The Buddhawood Box

This is gorgeous - yet another successful blind buy from 4160T (they have a special offer at the moment, selling discounted perfumes which have been returned to them by a retailer). Worth checking out if you are a fan. I sprayed some into the lid of the bottle initially (I also bought Midnight in the Palace Garden and was already wearing that) and was enraptured by the sweet odour. Later however, I sprayed on my skin and was - frankly - appalled, thinking that my blind buy habit had gone horribly wrong (again); it really does open with an oniony-cumin-curry (celery?) spicy smell, which brought Armani Idole to mind. Within 15 minutes though, the curry has abated, and I am LOVING this. It's almost sweet on my skin (as opposed to the smell from the lid when sprayed earlier); the sweetness is tempered by the deep woody notes. I am not familiar with the smell of white oud at all, but this does not smell even vaguely "barnyardy" and I wouldn't have thought there was oud in it all, had I not read the notes. Non-barnyardy ouds and sandalwood sometimes smell fairly similar to me in certain scents (in Vilhelm Parfumerie's Fleur Burlesque, for example) and - again - I am not picking up on sandalwood in TBB. The boxwood is pretty spot on - the smell of leaves crushed between your fingers, but this isn't unpleasant or too "green". Likewise, rooibos is very realistic, adding a real warmth to the fragrance. There's a definite boozy punch not long after spraying; this is the smell of a well-aged oaky whiskey, not a cheap supermarket brand though. I am not getting any gardenia; I think it may be giving a little lift to the fragrance, preventing it from being exclusively woody. Fragrantica's information about boronia is lamentably lacking ("sweet and like white flowers"), so I have NO idea what that smells like, but I am guessing the sweetness in the perfume is coming from that. NOT a safe blind-buy, but - if you like Kenzo Jungle L'Elephant, Lutens Arabie or Armani Idole, this is a good one to add to your wardrobe. Finally - definitely unisex (not that I ascribe to gender assignation in perfume).

It was a blind-buy and I have tried it over and over again, yet each and every time for the first ten minutes it smells literally like fried onions in gravy, like some sort of horrific combo of onion powder and ground cumin. And also like I poured a gallon of tequila all over myself. I absolutely cringe each time and fight the urge to scrub. To my delight, Buddhawood Box becomes a fascinating and wonderful woody perfume. I feel like I've smelled it all--oud, redwoods, sandalwood, cedar. For strictly wood, and lots of it, my holy grail is Precious Woods by April Aromatics. But this perfume is something I have never smelled before. I think it's the boxwood because it's an entirely different woody scent than any of those mentioned previously. So when the onions, gravy and booze disappear, I smell ancient wood, quite literally. It smells weathered, almost as if wood could smell stale from sitting out in the open air for centuries. It's really nice. I love the fact that there is no patchouli, as that is the note that usually causes a perfume to smell old and mildewy. This wood smells equally old or rotted, but in a new and different way. Then I get strong rooibos tea, an herb that could be decribed as having facets of honey, saffron and dried hay and has a mellow and subtle sweetness to it. The perfume becomes all about rooibos, but I love it from "heart to finish" (not start to finish because of the onions and gravy). I am so fond of this fragrance that I am totally willing to sit through the onions and gravy. That says a lot because patience is a virtue I can only hope to have one day. Sillage is normal/average. The perfume lasted at least 8 hours. The longer it wore, the more it seemed to "age" on my skin. Hours later it smelled like a hippie's bedroom, when you know there is no incense burning, but you can tell that they burn it frequently because it's clinging to everything in the room. A novel perfume. It's a keeper for me, but try before you buy!

I immediately get the wood notes (not surprisingly!) and also sweet resinous notes which make me think gourmand. It takes me back to Hong Kong in a second. Im wondering down the side streets on a typical humid warm day where some of the wood carvers are outside busy working on chests and blanket boxes. Their shops sit side by side so you are hit with a wall of wood notes before you even see them. Ive also smelt this in Khatmandu where I bought my intricately carved Buddha ornament. Id make a guess that this is the cedar and sandalwood. I love the smell of rosewood and for some reason I get that here. Is that the affect of the whiskey with the other wood notes? It also a bit dusty which is very fitting. Sweetness comes from something floral and a bit peachy. The longer it is on the more it reminds me of the Lion Cupboard so maybe there is incense present. It definitely gets better and better with time. Good sillage and longevity.

Unusual parfum, strange and mysterious. There's a dark aura around, very woody and impact! begins with a strong note of Whiskey, very strong that could be annoying at first, but after a while is something extraordinary. In fact, the first part has a little surprised, I did not like much at first but the drydown love it. It 'a perfume that does not go unnoticed, hard to forget because it leaves a trail almost "hypnotic" evokes the days of autumn rain, wet roads, old libraries along the way.... is a complex fragrance but very well balanced in my opinion. The sillage is strong (3-4 sprays ok) good longevity (8+h) Content with this perfume "unusual"! :) very beautifull! Sillage: 8.5/10 Longevity: 9./10 Scent: 9./10 Overall: 9./10

Difficult to understand. Especially having never smelt buddhawood. To me, this does smell a little bit of garlic or onion. However, if anyone's ever tried asifoteda, this is almost exactly like that. With whiskey. And boronia, which I adore The base used for this seems to be the same one used to make Up The Apples & Pears, but I may be wrong. I much prefer Boddhi Language, with Sexiest Scent as a base. Much more wearable. In saying all of this, its truly wonderful. I won't wear it much and my 30mL will last ages, but it is definitely nice. Also, I wore this today. Side by side with Elizabeth Arden's Blue Grass... aldehydes go nicely with Buddhawood Box apparently?