Perfume Review: West Side by Bond No 9
October 30th, 2006
West Side is the newest addition to the Bond No 9 perfume line. Following their mission of creating scents to represent each neighborhood of New York, West Side pays homage to the Manhattan’s West Side – the music center of the city. West Side is “an ultra-melodious eau de parfum that finds the scent equivalent for the sounds of music in its full-bodied, mellow composition” (info from the press release). In contrast to the claimed mellowness of the composition, the bottle is quite vivacious, and just by looking at it, I’d expect the scent to be some bright fruity-floral loaded with vanilla. Luckily, this doesn’t prove to be quite so true.
West Side is composed of the following notes: rose, ylang-ylang, peony, sandalwood, amber, vanilla, musk. While its initial touch on my skin is quite pleasant, the aquatic peony note I detect is a bit off-putting. This, however, doesn’t last too long, with rose taking the lead, gradually joined by vanilla, creating a sort of an olfactory duet. Yes, it’s definitely a duet – sweet, moderately powdery, and fluid. It stays strong for a good while and gets eventually broken up by musk. West Side is by no means a complex scent. Neither would I call it full-bodied. As I look for descriptive adjectives, “pretty” keeps coming up, albeit not so original, yet very much fitting. Prettily pleasant, pleasantly pretty. Not being a huge fan of Bond No 9 fragrances, I’d say it’s the one I could wear, occasionally.
West Side is available at Beautycafe, Beauty And Scents. For more retailer information, please check the Bond No 9 web site.
Image source: www.beautycafe.com
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27 Comments
1. Victoria | October 30th, 2006 at 12:52 am
Pretty is exactly what I keep thinking as I smell this Bond. I really hoped that they would follow the suit with complex and full-bodied (like Chinatown.)
2. Christina H. | October 30th, 2006 at 5:05 am
I love this one ,but I’m not surprised since it’s a rose scent. This and Fire Island, have created hope that Bond #9 will create even more winners! I really didn’t like any of their original line up and look forward to seeing more beautiful fragrances from this company.
Thank you for the review Ina!
3. Judith | October 30th, 2006 at 7:00 am
“Prettty” is exactly the word! I liked this much more than I thought I would, but when the friend with whom I was sniffing smelled it on me, she said, “It’s very pretty. . . Too pretty for you.” Kiss of death. (I’ll leave you to imagine what that says about me:)
4. March | October 30th, 2006 at 7:07 am
Well, now that I know it’s too pretty for Judith I can take a pass
Seriously, what are your favorite Bonds? I keep thinking the scent bloggers do them a disservice as a line… I like the Nohos and Chinatown probably the best. Also West Broadway.
5. Elle | October 30th, 2006 at 7:18 am
I’m in a rose phase, so maybe…just maybe…I’ll love this. However, pretty is *not* a quality I look for in scents. A touch of kakapasna would be nice. Still, I’ll have to try it.
6. Tom | October 30th, 2006 at 9:13 am
I thought this was a unisex scent??? Is it too pretty for a man?
7. newproducts | October 30th, 2006 at 9:53 am
Maybe this will be the Bond for me too since I haven’t had much luck with Bond either. I don’t mind pretty. In fact, I like pretty, but it will have to be verrry pretty to be FBW for the pricetag. I will sample and see.
8. Marina | October 30th, 2006 at 12:03 pm
I still can’t believe Judith likes it as much as she does
9. Cait | October 30th, 2006 at 12:15 pm
Initially when I saw the notes it seemed unoriginal to me. Helene at the Scented Salamander gave it a good review and I became curious. I guess it’ll be worth a sample vial.
10. Twibbet | October 30th, 2006 at 12:29 pm
I wore this a couple days ago, and “pretty” is definitely the word. Peony fading to rose, with vanilla showing through but not too much. The part I liked best was the hour or so that the sandalwood actually came through, giving it more warmth and character, but it didn’t last. Very nice, but smelled a little too “pink” to be FBW.
11. violetnoir | October 30th, 2006 at 4:03 pm
My seventeen year old and I tested this one last Tuesday at South Coast Plaza Saks. She liked it. I….did not.
Too thin and unoriginal for me.
Hugs!
12. Ina | October 30th, 2006 at 4:39 pm
Victoria, yes, I was hoping for that, too.
13. Ina | October 30th, 2006 at 4:42 pm
Christina, my pleasure! I’m hoping for the same.
14. Ina | October 30th, 2006 at 4:43 pm
Judith, I’m afraid it’s too pretty for me, too! I’m not really a pretty type of girl, I guess.
15. Ina | October 30th, 2006 at 4:44 pm
March, my fave Bonds are Nuits de Noho and New Haarlem. I also find Park Avenue nice. Most Bonds are either underdeveloped or a bit too obnoxious for my taste.
16. Ina | October 30th, 2006 at 4:45 pm
Elle, I doubt you’ll like it.
17. Ina | October 30th, 2006 at 4:45 pm
Tom, no, I think a man can easily pull it off.
18. Ina | October 30th, 2006 at 4:46 pm
Newproducts, if you like powdery, sweet rose scents, you might very well like West Side. But definitely sample first.
19. Ina | October 30th, 2006 at 4:47 pm
Marina, maybe Judith is secretly converting to pretty florals?
20. Ina | October 30th, 2006 at 4:47 pm
Cait, yes, the notes aren’t original at all. Neither is the fragrance but it’s still pretty.
21. Ina | October 30th, 2006 at 4:48 pm
Twibbet, “pink”, exactly! That was my impression, too. Conjures up all things pink.
22. Ina | October 30th, 2006 at 4:49 pm
Robin, I can totally see a seventeen year old loving West Side!
23. Patty | October 30th, 2006 at 8:52 pm
Pretty?
Okay, I’m going to have to try this one, I guess.
24. Ina | October 31st, 2006 at 1:24 am
Patty, you do that!
25. chaya ruchama | October 31st, 2006 at 6:36 am
#1- Nothing can be too pretty for a man…
#2- I will take out, personally, whomever uttered that slight about Judith- pretty catty stuff !
#3- I’m afraid that the Earth didn’t move for me, but , so what ?
Who the hell am I, anyway?
Love you folks…
26. Ina | October 31st, 2006 at 11:46 am
Chaya, you’re right, the earth doesn’t always have to move. We do need pretty perfumes, once in a while.
27. Aromascope » Bryant&hellip | January 22nd, 2007 at 10:56 pm
[...] Bryant Park strikes me as a very aromatic fruity floral. Its tart rhubarb and vibrant lily of the valley leave a very pleasant impression upon first sniff. Raspberry comes into play a bit later and pretty much dominates the composition. The drydown is sheer and colorful at the same time. Bryant Park resembles fragrant soaps that were extremely popular and very rare (people had to stand in long, aggravating lines to obtain them) back in the Soviet times when I was a child. We’d often place them in linen closets since using them for their actual purpose seemed like a huge waste. Ah, the momories! To compare Bryant Park to another scent, I’d say it’s along the lines of Hot Couture by Givenchy or Balkis by Parfums de Nicolai but a bit lighter. It certainly appeals to me more than West Side, and I might make room for it on my dresser. [...]