Like hyacinth and lilacs

I'm Theodore, Teddy, Theo (looking forward to the nicknames you can come up with), he/him (it's a pronounce page link where you can find out everything about my identities and preferred referrals), born in 2001 you do the math.

This is, as said above, my perfume themed side blog. I don't know how active am I going to be here or how long is this thing going to last, but I need to put these thoughts somewhere. I'm a complete immature dilettante in it, for what I'm sorry in advance.

My fragrantica account.

Tags:

#teddy's perfume shelf - "reviews" of perfumes I have.

#at the alchemist - brief impressions of many perfumes from the store.

#aromatic desires - "reviews" of perfumes I tried and want to own.

For now I'm mostly translating and reposting old posts from here but some new stuff is already there too.

500 Years by Etat Libre d'Orange - sweet sweet rose, with a bit of cocoa powder on it, can't really say much more about it. Nice and simple.

Experimentum Crucis by Etat Libre d'Orange - surprisingly not much rose in this one - sweeter at the top, woodier and with more patchouli at the bottom, the rose is spread thinly throughout the whole thing. Also pretty good, but not awfully unique.

Hermann A Mes Cotes Me Paraissait Une Ombre by Etat Libre d'Orange - now that's more interesting, a whole lot of unique notes like earth after rain, specific rare woods and synthetic sea breeze. Also again rose. Actually has a lot of wateriness to it, after a while becomes wet rose and at the end is mostly fresh black currant leaves. Will return to it.

Noel au Balcon by Etat Libre d'Orange - sweet apricots at the top and sweet slightly spicy tangerines at the bottom. At the very end feels like faint cinnamon. Pleasant and fitting to the literal meaning of its title.

Remarkable People by Etat Libre d'Orange - bright grapefruit juice with bubbles from the champagne that with time becomes white flowers (it says jasmine, but I feel something else too) and leathery notes from labdanum. Very very interesting development - will return to this one as well.

Tilda Swinton Like This by Etat Libre d'Orange - realistic pumpkin spice (with actual pumpkin that is) at the top, that unfortunately fades pretty quickly into something just sweet.

106 damascena rose, davana, vanilla by Bon Parfumeur - was looking for an affordable rose and at first was a little disappointed because at the start it's just kind of generically sweet, but hen does get pleasantly rosy - still remains very sweet though. Might return to it.

402 vanilla, toffee, sandalwood by Bon Parfumeur - very basic sweetness, surprisingly not syrupy or too much, but I wouldn't say it's anything special.

902 armagnac, blond tobacco, cinnamon by Bon Parfumeur - I mostly feel here cognac and fruits and spices that are supposed to help emulate the smell of actually good alcohol. Tobacco is somewhere in the background and I'm not sure if it's ever lit - mostly just dried leaves. Very pleasant especially for its price, will return to it.

Black Angel by Mark Buxton - very very refreshing (especially at the start) spicy citruses. The specific (quite unusual) combination of spices makes it quite interesting. Doesn't last too long though, the base is quite light and nice. Might return to it as well.

Sleeping with Ghosts by Mark Buxton - didn't quite get this one... It's pretty light and I don't really feel leather, but I also can't call it generically fruity and/or flowery - it's odd but too faint to actually distinguish any notes. Still no idea what quince is supposed to smell like...

Le Male by Jean Paul Gaultier - tried this one more out of curiosity than actually thinking it'd be good, but was surprised. I almost don't feel any sweetness here, even though there's an abundance of sweet notes and vanilla is the top voted of them. I feel it as aromatic and even a little salty (sandalwood?) - maybe there's some sweetness to balance it out and not make it too bitter or spicy, but it's generally pretty pleasant. As much as male designer fragrances are usually hated - this definitely doesn't deserve hate. (Who am I to talk though, I like classical Boss.)

Freedomland by Mandarina Duck - I've tried this one forever ago and I didn't like it at all, but I've something good about it recently and decided to give it a second chance and I didn't regret it - it's like a good tropical fruits bubble gum - not regular one but like the Dirol with ice crystals - something that blows up in your mouth with a hundred of tiny refreshing explosions. Simple and very pleasant, total summer vibes.

Resort Lovers by Mandarina Duck - this one is also decent but I prefer different take on "smells of cleanliness" - it does give a bit of laundry detergent - but not enough to be The Muse, and a bit of floral cleanliness but not enough to be Pure Musc or Idylle. Okay, but not my thing.

Barefoot on the rainbow by VDOHNI - very green and fresh, even a little bubbly, even though there isn't anything that can give the carbonation effect. It's pleasant but has pretty poor longevity (as well as other three, unfortunately).

Mint moon by VDOHNI - similar to the previous one in its freshness, but much more specifically green, however I wouldn't say tea is especially prominent. (I hoped it would be.)

Russian soul by VDOHNI - this was surprisingly sweeter than I expected it to be - maybe because of the berries, but it's a pretty pleasant woody fragrance.

Your ambraskin by VDOHNI - the most long living one of the four, pretty sweet and a bit lactonic, not especially woody.

deScent by MAYME? - this is very pleasant and very light and I'd say it's another case of osmanthus actually giving apricot skins - nice and fluffy. It's difficult to describe it as a whole - at the start it even given me something almost salty? But it disappeared pretty fast. Anyway lovely, not very long living though.

game lover by MAYME? - this is sweet. I mean it both literally and figuratively - I don't really feel the currant here, mostly chocolate and cholocaty patchouli and a lot of powdery notes in the background. It's very nice and long living.

just berried by MAYME? - I know that this is a pun on "just married" but I always first think about "just buried"... This is a very realistic black currant bush - more the bush itself with all its prickliness - than the berries - it's almost not sweet at all. A wonderful thing.

smoky ice by MAYME? - very very soft and delicate tobacco - I almost didn't recognise it. A bit of labdanum of the same softness. I'd call this one sophisticated - something you'd potentially wear with a suit with a casual twist.

woud by MAYME? - wood - also very soft - with a few different powdery notes as support. Simple and pleasant. This whole test made me consider getting a MAYME? sample box - hey have a very nice one.

Archives 69 by Etat Libre d'Orange - so the main note here is camphor and I'm frankly not sure I've ever smelled it in real life but this perfume is very unusual but very pleasant. The main note sure is something I can't describe, but there's also incense and some sweetness from the plum (and benzoin). Will return to it.

Divin'Enfant by Etat Libre d'Orange - genuinely marshmallow with tobacco and maybe bit of leather and some orange flower on top. It somehow reminds me of something and I couldn't tell from the start but putting blotter with its base to nose I'm realising - it's a fancy hotel lobby. Also pleasant and unusual - not sure I'd want to try it, especially since everything on me gets sweeter and I think this is perfectly balanced as it is.

La Fin Du Monde by Etat Libre d'Orange - genuine not very sweet popcorn especially at the start. Not sure about gunpowder - but there's some powderiness to it. At the bottom mostly not too spicy spices. Why is everything so interesting?

Soul Of My Soul by Etat Libre d'Orange - mostly suede with something to sharpen it up a bit - maybe bergamot and rose. I prefer suede from my beloved Tom of Finland, but this one is also nice.

Spice Must Flow by Etat Libre d'Orange - yet another wonderful rose jam - sweet, a little spicy with a bit of incense at the background to stop it from becoming syrupy. Might return to it.

Cherry Punk by Room 1015 - never in my life tried Lost Cherry, so I can't compare but this one surprised me. When I breathed it in at the start, I was ready to say - "Wait, where is cherry?" but then at the aftertaste - when I was breathing it out - I found the cherry - sweet and juicy. But in the foreground there's definitely mostly leather (somewhat soft) and some spices. At the bottom there's much more sweetness, but not too much and the leather is still there, just a bit quieter. Definitely returning to it.

Sweet Leaf by Room 1015 - that's celery. And a bit of parsley. What do you mean cannabis and grapefruit? It's a green salad. It's pleasant - I like celery (both the smell and the taste) - but I'm not sure I'd want to smell like it. I like the brand's aesthetic though, so I'll definitely try more of their stuff.

Danse Sauvage by Chris Collins - surprisingly pretty realistic cognac with woody notes and the plum that adds to the cognac feeling. Gets a little spicier with time but still stays pretty alcoholic.

Oud Galoré by Chris Collins - finally a rose-oud fragrance in which I feel both rose and oud - at the top mostly oud in the middle mostly rose and then somewhat a combination of both. It's actually pretty pleasant and I might return to it. (If the brand doesn't disappear because it looks like it might.)

Renaissance Man by Chris Collins - this is quite interesting because it's mostly spices with salt water and I'd say it has quite a lot of sides and phases to it which highlight different spices. I'd say at the bottom I feel something like cloves, even though there's none in the pyramid.

Tokyo Blue by Chris Collins - this is one of those "let's put every powdery note in one perfume and see what happens" fragrances but it's also somehow very fresh. I definitely feel bright irises - I'd say in fact this is one of the best irises I've tried so far. Will return to it (again if it's still available).

VideCorMeum by Chris Collins - rose jam with a bit of spice and some sweet incense - very pleasant, reminded me a tad of Illuminating Rose by Tree Of Life though that one is spicier.

Lavande Eau de Parfum by Molinard - so I'm definitely not used to that sort of lavender in perfume - the top is quite weird for me. The bottom is very pleasant - benzoin with some added sweetness, but nothing else.

Bad Boy Le Parfum by Carolina Herrera - was told that this is 'niche sounding' and at the top it definitely is - very fresh and herbal and from what I can tell there's cannabis. The bottom is more conventional, sure, quite noticeably aftershave-ish, but not too in-your-face. Pleasant, but I'm not sure I'll return to it.

Avant l’Orage by Maison Matine - just as advertised - sweet vanilla and that's pretty much it. It's not the worst vanilla I've tried but also definitely not the best - I prefer it more baked-goodsy.

Bain De Midi by Maison Matine - now this one I didn't expect to be so nice and yet it is - it's very creamy and it almost reminds me of some yogurty dessert but I can't quite put a finger on it (while I can practically feel it on my tongue) and at the bottom it's somehow fresher - maybe gardenia comes to the centre of the stage. I'll definitely return to it - this genuinely feels like those fragrances that are supposed to feel like fancy SPF you put on while being a fancy resort and sipping on a cocktail from a coconut.

Esprit De Contradiction by Maison Matine - just as the picture suggests this is a very simple and very decent male fragrance with all the cologne and aftershave notes that you'd expect from it.

Lost In Translation by Maison Matine - this is interesting, because last time I tried something with palisander wood it wasn't pleasant, but this one is - though it's mostly fresh tea with some violet sweetness and powderiness and pleasant wood in the background. Nice heavier base with difficulty distinguishing notes (I think there definitely are patchouli though).

Warni Warni by Maison Matine - I was recommended this one as something with noticeable orange blossom, but I unfortunately didn't feel it - it's still nice green and fresh, but none of me favourite fleur d'orange.

Carnal Flower by Frederic Malle

Returned to this one practically by accident - didn't expect to see at the store where I was and I was planning to wear a completely different fragrance, but I definitely didn't regret choosing this.

It gave me a fresh green start that very organically became thick white tuberose - just sweet enough. After a while coconut cream starts being added to it and at the very end the perfume settles into that coconut cream with a bit of white petals in it - very pleasant. Longevity on the skin was decent - a few hours, but longevity on the hair was crazy - definitely a few days and I could have sworn I felt it there even after I've thoroughly washed my head. Anyway, loved it.

Narcotic Venus by Nasomatto

This one on the other hand was planned and yet again was very good - pretty much the same throughout the whole time, maybe a bit sweeter at the bottom, but otherwise - very good tuberose with jasmine - clean and bright. I don't want to offend Mr Gualtieri but it very much reminded me (and 69 other fragrantica users) my beloved Gucci Bloom and I'd say rightfully so - even their pyramids are pretty similar. Longevity is yet again okay and more than enough on the hair.

Why have I united these two into one post? Because I've heard awful things about both of them (especially about Carnal Flower) - that they give body odour, that they smell dirty, that they smell like vaginal fluids and many other negative things and I was very curious to see if any of it is true - but no, for me it's not and I've tested it on my mother, who's very sensitive to smells and who was with me both times - and she also liked both of them.

Cowboy Grass by DS&Durga - I don't know why cowboy but it's every herb (mainly sage) against sore throat on a pillow of pretty tame vetiver - very pleasant and comforting.

Debaser by DS&Durga - hey there, aren't you a very good juicy and fresh fig with both woody notes and slight slight coconut. Accidentally got it on my mask again and didn't regret it. My favourite Sacred Earth is sweeter.

Jazmin Yucatan by DS&Durga - pretty unusual Jasmine which smells like neither jasmine from tea nor like mock orange (that does smell like jasmine sometimes) - there's definitely a lot of freshness from the water and citruses at the top and greenery and vetiver at the bottom. The jasmine itself is a little animalistic at the start (if I'm not imagining it) and much sweeter at the bottom. Loved it.

Notorious Oud by DS&Durga - well this oud is weird and medicinal enough to be niche sounding and interesting but not unpleasant enough to be unwearable. I bet the civet that's looking at me with its big sad eyes from the bottom of the pyramid is also doing its job. Nice enough.

Radio Bombay by DS&Durga - well, that's sandal with sandal and sandal and a bit of coconut at the start. Pretty simple but pleasant.

#Hashtag by 27 87 - an interesting combination of olibanum resin and aldehydes which makes it both heavily woody and freshly cold. Very nice and I'll definitely return to it.

Elixir de Bombe by 27 87 - the pyramid something very appealing - spicy and fruity and sweet, but for my nose there's almost no spiciness at all - at the start there's some freshness from the tangerine and ginger but then it's mostly very caramelised somewhat guessable raspberry (not especially natural).

Genetic Bliss by 27 87 - promised oud but for oud it's practically non-existent - very very faint woody notes - and from comments on fragrantica seems like its not only my problem.

Hamaca by 27 87 - quite unusual in its development because at the start its pretty sweet vanilla coconut but after a while more salty notes come out - from the sea water and sandal. Practically only sandal wood at the bottom.

Sonar by 27 87 - now this is truly strange... this has notes of metal and beer and I'm not sure if I feel the beer but there's definitely a lot of metal and mineral scent in it. It's not necessarily unpleasant but sure is weird. I might try to return to it just to see how it opens up on the skin.

Wandervogel by 27 87 - this is wonderful - very refreshing mint with a feeling of herbal lemonade with a lot of ice. Simple and good.

Flâneur by 27 87 - I was expecting something more floral since there's linden flowers right at the top but it's mostly wood (in the form and vetiver) and some slight added bitterness/saltiness. Pleasant but nothing special.

Argentina by Memo Paris - almost pure rose - fresh and almost not sour, if there's any wood it's very much in the background. Pleasant and simple thing.

Granada by Memo Paris - very sweet white flowers but it's not syrupy which moves it seriously above for example Girl Rochas, though there's a single comparison to one of Scandals and I can guess where it comes from. I wouldn't say I need it, but I enjoyed it - I like that profile.

Inlé by Memo Paris - and another attempt to understand osmanthus and this time much more successful! I finally felt something peachy at the start and some apricots afterwards. I still feel that it's osmanthus and not actual fruits but it's finally pleasant - tea with apricot jam and some added herbs. Will return to it to see if I can enjoy it just as well on myself.

Lalibela by Memo Paris - so I expected this to be tooth-rotting, but it's very much not - it's completely unsweetened coconut milk with some somewhat generic flowers on the side. I surprisingly don't feel almost any vanilla. Interesting thing.

Madurai by Memo Paris - this has every jasmine ever but it's surprisingly almost unfelt - to be honest I have trouble describing this thing properly, but something on my table (with all the blotters) was giving a nice peachy sillage and I'm suspecting this was to thank for it. Also very interesting.

Erba Pura by Xerjoff - I heard so many bad things about this one that I just had to try it and... it's not bad at the start - vague fruit mix, but then it starts becoming somehow sharper and gets a very unpleasant undertone - maybe I can describe it as sweaty. And that was from the blotter - I heard it may be not great on some people's skin.

1888 by Xerjoff - I actually liked this one the most out the brand - it's sweet and slightly pastry-like spicy, but not tooth-rotting and has nicely balancing sourness (I'm not sure - from some of the flowers or from sandalwood at the bottom). Very enjoyable.

Bouquet Ideale by Xerjoff - I actually thought I was going to like that one more, but no - it's somewhat similar to the previous one - but this is somehow a bit too vanilla heavy. Still good though.

Dolce Amalfi by Xerjoff - I still don't know what quince is but it does add pleasant fruitiness and sourness to this one and makes it quite interesting. It has pretty noticeable cloves and balsamicness (balsamness?). Liked it about the same as the first one.

Gran Ballo by Xerjoff - actually noticeable start that didn't skip my nose - citruses and sour berries - and then it's pretty vague white flowers and a lot of added sweetness. It's okay.

Italica by Xerjoff - added points for realness, minus points for making me sick. I'm mostly joking, but I was afraid that at some point when perfume says "milk" it wouldn't be just vaguely lactonic and creamy but would actually smell like boiling milk, which makes me a little nauseous, and that's exactly the case here - warm milk with added caramel. Not my thing - but if you're looking for something like that I would recommend it.

Lira by Xerjoff - this is one of the more popular ones from this brand (I think?) but it didn't especially impress me - bright citruses at the start but then it's mostly just basic caramel.

Mefisto by Xerjoff - the least sweet one of all and maybe on the contrast one of the more pleasant as well - sour citruses and a lot of powdery flowers - fresh and pretty light. From my impression (and comparisons on fragrantica...) it's not awfully original though.

Adèle by Gritti - this is still the sorry tale of me trying to find any osmanthus fragrance that actually smells like apricots or peaches and not like... well, what I usually feel osmanthus smells like - odd slightly sour (maybe starting to spoil) fruit notes. As you could have guessed this is not the case - still how I usually feel osmanthus and pretty much nothing else. Sadly.

Tutù Blanc by Gritti - very sweet somewhat vague fruits (I was hoping for bright raspberries but I didn't really get any) with some powderiness coming from helliotrope and musk. It's okay, but not too good in my opinion.

Girl Life by Rochas - very very sweet - practically syrupy - white flowers - with a bit of a fruity opening. Very similar to the original version and somewhat similar to L'interdits (supposedly even more similar to the original version as well, and not Rouge that I've tried). Nice enough.

Light Blue by Dolce&Gabbana - this classical fragrance has been talked a lot around here (perfume online space) so I decided to actually try it and it's actually very fresh and very pleasant - nice bright citruses straight from the fridge. The sad thing is that it has pretty pure longevity - practically disappears in a few hours.

Light Blue Summer Vibes by Dolce&Gabbana - while we're here I've also decided to try this newest flanker and it's pretty similar to the original - bergamot at the top and all that - but this has slightly better longevity and is a tad sweeter at the bottom (I don't feel actually peaches there though). The bottle is so pretty though...

Signorina Misteriosa by Salvatore Ferragamo - the only reason I wanted to try this one is that I liked the pyramid (and was a little intrigued by blackberry there). Well, it's very lactonic - with all those creamy sweet white flowers and literal milk mousse note - and feels a bit like fruit yogurt - because while blackberry isn't especially obvious it gives fruitiness. Nice little thing.

Absinth by Nasomatto - no idea what actual absinth smells like but this smells really herbal, very pleasantly bitter and even a bit sweet in development. No clue what's supposed to evoke 'hysteria' or 'irresponsible behaviour' either - to my nose it's very inoffensive.

Baraonda by Nasomatto - surprisingly somewhat realistic alcohol and not just fruits that it can smell like, though they're there too. Much less spirit-ish and slightly sweeter in development - very pleasant, will probably return to it.

Black Afgano by Nasomatto - there was so much bark and so little bite... I'm guessing from other cannabis fragrances that I'm actually feeling it here, but since I have no other non-perfumery associations with that smell, for me it's mostly just herbal, slightly sweet, slightly smoky. It is pleasant - especially at its incensy base - but not scandalous.

Fantomas by Nasomatto - now this is something... I would never bloody touch again - it gives exactly what it promises in the pyramid - mostly rubber and plastic with a bit of melon bubblegum at the top - which in my opinion makes it even worse. This smells like a hardware shop with not great air conditioning. At the bottom it calms down a tad but it's still not pleasant. This is not criticism - I presume it was intended that way.

Narcotic Venus by Nasomatto - this is very pleasant tuberose with some added freshness and other white flowers in the background. I'll definitely try it again on myself because I really love tuberose. Still don't know where people find unpleasant body odours in tuberose fragrances though.

Nudiflorum by Nasomatto - here I mostly feel soft leather (that hardens to the bottom) and some equally soft animalistic notes and something fruity/flowery at the very top. Nice, might return to it as well.

Silver Musk Nasomatto - well, that's just nice very clean musk - very very pure, not even especially laundry detergent reminiscent. A little bit powdery.

40 Knots by Xerjoff - very nice salty wood - not too sharp to begin with and gets even softer (and seeming even a little sweeter though I can't quite explain why) with time. Very pleasant thing - even if not the most interesting aquatic ever.

Alexandria II by Xerjoff - this is very odd, because it's supposed to be some fancy wood with lavender but it's so sharp and unnatural - if it's wood then it's wood polish or even varnish. Honestly disappointed, was curious how palisander smells like.

Cruz del Sur I by Xerjoff - tried this one by accident (because I didn't notice the numbers in the title...) and I definitely don't regret it - that's my jam - nice leather, some soft animalistic notes and pretty specific sweetness added by dried fruits and spices for baking. Liked this one a lot - will return to it.

Cruz del Sur II by Xerjoff - nice realistic juicy mango at the start with some lactonic notes for a while (not too much), after a while becomes pleasant tropicana multifruit. Liked this one too, though no idea how are these two fragrances connected - why are they first and second of the same thing...

La Capitale by Xerjoff - very booooring... Some artificial strawberry favouring and a lot of not especially natural caramel. I know a fragrance that costs like eleven times less but smells pretty much the same.

More Than Words by Xerjoff - I was mentally preparing myself for all the possible terribleness of oud but I got nothing. Soft woody notes with generic fruits in the background. Pleasant, but nothing special.

XJ 1861 Naxos by Xerjoff - you may remember I have not the nicest experiences with honey and tobacco, so I was a little apprehensive, but for naught - it's nice citrus freshness at the top, pretty swiftly becoming sweetened tobacco and then just light sweetness. Lovely thing.