Original Wood

Ladies and Gentlemen, He Wood is back, only this time it’s called Original Wood. And baby, it is back with a vengeance. When I hear someone describe a fragrance as “woody” I roll my eyes. What others call woody to me smells like wet particle board and syrup. Often, cedar woods are muffled with vanillas and a cocktail of other notes. Oud woods smell corny to me, like silk Hawaiian shirts on the way to watch Jimmy Buffet in Vegas, or the guy trying to buy your car or the scrap metal in the backyard. Original Wood is like literal wood in a bottle. It’s everything I remember with a wonderful addition. It is the smell of fresh wood being freshly cut on a cool morning when there is still dew in the grass. The concert of violet, cedar, and amber notes is prominent, just like He Wood. However, there’s an extra lift to this scent. I mean it’s not just the projection, but the freshness of the aquatic note that makes this scent hit in waves. The scent is almost dancing on me. There’s nothing complicated about this scent. The opening and drydown are the same, and I like that a lot. It doesn’t peel in layers. It’s not like iterative scents with fantastic openings that last as long as Fruit Stripe gum. Original Wood does not tease you. It says this is what you bought; this is what you get. I love what I bought all day long. As for the performance, it’s easily above average. I’m grateful DSquared2 went with an EDP concentration. It definitely projects more than He Wood, and it lasts an easy 9+ hours on me. While there are plenty of mass-appealing fragrances for anyone looking for an “office-safe” scent, this is a dumb reach that extends to the man who wears steel toes as well as the desk jockey who gets his hands dirty on the weekend. The scent itself has a connotation of ruggedness while maintaining cleanliness and freshness that appeals to the ladies. You could rock it with a suit, if you’re the type that wears one with a G-Shock.

Lovely, clean woody scent without any citruses, woooooo. Very ozonic off the top, has the Violet Leaf giving it a nice watery cucumber-y vibe and the cardamom adds a slight bitterness. It smells like a forest after some light rain and dries to a pleasant woody musk. I do love this but it's longevity unfortunately let's it down. :( Projection is decent enough and I feel like you wouldn't want to project much more anyways. Overall 10/10 scent from me but it's longevity...probably a 6/10. For an EDP too, this is really gutting. I bought it at £37.50 for 100ml down from £79, so if it remains I'll pick myself up a back up bottle but not if its £79 :O

I need to get to know this better and maybe it will open up in the bottle over time, but so far I'm getting plenty of fresh, watery, ozonic violet leaf and what I think is a white musk scent from this, but not a great deal of deep minty cedar or spiky green conifer sap. It is all there--I can make out the cedar in particular--but I do not find this to be a highly woody scent, at any rate not in the bitter, green sense. (I don't find it to be a violet bomb either though.) It's nice but surprisingly soft. It does not make me feel like a lumberjack.

Initial impression: Yes! I want to marry you!” I missed this kind of fresh fragrance. This opening is mouth watering violet. Similar somewhat to the great herrera 212 men. No fruits listed, hmm oK. I still think this smells like juicy fruits in summer. Mmm. Edit: Dry down takes a left turn as the fir or patchouli makes some sort of funky incense vibe come poking through. The once marvellous fruits are sort of disappated - already!? Jeez almost bought it straight off opening but now, not a big fan. The opening though is a 10/10.

Oh yes! One of the best woody themes out there along with Hinoki by CdG. Voilet & Cardamom are blended in the most perfect manner. To me the bouquet is identical to the initial HeWood version (which I wore back in 2008) but the performance & bottle design are better. It shows that the company is indeed listening to the market by bringing the ORIGINAL HeWood (which the name refers to) to a new, improved level. As I re-discovered this recently it has definitely become one of my favourite fragrances out there! Bravo!