Black Suede
Avon (1980)

Got a mark 2 because of varanis ridari and it was worth it. Something in it does round it out a lot more than the sharper current formulations and i assume its the oakmoss. Current 2024 made in Poland is great too. This bottle has far more aldehydes and mandarin in the top smells a bit cheaper though over all. I assume the top notes have already faded on my mark 2 splash bottle.

Varanis did not steer me wrong. This is a really nice very old school fragrance. This is really "cologne-y" in a nondescript way when you immediately spray it, but it quickly shifts in a much more coherent way.
The opening is pretty aldehydic but the stars to me are the carnation with support from the nutmeg. I personally sense that carnation/nutmeg thing kinda far into the drydown, theyre listed as top notes but they arent fleeting. Citrus is minor if discernable at all. They make the aldehydes sharp and tart.
A little ways into the mid the clove rises further and the beginning of a powdery aspect starts appearing. The aldehydes have given way to a leathery thing that lasts a bit of time along with an animalic civet-like note joined by more prominent florals.
As the drydown starts the florals, aldehydes/leather and the civet significantly give way to a base of clove, musk and oakmoss where i also still "think i smell a hint of carnation". The oakmoss is of the rich and buttery variety (i have a 1996 bottle). When the fragrance has entered its final stage, youre left with alot of that nice oakmoss with clove and musk, but i can defintely see the listed oppopnax giving it a twist towards the ambery.
It performs very well, it didnt feel super strong upon first wear but later i kept getting whiffs of it after i thought it might have been gone. Probably projected good for a couple of hours, hung around a really long time after drying down. Honestly i thought immediately that i had smelled this before when i first sprayed and as it dried down. But i realized it does smell like other things. Definetely stetson, definetely royal copenhagen, and it shares aspects with kanøn, which my father wore. In my head it smells like i remember ralph lauren chaps smelling way back in the day but i haven't smelled that in 20 years. Its like 15-20 bucks. Like old school colognes? Blind buy it now.

Avon Black Suede, this is a really innocent 80s cheapy that really doesn't feel black or leather IMO, more calm and gentile. A couple of blasts and a cozy aura of talcy, soapy freshly opened packet of parma violets is what I get. Quite linear but somewhat floral, could easily be a women's scent as it's not overly masculine or powerhouse in any way. Clean, friendly, inviting and definitely parma violets.

... Simple to say, ... One of Avon's best adventures for men. 👍

Mmm....this is musky! My synesthesia is setting off shades of periwinkle and the lightest purples in my mind. Black Suede reminds me of the fuzzy, gauzy musks of that old chestnut Royal Copenhagen, without the assisted living facility back note. It has this almost cosmetic, creamy powderiness in the heart that does remind me somewhat of orris, and this, with violet ionones, makes it quite appealing to my nose during this stage.

This is another one where that plush, sweet Avonade does the heavy lifting, and I approve of that. This is wonderful to wear as pleasant 'white noise", much like the auditory white noise is used to help someone relax and settle in. No fuss, no muss, just laidback muskiness to accompany me. It's also worth noting that the bottle I have is a pressurized atomizer, so its likely from no later than the early 80s. Thankfully, in spite of the iso-butane nonsense, it still smells great. 

I have a couple of special Holiday miniature bottles of this fragrance. One from 1988, the other 1992. Both are unused, and since they are small and with plain but nice bottles and boxes, and both older than me, (if they were actually produced the year copyrighted on them) I don't want to test them. Smelling them right from the bottle they are just that typical, generic aftershave type scent, except maybe a little better smelling.
The box though, is actually in quite worse shape for the 1988 one. Both are otherwise unused.