Secret Woods

Wow. Ok. This fragrance is my new favourite. I’ve been wearing this for three weeks now and can see this being my signature for years to come. It transports me into a dry sauna. Not only does it smell dry, but gives that same experience as when you inhale dry air, incredible! It’s opens medicinal and sour, like a dead, moist log then you’ve just stepped on and split open: absolutely brilliant. The mid is intoxicating. Masculine. Leathery. Woody. Much more tame compared to the open as the sourness fades and that “dry air” effect still lingers. The far dry down is heaven. Smooth leather, sight spice the faintest hint of sweetness, all laying on a base of creamy dry woods. It is like nothing else I’ve ever smelled in the perfume world (still a relative beginner). The cherry on top is that this scent is by far my girlfriends favourite to smell on me; no other fragrance makes her burry her nose into me and deeply inhale like this one. 10/10

The best creation from Julien Rasquinet!! It's super super well done frgrance, Julien its a super good parfuemur. I think that he reached his peak with this art expression. Nothing's generic here, nothing will please the mass. Hell yeah, i love this!! I really appreciate the hard working and the creativity level over here. This is an truly example of how should be done a great fragrance, balanced, rounded, deep, rich, resinous, also i find it quite soily and wet woodsy, i ve never smelled that before. Congratulations Super Similar to Amouage Interlude, but this one its greener and a little bit more rouder, not that austere in your face! Super potent, i ve smelled this and it was love on the first sniff!! A gem! And simple, this reached in my top 4 all time fragrance!

The woods in this are so secret that they are hardly detectable. A more descriptive name would be Resinous Leather. I love CN for their unique, high quality, fascinating releases and this one is no exception. It is constructed in an Amouagesque style- a bold Oriental that is unconcerned with mall-fragrance trends. No, this one requires its wearer to know his business, for it will not appeal to those who view fragrances as a personality replacement (there, I said it!). It will make you feel serious about life, perhaps a little melancholy. Smokey, leathery, with a reminiscence of greenery. When the leaves begin to die on the trees and the earthy scent of autumnal decay fills the air, you’ll know it’s time for Secret Woods.

I went to test this out in store after reading and seeing the comments and comparisons to Amouage Interlude, which I love. When I first sprayed it on I got a bit of Interlude and sort of agreed, but as this got into the dry down I was reminded of the likes of Bvlgari Man Terrae Essence and to some extent Gucci Guilty Absolute, but much more earthy like the Bvlgari. I feel that it is much more wearable then the two aforementioned fragrances and for that I absolutely love it. I really like the others as well but feel they are difficult to pull off. Amazing fragrance. I really enjoy fragrances from Costume National.

Burnt air in prehistoric ages. Coal-like terpenes sending me a peat-like, Laphroig whisky stillness that goes-on forever. This has the hush of a fossil entrapped in an amber drop. Hypnotic and extra-dark, cold-blood and immersive with minimal evolution. A T-Rex in the wait for the next prey. By far the darkest perfume I have come across in some decades. Unique. Thanks to Brame Profumi - Elisa Malagoli, Modena for the guided olfactory trip.

Sexy,charming,smooth dark,elegant,manly. First spray on my skin i can feel some sweetness that slowly is transitioning into a pine-forest balsamic vibe. The leather is smooth,well blended but still present.Shortly after the fragrance "opens" itself. Scent quality it's higher than i espected.(it's my first costume national fragrance btw)

Wonderful work from CN.Green,dusty,wet,earthy and elegant.Like walking in dusty forest under rain. Very good longevity => +9h. Very good silage High quality Not for young boys,clubbers,include seriousness. No one indicated but it reminds me Narciso Rodriguez for him(anthracite bottle) 9/10

Off my skin, this is closer to Amouage’s Reckless Leather than Interlude. Not as harsh as RL. Maybe ever so slightly sweeter with a touch more citrus. For the price tag, if you’re looking for something that won’t break the bank, I’d opt for this over RL.

Hi, Julien Rasquinet is a master in creating scents that change easily, are not linear, for example Creed Aberdeen Lavender and ..... Bravo C.N 👌 Scent:9.5/10 Longevity and Sillage:8/10

I can explain this perfume so easy: Encre Noir by Lalique with some resins. من این عطر رو خیلی ساده میتونم بیان کنم: انکره نواق لالیک همراه با رزین

Under rated gem. If you like CN Homme perfume and FM Moon and like Julian Rasquinet style of perfumery, blind buy it. You wouldn’t be disappointed.

Encre Noire done right and skillfully. Yes, it 2x price but this is still a great value for that scent profile.

Edit: I detect oud notes, not listed in the official description.

من أروع العطور الخشبية, مناسب لجميع الفصول مع اداء ممتاز

I am coming into this review with a lot of positive energy after smelling the fantastic CN Homme, but Secret Woods is quite different overall. First of all it initially appears to be more so leather than woods as the somewhat tart saffron leather accord predominates in the opening. However, as it settles you recognise a bright but substantial gin-like wood core, dry, somewhat earthy and clearly masculine. The problem to my nose is that it feels a bit sour at times, not as in citrusy tart, but rather in a sour, slightly off way, like damp drift wood that is ready to crumble into pieces. The dry down is nicer, but for those 2 hours or so that saffron tartness just really clashes with the earthiness of the patchouli, and that's where those connections with the damp old wood come from I think. At the end of the day it is still something worth sampling because it is indeed something different, but if you have the option try Homme EDP and Soul first as they appear overall more rounded and superior on a conceptual level.

Costume National Secret Woods is a Green version of Interlude Man, which I view as a Blue incense bomb. Of course, Interlude Man is referred to as the "Blue Beast" by many. I wouldn't say Secret Woods is a "Green Beast" but it is on the stronger side to my nose just not beastly. Both are woody and have incense. Both a strong at the start with Interlude pushing longer by a few hours. But the difference is in the green vs blue to my nose. I like both and really don't think these are that similar if you actually smell then side by side. It is a winner of a fragrance. I would sample to make sure this is something you would like... Enjoy!

To my nose, this is a more wearable version of Amouage Interlude. Interlude is too much for my taste and this being softer on silage is really good for me. Very masculine scent profile and suitable for colder weather. Interlude has a sharp note in it that I really don't like and in this it doesn't exist thankfully. I like this but I cannot think of an occasion to pull it off as it's still strong and can be offensive. In the dry down it becomes more leathery and it's very nice. It's creamy leather and not a sharp leather but not too creamy like suade.

Got a decant so impression is based on it. The first sniff is dark and moody. I guess it's juniper berries that are most recognizable but there's more and I cannot distinguish. Smelling this, I am transported to a foggy forest in the early autumn morning. After 5 minutes or so, it's mostly leather notes and for some reason I get a TF Tuscan Leather feel. This leather (and vetiver a bit) remains for the rest of the time. I think it's not a blind buy. And not a crowd pleaser. Certainly has a mysterious aura around the one who wears it.

Very green. I don't find it all that similar to Interlude, but I can understand where the reviewer below is coming from when they say it is a "green version of interlude". I really like the opening, but something bitter creeps in after a couple hours that I am not on totally on board with and it stays throughout the dry down. Trying to downsize my collection, and because I have others I will always reach for before this I sold it.

A very nice twist of Tom Ford Oud Wood; soft and woody, with a spicy black pepper addition. It dries down to a smooth leather that is enriched with the full-bodied smell of juniper berries. Good release overall from Costume National with good performance. It does remind me of Opus VII as well but nothing like Interlude.

Really love this one for the season. Dark, mysterous, not much sweetness. It does get some creaminess from the sandalwood, also very earthy. It ́s perfect when I am in my introvert mood. Performance is great as well. Pleasent surprise.

A safe woody aromatic fragrance which luckily does not lie on the elderly age range

It's a very underrated perfume. First, no it is not similar to Interlude. This perfume is much sweeter, gentler and less Smoky than interlude. I find it very good. What surprised me, is how sweet the dry down is. It's a very aromatic sweetness, but much sweeter than the opening suggests. it is a solid fragrance. I normally wear this during the summer. But I think it would generally be categorized as a winter perfume. It has okay sillage, nothing impressive but okay. The longitivity is good, I can smell it on my clothes 24 hours after, and skin I smell it up to 8 hours.

Not a bad fragrance, def not the best product from Rasquinet. The point of the fragrance is to take you take you in the woods... I was personally taken in a small leathery things shop, maybe near the woods, like in a small town in norther Italy that survive on the tourist who buys some souvenirs in that little leather shop. No clear emotion I'm gonna say. They missed a bit the point. But in overall it's a good fragrance, but if your wish is to smell a real dark foresty like scents ENCRE NOIRE does it better and way cheaper.

Expected a bit more because of the nose behind this. I think this flows in the same direction as a Amouage but not as bold. For me its ok, not really special 7/10. I prefer Kenzo Homme EDP. That one hits the deep blue mark better imho.

It resembles the likes of Amouage Interlude Man but not as thick, or potent, less polished. Like a designer version of it.

A more simple version of the Amouage Interlude Man, the complexity of its composition was the main interest of this strange concoction while CN Secret Woods seems to simplify it at some burned oregano-clarisage on the same kind-of-oudy base as in CN Soul. The nose quickly gets bored and ends up only dwelling on the sour and rather mediocre quality of the synthetic woody-leather notes that last forever. It's still original and it would have been an interesting composition if more wearable and centered on a qualitative note like a beautiful vetiver (like in Lalique Encre Noir).

I tested this out of curiosity and was in awe with the woodsy opening so much that I almost bought it on the spot. So glad I didn't because this turned into something so bitter and salmiacky that I ended up washing it from my wrists an hour later. I think it's the type of Vetiver that just doesn't blend well with my skin chemistry. Not a safe buy yet definitely worth testing.

Didn't like this one. The leather is a bit harsh and smoky, and unofortunatly overwhelms the other notes. In the dry down, it does resemble burnt plastic as someone commented below. Maybe if you're into that type of leather scent you might like it, but prior sampling is recommended. Scent: 6/10

This scent is a cacophony of woods done in a bad way. I also smell OUD to make the scent smell horrible. Luckily I only had a decant.

Absolutely disgusting, literally gagged when i took a good sniff.

I wasn't quite sure what to think of Secret Woods first encounter. It opens with a tart, slightly sour mix of grapefruit/citrus, juniper berry and saffron, that smells far enough out of the box you raise a bit of an eyebrow...in a good way. This all hovers atop a deep, dark base that @ItalianRefinement eloquently puts as "burnt air in the prehistoric ages...coal like terpenes..." which is present from the start, bubbling underneath like some dark underbelly town in a David Lynch film. There is an interesting juxtaposition between the bright, almost juicy top notes and the deep, dark, dry base notes, which I think really works for me, but I think could turn off or confuse a lot of noses out there. The saffron does connect the dots in the heart, as it is strongly present in the opening and still present as the leather starts to subtly show up in the base. There is a slightly jarring dissonance in the opening-heart, but any bumpiness is worth it for the sake of breaking conformity and experimentation. I like Secret Woods more each time I wear it, and have begun to relish the strange, tangy sour opening blending with the deep petrified bog forest of the base. After the drydown, what remains is incredibly dry, and just barely sweetened (assumedly the listed styrax adds this minute sweetness and lends to the resinous feel, although I have never smelled it isolated). It is so dry to my nose, that it almost produces a prickly sensation in my nostrils similar to breathing in bone dry desert air that robs your mucus membranes of every drop of available moisture. That and it happens to be quite loud, so careful sniffing this one up close and personal, it might singe your cilia. I think this one is better enjoyed in the air, and would really shine mixing in an outdoors environment. The juniper in the opening is amazing, it gets progressively smoother each minute it dries down, and the base notes blend together to create something pretty special. I can't help but think the marketing slightly missed though, as the blue bottle is quite a fetching shade, but doesn't really capture any part of the scent, save for the juniper perhaps. The saffron and leather seem equally as important as any of the woods, and I think this one could have been in a bottle and name that better captured/aligned with what the scent actually is. What that actually would be, I have no idea, as this one is strangely prehistoric and terrestrial, yet oddly alien and futuristic that it reverberates on a different plane almost. Hard to capture in a marketing materials. So it does hold some secrets, and does in fact contain some woods. Perhaps they nailed it after all. Final thoughts, this is niche/indie level quality for an absolute bargain, especially from discounters for the 100ml size. In no way should this be a blind buy, but this will have potentially broader appeal to lovers of deep, dark, strange, resinous, woody, leather, spice, etc. etc. On a zoomed in level, it smells nothing like Interlude Man specifically, but I think it fits into the same broader category, even if Secret Woods is so far singular to my beginner nose. Secret Woods is absolutely worth at least a test run for anyone searching for that funk.

I really like this one, Julien Rasquinet is a genius, I love most of his creations. Dark, brooding, intense, and very strong. This one is definitely not a blind buy, but if you are into fragrances such as Encre Noir, Amouage Interlude, Imaginary Authors Cape Heartache etc. then this may be in your ballpark. You don't wear Secret Woods for other people, you wear it for yourself! This really is like being lost in a forest, but not a Midsummer Nights Dream or Lothlorien kind of forest, no, this forest is from a Brothers Grimm tale, or a Tim Burton film. This forest is old, coniferous, a Black Forest if you will. The Juniper, Nutmeg and Leather open up the fragrance, creating the initial first steps into the forest, the scent of the trees, ferns and foliage, local flowers etc. Then as it dries down we head deeper into the darkness, the shadow of the darker woods overcoming the senses, here we find the Vetiver, Sandalwood and Patchouli, we are now in the area which does not see much sunlight (if ever). The earthiness and slightly damp roots now take over. We approach a clearing, and in the clearing is a small Gingerbread style cottage with smoke lazily drifting from the chimney. I will leave the story for the reader to finish. This is my story of Secret Woods (my ending is my own).

می‌دونم تقریبا همگیتون عطر اینترلود امواژ رو تست کردید یا به مشامتون خورده اگه ی روزی قرار بود اینترلود نسخه اسپرت داشته باشه میشد این عطر جدید کستوم نشنال یعنی شما به محض اسپری کردن این عطر تمام قد شمایل اینترلود جلو چشمتون ظاهر میشه اینترلودی که از حجم افسارگسیخته اسپایسی رو ازش گرفتند و چوبی تر شده به همون شکل رزینی . چوبی . اسموکی ولی این ماجرای اینترلود نهایتا یک ربع پا بر جاست تو قلب سیکرت وودز بوی زعفرون و سندل وود و پچولی ادغام میشه با فضای رزینیه شروع عطر . که خیلی به نسخه اصلی کستوم نشنال اوم شباهت پیدا می‌کنه از شروع تا نیم ساعت اول همین فضای معطر و جذاب پابرجاست ولی کم کم فضای عطر دارک تر و پیچیده تر میشه چرم اینکی+وتیور+پچولی+حس زرینی کلییات سکسی و مردونه ای رو رقم می‌زنند که بازم شما رو بیاد ی عطر معروف دیگه میندازه پرایوت لیبل جووی نقش پچولی و وتیور تو این عطر پررنگه . چرم تاریک کاری رو عطر می‌کنه که باید بکنه چوبی و تاریک بویی که اصلا به رنگ شیشه عطر نمیخوره کیفییت بسیار عالی بازی نت ها شلوغ پخش بوی خوب و ماندگاری عالی اگه از روایح وودی و دارک خوشتون میاد سیکرت وودز ی انتخاب عالیه👌

If you're looking for the best (yes, the best!) value for price niche-edge perfume this is the perfect pick. Its notes don't really change with dry-down, it remains the perfect cold-days mysterious essence. It has the performance of a niche expensive fragrance, it stays on the skin for at least 12 hours, so don't overspray or spray on the clothes, you will get tired of that fireplacey retro taste. It is my signature essence, I've never smelled another thing that is so good at this price level. It's not an everyday kind of fragrance, not to be wore in the office or on common occasions. It is special, and if you want to feel like you've just woke up in the middle of a forest, with semi-burned logs soaked in rain falling down the leaves, Secret Woods is the way to go. I like it because it's unique and exclusive. For me, it's a 10 out of 10.

The juniper along with the hesperidic notes make for a captivating and dark type of freshness in the opening. As soon as you get to the heart, the fragrance turns into a dense leather fragrance with patch and dry sandalwood providing the woody backbone and the vetiver lending notes of smoke. Disappointing for me, because I was hoping for the freshness from the opening to guide me through an evergreen forest. Contrary to its name, Secret Woods is essentially a dark, cold and smoky leather with woods and some resinous and spicy notes. Nice enough but not what I wanted it to be. Just to make it clear, yes this is a bit reminiscent of Interlude (Interlude Black Iris for me, to be more precise) but Secret Woods has none of the herbal incense and is different enough to stand on its own.

This smells almost exactly like Jusbox Black Powder. Not entirely incidentally, it's the same perfumer and IIRC Costume National is run by the same people who run Jusbox. Most notably though, this contains a good amount of boisambre forte (amberwood), I vividly detect it on the drydown. It's not listed of course, they rarely list amberwood, it's in so many releases these days. That also means it's a pass for me because I can't stand the stuff, even though I like the overall scent profile of this.

The opening has some similarities with popular leather fragrancer(tuscan leather).What is more important,the drydown-Encre noire a l’extreme.When i came home,sniffed my wrist,and i knew it was very similar to something I allready know.Quickly,it came to me that Encre noire.It is very very close.I was really surprised,as the opening wasn’t leading to that,but the drydown cought me by surprise.

I'm a woman who enjoys wearing men's scents but this is too traditionally "cologne-ish" for me. Probably the juniper berries. Most of these notes are in many perfumes I wear. To be more descriptive, I'll call it dry, kind of outdoorsy and date- night at the same time. Not a work scent-- kinda heavy handed.

I Don’t normally write these things. But to the person below me @mkcnm... stfu. They can write what they want about their experience with their perfume. Take your little dweeb self elsewhere.

If you're a fan of Rasquinet's style you won't be disappointed with this one. It's Interlude Man meets The Moon, with the smoothness of Enclave.

This smells like a slightly lighter Amouage Interlude (yet still in beast mode category). It’s not very wearable artistic woody combo

This fragrance should be called Secret Leather rather, than Wood, Its resemblance to Interlude is almost startling.

Aromatic green masculine scent. Nice Italian blend of Juniper Sandalwood Vetiver and Patchouli. Too strong for some

to me (on me) this smells like CDG wonderoud’s more amped up version that has actual sillage / longevity.

It’s high quality. To my nose it has a close dna to amouage interlude man, but easier to wear.

I agree that it's very close to Reckless Leather by Amouage