honeypepper

the florals stick out to my nose before the citrus — they’re light, summery, fresh. then i get the bergamot and lemon. and look, is it air freshener-y? a little, more to some than to others i’m sure — but it’s done in a way that’s very pleasant to me, and wears nicely on the skin. it’s less like you’re wearing cleaner, and more like you just came from a very clean beach house decorated with lovely fragrant flora.

sometimes the well-known ones are well-known for a reason! i love the way the notes interplay in this one — i don’t know if it’s to do with the ratio of scent to scent or what, but for my nose, it works really well. i get the fruity notes up-front, especially that quince, but the florals come up afterward in a nice blooming bouquet. it dries down on my skin very elegantly, with a note i’d almost describe as a little powdery when it’s beginning to wear off.

i’ve been hunting for a pink pepper fragrance that felt both floral and complex but youthful, and i feel like this hits the spot. you get a lot of the pink pepper initially, starting a little complex with the saffron and bergamot, then drying down to a lovely musky floral with a hint of spice still present from the pink pepper. it feels cozy and romantic, like something you’d wear on a coffee shop date or out sightseeing on a happy vacation.

this one is a mega hit every time i wear it. i’m not a huge vanilla person, but the tonka bean rounds it out nicely, and the musk is a nice second-skin note that makes a good base to build the rest of the scent on. i get a little bit of the white flowers on the dry-down as they play with the creaminess of the other notes, and it adds a touch of sophistication. i feel like this would make a good day-to-night choice.

i was hoping for an experience a little more like the tropical suntan lotions/oils i’ve used irl and enjoyed. this smelled like clean chemicals in a way that wasn’t *un*pleasant, but definitely didn’t evoke the pool or the beach. i found that layering it with a more tropical scent achieves a little more of the effect i was hoping for, but that’s the only way i’ll be wearing it.