Skyliner1212

A luxurious hotel on the Greek coast. Romanesque style, a spacious plateau overlooking the water-bedded horizon. A marble pavilion that magically provides shelter from the sun's intense rays on a day that effortlessly leaves the 30-degree mark behind. A white linen shirt, one more button undone than usual. And a piña colada with the right accompaniment.

This is Eau de Soleil Blanc. An olfactory poem of summer.

Lavender Extrême has recently aroused my interest as a relatively unknown fragrance of the Private Blend collection. Of course, the mirrored bottle has also developed a certain attractive effect, that is not to be denied. It's almost worth putting in your home just as a decoration - not to mention the 250 ml! Let's see if Soleil Brûlant still tops that.

After the first spray I thought: Wow, THAT is real lavender! And THAT is also violently too much! I got from the incredibly intense lavender note at the beginning, unfortunately, even a headache. Still, my anticipation for the drydown was unbridled. Not unjustifiably, as it turned out, because it has it all: On my skin, the scent then became creamier, more floral and more vanilla with every minute. This went on and on, until a slightly powdery note was added. Minutes and minutes passed ... and then - as if out of nowhere - the thought suddenly came to me: "I know that smell, don't I? I rummaged around in my scent memory for a moment and immediately remembered where I got it from: Dior Homme Intense. Zack, pulled out the bottle, sprayed it on the other hand and waited. And indeed: once the heart note is there, both perfumes suddenly smell incredibly similar. To the point of confusion. I don't know if it's just me with my skin chemistry - I'm really asking for feedback in the comments, I'd be dying to hear it - but with an unbiased nose, it's really hard to tell the two scents apart in a hurry.

Dior Homme Intense is of course an outstanding fragrance, so Lavender Extrême could also convince me all along the line. One wonders, however, whether you really want to leave almost 300 euros for 50 ml under these conditions at Tom Ford, you get your money's worth at Dior for just under 70 euros. The only reason from my point of view to pay the "surcharge" is the performance: Here Tom Ford has once again unpacked the Tuscan Leather steroids. The sillage is unbelievably fierce, especially in the first three hours, the durability was always effortlessly ten hours for me. Since Dior Homme Intense has, unfortunately, been weakening more and more with the newer batches, it's not so wrong to have a stronger alternative in your repertoire. For me, Lavender Extrême is therefore something like Dior Homme Intense 2011 reloaded. Only a nuance fresher and more versatile.

My conclusion: A fragrance worth trying, you won't regret buying.

There's no question about it. It's expensive. Damn expensive. Apart from a few lucrative offers on the net, which allow you to buy this Tom Ford pearl at best with discounts around 30 percent, you have to pay about 300 Euros for 50 ml of this enchanting fragrance. This goes beyond the scope of even the Private-Blend collection. Nevertheless, I cannot help but recommend this eau de parfum. Admittedly, I'm a bit reluctant - the price is like a veil over my olfactory sensations. But what you have to realize is what you actually buy for so much money: Individuality, in two ways.

Firstly, of course, because the ingredients of Fucking Fabulous create such an exotic scent in their interplay that it is probably almost impossible to find anything comparable on the market. In fact, this symbiosis of almond, vanilla and even lavender creates such an addictive cocktail that I myself go to my perfume cabinet more than once a day to get a whiff of this creation. Apart from that, the almost paradoxical DNA of Fucking Fabulous is extremely fascinating, as he clearly deserves to be a real Tom Ford because of his primary (!) charisma, but on the other hand he also has what it takes to become a reliable "daily driver" in the right setting. Especially after a few hours, the fragrance gives the wearer the feeling of a discreet, almost reserved, warm aura; he wants to be discovered, he just doesn't announce himself over long distances anymore. I can understand why people say that this is the weakness of Fucking Fabulous as an authentic private-blend fragrance, which also includes the street-filling Tuscan Leather. But personally, I see it as a strength, because it makes the fragrance more versatile, more unobtrusive, maybe even a My My mysterious. And that's what I want ...

And secondly, individuality is also acquired because the circle of potential buyers is extremely small in total. Of course, you have to know the scent first. For the members of the perfume community this is of course no problem, but for the perfume-interested person who - like me once - stalks clumsily into the nearest drugstore to get hold of the object of his desire, it looks quite different. And if that's not enough, you also have to be prepared to spend over 200 € on your perfume at regular intervals - more or less, depending on how often you apply it in the morning or evening. I think I can say in good conscience: You have to be a little crazy for that - but that's life ...

But once you decide to take this step, you'll be richly rewarded - strolling through the streets amidst a cloud of a highly individual, authentic Tom Ford perfume, without losing any of its charm or subtlety. I wonder if his name really describes his scent DNA? Well, I guess that's purely subjective. But the potpourri of results and emotions that this creation from Tom Ford holds in store for the wearer is in fact at least kind of Fucking Fabulous ...

Thanks for reading it!

My first review is about a fragrance that was to be the basis for my personal entry into the world of perfume. I came into contact with Louis Vuitton's L'Immensité completely unexpectedly when I was given a sample in one of the stores in the year of release, 2018. At the time, I was looking for a new signature scent suitable for everyday use, without having delved deeper into the details and quality characteristics of a good perfume. So, telling the sales assistant that I was looking for a more fresh and invigorating men's fragrance, I left the Louis Vuitton store with a small sample of L'Immensité and sprayed a good dose of it as soon as I got home. And what can I say, my first and only thought was: Wow, I must have that! This freshness, this masculine energy, this exclusivity. Truly impressive. And so it happened that a few weeks later I had actually bought 100 ml of L'Immensité in one of the stores - despite the admittedly very high price - and used it for over a year as the only everyday fragrance. As I later discovered - fascinated by how complex the world of perfume really is - the top notes and heart notes in particular are by no means an absolute unique selling point and can be found in a similar form in other fragrances. Personally, however, I think L'Immensité is so great precisely because, despite its clear focus on warmer days, it is actually never inappropriate and, precisely because of its price, can rarely be smelled in conjunction with the pure Louis Vuitton exclusive distribution. Thus the fragrance becomes quite individual again. Anyway, the performance is excellent on my skin: Even after ten hours I was already asked which perfume I was wearing. Especially in the wind the fragrance produces a clear silage on my skin even after a long time, which I find extremely pleasant. The same applies to the durability on the skin. The only disadvantage is unfortunately the handling of the atomizer, which is so productive that it is hardly possible to dose it precisely. But this is also rather a kind of luxury problem. All in all, I can recommend L'Immensité without restrictions. In direct comparison to the other men's fragrances from Louis Vuitton, it is also the best in my opinion. All the feedback from the ladies was equally positive. In particular, even to my surprise, L'Immensité was usually better received than Terre d'Hermès, Bleu de Chanel or - quite exotic - Fucking Fabulous by Tom Ford. Despite the great freshness, it seems to me that even on a date you wouldn't be wrong with this fragrance ... All in all an exclusive evergreen! I hope my first comment was helpful in some way. Thanks to the perfume community!