Traveling Perfume Box : USA

Our US perfume box is ready to make its next round. If you are in the States and would like to participate, here is how you can do it. And whether you’re participating or not, please read Noele’s perfume descriptions below.

One organizational note: when you’re ready to ship your box onto someone else, please send me the full list of samples in the box and your perfume notes.

How does it work: To enter, please post a comment answer these questions: 1) are you in the USA, and if you’re a winner, can I share your email address with Noele? ; 2) do you agree to pass the box onto someone else within two weeks or so (add a couple of your own samples and share your sampling notes with the rest of us)? and 3) what perfume are you wearing today? I will pick the next person to receive the box via a random number generator. I will announce that person in this spot and contact them via email. The next person to receive the box is Vishishta.

When a winner is ready to pass the box onto someone else, they should get in touch with me. Please include the full list of samples and your sampling notes (what you’ve discovered, what you’ve liked/disliked, any observations you care to include).

To check the progress of our boxes, please click on the Traveling Sample Box tag.

Perfumes I added:
Byredo La Tulipe
Byredo Black Saffron
Montale Blue Amber
Etat Libre d’Orange Roissy de Palma
Serge Lutens Jeux de Peau
Andrée Putman Preparation Parfumée
Comme des Garçons x Artek Standard
Frederic Malle Outrageous!
L’Artisan Parfumeur Passage d’Enfer
Barney’s Route du Thé
Annick Goutal Petite Cherie
Burberry Brit Sheer
Library of Flowers Forget Me Not
LUSH Breath of God
Diptyque Ofrésia
Biehl Parfumkunstwerke AL01
Biehl Parfumkunstwerke GS01
Biehl Parfumkunstwerke MB02
Nasomatto Absinth
Carthusia 1681 Eau de Parfum
Hilde Soliani Acquiilssssima
Harvey Prince Journey
Tom Ford Sahara Noir

Samples:
Parfums del Rae Coup de Foudre
Amouage Opus II
Burberry My Burberry x2
Lolita Lempicka EDP
Sonoma Scent Studio To Dream
Hanae Mori EDT
Marni EDP
Hermes Jour d’Hermes
10 Corso Como EDP
Dolce & Gabbana Dolce
Tom Ford Velvet Orchid
Lancome La Vie Est Belle
Simply Belle
Prada Candy
Exceptional
Michael Kors Glam Jasmine
Elizabeth and James Nirvana White
Roses de Chloe
Calvin Klein Endless Euphoria
Valentino Valentina
Thierry Mugler Angel
Viktor & Rolf Flowerbomb x2
Viktor & Rolf Bonbon
The Vagabond Prince Land of Warriors
The Vagabond Prince Swan Princess
Keiko Mecheri Bois de Santal
Aftelier Cacao
Serge Lutens Fleurs d’Oranger
Comme des Garçons x Undercover Holygrace
Profumum Vanitas
Profumum Fiore d’Ambra
By Killian Cruel Intentions
Maitre Parfumeur et Gantier Ambre Precieux
Maitre Parfumeur et Gantier Ambre Precieux Ultime
Carven EDP
Eau de Cartier Zeste du Soleil
Parfums Nicolai Patchouli Intense
Knize Ten Eau de Toilette
Parfums de Rosine Ecume de Rose
Carthusia Caprissimo
Carthusia Fiori di Capri
Carthusia Mediterraneo
Chloe Parfum
Bottega Veneta

Sonoma Scent Studio: To Dream
A powdery floral grounded by wood, smelling on initial spray much like the Lancome Trésor I loved as a teenager…but To Dream is grown-up and free-spirited. The opening is floral powder and effervescent stone fruit which eventually builds into something well beyond the scope of the Trésor impression – I get dry, dry wood parched by the full sun, intermingling with the scent of damp vegetation. Being local to Northern California, I imagine perfumer Laurie Erickson taking inspiration from the native oaks and redwoods of wine country, and the delta mud of nearby rivers…the longer the scent wears though, the more pronounced and singular the delta mud impression, which is unfortunate given the fragrance’s tenacity.

Tom Ford Sahara Noir
On a test strip, there’s no ‘noir’ in Sahara Noir to speak of; instead, I get bone-dry frankincense and bright cedar, which is all I could ever want in an incense fragrance. That having piqued my interest, I tested Sahara Noir on skin. It’s here that the perfume falls apart for me – for one, this is a sillage monster, and the weakest spray projected well beyond arm’s length on my daily commute. This would have been forgivable if it weren’t for the overwhelmingly sweet amber that blooms with reckless abandon after the initial notes fade. The fragrance smells complex and rich, but the cloying sweetness makes it feel more of an Arabian Nights affair.

Serge Lutens: Daim Blond
While I’m not entirely familiar with all of the SL fragrances on offer, I’ve gotten the sense that most of them speak quite loudly, which wasn’t the case with Daim Blond. It was love at first sniff with this one – I found it calm, lovely and more a mood than a variety of fragrance notes, which is to say that Christopher Sheldrake did well. The dominant note is leather, but a smooth, pale, buttery leather; I imagine delicate grey kidskin driving gloves, and that association alone unleashes several others. Driving a country road at one’s leisure, at twilight perhaps, when the air is calm and the gardens emit a damp fragrance (iris?), the leather of the car’s seats (likely a Jaguar?), and all the luxe comfort the scene suggests.

Hermes Jour d’Hermes
Radiant, powdery, luminous. Jour D’Hermes is a really lovely citrusy floral that manages to be uplifting while at the same time polished and subdued. The sillage is pretty good, and in my personal cloud of Jour I feel as though I’m basking in the glow of the sun. To me, this scent is all about light, and feels completely imbued by it. Jour’s tartness reminds me of what I like about Comme des Garçons Rhubarb, and would be perfect for any day I’m needing an emotional boost. The effect is cheery and lighthearted, but not young.

M. Micallef Le Parfum Denis Durand Couture
Inky citrus, smoke, pepper, leather. A masculine-feminine fragrance that intrigues me from the outset for that reason, and continues to throughout its duration. The peppery, brambly rose at the heart is gothic and brooding but wears close to the skin, in the way that the equally lovely rose Etat Libre d’Orange Roissy de Palma does not. M.Micallef is all indigo ink, fountain pens, structured black leather and platinum blonde asymmetrical haircuts on my end, and for that reason doesn’t feel entirely suited to my every day.

Aftelier Cacao
Cacao smelled beautiful straight out of the vial, like the most complex of candied oranges and Mexican chocolate I’d ever laid my nose upon. On skin, Aftelier’s take evokes a cacao of long ago – it’s gamey and primal in parts, comforting and syrupy in others, but continually raw. At no point does this fragrance feel polished or perfect and I think that adds to its appeal. The ride only lasts so long, though, and then I’m left with a mash of wilting jasmine. If I had an unlimited supply of the stuff, the clear solution would be to reapply into oblivion.

Photography by Bois de Jasmin, NYC