men det är samtidigt inte en doft jag direkt längtar efter att få använda. Jag tycker personligen inte att denna vita, träiga blomdoft har så mycket med cashmere att göra. Mig ger orientaliskt vaniljiga eller kryddiga och mörka dofter en mycket närmare känsla av cashmere.
Ska jag kategorisera CM i sommar eller vinterdoft så är det för mig en sommardoft som dessutom klarar av att sitta kvar även om det är varmt. Doften känns modern, syntetisk och urban samt har en tydlig närvaro i rummet.En speciell pudrig och mockaartad ton är tydlig i CM. Doften är  linjär och de olika stegen i doftpyramiden interagerar på ett sätt som gör att CM luktar likartat hela dagen. CM passar bra under dagtid och har en viss kylighet som gör den lämpad för situationer där det krävs kontroll tex förhandlingar.
Cashmere Mist inleds med bergamott och grönt. I mellannoterna tonar liljekonvalj, jasmin och violrot fram. Allt vilar på en bas av mysk, ambra, sandelträ och lite vanilj.
CM är inte en doft i mängden utan den har sin egen stil. Donna Karans dofter är ofta avantgardistiska och anses generellt vara bra även bland doftsnobbar. Faktum är att jag har trivts med CM allt bättre under dagen. Måste umgås lite oftare med CM framöver!