April Violets (1913)
by Yardley

I got this because I love the scent of violets. It's not as simple a violet as one would think from it's name. It's layered with neroli I think. But I just can't wear violet! It's OK if I buy violets to spray round the room but on my skin violet develops a horrible odour within a short space of time. It's indescribable and I can only say it's like raw meat. I've tried samples of other violets , Violets de Toulouse, Boise de Violettes which promised much and ended up the same way. What's wrong with me?

18th January, 2012.

This lovely scent indeed smells of fresh violets. Fresher and not as complicated as Violetta di Parma by Borsari which is more sublte, layered as it is with rose, orris and jasmine. Great for after a shower before bed when some other fragrances like Baby Doll are too sweet, the fruity florals are not what you want. Sometimes I spritz the sheets to lie in violent violet. Bliss. Compared to Bulgari's Viole de Jasmine, the scent is clean, strong and lasts. Worth very much more than its modest price tag suggests.

2nd August, 2008.

Funny I just love this stuff, sure it smells a bit old fashioned I refuse to say "old lady" as it's so judgemental and is often used in reference to perfumes that are not classified as great, it's not a scent I really wear out of my house but I spritz it on nearly every night after a shower before bed sometimes layering it with other single flower scents, its "clean" smelling and relaxing, and has become like a well worn crisp cotton night shirt I also own ....comforting.

14th December, 2007.

One of my favourite scents as a child- I still have a bottle for nostalgic reasons but do not wear it. I adore violet perfumes but this one is too sweet and simplistic to my adult nose. Beautiful to sniff unexpectedly but not complex enough to keep my senses enthralled.

12nd May, 2007.

Despite being nearly a century old, this scent is not a classic. I doubt the original formulation has changed much. That is to say, it is dated, and seemingly of another era... smelling like something that might have come out of my grandmother's boudoir, and perhaps a wee more "little old lady" than "vintage masterpiece".

That said, though the top notes are overpoweringly sweet parma violet, this is REAL parma violet (Yardley doesn't use synthetic violets which is a rarity these days). And the dry down... the dry down is weirdly addictive. Perhaps it's the iris and musk base notes that begin to swirl in and out of the violet once the first sickly sweetness begins to wear off. Maybe it's the slight old fashioned medicinal/herbal quality the entire composition takes on after a while... but I just couldn't stop smelling my wrists after the first half hour.

I doubt I'd want to go into an interview smelling like this, but I already have taken to giving myself a quick comfort spray whilst reading in bed. The composition is higgelty-piggelty and dated, the initial sweetness way too girlish, but the old dame does have personality! And the fact that I felt compelled to buy a 125ml bottle is testament to either the strangeness of my character or the likeability of this scent once it's been given half the chance to introduce itself.

17th March, 2007.

Sickly sweet, gooey even. Reminds me of cotton candy. But . . . but it was my first frangrance and I was thrilled with it. I won't have it in my home but can never resist a whiff when I see it in the store.

10th April, 2006.