Ruffles Oscar de la Renta 1983 Eau de Toilette

Ruffles is a typical scent of its time. An opulent representative of the 80s, and I think anyone who loves glamorous fragrances would enjoy it. I became acquainted with it through an auctioned mini, which fortunately still has a completely intact content. Given its age and the small amount, one wouldn't expect that, but this time it worked out again.

At first, I thought: Oh, a floral chypre. Elegant, not sweet in the opening, which reveals its floral heart rather thoughtfully but powerfully. It's pointless to try to identify every flower. Up to that point, the scent reminds me of all the glamorous perfumes that hit the market during that time, like Knowing, Coco, Gem, Diva, or similar. It's nice to have them in the collection, but I often lack an appropriate occasion to wear them. They need a grand setting, a stage, to truly shine; otherwise, I would quickly feel overdressed.

However, where the aforementioned examples often showcase a pronounced oakmoss base, Ruffles surprisingly comes across as cozy and inviting in the dry down. Thankfully, despite the honey and caramel, it is not sweet, but has a distinctly animalistic cuddly factor. The perfume doesn't make a grand statement as I would have expected. Ruffles doesn't escalate through the scent progression but rather barges in through the front door, only to then settle comfortably in the corner of the sofa, and one wouldn't really want to be alone with it. Now the scent feels less glamorous and more private, though certainly only if one feels comfortable with the hint of civet that allows the fragrance to fade in such an animalistic-cuddly manner.

Ruffles belongs to a generation of fragrances that would probably have no chance in today's market. All the more, I am glad to be able to get to know it, as it has never crossed my path in my fragrant professional life.