Iammelody
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#1 from the whole line
In my opinion, this is their best "Vanille", with Vanille Banane as the runner up. There's just something about this one that really hits the mark for me. It's so perfectly fluffy, sweet and sugary with just the right amount of apricot in the background without it becoming a fruity fragrance.
I have an apricot tree in my back yard, and so a few years ago I gave my mother a bucket of apricots that she made jam with. That's the hint of apricot I smell. I'm also reminded of fluffy fried dough with powdered sugar on top without the fried oil smell.
I remember years ago, probably around 2007 ish when I was fresh out of high school and working in a department store, I would always spray this on a card to smell it throughout the day. I never bit the bullet and bought it because I was trying to save my coins for a car. I wanted it so bad though, and now I finally bought it nearly 20 years later lol
With all the vanilla heavy fragrances I own, and all of the other ones available out there, I don't think anything is *quite* like this.
I have an apricot tree in my back yard, and so a few years ago I gave my mother a bucket of apricots that she made jam with. That's the hint of apricot I smell. I'm also reminded of fluffy fried dough with powdered sugar on top without the fried oil smell.
I remember years ago, probably around 2007 ish when I was fresh out of high school and working in a department store, I would always spray this on a card to smell it throughout the day. I never bit the bullet and bought it because I was trying to save my coins for a car. I wanted it so bad though, and now I finally bought it nearly 20 years later lol
With all the vanilla heavy fragrances I own, and all of the other ones available out there, I don't think anything is *quite* like this.
2 Comments
Great alone or for layering
It really just smells like a moist lemon cake with icing drizzled over the top. It's not "perfumey", but it doesn't smell like a candle either, even though the candle smells similar. This is a great layering mist.
I love layering this with Blueberry Sugar pancakes, Blueberry Bundt cake and Britney Spears Midnight Fantasy. Absolutely delicious! Now this might sound gross, but I've also layered this with SDJ 62, and trust me it works so so well.
This was the first full size FFM I've ever used up, and I'm already almost through a mini.
I love layering this with Blueberry Sugar pancakes, Blueberry Bundt cake and Britney Spears Midnight Fantasy. Absolutely delicious! Now this might sound gross, but I've also layered this with SDJ 62, and trust me it works so so well.
This was the first full size FFM I've ever used up, and I'm already almost through a mini.
It's a precious one for me
I'm really attached to this. It's a true gourmand - very sweet and sort of juvenile but not overly so.
When this came out in 2006, I don't think there were many mainstream perfumes available with this gourmand-ish scent profile. Sure, there was already Angel which was very popular (still is) and very sweet for its time with "edible notes", CSP Vanille Abricot, and of course Pink Sugar and Britney's Fantasy were pretty recent, but I feel like In Control's type of boozy sweetness wasn't very common back then.
The crème brûlée and vanilla notes are what stick out the most for me. It lasts and lasts too. Sticks around on clothes even longer. Maybe because my bottle has been sitting for YEARS ( 7 or 8) that it has become so sweet, creamy, dark and boozy, but the actual smell hasn't really changed. It only got better. I think this is one of the only perfumes I've ever been complimented on. I generally don't get close enough to anyone to be able to smell me, and I'm a light sprayer, so I'm guessing this is stronger that it might seem. I absolutely love wearing this under a big hoodie on face-biting cold winter days.
This isn't easy to get your hands on, but there are a few online discount shops that still stock this at a reasonable price. You would have to do some hunting. I'm in Canada and I was lucky enough to pick up a backup bottle on Fragrance Canada (but that was in 2024).
The memories attached to this are very precious to me.
When this came out in 2006, I don't think there were many mainstream perfumes available with this gourmand-ish scent profile. Sure, there was already Angel which was very popular (still is) and very sweet for its time with "edible notes", CSP Vanille Abricot, and of course Pink Sugar and Britney's Fantasy were pretty recent, but I feel like In Control's type of boozy sweetness wasn't very common back then.
The crème brûlée and vanilla notes are what stick out the most for me. It lasts and lasts too. Sticks around on clothes even longer. Maybe because my bottle has been sitting for YEARS ( 7 or 8) that it has become so sweet, creamy, dark and boozy, but the actual smell hasn't really changed. It only got better. I think this is one of the only perfumes I've ever been complimented on. I generally don't get close enough to anyone to be able to smell me, and I'm a light sprayer, so I'm guessing this is stronger that it might seem. I absolutely love wearing this under a big hoodie on face-biting cold winter days.
This isn't easy to get your hands on, but there are a few online discount shops that still stock this at a reasonable price. You would have to do some hunting. I'm in Canada and I was lucky enough to pick up a backup bottle on Fragrance Canada (but that was in 2024).
The memories attached to this are very precious to me.
I've come around to it
I used to think this was bland and nothing special. Nice, but didn't excite me. Maybe I was just going through a phase where I was burnt out from fruity florals.
Not sure why, but I've changed my mind and I love this now. I absolutely loved and adored the OG Viva La Juicy when it launched in 2008. It has very much has the same DNA, but the sweetness is amped up. It's similar enough to the original that it actually brings up scent memories from that time. I absolutely love it from the fresh spray to the dry down. I don't care that I'm 37 and this is "juvenile". You can be 99-120 years old and enjoy whatever you want.
I DO need to mention however that the construction of the bottle is absolute trash. I don't mean its appearance. I mean that the sprayer isn't installed properly and the white icing plastic part is loose and the cap isn't secured. Maybe it's just mine, but it's terrible. It feels like it will fall apart in my hands. That muffin tin base also looks like a dust collector and it will be a pain to clean it.
Lucky for me I picked up the 50ml for 49 CAD and I love the scent more than I hate the bottle lol
Not sure why, but I've changed my mind and I love this now. I absolutely loved and adored the OG Viva La Juicy when it launched in 2008. It has very much has the same DNA, but the sweetness is amped up. It's similar enough to the original that it actually brings up scent memories from that time. I absolutely love it from the fresh spray to the dry down. I don't care that I'm 37 and this is "juvenile". You can be 99-120 years old and enjoy whatever you want.
I DO need to mention however that the construction of the bottle is absolute trash. I don't mean its appearance. I mean that the sprayer isn't installed properly and the white icing plastic part is loose and the cap isn't secured. Maybe it's just mine, but it's terrible. It feels like it will fall apart in my hands. That muffin tin base also looks like a dust collector and it will be a pain to clean it.
Lucky for me I picked up the 50ml for 49 CAD and I love the scent more than I hate the bottle lol
Buttery, but not awful
It starts off smelling like smashed bananas and melted butter, and dries down smelling like... smashed bananas and melted butter. That buttery note sticks around until the absolute end, and clings to clothes too.
I don't think this is terrible. In fact, I enjoy that buttery "popcorn" smell that some gourmands have, and I LOVE bananas and how they smell. However, Banana Bliss is nothing out of this world either. I think this would need to be layered with other gourmand banana products to bring out the most in this.
I have a banana shower gel from Lush (the one with the Minions on it), and a banana milkshake body butter from a local indie company that I use with this to amp it up a little.
The bottle is a little over the top, but it's cute! The sprayer works nicely too.
Overall, I think that if you're looking for a proper banana cream or banana bread fragrance, this might not fully scratch that itch. I like it a lot though, and think it will be perfect for talking a walk on a chilly day when the leaves start to change in a month or two (where I live, at least).
I don't think this is terrible. In fact, I enjoy that buttery "popcorn" smell that some gourmands have, and I LOVE bananas and how they smell. However, Banana Bliss is nothing out of this world either. I think this would need to be layered with other gourmand banana products to bring out the most in this.
I have a banana shower gel from Lush (the one with the Minions on it), and a banana milkshake body butter from a local indie company that I use with this to amp it up a little.
The bottle is a little over the top, but it's cute! The sprayer works nicely too.
Overall, I think that if you're looking for a proper banana cream or banana bread fragrance, this might not fully scratch that itch. I like it a lot though, and think it will be perfect for talking a walk on a chilly day when the leaves start to change in a month or two (where I live, at least).
