Binxcat's Purrfect Fragrance

Juicy Couture - Majestic Woods EDP Majestic Woods (“Woods”) is an oriental woody fragrance released in 2017.   It’s Juicy Couture’s spin on niche oriental woody fragrance and is very different from the classic Juicy scent profiles. Woods opens with an intense woody note that seems to take on elements of an oud-like replica.   There is a moderate patchouli that adds an earthy element and a lightly sweetened praline.   The praline both intensifies the wood theme and adds a slightly sweet caramelized note.   Tonka bean seems to lay in the background adding some warmth and shy vanilla spice to the accord. As Woods wears, some of the initial intensity of the woody – patchouli opening seems to soften.   A lightly syrupy note enters and the wood note becomes somewhat more complex.   There is a somewhat synthetic, but not unpleasant, feel to the fragrance at this point in wear.   Woods takes on a brief pipe tobacco tone and remains a warm, lightl...

Olibere Parfums - L`Etoile Noire Launched in 2016, L’Etoile Noire (“Noire”) is a study of light and dark; the opposites that we each carry with us.   The notes classify this as an oriental fragrance, however, in my opinion, it is also very much a woody one. Noire opens on me with a contrast.   On the one hand I get an intense bergamot and sharp lemon and on the other I get an achingly intense peppery spice.   There is a heavy smokiness from the gaiac.   As Noire continues to wear I get more and more tones of wood.   I do not identify the wood as specifically being oud, as iterated in the Notes of this fragrance, but rather a general deep, dark woody accord.   At roughly 3 – 4 hours into wear, Noire takes on a powdery aspect.   There is still an echo of citrus, moderate spice, woods, and smoke but in comes a softened rose and what seems like patchouli.   There is a dried tobacco leaf as well as a very soft dried rose petal. In the...

Kiss My Sass Cosmetics – Rainforest Fairies (perfume oil) In the March 2018 release of Rainforest Fairies (“Rainforest”), Kiss My Sass gives us a vision of the fairy world secreted deep inside a rainforest.   Rainforest opens with a tart and juicy blackberry paired with a lightly dirty patchouli.   There is an immediate sense of deep, dark, rich depth and lushness.   You can feel the loam under your feet while all around you, life springs in abundance.   Entering into the mix come moss and fern.   They add a further damp greenness to the woody points in the fragrance.   The wet notes do not hold Rainforest down; they are coupled with a lightly sweet and creamy vanilla which serves to add an ethereal quality.   There is a play between extremes and yet the duality of the fragrance does not inhibit its beauty.   In the drydown, whispers of jasmine appear as each of the other notes soften into the background. Rainforest wears on me f...

Imaginary Authors - O, Unknown! Like many of you, I like a good story.   Being a fragrance fan, I love when fragrance and story meet.   I’d been interested in Imaginary Authors for some time because of this.   Luckily, a good friend of mine sent me a sample of O, Unknown! an oriental woody fragrance created by Imaginary Authors.   Unlike many fragrances that tell a story through wear alone, Imaginary Authors provides the wearer with a narrative to consider while enjoying the fragrance.   For this reason, before I get into my review, I’d like to share the fragrance story: ““It is a mystery to me why the further I am from home the closer I am to God.” – Philip Sava At age 65, when famed explorer and author Philip Sava was given less than a year to live, he set off from his home in Madagascar for parts unknown. Leaving all his belongings behind, he set off on foot, hopped a freighter across the Indian Ocean, and wandered into the Bangladesh wilderne...

Atelier Cologne - Oud Saphir Released in 2015, Atelier Cologne’s Oud Saphir (“Oud”) has been described as an oriental woody fragrance.   But (spoilers) Oud wears more like a woody fruity floral on me. I am a big fan of fragrance that tells a story.   In the case of Oud, Atelier Cologne sets us up with an image of the kind of person who would wear this fragrance, “Her decision was irreversible. She would not continue living a life by others’ rules. To see his deep sapphire blue eyes and feel the calm of his voice again were the only things that mattered now. With him she finally felt ready to write her own history.”   This is a person who has decided to be the master of their own destiny.   It is a person who is self-assured and goes boldly forward into the reality they create for themselves.   And, as also evidenced by the notes and wear of the fragrance, this is a person who has decided to create their own joy. Oud opens with a delightful slightly...

January Scent Project - Treebuoy Parfum Oil When I heard that perfumer John Biebel had added another fragrance to his lineup, it piqued my interest.   Currently available as an exclusive with Avé Parfum and later available on the January Scent Project website, Treebuoy (2018) is an oriental woody fragrance offering. It’s no secret that I am a fan of Biebel as a perfumer.   An artist in addition to a perfumer, his approach to fragrance is that of an artist (this is not to say that I don’t respect perfumery as an art form in itself).   It’s one thing to create a beautiful fragrance and quite another to create a beautiful fragrance which also tells a story or shares a journey or perspective; I find Biebel’s scents to fall into the second category. With Treebuoy, Biebel tells us the story of a dense conifer forest.   Like any good storyteller, Biebel makes us a part of the story; this is a personal journey.   I get the rich balsam fir with it’s deep, r...

Kiss My Sass - The Poet I’ve decided to take a bit of poetic license (pun intended) with this review. The Poet sits alone in his room.  The scent of his plummy lightly sweetened pipe tobacco floats through the air.  The smell is deep and contemplative yet touched with a hint of caramel.  He wonders whether his muse will be with him today. As he reaches for his black tea, the steam rises up and joins the tobacco swirling and turning in an intimate dance.  He gazes at her portrait hanging on the wall.  He remembers that lovely Spring day they spent together picking blackberries growing wild.  He remembers laying side by side on that blanket bathed in the warm sun; her skin glistening like cream against the soft ground.  As he turns back to reality, his writing desk calls to him with it’s richly resinous woody voice.  It is a complex voice that is tinged with his wishes and dreams.  Full of wonder and spice.  And yet – he’s...

Mugler - Alien EDP Coming a lucky 13 years after the release of Angel, Thierry Mugler released the oriental woody, Alien (2005).  Alien for me is one of those fragrances I thought I had tried but never did.  So, being the fraghead that I am (also not sure I really like that term), I decided to rectify my omission. Alien is a fairly linear fragrance on me but in no way does that diminish its beauty.  It’s simplistic composition of jasmine, woody notes, and white amber belies the complexity of its wear.  The notes, each handled with skillful artistry, seem to swirl and dance with each other creating a spellbinding scent.  The jasmine is a gorgeous, bright, fresh, blooming floral which has enough restraint that it never becomes overpowering.  There is a soft sweetness to the floral without becoming cloying.  Woody notes blend seamlessly with the warmth of white amber creating both a heart and base that embraces and enraptures. Alien is not a ...

L’Artisan Parfumeur - Natura Fabularis Collection: Mirabilis EDP Mirabilis is an oriental woody fragrance which is part of L’Artisan Parfumeur’s Natura Fabularis Collection.  With the fragrance, the perfumer melds nature and science with the use of created notes and traditional “mystical” ones.  According to the House, it is a “reconciliation of reason and belief”. Before even spraying to test, the first thing I noticed is the surprising color of the juice.  Unlike what one would expect from an oriental woody fragrance, Mirabilis glows like a light neon blue beacon.  The shade is intriguing and inviting.  The presentation of a fragrance with this shade also starts the wearer on the path of questioning…What is Man? Mirabilis opens with a creamy spicy vanilla-tipped musk.  The vanilla does not pull gourmand.  The ambroxan adds a sweetness that walks the line between natural and synthetic.  About thirty minutes into wear the spice, franki...

Agonist Parfums - Onyx Pearl Onyx Pearl (“Onyx”) is a new oriental woody offering from the Swedish niche perfume house Agonist Parfums.  With Onyx, the brand intends to create a blur of boundaries between male and female and create a “seductive and enchanting” juice suitable for everyone. The fragrance opens with a bold floral oud tinged with a suede-like leather.  The leather and later heliotrope and sandalwood cool the somewhat spicy opening.  There is a clean, almost powdery, feel to the first 2 hours of wear.  At the end of the first couple of hours, in comes a complex patchouli and a resinous amber.  The drydown begins for me at roughly 3 – 4 hours into wear and a light cedar balances the juice.  For me, the cedar re-emphasizes the oud in Onyx.  There is a barely perceptible musk in the drydown, however, the usual intensity of musk is overshadowed by the woody notes. Onyx wears for me for roughly 8 – 9 hours with moderate projection. ...

Acqua di Parma - Colonia Mirra Eau de Cologne Concentrée Colonia Mirra is a dark oriental woody twist on the original Colonia.  Despite the opening with the same notes as Colonia – citruses and orange blossom – Colonia Mirra soon takes a turn to the dark and mysterious side. The spicy note of nutmeg and aromatic resinous amber and myrhh bring a deep warmth to the juice.  The spice is moderate and the amber and myrhh are intense.  There is a balsamic almost incense-like nature to the notes as they are blended. A  woody frankincense deepens the fragrance even further while an earthy patchouli winds itself around the notes.  Wearing Colonia Mirra felt very much like walking through a dark foggy wood at night.  The fragrance feels complex and sophisticated yet almost magical. Colonia Mirra wears on me for roughly 10 hours with moderate projection. Notes: citrus, orange blossom, nutmeg, myrrh, patchouli, frankincense, amber

Tom Ford - Oud Wood EDP I received a sample of this Tom Ford oriental woody with an order from Saks Fifth Avenue.  I was very curious to try this as I am a fan of some of Tom Ford’s fragrances and wanted to see what he had done with oud as it’s often a challenging note for many.  My curiosity was further piqued after seeing a number of fairly negative reviews of this juice. Oud Wood opens with a slightly spicy rosewood note.  The rosewood is rich and inviting and the spice feels very much like a cardamom black pepper blend (although the note should be Chinese pepper).  About 30 minutes into wear, the wood note begins to take on a light smokiness.  An hour into wear I get touches of a creamy vetiver which serves to brighten the feel of the fragrance yet not so much so that it leaves the realm of the woody.  At the 2 hour point, notes of tonka and amber reaffirm the original warmth of the fragrance.  The drydown is a sum of the parts being a war...

4160 Tuesdays - Eau My Soul Eau My Soul (“EMS” for the rest of my review) is an oriental woody fragrance created as a bespoke juice for the Facebook group Eau My Soul stemming from the creative idea of one of the group Admins and Founder Christi Long.  The members collaboratively voted on desired notes to use and Sarah McCartney, the perfumer, took it from there.  EMS opens with a bold note of cognac.  In this instance, the cognac doesn’t have an overly boozy quality but retains many of the complexities of a fine cognac: slightly herbal, slightly floral, slightly fruity, and slightly leather-like.  Like cognac the note is instantly warm and inviting.  There is also a cool incense note.  The incense plays well off of the cognac and acts to begin to elevate and add to the complexity of the fragrance.   There is a feel of a slightly honeyed, but not overly sweet, amber adding a richness and underscoring the warmth and coziness of the juice....

Berdous: Selva Do Brazil "Petitgrain from Paraguay, tonka bean from Brazil, and gaiac wood from Argentina combine to create Selva Do Brazil, a scent reminiscent of the sap in the heart of the rainforest’s trees. Fragrantica classifies this as an oriental woody scent. While the notes taken as such would place Selva Do Brazil into that category, I don't get what I would consider an oriental woody juice. Petitgrain, which should really smell more like a sharp and woody citrus, smells more like neroli in this juice. It's a sweet and slightly honeyed opening without being cloying. Both the tonka bean and the guaiac wood add more to the honey-tinged sweetness. There is an accord of vanilla that runs through the fragrance from the tonka bean. The guaiac adds just the slightest hint of smokiness to the base without being outright smoky. Selvo Do Brazil is another light scent from Berdoues. It has minimal projection. (As I have absolutely no clue what sap in the middle of a ra...