Tag Archives: maison francis kurkdjian

Quick perfume thoughts

I've been thinking, Perfume review, Perfume thoughts, Short perfume review, World of Perfume June 11, 2015 Comments: 20

After quite a long time, I finally got to see some of my perfume friends and we shared what we have acquired lately that each of us might like to try (I didn’t have much though).

So, here is what I remembered from the quick sniffs I took today:

Piguet Knightsbridge – a lovely, boozy, warm perfume for colder days, it really hit all my boozy-vanilla-amber buttons 😉

Amouage Opus IX – in the beginning it’s a monstrously dirty jasmine/something (and dirty coming from me is really something), 2 hours later it smells like a slightly bitter floral, rather nice

Mugler Cuir Impertinent – the surprise of the meeting (at least for me) – a really wearable light leathery smell with a rather green-herbal opening and undertones of Angel, I can see myself wearing it easily

Odori Iris – nice feminine iris with no big projection, actually a rather soft and elegant feel

MFK  Oud – well, it’s anything but oud if you ask me (at least what I’m used to when it comes to oud), and if you take it like that, a rather nice perfume that works as edc just fine

TDC I miss Violet – also a perfume without much projection but with a soft side and easy smile. I had a bit trouble smelling it in the beginning as it was so light but later I got the lovely violet tones (and I get light fruitiness in the drydown)

There were also the Zoologist perfumes: Beaver, Panda and Rhinoceros and I am honestly pleasantly surprised how much I liked them.

I’ll skip morning and proceed straight to the evening

World of Perfume October 23, 2010 Comments: 8

It is a very delicate thing, trying a scent by a house you never before tried. I don’t think it’s possible for anyone to like all the fragrances made by a particular house, so when approaching a new one, you should take care to try something that might appeal to you. Or, you order a Luckyscent sample bag and take your chance. 🙂

I’ve heard a lot of good things about the Maison Francis Kurkdjian (actually read, I don’t think many people I know would recognize the name). So, it was with optimism that I tried the Absolues from the Luckyscent pack. Well, the optimism was half valid. I’ll stick with the Absolue pour le Soir for the whole day and simply skip the Matin one.

I mean, ok, yes, people emerge fresh in the morning from their homes, but I still don’t want to smell sweetly soapy floral like. Exactly like the washing product I use? OK, I don’t use products that smell like that because I really don’t like that smell, but I can see the appeal for other people.

Notes: Calabrian bergamot, Sicilian lemon, Moroccan white thyme, lavender, Tunisian neroli, woody iris accord, dry amber accord, violet accord

The citruses in the beginning could have fooled me. I didn’t get them but it seems that in this scent, the longer you wear it, more citruses appear along the way. In the end (drydown) I kept thinking it smelled like a summer cologne. But in the beginning, all I could think was oh no, the violet accord is there putting the soapiness into this (and I have no idea why I think violets smell soapy but they do to me). I think it sounds bad now but it’s not if you’re into that kind of stuff. And I loved the fact that I could smell thyme but that’s the best thing I can say about it. I do imagine though this will sell wonderfully.

You know, it’s becoming more and more apparent that I’m more of an evening person. Not night, but evening. My best hours in the day are between 5 and 10 P.M. (which doesn’t sound real good for my work efficiency).
Anyway, I wouldn’t mind smelling like Absolue pour le Matin all day long, although people might wonder where did I spend the night. Which brings me back, I think I will have to upgrade my own estimate of my perfume tolerance on Flittersniffer’s scale.
I can definitely see why this would be named an evening scent. First of all, it smells like you’ve already been naughty with someone. Yeah, cumin is in there. 🙂 You’re smelling sweet and floral but oh boy, are you a naughty girl under there.
And I still can’t believe I wrote that. Because when I started this perfume journey, I kept thinking when seeing stuff like that on other blogs, What in the world are they smelling?! I never smell stuff like that.
Well, now I do. And more importantly, I like it! 🙂 Yep, definitely an upgrade on my own estimated place on that scale…

Here are the notes: Infusion of benzoin from Siam, cumin, ylang-ylang, Bulgarian and Iranian rose honey, incense absolute, Atlas cedarwood and sandalwood

Before anyone starts thinking that it’s a bit too much, the cumin wears off eventually and incense kicks in more seriously (it’s there but it gets amplified as the time passes). I’m not always tolerant of incense but here I’m fine with it. although, I would catch a whiff of APLM and think, oh great, another one that reminds me of Caravelle Epicee and then the next moment, incense would make it go away. That is also why I though that there must be some spices in the opening but I didn’t see them listed. Of course, it could be just a combination of cumin and wood but I really thought some clove or cinammon (or even something more peppery) found its way in.
So the incense note gets stronger before it subsides draping itself with benzoin and sandalwood. I am just very satisfied with the way this one turned out.

Pic by: http://www.franciskurkdjian.com/