This week’s men’s fragrance review is another trip down memory lane, it’s Givenchy Very Irresistible Fresh Attitude For Men. Very Irresistible by Givenchy actually has a few different flavours and variations, the one I have is the Fresh Attitude version.
For this week’s aftershave review I want to talk about a classic, Emporio Armani Remix for men. It was released in 2006 and I got it around that time, and it holds many memories, and is a really nice smell. I’ve recently learned that it’s now been discontinued, which is a real shame.
This week’s men’s aftershave review is John Varvatos Artisan Eau De Toilette. Artisan was released in 2009, but like the other fragrances from John Varvatos they have not been too common up until recently in the UK. The bottle is very distinctive, and is a wicker basket style of bottle which will stand out on your shelf or in your drawer.
The scent itself is a light and citrus type of smell, it has lots of orange type notes but the smell of the orange is not overpowering and you can easily smell the other notes. It is quite light and sweet, and definitely one for day wear in the spring or preferably summer. It’s not a very masculine fragrance, so if you like woods, musk and aromatic or spicy scents this is not one of them; Having said that I always believe you need a lighter scent in your fragrance repertoire. This is quite a pleasant smell, but if I were to choose a day wear scent there are better options out there, such as the Lacoste L12 and Acqua Di Gio.
Best season to wear – Spring/Summer
Scent type – Orange/Citrus, Sweet
Age Recommendation – 18+
Best Worn – Day Wear, Casual
Top Notes – Sicilian clementines, Juicy tangelo fruit, Mandarin oranges, Wild thyme, Marjoram from Spain and Greek lavandin
Middle Notes – North African orange tree blossoms, Indian Murraya, Essence of orange jasmine tree, Ginger extracts
Base Notes – Kephalis, Georgywood, Ambery belambre and musky serenolide
I recently got a Hydro 5 groomer kit from Wilkinson Sword, and it could not have come at a better time. Movember is here, and this year I have decided I would take part and grow some facial hair 😀 I have never had a beard, moustache or anything like that, I have always preferred to be clean shaven ever since I started shaving in my teens. The groomer kit contains the new Hydro 5 groomer which has a 5 blade shaver at one end with a flip down edge blade to get a perfect straight edge, along with a hydrating strip. At the other end there is a battery powered trimmer for creating whatever look I want to go for. The razor is complimented with the transparent gel which does not foam, so is perfect for shaving.
Since I have never had a beard or tash before I don’t really know what style to go for, Wilkinson Sword have created this video to give some tips and ideas; I don’t think I will be able to pull off anything so elaborate, but if you’re handy with a trimmer you could give it a go 😀
This week’s fragrance review is John Varvatos For Men. Introduced in 2004 it’s quite an old fragrance to the U.S. or international market, but relatively new on the shores of the UK. The bottle is a classic and sophisticated style, a smart black bottle which is simplistic and masculine.
The scent is a warm, woody and spicy kind of smell. It’s slightly strong however it’s not too overpowering, and is a real masculine style of fragrance. I think this would be best worn in the autumn or winter on a cold evening, and can be use in both casual and formal situations. It’s strong enough to get you noticed, but not too pungent to be off-putting.
Best season to wear – Autumn/Winter
Scent type – Woody/Warm/Spicy
Age Recommendation – 23+
Best Worn – Evening, Casual, Formal
Top Notes – Medjool, Date Fruit, Mediterranean Herbs, West Indian Tamarind Tree Leaves
Middle Notes – Coriander Seed Templar, Clary Sage Flower, Indian Ajowan
Base Notes – Auramber, Vanilla CO2, Balsams, Eaglewood, Vanilla, Black Leather
This week’s fragrance review is Artisan Acqua by John Varvatos. Artisan Acqua is a new scent launched by John Varvatos in 2014, and I have had a smell of this, which I like. Like the other Artisan bottles, this one takes a similar design, with a hand-woven rope style.
It is quite a masculine style of scent, and is an aromatic, warm kind of style with a hint of spice and woody notes. It definitely feels like a grown up fragrance, so if you’re looking to wear something a bit more formal, or something non-offensive this is a contender.
It seems to be pretty hard to come by, after having a bit of a search it seems that Debenhams is the only place out of the big perfume/aftershave retailers which are selling this.
An aromatic style of scent is something you should have in your fragrance wardrobe. If you haven’t already got one, this is worth considering. It’s something which will sit in between a light, citrus EDT and a musky, woody EDT.
Best season to wear – Autumn/Winter
Scent type – Aromatic, Warm, Spicy
Age Recommendation – 21+
Best Worn – Evening, Casual, Formal
Top Notes – Tangelo, Mandarin, Paradisamide, Galbanum, Lentisque, Angelica root
Middle Notes – Clary sage, Lavender, Coriander, Toscanol, Basil, Geranium, Palmarosa, Jasmine sambac
Base Notes – Moss, Patchouli, Fir balsam
Another trip down memory lane in my fragrances takes us to Intimately Beckham For Men By DVB. This was one of the first ventures into the fashion world for “Brand Beckham”, and is one of many of the celebrity fragrances which have been launched.
Another visit to my old fragrances and this is Prada Amber from around 2006.
Despite it’s really nice smell it’s another which I have not used a great deal, partly because at the time there were so many other ones I liked better, and partly because it’s not a spray bottle, rather an old fashioned proper aftershave style of bottle which I like less.
I have always had a wet shave, which means buying a lot of blades over the years. There’s almost always a time where I have to think, “Do I need to buy blades” and when I do, it means having to go into town and get myself a pack, which are getting more and more expensive.
Shaving is not just about the blades, you’ll also need shaving gel or foam, and as I always mention you can’t forget about post shave balm. If you’re like me you, you’ll not run out of these things at the same time which is quite annoying.
Cornerstone is a men’s shaving brand with a difference. It’s a subscription based service, and their philosophy is to create a more simple way to shave. Their shaving kits comprise of a face scrub, shave gel and post shave balm, as well as a pack of blades and your very own, customised stick with your initials inscribed.
The service costs £30, and they have three plans you can subscribe to, which depend on how often you shave; You can opt to get a box send to you every 6, 12 or 24 weeks depending on how often you shave. The box will contain:
1 stick (Your first box)
6 blades
Face Scrub (100ml)
Shaving Gel (150ml)
Post Shave Balm (75ml)
For myself, shaving 3 times a week they recommend a box every 12 weeks, which would mean using one blade for 2 weeks. This seems a long time to me, since I currently use one blade every 10 days or so, however I’ve been reading that they actually last a lot longer.
I really love the box and the presentation, each component has it’s own compartment, everything is laid out well and the packaging is really cool.
I usually buy 150ml King Of Shaves Gel (£3.69), 150ml Dove MenCare face scrub (£2.86), MACH3 blades, £13.99 for 8 and 100ml Dove Mencare Post-Shave Balm (£3.86). That is a total of £24.40 which is slightly cheaper, and you get slightly more than the Cornerstone box.
The Cornerstone box is slightly more expensive than the DIY options of buying your own products, however you’re getting them delivered to your door, without the need to go out to the shops which can make this service worthwhile.
If you’re the guy on the go, living a busy life and don’t want to worry about your shaving regime being disrupted because you’ve forgotten to buy something, this takes all the hassle of buying essential products for your shaving needs.
Forget about forgetting that post shave balm, with the Cornerstone box it’s as simple as choosing your plan and letting them take care of the rest.
Dolce and Gabbana released an anthology of unisex fragrances back in 2009, each one numbered 1, 3, 6, 10 and 18. The idea of the range was that each scent was in fact a unisex scent, but later this was marketed slightly different, and they changed up the way they were marketed, with clear distinctions between the male and female scents. This is D&G Le Bateleur 1,a masculine scent.
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