Fragrance Reviews by lilybelle

I remember liking this so much last year. I even bought a bottle for my mother as a gift. Trying my sample again recently, though, I found it harsh and overbearing, had to scrub it off. I think it must be the "precious woods" or the artificial sandalwood Perfume Addict mentioned that got to me. Can't do this one anymore. Funny how you can love something, and then go off it.

Amoureuse is thick, viscous, and sweet. Of the listed notes, all I get are a thick indolic jasmine, and the honey...no juicy tangerine, no spicy cardamom, no cedar moss or sandalwood. I can't really detect tuberose or ginger lily. I do get an impression of rose. I think. :confused: My nose is not the most informed, but I find this fragrance far too rich and dense to be wearable. It smells great, but I just don't want it on me. Maybe as a candle or something.

When I was in my late teens I wore No. 5 eau de cologne (I think it was edc). It came in the simple, clear rectangular bottle with the black screw cap. It has always been my benchmark for how No. 5 *should* smell because that is the version I first fell in love with. Today's No. 5 edt and edp are only distantly related to that. Years later, I had a hard time getting to know No. 5 edt. I didn't get what was so great about it (compared to what I had known). Now that I've been able to separate my mind from past expectations, I find I love it. Or rather, it loves me now. The first few seconds are pure bliss. As it begins to dry down it goes a bit cold, metallic, and flat, but only for a minute or two. And I actually enjoy that stage, too, because it's interesting and brief. At times it has turned thin and sour, as AnnS noted. Lately, however, I find I find it warms up and sweetens, and I'm wondering whether that is due to diet and/or hormones. I've been told that jasmine will smell different depending on the wearer's diet - whether it actually smells different on the skin or diet/hormones affect the wearer's perception of the fragrance, I can't say. Personally, I have found that jasmine dominant fragrances do seem to smell differently at different times. Anyway, for whatever reason, the edt is now working for me. I've worn it to bed and awoken during the night wondering, "what is that incredibly sweet smell?" It was No. 5 edt long, long into drydown. It's a strange fragrance, sometimes it loves you, and sometimes it doesn't. I'm not as fond of the edp as it's a bit too powerful for me now, though I think it's lovely, too. I've noticed many people say they favor one formulation or another. For me, it's the edt. I will probably purchase the parfum at some point, which I'm looking forward to trying, and I've heard the bath/body products are divine-smelling.

I like this one, too. The patchouli is most distinctive in the top, then soon begins falling to settle on the bottom with the amber and the rest. The anise is very pleasant and keeps everything from falling into a muddle. The heliotrope and vanilla give it a bit of a retro-sultry effect. I never realized what a great mix patchouli & anise are. Nice scent!

I like it. It reminds me of the scent of sweet alyssum and summer time. It's old fashioned, true. And potent! I think one of my aunts wore it so it has pleasant associations for me. She was always very kind and ladylike. It suited her. My husband said it smells like hand soap.

I actually prefer the modern Youth Dew to the older stuff, although the old was nice too, and more complex. I personally find the current one more wearable. The vintage version wears me, although I love smelling it on someone else. The newer is sweeter, more vanillic, and reminds me of root beer. I think it has less patchouli. I also get an odd sweetish odor that reminds me of pink pencil erasers from school toward the very end. The bath oil is nice as perfume, and I've read that you can buy the extrait around Christmas. I've never tried that but people who have say that's the one to get. Overall, YD is a bit too much for me. I weary of it. Sometimes, though, I just have to smell it because it's the right time of year.

I'm a late comer to this, but I love it. My perfect confectionary/floral 2nd only to by Kilian's Love. This fragrance makes me feel happy. It smells like sweetarts, marshmallow fluff, those perfumey pastilles, and fairy flowers, all sweetness, but light so not nauseating. The composition is perfectly balanced, imo. It's a cheerer upper. :-)

Not true gardenia, but gardenia'ish, and the combination of the tropical lush floral with the musk makes this a very pretty, feminine creamy floral/musk. Just lovely!

I've tried Musc Bleu a couple of times from a sample. It's so light that I can barely detect it, but later I get little whiffs of a clean musk that is unisex and pleasant. Not a sweet or cloying type of musk. It's totally inoffensive, and not terribly long lasting -- unless it's one of those musks that the wearer can't smell on him/herself.

It took me a few tries to warm up to this one. I'm really not crazy about the vanilla part but it's not obnoxious. This is a nice, safe, sweet, clean, feminine musky fragrance, and it is indeed tenacious! I wore it yesterday, and I smelled it today on my wrists after multiple hand washings and even after a shower, I swear. So odd about musk. Sometimes you can't smell it, and then you can't get rid of it. It gets into your system like garlic. This is a pretty one, and I never realized it until this morning but it's perfect for a cool rainy day.

This was hidden in the back of my closet and I resuscitated it. My bottle is pretty old now, but the fragrance is still good. I don't know why, but I've been reaching for this quite a bit this year (multiple wears and there are still four months left to 2009). I just like the way it smells on me - clean and sweet, yet with a warm drydown. I can't even describe it. I don't smell orchid or melon, but I do get a soft sandalwoody/ambery sweetness in the drydown. It's not overpowering and makes no statements. I just find it easy to wear. I think I have a serious affinity for department store fragrances.

This reminds me a bit of CKOne from the 90's, but it's not quite as sharp. It's vaguely citrussy, but not expressly lemony as you would get in the rind, and it has a soft cottony musk (Bath & Body Works) quality as well. It's refreshing to splash on after a shower. I'm enjoying it, but it isn't a knock-yer-socks off scent; rather, it's pleasant, uncomplicated and undemanding. I won't repurchase because there are so many of this type to explore. I'm giving it a thumbs up because I actually do wear it occasionally, but really it's more of a "neutral and a half". :)

Pretty fragrance, bright & juicy. Mandarin, florals, woodsy/musk drydown. Slightly powdery. Nice in warm weather. The bottle has a ring that replaces the sprayer so that the bottle becomes a bud vase when the perfume is gone. If I ever use up all of the fragrance (unlikely) I will enjoy that feature.

I love this fragrance. Agent Provocateur reminds me of it. I love how Paloma Picasso smells on others when it has dried down on their skin. My husband unfortunately hates it, as he has a strong aversion to patchouli. So I don't wear this because a fragrance he strongly dislikes can really throw him out of a good mood and make him cranky (Libran!). But I love it. A classic that still smells great.

It's funny how people perceive different musks so differently. I tried Kiehl's musk in the oil form and was expecting a major funky monster based on others' comments, but on me it seemed creamy, sweet, floral - very feminine - with a cloying drydown that only had a slight bit of funk to it. Kiehls' reminds me of musks from the 70's, when they actually still smelled like musk. I suppose I still use the musks from the past as my standard, so when I smell the musks of today I'm like..."where is it?" I don't get quite the amount of skank and dirtiness in the Kiehls that others do (I get that more in civet fragrances, actually). I really like this musk, but I don't often wear straight musks as they can make me feel a bit queasy. Maybe twice a year or so I get a craving for musk, and this might do the trick then. I can actually smell it, which is a good thing!

I love this. I bought a small bottle blind at Marshalls for next to nothing. I get sugar glazed orange peel dusted with patchouli. It's long lasting, and satisfying on these hot summer days. I do like sweet, candied, gourmand fragrances, however, especially in the summer heat for some reason. I think that Cacharel fragrances are well composed, even the sweeties, even though sugary scents are not to everyone's taste. I get the aromatic quality of orange peel in this as well as the sense of orange flavored hard candies.

I can see why some people are underwhelmed, but I think this is very nice. It's taken me all these years to try Cashmere Mist - I have no idea why, just wasn't that interested and never got around to it. The bottle does not attract me. Now, after having sprayed a bit from a tester for the first time, I can't stop sniffing the back of my hand. It really does give you a fuzzy soft cashmere impression. And it smells like soap a bit, but it dries down a tad more interesting than that. It's certainly long lasting, and I like its airness and powderiness. Smells familiar, too, so there's a cozy nostalgia element involved. One of the few white/floral musks I've tried that settles comfortably on my skin.

I've been enjoying Pure White Linen this summer. It's crisp, airy, powdery, floral/fruity, all those things. It has a lily of the valley vibe, though I don't see that mentioned. It seems like I find it new each time I wear it. I'm still getting to know it. It's longer lasting and more potent than you would expect from the first couple of minutes. In that sense it is like Pleasures, which comes roaring back after I think it has gone. Pure White Linen turns a bit sweet (honeysuckle intensifies) and musky toward the very end, which I like, but it's not at all a sexy-animalic musk. I agree it's rather non-sexy, in a sort of starchy nurse way. My husband isn't wild for it either, but I've received compliments on it from other women. I'm enjoying airy fragrances lately and this one is one of my favorites.

I just sniffed Gucci Flora in quick passing. Someone in a dept. store had sprayed it and I kept thinking, "what does that remind me of...?" It was CK Obsession (the original one) super-sweetened up for today's sugar lovers. The Britney market, as JGbeader says (well, I do actually have a Britney scent :o). It smells like a young girl took her mother's or grandmother's Obsession and layered a Britney scent over that. It's not horrible. It's just another boring scent.

This is what the blog Now Smell This had to say about it...
"The fragrances were developed by perfumers Richard Herpin and Frank Voelkl.

Flower for mothers is meant to "to liberate your flirty, feminine side", and the floral scent features notes of Casablanca lily, freesia, cashmere woods, vanilla, skin musk, velvet woods and sandalwood."

I smell the lily right up front, but into the drydown on skin it smells like a fairly true gardenia to me (though on a paper napkin it continues to smell like lily). This is a very pretty fragrance if you like sweet, white florals. I'm glad I purchased this. The bottle and packaging are adorable.
Edit: I've reduced my rating to a neutral because I can't wear it. The woods in the base are harsh and a turn off for me. Still love the idea and the packaging.

I tested this yesterday at Nordstrom Dept. Store on one hand (Dior Escale a Portofino on the other). In this one, I get more of a sweet & indolic sense of true orange blossom at first (whereas in the other the more bitter neroli dominated the top). I think this is a perfectly delightful scent, light and charming. And I like the bottle, too. I now need to go try it again on its own. I was expecting not to care for it one way or the other based on everyone's comments, but I do really like it. Just goes to show...try for yourself. If you're looking for a knock yer socks off scent, this ain't it. But it's lovely nevertheless. Just my opinion. ;-)

If you like classic floral chypres, you must give Jasmine White Moss a try. I can't talk about its development any further than Asha has already done. It's a truly lovely fragrance, perfectly balanced and blended - retro, yet very wearable. Having said that, though, there's something slightly staid about it, to my nose, that is just barely rescued by its succulence. I'm so glad to have had the opportunity to try it, and I'm thrilled to think that this type of chypre is being created again. Will I purchase? I don't know, probably not. I'm still partial to Pucci Vivara as a friendlier, sunnier, green floral. Just my preference. This one is gorgeous, though!

I tried this one in passing at Nordstrom Dept. Store yesterday, and I really liked it. It has the refreshingly sharp neroli/cologne beginning, as Nukapai noted. That's pleasant, but later I got an addictive somewhat salty impression in the drydown. I couldn't stop sniffing the back of my hand, and it seemed pretty long lasting, too, even after a hand washing, which surprised me. Very, very nice! It's been on my mind to go back for it. They didn't have the Pondichery one. We're a bit behind things here, I'm afraid.

Pyramid from OsMoz - Top notes: Magnolia, Aldehydes, Fruity Note; Heart notes: White Rose, Jasmine, Mock Orange; Base notes: Patchouli, Musk, Ambrox

It smells like nail polish remover over dryer sheets at first. That sounds awful, but I really like it. It's so airy...yes, and "fresh"! It’s just very pleasant and comfortable, to me, like a freshly laundered tee shirt. Yes, I'm an American, and there are times I do enjoy that sense of squeaky cleanliness. This one squeaks like glass cleaner on a mirror. Love it. Love the soft, woodsy, floral drydown. I just say that because I don't know what it is...it smells like drydown of nice laundry products. It smells dry actually, but sweet.

For me, Pleasures Delight is playing second fiddle to By Killian's Love, which is the one I really wanted, but I cannot/will not pay what that one costs. I tested Pleasures Delight a couple of years ago, and I bought a bottle on ebay based on my memory of it because I didn't feel like trekking to the mall to re-test. I had forgotten what a heavy hit of patchouli Pleasures Delight has, which is why people call it an Angel clone, but I think they have quite a few differences as well. Pleasures Delight is warm imitation strawberry flavored spun sugar, and it has a fluffy marshmallowy quality. I love that. I think, eventually, the patchouli settles down somewhat. Yes, this is a synthetic sugary scent, and really quite a nice one if you like sugary dessert fragrances. Did I mention that it's sugary? ;-)

I bought a .5 oz. bottle of Je Reviens parfum blind. There was no place to test it around here. Too bad because I wouldn't have bought it if I'd tried it first. It's made in England now, by the way, or that's what the box says. I was a bit disappointed because I wore this in the 70's when it was still nice. This bottle is ok - I don't know which year's reformulated version it is, that all gets so confusing. I don't smell violet, but maybe I do, violet is tricky for me. I get the spicy, sweet, narcotic narcissus and the vetiver, the rest is all a jumble to my nose (as I'm not good at picking out notes). I will use this bottle up eventually. It isn't awful. It's just not as nice as it once was, like comparing grocery store tomatoes in winter to the memory of home grown heritage ones last summer. It's pleasant but thin, something lacking in the base where it should spread out. I'll probably try the more recent Couture version. If I don't like that one, then I'll give up. I might as well have gone for the $12 edt and put it in the fridge as recommended below!

A rose from the crypt, this one. Dank, earthy, moldy. A great rose for Goths, or for a ghost bride at Halloween trailing ragged veils pinned with dried roses. Or for Sleeping Beauty in her wildly overgrown forest bower that never sees the light of day. It's an interesting fragrance (rose + patchouli + ???), but it has too many gothic costumey associations for me to give it serious consideration as a wearable fragrance. Also, it's a bit too masculine for me. I like the way it smells, even though I don't want to wear it myself. I suppose it's just not me.

Minty-herbal, woodsy and natural. Very fleeting impression of smoked wood. I like this one. It’s like lying in the grass by a lake in summer. I find it calming and uplifting simultaneously. I love helichrysium, apparently. Big ole thumbs up. :)

Similar to Samurai in that it’s woodsy and has a sweetness. I get cedar, but every time I think I’m smelling cedar it’s vetiver. The sweet base, which is in a lot of these fragrances, is lovely. The leather is subtle, not overly strong.

Has that charred wood smell, as in Lake Flower, but stronger here. Also something rubbery (tuberose?). A bit of bitterness. Most of the profumo scents are sweet, but this one is astringent and rather strange smelling. I don’t mind it, but it isn’t what I’d reach for. It’s certainly interesting.

Civet, Tuberose, Mandarin
This is a lovely and pure, if short lived, fragrance experience. The tuberose is gorgeous – starts off rubbery, then I get some menthol. It almost smells edible. And there is something old fashioned about it (in a good way) that makes me think of a floral that my mother or grandmother would have worn, back in the day when it was a given that a fine fragrance was a quality fragrance. The civet doesn't smell hugely fecal to me in this. The mandarin gives it a juiciness. I actually like this better than Fracas.

It smells sweetish smoky-leathery, a bit barn animally, and slightly rubbery. It makes me think of a farm in autumn where piles of leaves are being burned. It’s a bit strong for me (especially in the morning before breakfast!) but I enjoy the autumnal wood fire associations. I wonder if a beaver den smells like this, if you could swim underwater and poke your head up inside one. I think Mr. and Mrs. Beaver’s home in C.S. Lewis’ The Lion, The Witch and the Wardobe smelled like this. Fun to experience this on its own.

Vetiver, Frankincense, Neroli
Wonderful! The combination of these ingredients is so wearable and refreshing. Frankincense in this combination is approachable and less formal/churchy, while adding mystery to the vetiver and neroli. I find this scent grounding and it seems to orient me internally (meditative). Vetiver gives a bit of looking backward, nostalgia; neroli is refreshing and stimulating; and frankincense adds depth and mystery. This is just my subjective reaction, of course. I get an impression of pine or fir branches, the green neroli, woodsy vetiver, and spicy frankincense combine to give this impression. Can't tell you how much I enjoyed this one.

Ambergris tincture is a little odd and strikes me as slightly fecal, but it’s pleasant, even addictive. I kept pressing my nose to my wrist to get the sweetness that’s buried inside, because it’s really not that strong of an odor. It has a fluid silkiness. Again, I may be (am) rather suggestible but I also got a salty briny sea vibe from it. Funny thing, but my dog, who HATES perfumes, intelligent creature that she is, kept sniffing me all over when I wore this. Big thumbs up from her because I *might* have smelled like some interesting thing washed up on the beach. And thumbs up from me just for the experience of trying this on its own. I really enjoyed it.

Big thumbs up! Gringo is one of my favorites of the ones I've tried in this line. Smells herbal/minty, somewhat citrussy, and woodsy, and lasts a fairly long time on me. I love it. I definitely get an island pirate bay-rum buccaneer vibe. There is a sweet impression of spices (clove? Cinnamon? Nutmeg?), a bit of citrus peel, and the camphoraceous quality of patchouli. I know I am easily suggestible, but these are the scents of the trading days on the high seas. I get a sense of free spiritedness when I wear it. I do seem to get the moods and soul in these fragrances that their creator suggests.

I don't care for white musks because they all, with few exceptions, go weird on my skin, no matter their price or prestige. This one, however, really is fresh, sweet, airy and cool - very friendly on a hot, summer day (wait a minute for the alcohol to blow off). I just spritzed it over this morning's Shalimar edc, which is a nice combination. Surprisingly enjoyable fragrance inside the ugly plastic spray bottle, but what can you expect for the price. I bought mine in the drugstore dollar bin. I like it.

I found an old bottle of this at the back of the closet and decided to give it another go. I first smelled it on a work friend some years ago. Every time I would walk past her I got such a lovely whiff of her fragrance - it was soft and a bit rosy and skin scenty. When she told me it was Tommy Girl I was surprised, because having sniffed the bottle in passing I thought it was boring. So I tried it, too, liked it for a short while, then grew bored with it. I'm trying it again today, and the drydown is quite lovely, kind of clean-laundry-detergenty underlying a green meadow, but very pleasant. But gosh what you have to go through to get there! It's so astringent on top it's almost like Windex. Not for me - life is too short to wear fragrances I don't totally LOVE - so back in the closet it goes until I get another urge to sniff it. I suppose I like it better on others than I do on myself. I love the bottle, though, and that's why I hang on to it. I can't imagine anybody else would want it anyway.

I don't get peanut butter. I even went down to the kitchen to sniff a jar of Smuckers natural peanut butter to compare, and this isn't that, but I can see how the combination of cedar & a certain saltiness gives an impression of nuttiness. That stage was brief, to my nose. This reminds me in the first few minutes of Aqua Allegoria Figue-Iris, which I bought last summer (this one came first, obviously). They both have the same initial cool yet sweet dried-grassiness that I thought might be vetiver, but I don't see it in the ingredients. So maybe that's iris. I get confused. With time the sweetness concentrates until it's almost like a dried fruit. The sandalwood is creamy and gorgeous and eventually dominates. This is the kind of sandalwood you don't often smell anymore. It's just a sweet smooth ride. Bois Farine lasts much longer on my skin than other L'Artisan fragrances I've tried - my only complaint with them. I agree that this is a comfort scent. I'd have to be in the mood for a sweet gourmand to wear it, but I often am. The fluffiness of this one suits me to a T. Very, very nice!

Oh dear. I rather like this. I agree it's bland and generic, shallow and commercial...all of that, but I like its bubblegum fruitiness (it reminds me of that fruit stripe chewing gum from childhood). I thought I was getting some mint at first, but that must be the mandarin/pepper mix. Actually, as it dries down it does exhibit a bit more sophistication and interest as the bubblegum dissolves. I enjoy its powdery quality. It has an airiness that is working well on this warm day. So this is a powdery, airy, fruity scent that seems pretty nice for summer. Intuitively, I would say that if you like Alien, you might like this as a de-ambered, airy, feather light (comparatively) summer alternative. Also, if you're a Coco Mlle lover you might like this. I was a first timer with the unusual sample design, you have to pull a tab and squeeze, but make sure you're not aiming for your eye. ;-) I'm giving it a thumbs up because it's a friendly fragrance that seems easy to wear; and also because, as Vibert notes, its projection is well balanced, not too obtrusive, yet it has presence and some substance.

I received a sample of Kate Moss Kate with a purchase at Ulta. Notes are supposed to include orange blossom absolute, forget-me-not, pink pepper, lily of the valley, heliotrope, magnolia, peony, rose, patchouli, sandalwood, musk, vetiver and ambrette. In the first few seconds it's very rosy, with the patchouli tinge to keep it earthy & interesting. As it dries down it gets sweeter and muskier, and I think I can just barely detect the pepper, which I'm glad is barely there. I'd swear I smell some violet. I would wear this. It's very nice, and I like that it's on the lighter side. It's supposed to be a dark rose - whatever that means - I suppose it is at that, but I get a feeling of gyspy roses on a shawl, like something Stevie Nicks would have worn. And then it also reminds me of YSL Paris a little bit, which I wore in the 80's. So either way, I'm getting a sense of nostalgia. Isn't it funny how fragrances work on you that way. But I like it.

This one in the red bottle smells just like Midnight Fantasy in the purple bottle, except this smells more like cherries, and the other is blackberries/plum (purple fruits). I'm giving it a thumbs up because I enjoy wearing the purple one in hot weather. I can see myself possibly purchasing this in the unlikely event I ever finish the purple one.

Of all the versions of Pleasures I've tried, the original Pleasures, Pleasures Intense, Pleasures Exotic and Pleasures Delight, I like Exotic best lately. I suppose it's because of the mango/fruitiness. I do enjoy fruity scents. But also, the drydown of Pleasures Exotic is very pleasing to me, the soft woodsiness that goes well with the fruits. I smell something in the base of this that I also get in Bronze Goddess, something tropical, whatever it is. I own a bottle of the original Pleasures, but I think I'm liking this one better.

This is an amazing fragrance. I am now a convert. I love how the gardenia impression is extended and then fades into the tuberose so that you don't know where one leaves off and the other begins. But what really got me was last night when I was in our office upstairs and I kept smelling something delicious that I thought was wafting through the open window, but no, it was me hours after I'd applied PCTG, and it had morphed into something even more gorgeous than it had started out. A very nice surprise, and I now want a bottle, particularly the one with the stones on it because it's so pretty. Another one to save my pennies for. :-/

I just bought a bottle of Fendi edt usniffed in my local drugstore on clearance for $8. Poor Fendi! Reduced to the drugstore bargain bin! I can see how people would think it's overbearing - it's not the style we are accustomed to today - and I do get the medicinal note that Tanto mentions. I also smell a vegetal note (celery/cilantro-like) which must be the geranium. As it dries down it's a bit spicy, and has a tobacco shop/pipe tobacco honeyed quality that someone mentioned. I get powdery leathery rosy florals on top of that. It's definitely a 1980's power chypre/oriental. It reminds me of Coco a little, also Paloma Picasso, also Agent Provocateur (although that's recent), even 1000 de Patou a little. It's dated, but I go around in other dated fragrances that are even more obnoxious. I quite like this little bottle. It smells sexy and dressy-uppy. If this edt is the reformulation, I can't imagine how potent and rich the original parfum must have been. Not bad for a drugstore bargain bin find.

I agree with Tovah, this is a clean, feminine, pink, offend-nobody type of fragrance that doesn't last long or have much presence on my skin. I have to press my nose right on my wrist to detect it at all 20 minutes or so after spraying. Which I keep doing so I must like it. (As an aside, someone on MUA told me this: if you can't smell your fragrance anymore, breathe on your wrist - as if you were fogging up a window - to reactivate it. It works, I suppose because of the warmth & humidity of your breath). I wouldn't go out of my way to look for Matthew Williamson, but I can see myself enjoying it as a casual fragrance. I get a cheery fruity aspect as well, pineapple or something. Sweet, youthful and pleasant.

I love it. It's sweet and delicious, fruiti-licious with buttery caramelly praline. When my sweet tooth kicks in this is where I go. The edt is amazingly long lasting and potent. I can't even imagine the longevity of the edp or parfum. This one has really grown on me. I think it's rather sophisticated for a candy frag. This and By Killian's Love are my two favorite sweeties at the moment.

This is my favorite lavender fragrance because it seems very true to the scent of real English lavender to me, which is very clean and herbal/aromatic, not quite as floral as French lavender (which is also great, not that I'm complaining!). I found an old fashioned pharmacy that sells Yardley so shopping in the vintage setting is a pleasure as well. I especially enjoy the cologne during summer before bed and after I've taken a shower with the soap. The scent is truly relaxing and encourages restful sleep.

I received a decant in a swap, and I've been trying to get acquainted with it because I love jasmine, but I'll admit defeat with this one. It's too overwhelming. I feel self conscious wearing it. It seems like there are good quality ingredients in it, it's just that this composition is too strong, too thick and heavy, too depressing for my taste. It's unbearable - it wears me, I don't wear it. This is one you would not want to take a road trip in. I get the off putting sour note that Vibert noted throughout, as well as the sassafrass-type note that Purplebird mentioned. It's interesting for its antiquity and its place in perfume history, I suppose, but I don't find it at all wearable.

Smells like liquefied orange blossom syrup, citrus juice, and smarties candies (sweet/tart), with a hairspray and soft woody drydown. I love it. I don’t get the heavy blast of patchouli that is in Angel, though I can understand why some would think of Angel – it is the candied sweetness. Palazzo reminds me more of Insolence than Angel, except that Insolence is violet, and Palazzo is orange blossom. This is a fun fragrance, and yet it has some panache and elegance. It’s the type of fragrance that I (even though I’m 50) would reach for regularly if I had a full bottle, and I think that bottle is great, by the way. One to enjoy, and not to get too analytical and serious about. Thumbs up.

Yep, it's a very sweet and fruity vanillic floriental. I can't separate the listed notes either, except for the vanilla. I like it. It's uncomplicated, friendly, and easy to wear - if you like syrupy sweet scents, that is, and I do lately in the winter weather, very much. I like that it comes in a stoppered splash bottle, though the color is little girl Barbie pink, which I don't care for. I've always been a purple girl, not pink. ;-) The stopper is an asymmetrical smooth pink pebble. Hmmm...what else? It just smells like a fruit cocktail, and it's fun to wear scents like this. Something in the base is reminding me of YR's Rose Absolu.

Feuilles de Tabac is the fifth fragrance by Miller Harris that I’ve tried. At first spritz I thought it was going to be too masculine for my taste, way too sharp and astringent. But it immediately began to improve. It’s a good boyfriend scent – something I’d enjoy smelling on a man, but wouldn’t mind borrowing for myself now and then. I love the peppery spiciness, and then the earthy sweetness of the tonka woodsy dry down, which mellows out the sharpness. It’s pretty long lasting on me. I don’t know whether I’m smelling tobacco leaves or not (not being familiar with tobacco fragrances, so basis of comparison), but this is very pleasant, and I feel serene and grounded while wearing it, as I do in Terre de Bois. I like this line of fragrances from what I’ve tried so far. They have a naturalness to them that I find soothing.

I've read that the edt and edp formulations of DK Gold are different. The edt supposedly has the cucumber impression and is lighter (I haven't tried it so can't confirm or dispute this), and the edp is more ambery/spicy in the drydown. I bought DK Gold in edp in 2008, and I think it is a gorgeous fragrance. I get a lot of acacia in this as well as lily. It smells heavily of what we called mimosa (silk tree, a type of acacia) down in Mississippi when I was a girl - pink silky blossoms that have a very honey-sweet and haunting scent, especially on a summer night. So I like this for its personal associations, and also because I think it smells luxe, rich, and unusual. Patchouli is listed in the notes (, but I don't detect it. And I do get a golden impression. Like Nukapai, I also prefer this one to Lys Mediterranee. I think it's brilliant.

I’m very fond of green fragrances, but for some reason I find this one a bit boring. Ivoire is soapy-green in the beginning, which I enjoy, then it dries down to a more complex, dry, slightly spicy greenness. There is a creaminess that evokes the texture and color of antique ivory and that intensifies as the drydown phase progresses. It’s an artful fragrance, beautifully composed, are to find an oldie that’s this nice anymore, and it’s very nice indeed, but it just doesn’t excite me. It’s elegant and sophisticated, but also rather formal and staid, like a Versailles garden, when what I really cherish is a wild meadow or a charming frumpy cottage garden. So that’s just my personal taste. On the other hand, I would imagine Ivoire is a restful scent to put on before bed after a warm bath, wearing a lovely silk nightie. It has a serene sort of luxury.

For me, this is an updated cross between No. 5 and Cristalle, though Eau Premiere is not lemony, more orangey - but it's not strongly citrus. In other words, it doesn't *smell* like Cristalle, rather it serves the same function in my wardrobe as Cristalle has in the past - a fresh Chanel scent you can spritz away and feel refreshed and elegant smelling. It has a little bit of vanilla in the drydown (not as much as Sensual Elixir) to appeal to today's wearers, yet it's still identifiably No. 5. Love Eau Premiere, thumbs up.

This is awful on me. I smell the yummy things everybody else has mentioned, but they're all under a thick cloud of something that reeks like Avon Skin So Soft, and it just intensifies on my skin. Doesn't work for me at all. One of the few fragrances I've had to go scrub off because it made me feel slightly nauseated. I'm in the minority here on this one though, looks like.

I'm wearing this from a sample for the third time, and I'm finally really getting it. Candy hearts & violets and raspberry fizz are sometimes exactly what the soul needs - but this one is long lasting, with just enough depth and complexity and sophistication to go anywhere and not tire of it too quickly. I don't find it overly sweet, I tend to like sweet things, but this seems well balanced by other elements. I don't care for the name - it seems too contrived - though maybe there's something lost in the translation that I'm unaware of. It's the fragrance that matters most to me, and I may actually purchase this one. Full bottle worhty. I can see myself wearing it more than a few times.

Notes from Luckyscent: jasmine, cyclamen, violet, lilac wood, black leather, musk

Ok, I'll go first. It starts off innocuously like a fresh, citrussy floral cologne, very clean and soaplike. Then it intensifies as it dries down, becoming leathery, but it's a refined soft leather, with a yummy fruitiness that intensifies as time passes. I don't detect the individiual notes, as listed above. I do get the leather. The leather is a bit much for my stomach before breakfast, lol, but I think it would be a great scent for cocktails later in the day. It's pretty *and* sexy, especially toward the last phase after the leather has had its star turn and begins to fade.

The name makes no impression on me at all. I'm so used to fragrances with inapt names that it's the last thing I think about (unless it were a name I considered truly offensive). It's the name's sound, not the symbol, that differentiates one perfume from another for me. I sampled Notorious recently at Macys, along with a few other fragrances. While I was driving home I kept getting little wafts of something really nice - warm, woodsy, cozy - and I kept thinking to myself, "Boy, that Allure Sensuelle really *is* nice! Funny how it smells nothing like Allure." It wasn't the Allure Sensuelle (other wrist), it was RL Notorious. Was doing the Basenotes salute all the way home. I'd wear Notorious in a heartbeat. It's the nicest of this year's department store woodsy releases, imo (this and Dior's Midnight Poison). Not terribly long lasting, but that's doesn't bother me.

I liked Secret Obsession when I sniffed the bottle and also when I sprayed it on a card. The real test is the skin test, though, so when I received a foil wrapped swab sample in the mail yesterday I had no further excuse not to try it on my skin. It's woodsy and subtly sweet - not sugar dusted. The spiciness is mild. I get no plum or florals - perhaps I need to test a second time from a tester, though, as they were very stingy with the juice on the swab. I do get a specific impression of sandalwood, but the cashmere woods is the deal breaker for me. I just don't like "cashmere woods". Of the recent woodsy dept. store fragrance releases, it's a nice one (tho' my favorite of this group is Ralph Lauren's Notorious).

This is a lovely composition. I love the coffee note - it's not over the top, just subtly sweet and black - and I have an impression of salty black licorice too, though it's not listed in the notes. I think I need to layer this over an unscented lotion because it fades too quickly on my skin. But it's the dry skin season, so maybe that's why. I'm so glad I got to sample this. It's delicious. I'm looking forward to trying more Ayala Moriel fragrances.

I won Cabotine in a gift set in a Basenotes contest. What fun! :-) And I really like the fragrance. It's very pretty on my skin, particularly in the drydown. No mold or mildew here. It's green, with a zingy gingery sharpness up top that later softens and becomes warm and floral. I can't tell if it's ginger or citrus or what, actually. I agree, it does have a bit of that Estee Lauder fabric softener thing about it - the clean generic freshness. But it's lovely, and surprisingly long lasting. I'm pleased with my prize and will definitely wear it. It reminds me a bit of Dior's Tendre Poison, another pretty green floral from days gone by.

You can buy them separately now, as Orange or Red. A Basenoter sent me a sample of each, and my preference is the Orange, which I think is delicious (I haven't given Red a fair trial yet, but it doesn't grab me the way Orange does). I found these notes for Orange online: rhubarb leaves, peppermint, bergamot, purple orchids, roses, lily of the valley, vetiver from Ghana, sandalwood, rosewood, heliotrope, musk, and vanilla. This conjures up Christmas for me - it's orangey-citrus, spicy, and marshmallowy sweet. There's just a hint of peppermint in there. I don't get a heavy hit of woods, nor is it very flowery/floral. On my skin, it pretty much goes straight to heliotrope/vanilla/musk and stays that way. I LOVE this fragrance. It's yummy.

This is tart and citrussy in the top notes, but the fruit I get here is blackberry. Maybe that's just what I *want* to smell, though. There were wild blackberries growing near our home this past summer and this fragrance made me think of them. Other people get grape kool-aid. There's a faint vanilla/musk/amber drydown. It's very pleasant, but I think weather makes a difference in the wearing. I found the fragrance ripe and juicy and satisfying during very hot and humid summer days, when the fruit in it seemed macerated in caramelized sugar, but it's not as sweet on this chilly November day. I like this one and Bath & Body Works' Midnight Pomegranate when I'm in the mood for sugary fruits.

I have Midnight Pomegranate in body lotion and body splash, and I enjoy it when I want something fruity and fun. It's a tart red fruity smell, sugar dusted over that, with a bit more depth in the base than you'd expect, though I can't detect all the notes listed. It is a [i]wee[/i] bit candle shop'ish, but not too bad. As Keds suggests, it smells great layered with Jo Malone's Pomegranate Noir, which gives it more edge and interest. I'm wearing this combination today for Thanksgiving dinner.

I'm trying a sample of Fleur Oriental today and really enjoying it. I don't find it particularly spicy, though carnation is supposed to be there - amber, vanilla & heliotrope dominate on my skin. The heliotrope makes it almondy-sweet. It's nice, smooth, comforting, exactly what I need on a chilly fall day.

I don't think this one is very popular because I never see any comments on it. I guess that doesn't mean people aren't wearing it. I don't know the sales figures on it. My experience was the opposite of Cbean97's - I didn't like the top notes so much (they seemed a bit sharp & man-cologney), but the drydown was quite nice. It's actually pretty and sophisticated. I like it.

I found an ancient bottle of this and decided to wear a teensy bit tonight. The top notes have faded, which is probably why I'm not getting the lemon or orange. And I don't really smell violets either...at least not what I associate as violets. This smells like orris root to me. A fuzzy and earthy/soilish/rooty sweetness. Yes, I get the green soapiness too. It's really hitting the right spot tonight. I keep going back for tiny spritzes. This might be addictive. I think it's better without its top notes. It reminds me a little bit of Terre d'Iris by Miller Harris (I love that one too).

The top note is patchouli, and it gradually softens and sweetens into the orangey/rosy/vanillic (which is not listed above so maybe that’s amber) drydown. I like that it has this backward development. The patchouli is there throughout, but soft and friendly. A man could wear it too. I’m sniffing it now on my cotton turtleneck from earlier in the day and loving it. It’s a scent I want to inhale deeply and find deeply satistfying, like a barn scent mixed with sweet perfume and fresh country night air. I agree with the liniment remark, it does have a bit of that about it. There's a simplicity about it, yet I also think it's quite elegant. Like this one a lot.

I'm probably being unfair reviewing this after only one wearing, but the appeal of this one completely escapes me. Maybe my taste isn't sophisticated enough yet for Dans tes Bras. Mushroom, Trebor says. I get a musty quality from this in the drydown that is a bit mushroomy I suppose, though I was thinking storage unit. Also, the synthetic top notes make me think of household cleaning products. I get pleasant faint whiffs of salt, though, as well as clove. To me, it smells like being embraced by someone who's been house cleaning and clearing out old things from the attic. I love some of Maurice Roucel's creations, so I was really looking forward to trying this one, but I don't get it. Oh well. We can't all love everything. I'm giving it a "neutral" because I've only tried it once.

This is beautiful. I don't know Diorama, but this reminds me of one of my all time favorites: Diorella - but spicy, juicier, and deeper, woodsier. I suppose it's just very identifiably Roudnitska, which is ok by me. It's elegant, chic, yet very easy to wear. Definitely has that classic French vibe to it, which means it makes me want to do something about my hair, put on some makeup, and go out somewhere nice for lunch. This puts a smile in my heart. Both thumbs way up.

Pretty, clean, classy, ladylike rose fragrance. I get a slight woodsy vibe from it too. And I also get the baby oil Aiona mentioned, but perhaps that's the sweetness of the vanilla and amber, which is not overly done thank goodness. It quite sheer, and for an edp doesn't last very long on my skin. I have other rose fragrances that I like as well, but this is nice. I like it very much.

When I was doing my jasmine exploration a couple of months or so ago, Montale's Jasmin Full turned out to be the one I reached for most often, it was the most wearable. It seemed the purest, yet no skanky indoles were apparent, and it was very potent and long lasting. But now...in retrospect, I have to say that my favorite of the bunch I tried is Lutens' Sarrasins - because it's more interesting in its development. So I agree with Trebor, this one is a bit boring. Nevertheless, it is very beautiful and of exceptional quality, as far as I can judge. I would wear it occasionally but I can't imagine ever going through an entire bottle in my lifetime.

This one is perfect for when I want a sweetie. As Lizzie_J notes, it's pretty much a straight up true vanilla, not a sickeningly sweet or synthetic smelling vanilla (I suppose that would go without saying in this line), and I get a nutty praline quality as well. Yum. Notes: vanilla, cinnamon, clove, woods. I detect no clove at all, mercifully. I think this is really nicely done. I'm loving the Montale's as I try them. Too bad for my bank account!

I quite like Aqua Allegoria Figue-Iris. I'm not an affidionado (yet) on either iris or fig, so maybe that's why I didn't have any pre-expectations when I tried it. I was very pleasantly surprised by how wearable this scent was for me all summer - it was cooling, refreshing and pretty in the summer heat. I'm wearing it today on a rainy fall day and it's just right again. Soft drydown, sweet, iris/powdery and feminine. I do smell a bit of figgy sweetness up front, but it doesn't last long, and is taken over by the iris that lasts a long time on me. I think I smell vetiver in there too. Anyway, I think it's one of the nicest AA's I've tried in the past couple of years. Maybe not a blockbuster, but very pleasant and easy to like.

I get a very sweet custardy vanilla in this - I find it very desserty - and then immediately afteward this rank, unwashed armpit note blooms. I don't know what it is (possibly gaiac wood?), but I get it in other fragrances too, and it doesn't work for me at all. It's fairly linear from there as it slowly fades in intensity. It would be very pleasant but for the sweatiness. I usually do well with Annick Goutals, but this one I can pass by.

I bought a small bottle of this in Florida last June when it was swelteringly hot. I found it delightfully cooling and refreshing but, as Tovah noted, extremely short lived. It's especially nice after a shower before bed in the evening. It's cooling, soothing and one of the nicest simple rose fragrances I've found. A bit tart, a bit sweet, and fairly natural smelling. I love the story behind the name (told on the side of the box): The four daughters of the Count of Fourcalquier - Marguerite, Eléonore, Sancie, and Beatrix - each had a favorite rose - the Grasse rose, the Bulgarian rose, the Moroccan rose, and the Turkish rose, and each of them became a queen. The fragrance is supposed to be a blend of those four roses. Romantic! :-)

I love Désir de Nature. Quarry forwarded me her bottle and I couldn't be more thrilled. I agree, it's a scent you might associate with a young girl, or innocence, a time past. It smells clean, green, floral and wholesome, with a bit of tartness to it. In my imagination I can hear a screen door slam in a farmhouse as a smiling young girl wearing her favorite dress heads off somewhere, maybe to a fair, trailing this scent behind her, and the front room curtains are fluttering in the breeze. I find it very refreshing and of another time and place (obviously). I enjoy it most in the morning after a shower. It puts me in a good mood. It's not long lasting, but you can always re-spritz. Usually by lunchtime I'm ready to move on to a more complex fragrance anyway. But for mornings...it's like a sunny day and not a care in the world.

I'm trying out a sample of Boisé Vanillé by Montale and finding it the perfect comfort scent this morning. I almost reached for Estee Lauder Sensuous in the sample box, but something told me to try this one instead, and thank goodness. It's beautiful - woodsy, spicy, incensy, sweetly vanillic yet not crudely synthetic or desserty. It's the natural, resiny sweetness that emanates from the real tonka bean and vanilla pod. The woods are smooth and velvety, not harsh, as I find many woodsy fragrances, I suppose it's all in the quality of ingredients. I don't know what they are, but I know when I smell them. I'm very impressed with anything by Montale and looking forward to trying more in this line. This one is a little bit masculine for me, but it smells so good that I'd wear it anyway.

I'm glad to have (re)discovered Obsession. I had to track it down. I would smell it from time to time and always wondered what it was. I thought Tabu, Chantilly - but I knew it was neither of those. So my pleasure in this is heightened by the fun of the mystery, which has now been solved. To me, Obession is all deliciousness: sweet, vanillic (though non-gourmand), ambery, citric, all of the right elements coming together into a very pleasant, sensual fragrance, and quite sexual, though with a wearer-friendly absence of skank or irony or knowingness, more of the happy, frank sexuality of its time. I get a slightly medicinal odor of band-aid, which I get sometimes in Shalimar as well, and have noticed in certain other fragrances. I'm wondering whether this is a facet of amber. The medicinal impression doesn't last long anyway. How great to fall in love with a fragrance that is so easily obtainable, affordable, adaptable to any occasion, and all-season wearable. A fellow Basenoter sent me her mini, but I think I would wear this often enough to justify a larger bottle taking up space in my closet. The ad for the most recent version, Secret Obsession, with Eva Mendes would suit this fragrance equally well if not better.

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.

I don't smell the jasmine. It smells more like expensive hotel soap: pleasant, light, and very short lived. After five minutes or so I smelled nothing at all. I was disappointed. I expected to smell real jasmine, at least fleetingly. Voile de Jasmin - right? Perhaps I'm anosmic to this? I'm glad I didn't buy a bottle - I would have felt more than a little "had".

I love it too, and I agree with rach2jlc that it is unisex. Someone on one of the blogs said that in drydown it's reminiscent of Eau Sauvage - and it is. Very nice!

I agree with Distortech, it is the heliotrope that is wonderful in this. When I first sampled Angelique-Lilas I was less than impressed, but it's grown on me this summer while I've been playing with my sample. I don't know whether I've ever smelled Angelica before, maybe I do smell it in this but I would need it pointed out to me. I was afraid from the orange on top that it was going to turn into Mandarin-Basilic, but it doesn't (I think the orange could be toned down just a notch, though). The heliotrope and lilac take it into Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds land. It does have that fresh laundry/dryer sheet quality (maybe that's the lily of the valley), but I don't mind because overall the fragrance is kind of soft and marshmallowy, and sweet like a storybook. It's very pleasant.

Nice, pretty jasmine fragrance. I find it very feminine. And I get honeysuckle too! I thought it might be melon, but it's honeysuckle, which has a very sweet almost fruity scent. This isn't going to be the "one" jasmine scent for me. But I like it very much.

I can't add very much more to what Calchic has already said so well about how this smells. I think Antilope is an artfully composed fragrance, and perfectly named; it's a sleeper of a little conjurer. I get a dry, grassy, sweet vetiver from it, the blonde color of dried vetiver suggesting the natural habitat of African Antilope (though I think Vetiver is actually southeast Asian?). I agree, it summons up romantic visions of Isak Dineson's Africa, or camping out on Safari in tents, lions lolling in the grassy plains. It goes to show how influential a suggestive name is to the overall character of a fragrance (maybe that's why Envy and Insolence, et al. never grabbed my interest). Antilope is a sweet-dry scent, not bone dry like Amazone; and it's very feminine, imo, though it could be worn by a man too. It warmed and sweetened on my skin, drying down to a delicate soft whisper of sillage. My husband complimented me on it when I was using up my sample. I'll probably just stick with the edc, although I would be interested in testing the new edp to compare. It's very affordably priced online. I hope it hasn't been downgraded in quality.

I had to sniff the bottle because I love it; it looks like a glass paperweight with the Pucci print beneath the domed top. At first sniff I pulled my head back - "Whoa! Smells like celery, smells like a Bloody Mary". Then I took a second sniff..."Wait a minute...smells like gardenias. Must try on skin." The SA at Nordstrom made up a sample for me (I love that place), and this morning I am testing it on my wrists. I love it. I'm very pleasantly surprised because I'd read a few negative comments about Vivara, and as it turns out it is an utterly lovely green/floral retro chypre. It reminds me of my mother as a beautiful young woman in the 60's, when she actually wore Pucci prints. I didn't think you could buy a fragrance like this anymore unless you found a vintage bottle of something. It has a bitter green start, then gorgeous white florals in the middle take over, supported by the woody basenotes - yet it's not "woodsy". As Ubuandibeme noted, the fragrance unfolds through that classic progression of notes (it reminds me of Y or Givenchy III), and yet it has a fresh modernity. There is often something weighty and staid in vintage chypres that is lacking here and I don't miss that. This is airier. There is that little bit of powderiness too as iMaverick notes. It is elegant. It's not austere, but not warm & cuddly either. I detect no patchouli, thank God. I love this. If it lasts longer than a nano-second on my skin, I will definitely purchase a bottle.

Love it!

I hope you’ll forgive my reminiscing here…I remember discovering the Perfumers Workshop counter in Bloomingdales in 1975 and having such fun there. You could buy different oils and dilutants to make your own cologne, or just wear the oils straight. They came in various sizes in brown bottles. I bought freesia, gardenia, oak moss, oppoponax, and tea rose, which was their main best-selling fragrance and the only one, as far as I know, that came in a spray edt. The entire main floor of Bloomingdales smelled of Tea Rose. I didn’t know anything about perfumery, I just had fun choosing the scents that appealed to me. I had Tea Rose in oil form first, and then later bought the edt spray. The oil was sooo potent! It was lethal. People either loved it or hated it. I suppose it depends on one’s tolerance for rose, which divorced of girly-girl or Victorian associations is actually a very strange and exotic odor.

To me, Tea Rose (and it doesn’t seem to have changed over the years) is a lush, crimson, sweet, syrupy, full blown, and even almost moldy & overripe rose. It smells like it’s growing in a graveyard by a tomb, petals at the point of falling to the ground to rot. Some people get impressions of sweetness, lightness and spring, but for me Tea Rose is purely Gothic/Romantic – a little dark. But maybe that’s must my sense of romanticism. It’s quite long lasting, and a steal at $9.99 for 4 oz. at discount stores. I wouldn’t wear it to the office, but I’d wear it on a date on a summer night. I wouldn’t wear it to a christening, but I’d wear it to a jazz club. It layers very well, as has been mentioned, with almost anything. I’m so glad that it’s still available.

I like Armani Diamonds. The sweet and woodsy drydown won me over. It's sexy and lingering, and I like the fresh top notes. Most of the Armani scents seem to work well for me. Like other Armanis I've tried, this one is feminine, modern, appealing, sexy but not cliched. Nicely done, imo. If you enjoy Armani scents in general you'll probably like this one too.