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Aqua de Bulgari PH vs L'eau d'Issey PH

post #1 of 9
8/1/06 at 5:30am
Thread Starter 
Hey

I'm a bit new to the whole world of fragrances so I'm hoping you guys can help me out. I'm just your average 17 year old student looking for something a little different to the Polo Blues and Allure Homme Sports that seem to be popular atm at my college. They are both smells I like but the mass appeal of them puts me off them. A person's fragrance is supposed to be unique, right? =) I wear Hugo Energise most days but have of late become a little weary of it. It doesn't really grab me, if you get me.

After much walking, spraying and reading, I've managed to narrow my choices for a new smell to L'eau d'Issey PH and Aqua de Bulgari PH. I *really* took to the Bulgari virtually on first spray and I very nearly purchased a bottle (which is saying something. £33 isn't cheap for a jobless student like myself! =) ) However, with the L'eau d'Issey, although not really striking me as particularly interesting at the beginning (I found it a little too flowery for my tastes), after a few hours something changed. It smelled quite woody to me and really quite masculine. I liked =).

So my problem is which to buy :-s. Could any of you lovely fellows give me your opinions to both? I would love the Issey one LOTS more if it wasn't quite so flowery in its topnotes. Any alternatives that fulfil this requirement?

Thanks very much. I'm a long time lurker and I have to say you have a great community going on down here. WELL DONE! =)

Michael

PS. I did originally post this in the Just Starting Out thread but received no responses so I've put it into here too. Sorry if this isn't the done thing. :-s
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post #2 of 9
8/1/06 at 5:57am
The thing is for me that although I like Issey as a fragrance more than Aqua, it has a lot of siliage. One time a woman smelled me through a screen window a few yards away. She liked it but it was a bit much I think. I think I had on 5 sprays, and it was hot and I was in a laundrimat (sp). That said, it does die on me pretty fast. I really like the fragrance though... I just don't wear it. I find the fragrance rather frosty and refreshing ... a better name for it would have been Himalaya IMHO. I think Pure Cedrat and Aquaman are related fragrance if you want to try them out. I know Aquaman was created by the same perfumer. As usual I will refer you to my friend scentemental who might be better able to give you a comparison between Aquaman and Issey.

I like aquatics (on the whole) and Aqua is no exception. This one has better duration than most. It is more closely related to Issey Bleue and Erolfa than something like Unbound or Aqua di Gio. I find it has more of a marine feel to it than fruity/herbal/melon notes. It lingers pretty close to the skin for most of the day. Still the duration is great (on me at least). This is one where my wife never fails to compliment me on what I'm wearing at the end of the day... and by that time I can hardly smell it at all! Good all around utility player for me, but it isn't a fragrance I find to be stunning.
K
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post #3 of 9
8/1/06 at 6:14am
I will go with Bulgari Acqua. Issey is not a bad scent but it is too popular in the UK. I also recommend you try Azzaro Chrome which is also not very popular but a very good fresh metallic scent. You can find fragrances for cheap on ebay and other online retailers, I never pay RRP for a fragrance, it's highway robbery.
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post #4 of 9
8/1/06 at 6:19am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Michael_88

I *really* took to the Bulgari virtually on first spray and I very nearly purchased a bottle

Um. Not to be rude, but it seems like you already made a choice. Are you looking for validation or something?

That said.. get a sample if you can, wear it for a week, see if you still like it. Unfortunately, samples for anything that didn't just come out can be hard to get.
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post #5 of 9
8/1/06 at 6:36am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Xplo

Um. Not to be rude, but it seems like you already made a choice. Are you looking for validation or something?

That said.. get a sample if you can, wear it for a week, see if you still like it. Unfortunately, samples for anything that didn't just come out can be hard to get.

Ah, perhaps I didn't really explain my predicament as well as I could have. The Bulgari seemed to be the obvious choice at first when I tried them both on but after I left the shop for a few hours and continued my shopping- wanted to see how they both fared after at the end of the day- my once distinct and apparent decision disappeared. Does that make sense? Sorry about that =)
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post #6 of 9
8/1/06 at 8:52am
I'm a fan of the Bulgari...something about Issey made me ill...don't know what it was. I doubt that's the case with you, as you seem to like it as well. Still Bulgari is a more marine scent and less floral. I've been nothing but happy with it, and I'm not really a fan of marine/aquatics except for a few....I'm more of an oriental kind of guy. I haven't come across one that didn't wear well on me. But Bulgari has a nice balance that I really appreciate, where as...to me....Issey comes across a little one dimensional.
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post #7 of 9
8/1/06 at 9:22am
I've owned both L'eau d' Issey pour homme and Aqva Bulgari pour homme. They're similar in a way that both are aquatics/marine fragrances. Both bottles are well designed but that's about where the similarities end. Personally, I prefer the Bulgari becuase it's more 'masculine' than the Issey. The Issey Miyake is distinctive enough that when you smell it you know what it is... and here in L.A. specially in the west side, every lad wore it 12 years ago. It's passe and common. My vote goes to Bulgari Aqua!
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post #8 of 9
8/1/06 at 11:08am
Bvlgari Aqva if you must have a marine scent. Id also recommend Bvlgari PH as it is sort of close to what youre looking for. Not exactly a marine type scent, but it is refreshing and can be used during the day and at night with intimate encounters. So it's a more versatile scent.
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post #9 of 9
8/1/06 at 12:07pm
I'm going to go against the grain here and vote for Issey Miyake. While Bvlgari Aqua is a pleasant scent, I find L'eau d'Issey far more unique and interesting. It also lasts longer on me and has more sillage. I agree that the topnotes can be a little harsh, but it smoothens out to a great degree and dries down to something quite a bit different.

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