Oxford

Not quite sure how the name reflects the fragrance, I don't remember Oxford smelling like this. Probably the sexiest, sensual intellectual I can imagine, so it might as well be me. The blurb says unisex, 'though brave woman who takes this on. HUGE, bold, muscular, takes up space without apologies and boasting stamina, lasts all day (and night). I like the earthiness and greenness of the sage and rosemary among the exotic oud and galbanum. For such a savoury dark scent it's very uplifting. Imagine enjoying a lush and mature, evergreen garden after the Summer sun has broken through after a rainstorm. There's mud and wood too, not just leaves. The dark tension still in memory, the intensity is present in the warmth and green life fills your lungs, it's an inhalation of life affirmed after catharsis. A very dark green-oriental. It takes a long time for the scent to go through its layers of notes so you better like them all. I can sense all the notes but not so much the vanilla (that's a plus, I wouldn't invest in smelling like an ice-cream). I think it must be there to offer a fullness and roundness rather than impress a sweetness. Lovely heavy glass bottle bottle which on first glance looks like an etched silhouetted tableau from a fairytale, though little air bubble trapped under the sticker gave the game away. I went for the large squarer bottle (100ml EdP) but there is also a 50ml inside a different shape, more long mini pyramid. No comparison fragrance springs to mind (love to know what others think). When commercial brands products work I don't mind going along with the crowd and when niche brands offer quirky scents that actually smell nice I don't mind being a bit different. It's good to try something unusual that is also reassuring.

I'm a proud owner of this. I love it too...why the hell haven't I reviewed it yet? Like a load of other perfumes I suppose? Anyway, I'm going to try to keep this concise (I know that's not like you Houdini) just for my own sanity and because I really want you to discover this brand and perfumer for yourself, because her work is a real treat. This is a very bergamot laden opening and it has that 'heavy' citrus, bergamot you get in more artisanal brands, but the perfume then reaches escape velocity and gives a load more complexity and such. I'd say its a mossy, aromatic, cologne type fragrance, but it's complicated. It has herbal notes of sage and later on a creaminess coming from vanilla. It sounds a bit of a muddle but it's really one cohesive, strong, statement. Doesn't blow my mind but I really like how much intrigue it packs into one perfume. Check it out.

Ah dinnae ken... Named "Oxford" but smells so Scottish! It is juicy-rich-herbal composition, different, yet from same group of weirdly-addictive herbal-vegetable juices that Tilda Swindon's Like This or Annick Goutal's Mandragora are famous for. Love at first sniff from me, I am addicted to everything comfortably-unconventional and herbal. To me it is the perfect weekend fragrance, when after walking your dog you both are welcomed at the local pub with a nice view over the hills. Long-lasting, memorable and original, going to get a FB for sure.

Herbal, fresh with a slight mintiness. I don't really get much of the amber or vanilla in this one. To me it is quite a manly scent but not in a dark leather oudy way but the way say creed aventus is, it has a freshness but at the same time has a roughness to it as well which comes across quite manly. Overall it is quite a unique, complex scent which i love.

A fragrance which goes from 'this will suit a middle-aged man in a boring suit' to 'hey, sporty, will you take me for a ride'. I didn't quite enjoy the opening (though it was really interesting) but after 20 minutes this really got under my skin. I can't put my finger on what exactly makes me want to constantly sniff my wrists, probably the herbs...

Oxford opens with a blast of bergamot which thankfully quickly softens into green sharp and herbaceous (galbanum and basil) and on my t-shirt it stays that way for ages. On my skin about 15 minutes in it fades to powdery pale green (maybe lavender is coming in on the breeze?). No more galbanum or basil, no rosemary, it’s like the middle of the pyramid just vanished. About 10 minutes later deeper amber and dry vanilla show up. Meanwhile on my t-shirt rosemary and lavender are taking center stage, with basil and sage peeking around the edges until they slowly fade into the amber-vanilla. I get no projection on either skin or fabric, and no discernible Jasmine, Vetiver, or Oud (all notes I love). I wish this worked on me; on fabric for about 10 minutes it really did remind me of walking through a wildflower meadow next to a stream (I have a specific scent memory of Winchester near the Cathedral on a May afternoon).

I have been trying out niche perfume houses lately and quite a few have been disappointing. Sana Jardin is a nice range but the perfumes struck me as wearable but derivative and simplistic. Ruth Mastenbroek, however, has created a really interesting range. Oxford is my favourite. There is a medicinal flavour to the herbal top notes and the merest trace of sweetness a long way back in the mix which must be the vanilla. As time goes on, I could smell incense - perhaps that was the oud mingling with the patchouli? The scent does develop somewhat but on me it's fairly linear. The overall impact is intriguing, complex, unusual and in my opinion, wonderful. Edit: my husband can barely smell this on me, if if I’ve only just applied it and he sniffs really hard. To me, this is quite an assertive scent. I wonder if some people are anosmic to some of the notes?

After using my second sample of Oxford I can safely say that this is high on my to buy list. A beautiful mood setter of a fragrance. I wore it today for a meeting in an old English country house. Wearing a tweed jacket and cable knit jumper, the earthy, herbal, green woodyness of Oxford felt just perfect for this setting. The green opening lasts a while then an earthy patchouli amber hybrid hangs around for 6-8hrs hours on my skin. Projects really well for a few hours and remains noticeable and no where near a skin scent until the very end.

alcoholic opening which burns off to sour, powdery amber, and grass now after reading the notes it totally makes sense, bitter galbanum with weedy sage and powdery amber ... there's a few scents this reminded me of, Kintsugi by Masque Milano, Renaissance Man by Chris Collins, & Foin Fraichement Coupe by Oriza Legrand which all have an odd mixture of outside smells mixing with powdery perfume ingredients which I guess is not my cup of tea