Reviews by angelica

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    angelica
    United Kingdom United Kingdom

    Showing 1 to 30 of 33.
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    Vetiver by Guerlain

    I have just purchased the newest version, in the classic bottle not the 2000s frosted bottle. It is a revelation. I hope this is a sign of Guerlain taking feedback seriously and that others may follow suit. It smells like the money has gone into the juice and not a heavy glass, fancy (albeit beautiful) bottle. The last version was harsh and loud with super-sonic citrus and heavy tobacco. This is light and understated and elegant with good longevity and radiance. I for one am delighted with this reformulation and hope it is here to stay!

    12nd January, 2012.

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    Voyage d'Hermès by Hermès

    In response to the myriad reviews I have read that pick this apart and compare it to other works by Jean-Claude Ellena, I say this:

    I am sure c.1926 if such people were reviewing Shalimar, they would have said they could smell Jicky and New Mown Hay, and this and that and the other one from last year.

    So what? And from the 1920s Guerlain catalogue of countless fragrances how many are still extant?

    This is a transcendent fragrance. The whole is radiant yet comforting; the parts are kaleidoscopic, moving from one accord to the next, none ever smelling exactly identifiable... e.g. something sweet milky flowery (is that a reference to New Mown Hay perhaps?).

    Just inhale and enjoy.

    14th February, 2011.

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    Rose Poivrée by Different Company

    I love Hillaire's review.

    This is the rose resurrected in Jal's video for their song 'Sajni.'
    (Thanks to the wonders of youtube, you can see what I mean).

    13rd September, 2010.

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    Dans Tes Bras by Editions de Parfums Frederic Malle

    I think this is magical, and out of all my fragrances, and all classics considered, if I could keep only one, it would be this one. And I am thrilled if people think I smell like a horny sailor! I can't imagine anything more chic. Fantastic! Although personally I feel that it simply creates a sweet, warm and inviting aura. To me, it smells like hot skin after a sweetly-scented bubble-bath.

    And I do not get mushrooms! What sort of mushrooms are you all, um, eating!?

    29th August, 2010.

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    Bas de Soie by Serge Lutens Les Salons du Palais Royal Shiseido

    Chanel No 19. Why bother with this?

    28th August, 2010.

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    Alahine by Téo Cabanel

    Love it! And I am very impressed with the quality of the Teo Cabanel line in general.

    I don't really like ambers on me, they seem to disappear into my skin, and I don't like L'Heure Bleue, which I find far too sweet and reminiscent of pastilles. Alahine is quite ambery, and it reminds me of L'Heure Bleue, and yet it works for me. This is a really beautiful everyday, any occasion, fragrance - soft, rich, but not overpowering.

    21st August, 2010.

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    Divine by Divine

    Hmm. I wore Ysatis for many years and still have some of the original for old time's sake, but I would never wear it today. This, I'll happily wear. Saying they're similar is like saying Chanel No 5 and Madame Rochas are similar. I guess there just aren't enough animalic florals out there to make distinguishing between them easy, unless you've really lived in one of them enough to know it well. Divine has a spicy peachy opening, which Ysatis lacks, and a gentle powdery drydown (ditto), and in between there's a very animalic Mai Rose poking through the tuberose. I guess it's the tuberose/oakmoss accord that invokes the comparisons. Ysatis feels dated; this feels timeless. Miss Dior also originally was a gardenia-tuberose/oakmoss chypre, and I see this as a modern version of that.

    9th July, 2010.

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    Fille en Aiguilles by Serge Lutens Les Salons du Palais Royal Shiseido

    In the same way that Tubereuse Criminelle creates an impression of the actual smell of tuberose absolute, weird camphor note and all, this creates an impression of the actual smell of frankincense tears when you burn them. This is what I've always wanted an incense fragrance to smell like - straight-up frankincense - rather than some nag champa incense stick. A dream come true for me!

    4th June, 2010.

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    French Lover / Bois d'Orage by Editions de Parfums Frederic Malle

    I wish I'd got the tourist's unwashed whore as that would have been a whole lot more interesting that what I did get: aftershave.

    13rd March, 2010.

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    Sira des Indes by Jean Patou

    I love all of the Patou fragrances and only wish they'd come out with a few more. They use the finest quality Grasse jasmine which smells totally different from other jasmines and I can always pick it out. In Sira des Indes there is also natural red champaca, which smells similar to ylang-ylang, and orange blossom. This adds up to a sweet, nectar laden floral, with a divine natural sandalwood drydown. It rarely gets recommended to people looking for tropical florals, as tuberose is in fashion these days, but this is much more the ticket for me. Bliss. I hope they keep making it and you grumpy guys continue to stay away!

    21st February, 2010.

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    Soie Rouge by Maître Parfumeur et Gantier

    An interesting mix of reviews. This is my favourite carnation and the only one I own and wear. To me it seems to be a headspace carnation, so the other elements popping in and out of focus are notes that amplify different aspects of the carnation - fruity, sweet, spicy. I agree that it smells red, and also spare and elegant, whereas Bellodgia to me smells too sweet and pink, and a big fussy pink meringue of a dress at that. This dress is not only silk, but fitted.

    19th February, 2010.

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    Tiare by Ormonde Jayne

    Totally classic citrus/floral chypre. What a delightful surprise! Thank you Linda! After a few years of this nonsense of calling syrupy fruity florals 'new chypres', Ormonde Jayne has shown us how to actually do a 'new chypre. Brava!

    From the name, I was expecting a big, sweet, tropical white floral, and so didn't bother to try it for some months thinking 'ho hum, who needs this when there's Frangipani?' But instead it is an extremely elegant, sophisticated, feminine fragrance that sits alongside Cristalle, Diorella and Y. Less powdery than Y, less fruity than Diorella, and much more full bodied than Cristalle. The drydown has something of Bandit about it too. But these are just comparisons to give a sense of its character, it's very much it's own unique fragrance. The white floral heart seemingly pulses with touches of sweetness, but the overall effect is dry and reminds me of heavy silk. Love it!!!

    22nd January, 2010.

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    Comme des Garçons 2 by Comme des Garçons

    I was so surprised to see the notes for this one, and that it is meant to smell of ink... I guess I haven't sniffed enough ink, because my nose reads: fruity rose over woody frankincense, in the style of Rochas Femme. Love it!!!!!

    17th December, 2009.

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    Narciso Rodriguez for Her by Narciso Rodriguez

    The 21st century's No 5.

    ..................................

    10th November, 2009.

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    French Cancan by Caron

    Diptyque does a jasmine candle that smells like jasmine for a few minutes and then the magic falls apart and it smells of cloyingly sweet synthetic white floral + violet. This is exactly what French Cancan smells like. All of the highly evocative descriptions of beds of dark purple violets and va va voom vampy naughtiness that can be found on some other sites seem to be based on the listed notes + the name + highly active imaginations.

    6th November, 2009.

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    Ormonde Woman by Ormonde Jayne

    I agree wholeheartedly with Tigrushka's review, so will say no more by way of description.

    Just to add, I have owned almost all of the OJs at one point in time, and normally find little difference between the EDP and parfum (the EDP has a whopping 25% jus and the parfum only a bit more at 30%, so the EDPs are great value for money in this line), but with Ormonde Woman, I have found the parfum to be softer and smoother, without the peppery bite of the EDP. I much prefer it.

    12nd September, 2009.

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    Jarling by JAR

    This is like En Passant moved to Soho in London. I worked there, in an office I hasten to add!, some years ago, and initially was shocked to find that on my short walk round the block to grab a coffee, I would pass, um what's the polite term for them? - ladies of the night? - except this was at noon on a Monday, and they would be hanging out of their doorways, with a lot hanging out, right across from a children's school! - and playground. If you know London well, you know where this juxtaposition occurs. I'm not making it up. Kids running around playing, with these women advertising their wares right next door in broad daylight. Wow. So, Jarling take the lilac caught on the run theme, and repositions it to this sort of environment. It's quite decadent, with the neon-flashing lights of some other big white florals - lily, jasmine, tuberose; quite sweet, with that heliotrope and vanilla; and there's something very naughty lurking in there - like PVC covered in talcum powder. I really like it.

    6th September, 2009.

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    Jubilation 25 by Amouage

    Smelling Jubilation 25 for the first time was like running into an old friend... or perhaps more like thinking you've spotted an old friend in a crowd, but then realising it's someone you've never met before. It's somehow recognisable and familiar, I think because it has a classical chypre structure - more Mitsouko than Diorella to me - but as one wears it, it definitely has a hint of the oriental about it - some spice and vanilla. In fact, I get a hint of Opium parfum, which I think is mainly from the carnation. I haven't seen this mentioned in lists of notes, but there's eugenol on the box, so there's definitely a clove/carnation accord. This fragrance communicates classic and impeccable taste, and then it flashes a bit of something sexy. It seems to work for all occasions, and it's one of the few fragrances I wear that always seems to draw compliments.

    6th September, 2009.

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    Scent by Theo Fennell

    Voluptuous is definitely the right word for this one. Smells the way a powdered bosom should!

    6th September, 2009.

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    Belle en Rykiel by Sonia Rykiel

    Hmm. Wavering there between a neutral and a thumbs up. I have wanted to try this one for a long time because of the Frankincense note (I love Frankincense; burn it a lot) and descriptions as an unusual oriental. I finally found a bottle cheap so picked it up. It's pleasant, pretty, and I like the lavender it in, quite a bit, but I'm not bowled over by it, and while I can pick out the frankincense mingled with the lavender if I try, it's not the star of the show. My first impression was that it smells Italian, and then specifically it reminded me of Laura Biagiotti's Roma, I think because it's sweet and slightly powdery, but it's a damp sweet powder not the dry sort, if that makes sense. It isn't Guerlain-aldehydic-1960s-powder, it's a recent shimmering liquid to powder body spray - not unlike what you get in L'Instant in the pure perfume. And speaking of Guerlain, if I want lavender I'll reach for this, not Jicky, which is just not so pretty, especially with that monster civet note, and this is much prettier than Vero's Kiki, which was very barber-shop and made me feel physically ill (nice job for a fragrance touting its aromatherapy credentials). So, I guess I'm agreeing with what I originally read about it - pretty oriental with frankincense and nice lavender note. Still meh, although I will wear it on occasion.

    6th September, 2009.

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    Acqua di Parma Profumo by Acqua di Parma

    This is a review for the reformulation which was done in 2008 by Nathalie Lorson. This new version is like Rochas Femme having undergone the same treatment as, say, Diorella did in Amouage's Jubi 25. It smells like a Roudnitska classic but reinterpreted for Cleopatra. It's got that whole ancient vibe about it that you still get in attars from the Mid-East (am thinking in particular of Amouage Ohood), but it's lightened up so that the fragrance breathes. Mature, feminine, classic.

    6th September, 2009.

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    Champaca by Ormonde Jayne

    This is what a gourmand should be - an elegant floral with a hint of something edible, in this case Kheer.

    I have boycotted Space NK since they shamelessly copied this.

    6th September, 2009.

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    Allure Homme Sport by Chanel

    Hmm. I am a woman and do not find it enticing. In fact, I have never before found a fragrance so repellent. My husband tried this a few times and it bunged up my nose every time, and I wound up with a sinus infection after its last outing. I literally have tried thousands of fragrances and have never had this reaction before.

    6th September, 2009.

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    Samsara by Guerlain

    I read something recently which finally put Samsara into context for me. I have had a love/hate relationship with it, which I think centres around the powder. I do like powdery fragrances, but here it seems out of place. I'll happily be wearing a rich sweet oriental when this huge *poof* of powder erupts.

    Anyway, I came across an interview with Robert Granai, the bottle designer, talking about the inspiration for it, and he said "we found [this] not in the Souk market, but in the Musée Guimet." Aha! More of an Orientalist fragrance than an Oriental. And there I had it. As we also know, Jean-Paul Guerlain created this for a particular woman. I have seen her, and I know her kind.

    Some years ago I worked at a major museum where we would have big galas, and most of the ladies who attended were very wealthy and of a certain age. They all had near-identical ash blonde heavily highlighted, big, highly coiffed, hair. A hair helmet really. We took to calling this "international hair," which carried with it a whole host of associations.

    And so I have come to the conclusion that Samsara is the oriental for women with international hair. It is well-mannered. And lest that indolic jasmine or sultry sandalwood should offend, there is a massive overlay of orris to keep it all in place, just as a robust application of Elnett will do for your coiffure.

    6th September, 2009.

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    Ubar by Amouage

    As you expect with Amouage, it's a big, well-crafted, head-turning fragrance. It starts out very much like Theo Fennell's Scent - a warm, slightly powdery, musky rose - and then it just takes off in flight and gets bigger, and bigger, and louder!, until I had a throbbing, spicy, rose oriental on my arm (and inside of coat, for days afterwards), which reminded me of the old Montana Parfum de Peau. Now I've got some of that stashed in the back of my closet and had thought it was waaaay too 80s to wear today, but if this kind of thing is coming back, I'll save myself some money and dig that out. But if that is your kind of thing, you're going to be ever-so-happy with Ubar, and you just can't beat the Amouage-s for quality and staying power.

    6th September, 2009.

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    Angel by Thierry Mugler

    I think Angel was the Opium of my generation. I remember reading about it before it came out, and there were quite a few of us desperate to get it... it was a topic of conversation... there was a buzz. And getting it meant a special trip into NYC from suburban CT, as it was only going to be available at Saks. It really didn't matter what it smelled like, because by the time I got to that counter, I had been dreaming about those notes (chocolate... in a perfume!?), and that gorgeous blue bottle, for so long, there was no way I was going to be deterred at that point. And I actually loved it. I thought it was AMAZING! And everyone else did too. Initially. And then sadly, after a year or so, the whole world seemed to be wearing it too. And too much Angel, as we all know, is not a good thing. I hope a younger generation will rediscover it at some point in the future, and it will take its place amongst the greats of all time. But in the distant future.

    10th August, 2009.

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    Gypsy Water by Byredo

    I was pleasantly surprised by this one. I picked it up for my husband, as testing it quickly in the store my nose read "juniper, cardamom, woody, male." But when he tried it, he asked "are you sure this is for men?" - which seemed a good excuse to nab it for myself. I've been wearing it now and I think it definitely can go either way, but it is a bit sweet and powdery, which is probably what he objected to. The opening is citrus and juniper, and then for hours it's a sort of lightly spiced crème brulée, drying down to soft powdery/musky woods, which goes on and on and on. This bit reminds me of the Body Shop's old Mostly Musk. It almost verges on cloying as it never really disappears - excellent lasting power, but at whisper level - and it's very diffusive. You can smell it around you, whereas when you put your nose to your skin it's seemingly no longer there. I find myself reaching for it a lot, as it's a warm and comfortable every day fragrance.

    2nd August, 2009.

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    Rose de Nuit by Serge Lutens Les Salons du Palais Royal Shiseido

    I have tried nearly all, and owned many, of the Lutens fragrances, and this is the only one that's stayed in my collection. I first bought it on a trip to Paris, and wearing it home on the Eurostar, I literally had men following me up and down the train inhaling deeply (and getting a bit too close in the refreshments queue). That never happens to me, at least not because of my fragrance. ;-) If you put this on and stick your nose to your wrist, it's going to smell awful - a mucky, murky mess. If you put this on and forget about it for a while, you'll notice the truest rose you've ever found in a fragrance, rich and bright, hovering around you over a bed of mossy woods and musk. Seductive in a very earthy way.

    2nd August, 2009.

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    Lipstick Rose by Editions de Parfums Frederic Malle

    I have a thing for fragrances that smell of lipsticks and face powders. For me, that old-fashioned powdery smell is the absolute height of feminine glamour, and so I was very excited when Lipstick Rose first came out and ordered a bottle straight away. Well, it does smell like a Chanel lipstick, but it smells more plasticky and synthetic than a lipstick. It smells like all of the things the fragrance in the lipstick effectively masks; but here they're on show. Nice trick. Not what I was looking for. For pillowy powdery things, I much prefer N'Aimez que Moi, Arpege and Madame Rochas, to name but a few.

    2nd August, 2009.

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    Mauboussin by Mauboussin

    Love this one. Sumptuous, sweet, honeyed-tobacco. DH grew up in the Middle East and says it smells like a traditional attar, as I think any serious oriental should.

    2nd August, 2009.

    Showing 1 to 30 of 33.

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