Same here. A lot of houses I've never heard of before, and I thought I was reasonably up on this stuff.
Seeking out the unknown used to be a lot more fun, but the realization that even if you find the latest new great thing, it's likely to be $250 for 50ml, or $10 for not even a 1ml sample. That's enough to give anyone pause.
Agreed with the surprise on both counts - and I had even blogged about the scent in line with BOTH of those opinions!
I think Twilly is a bit of a daring wear for a guy, but the ginger and sandalwood are so strong, that the tuberose almost becomes the iris-role gender-bender of an otherwise male fragrance.
One other point. I think it's extremely possible that "fragrance gender" is about to undergo a rapid QUANTUM DESCENT from a separation that was mostly "cultural gender" to one that is mostly "natural gender". Stated another way, the "actual" rough dimorphism of gender fragrance preference may emerge from an earlier, more polarized state, that was much more cultural. If people are allowed to "find what they like and people like on them" without the baggage of "does the make me smell like the wrong sex?", we may reach a steady state of much greater fragrance overlap between men and women. There would still be difference, but it would be much finer and possibly even scientifically interesting.
The point further being that calling Twilly d'Hermes "masculine" may well have been ahead of the curve on Luca and Tania's part.
Agreed on all counts. I can't wait to spend some more time with Twilly once my seasonal allergies ease up! You're right about the gender thing too: fashion and beauty are currently undergoing a bit of a sea change in that regard, and it's only a matter of time before perfumery follows suit.
Going through the guide this morning and making a few notes of things to test. Another **** review which I found rather surprising is Boris Bijan Saberi. As a big fan and wearer of his clothing label, I had massive hopes for this one and was expecting something uber niche and powerful. The end result was a light, inoffensive and what I would call a Geza Schoen “B-side”.
Agree this was a massive let down for me. Methinks the 4 stars was really for confirming Luca’s own prophetic view on the use of rhubarb note in perfumery. The fragrance itself is a cynical non-starter, which come to think of it might well be Saberi’s intention from the beginning.
I’m just as surprised at Twilly’s stellar rating. Didn’t feel it deserves the 5 star and still don’t. 3 at the most. I guess the ‘masterpiece’ bar has been lowered in recent years of slim pickings.
For seasoned noses like Luca, anything that’s been done before clearly warrants nothing more than a 3 star. Something novel even if ultimately not particularly wearable tends to rate higher.
Anyway, controversial ratings are what drive online chatter and ultimately the book sales.
I'd to second your thoughts. When I smelt Twilly, I wasn't blown away. I simply thought it was a pleasant, if somewhat domesticated tuberose, with ginger notes besides. Whenever I think tuberose now, I immediately jump to things such as Fracas and Carnal Flower, so to me this was a let down. It's pleasant, and perhaps somewhat interesting to the average high street shopper who might not have had tuberose as a note in his/her fragrance yet, but 5 stars? De gustibus non est disputandum.
"What makes a good perfume? I explain the idea of the art of perfumery at length in the previous guide, so I won’t repeat myself, but to sum up, we are looking for beauty (does it smell good?), ideas (does it smell interesting?), novelty (have we smelled it before?), and skill (has it been worked out technically?)."
I reckon this explains a lot, in pretty clear language, about how LT and TS translate their (subjective) impressions into something that can be reduced to stars--1 star for each of these qualities, plus 1 star for (I think I remember LT saying something about this in the last Guide) the perfume's basically being "unimprovable." Or something like that. They own that (1) is the most subjective, but hey--it's meanty to be a guide, not the Holy Bible, although you know how it is. Some people just look at stars and don't really consider the thinking behind it, and they get all excited. Whether or not you agree with the results, this is a pretty clear explication of the method.
Couple that with what they don't like, from the previous paragraph: "The bad news is that there’s even more cheaply put together, derivative, or just plain awful filler than before (and some of it audaciously expensive). I figure all of these qualities are sorta minus signs in the ratings calculus, and there you go. Easy, right? (<--that is irony).
A couple of other fun surprises for me: nice things said about Byredo (I knock them but I like them, so kudos. Now I have to try a bunch more of their stuff). Count me in as surprised that there is no Le Labo; I think they may have refused to send samples or something, but who knows? I really really really wish we'd seen reviews of their new stuff, though, because LT was really thought-provoking when he discussed their perfumes, and he was often at his funniest. Thierry Wasser really gets some vindication; we all pick on him a lot (I've joined in); it was nice to be reminded that the guy's got a tough gig, that he's really good at most of the stuff he does, and also that he's not always on his A-game (and also that it's probably not his fault, seeing as he works for the Evil Empire). Rania J didn't come off too well; I haven't smelled any of her stuff, but she's been the big noise for a while in some quarters.
Great Schadenfreude for me--S. P. Parfums (sorry, teardrop--I know you love SunTanGlam!); I've rarely been so disappointed; Areej le Dore and Roja Dove called out, for entirely different reasons (the former good not the Second Coming, the latter--I can't put it better than LT and TS do); a great explanation of the new "niche" conglomerates.
Bad surprises: I'm very very upset to find out "Iris de Fath" (I think that's the name) is going to be prohibitively limited and equally expensive. I'm glad that LT and TS asked that there be a way, somehow, for those of us who really care about it to get our hands on some. Especially since it turned out that the original Iris Gris was actually made on the cheap, and the reorchestrated version is a luxe reworking and therefore not even really Iris Gris. This is where niche perfumery becomes irksome.
Thanks for the tip. This needs to be sampled at the very least. I was very pleased by Manny's IFRA-busting tobacco frag, Tabac Vert, and the vetiver comes close to it. This cranks it up to the level of the pros.
Thanks for the tip. This needs to be sampled at the very least. I was very pleased by Manny's IFRA-busting tobacco frag, Tabac Vert, and the vetiver comes close to it. This cranks it up to the level of the pros.
Luca seems to have changed his mind about Eau Sauvage Parfum. His thoughts in june 2013: "ES Parfum: not Eau Sauvage, more like a sweet Derby and scary loud, but really good."
I know! I'd never even heard of a number of brands he reviewed. I've only read through the Cs and I'm having to keep myself from going crazy buying samples until I at least get through the whole thing.
I know! I'd never even heard of a number of brands he reviewed. I've only read through the Cs and I'm having to keep myself from going crazy buying samples until I at least get through the whole thing.
I'm surprised that he reviewed Fat Electrician! And liked it. I thought it was just me being naive. :rolleyesold: FE is, I think, the second fragrance that I bought, when I discovered "niche."
Could someone please copy and paste their blurb on Twilly, so curious as to why they love it so much. For a male I do wear it more often than I probably should.
I'm surprised that he reviewed Fat Electrician! And liked it. I thought it was just me being naive. :rolleyesold: FE is, I think, the second fragrance that I bought, when I discovered "niche."
