Daim

** I do not support this platform, and more reviews of mine will be available on other ones, but I understand this one has the most reach, so for Miskeo Parfums, I will make an exception. I want to preface my reviews by giving a little note that I think is relevant to the experience of buying these perfumes. Marie-Pierre Blanchette, the perfumer, also does all of the work for the brand. Taken from their page, “Marie not only creates the perfumes, but also compounds, filters, bottles, labels and packs every order. She also created the branding, does most of the photography, and maintains the website and social media.” This is very taxing work, needless to say, and yet, hers is the best customer service I have ever experienced with a brand. Not only was she extremely helpful and even went the extra mile when there were issues, but she was also incredibly sweet and lovely. First a blast of juicy citrus, similar to orange but more aromatic, something spicy, and also a dry creamy hay that remains through the whole composition. A smooth, sun-baked, leathery accord is at the heart of the composition, in a way that feels like white florals, undeniably hay, but also suede-y and leathery. Beautiful. I feel a juxtaposition of elegant elements and also modest and unpretentious ones. I have been wearing it for the past couple days and I am thoroughly enjoying it. It feels very “real”, like the countryside, and also refined. I would call it lavish but that connotes lack of being grounded and this is the opposite. This is deep and warm, and feels, once again, like a very natural smell, mellowed and suede-y (both in smell and texture) in the most exquisite way. A carnal smell of white florals is the perfect element to go with these other creamy facets, and the colours that Daim evokes are an interplay of beige, a diverse range of browns and other neutrals and some deep red accents. The more it dries down, the more the animalic facets come through, but these are leathery in nature, not so skanky as other animalics, and also a touch of something deep and woody. The imagery Daim conjures for me is that of a couple à la Bonnie and Clyde (not in the criminality aspect but more the connectedness), attending a cocktail party during the 1930’s and wearing their best attire, but on the way to the party they traverse fields with their car and the windows are down. Based on the notes/impressions from the brand: Miskeo ascribes the scent families of “Animalic, Aromatic, Floral” to Daim, and this is based on a lovely scent wheel they have devised which can be found on their website. The impressions (“notes”) on the website are, suede, blood orange, black pepper, hay, frangipani, jasmine, mahogany and castoreum. I would agree with these impressions, as per my review. I write these reviews before I remind myself of the notes, so as to not get too stuck in my expectations. Other features that I think are worth noting: I am interested in how Daim will smell in the warmer seasons, and I have autumn associations for the scent more subjectively. To me it’s appropriate for the whole day. I would reserve this scent more for special occasions (this is a running sentiment with the line due to price but also due to complexity) but if I were to wear perfume based only on how much I enjoy the scent itself, I would wear Daim and the others from Miskeo, much more often (I currently opt for mood-dependent, association-based wear, more than I do sheer scent-enjoyment wear). I would describe the scent as aromatic, grassy, savory spicy, soft woody, animalic and leathery and heady floral. Mood-wise, this is classic but original, sophisticated, elegant, familiar, special, intriguing, and/or memorable. More info: It is an Eau de Parfum, at a 16% Concentration, and it is vegan-friendly (love). Refer to the review for Pistil to see why, but I don’t particularly care about longevity in perfume. For what it’s worth, Daim has a longevity of at least 7 hours (I had to be awake from 12 to 7 and I wore it and I could still smell it then). Gender-wise, I also don’t believe in it, I am non-binary myself, and all smells are for everyone. Rating overall: 10/10 Thoughts on the brand: The aesthetics of Miskeo, as well as the creative choices (such as the layout of their page, the way they describe scents, the extremely interesting and very unique additions of things like scent synaesthesia), their transparency with materials and in general, and their other ethics, regarding humans and non-human animals, something which is essential for me, are exactly aligned with my own beliefs and what I find interesting (check their FAQ’s, https://miskeoparfums.com/pages/faq). The smells are unparalleled, and paired with everything I have said so far, as well as the fact that Marie is a delightful person that I am happy to support, financially and other, I can conclude that this is certainly one of my favourite brands of all time, and I am glad to have all of her scents in my collection, as well as express my excitement at whatever she may bring out in the future. Disclaimer: Scent is subjective, so take my interpretations with a grain of salt. Everyone’s opinion on smells is affected by their own personal experiences, and no 2 people will interpret things the same, so don’t generalise my opinion, and smell things for yourself to make up your thoughts.

omg... mind you im a leather debutante so what do i know ? but to my novice nose, this is divine. i think surrounding tobacco & suede accord with creamy yellow+white flowers was literally a perfect move. smells almost like a really fun take on an amber perfume. and then sprinkling some blood orange just completely seals the deal. this feels a lil crackled, but held together by inordinate amounts of gorgeous hand cream. citrus zest & clary sage to add a touch of hope and brighten up the melange. pepper might be blended a bit too well, sad for me a pepper luvr. this was my last miskeo eau de toilette (finally figured out why their longevity isn’t the best lol) in the elements discovery set and i really really loved the ride. everything felt both fun, intriguing, careful & novel yet accessible & palatable. ty marie-pierre blanchette 🙏🏻🙏🏻

I bought the discovery set and was sure Daim would be the one I liked the least. I do not like leather in fragrance usually at all. Usually any perfume with leather in the notes list becomes like a sour diesel fuel smell I hate. This gorgeous potion, however, turns into this most comforting, elegant, smell. Like opening a shoe box on the most elegant, expensive pair of gorgeous leather shoes. Then, as it wears on, it becomes this rich, resinous, warm skin smell while still being elegant, yet comforting. I think it's full-bottle worthy for sure.

I can’t always tell what I’m smelling with this one, but I know it’s great. I suppose it’s a velvety green and tropical suede to my nose? It feels appropriately niche yet modern and French. If this was a bit more commercial leaning (read muted and diluted), I feel like it’s something you could find at Serge Lutens. If you care about performance, you get an eternal suede note with one spray.

This is very unique and interesting. It starts with a lovely green opening: bergamot, herbs and some fresh spices. But it also has a dark side with nice dry woods and leather. It reminds me of several “green leather” scents but I can’t pinpoint just one.

easy wearing, begins with soft sueded leather and then dries down to reveal more of the dried florals, tobacco, & sage, along with a blood orange note that isn’t a fresh juicy citrus but more like that white pithy stuff under the rind. delicately aromatic and herbal underneath the suede veil, dusty smooth

Daim is a scent I expected to enjoy from the note breakdown, but unfortunately I can’t get along with this. As it settles on my skin I can feel it taking up residence in my sinuses, battering my sense of smell and leaving me with a headache. I won’t even use the rest of this sample - this doesn’t make it a bad scent though, it’s just not for me. The suede accord is what I can’t tolerate; I adore leather fragrances and consider them to be one of my favourite scent categories, but it turns me off when they smell hyperrealistic. Combine that with this weird plasticky, soapy jasmine and frangipani note and it all just becomes a bit too much. I feel like I’ve smelled this exact scent profile a few times before, but I cannot place where. Overall, I don’t enjoy this scent unfortunately, but for some I imagine it may be more than satisfying.

I am a huge fan of leather fragrances. Suede is another beast entirely. That being said, I’m always hoping to be proven wrong. I must regretfully report that Daim smells like the dry, cracked, and aged leather interior of an old car. I can’t detect any of the other notes on my skin as much as I wish I could. The suede accord is domineering. Maybe the nuances would come out to play better with someone else’s skin chemistry.

I find this very papery and starchy. Almost as though through that thick, starched gas I can only just make out a nice powdered orange somewhere in there. Clary sage and it's purple muskiness shines alongside a really intimate, delicate suede. But I cannot get past that papery character, and that over bearing mahogany. Oh no. Not for me.

How intimidating! I’ve never been the first review before - ok, here goes. Daim is a lovely comfortable quiet fragragrance. I am wearing soft suede gloves while walking into my favorite almost-private reading room in the campus library. I take off my gloves and the suede is gradually supplanted by the smell of the old, leather-bound books and the solid heavy wood chairs. The reading room has a few vases of flowers placed around the perimeter, with the controlled ventilation and humidity allowing just subtle wafts of green and floral impressions against the slightly dry air. Daim has a touch of synthetic castoreum that is not overdone, thank goodness, it rather provides the sense of anticipation ...looking forward to the pleasure of a few hours of undisturbed reading.

It must be the way the hay, spice, and florals are coming together, but this to me smells like agrestic mimosa suede. Definitely yellow floral, but the polleny kind - I don’t get frangipani in the fruity way I usually do. The dry down is all class -Suede comes off with that touch of butane that makes it just a little addictive, but it’s not sweet or oily. Instead it’s dusty mimosa pollen atop a crisp buff colored suede. I can see myself wearing this regularly in spring.

First opinions - This is one to try before buying and in my opinion, not a blind buy. For me, the clary sage and black pepper dulls the experience and turns this into quite a subdued fragrance, with the blood orange failing to ignite it and pique my interest. That said, I'm not a fan of black pepper, but those who are, may want to try this.