Top Notes 
Apple
Lemon
Heart Notes 
Cashmere
Damask rose
Leather
Base Notes 
Patchouli
Oud
Yatagan
415 Reviews
Translated · Show original
Yatagan
Top Review
32
Barefoot Through the Embers
Uncommented Scents No. 112
Ruth Mastenbroek really doesn't make it easy for us. Her fragrances are characterized by conflicting, at times extremely cumbersome scent combinations. I first noticed this with her signature scent "RM" (from 2010). The combination of pineapple, blackcurrant, jasmine, and patchouli requires strong nerves from the wearer and their environment. "Amorosa" (2012) is also not exactly an uncomplicated everyday fragrance, as a nearly metallic heart note mixes into the powerful fruit-flower combination. Her first scent that is also easily wearable for men, "Oxford" (2015), initially seems comparatively conventional, but then challenges the wearer with a combination of intensely green (galbanum and spices) and floral notes, especially since a metallic undertone has also been added here. These brief descriptions should not deter interested parties, as the fragrances all score points with their quirky British and boldly original compositions - far removed from the traditional mainstream of the continent. This is something I fundamentally appreciate.
Firedance joins the ranks as the latest fragrance from Ruth Mastenbroek, continuing this distinctly British tradition by combining difficult-to-combine elements and adding a subtly animalistic smoky note that gives the fragrance a restrained innovative character. What may have smelled like a failed mixture in RM, Amorosa, and Oxford for some, here appears as a consciously accepted provocation within a moderate avant-garde framework. Clearly at the center is a soapy rose, a symbol of English perfume tradition. From the very beginning, this powdery floral note is accompanied by the aforementioned smoky note, reminiscent of smoked goods from the oven (think ham). This smoky note remains rather subtle, not pushing itself to the forefront as strongly as in the fragrances from Beaufort, making it still quite tolerable even for vegetarians like me.
Additionally, the specified fruit is noticeable in the top note, while patchouli is quite prominent in the base note.
The fragrance is particularly original also because it developed differently and anew on my skin and scent strips during three tests conducted with time intervals: at one point, the smoky note was clearly in the foreground, then the soapy rose dominated more strongly, and at another time, patchouli seemed much more noticeable than in the previous tests. I initially smelled the fruity top notes strongly, but in the last test, they were hardly perceptible. Such a range of variation in tests is rarely noted in a fragrance. This may be due to the ultimately quite cumbersome combination of ingredients, which makes a blind purchase seem unwise.
It should also be noted that this fragrance contains the all-too-frequently encountered combination of oud and rose, but here it has been integrated in a completely different and new way.
For those who enjoy original fragrances that do not strictly belong to the avant-garde but require a certain acclimatization from the wearer, the scents of Ruth Mastenbroek are highly recommended, especially the latest creation "Firedance."
Ruth Mastenbroek really doesn't make it easy for us. Her fragrances are characterized by conflicting, at times extremely cumbersome scent combinations. I first noticed this with her signature scent "RM" (from 2010). The combination of pineapple, blackcurrant, jasmine, and patchouli requires strong nerves from the wearer and their environment. "Amorosa" (2012) is also not exactly an uncomplicated everyday fragrance, as a nearly metallic heart note mixes into the powerful fruit-flower combination. Her first scent that is also easily wearable for men, "Oxford" (2015), initially seems comparatively conventional, but then challenges the wearer with a combination of intensely green (galbanum and spices) and floral notes, especially since a metallic undertone has also been added here. These brief descriptions should not deter interested parties, as the fragrances all score points with their quirky British and boldly original compositions - far removed from the traditional mainstream of the continent. This is something I fundamentally appreciate.
Firedance joins the ranks as the latest fragrance from Ruth Mastenbroek, continuing this distinctly British tradition by combining difficult-to-combine elements and adding a subtly animalistic smoky note that gives the fragrance a restrained innovative character. What may have smelled like a failed mixture in RM, Amorosa, and Oxford for some, here appears as a consciously accepted provocation within a moderate avant-garde framework. Clearly at the center is a soapy rose, a symbol of English perfume tradition. From the very beginning, this powdery floral note is accompanied by the aforementioned smoky note, reminiscent of smoked goods from the oven (think ham). This smoky note remains rather subtle, not pushing itself to the forefront as strongly as in the fragrances from Beaufort, making it still quite tolerable even for vegetarians like me.
Additionally, the specified fruit is noticeable in the top note, while patchouli is quite prominent in the base note.
The fragrance is particularly original also because it developed differently and anew on my skin and scent strips during three tests conducted with time intervals: at one point, the smoky note was clearly in the foreground, then the soapy rose dominated more strongly, and at another time, patchouli seemed much more noticeable than in the previous tests. I initially smelled the fruity top notes strongly, but in the last test, they were hardly perceptible. Such a range of variation in tests is rarely noted in a fragrance. This may be due to the ultimately quite cumbersome combination of ingredients, which makes a blind purchase seem unwise.
It should also be noted that this fragrance contains the all-too-frequently encountered combination of oud and rose, but here it has been integrated in a completely different and new way.
For those who enjoy original fragrances that do not strictly belong to the avant-garde but require a certain acclimatization from the wearer, the scents of Ruth Mastenbroek are highly recommended, especially the latest creation "Firedance."
23 Comments
Yatagan
Seejungfrau
Jumi
Bellemorte
FvSpee
Ergoproxy
Pluto
Lox
LadyViolet
