INK

What I own, and wore a significant amount of in the recent cooler months, is INK, not INKSH. I cannot tell you if INK is substantially or unnoticeably different from INKSH, or any degree in between. What I can tell you is that in its current form as INK, it is one of the more intriguing wood profiles I have smelled in several years - right up there with a couple of Maksim Perfumes I had the pleasure of recently wearing as well. The style and character of INK has a lot in common with Bornikov's compositional style and love of wood profiles as well. The first few times wearing INK I was reminded of a dear friend of mine, an excellent artist that does wood burning. She will find pieces of reclaimed white or beige woods, smooth them out and make them pretty and presentable, and will burn images onto the surface with a combination of straight-heat pens and color stains. I watched her do this once to a piece of birch, and the smell was striking. The tendril of smoke coming off of the wood's surface while she drew had an outsized profile compared to its wispy size; earthy, leathery, woody, hot, and obviously smoky. Using stains for the bits that she felt needed color released a sweet and chemically aroma into the air. It was mesmerizing watching her work, not for the least of reasons was that my nose had something to follow while my eyes watched her hand and the image take shape. The smoke in INK is not like the smoke of that memory. Here it is a much softer and sweeter frankincense note that is sans the leather and acrid edges of the birch smoke. The meditative hum of frankincense reverberates throughout INK, the glue holding everything together, without ever being front and center stage. The ink note that shows up at the top is... well... inky. It is chemically whilst being smooth and supple, and a touch fruity. It is not an ink that has VOCs launching into the air, rather more like cuttlefish/squid ink, a bit ozonic and salty. The fruitiness, in particular, has a very convincing and naturalistic link to the oft-fruity facet of olibanum, and, because they present with the same textures and demur character, they feel cohesive and unified rather than juxtaposed had the ink gone more of a chemically route and/or the olibanum more resinous. But they are supporting characters to the woods of INK, a superb sandalwood and Indian oud combination with a healthy dose of labdanum. Evolution of INK does push resinous facets further and further forward as a result of the labdanum. It is sticky, earthy, and a bit pink fruity floral - making sure the minor-player fruit note doesn't lose too much traction with time. The sandalwood and oud concoction Lasheras employs is absolutely lovely, and quite familiar. I am quite certain Lasheras's gorgeous composition HOZ provided the starting point for INK. As the dry down starts the sandalwood and oud carry equal vocal volumes. The sandalwood is creamy, floral, velvety, and sweetly balsamic that is not overwhelmed by the dark, composted, oily, and earthy notes of the Indian oud. With time the woods grow darker and deeper, the sandalwood seeming to fade while the labdanum and oud take over - like the healing of a tattoo with its colors settling in. The black earth, sticky bronzed resins, and oily woods continually build in strength, density, and energy hours into the dry down while also getting more luxurious, supple and plush. The final stages of the dry down have a classic amber woods profile that is achingly familiar. The oud loses a bit of its burly and pushy muscle to let more of its gentle woody profile work with the labdanum, and the little that is left of the sandalwood. Think Chanel in the 80s/90s, Estee Lauder, or Serge Lutens; unquestionably a retro homage but not derivative. Beautifully done. Lasheras does something unique for Mallo here. Rather than taking a minimalist idea, with a minimalist's number of materials, and paying extremely close attention to a single or dual accord to give it loving attention to detail throughout its evolution, he takes a more maximalist direction with a bigger and abstract idea, and more than one accord in play. The natural materials he uses are exquisite and he handles them very well, as usual, and with that comes a superior attention to detail by way of these materials simply being much better than the vast majority perfumers or houses are willing to use. That said, the detail seems to be a bit less than other Mallo compositions - but that is also like saying you no longer need a microscope to notice all of the details and a magnifying glass will do instead, which is also to say quite remarkable. The point of INK is less about the detail and more about the idea, which is a notable shift in creative direction for the brand that is executed very, very well indeed. Another excellent perfume from Mallo. Top marks.

Ink is a scent of contrasts, simultaneously dark, brooding, and mysterious while also sauve, fruity, and approachable. There’s a unique bitter undercurrent running through the whole fragrance, and it almost comes off as chlorinated at times; I’m told this is the ink accord. This acts to keep the sweetness of the raspberry and styrax at bay. The notes are all there, and while the scent is somewhat linear (in that it doesn’t have distinct top notes- base notes), it’s extremely multidimensional, and never boring. It’s the most “je ne sais quois” perfume I’ve ever tried. Overall, the fragrance wears as a fruited leathery, incense. I really love that INK quite literally smells like nothing I’ve ever tried before, and in a world chock full of perfume, that’s a hard feat to pull off.

This is a masterpiece. I love when natural perfumery is done on such complex way - it is very rare! It is woody, oud-y, fruity. There are so many layers. I think it could be a perfect gift for someone who collects perfumes as well as for someone who has just recently dicovered oud-perfumes. It is extremely longlasting. Definitely my favourite scent for this winter.

Ink by MALLO - Inked in Darkness Ink by MALLO is a total game-changer if you love tattoo ink! Tattoo artist GAKKIN and Mallo Parfum teamed up for a limited release, and perfumers Antonio Lasheras and Dr. Rajesh Balkrishnan nailed it. This scent is like nothing I've ever smelled - dark, fruity, and utterly unique hovering around Ink. The ink note is insane, eerily similar to tattoo ink. Sourced from natural carbon-derived ink, it's bold and rich, setting the tone. The fragrance unfolds with Raspberry's tart kick and Styrax's warm undertones. Nagaland Oud adds subtle dryness, while Caledonian Sandalwood balances out the ink's omnipresence. After an hour, Coal starts shining with smoky, leathery notes. Labdanum's sweet, animalic presence balances out the darker notes, and incense rounds the scent beautifully. The notes harmonize perfectly, preventing Ink from becoming overwhelming for you or your surrounding. Ink lingers within a 2-foot scent bubble, offering random whiffs of its unique ingredients. It lasts for hours, leaving you wanting more. If you adore unique fragrances, dark scents, and natural ingredients, you'll love Ink. Trust me, you won't regret it!

I love this thing, got a sample and wished my paycheck hit earlier. If anyone has a bottle that they are willing to sell, hit me up on my instagram @yodaisjacked This is definitely a top competitor for my favorite fragrance of all time. I wasn’t what I was expecting when I first sprayed it, really hoping that I can get my hands on a bottle in the future

Mysteriously dark yet aromatic and light. Spicy resinous but somehow subtly sweet and herbaceous/green(pine straw in my mind). This fragrance is a shape shifter to say the least. I adore it and must find a bottle. Fantastic work again from mallo and raj!