Favorite Scents That Nobody Has Heard About: Zenadora

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Zenadora Eau de Parfum

Raspberry, Rose, Elemi, Guaiac Wood, Incense, Patchouli, Benzoin, Labdanum, Myrrh

Zenadora is so obscure, there are zero reviews on Fragrantica, and just one on Basenotes. Parfumo.com has a listing with three user ratings that give it an average score of 7.7 out of 10, but no reviews. The scent was released in either 2005 or 2006; I would imagine that someone besides me and the three Parfumo users had to have purchased it! After a little more digging on the google, I found that Zenadora seems to be available for purchase on Russian-language websites. Except for the following excerpt from a feature on niche perfumes in WWD, there is zip, zilch, nothing else to be found.

ZENADORA

Launch: 2005

Founder: Frederic and Laurence Lipzyc

Parent company: Majina Fragrances, of Paris.

Distribution: 50 doors, in France, Belgium, Spain, Italy, Switzerland, Saudi Arabia and the U.S.

The lineup: 19 skus.

Claim to fame: Frederic, who directed a transport company, and Laurence, who was a psychotherapist, decided to create the fragrance brand called Zenadora as a combination of the words “Zen” and “adore.” Zenadora’s first offering was a line of scented candles, but the collection now includes six ambient fragrances and four scent concentrates for the home. In May, the brand introduced its first fine fragrance, a woody Oriental, called Zenadora L’Eau de Parfum. Another collection of candles bows in August, and the next scent is due out in May.

Price: 69 euros, or $87, for a 100-ml. eau de parfum spray.

$87 in 2006 was rather pricey, even for 100ml. And I'm pretty sure I didn't pay anything near that price. I bought mine at Beautyhabit.com, mostly likely 2008-ish, and probably on clearance. I'm not sure why I bought it, as the listed notes are not something that would ordinarily attract me. Zenadora is what I'd call an old-fashioned fragrance, a rather heavy and rich floral ambree, what used to be known as an "Oriental" scent. It wouldn't have been out of place sitting on a shelf next to bottles of Youth Dew, Tabu, and Revlon Ultima, or worn with shoulder pads and big 80s hair. It's very woody and resinous, a bit leathery, and has an almost church-y thing going on under the sweet-tartness of raspberry and rose. It's a cool scent, rather than a cozy one. At least, that is how it smells on my skin. On a test strip, the scent is more floral with much less fruit, and it's less resinous as well. In fact, the fragrance almost seems lighter on the tester. However, if applied judiciously, Zenadora isn't at all overwhelming. It takes an hour or two, but it settles nicely close to the skin--but then, I'm not an oversprayer. YMMV. 

But it's not like you're going to purchase a bottle anytime soon. Unless you want to fork over 11480 Ukrainian hryvnia ($277.47)

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Posted by theminx on Minxstinks
Note: this post is my opinion. I am not affiliated with the companies mentioned in this post or any other companies.