Histoire d`Eau Mauboussin for women

First spraying this on (EDT), it reminds me of some absolutely common male fragrance from the late 90s. Acidic, spicy, somewhat hollow and drugstore-smelling. Something you would buy for a boyfriend or older brother, not a father or husband. An "impression" of Drakkar Noir, perhaps? On my skin it is sour and missing a lot of the depth others describe. In my hair, however, it does okay - spicy and full although harder to detect. Perhaps I'll chalk this up to shark week changing my skin chemistry temporarily, and try again in a while...

It smells like tar, old wooden boat. Lovely.

Is this the intermediate species between the classic amber oriental and the Lutens cedar oriental? Its 2002 birth date tells me no, but my nose says it could be. Histoire d’Eau is a smoky, spicy cedar/amber. There is just enough sweet amber to fall into the Shalimar camp, and enough cedar and fruit to be an SL Bois. It also has an opacity that sits right between Shalimar’s richness and SL’s transparency. Unfortunately, the middle ground is not necessarily the ripest locale for inspiration. I can’t help but feel with a few tweaks, this could have been spectacular.

I’ve only smelled SL’s Daim Blond once, and while Hd’E does smell like it a bit at the outset, it doesn’t hang together like Daim Blond. It doesn’t so much fall apart as become flatter over the course of the heart. It rallies a bit in the drydown, leaving a pleasant but unexciting spicy cedar.

zowie! A man could easy pull this one off if he wanted to that is. Too strange of fragrance that smells like an old leather glove found in a musty basement. Now take that glove and pour some warm heated ketchup on it sprinkle a little curry powder then close your eyes and take a big sniff - that is Histoire d'Eau - **bleck**

I think the dried fruit and spices are what makes me think of ketchup when I first spray this on. I really don't like it, but I can bear it. As time goes on, though, I begin to like it more and more. I'm not sure if I get used to it, or if the top notes have subsided enough and then blend nicely with the rest of the notes. I don't find this to be "synthetic," nor can I think of anything else "wrong" with this fragrance. I have a large rotation, and sometimes a fragrance gets passed over because I just find myself reaching for something else, but this one I do keep coming back to, usually about once a month at this point. For me, this is a bit more "masculine" and interesting than Cuir de Lancome, though the leather there is more obvious (not a "good" or "bad" thing). This is my soft leather whereas The Knize Ten is my harsh leather fragrance. It lasts a long time, but my guess is that the top notes create olfactory fatigue issues for a lot of people, so you might want to try avoiding the top notes as much as possible if you want to smell this several hours after application. If price is taken into account, I'd rate this 9 out of 10 (if you like the notes, of course). I don't get any wood notes at all, so if you are like me and are tired of the common chemicals used to create a cedar effect these days, don't worry about finding it in here.

Wonderful! A restrained leather like a kid glove on Easter; at times the ylang-nutmeg-pepper gives me a sense of carnations although I wouldn't consider this in the least floral. As it has developed over the past hours I get occasional whiffs of orange blossom and incense but the constant lovely note is a refined soft leather. Perhaps a bit of Nuit de Noel dabbed on a wrist and smelled through a thin white kid glove: a throwback to days when scents were elegant.
I bought this blind based on Sherapop's review and am glad I did--I expect this will become the first scent I pick up every morning (until my next crush arrives).
Sillage: relatively close
Duration: very good so far
Fabulosity: high
Price to value ratio: Excellent
10/10

I love this bottle. As for the juice, it depends on when I wear it. First try, I got fruit and spice over oriental base in a nice combination. The next time there was a peanut butter and plastic note somehow. The time after that it was almost like a spiced plum, and very golden and pretty. I would call it a light oriental, if that is even possible. I would also say get a sample and try it out a few times to see if it changes this much with your chemistry. It is seriously schizophrenic on me.

I have been curious about Mauboussin HISTOIRE D'EAU for quite some time, always tempted to buy blind since it's being nearly given away for free, but I'm trying to curb my bad habits from the past and avoid accumulating bottles that I'll never use. Happily, awesomeness came to the rescue with a sample. Now, what do I think?

First impression: what a surprise! I had no idea what this was about: spices and leather. I, like others, was persuaded by the name that HISTOIRE D'EAU was going to be an aquatic fragrance, when nothing could be further from the truth. I am intrigued by one reviewer's interpretation, according to which 'eau' is homonymic for 'O' and this perfume is about leather and bondage! Hmmm...

The scent is quite likeable and of much higher quality than I had been expecting, to be honest, at this price point. (I was in fact fearing a scrubber...) Of course it's also true that I have found that many of these sorts of apparently cheap fragrances were composed by big noses and often these sorts of houses do not make the tragic mistake of reformulation, thus what survive are quite decent perfumes at incredible prices.

HISTOIRE D'EAU features cardmamom, nutmeg, and pepper all light enough to form a pleasing melange along with the equally light leather note. This is a nice, eminently wearable, all-occasion oriental perfume. My perceptions of this creation vary a lot depending upon whether I dab or spray. The leather becomes much more prominent when I spray, but either way, I like this a lot!

I love this stuff to the max. Have to say is very original and a sexy fragrance. Winter , Summer, Autumn or Spring, wear it and you will be noticed. Have only had positive, delightful comments about this scent. It gets warmer and lovlier, expands in depth of its spice and beautiful oriental undertones. I love wearing fragrances that are not familiar in my perfume girl world, as I know I am the only one wearing this fragrance, as they have never heard of it.
Highly recommend it if you love Kenzo Jungle, Mauboussin, Opium, Poison, Versace Donna and Michael Korrs, to name a few........xx

Today it smells like autumn where I live, so I decided to unpack my recently acquired Histoire d’Eau and give it a try. Judging by the notes (pepper and other spices), I assumed it should be good for autumn. And it proved to be so – autumn and Histoire d’Eau are meant for each other.
Histoire d’Eau is a stunning oriental spicy. Edgy and peppery in the beginning; opulent, warm and comforting with dry spiciness and woodiness in the heart; and ambery sweet with musk and leather tones at the base.
I am at work now, keeping my nose to my wrist and unable to concentrate on my tasks. This fragrance creates a pensive mood and makes me long for solitude, a lonesome walk in the woods, inhaling the smell of dry leaves and pine needles, wood resins and my precious Histoire d’Eau, looking back on what is gone and reconciling myself with the past.
History… It’s a good name for this fragrance.

I agree with 'perfumeaddict' that the name may be an allusion to "Histoire d'O", a story about more than bondage, altho it is prominently featured. But it was a novel long before a film (of which there've been a number). It was published in French in 1955 (!), and in English in 1965.

Even with the leather, this is not a fragrance that makes me think of BDSM. And with the ambiguous name, those unfamiliar with the story can wear it safely as a warm feminine scent :)

I bought this blind, based on reviews here. It just got delivered from Amazon, about $15 for 2.5 oz. As people commented on Amazon, it leaked in transit, but only a tiny bit.

The container is very... hmmm... 1960s i guess, reflecting the 60s fascination with plastics which were new and amazing then, especially acrylics, and the clean futuristic look of fashion and furnishings in the mid 60s.

It is a bit tricky to spray. The spray head has to be rotated (it has on and off positions). And pushing in the middle didn't work. Eventually, while carefully aimed away from me, i got it to work.

However, the scent is not plastic modern. I haven't given it time to develop fully, but, wow! It is a rich, deep, heady oriental like i haven't smelled in ages... because i love orientals, but i've been trying to get into lighter and more contemporary scents lately.

Today Histoire d'Eau is giving me a load of warm spices, ylang2, and sweet amber. I don't smell the citrus, just as i never do in Shalimar perfume (S's EdTs & outliers don't count, as far as i am concerned :-p)

I'm not a musk fan, so I was surprised that i kind of liked the musk in Hermes Un Jardin... series. I'll see if it turns up with the leather in HdE's dry down and how i feel about it.

= Edit =
The musk didnt show up until *many* hours later. It wasnt a horrible musk, but not special like Hermes. I never smelled the leather :(
= End Edit =

To comment on what 'awesomness' said, i am finding that many fragrances are quite unpredictable on me lately, too! One day Narcisco Rodriguez for Her smells like old foam rubber and another like roses; one day Bvlgari Omnia smells like nasty RiteGuard deodorant and another like Indian spices. I'll see how HdE and i get along.

But i can say that HdE is feminine, adult, and *potent*. So don't spray this on and immediately walk into an elevator or climb into an automobile with others :-)

= Edit =
I have worn this several times now. So far it always smells as wonderful as it did the first time, richly spicey, heavy ylang2, warm and enveloping. Definitely a success, and a special occasion scent.
= End Edit =

I have worn and tested this for a couple of months now - and have to stop now or risk suffocating other people with my fume ;)
this fragrance is cardamon-incense (don't see it listed but nevertheless) goodness and I love it. the flowers are just a delightul shy lot and just add a twist to the oriental scent. The leather I didn't smell so far, but as I'm bad at distinginuishing - it might be there. Love it, feel like a VIP for finding it, and though I love the summer in Germany right now (I escaped Italy-too hot) I can't wait for autumn to wear it again.
As I can't describe scents - this smells on me with the same cardamon as in Costume National-21. Love both, though this is a tad more gorgeous...
Shame it's discontinued.

My mom fell in love with this perfume, and I ordered her one of the last bottles in an online perfume shop.
It just arrived today, and I must say, I don't understand why they must discontinue such a unique scent!

This isn't like anything I have ever smelled before! The only fragrance which distantly reminded me of it was Montana (which my mom also loved and used to wear in the 90s).

Of course, I had to test this! It's not the kind of perfume I would wear, because I find it too strong... Yet, on my skin it settled into a very tame oriental floral, and I can swear I smell rose petals!
On my mom's wrist, however, the cardamom and pepper are very present, and I agree with everything said previously about Autumn - this smells like burning autumn leaves. A dry, smokey, spicy but not too peppery, still very feminine scent. Truly one of a kind!

Very interesting perfume. I would classify it as an oriental spicy as the spice really sings in this. When first applied I got the orange and the spices, then comes the amber and the musk. Not too much leather for me, its not very prominent. I am impressed by the orignality of this fragrance.

histoire d'eau is spicy and warm without being too serious. it makes me want to eat pancakes and go hiking in the woods (almost). hehe. the bottle design, however, is an ill fit to the scent and looks unfinished. i forgive this as the price and perfume are sweet.

Regarding the name - "Histoire" translates as "story". Also, I believe it is an allusion to a well-known movie "Histoire d'O" which is about bondage. So the name is about the leather/bondage connection.

Just got this one in a swap. At first spray I thought it was too harsh, too bitter. But after wearing it awhile...the drydown is lovely. A bit unique. Not crazy about the bottle, though. Thought it was kind of cheap:(

I am undecided about this fragrance. I did not get any of the sweet or leathery notes I had hoped for. On my skin, it turned to smokey amber and dried leaves. It very much reminded me of Autumn. I think I will have to try it again when the warmer weather arrives.

I thought the bottle was very unique. I love the "suspended sphere" of liquid. I also love that the design of the bottle prevents it from tipping over.

WARM WEATHER UPDATE: This fragrance has improved markedly in the warmer weather. It is much sweeter and wetter, and the myrtle tames the amber. It also smells a little sticky and resinous, and there is a wet-incense quality to it, which I like very much. Thumbs up!!

I never saw a perfume yet that has such a dissonance between a name and the scent.
There is nothing watery in here.History of water? maybe of gold, yes...the scent is luminous, thick and sweet, I feel a whole bunch of resins and the bee-glue (I feel the same note as in DK Black Cashmere) - opulent, ambery, musky, spicy, bittersweet!
I really love the opening and the base, but the heart is a little bit girly and ultrasweet - like dripping wild spiced honey...

Warm and luminous like an autumnal sunset. Spicy, rich, with salty and animal/ambery notes in the heart.
May tire, if used excessively, but in small amounts it never gets bored. One of the most unique blends.

I think PepeSilvia might've been confused with associating this scent with Chanel Egoiste Cologne Concentree because Egoiste is all about rose, spices, sandalwood and tonka. Perhaps it's the Topaze version?

As for this original version, one person on another website associated it with Serge Lutens Daim Blond--this description I can relate to...to a certain extent.

Histoire d'Eau is much like a suede (daim) perfume, but the way this scent executes is awfully harsh with this underlying bitter medicinal undertone.

Histoire's lofty notes are very much like Daim Blond, probably because it does smell like the apricot pits of Daim Blond, but pondering on this further, I think an aldehyde note is used rather than a true leather note that's putting this scent into wack and preventing it from giving forth clarity.

Very warm scent, closest related scent I can think of would be Chanel Egoiste Concentree.