Basenotes - Reviews by WardrobeMistress

United Kingdom

Showing 1 to 9 of 9.

Frankincense & Myrrh by Czech & Speake

Well for starters I don't associate this with Christmas! Having said that I will concede that this is a fabulous winter snuggle-scent.

Soft, snuggly and smokey with a refined powdery drydown that reminds me a little of lavender and chamomile baby talc mixed with some (and I mean this positively!)past-its-use-by-date dried sage that you might find in the back of the kitchen cupboard. I find very little citrus here which is surprising as lemon notes usually project loudly on my skin. The frankincense is very enjoyable and never tips over into that slightly medicinal smell.

Sillage is discreet, I find this one wears quite close to the skin, but my oh my, it's special. Again and again I find myself raising my wrist to my nose.

A cold winters night with a crackling fire, a slightly rough tartan wool blanket and a hot toddy. Oh yes. A full bottle is calling....

7th May, 2011.

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Marine Groove by Escada

I'm approaching my sample with some trepidation...I've never tried an Escada before and I have to say that the packaging is about as cheap and tacky as it gets. None the less I am doing my best to approach with an open mind...

And ye Gods it's sweet...sweet like a strawberry-scented plastic dolls head. Seriously, all I am getting for an opener is strawberry, and it's not a ripe, warmed by the sun strawberry, it's unashamedly synthetic. After ten minutes or so I'm starting to feel a touch of slightly sour passionfruit. This phase is actually much more enjoyable, it's odd that such a true passionfruit should be combined with such an artificial strawberry and I want to shout at that plastic-dolly-strawberry "Oi you, clear off !" So that I can enjoy that sharp passionfruit in peace. Sadly, it doesn't appear to be listening and just keeps hanging around like the proverbial bad smell. I still have no jasmine, I still have no musk. Paeony? Well perhaps. To be honest I'm not sure, I have grown peonies in my garden for many years and find their scent barely perceptible so I'm not sure I would recognise it. Perhaps it's there, somewhere, but I'll be damned if I can find it smothered under that nauseating plastic strawberry syrup blanket.

I'm quite surprised at this being marketed as a Summer scent, I can't think of anything worse on a hot day than smelling like a melted strawberry chew from the pick n' mix that's melted & stuck to the hot tarmac.

No No No No No.

26th April, 2011.

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Strawberries and Champagne by Victoria's Secret

Shhh...don't tell anyone ...but actually..(whisper it, now) I kinda like this...

Despite my dislike of all things pink & frooty, I do actually find the corners of my mouth turning up slightly when I raise my wrist to my nose.

It's bright and bouncy and just so very cheerful. It's a strawberry cassis champagne cocktail, it does exactly what it says on the tin. OK it's not sophisticated. It requires no intellectual effort to dissect, enjoy and appreciate it. Would I wear it to a job interview ? No. Would I wear it when I have seduction in mind? No. Will I wear it when I'm slobbing around the house in jeans and a sweater on a grey rainy day? Absolutely!

I certainly think it stands up to scrutiny just as well as Miss Dior Cherie, which is a frag I have (so far) intensely disliked with all its girly-girl strawberry caramel fug, but here the champagne takes the plastic strawberry (and yes, it is a plasticy-strawberry, what did you expect, miniature wild strawberries hand plucked from the banks of an Alpine stream?) down a few notches thanks to its slight yeasty-toastiness and the blackcurrant adds a little depth and richness to what could have been a pink plastic doll extravaganza.

It's no masterpiece, but it's a whole lot of fun... Cheap and very very cheerful.

4th December, 2010.

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A Scent by Issey Miyake Eau de parfum Floral by Issey Miyake

Hello paeony! Hello lilac! Lilacs? yes definately lilac despite it not being listed as a note. Lily of the valley? Hmmm maybe, I get that note from the sample card but not from my skin. The jasmine only comes in a little later for me. Rather fresh and spring-like. So far, so good, but so what...This improves immensely after twenty minutes or so so when I'm really getting the ylang-ylang which turns the sex-dial up a notch (at least for me)

It's rather nice, but I don't really need another rather-nice floral, I would rather just go buy another . It's
a little like Chanel Allure eau de toilette, in fact it could be Allure's precocious younger cousin who constantly tries to copy everything Allure does but gets it ever so slightly wrong.

The drydown is unremarkably soft and powdery.

The more I think about this one, the more dissapointing I find it. I am an avid collector of Issey Miyake's clothing and only wish that a little more intellectual rigour had been applied to this fragrance. I would expect something more from one of the fashion worlds true innovators.

16th October, 2010.

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Rose by Czech & Speake

This isn't so much a rose as anticipation of a rose. To me it's like a tight pale pink rose bud that is just beginning to unfurl it's petals.

When I was small I used to try and pull apart the petals on these to get to that mysterious 'something' inside, of course I just destroyed the flower and never found it's heart. I killed the goose that layed the golden egg.

I'm waiting, waiting for that rose to open and the anticipation is killing me, but just as it begins to throw itself open it rains heavily, bruises, turns brown and begins to decay before it ever reached the height of its beauty.

It's a little green, a little sappy, a little sour and a little rotten, but by no means unpleasant. I do pick up a little carnation.

Lasting power is not great, I have compensated by over-spraying and believe me, it IS possible to overdo this. I get a very positive reaction from strangers, people start looking around for the source of the scent and when it's been located I get big beaming smiles !

Best applied little and often, it's very unfortunate that they only make this in whopping great bottles as a purse spray of this would be ideal for touch ups. Czech & Speake really are missing a trick with their insistence on magnum-size containers.

I like it, but there are other glorious rose fragrances around, and I'm not sure I can justify the expense that a bottle of that size demands.

16th October, 2010.

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Florentyna by Marks and Spencer

This MIGHT have been reformulated since I bought my bottle, but this is my review of the one I have.

At first the alcohol is pretty overwhelming, but then...

The musk comes on strong here..from topnotes through to drydown. It's a very warm floral,and, although not listed in the notes, a heavy, dark red rose is the most dominant of the florals. Orange blossom and slightly spicy lily topnotes quickly dissipate, then its dark red rose and musk and dusty powder all the way down. There is something almost musty here, if you remember trying to make perfume from rose petals and water when you were a child, the smell of the petals as they start to go rotten and brown..that's what I am getting. This is a fragrance that lasts and lasts and lasts. 24 hours later the rose and musk is still most definately lingering in a powdery way. This is a VERY strong eau de toilette, and at a bargain basement price. Also availaible is a good range of bath and body products if you like to layer your fragrance.

As a fragrance in itself, this isn't really special enough to warrant a place on my dresser, but it's very evocative for me and reminds me of a certain time in my life, so for now, I will keep it at the back of the drawer.

Might be of interest if you like Creed's Spring Flower or Floris Florissa but are on a tighter budget.

30th January, 2009.

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Giò by Giorgio Armani

I absolutely adore this, unfortunately it's increasingly hard to find. No other perfume makes me feel as Goddess-like as this one !

24th January, 2009.

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Dazzling Gold by Estée Lauder

This was awful on me. Just another cheap smelling, totally indistinct floral. It's very very flat and dull.

24th January, 2009.

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212 by Carolina Herrera

The EdT is not bad,my interpretation of it is very different to other reviewers, but maybe it's my body chemistry.I find it quite citrussy,(lemon and grapefruit) and cool to start with, the middle note is a not-too-sweet floral, and there is definately something steely and metallic in there, without the cold, steely notes I don't think it would be as interesting.I would agree that it finishes dry, but I can't find much warmth there. I quite like it as an everyday kind of fragrance, it is very light and wont scare the horses. I'm afraid I can't agree with other reviewers about the staying power.

24th January, 2009.

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