Fragrance Reviews by Loro

One of my all time favourites - I find this almost indescribably lovely, but so hard to define. I would definitely have classed it as a chypre myself - it has a dry, elegance that to my nose says more chypre than oriental - but it is such a beautiful combination of notes that it's hard to say which are prevalent. Either way, this is the perfume I find myself drawn to when in need of comfort, the one whose lid I open before going to bed at night, just for a reassuring sniff. And the loveliest bottle (the perfume) on my dresser.

As an aside - I don't find this a million miles away from my 20 year old Miss Dior. Purer, richer, deeper, better crafted - but certainly somehow related.

A difficult one to write, this - I really want to like this fragrance but try as I might I can't get on with it. It's the first 90 minutes or so that trouble me, and I'm with Dawn Lady's comments that if you were feeling remotely nauseous or head-achey you'd be well-advised to steer clear. I've come to the conclusion it's the aniseed top-note I react badly to, as I feel exactly the same about Apres L'Ondee, which shares this opening note. To my nose it mutates into a powerful disinfectant smell - Dettol-like - which lasts way too long for comfort and yes, brings to mind old people's homes, hospitals and a raft of other things I really don't want to be reminded of. Such a shame, because a couple of hours later on the skin it softens down to a lovely powdery, floral vanilla (hence the neutral rather than thumbs down review) - although I notice that on clothes the top-note remains loud and proud. Maybe it's a problem with the EdP - I'm going to try and sample the Parfum before giving up on it entirely.

First up I should confess that with the odd exception (Lys Mediterranee comes to mind) I am not a fan of full-blown florals, so clearly this was never going to be the scent for me.... but I find this almost unbearably strident, especially in the first half-hour - tropically bright with potent melon overtones. An hour later and the jasmine and honeysuckle start to come through (although still with a hint of melon) but there onwards I find it strangely linear and flat - nothing draws me to keep smelling at my wrist. It reminds me of one of those huge cocktails, complete with paper umbrella and plastic flower, that a girl in the Eighties would have sipped by the pool - sweeter than she'd bargained for and probably destined to bring on a headache. Having read the other reviews, I'd be interested to smell this on someone else - maybe I'm one of the unlucky ones this simply doesn't suit!

I am not usually a fan of rose as a dominant note in perfume so was not expecting to fall for this in a big way, but fall I have. It opens with a citrus (bergamot?) sparkle that gives a lightness of touch and ensure there is none of the head-achey heaviness I can frequently perceive in rose fragrances. When the rose does start to come through it is tempered by a lovely, milky warmth from the vanilla, which adds softness without any hint of sweetness. A perfect winter comfort perfume, which for some reason I 'see' as the palest, marshmallow pink.

Definitely a summer fragrance for me, and yes, I get the soap too, but love the freshness of this and the way it dries down woody, with no sweetness. Pretty good longevity on me - stays tangy for a couple of hours or so. I admit that after a couple of sniffs I get generic citrus, rather than pure grapefruit, but still find it pleasantly zingy. A great fallback light summer fragrance, for those occasions when you don't necessarily want to make too much effort or impression!