Black XS For Her by Paco Rabanne, 2007

The feminine version of Black Xs owns that kind of density and luxuriousness whereof lacks the manly version to be a real winner. If you try Black XS for man on a paper is so much intriguing to rave for (while on the skin is watered and subdued in intensity) and the synthetic feel seems tamed.  This fragrance, despite its high level of "synthetism", is pleasant because of a really dark and mysterious fruity floral trail and because of a certain level of sophistication and luxuriousness exuded mainly by the strange chord of peppercorn, patchouli, tamarind and rose. The tamarind gives a sort of dense and boozy kind of density  and joins perfectly with the red fruits. The fragrance exudes a sort of purple smell of sinister rose, cherry and spices that ends to be smoothed by a creamy base of musk, woods and vanilla which produces a dark kind of smoothness made of patchouli and red fruits. The resemblance with the manly version is obviously made by the combination of blackberries, spices, patchouli, woods and rose but the feminine version is subdued in citrus and overloaded of balsams. A very pleasant dark fragrance.

I've been through some phases in my life, one of them included dying my hair black, wearing outrageous clothes and talking to decent men like a tramp. Black XS for Her reminds me of those days. To me it smells like dark, syrupy cherries, (almost medicinal), vanilla flavoured cream, pepper and a hint of red rose. I like it in an odd kind of a way. It's not too sweet and it has an edgy-ness that I enjoy. Honestly, this is more punk rock than gothic. It's a fun, party scent, not something for dark, brooding people. Black XS for Her is yummy, but certainly not a gourmand. It's a nice in-between type of fragrance. Not too girly, not too sweet, not too dark. It's bold but also balanced. I think this fragrance could work well in Winter and for nights out and about on the town. I kind of expected this fragrance to have an attitude, however I find the scent rather inviting. It's sexy too, which is a bonus. The lasting power is pretty good, and same could be said of the sillage although it isn't all that strong. Overall, Black XS for Her is a fun, sexy and edgy scent, great for those girls that are growing out of the sugary, candied scents.

This is a lovely scent, a bit heavy, very good in wintertime. Stays the whole day too. This is a complete scent, don't have the feeling that there is something missing in it.

Amazing smell to this, How can it not be liked, its perfect for day and night! lush bottle too!!! love it trust me its a must have !

BLACK XS POUR ELLE starts off rather unconvincingly with a dark cherry-like note but turns tooth-achingly sweet as a creamy vanilla joins the rose heart. For a minute it threatens to get all syrupy and cloying on me, but a woodsy accord, no doubt Iso E Super-driven, comes along to add a degree of 'blackness' and counterbalances the excessive sweetness. Probably more wearable in small doses even if it lacks the sophistication of say, a Kenzo.

I love, love, LOVE this scent. It is warm, sensual and sexy. I do not get any of the rose note, if the rose is present it is very very faint. On my skin, I smell blackberries infused with vanilla and woods. There is a hint spiciness which I believe comes from the pink peppercorn. This fragrance is not too heavy...it is sexy, exotic and intriguing IMO. I get SOOOOOO many compliments when I wear this fragrance. This is hands down one of my favorites!

I want to like this more than I do, because the image I conjour up in my head when I see the bottle, and read the ingredients makes me feel like this should be a special scent. I want it to be fun but dark and sexy.

It is fun, and very distinctive...but i dont find it to be dark or sexy, and the drydown (on me at least) smells synthetic, and young. Not unpleasant really, but this turns into something I wasn't expecting. Its just not deep and dark enough for me. And it certainly isn't Black. Dissapointing.

Black XS for Woman starts off very sweet and fruity, fresh not cloying. The fruitiness wears off leaving the skin surrounded in sweet rose and vanilla. For someone who likes rose and sweet smelling scents, this would be an ideal perfume. Although I am not a rose fan, I still enjoyed this fragrance. Thumbs up!

This is the only fragrance I have that is in the "sexy" category! I could never have picked out something for myself so well. If you see a picture of a woman's lips in a pout with deep red lipstick, this is the smell she would be wearing. It has a rich but bright cherry smell to me, and the peppercorn smell makes it work, preventing it from being cheap or girlie smelling. Then the drydown just gets richer and warmer and sexier, and the vanilla begins to peak out...just barely a tease. Sometimes I am afraid to wear this during the day...A mixture of rich dry red wine with plum notes for the drydown, (cherry and at first spritz/top notes berry notes), it does really remind me of some of my favorite wines...from start to finish.

This is a really gorgeous, fun rose and vanilla scent. The vanilla and woods are warm and inviting, with the rose and pink peppercorns coming through sweet and spicey, its a really delicious scent, not too heavy and not too light.