Brooklyn-based indie line DS & Durga has added nine new fragrances, six for men and three for women.
Freetrapper for Men ~ “Before cowboys, there were free trappers. Renegade mountaineers of the Jacksonian era who cut trails through the wild in search of beaver pelts – prized by hatters, doctors, & perfumers. Dark cedar, snakeroot, wild bergamot & black pine.” 40 ml, $94.
Italian Citrus for Men ~ “A bracing cologne of coastal Italian citrus rinds – chinotto, blood orange, cold-pressed lemon and green mandarin with ambrette seed & clean musk.” 40 ml, $94.
Osmanthus Cologne for Men ~ “Floral colognes were worn by elegant men until WWII. Classic cologne water – citrus, orange blossom, rosemary & lavender – emboldened by the rare Australian osmanthus flower.” 40 ml, $94.
Sir for Men ~ “A grand chypre of choice materials: aged Indonesian patchouli, storax amber, grandiflorum jasmine, & mace. The last word in smart dress.” 40 ml, $94.
Mississippi Medicine for Men ~ “Based on the rituals of the proto- Mississippian death cult of the 1200s. Native birch tar, viola, & white spruce grounded in incense & cypress root.” 40 ml, $94.
Boston Ivy for Men ~ “A memory of Boston in the ’80s. Where green moss & ivy grew next to I.R.A. graffiti and fresh clover was salted by the sea.” 40 ml, $94.
Five Step Waltz for Women ~ “For the 1840s tune that swept the nation at the height of American ballroom dancing. When women donned bespoke gowns & rich perfumes for the schottische, quadrille, & waltz. Our five steps are vanilla, amber, lavender, jasmine grandiflorum, & Moroccan rose.” 30 ml, $85.
Poppy Rouge for Women ~ “In Mississippi John Hurt’s “Richland Women’s Blues” a loose married woman prepares for a night on the town in her “rosy red garters, bright poppy rouge, & turkey red bloomer.” Orange flower, jonquil,& Parma violet.” 30 ml, $85.
The Orchid Drinkers for Women ~ “Salep, a drink made from ground orchid tubers, was popular in Georgian England when a fascination with the “exotic East” prevailed. Ladies of the landed gentry sipped this floral-rooty beverage in their tea rooms. Airy orchid, sandalwood, bergamot, & white tea.” 30 ml, $85.
(via press release)
Update: see reviews for Poppy Rouge, The Orchid Drinkers, and Five Step Waltz.
31 Comments
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The men’s one sound interesting….
also… isn’t it strange that the men bottles are all 40ml and the women’s are 30ml??
…not to mention twice as many choices.
At least they also cost more, though not on a per/ml basis.
Don’t know why they’re using different bottles for the women’s & men’s, it does seem odd.
I imagine because the concentrations are different. Men probably get an EDT or EDC version in a larger bottle, and women likely get an EDP version.
Actually, the ds&Durga website lists all the mens @ 50ml
I agree– the men’s fragrances DO seem more interesting. Still, I like the conceptual nature of each perfume. The briefs not only make great reading, but would probably inspire amazing “vision boards” in quaint Victorian collage style.
Too. many. at. once. Why can’t it be one or two *really* good ones? *shakes head* I’m sure these are perfectly lovely but I’m reminded of those old cartoons where the character plugs up one hole in a dam and five more show up. Trying new perfumes begins to feel more and more like bailing out the ocean with a teaspoon…
I like the dam analogy.
I agree — too many! The men’s ones do sound interesting to me though.
Agreed!!!
I have to agree…wish everybody would slow way down.
A couple of these sound interesting. A couple of these *always* sound interesting, and yet…this is another line I haven’t touched at all. Too many!
Exactly how I feel about the DS & Durgas. Might be different if I could waltz into a shop and sniff, but as it is I can’t.
Maybe we all need to meet for a weekend of sniffage in NYC.
Speaking of…when’s the next Sniffapalooza? I’ve never been to one, but always wish I had.
I will get the Poppy Rouge for the John Hurt reference alone…though seriously, those notes are the exact opposite of what I’d pick for a loose married woman!
I must be homesick today….I gotta have the Freetrapper and Mississippi Medicine, too.
Yes…would like to smell the Poppy Rouge for the same reason — it sounds so prim & proper!
Yep, me too — for John Hurt reference alone, but the list of notes sounds like me as well.
When I get around to sampling D.S. and Durga out of these nice I’ll be only testing Poppy Rouge. Not sure about men’s fragrances. I will let my husband choose. So far I haven’t found a man’s fragrance I would want to wear myself.
Well, I have samples of all of them so thought I should add my thoughts. I also wish they would not release so many at a time! Out of the men’s the standouts are Freetrapper (very similar to their Foxhunt scent, which was a LE) Italian Citrus and Boston Ivy. I have already purchased a full bottle of Italian Citrus, can’t wait for summer now so I can wear it! Poppy Rouge and Five Step Waltz are both nice, but Poppy Rouge is a very quiet, calm, ‘prim & proper’ scent indeed Robin! It doesn’t really match the description at all, in my humble opinion.
Oh, good to hear from one who has tried them. I like the sound of the Italian Citrus, Boston Ivy, and Poppy Rouge.
Where did you get your samples from?
If you click the contact button on the website, it lists an email address for them. You can e-mail them with the samples you wish to purchase, I believe they were $4 for about 3/4ml, but I can’t remember exactly, (too many samples, not enough brain space:) )
I’ve enjoyed several from the line. It’s also unclear because a few of their multi-scent projects have been limited editions. A few turn up now and then at my local Anthropologie (I’m of half a mind to finally buy that Pomelo Blossom if it’s still there … we got it SO much later than the launch).
If these show up in Anthro, I’ll be happy to sniff. I’m definitely most interested in the Osmanthus for men. Love osmanthus. Boston Ivy sounds interesting too.
How exactly do we know that “proto-Missippians” had a death cult around 1200, much less what they used for body creams?
And what is an Orchid drinker? Someone who likes the stamins of orchids (i.e., vanilla). Maybe there was a clique of Cream Soda lovers.
The same way we know about all ancient cultures…they left evidence! Cave paintings, mounds, pottery, etc.
Now, as to how this company came up with the exact smells……I suppose artistic license kicks in at some point.
My very fantastic Anthropology professor in college discussed this very topic with us one day (death cults, that is). We were discussing the Spanish Conquistador’s stoies of Latin American cultures and the bloody rites at the temples. The point he made was that a complete foriegner looking in at Christianity could interpret it as a “death cult,” too. All those torture devices (crucifixes) in the churches, on jewelry, etc. And don’t even get started on the whole “body and blood of Christ” thing. Clearly, he was being a little facetious, but the point is well taken. Meanings behind symbols must be carefully interpretted within the perspective of the culture.
I don’t have any specific information about pre-European Mississippi cultures, but I DO think it makes for an intriguing inspiration for a fragrance!
I know the “viola” in Mississippi Medicine must refer to some member of the violet family, but I can’t help thinking they’ve somehow distilled a string instrument into a perfume, and that gets me wondering how a viola might smell different from a cello or a violin.
Most of these sound very nice, but nine is too many, I’ll probably never smell any of them, and I’ve been fooled before by descriptions (not one of the first three Odin scents smelled anything like they should have given their lists of notes).
Oh, glad that wasn’t just me. Eau Duelle smelled a lot more like what I expected Nomad to smell like.
…as all “good” southern ladies would be…, I’m shocked!! (wink, wink) at the description of the Richland, Mississippi loose married woman…
Tis hilarious as I live in Mississippi. I love the description and can’t wait to sniff it and of course Mississippi Medicine…..Death Cults??!!!
I bought DS&D My Indian Childhood from their website several months ago and really enjoy it. It is very different from anything else I have. I’d like to sample some of these new ones.