Curve Appeal by Liz Claiborne

by

In a recent order, I made sure to grab enough sample and mini sizes, to post up some new reviews and particularly those fragrances that won’t cost a lot. Since, a lot of what I’ve review recently has been more higher end stuff.

So, I decided to grab a few of the Curve flanker fragrances from Liz Claiborne including today’s review subject, Curve Appeal. This one came out back in 2011, but how doe it stack up? Is it actually worth a buy?

What does Curve Appeal Smell Like?

Notes include: pear, watermelon, marine notes, lavender, bergamot, musk, cedar, cardamom, amber, mandarin

Click here to try: Curve Appeal Cologne for Men, 0.5 Ounce

My Full Wear Review

Curve Appeal opens with a strong dose of its aquatic elements, it’s not too salty, but more of just the watery aspect of that aroma. It is joined by a ever-present watermelon, which is flanked by other fruit notes like pear and citrus.

This definitely falls into a youthfully fresh aquatic, it’s clean, and doesn’t blow the doors off with a heavy sillage from the jump. I like the watermelon note here, it’s not one that gets used all of the time, but it does help to set an inexpensive fragrance like this one apart.

Between the watermelon and the pear note, they add even more of an aquatic feel to the composition, as those are both quite crisp and watery sorts of fruits.

They do a good job with this one, not presenting the watermelon as a sort of candied Jolly Rancher sort of aroma. Instead, it’s lighter, with way less of a sugary edge.

Underneath that initial layer, I do get a fairly prominent cardamom note. However, its spice is held in check, by the lavender and cedar wood combo. It does bolster the freshness of Appeal, especially after the opening act, when the marine notes lighten up even more.

At this point, Curve Appeal consists of the watermelon note, with a marine accord, and the cedar/lavender/cardamom solidifying things. There’s a bit of the pear left, but the citrus really isn’t detectable.

Moving into the final phase, Appeal hits its musky and amber scented base. The musk isn’t heavy, and the amber provides, a lightly sweet and warm structure for the other notes to inhabit. The rest of the fragrance, stays pretty much what it what previously, and it rides out the remainder of the wear like this.

You get a fresh aquatic watermelon with some nice lavender, woods, and a slight spice. However, it is more sweet than spice.

Sillage, Longevity, and Versatility

Projection wise, it doesn’t have too strong of a sillage, as I wrote before. It’s light to moderate, not weak, but not a heavy hitter by any means. You’ll be able to notice it, but it does behave like a typical aquatic cologne.

The longevity is decent, but pretty good considering its price point. Curve Appeal, gave me 5-6 hours of wear, before fading. Not amazing, but this is one you can re-apply, without really caring about the cost.

Most cheaper fragrances aren’t really going to give you 8 hours or more wear anyway. This at least brings it somewhat close.

Seasonally, it strikes me as a warm weather fragrance, that wouldn’t be a bad reach during the rest of the year. It’s mostly a casual fragrance, for guys in their teens and 20s. You can wear it to work or just to grab whenever you need to freshen up.

Appeal isn’t a club beast or even something you’d wear for dates, as it doesn’t really give off a ‘sexy’ vibe. For a cheapie, Appeal is a good one to just throw on, and not really need to worry about. It isn’t going to overpower or offend.

Overall Impressions of Curve Appeal

Overall, is Curve Appeal worth a look? It’s decent and smells pretty good. For the price, it would be a solid option for guys who want something super cheap, and also a light and clean fragrance to wear on a daily basis.

It’s scent isn’t amazing, but it is a nice aquatic, with enough appeal to be useful. You get a solid performance out of it, as well. Does it do as well as the original Curve? No, but certainly has its strengths.

Update: I’m not seeing Appeal around much anymore. It looks like it has been discontinued.

London by Tom Ford

by

I’ve had a sample vial of Tom Ford’s London, for the past six months or so, and just never got around to writing up my review of it. I’ve worn it a few times, in the intermediate time, and so have gathered my thoughts on this cent. As usual, I will cover what in this perfume, what it smells like, how it performs, and whether or not it’s actually worth a purchase.

What does London by Tom Ford Smell Like?

Notes include: black pepper, tobacco, oud, saffron, coriander, jasmine, cedar, birch, cardamom, coffee, cumin, and more

Click here to try: Tom Ford London Eau de Parfum Spray, 1.7 Ounce

My Full London Review

London opens up with a lot of warm spice and some oud, which will grow in strength later. The spice aren’t really sharp, but there’s just a wide variety of them. Particularly, I get black pepper, coriander, and cumin. It’s sort of like a spice rack, you’d find in your kitchen joined with some indistinct warmth, and wood notes.

A few minutes into the wear, I get a smokey incense note, surrounding plenty of the cumin and coriander. At this point, I’m not sure what to make of this fragrance. It’s not really pleasant, but I don’t totally hate it either. Pretty much, indifferent to London, completely.

It all comes together as very dark, warm, and spicy. Then, as it dries down, I get more of the oud with some of the tobacco. It does have some similarities as Tobacco Oud, but I think that Tom Ford is the better scent overall.

The final part of the wear is heavy with the oud, smokey incense, musk, jasmine, and the cedar note. It’s probably at its best, during this stage. Less spicy, less sillage, and just more of a subtle fragrance with a masculine edge.

I’m still not completely on board with this perfume, but it’s much less annoying to my nose, at this point.

Sillage, Longevity, and Versatility

Projection wise, the sillage is solidly strong at first, but not monstrous. Then, it comes down into a much more moderate scent. You won’t bomb out a room, but it’ll get noticed.

The performance is good overall, from the sillage to the longevity, which lasts somewhere in the 8-10 hour range.

After testing the sample out a few times, it doesn’t go beyond 10 hours on my skin. Not the best of the best, but great.

When paying Tom Ford prices, this is much more important to me, than it otherwise might be. However, it’s up to snuff with how it performs.

 

Seasonally, I could only see wearing London during the autumn and winter months. It’s a cold weather scent, all the way. The heat would take this warm oud and spice mix and make it unbearable to wear. So, if you’re in a tropical climate, this isn’t for you.

London is a fragrance that you could wear to the office or out for an evening or formally. I wouldn’t call it sexy, it’s more of a masculine scent. More niche, than crowd pleasing.

Overall Impressions of London by Tom Ford

Overall do I like London by Tom Ford? Ehhh, it’s okay, but I don’t really enjoy it. I’ll never understand these high end designers, complete obsession with oud. It’s in like every damn scent they make.

Here it’s quite strong and when combine with coriander and pepper, it can kind of take on a body odor smell, at times. Not the whole way through, but there are definitely spots, where it’s not great to wear.

Again, this one is going to have a very limited appeal. Oud fans, who like lots of cumin and coriander? I guess, but for most of the rest of folks out there, London won’t be worth the price of admission.

Emblem Intense by Mont Blanc

by

So, here is another review of a scent from the Mont Blanc lineup. This one is the flanker to the original Emblem for men, entitled, Emblem Intense. How does this cologne stack up. How does it smell? Perform? Is it even worth a purchase? Continue below for my full take after wearing this fragrance around.

What does Emblem Intense Smell Like?

Notes include: tonka bean, cinnamon, rose, sage, nutmeg, cardamom, suede, violet, apple, woods, and grapefruit

Click here to try: Montblanc Emblem Intense cologne for Men Eau De Toilette 2.0 fl.oz

My Full Wear Emblem Intense Review

The opening of Emblem Intense is familiar. It has that same sort of bubblegum aroma as 1 Million and has a fairly close resemblance to 212 VIP, if you took out the vodka note from that fragrance.

Whereas, 1 Million has a sort of grape bubblegum/leather/spice aroma at first, Emblem Intense has a original flavor Bazooka Joe scent for the first 10 minutes or so. That’s the exact memory that this one brought up for me, chewing Bazooka Joe as a kid.

After that, I get a lot of cinnamon and rose, that sits on top a layer of smooth suede. There is also a citrus/apple blend giving the cologne a somewhat muted sharpness in the background. It is a fresh/sweet/warm spicy cologne with fruity notes which give the composition a bit more life.

As it dries down, the violet, tonka bean, and herbal spices emerge. The result is a hyper-fresh and ‘green’ earthy sort of smell, that has some pretty synthetic elements in there too.

It retains plenty of the vibe of the original with a mix of 1 Million and 212 VIP…just without any of the power or intensity. The aroma is actually quite nice, just doesn’t really stand out on its own.

Sillage, Longevity, and Versatility

Projection wise, Emblem Intense, isn’t all that intense. It’s pretty moderate and seems to be on par with other Mont Blanc scents, such as Legend and Legend Night.

In fact, the sillage seems to be weaker at times, than either of those. It’s still a moderate but not a powerhouse by any stretch of the imagination.

The longevity is just okay, somewhere in the 4-6 hour range, from my wearing of it. Meh. So many fragrances from this brand, all have this same type of performance. Sure, there are some good ones, but they consistently miss the mark.

I’d call this a year round casual wear. It is attractive enough to garner complements but it’s not super sexy or anything. It’s just generic and not a star performer.

So, yes, it is a versatile fragrance in terms of seasonality and the ability to be worn casually or in a semi-formal context.

Overall Impressions of Emblem Intense

Overall, would I recommend Emblem Intense? Maybe if you got it from the bargain bin. Don’t get me wrong, I actually like how it smells. There are enough appealing elements here and the entire thing is tied together well.

The performance could be a lot better and it really doesn’t set itself apart from other fragrances in any meaningful way. It’s fresh and has elements of other popular colognes, but it is priced higher than it should be.

If it’s going to smell like Emblem, 212 VIP, or 1 Million it could at least have some power. More importantly, it should be at least a 7-8 hour wear. This was one that had the right idea, but failed to really make the cut.

As of this 2021 update, I do believe that Emblem Intense has been discontinued. Just as well, I suppose.

Jeux De Peau by Serge Lutens

by

Working my way through boxes of fragrance samples, I have multiple Serge Lutens perfumes to do write ups on. Today’s review is going to be taking a look at a rather strange fragrance, Jeux de Peau.

What’s the deal with it? How does it smell? When should it be worn? Is it even worth a purchase? Please continue below for my full take after wearing it around.

What does Jeux de Peau Smell Like?

Notes include: wheat, milk, amber, sandalwood, coconut, licorice, apricot, osmanthus, and more

Click here to try: Serge Lutens Jeux de Peau eau de parfum unisex 50 ml

My Full Wear Review

First of all, what an oddly constituted scent this is from Serge Lutens. Just take a look at the notes, wheat? Milk? Licorice? The very first few minutes smells to me like pretzels or maybe like a wheat based cereal, since there is that milk note.

A definite strong wheat note paired with sandalwood and some fruity sweetness from apricot/coconut. I don’t hate it at this point and I’m not in love with it…but it’s just so unusual.

Jeux de Peau is such a dry and toasty fragrance, since it is dominated by wheat and sandalwood. However, the sugary/gourmand elements add another dimension to the composition.

Licorice is here, which I almost always hate in fragrances, but just seems to fit in. It never gives me the same sort of headache that I got while wearing Lolita Lempicka au Masculine.

Then, I start to get amber, which only add to the warm envelopment of this fragrance. It’s super food-like and a total niche scent, but it really smells delicious. There’s something in here that creates a buttery scent sitting on top of it all.

I get less of the toasted wheat note, as Jeux de Peau dries down and more milky coconut. Still, very dry and less juicy fruit smells, but still a good sweetness with undertones of spice.

Sillage, Longevity, and Versatility

Projection wise, the sillage of this Serge Lutens fragrance isn’t all that strong. It’s more of a moderate perfume, which happens to last for a long time, on my skin.

I get around 8 or 9 hours of wear out of this Lutens scent. The whole thing is quite comforting and wearing it conjures up so many mental images. Again, not a huge or overpowering scent but it does provide solid performance.

Jeux de Peau is a unisex fragrance, but I think that it leans much more towards ladies. It’s already a niche scent, but I don’t know too many men who’d want to smell like wheat, licorice, and the like.

This is one for autumn and winter, when the temperatures will allow for a fragrance such as this to actually flourish. It’d be pretty much a mess in the heat and humidity. In the cooler temperatures, it hangs around the skin well, and is rather appealing.

When to wear it? Casually. Possibly at the office. It isn’t a heavy scent, so there shouldn’t be too many problems when wearing it.

However, it isn’t sexy or a club beast or anything like that. It’s a comforting gourmand perfume, that is going to appeal to a select audience, but it’s never going to be a scent that enjoys a daily wear status for the masses.

Overall Impressions of Jeux de Peau

Overall, do I like Jeux de Peau? I actually kind of do. Now, I can’t see myself wearing this, but the smell itself is really nice. It’s so unique and has an unbelievable food like quality, I would never think to put wheat or milk into a fragrance, but it pretty much works here.

Not for everyone, but for those who are looking for something unique, this is worth checking out. Serge Lutens does create some different sorts of fragrances and they generally perform very well.

Eau Des Merveilles Elixir by Hermes

by

Now, I’m getting into writing up a lot of the women’s fragrance reviews of the sample scents that I’ve collected over the previous months. Today, is an entry from Hermes: Elixir des Merveilles, which is from the Merveilles line of perfumes, and was released in 2006. How does it smell? Does it last long? Is this eau de parfum worth a purchase?

What does Elixir des Meveilles Smell Like?

Notes Include: patchouli, orange, amber, oak, resin, basalm, cedar, incense, and caramel

Click here to try: Eau Des Merveilles Elixir By Hermes For Women, Eau De Parfum Spray, 1.7-Ounce Bottle

My Full Wear Review

The opening of Merveilles Elixir is a blend of orange and patchouli, to my nose. In fact, it reminds me a lot of the men’s cologne, Black XS from the start. Both are citrus and patchouli, though, the Paco Rabanne fragrance utilizes lemon instead of orange.

There is also more spice at the start of Elixir, than Black XS, but it doesn’t retain that same spiciness throughout.

For me, the first 20 minutes or so is more heavily weighted towards patchouli, than the other notes in the composition. Ultimately, this comparison fades and this Hermes perfume takes on a different character.

As it dries down, Merveilles Elixir takes on a warm amber quality, and the result is quite resinous when combined with the other notes.

It is a sweet, candied orange (with a pinch of caramel), sitting on top of a oak wood base, and covered in basalm/amber.

During this period, the perfume takes on a smokier quality, instead of that spiciness that it originally started with. That oak wood with the balsalm is really prevalent and does add some interesting depth to the perfume as a whole.

Sillage, Longevity, and Versatility

Projection wise, Elixir des Merveilles is more of a moderate fragrance. It’s noticeable and performs well, but it’s not going to overwhelm a room. The longevity is also very good and it’ll have no problem lasting all day.

During testing it seemed to fall in the 7.5-9 hour range. That’s really good, but not the best of the best. But for most purposes, Elixir should do just fine.

Elixir is one for the cooler months of the year. I actually think that it feels more like an autumn scent than winter. It’s good for casual or office wear.

It’s attractive, but not traditionally sexy and I don’t think it’s unique aroma really fits in a night club type of atmosphere. You could wear it on a date or something like that and it would probably be well-liked, just not a complete stunner.

Overall Impressions of Eau des Merveilles Elixir

Overall, is Hermes’ Elixir des Merveilles, worth a purchase? I’d say yes, although, it might not be universally beloved. It has a unique, niche, and almost unisex vibe to it. It’s good, but some might not care for the warm resinous aroma it creates around the wearer.

It does share plenty of similarities with the others in this line, but has enough character to stand on its own merit. For an autumn or winter wear, it should be one that’s easy to spray on and enjoy for the day.

I actually prefer L’Ambre Merveilles to this one, which has a sweeter disposition with more use of the orange and caramel combo. That being said, this is a very nice perfume with great staying power, and can become a part of a fragrance rotation.

If you want a sweeter perfume, other entries from this line like L’Ambre will be a better bet. This one can get dry, resinous, and somewhat spicy. Depending on your personal taste, that can be a reason to buy or avoid completely.