A selection from this year's holiday gift line-up from Bond no. 9:
At top left, The Perfume Token, "...Bond No. 9’s nostalgia-laden circular “token” as a solid-perfume compact, containing your choice of six of our most sought-after eaux de parfum. Stashed in its own perfect little white leather zipper case, it’s so street-smart it’ll glide through any turnstile." The refillable compact is available in Andy Warhol Union Square, Chelsea Flowers, Chinatown, Nuits de Noho, The Scent of Peace or Wall Street; $85.
At top right, Bleecker Street Bejeweled, "The limited-edition 100ml lime green-chartreuse-amethyst-gold starburst watercolor flacon is studded, back and front, with a checkerboard pattern of matching crystals—and for good measure, an extra-large crystal front and center"; $395.
For big spenders, The Crystallized Amphora, "Our outsized 42 oz amphora vitrine, breathtakingly covered with 16,500 hand-applied platinum Swarovski stones. Not to forget the bottle top—an elliptical mirror with honeycomb base. And while we were at it, we added the Bond No. 9 signature and a handy golden spigot." Filled with the scent of your choice and packaged in a white patent leather gift case; $3,500.
The Soapbox, "...our guest soaps are clever “token” imposters that will have you wondering if they should be unwrapped at all? Nah, better to let the dinner guests go with unwashed hands." Four scents (Chelsea Flowers, Chinatown, Eau de New York and The Scent of Peace) for $95; or single bars available in 6 scents for $35 each. (via press release)
Ching-ching-ching. *bling*
Beautiful. I wonder what the bottles look like in person?
I'm partial to the Nuits de Noho LE bottle.
So what they're really selling is jewelled cases, bottles and fancy wrapped soap? I don't see anyone buying this stuff, are you gonna store it in a safe or museum? “Welcome to my home, please do not use any soap!”…
I'm ashamed to say that I totally want that Bleeker Street bottle. Not that I'll ever own it, but I waaaaaaant it. No idea what is smells like AT all. lol
That little solid perfume token is cute, too.
I couldn't help myself! I bought the perfume solid. It's got a great heft to it, and I did always love those brass subway tokens… I think refills are $45 (the little tins that hold the scent are held in by a magnet). Sigh! A little Chelsea Flowers on the wrist on the train ride home from the city is so lovely and gentle… I'm actually hoping they widen the range of perfume solids offered.
Yep.
I've only seen one of the crystallized bottles in person — and it was nice if you're into crystals. Luckily for my wallet I'm not.
LOL — I think the LE bottles must sell pretty well. Can't imagine how many people by the Amphora though.
The solid is very cute.
Bond no. 9 is what got me into perfume, btw.
Bond no. 9 is the only “niche” house that i really like. The scents are easy for me to find since there is a Saks nearby where i live and i find the fragrances to be exceptionally well made/blended and last a very long time something Creed scents dont do…for me anyway. I hear alot of negative talk about Bond on the various perfume boards/sites which has always bewildered me.
Have never (yes, never… well actually just Chez Bond which I got as a freebie) tried any Bonds yet, but that token solid looks great and would be a great gift.
That 42oz amphora? Just tacky, IMO. (and 42oz… WTF?!)
I think I may have just found this year's indulgent Christmas present for myself! The token/compact looks a treat, but I've never encountered a perfume solid before – how do you use it, and how well does the scent last?
I am soooo buying the Chinatown token and a box of soap!!!!!!!!
The soap seems crazy expensive to me, unless each bar weighs, like, a pound, but if I had a truly mind-warping bank balance I would buy that amphora in a heartbeat. (And have them fill it with New Haarlem, which is my favourite Bond of the half-dozen I've tried.) It may be gaudy but it's still beautiful.
the first time I commented I just saw the solid token, though it was cute, and commented.
Now I'm actually looking at the post…
the amphora costs basically as much as my trip to Germany that I'm going on this summer.
Whoever is planning on buying that needs to send the money to me instead.
I'm also not really into bedazzledness.
The solid token is still really cute, though.
oh, and I went to their site. What is the “Andy Warhol Union Square Portfolio Box”? 10 mini bottles of the same perfume?
I might be moving to Flushing next year, do you think they'll make a Flushing one?
Never? Not even Silver Factory? Wow…we need to get you some samples Joe!
I've seen the limited edition bottles of their fragrances in person and by jove do they look hideously tacky. The crystals look like they came from some crafts shop and were stuck on with glue by grade-school kids.
Agreed… I was tempted by one of the new Andy Warhol releases the last time I was in the US, but all they had at Saks were the limited launch edition bottles decorated with some gee-gaw bracelet thing for a HUGE premium over the yet-to-arrive standard bottles… no thanks!
It's such a museum piece that you could pay it off by charging visitors from all across N.B. to come look at it. And with 42oz of New Haarlem, you could afford to give each paying visitor a spritz, too!
Dear Steve.
I can personally say that I have tried like 20 of the Bond no. 9s and have not liked one enough to buy.
This does not mean that they are not exceptionally well made/blended, have great longevity, etc.
I was beginning to think HOW could I not like a single one of the scents, and the result seems to be that I don´t because they all have a style I just don´t like(With this I want to convey that I believe that the Bond line has a coherent aesthetical style from the bottle to the juices themselves all across the line).
I am jealous for you cause I would like to find a company that did so many great (in quality) fragrances with such a great connecting theme and also be available and not too expensive.
On the other hand, I have like 20 more to try, and I won´t loose hope! 🙂
Out of curiosity: Could you give an example of something niche or mainstream that you REALLY don't like just to check if we are in the perfume taste antipodes? 😀
Then you must have a solid, I'd think!
Steve, would agree with kaos.geo that the Bond aesthetic does not please everyone, and they're very different from the niche brands most perfumistas swoon over.
Joe, the line is so darned big now; you're way behind. I agree you should try Silver Factory.
You use it like a lip gloss — in other words, you smooth it on your skin with your fingertips. I can't say how well it lasts because I've never tried theirs — some last, some don't. They do tend to have less sillage than liquid perfumes.
Good, let us know how the Chinatown solid is!
The individual soaps are really expensive. I know the Diptyque soaps are $15 each, but don't know if there is a difference in size. Wish I could remember what the Malle soaps cost — they may be this expensive.
When i posted what i said i didnt mean it as an attack against people that dont like them. But since i find them so wonderful i find it bewildering that the line gets a bad rap from alot of people. No hating against anyone or anyones opinion. In answer to your last question kaos geo, i guess Creed is considered niche right??? I have never been a fan of Creed scents. The only one i would buy is 2000 fleurs. That is an absolutely wonderful scent. The others, though, seem to me a thin and waterey and dont last as long as i feel they should. Also, they dont project very well either. Out of mainstrem fragrances i can say that i dont like most mens scents on the market that is why i almost exclusively wear womens scents. Mens department store fragrances, for the most part, dont smell like anything other cheap rubbing alcohol. My favorite mens scent is Dior Homme.
Um, I'll line up to take funds from anybody who has extra, LOL…
I thought the one I saw (might have been Chinatown?) looked nice, but I'm not that into bling — wasn't dying to own it.
Interesting to read the reactions to Bond fragrances in general. I am in the camp of those who are generally disinterested in them, however I have always liked Silver Factory. The LEs were prominently featured at Sniffa and my son fell in love with the blingy Bleecker St bottle. He likes the scent a great deal, and I have to admit that it smells great on him. I re-tried it too and concluded that I have never given that one a fair chance. It comes on pretty strong but settles down very nicely. One of my friends purchased New Haarlem which I also wrote off as a cloying gourmand, but it just rocks on her. So, I bought Silver Factory to share with my son and I am eye-balling the crazy expensive Bleecker Street bottle above for him. I re-tried a few others and never got past meh….or in a couple of cases, gah! No worse than many other lines really.
Ok I must admit this sort of changes the way I think about the collectibles and exclusive items; if they offer refills this makes a whole lot more sense to me; I know some people who prefer the solid version of perfume.
I don't know, isn't $85 a little much for a perfume solid?
I know I'm paying for the token packaging, which I really love. But I'm really cheap. I never buy samples because I want to make sure that $3 is a $3 well spent.
I also haven't tried any of their perfumes in about 2 years
I think Chelsea Flowers is the one that I liked, but I doubt I'd like it now. I might get a few samples.
Thanks! 🙂
I didnt find your comments as an attack at all, it just caught my attention.
I like Dior Homme too, so there, we do have something in common.
Regarding Creed, you are right they are niche.
A perfume I appreciate but gives me a headache (can that be a lazy friday Poll, R? hint hint nidgenudge :-D) is Eden de Cacharel.
I'm newly exploring Bond (I have samples of Chinatown, Lexington Ave – because they sent it by mistake – and Silver Factory) and want to try more. I think I got them confused with Creed at first and wasn't interested. Creed has never done a thing for me. I am liking the Bonds. Chelsea Flowers sounds to me like it will smell like the old Lush Flower Market (which I found in my drawer recently) but maybe not as strong – definitely want to try it.
The niche (well, not so niche anymore) line that has always eluded me is Annick Goutal. For a while, when they first came into Nordie's, I was desperate to find a scent that worked. I think I tried them ALL. I loved the bottles and the whole aesthetic. Every single one was meh and then boiled down to a bland nothing. They absolutely did not work on my skin. During that time I found MPG Secrete Datura when they had that line in the downtown store. I still wander by AG now and then – maybe someday I will find The One! But it won't break my heart if I don't – plenty of pretty bottles and great juice out there for me to find!
Hey, your son has expensive taste! I didn't really love the BS scent — the Silver Factory is still my favorite.
Yes, if his taste is like this at 16, I hate to see what it will be like in 10 years! Actually, he's a lot like me. Loves nice (and generally pricey) fragrances, skincare and shoes. Likes to mix it up with clothing. From H&M to high-end.
Bleecker Street is a changeling I think, unlike Silver Factory. SF smells great on everyone who I have sniffed it on. BS doesn't always. Although the guys (and a few women) on Basenotes seem to like it a lot.
Yes, you're paying for packaging, no doubt. But that's true w/ many niche brands. At least this one is refillable.
At least in 10 years he'll be buying his own 😉
What a shame, I adore the AG line! Oh well, something either works or it doesn't.
I could be wrong, but I believe the Portfolio Box contains 10 FULL-SIZED bottles of the same scent; each bottle is different, so it's strictly for collectors. (At $1500, they'd better be full-sized bottles.)
That's right, they're full sized.
It's nice and creamy. I find the fragrance itself a little milder than the EDP juice sample I have (which isn't all that great, since I find Bond No. 9's — other than a couple of exceptions like Chinatown — rather subtle.)
From the Bond's I've a chance to use a sample, only three really caught my attention: chinatown, little italy and silver factory. Would be the only ones at this moment that I'd at least buy a 8ml decant. The others I found were well made, but a little dull to my spicy smoky oriental taste 😛
But, I can't say anything, since I've bought the dull-but-so-light-and-good Emporio Armani White (in that cute red edition bottle)
I ran into the soaps in the mall a few weeks back and I thought- oohh nice, chinatown soap- and tuned it over thinking, “I am sure these are pricey- $50- $60”- and then my eyes popped out of my head. No they were not even big heavy soaps, just smallish guesty ones.
On the other hand, that solid is calling me…too bad they don't come in more flavors (AWSF/ New Haarlem)…I guess they picked the best-sellers? I am sure SF would sell better if they would offer it in the smaller bottle…
Thanks!
Chinatown & Silver Factory are still their best, I think. I do like a few of the others though.
Maybe they'll add more solids later — I'd love AWSF too.
Just got my Sak's Holiday catalogue yesterday, they had a big spread on the Bond series.
The soaps look good, but Eau de NY is the only scent I like, wouldn't be worth it.
I am hoping for a Lexington Ave in my future. Fingers are crossed…..
Bet Saks does a killing on those…
If they did a soap in the Andy Warhol Silver Factory, I'd be dying…but hope they don't, I can't afford it!
I hear you on that one, I'd like to steer clear of temptation.
Do we know where else we can buy the token besides Saks? I'd love to see it first – before shelling out the $85
I can't think of anyplace else other than the Bond boutiques in NYC.