Atelier des Ors Larmes du Desert & Cuir Sacre

Posted on August 1, 2016 by Kafkaesque

Larmes du Desert. Source: Fragrantica

Atelier des Ors is a relatively new French niche house that arrived on the scene in 2015 with five eau de parfums, including the two subjects of today’s review, Larmes du Desert and Cuir Sacre. (Both fragrances are officially spelt with accents as Larmes du Désert and Cuir Sacré, but I’m skipping them for the sake of speed and convenience.)

Atelier des Ors was founded by Jean-Philippe Clermont who is also the artistic director for the brand. All the fragrances are eau de parfums that were created by Marie Salamagne. All of them come in glass bottles cut in an Art Deco design and filled with 24k gold flakes. I generally am not one to either get excited about packaging or to comment on it, but I must say the photos I’ve seen for some of the bottles really turned my head. The Art Deco-style sun flares cut into the glass look gorgeous!

Atelier des Ors fragrances. Source: Fragrantica.

Ateliers des Ors Larmes du Desert (right) & Cuir Sacre (left). Source: Extrait.it

Atelier des Ors Larmes du Desert (right) & Cuir Sacre (left). Source: Extrait.it (Direct website link embedded within.)

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Aedes de Venustas Palissandre d’Or

Posted on July 30, 2016 by Kafkaesque

Palissandre d’Or. Source: aedes-parfums.com

Fragrant Indian rosewood is the focus of Palissandre d’Or, a spicy woody-amber fragrance from Aedes de Venustas. It is an eau de parfum that was created by Alberto Morillas and released in 2015. However, even though it was inspired by Indian rosewood, it is not literally and actually a rosewood fragrance, only metaphorically so. To put it bluntly, this is the scent of an “imaginary wood,” and I’m quoting Aedes de Venustas’ own words when I say that:

The idea for the house’s fifth offering was sparked off by the Indian rosewood tree also known as Dalbergia sissoo, which has historically been the primary rosewood species of northern India.

Rather than a specific essence, it was the word “palisander”, redolent of intricate Oriental carvings and serene Asian groves, which provided the inspiration. “I can’t make overly figurative fragrances”, Alberto Morillas explains. “To me, a perfume is a melody.” With Palissandre d’Or, he draws mesmerizing music from this imaginary wood.

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Ajmal: 13 Reviews En Bref (Eau de Parfums & Attars)

Posted on July 18, 2016 by Kafkaesque

Ajmal Dahn Al Oudh Nayyir via ajmalperfume.com

Ajmal is a Middle Eastern brand with a long history. Founded in 1951 in India and now apparently based in the United Arab Emirates or GCC (Gulf countries), Ajmal has over 300 fragrances in its portfolio. The quality seems to vary across the range which consists of low-end mall fragrances at one end, some Euro-Arab eau de parfums in the middle, and some “Dahn Al Oudh” attars that I’ve heard great praise for at the other end. Unfortunately, the latter were not what I was given for review. I seem to have gotten the low to middle end of the stick, alas.

There is a long story behind this post that I think you must understand in order to make sense of what is to follow. Ajmal was at Esxence Milan earlier this year to show off its wares. A friend stopped by and asked for samples for me to review. From his account, I have the sense that the Ajmal’s assistants were harried and also didn’t understand the whole blogging issue, either. They seemed confused, so they quickly handed over a big armful of samples, and that was that. No time was expended to provide the best of the best in a carefully curated selection, although my friend did try to ask for a few attars. They disgorged a heaping pile of 20 carded manufacturers samples, and moved on.

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Amouage Myths (Men)

Posted on June 25, 2016 by Kafkaesque

Myths Man (left) and Woman (right). Source: Fragrantica.ru

Reviews often begin with some insightful, interesting, witty, or encapsulating sentence, but I can’t think of anything to start a discussion of Amouage‘s Myths for Men, perhaps because the scent leaves me feeling too apathetic to summarize it or to be eloquent. So I’ll just get straight to the basics. It’s an eau de parfum, it was inspired by surrealism, and its notes, according to Amouage, are:

Chrysanthemum, orris, rum, rose, vetiver, elemi, labdanum, ashes and leather.

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