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Browsing by tag: powdery

Burberry Brit Rhythm for Her ~ perfume review

Posted by Robin on 25 February 2014 31 Comments

Burberry Brit Rhythm for Women

So, Burberry as a fragrance house, yay or meh or nay? I’ve been mostly in the meh camp. The original Burberry Brit was a fun, pear-based fruity floral before pear became so annoyingly ubiquitous, and although it wasn’t my thing, I thought a couple of the flankers (particularly Brit Red and Brit Gold) were pretty good. The Beat was ok, although I thought the limited edition Beat Elixir version was so much better that I didn’t see why it wasn’t released as the “main” fragrance (it’s the only Burberry fragrance I own, and I still wear it from time to time). I did not much care for Burberry London, and ditto for Burberry Body.

All of which might explain why I did not have especially high hopes for Burberry Brit Rhythm for Her. It didn’t help that Kevin was not enthralled with the men’s version (I didn’t get around to smelling it, but we agree more often than not). And the rock music inspiration / backstory, hey, that’s getting a little old, isn’t it?1 The Beat hardly lived up to its ‘edgy, carnal, slightly wild’ musical inspirations, and I rather doubted Brit Rhythm for Her would live up to this number…

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Giorgio Armani Si ~ perfume review & quick poll

Posted by Robin on 7 November 2013 57 Comments

Cate Blanchett for Giorgio Armani Sì

Sì is the latest from Giorgio Armani. It’s Armani’s first pillar fragrance for women since 2010’s Acqua di Gioia, and it’s meant to be a ‘sophisticated’ chypre1 — note that Sì is fronted by actress Cate Blanchett instead of the the sort of conventionally young and sexy model that they used for Gioia.2 All of which might indicate a somewhat older and more sophisticated target market than the usual for Armani’s mainstream output, yes? Which would be fine with me; Armani is not generally my favorite perfume house, and even the more exclusive Armani Privé fragrances don’t always live up to their price tags.

So the first sniff of Sì was a bit of a surprise, of the fruity variety…

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Amouage Fate Woman ~ fragrance review

Posted by Angela on 4 November 2013 166 Comments

Amouage Fate banner

Every so often I sample a fragrance that has been wildly praised, and I wonder, What’s the big deal? I try it again, maybe this time applied more lightly or more heavily. I spritz it in the morning and last thing at night. I second guess myself. After all, I tell myself, whatever the fragrance might be, Victoria at Bois de Jasmin or Denyse at Grain de Musc or pretty much every MakeupAlley reviewer loved it. What’s wrong with me?

This is what I ran into with Amouage Fate Woman. In Saudi Arabia Style.com, Luca Turin deemed it a “celestial oriental” and awarded it five stars for “masterpiece.” I adore Turin’s reviews. I respect his experience and discernment, and I love his writing. But I’m not going to lie to you. My response after finishing my sample spray vial is that Fate Woman is — well — fine, but really not my thing…

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Diesel Loverdose Tattoo ~ fragrance review

Posted by Robin on 8 October 2013 18 Comments

Diesel Loverdose Tattoo advert

Diesel, the youth-oriented Italian fashion house, is not a brand I have any particular affinity for, but I really liked their 2011 fragrance Loverdose. When I reviewed it, I said it was not the stuff of genius, but it was great fun, and we all know that great fun is scarce on mainstream perfume counters.

The new flanker, Loverdose Tattoo, promised to amp up the (supposedly already formidable) sex appeal of the original, but instead, they’ve done just what the rice steam accord in the notes1 implied they might do: they’ve turned it into a comfort scent. Fine by me, decent comfort scents are nearly as scarce as great fun…

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Cartier Baiser Vole Eau de Toilette and Extrait de Parfum ~ fragrance review

Posted by Angela on 25 March 2013 43 Comments

Cartier Baiser Volé Eau de Toilette

I know, I know. Now Smell This already posted a thorough review of Cartier Baiser Volé. But that was for the Eau de Parfum. Baiser Volé is one of the few perfumes that really explores the fragrance’s idea through its other formulations. While a review of the Eau de Parfum gives you an idea of Baiser Volé’s theme — lilies in the style of Carole Lombard’s boudoir, complete with silver hairbrush and face powder — the Eau de Toilette and Extrait de Parfum aren’t simply different concentrations. Instead, they take the Eau de Parfum’s “main tune” and orchestrate it differently.

Cartier house perfume Mathilde Laurent created Baiser Volé in each of its forms. Cartier is vague about the fragrance’s notes, spouting pap about how the fragrance embraces each aspect of the lily: stem, petals, and root. Besides lily, I get hints of neroli, powder, jasmine, and musk.

Baiser Volé Eau de Parfum is the most sober form of the fragrance. It shows Baiser Volé’s powdery glamour of deconstructed lilies in a way that makes me long for my own dressing room, satin coverlet, and stack of 1930s movies. It’s beautiful, for sure. But it’s also humorless…

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