Perfume Reviews by ClockworkAlice

Alaïa Nude by Azzedine Alaïa

This cashmeran heavy, lightly sweet and quietly modernly cozy scent is all at once lightly musky, slightly woody, a touch powdery and solar, with a hint of leather and a bit of sandalwoody aroma; it's hard to describe, and I would almost add it to the category of those "your-skin-but-better" scents, but I feel like it has a bit too much character for that, too. I know, I know, I'm rambling and spewing adjectives, but this scent is also a bit abstract and hard to describe - although I am already on my second bottle.

For me part of the beauty of this fragrance lies in its slightly scratchy texture that quite a lot of cashmeran-heavy scents have to my nose - I know, it sounds terrible, but it is scratchy in the most pleasant way, it almost tickles my nose - but not in an annoying way; in a way that makes me want to smile. However, I feel like it either does not last on me very well, or (very likely) I get a bit anosmic to the scent after a while and cannot smell it on myself, so I have to go and reapply. This, together with the fact that I find it adorably cozy, is why I mostly wear it only at home - so that I could happily respray as often as I want if it's really short lasting, and so that I am not a perfumed hazard to others if it's actually lasting much better than I think. I have worn all three versions of Alaia and found them all lovely and interesting in their own respective ways (maybe the original Alaia in the black bottle is the most distinctive and interesting), but this one is my favourite. It just makes me smile, makes me feel cozy and at home, and comfortable in my own skin - and that's not a small thing.

Acqua Colonia Saffron & Iris by 4711

This is an eau de cologne for people who do not want to smell of sharp citrus, orange juice or soapy neroli but still crave an eau de cologne experience. There is still a hint of citrusy freshness throughout, but the main star is a grey, subtle irisy cloud that envelopes you and says "you smell subtle, you smell clean, and yet you smell cozy". I do not get much saffron here, but there is some vibrancy to the lightly grey citrusy iris.

I love wearing eau de colognes on weekend mornings, and this is my favourite choice for the colder months and for gloomier, rainier days as this rather calm fragrance feels more fitting than my usual screamingly happy and energetic citruses.

Fir Balsam by Franck Boclet

A slightly resinous and vanilla-laced conifer scent with a little bit of spice. Soothing, calming and comforting. I really enjoy it.

Lavender by Franck Boclet

A sweet, yet aromatic-herbal lavender with vanilla and very light spices. They say it's masculine but I'd say it's not necessarily so - it's not as sweet and cocooning and a bit more herbal than most feminine-oriented lavender-vanillas, but try for your own and decide if it's for you. Very strong - my sample arrived slightly leaky and it filled up all room.

However, after spending more time with the sample I have to conclude that the sweetness and sheer strength of this fragrance is a bit too cloying for my personal tastes (while I don't find Mon Guerlain - a much sweeter lavender-vanilla fragrance - cloying at all) despite the parts of it that I find beautiful, so I feel the need to knock down my rating of it for wearability reasons.

Thé Fantasie Extrait de Cologne by Roger & Gallet

A lovely and refreshing spicy tea scent - a sparkling cardamom, black tea, woods and herbs. Very nice and quite unisex - don't be fooled by pinkish/purplish bottle. Reminds me a bit of Rabarbaro by L'Erbolario which is also primarily a black tea and cardamom scent, and I used up a small bottle of that one with joy.

Vanille Eau de Parfum by Molinard

A nice, smooth, deep-darkish and very slightly resinous vanilla. A bit buttery, sweet, thick, almost sticky. Can be a bit one dimensional and could get a bit cloying as it's pretty intense. I personally prefer airier vanillas and vanillas with more going on or with some twist to them, but if you want a beautiful thick, straightforward vanilla with just a touch of benzoin or a vanilla for layering with other scents, this is a very good one.

Égoïste / L'Égoïste by Chanel

The older version of Egoiste is a perfect spicy-resinous gourmand on me, a very sweet and sugary cinnamon roll scent, very feminine too. The modern one is slightly woodier and less sweet and more unisex smelling, but also rosier and with more patchouli. Both are great though. When I smell Egoiste on my scarf, it's a deep, intoxicating, woody scent with a hint of spice and rose and resinous sweetness, and I think I'd love to smell it on men and on women equally. When I smell it on my skin, I can't believe it's a masculine scent; it comes off as a straight bakery-type gourmand, and a perfect one at that. I guess it's just my skin that pulls the sweet notes that much and you might not smell like you've just baked a batch of cinnamon buns after spraying it, but ladies, I do recommend stealing a spray or three from your men - because this one is not for them only. It's also for me.
Am I an egoist for thinking this scent was made for ME? If you think so, you've just proved my point.

Cristalle Eau de Parfum by Chanel

I am surprised how dense and how sweet Cristalle EDP actually is compared to dry, bitter and bitchy, yet airy Cristalle EDT! Well, it's actually bittersweet, but still. Melon note is very discernable in the top notes, and to be fair this feels like Fath's Green Water (supermegathickandbittergreen) met Calvin Klein's Escape (fruitymelonywarmpoolwateryaquatic). It's so strange. When it dries down, the sweetness fades and I am left with the lightly woody, mossy, vetiver-y brownish-green drydown that's not that bitter anymore either, and I actually even get green tea vibes from it. Not my type of scent until the deep drydown when the damp bittersweet melonfest fades and I can start to actually enjoy it, but I can't stop sniffing my arm along the way because of how strange it is - and when you think about it, it's still kind of a good thing.
I might vote neutral for my personal satisfaction, but I'll give it a thumbs up for keeping me intrigued.

Les Amoureux de Peynet by Molinard

This is my most worn scent - and one of my very favourites, if not the favourite.

It's a citrusy and light Eau Fraiche - airy, tart, slightly sharp concoction of various citruses and verbena with a hint of ginger and some jasmine, just a bit of light citrusy sweetness and a little bit of cedar and musk in the drydown. It stays all day on my skin from early morning to late evening (and yes, to me it means I can smell it when I dig my nose into my wrist as I don't care about projection as long as it does not bother others). It feels very unisex to me as most citruses are, but the added jasmine might sway some of you to the feminine side just a tiny bit more. It's light and breezy and happy and uplifting and it feels like me and I can wear it anytime, anywhere no matter how bad or good I feel - it will always fit. I wore it to any imaginable occasion for almost five years now, and it never failed to make me feel better. I think everyone deserves to have their own scent like this, whatever it may be for them - No. 5, Bleu or 4711 - but it's the scent that you can and want to wear anywhere, anytime and it fits you, and makes you feel better.

The story how I fell for it is lovely - I was probably just a few months (if not weeks!) old Basenoter going to perfume stores several times per week to sniff and test perfumes. There was a time where I would go sniffing daily after work - I just made sure to pick a different store so that sales assistants wouldn't think I'm batshit crazy (which I guess they still thought, and they weren't entirely wrong), and this time I was sniffing everything at Dior's shelf and spraying each and every Poison flanker on test strips when an assistant came up and said "I see you are suffering here, don't waste your time with these - I want to show you something you might like." I was a bit hesitant but she sprayed a bit on a blotter and I loved it, but my wrists were already covered in Hypnotic and Pure Poison, so she sprayed a ribbon and gave it to me. Later, I kept coming back to try Les Amoureux several more times, and finally bought it that spring, and never regretted that. Sadly I don't remember which one of the sales assistants it was - I was too drunk on new scents and new experiences at the time - but I always wanted to thank her for noticing that this tomboy in sneakers, jeans and a metal band jumper might actually like Molinard better than Dior. She wasn't wrong.

Of course Amoureux is discontinued (or maybe it was just a limited edition to celebrate the artist Raymond Peynet); but
if you are curious about it, Molinard has reissued this scent in a stronger EDP concentration and renamed it Gingembre. It's still great and very similar, but of course stronger, with slightly more pronounced wood and more emphasis on ginger. I hope they'll at least keep that one.

Jersey Eau de Parfum by Chanel

I find this soapy lavender scent very calming and elegant although the floral-grassy opening can be difficult for me at times - the lavender here is on the stinkier side, a very convincing wild lavender scent. (I once had an all-natural wild lavender hydrolat and had to give it away as the stink was too much for me. That was when I started learning that lavender comes in many shapes and forms, and I find them all fascinating and calming, but not equally satisfying. I don't like it when it stinks.) But the drydown! It's soapy and clean, and yet it has that skin-like warmth that I find so inviting.

Moon Bloom by Hiram Green

Moon Bloom starts out slightly strangely medicinal and a bit weird (I'm sure there will be a number of people that dig it exactly for that weird opening, too), so when trying it, I nervously thought - oh well, not the first time I fail at appreciating everyone's favourites and best ofs. But after it settled a bit I definitely started to understand what's the deal with Moon Bloom and why it has so many fans among perfumistas.

First of all, it is so lively - you can almost taste the thick, sweet, chewy petals; and secondly, it stays very interesting and deliciously weird - yet still so wearable - in such a compelling way. There's that slight waxiness, there's creaminess, there's butteriness and this cozy sweetness that does not overwhelm, but makes you comfortable and happy instead. The notes suggest some unspecified spices in it, but while I detect some delicious coconut, I don't really get the spiciness, just a rounded, thick, slightly waxy, gorgeous tropical bloom.

Moon Bloom is not necessarily what I personally want from a white floral fragrance at the moment, but it is definitely beautiful and evocative, even such a dilettante as me can see that.

Do Son Eau de Toilette by Diptyque

When I tried it first, I found this fragrance overwhelming and slightly cloying. There was something about it that made me squirm. I was not a fan of big white florals, you know. But preferences change, and mine definitely did after a strange shift in what I like, as I started enjoying and even craving for tuberoses, gardenias and other white monsters. It's only natural to retry your past disasters and see if the pumpkins did actually turn into golden carriages and rats became pretty blossoms.

Now, retrying Do Son after a good while and after a shift in my preferences, I can really appreciate it and enjoy it. I agree: it is beautiful. To me it's a clean, cool, crisp, yet smoothly creamy white floral fragrance that feels quite versatile: gorgeous enough for occasions, modest enough for everyday.
Seeing it now, I wouldn't refuse a bottle of it! However, I do have this type of fragrances at home already, so my wallet is safe for a good while - or at least until I finish what I already have and love.

Baiser Volé by Cartier

A cool and crisp lily fragrance with a little bit of warming spice and a tiny hint of vanilla in the drydown.

I have to confess: I really disliked Baiser Vole when I first smelled it, it felt too floral, too cold and too flowershoppy for me, just the kind of fragrance that is the opposite of what I would imagine myself wearing. But still it smelled interesting enough to pique my interest, and something tugged me into retrying it again and again, and my perception of it has totally changed eventually. Yes, it's definitely a cold fragrance, but in such a beautiful sophisticated way; and there's also spice and - surprise - warmth to that coldness when you smell it.

Something should be said about the bottle, too, as it's one of the most pleasant bottles to look at, to pick up and to open and spray for me. I love the clean lines, the clever metal cap that reminds me of Zippo lighters, the heavy glass. It's just so overall satistfying.

Rose Poire by L'Occitane

A delicate fruity floral. Pear is juicy, sweetly rounded and more prominent than rose. Rose is a delicate garden rose. I did not detect the spices and aromatic components, but maybe they come out more with more sprays. The fragrance is very light and on a quiet side. It's an ageless fragrance suitable for everyone who likes easy to wear fruity florals, but because of the subtle lightness and happy fruitiness this could be a great option for kids and teens, too.

If You Believe by Mary Kay

A fresh, citrusy-fruity-floral, a bright and uplifting, light and easy to wear fragrance. Nothing groundbreaking but surprisingly nice to wear. Crisp, airy, springlike. Light, subtle, not too loud. Clean, bright, happy fruitiness with light airy florals. Good for everyday wear, especially for daytime in warmer weather.

Zara Femme by Zara

Creamy and slightly sweet, but in a subtle way. Slightly floral, slightly woody, some gently softened sweetish citrus in the opening that blends gently into vanilla-tonka-musk-sandalwood cushion. Short lasting. Gentle. Subtle. Lovely. Likeable. Nothing too special for your average perfume enthusiast that has seen it all, but a very nice and affordable daytime option indeed.

Caprice de Sophie by Chabaud Maison de Parfum

It's an impossibly fluffy and wonderfully uplifting, dreamy fragrance. Starts out with a little citrus zing and some soft, airy, juicy fruits. Apple is the most prominent. Later the fruits meet some delicate flowers before sinking into the softest, cloudiest cushion of airy musks, vanilla and something slightly milky. This beautiful, soft, mesmerizing hint of milkiness runs through many Chabaud fragrances and I personally adore it. Everything in this fragrance feels fluffy, mesmerizing and natural smelling to me. This scent is romantic, whimsical and comforting at the same time, all the facets play beautifully with each other, nothing overpowers, and you sink into this cloud of scent with pure childish joy.
If you asked me, it's a dreamy, soft fruity-musky floral done right.

Vibrant Leather for Her by Zara

Reviewing a 2021 edition in a tall heavy glass bottle. I'm not sure if earlier editions were this good, but I like this one.

It's a fruity (blackcurrant/redcurrant forward) patchouli-leather scent with the emphasis on fruity and airy, but if you think it's sweet, well it's not. It's actually slightly tart and bitter and modern-chypre like, with very little sweetness. It feels very elegant and grown up to me, while still wearing light and fun. Feels like a great option for a workday at home to me - it's inexpensive, so I can spray as much as my little black heart wants, and it also feels very prim and professional, while also being fun to wear because of the berry notes. Definitely a good one for the price.

I have bought it because I sniffed it, tried it and I really liked it, and to me it actually felt quite unique, but much later I saw someone comparing it to Creed's Aventus For Her online, so I went to sniff that one, too. And you know, they are definitely very similar in their dry wine-like currant fruitiness, airiness and some light patchouli and leather grounding them. You might argue that the Zara does smell a little bit synthetic (not in a bad way though, it fits the fragrance!), but so does the mega expensive Creed. Take it as you will.

Shalimar Millésime Vanilla Planifolia by Guerlain

To me it's gorgeous.
It's still Shalimar with all its glory, but vanilla is very amped up and it's such a wonderful, deep and rich smelling vanilla. There's still that Shalimar-ish ambery, smoky, slightly leathery presence that can be felt very well, but there's significantly less bergamot and because of that there's significantly less of that slightly vintage feeling Shalimar opening that some people might find difficult. It goes straight into the good parts of Shalimar, therefore automatically feels a little bit more modern and younger without sacrificing anything.

Although if you already have regular Shalimar or Shalimar Philtre or one of the Ode la vanilles and you're not a collector or a mad fan of Shalimar, you probably don't need this one.
But if you are a Shalimar fan and if you love vanilla, or if you'd like a Shalimar that showcases that beautiful vanilla and is less about that bergamot opening, then this is for you.

Sadly, this was a limited edition, and while I was lucky to just go and buy a bottle for me at the store, getting it right now might be a difficult task. In this case (I'm assuming you do not have extra funds and extra patience tracking it now as I wouldn't) my advice would be to either go for original Shalimar (either EDP, EDT or EDC) and just layer it with your preferred vanilla or to choose a more readily available flanker Shalimar Philtre de Parfum which is also a slightly modernized take on Shalimar - the citruses are sweetened and made gentler, some more lavender is added to the opening, the smoky parts are dialed down and the vanila is also amped up, but this is more bakery vanilla and not the deep, dark, resinous vanilla of Millesime. They are different, but they're all very good. They're all Shalimar in the end, you don't have to catch them all. (Although I really do want to, I admit.)

Love Osmanthus by Atelier Cologne

I really enjoy this and it quickly rose among my favourite summery scents. However, I'd say peachy and airy osmanthus plays only a supporting role in this scent, because Love Osmanthus is really about the lemon and the cedar. It could be called Love Lemon or Love Lemon & Pencil Shavings and this would be very close to the truth. The scent might remind you of a variation of Dolce & Gabbana's Light Blue as it does have a very similar scent profile, but I'd say Love Osmanthus is more nuanced and rounded, less sharp and I like it better (I'm talking from memory here). But the peachy, lovely osmanthus does round the scent out and gives a perfect soft transition from a tart, sharp lemon to the cedary base.

Eau de Basilic Pourpre by Hermès

This is nice - very green, aromatic, slightly herbal. It's light and airy, and in the drydown there's something that resembles a slightly chalky iris. A calming scent.

Cosmic by Agent Provocateur

Cosmic by Agent Provocateur is basically just another Baccarat Rouge wannabe. It's not a dupe but the inspiration is quite clear.
Do try this if you're not yet tired of this scent profile.

Electric by Agent Provocateur

WHOA, this was unexpected! A CITRUSY, BRIGHT, JUICY and UPLIFTING Agent Provocateur!! Who knew? It starts out like a classic eau de cologne (dusty neroli/bergamot) and later becomes more citrusy, juicy and fun! I was very pleasantly surprised. Will definitely retry.

Angel Nova by Thierry Mugler

Well I must admit it smells better on paper than on my skin. On paper it's a juicy, fruity, rosy, fun and bold scent, but on my skin it becomes a flat and synthetic mess. It's not the first time such a travesty happens with a fruity floral on my skin... I guess many of these are not for me.
However, normally fruity roses smell good on me, but not this one.
But don't take my word for it and try this for yourself if the notes look interesting to you - this strong, bold, fruity, girly and fun fragrance actually has a lot of fans, you might be one of them, too.