Binxcat's Purrfect Fragrance

Kensington Apothecary – Capri 1966 EDP Kensington Apothecary has been on my radar for a while now.   As a beauty blogger, I became aware of the brand some time ago through their skincare line.   I was impressed by the founder’s use of natural ingredients and their commitment to community.   When they made the decision to launch their first fragrance collection, Expatica Scent Collection, I was immediately interested.   I was fortunate enough to be able to obtain a sample of one of the three releases, Capri 1966 (“Capri”).   Capri has been described by the perfumer as a “tomboy floral”.    Of course, many of us in the fragrance community no longer consider fragrance male or female, however, there can be made some distinction in notes of scents which were traditionally identified as owning to male or female. If you’ve followed my fragrance blog, you already know that I personally love a scent that tells a story.   In the case of Capri, the...

Commodity – Nectar Nectar is a release from Commodity in their White Collection.   The fragrance wears on me as a fresh fruity floral/aromatic fruity. When I received my sample of Nectar, I wasn’t sure what to expect.   Nectar may be used to describe things in different contexts.   With Commodity’s Nectar, I find the name both describes the nectar of a juicy fruit as well as the nectar found in floral blossoms. Nectar opens as a bright citrus with touches of neroli.   There is a sunny brightness to the opening and I find that the pomelo and tangerine are evenly balanced.   As Nectar wears, I get a bitter neroli that adds the “flavor” of what feels like a citrus rind.     There is a light honeysuckle that adds a touch of sweetness and lends itself to brighten, almost adding a sunny disposition, to the fragrance.   At roughly 2 hours into wear, there is a background of cedarwood.   The cedar is distant and faint.   More p...

Mugler - Les Exceptions: Fougere Furieuse EDP Fougere Furieuse (“Furieuse”) is an aromatic fougere that was released in 2014.   In general, it follows the formula of a fougere in that you get the fern and geranium (here in lieu of lavender) as well as the coumarin.   I would note the coumarin appears as a base note, however, as the wear of this fragrance is fairly linear on me after the first hour of wear, it somewhat defies the formulaic composition.   Furieuse also gives us the moss and wood components with the wood being fairly prominent in wear. Furieuse opens with an intensely green herbal wood.   There is a freshness to the green herbs and a deliberate depth to the woods.   The fern stands out with a crisp bite.   Soon after, these notes are joined by a spicy geranium and white floral notes.   A smooth hay-like veil envelopes the fragrance and I get what feels very much like the traditional Mugler Alien woods and amber.   Through t...

Ellis Brooklyn – Fawn EDP With Memorial Day being the “unofficial start of Summer” yet the weather having been persistent rain, I was craving a Summer scent.   Based on its notes, Fawn fit the bill. Fawn opens with a sunny, bright, citrus floral tempered with a creamy, milky note.   The effect is reminiscent of warm Summer days, sitting by the ocean, eating a Creamsicle.   There is sweetness to the accord but it is a delicate sweetness.   The initial wear of Fawn is full of joyful childhood memories. As Fawn wears, notes of rose, magnolia, and lily of the valley enter.   The rose is slightly jammy and soft.   The magnolia is lush and blooming.   The lily of the valley is fresh and somewhat green.   These florals add complexity to the fragrance and enrich the opening floral notes into a bouquet.   As Fawn begins her dry down a white musk is present along with a semi-sweet powdery vanilla.   The fragrance is now laying c...

Tom Ford - Eau de Soleil Blanc In the beginning of 2018, Tom Ford launched Eau de Soleil Blanc (“Blanc”) as a flanker to the original, Soleil Blanc, from2016.   Soleil Blanc is a solar floral while Blanc is said to be an oriental floral – although personally, it feels more like a fresh floral to my nose. While replete with a variety of notes, Blanc wears in a linear way on me.   Blanc opens with a crisp, sunny citrus floral with touches of green.   I get an imposing bergamot, petitgrain, bold orange blossom, and strong jasmine.   A heady, sharp tuberose is present.   There are touches of roasted pistachio adding a slightly nutty quality and a beachy vibe from amber and coconut. Blanc seems to sparkle on wear with a feeling of sunny warmth.   There is a slight sweetness to the fragrance that amplifies the florals.   I do not find Blanc cloying yet it is quite bold. Blanc wears on me with moderate projection for roughly 8 – 9 hours. ...

Philosophy - Pure Grace: Nude Rose Nude Rose is the newest release from the Philosophy Pure Grace line.   This floral woody musk launched in 2017.   Based on the fragrance name, I anticipated that the fragrance would feel and wear like a pure rose scent with a musk underpinning.   While I do get rose and musk in the wear, I do not feel that it’s a true rose musk fragrance. Unlike the previous release from Philosophy – Ballet Rose which opens as a sparkling fruity floral rose, Nude Rose opens with a green-leaning white floral blend.   The rose in the floral accord is on the subtle side and does not come across as either a blooming or jammy rose.   Instead, it’s perhaps a soft whiff of a rose petal in passing.   The floral accord itself is quite bold. About 15 to 20 minutes into wear, the green floral takes on a soapy quality.   It’s somewhat like a floral laundry detergent or fabric softener and, assuming you like those scents, would be so...

Juliette Has A Gun - Anyway EDP I often research fragrances on both the House website and on Fragrantica before writing a review.  Like with reading any review, doing so gives me a chance to consider what the brand may be trying to accomplish with the fragrance and also to which category Fragrantica classifies it.  I then compare any brand stated purpose of a fragrance with whether or not I feel the fragrance achieves the goal.  I also consider whether or not I feel a fragrance wears on me as the type of fragrance Fragrantica has it classified as. In investigating Anyway, Fragrantica has the fragrance classified as a floral woody musk.  The brand, however, has designated Anyway as a floral citrus.  So, and spoilers here, I am inclined to agree with the brand classification based on the overall wear of Anyway on my skin.  I would note here that both the brand site and Fragrantica state that 15 notes comprise this fragrance; neither list all 15....

Houbigant Parfums Paris - Cologne Intense “The transportative Cologne Intense fragrance honors the alluring originator composed in 1709 by Jean Marie Farina, an impeccable Italian perfumer who'd settled in Cologne and founded a proprietary perfume factory the same year. Named in veneration of his western German city of adoption, his aqua mirabilis masterpiece became an international paragon coveted by titled European nobility, royals and courtesans. The "Water of Cologne" was ferried into France's regal courts by Louis XV's royal French soldiers and officers stationed in Cologne during the Seven Years' War.” Cologne Intense is labeled as a citrus aromatic.  As such, I was expecting a traditional citrus aromatic.  The opening is supposed to be “Evocative of a clean, fresh, sunny spring morning after a passing shower”.  I did not find this to be true.  Instead, while I do detect notes of bergamot, neroli, and petigrain, these notes do not appear until l...

Dua Fragrances - Desert Reflection This juice is inspired by Amouage Reflection Man.  As such, it is a woody floral musk.  I ordered a sample of this as I was curious as to the treatment of the florals against the wood notes. Desert Reflection opens with a clean, almost high end hotel, soapy floral.  I get the jasmine and neroli in abundance with the rosemary and rose de mai notes being more subtle.  There is a slight, delicate sweetness to the floral which does not seem to pull overly feminine.  The development of this fragrance brings in a well-rounded woody base where the cedar is of moderate prominence and a clean patchouli adds a slight earthiness to the woody note.  Sandalwood lends a creaminess to the scent which smooths and brings together the florals and woods. Desert Reflection wears with an understated refinement for roughly 8 hours on me with moderate projection. NOTES: Rosemary, Rose de Mai, Jasmine, Neroli, Patchouli, Sand...

Dua Fragrances - Queen of Spades In 1834 Alexander Pushkin published his short story Queen of Spades (Pikovaya Dama).  Over the years, the story has been adapted multiple times - into stories, film, and an opera (Tchaikovsky).  Essentially the story revolves around a Countess, who after incurring a large gambling debt, learned a secret to winning at cards by playing three specific cards just once during the game.  This story is told to a Russian army officer who, because of his greed, is led to court the Countess’s charge to gain the secret.  The story is rife with themes of power, avarice, and the supernatural.  As you can imagine, the Queen of Spades in story and in scent is not shy.  Instead, she is powerful and in control, even after death.  Mahsam Raza’s interpretation brings us the Countess in all her complexity.  This fragrance opens with a powerful and bold citric floral aldehyde blend.  The opening is bright and clean with a...

Emporio Armani - Because It's You Because It’s You was a floral fruity blind buy for me.  An admitted romantic at heart, I was drawn in by the brand story line: “Because It’s You is happy, delicious and sparkling: simply irresistible like a ripe raspberry in its perfect and most elegant naturalness when combined with neroli notes. What does this tantalizing young woman hide in her heart? The fragrance is unabashedly feminine, full, instinctive and passionate. Her charm is immediately apparent, like the addictive and sophisticated rose absolute scent. The fragrance plays with her powers of seduction as vanilla mixes with musk, revealing a complex and incredibly deep sensuality. Bold and immediately captivating, her fragrance expresses the urgency of a love that takes every chance to declare itself: BECAUSE IT’S YOU. Discover the power of two with  Stronger With You - For Him . The two fragrances have an alliance that balance & empower each other, as symbol ...

Gallagher Fragrances: iloreN  This is my first test of a fragrance from  Daniel Gallagher . I was so pleased to receive my samples today (thank you so much!) I also want to thank our  John Biebel  for peaking my interest in this brand. So, formalities out of the way, I want to say that I just randomly picked out a sample to try without first reading the name. I wanted to approach this with no preconceptions whatsoever. In my personal fragrance discovery path, I'm learning that with scent, it's sometimes best to let the artist take you where he wants you to go; this is especially true with niche fragrances. On initial spray, I got an assertive bergamot and lemon verbena with a more subtle berry. The lemon stepped back and in came the softest rose you could imagine. It was as if you were standing in an orchard and the neighboring field was filled with wild roses....the breeze carried just a hint of that delicate rose scent. It's a careful and measured hand wit...