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Vanilla Valhalla
People! I have died and gone to heaven! Like, a combination of all heavens ever known to man. The Da Vinci's golden ratio drawing flashes before my eyes along with all depictions of heaven combined, I see a rainbow and at its end - golden gates, and a garden, where among delectable fruit trees walk deities of all cultures and religions.
Without exaggeration - this juice is incredible. THE best vanilla ever. It has everything - the sweetness of vanilla, the tartness of fruit, the bitterness of leather, all perfectly measured out in ideal proportions.
On first spritz, I get fresh and juicy, fruity notes blending into a tangy sweetness and the softest, lightest animalic notes. My nose could not tell between the flowers mentioned in the pyramid here, to me it smells like a slightly bitter bubble-gummy tuberose. The vanilla is syrupy and thick with fruit, like date syrup, with a slightly milky or creamy undertone (think "figgy milky", not "European pastry buttery"). This all lays over the thinnest, most exquisite fine leather. I had no idea oud could be this beautiful!
The composition is linear, you hear all the notes at once, which marks it as an Arabian type of composition. This is not a criticism, rather a defining characteristic. Although the notes are all there, all at once, the fragrance is iridescent and alive.
Sillage is very very good - my husband smelled it from three meters away and immediately said "something smells really good" - before I even had the time to ask him; and that's coming from someone who rarely comments my fragrances unprompted!
I am drunk with this fragrance, it's unlike anything I've ever smelled before. I am all out of adjectives and descriptions to tell you about how beautiful it is - it is indeed unisex, as much as angels and gods are genderless, as this perfume is truly heavenly!
Without exaggeration - this juice is incredible. THE best vanilla ever. It has everything - the sweetness of vanilla, the tartness of fruit, the bitterness of leather, all perfectly measured out in ideal proportions.
On first spritz, I get fresh and juicy, fruity notes blending into a tangy sweetness and the softest, lightest animalic notes. My nose could not tell between the flowers mentioned in the pyramid here, to me it smells like a slightly bitter bubble-gummy tuberose. The vanilla is syrupy and thick with fruit, like date syrup, with a slightly milky or creamy undertone (think "figgy milky", not "European pastry buttery"). This all lays over the thinnest, most exquisite fine leather. I had no idea oud could be this beautiful!
The composition is linear, you hear all the notes at once, which marks it as an Arabian type of composition. This is not a criticism, rather a defining characteristic. Although the notes are all there, all at once, the fragrance is iridescent and alive.
Sillage is very very good - my husband smelled it from three meters away and immediately said "something smells really good" - before I even had the time to ask him; and that's coming from someone who rarely comments my fragrances unprompted!
I am drunk with this fragrance, it's unlike anything I've ever smelled before. I am all out of adjectives and descriptions to tell you about how beautiful it is - it is indeed unisex, as much as angels and gods are genderless, as this perfume is truly heavenly!
Her Royal Highness
Demure and classical to the point of almost boring, this fragrance is as flawless as HRH Elizabeth II's manners (who was rumoured to have worn this perfume since she was a young girl).
Everything is carefully measured: a touch of aldehydes, a smidge of peppery carnation, a taste of sweet violets, but at the heart of it - of course, a rose. To top it, a polite, barely-there sillage and medium longevity. Pretty? Yes. Superficially. The appearances are kept, the fainting ladies caught mid-air.
Do not get me wrong: you might love it, if this type of thing is up your alley.
However, imagining it on the elderly monarch creates as much of a dissonance as the colour pink on Dolores Umbridge: something is just not quite right. The violet becomes too sweet, the powder - too stuffy, the rose and good manners - too stiff... It's not just posh, it's the pearl-clutching, judgy, "let-them-eat-cake" oblivious, privileged scent of the ruling class, and I cannot get this image out of my head. HRH Elizabeth II's ghost appears out of thin air and grins at me from under one of her bright hats every time I'm wearing this.
So, I grab on to my darned petticoats and my less-than-perfect manners and clumsily run towards more lively, admittedly less well-behaved but more interesting roses. Buh-bye,White rose, toddle-oo!
Everything is carefully measured: a touch of aldehydes, a smidge of peppery carnation, a taste of sweet violets, but at the heart of it - of course, a rose. To top it, a polite, barely-there sillage and medium longevity. Pretty? Yes. Superficially. The appearances are kept, the fainting ladies caught mid-air.
Do not get me wrong: you might love it, if this type of thing is up your alley.
However, imagining it on the elderly monarch creates as much of a dissonance as the colour pink on Dolores Umbridge: something is just not quite right. The violet becomes too sweet, the powder - too stuffy, the rose and good manners - too stiff... It's not just posh, it's the pearl-clutching, judgy, "let-them-eat-cake" oblivious, privileged scent of the ruling class, and I cannot get this image out of my head. HRH Elizabeth II's ghost appears out of thin air and grins at me from under one of her bright hats every time I'm wearing this.
So, I grab on to my darned petticoats and my less-than-perfect manners and clumsily run towards more lively, admittedly less well-behaved but more interesting roses. Buh-bye,White rose, toddle-oo!
Do you even lift, bro?
A very prominent scent, like a punch in the face.
This is the second Courrèges that punches me in the nose, the first one was "La fille de l'air", which, ironically has nothing neither girly nor airy about it.
I spritzed a tiny bit on my wrist and unfortunately ended up scrubbing it off. Even scrubbed and washed, it's too loud for me. Nuclear bergamot, banshee patchouli. Too loud, too sweet, too sour - just way, way pushy.
I still smell a quite manly bergamot, and a slightly vintage patchouli. The whole thing does not smell appealing to my nose, it reminds me of forgotten vials at the back of drawers that are so old the writing has peeled of; but you're brave, so you open up the dried cork and there it is: something that used to be perfume 20 years ago, that concentrated scent of old juice (not off, just very very potent)...
The notes are like swole bodybuilders in a tiny lift, taking up all the space and making me melt into a corner and just get out of there, out into fresh air, asap.
I guess Courrèges and I are just not meant to be...
This is the second Courrèges that punches me in the nose, the first one was "La fille de l'air", which, ironically has nothing neither girly nor airy about it.
I spritzed a tiny bit on my wrist and unfortunately ended up scrubbing it off. Even scrubbed and washed, it's too loud for me. Nuclear bergamot, banshee patchouli. Too loud, too sweet, too sour - just way, way pushy.
I still smell a quite manly bergamot, and a slightly vintage patchouli. The whole thing does not smell appealing to my nose, it reminds me of forgotten vials at the back of drawers that are so old the writing has peeled of; but you're brave, so you open up the dried cork and there it is: something that used to be perfume 20 years ago, that concentrated scent of old juice (not off, just very very potent)...
The notes are like swole bodybuilders in a tiny lift, taking up all the space and making me melt into a corner and just get out of there, out into fresh air, asap.
I guess Courrèges and I are just not meant to be...
Pagan goddesses, fairy dust and Midsummer night's dream
Not in step with any trend, but also not reminiscent of any vintages, Antheia is a world in itself, timeless. I am surprised it's not talked about more - it truly is unique, and in my opinion, underrated.
I get a blast of fresh, fruity notes in the opening, but they're airy instead of juicy, like pollen falling from wings of fairies. Then florals: violets and iris (orris butter?) come forward, rounded by soft base notes. I love the earthy and slightly musky (animalic) aspect which prevents it from veering into clean and soapy territory - it's a garden alright, but it's wild and not ruled by any gardener. Mischievous, like Puck.
In general, it has this magical, suspended-in-time and Shakespearean "Midsummer night's dream" quality about it. Pre-Raphaelite paintings of cherubs and goddesses come to mind as well.
Longevity is average to low on skin, and average on clothes - but it's fleeting nature is in step with its whole essence - dream-like and otherworldly. This characteristic (and not at all the notes) remind me of "Lady Rose Lion (Monkey Unicorn)" by 4160 Tuesdays - also unique, otherworldly and strange (in a great way!).
All in all, it is one of those fragrances you wear for yourself, not for others. It will dazzle your senses and take you away to a magical garden - for a while - but all spells must come to an end eventually...
I get a blast of fresh, fruity notes in the opening, but they're airy instead of juicy, like pollen falling from wings of fairies. Then florals: violets and iris (orris butter?) come forward, rounded by soft base notes. I love the earthy and slightly musky (animalic) aspect which prevents it from veering into clean and soapy territory - it's a garden alright, but it's wild and not ruled by any gardener. Mischievous, like Puck.
In general, it has this magical, suspended-in-time and Shakespearean "Midsummer night's dream" quality about it. Pre-Raphaelite paintings of cherubs and goddesses come to mind as well.
Longevity is average to low on skin, and average on clothes - but it's fleeting nature is in step with its whole essence - dream-like and otherworldly. This characteristic (and not at all the notes) remind me of "Lady Rose Lion (Monkey Unicorn)" by 4160 Tuesdays - also unique, otherworldly and strange (in a great way!).
All in all, it is one of those fragrances you wear for yourself, not for others. It will dazzle your senses and take you away to a magical garden - for a while - but all spells must come to an end eventually...
Fluffy and comforting
One of my most successful blind buys - a beautiful, architectural-looking bottle made of thick glass, with gold dust floating in the juice.
I love vanilla, and will forever be nostalgic about one of my first perfumes: Cap Nature Vanille by Yves Rocher. Nothing could ever come close to the memory I had of it - until I got Moattar Dhahab, the golden perfume, straight from the official Junaid store in Dubai.
It is a sweet vanilla, without it being a gourmand. It is a floral sweetness, with a veil of musk which lightens the composition and lifts it. Visually, I would associate it with the colour white rather than gold - it is a fluffy, clean musk. Longevity is great on clothes (days!), a bit less so on skin (5 hours). The sillage is quite intimate, noticeable to those who will come within two steps of you, but it does not linger. These characteristics make it very wearable and inoffensive. It's one of the most harmonious and well-balanced vanillas I've ever smelled, no wonder it's Junaid's bestseller!
It just oozes femininity, the understated kind of sensuality elegant women have. It's become one of my comfort scents, protective like a talisman - I wear it and immediately feel like everything is in its right place.
I love vanilla, and will forever be nostalgic about one of my first perfumes: Cap Nature Vanille by Yves Rocher. Nothing could ever come close to the memory I had of it - until I got Moattar Dhahab, the golden perfume, straight from the official Junaid store in Dubai.
It is a sweet vanilla, without it being a gourmand. It is a floral sweetness, with a veil of musk which lightens the composition and lifts it. Visually, I would associate it with the colour white rather than gold - it is a fluffy, clean musk. Longevity is great on clothes (days!), a bit less so on skin (5 hours). The sillage is quite intimate, noticeable to those who will come within two steps of you, but it does not linger. These characteristics make it very wearable and inoffensive. It's one of the most harmonious and well-balanced vanillas I've ever smelled, no wonder it's Junaid's bestseller!
It just oozes femininity, the understated kind of sensuality elegant women have. It's become one of my comfort scents, protective like a talisman - I wear it and immediately feel like everything is in its right place.
