Lionora Mind Games 2023

Lionora opens like an incredibly tempting fruit cocktail, as if you had a bowl of freshly chopped apricot and mango in front of you, along with a large glass of refreshing apricot drink. The scent feels soft, like the skin of a peach. Very quickly, however, that silky softness almost disappears, and the aroma becomes sharper and more synthetic.

Apricot and especially mango are very difficult to recreate realistically, and I think the result is often somewhat pungent and shampoo-like, as it is here. A slight green bitterness is also noticeable, likely coming from mango leaves, while ginger helps balance the juicy fruitiness. This aspect may ruin the scent for some, but it also brings depth and individuality.

At first, Lionora may seem simple and even a bit boring, but it reveals a surprisingly wide range of nuances, especially in warm weather. Tuberose and freesia compete with the fruits, making the scent feel more mature than it otherwise would. As it develops, the tuberose becomes more prominent. Osmanthus is also a refreshing addition; although it doesn’t come across as leathery or dirty to my nose, it helps shift the fragrance slightly toward a more unisex direction.

The texture of the scent is deep rather than light, and it is surprisingly intense. I’m not completely satisfied with the base: the sandalwood isn’t richly creamy, and the fragrance lacks a soft, lactonic quality. Based on the notes, one might expect a sensual, milky fruitiness, but in reality it leans more floral, with the fruits adding brightness and the other notes providing depth.

When I wore the scent in winter, it felt much flatter, but also more refined and pleasant. There is a clear difference in how it behaves in colder weather - it seemed more polished and elegant then, whereas now it can sometimes feel slightly stale instead of bright and fresh.

My thoughs on the scent in winter:
Lovely realistic Apricot tea
Bright, sweet yet refreshing
evolves into dreamy,creamy,
fluffy, velvety texture
Subtle style of MG
Overpriced

Thank you for reading, I hope you found this review helpful and enjoyable.

I feel like Erba Pura is still lingering somewhere in my office. What a longevity!

I was wondering whether it was the right time to try Lionora, but Erba Pura is only faintly present and I love how well my "come-back" from my hiatus is going.

So, Lionora, a recommendation I believe is from none other than Anne Lauren herself. She is a true influencer. This fragrance really excites me, because I am adoring rich fruity fragrances at the moment. Dear 90's kids, do you also have vivid memories of fruity fragrances being childish or juvenile at best? The rest of the fragrances was like that of Trésor by Lancôme or Shalimar. That's at least how I reminisce fragrances from my childhood. Now-a-day, fruity fragrances are juicy, rich, vibrant, realistic and seductive! Lamar has actually become my favourite fragrance in my collection.

Lionora is promising apricot, passionfruit, ginger and tonka, but also sandalwood and osmanthus, which has me jittery with excitement.

She (because apparently I have gendered the fragrance) opens with a scent that has me searching my memory like crazy. Lionora's opening reminds me so much of a designer fragrance. Is it one of the My Way flankers by Armani? Or perhaps Nomade by Chloé? As it dries down, I smell a delicate apricot note that is very lovely - it could potentially be a difficult note, if not done right. Unfortunately, I was hoping for a tart freshness from passionfruit, but I cannot smell it at all. The fragrance smells tactilely soft, yes, I can smell a specific touch. It smells like the soft fuzz on the apricot skin. It's quite sweet, but it's not too close to becoming cloying. I just wish that the ginger or passionfruit was more prevalent, to "break" the scent profile a little. I wouldn't classify Lionora as a fruity fragrance, but rather a sweet and creamy fragrance that perhaps has stepped on an apricot fallen off the tree due to it's ripeness. I expect some tart, sour or fresh kick from fruity fragrances, but hey, that's just me!

All four fragrances from the kit have been a pleasure to meet. And I'm truly happy that I haven't yet fallen in love with any of them, because I am not supposed to by any more fragrances. However, we are approaching the final boss, Kurky by Maison Francis Kurkdjian.
I will try to contain myself.

It's giving melon chewing gum. There is no melon in this. Synthetic sh*t for 400 bucks. This was the last scent in my discovery set, and I concluded that this brand is an absolute scam. Their perfumes are just not good at all, the scents are very boring, and longevity is very, very poor. Once again, I highly recommend that you do not waste your money on this.

I would have nothing against this brand if they charged appropriate amount of money for these "creations". Something like 50 bucks per bottle or so.

I have just gotten to know Lionora, and yet the scent has caught me so off guard that I feel the need to write something about it.

Actually, I tested Lionora mainly out of habit. I associate the scent of apricots, peaches, mangoes, and some other fruits with beautiful memories, so I quickly become interested in trying perfumes that promise these aromas. Well aware that these tests usually leave me rather unimpressed. I often like the scents quite well, but I usually feel no urge to wear them myself. This was the case recently with Peche Mirage. I was excited about my sample and tested the scent enthusiastically, but since then I have never felt the desire to use it again.

Lionora seems to be different. My sample arrived just as I was getting ready for work. I still had a little time, so I opened the envelope and sprayed the scent onto a piece of paper. Not bad, I thought. Maybe a bit too milky, and I detected the kind of sweetness that I didn’t like in Queening. Still, something about Lionora appealed to me so much that I decided to wear the scent directly to work. This is, in a way, a small risk and a real stress test for a perfume, as I usually cannot tolerate most of my scents at my workplace, where I am exposed to extreme temperatures and odors.

Right after applying it, I noticed that the scent is quite intense. Although I had only sprayed a little, I was enveloped in a veritable cloud of apricots. But not a bad one. During the drive to my workplace, I had to smile for the first time. Hmm, what is that? A creamy freesia, unusually sweet yet very beautiful. I liked that. I wondered if I could also detect a bit of tuberose, but it was mainly the freesia.

After working for about an hour, I suddenly caught a scent that felt very familiar to me. I couldn’t get enough of it, I kept enjoying it, and at the same time, I couldn’t figure out where I knew it from.
After pondering for quite a while, I suddenly remembered Passiflora by Guerlain. The passion fruit in Lionora is quite perceptible to me, and I was a bit surprised that I had only discovered it now during the process.
But there was more. Something else that I knew well. Something I had once liked very much and then forgotten. It took surprisingly long until I suddenly found myself transported back years, in the perfume department of a department store, on my way to a date, casually testing a few scents until I finally held the sparkling green heart in my hand and sprayed some of the perfume that would enchant me for the rest of the evening and beyond. That was "Aura (Eau de Parfum) | Mugler," and unexpectedly, Lionora has something of that scent for me. They are by no means identical, yet the slight similarity is enough to evoke vivid memories in me and give me a familiar sense of well-being.

I don’t know if there has been any other scent lately that has brought a smile to my face as often throughout the day as Lionora. I don’t think so. I know so many others, some that I would probably objectively rate as ‘better.’ But what good does it do me if I find the scents great but cannot wear them well? If they feel like a foreign body that I am dragging around with me.
With Lionora, it’s different. Although I perceive the scent as intense and long-lasting, it uplifts me. Almost like a little energy booster. This is probably due to the beautiful memories. Not just of Passiflora and Aura, but also of the apricot shampoo I always used in my youth, which is associated with that feeling of unrestrained zest for life. It fits well with the first signs of spring that are just appearing. It’s a bit crazy what scents can trigger, but above all, it’s very beautiful.

Lionora smells a bit artificial. However, it’s not the relatively new, extremely piercing kind of synthetic scent that I know from Erba Pura and similar fragrances, but rather the kind known from scents like Aura, which many fruity-sweet perfumes and body care products have had since the 90s. I don’t mind that. The hair care associations don’t bother me at all.
Only this strange, lactonic sugary sweetness that I already know from Queening and can’t quite place could ruin the scent for me. That’s also the only reason why I haven’t ordered a bottle right away, but will test it a bit further just to be cautious.

For me, Lionora primarily smells of passion fruit, apricot, osmanthus, and freesia. I perceive the scent as sweet, fruity, and somewhat creamy floral/milky. There’s also a slight hint of green freshness, so the sweetness doesn’t completely overwhelm me here. In the base, I would have guessed vanilla. However, tonka is listed, which I don’t perceive here.

Lionora smells as if you’ve just taken a fresh shower, washed your hair with apricot shampoo, and then applied a body lotion that smells of freesia and a bit of vanilla. On top of that, a few spritzes of a passion fruit perfume and a forest fruit gummy candy in your mouth.
Does that sound beautiful? Probably not necessarily. But who cares, I like it.
It might also be interesting to note that I liked the development on the test strip significantly less than on my skin.

I perceive the longevity and sillage as good, or just right for me. Lionora lasts a long time and is also well perceivable by others. With normal dosing, however, you probably won’t fill a room and overshadow everything else. Despite the intensity, it’s a scent where I feel like I am wearing it, that it accompanies me, and not that it completely overwhelms or suffocates me.

It’s quite a bright, cheerful scent, and when I think of the occasion and the season, I see Lionora more during the day, in everyday life, and especially in spring. At the same time, I think the scent is versatile and will be wearable almost anytime and anywhere, as long as you like this type of fragrance.

When I woke up this morning, I didn’t have to think long about which scent I wanted to wear. It was immediately clear that it would be Lionora again. So I spent the day once more in an apricot cloud and was delighted every time the cheerful passion fruit flashed.

Lionora is really not the best and not the most beautiful perfume I know, but it evokes a kind of happiness in me like hardly any other, so I wonder: how can a scent be more beautiful?

With Lionora, I can complete my first sample set from the brand Mind Games. Of course, another set with 10 fragrances is waiting for me, which I will also report on. The scents are exciting and modern for me, and most can be integrated quite well into everyday life. Lionora also seems to be a term from chess. It was actually a woman for whom the winner of a chess game received the lady Lionora. I'm not a chess fan, but the concept with the terms around the board game is cool. Here comes a really great scent under my nose to conclude my first sample set, as I love sweet-fruity fragrances, and here you get a very pleasant and summery fruity scent with passion fruit. The scent reminds me a bit of "Glow | Akro," but here with more fruity notes. The statements show mixed reactions, but I like it.

As with all fragrances: uniform image with bottle and packaging, RRP of €270. Overpriced, but occasionally available with good discounts.
The scent is for me a feel-good summer fragrance with many fruity notes and a certain exoticism. Not only through fruit, but also the tropical tuberose note provides floral freshness. The opening impresses with a wonderful apricot-passion fruit combo that stands out from the common fruity fragrances that are circulating. The green notes from the mango leaf also feel refreshing and provide a great green touch in the background. Cool is also the apricot skin note that reminds one of sun-warmed skin. Following the fruity cocktail is a peach iced tea note that is quite modern and refreshing. Ginger spice is very subtle and not too sharp here either. In the heart note, floral notes await that enter the creation quite early. Osmanthus, freesia, and especially tuberose create an exotic-fruity floral bouquet without stealing the show from the fruit. In the base, there are well-maintained and creamy notes of musk, milky-creamy notes, sandalwood, and also sweet-creamy tonka notes. It is kept rather refined and never too sweet-heavy or sticky. For me, a scent that convinces and also puts me in the mood for summer. The scent is unisex, but due to the sweet-fruity and floral notes, it might be more for women. However, it remains within limits and is type-dependent.
Performance is great with long-lasting wear and convincing sillage in the first 4-5 hours. It's fun, not just the summery-happy DNA. The scent is suitable for everyday wear and also impresses in the evening.

Overall, a great sweet-fruity scent that is good if you like notes like apricot, peach, or passion fruit. Very summery and cheerful, I like it a lot and can absolutely recommend it.