Omnia (2003)
by Bulgari

A light unsharp citrus – I can believe mandarin – opens up with spices; I get ginger and cardamom. Yes, I think there is some pepper in there even though it isn’t listed, (I consider myself lucky because I’m rather anosmic to pepper-like notes). Then the spices from the middle enter in and I get a definite clove and cinnamon along with a rather basic tea note and a floral. I can’t really tell, but I will take their word that it is lotus flower – I believe the floral isn’t meant as an individual floral note, but simply to round out and provide body for the tea / spices. The drydown is wood (what is Indian wood, anyway? Wood from India?) but primarily sandalwood. I join a long list of reviewers who don’t smell the chocolate. Smelled close to the skin most of these notes are quite clear, pure, and strong, and I admire that. As a sillage maker, Omnia doesn’t do a lot of that… it creates a rather translucent, not overly sweet, feminine fragrance that is a genuine delight.

I'm wearing the last of my sample and I'm sad about that - a good indication that I should purchase a bottle. Not very sillagey, true - it does wear close to the skin, but it's long lasting on me. I enjoy wearing this scent close to the skin all day like a little sheer blanket of comfort. It's sweetish, spicy & woodsy without being overly sweet or sugary. The pepper doesn't bloom out of control on me, and the sandalwood stays soft and doesn't overwhelm. It has a bit of style and elegance to it, though it's casual and easy to wear. It's what I call a "white shirt" fragrance. I always need a perfect white shirt (at least one) that goes everywhere and with everything, is comfortable, yet always looks good and makes me feel smart. Omnia is a perfect white shirt.

At first spray, it's almost like one of those lemony wipes that used to come with one's Kentucky Fried Chicken. But that disappears fast. Afterwards, it's all freshly-cut cedarwood with cardamom. Maybe a little cinnamon, and a little citrus too. Most mostly cedar cedar cedar. Like walking into a cedar lined closet, while holding a sachet of cardamom and other spices. Some sandalwood too. I don't smell any white chocolate, or at least not any white chocolate I've ever eaten. Sillage is not large, but not small either. I *like* it! This is not a fruity floral. It's just a nice woody scent that has lasted over 6 hours on me today.

This was my original review: Gezhundheit! A blast of black pepper which magically disappears, is replaced by a cup of Masala tea with cardamom and clove, and a gingerbread cookie shaped like a Dutch windmill, spicy but only mildly sweet. As the skin warms, a most beautiful sandalwood emerges, long-lasting but close to the skin. Delicious. Expect minimal sillage. Snuggle up and enjoy.
My new advice is to avoid perfumes with black pepper notes. They seem to "bloom" over time and overtake the other notes in the fragrance. So, unless you really like pepper, or you buy your perfume fresh and use it fast, you can't trust that note to behave.

Wow, this really is a case of horrifically awful bottle-design putting me so totally off a product that I only smelled this yesterday... and loved it! LOVE! To me this smelled like lemon being strenghtened by something soft and fresh which does not adulterate it... I really didn't get much spice, except quite a bit of pepper, and no chocolate or sandalwood, weird. I shall try again, but I hope I only ever get this lemony, peppery goodness. Quite unusual, very cheerful and very clean. I do suspect it will not have great sillage or lasting power on me, though, sadly. This is very expensive in SA, but I will track it down, in spite of the awful, vile, cheap-feeling and looking, impractical and heavy-spritzing 'bottle'.

A lady friend of mine wears this, on her it makes you want to inhale her in one long sniff. I've tried it and on me it lasts half as long and is merely pleasant. On her it is nothing short of fantastic, sexy and inviting. I.ve never smelled it on anyone else so it seems to be uncommon If more women wore it I'd have to take lots more cold showers!