Rose Week 2012
My first experience with Providence Perfume Co. Rose Bohème was during the Summer of Peace, Love and Patchouli Event hosted by Monica of Perfume Pharmer in 2011. At that time, I had an unlabeled vial of this stuff and it didn’t work on my skin at all. You can read my initial impressions here. I knew that I had to go back and try this stuff. The perfumes that confuse me at first are the ones that I usually end up loving because they have complexity.
A few changes were made to Rose Bohème and I’m testing the newest version, what you can purchase now. Not too many changes were made, but let me tell you, Charna perfected this final blend.
Rose Bohème is a very filthy rose on me. This rose has been drug through the mud. The oud and saffron in this are very “barnyard” in this. The patchouli smells like black soil. I admit that I’m a bit fearful of Rose Bohème at this stage. Why? The dogs won’t stop sniffing and trying to lick me. After about 10-15 minutes of wear, Rose Bohème blooms into this perfect filthy rose. The patchouli is stunning (and you must be a patch head to love it!) There’s a bit of grassy tea with this camphoric rose. But, really the entire effect is the filthiest, dirtiest rose on the planet. There is absolutely no sweetness. The dry-down is a luxurious honeyed-plum rose and saffron that I want to roll around in.
Rose Bohème reminds me of the unlikely tramp you don’t want to love but you end up falling in love with. He buys you a dozen roses and tries to kiss you. You throw the roses to the ground and storm off. He comes back later to serenade you, you slam the shutters. You feel he’s too rough around the edges for you. Eventually, he gives up on all of the hopeless romantic gestures, retreating to a sleazy bar to hang out with his cronies. This is when you fall for him. You can’t get him off your mind. You find yourself chasing him; you find yourself embracing him in the sleazy tavern.
Like I said, Rose Bohème scares me at first. And then it gets great. I’ve sniffed this on others, mainly men, and it seems to work much better on their skin. It seems that on a man’s skin, there is no scariness but all sexiness. In a strange way, I think of this as the perfume that Valentino would have worn in The Sheik since it’s dirty, expensive, exotic, and romantic.
Notes listed include aged patchouli, fir, red tea, white rose, agarwood, saffron, and Turkish rose. PERFUMER – Charna Ethier
Give Rose Bohème a try if you like filthy, filthy roses or patchouli florals. Try it if you have never found a rose dirty enough or if you like perfumes like DSH Perfumes dirtyROSE, L’Artisan Parfumeur Al Oudh, Esscentual Alchemy Lumberjack Man, Le Labo Rose 31, and/or Montale Moon Aoud. Anyone can wear Rose Bohème but I’m telling you, there’s something magical about it on men’s skin.
A 5ml bottle is available at Beautyhabit for $45.
Victoria’s Final EauPINION – The filthiest rose on the planet. It seems to smell better on men that it does me. It’s a complex, wonderful creation.
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Wow. I have to try this.
I’m very excited about their entire line; having just met them at Elements. I have to admit I’m generally a very big skeptic about 100% natural perfumes but so far the ones I’ve tried seem a lot more like “real” perfume than other natural lines I’ve surveyed.
Same here. Something about this natural line stands out. Seems more like “perfume” (top/mid/base) and worth the price. I think we should do a Cocoa Tuberose split 😉
I’d love to know how this one wears on you. On me, it’s really, really dirty and more like a farm for the first hour of wear. But, on some skins this stuff smells perfect from first spray to dry-down. I can really see this being a HG rose for some men.
Speaking of naturals – I bought some stuff from LUSH and the bag says this “We believe in making effective products from fresh organic* fruit and vegetables, the finest essential oils and safe synthetics.” Whaaatttt?
Thank you Victoria! I love your review. It made me smile. I love your comparison of Rose Boheme to a tramp . . . it’s always thrilling to fall for the bad boy once in awhile 🙂
That’s right!
Thank you for commenting, Charna. It’s a lovely perfume and a must try for those wanting a dirty rose.
[…] A. Providence Perfume Co Rose Bohème EDP – This may be one of the filthiest roses I know. This is a natural fragrance blend of roses, red tea, saffron and oud. It verges on barnyard at times but the rose always pulls it away from being vulgar. I think this is a great masculine rose. The 1 oz. EDP retails for $115 at Providence Perfume Co. (Remember, it’s an all natural fragrance and has all natural oud. It’s not cheap.) Here’s my review. […]
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[…] Rose Boheme – A dirty unisex rose. Personally, I want more men to smell like this. It’s funky and awesome. When it works for you, it works. […]