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Originally Posted by sark that's so funny - i actually tried out the lutens fleurs d'oranger at barneys last week and absolutely loved it on a sampling stick (or whatever you call those things) but wasn't crazy about it on me - it was a cold day though so perhaps i need to retry it when the weather warms up, which it looks like it's starting to! I never wear Fleurs d 'Oranger in the winter, it stays harsh on the skin and never quite develops and blooms to more sensual stages. from my experience, the warmer, the hotter, the more humid the weather is the more beautiful Fleurs d 'Oranger is.

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That was an interesting review Tovah. I love Bonds and L'artisan's, but L'artisan's don't seem to last long on me.

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i can't wait to go try everything out at bond!

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Originally Posted by sark i can't wait to go try everything out at bond! Hi Sark,
Let us know how you fare.
I just spent a lunch hour at the Bond counter over here. We don't quite have the selection that the big NYC department stores have, but my favorites are (no order):
Scent of Peace
Chinatown
Nuit de Noho
Broadway Nights
Some of the lighter ones that I like are:
Bleeker Street
Little Italy

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so i finally got over to bond and got samples of a whole bunch of scents. i loved new haarlem on the paper, but on me it seemed to turn a bit too bitter - celery came to mind, which is weird, but maybe i'll give it another shot. i'm wearing so new york now, which i think i'm liking a lot - might be a winner. it's not dark at all, but it does seem kind of sexy, in a lighter way. i've also got samples of little italy and scent of peace that might be interesting layered over nh and so ny . . . plus, i still have to try out chinatown! so many scents . . .
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any opinions of serge lutens chergui or any other scents that seem to fall into the sexy/unique category? i'm looking for something that's sexy not in an overt way, but in a more understated, kind of cool/hip way, if that makes sense?

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Originally Posted by sark i'm looking for something that's sexy not in an overt way, but in a more understated, kind of cool/hip way, if that makes sense? I just discovered the new Rousse by Serge Lutens and reading your posts I have a feeling this is really for you, it 's sexy, elegant but also profound, enigmatic and intriguing in an understated way.
as far as I m concerned this is my next purchase.
I love Fleurs d 'Oranger because it 's very sexy and men love it but it has a lot of depth and personality too.
I ve been wearing Rose Barbare a lot this winter but I don 't think I ll get a second bottle next year, no matter how sexy and many compliments it gets me, I find it too generic and I just got bored with it.
I had a sample of Chelsea Flowers too last year, I felt the same way, for such an expensive fragrance I thought it was sexy and feminine but I expected more than that for an exclusive niche.
Four years later Fleurs d 'Oranger is still a sexy winner for me in the summer.

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i think i'm in love . . . . with serge lutens! as soon as i began trying these out at barney's, i knew that i much preferred them over the bonds. i liked chergui a lot, and the lasting power was unbelievable, but i think it dries down a bit too sweet on me. daim blond, on the other hand, was incredible from start to finish - full bottle worthy! can't wait to try out the rest of the line . . . and i still really do want to try musc ravageur, which smelled great on a test strip . . .

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I agree with you, unfortunately none of the Bond No 9 scents thrilled me at all, the concept could have been so much better provided they had had fragrances with more character and personality which you find more in the Lutens and Malle lines, and also a concept that was more authentic about New York City and less "touristic".
New York it 's also Roosevelt Ave in Queens, the most ethnic ave in the whole world!! Bryant Park, the fashion week thing... is just another "Eiffel Tower" souvenir like scent. It 's just midtown, totally desertic after business hours, really poor and easy concept, New Yor City really deserved better.
I love Musc Ravageur, I wear it by cold weather better, the first time I ever tried it at Barney 's it was three years ago in the midst of summer heat LOL
btw, Aedes will have Rousse in April.

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Maybe it's nostalgia for me, because I moved from NY to CA in 1990, but
I think a lot of Bond's fragrances seem to be aimed more at "memories" than just tourism. For example, the scent of Chelsea Flowers cannot be representative of the current construction haven that is Chelsea - but it can be a evocative of the old Chelsea flower shops that have been replaced by expensive real estate. Others, such as Broadway Nite, Little Italy, Fire Island, seem aimed more at "memories" than the current personalities of the neighborhoods.

Here in Metro LA, marketing to residents and tourists relies heavily on the fabled glamor of Hollywood, the rebellious mystique of Venice, the sexiness of Malibu, etc., but the actual "neighborhoods" these days are really made up of new construction near places made famous in the past.

To me, the Bond fragrances do have character, but I agree that some seem like they were made quickly to fill a deadline. However, I think that because there are so many fragrances in the line, people go into the boutiques or up to the counters, and get overwhelmed because they try to sample them all at once, and after awhile the scents blur together. After falling for West Side, I was inspired to go back and give older Bond fragrances a serious try, which including wearing them to experience their development. I've changed my mind about many of them, I absolutely love a few. There's a lot more to them than I could tell by just sniffing. Even the little tester bottles didn't really give me a good feel for the scents - I had to spray them and wear them.

But, anyways, that's just my opinion. I could be way off in my response to the marketing because I don't live in NY, and I respond to the current NY through my memories.

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everybody has their own perceptions on that. Memories for my boyfriend a born and raised New Yorker is Flushing, same for one of my best friend, her most beautiful memories are in Sunnyside, where you have today over 130 different nationalities and these people contribute so much to this city.
If you ever saw the movie Fried Green Tomatoes... that 's the environment she was raised in. My dear memories are the East Village in the early 90's when it was still a mix of struggling artists and hispanics with rents that were ten times cheaper than it is today and white people who wouldnt dare going beyond avenue A.
I think Bond did Fire Island and East Hampton scents too, well nice but what about Coney Island? OK it 's less glamourous and high class today but in terms of History it 's a million times more beautiful and authentic than "Fire Island". Even my gay friend always boycotts this gay ghetto in the summer!
You know it 's like they d do the same concept in Paris and would only come up with scents like "Tour Effeil", "La Concorde" and "Parc Monceau". That would be extremely lame and boring "postcard" fragrances.
That said I really like Chelsea Flowers, the fragrance not the concept since it doesn 't really remind me Chelsea whatsover but it smells really nice. I had a large sample last year that I got at the boutique but I thought it was so expensive...maybe I ll fall for it this year.
I just wish Bond 's concept was more authentic and less touristic.