Fragrance Reviews by zoop

The first notes are fresh, fruity, sweet, quite enjoyable - in the same fashion as you would enjoy a lollipop.

But after these candy-sweetness accords subside, there is not much left.

In case I apply it heavily (and I consider 4 spritzes a hefty amount), the middle notes actually remind me of Andy Tauer's masterpiece, L'Air du Desert Marocain.

Not a totally forgettable scent, but... almost.

The beginning reminds me of freshly grated carrots, which is not really unpleasant, just weird.

Then the carrots fade, leaving a sickening smell of sewing machine oil. Or the oil used to oil bicycles.

I'm staying away from this.

Citrusy and soapy. As with some fragrances that remind me of certain brands of mosquito repellents, the connection of Déclaration to a dishwashing detergent is too strong for me to to wear it.

A peculiar one, and the first niche fragrance I ever tried. First impression out of the tester: how can a perfume smell so *dry*? Smelling it was not completely unlike inhaling dust or sand. Desert indeed! And yet, at the same time, there was this smooth, warm, sweet presence. Honey? Incense? Sweetness was what it eventually dried down to as well. A comfortable experience so far, but nothing overwhelming. Time will tell.

When I took my first sniff of this, I was instantly transported back to the summers of my childhood back in the countryside. Fahrenheit paints a simple and powerful image of grass being cut, complete with the lawnmower gasoline. Oh, how life was simpler then! An excellent example of "nostalgy in a bottle"!

Not one of the fragrances that I would need to "pull off". I wouldn't want to. I wear it when I want to time travel to those happy years back then - or when I simply feel like screaming "summer".

I've tried it on just twice so far but I can already see the beginning of a tumultuous love affair.

The first time I wore it I absolutely adored it. If I had had the money I would have probably bought a bottle right away. The roundness and depth were to say the least impressive and seduced me right away. I've always been fond of eucalyptus. Yet, this doesn't seem to be the same eucalyptus at all but something far beyond it. It reminds me of a girl that I used to know who always wore a similar (or perhaps even the same?) scent. To me, Body Kouros doesn't seem to be very masculine at all. For some reason I associate this fragrance strongly with the color turquoise.

The second time, however, seemed to put my feet on the ground again. Now, the thick, lingering, overwhelming sweetness was almost too much. For a while I thought that I would never touch this stuff again. But still, a day later, I feel myself craving it... I need to have it. As soon as possible.

There I was with her in a fragrance shop, trying out new fragrances. She told me that this is her favorite and asked me to try this on. So I did.

A nice, refreshing, airy, lively scent was what I had expected, but the experience was more like that of wearing a detergent or a toilet cleaner. Made me wonder why it is so popular. Perhaps the majority of the people like the smell of air fresheners?

On the other hand, it *was* midwinter when I tried it on. So I'll give it the benefit of doubt and, perhaps, try again in the summertime.

My grandfather used to wear the aftershave and that's where my associations lie with this fragrance. My bottle was bought for a special "dress up as if you were old" party and I ended up having it.

I wear it when I want to feel warm and soft and cozy.

Also the first fragrance ever that I received compliments about!

If you're looking for something subtle, L'Instant might be your thing...

Not a bad scent per se, but indeed very light. A 1.5 ml sample bottle was good for about two wearings and even then, the scent was detectable only an hour or so. It lingered really close to the skin. But it was very nice while it lasted. For what it's worth, it remotely reminded me of Antidote by Viktor & Rolf.

At first I was taken aback and wondered whether the sample had gone bad. I wore it a bit on my wrists. Murky, musty, dusty, musky. The last third of a thick cigar. The complete opposite of me: ultra-strong, ultra-masculine, ultra-formal. I thought this would be a perfect fit for the classical stereotype man who is the size of a bull, never even had a feminine side, always wears a suit and tie and neglects his family. Seen Twin Peaks? Major Garland Briggs is BdP personified.

But I'm being unfair. So much for the first impressions. I'm trying this for the second time now. The greenness is there, although it is the dark green of a thick pine forest before a thunderstorm, and the sweetness can be found as well, hidden beneath the resin and spices. In all, this could be a good scent and I like some parts of it (perhaps it is the legendary "Creed base") but still probably not for me.

If you're a citrus-hater, avoid this. It's otherwise a good scent, but for me, the yuzu is just too much to render it unwearable. Hence the neutral review. After the piercing citrus note is gone, the drydown is pretty good. A couple of pretty girls at the gym today seemed to compete for the stepper next to me... It just might have been the charm of L'Eau D'Issey - who knows :)

A pleasant scent for all occasions. I can't imagine anyone seriously disliking this. Perhaps someone may even fall in love with it. Reminds of Le Mâle - is it the mint? I've got a 1.5ml sample. A decant purchase might be in order some day but I'm not likely to ever own a bottle. Antidote is definitely worth trying for anyone who is looking for a smooth and refreshing fragrance with a hint of sexiness thrown in.

Sexy, definitely... It has the sweet vanilla part, of course, which puts me off part of the time. BUT the sweetness is counterbalanced by a smell (or a combination of them) that I'm very fond of but can't properly describe since I don't know its name. It's a very fresh and delicious smell. A "substanceless" one - unlike other smells that I associate with colors, this one I associate with transparency, or the distortion thing that hot turbulent air rising from asphalt does to light. It also reminds me of how human skin smells after shower. I think it's part of the charm of Dolce & Gabbana By Man, as well. Part of it's "smells like sex" appeal. Maybe it's the benzoin, or maybe not. I have absolutely no idea as to what benzoin is.

I have two female victims that I regularly ask opinions about my new scents. First reaction of both of them, independently: "Is this the same fragrance you wore yesterday?" I had been wearing The Dreamer by Versace, which indeed does contain the same substanceless accord I descrived above, but in a more rounded fashion, as if trying to hide behind the flowers. (Whereas in D&G By, it's more like "in your face".) The second reaction: "It's pretty good."

The first so-called aquatic (which is a category I suppose you could put MI into) that I could honestly enjoy.
Cheerful, uplifting, sporty even! Lighthearted yet sophisticated. For those hot sunny summer days of sipping champagne on the beach.

In a word: Heavenly.

The pungent topnotes, which probably are responsible of all those "synthetic trash" reviews, are not off-putting for me, it's more like they... add personality. On my skin (or according to my nose) they disappear in minutes after application anyway.

What is left is a delicious drydown, which does remind me of Lolita Lempicka au Masculin. I don't know the common ingredient or if there even is any, but there is a definite connection. Dreamer is perhaps a bit more masculine and therefore more usable in general. (I adore both.)

"Fine" is the first word that comes to mind. Silky. Smooth. Delicate.

Round. Fragile. Charming.

A scent that murmurs soft sophistication.

First whiff out of the bottle: a hint of chocolate, followed by lots and lots of lemon. Too much even? Not necessarily. The rest of the fragrance tames down the lemon quite nicely - it's not as annoying as the sourness of, say, Acqua di Giò or L'Eau D'Issey (although I have to confess that I've only smelled the latter on paper). H.M. is not too sweet in my opinion. But then again, I have yet to encounter a fragrance that is!

A charming fresh gourmand, and a lasting one as well. One spritz on the chest in the morning and I still keep sniffing my T-shirt after 10-12 hours.