Les Creations de Monsieur Dior Forever and Ever Dior

Floral
Perfumer: Monsieur Dior 🙂

Les Creations de Monsieur Dior Forever and Ever Dior was launched in 2009. Christian Dior reviewed his entire line of vintage scents and introduced them in this modern theme Les Creations de Monsieur Dior.

It has the top of freesia, mid jasmine and base rose. It smells still little bit vintage to me which is not a bad thing. The intensity is low, it performs more like a skin scent. However, the lasting power is actually good for EDT. Definitely at least 4 hours. The opening with freesia is sharp, sparkling and very floral hence it is not my favorite part of the fragrance. Nevertheless, what I really appreciate is the dry down. It is a very pleasant floral smell, slightly sweet (there must be vanilla in), cozy and comfortable.

Forever and ever is indeed a romantic scent; but interestingly, it is also a good one for the office due to its inoffensive and calm nature. It does not feel old but mature. I imagine a motherly character, with a sweet kind profession, a teacher or a nanny maybe, wearing this scent.

A romantic and classy floral with tiny tiny vanilla. Something different to what we are used to these days. 80/100

Roses Musk Montale

Floral Woody Musk
Perfumer: Pierre Montale

In this fragrance, there are three dominant notes: rose, musk and jasmine. I am starting to like Montale perfumes. They are one of a kind. The smell of roses is stunning in this case. It is a realistic strong rose aroma but at the same time modern and somewhat juicy green and fresh. The roses stick around for quite some time. The projection and lasting power are impressive.

After a few hours the musk comes through, and there the fragrance starts to be scratchy. I love the smell of roses and jasmine, but the musk is harsh for my liking. After all, if you love the smell of the king flowers and “out there” musk, you will adore Roses Musk. It is a quality rose fragrance. Great for spring daytime. I am surprising how mass appealing it is for a niche brand.

If you enjoy wearing a musky rose, it is easy to like this scent. The roses smell real. 70/100

Vanilla Extasy Montale

Amber Vanilla
Perfumer: Pierre Montale

Judging by the name, one would expect a kick in the face type of fragrance, a really strong sensual vanilla. You will be surprised, it is none of that. It is a floral apricot vanilla, rather dry vanilla and less sweet. It is actually a pleasant delicate scent. So not Montale! It is warm, the best time of the year to wear this fragrance is fall and winter. It is not strong, so you can easily let it shine during the day.

To my nose, it is vanilla nicely done; on the other hand, some will argue that it is nothing ground breaking, and we both are correct, I guess. In the end of the day, I appreciate it, it is a pleasant surprise from Montale and I do not have many quality vanilla scents in my collection. There is something relaxing about it and I like it more and more. I imagine a romantic spa in Maldives.

A fruity vanilla aroma. Addictive without being right in your face. 80/100

Olympéa Paco Rabanne

Amber Floral
Perfumer: Anne Filipo, Dominique Ropion, Loc Dong

So far, none of the Paco Rabanne scents has worked for me. Unfortunately, Olympea included. It is supposed to evoke competition and subsequent victory, which it does, I reckon. It is a glamorous shiny daring fragrance as all the Paco Rabannes are.

It is a strong salted vanilla with white florals and ambergris. I cannot help it, but it smells little artificial, laud and it reminds me of Naomi Campbell scent – the original. The notes and vibes are similar as well. They are both nauseating and almost sickly sweet to my nose. I do not want to offend anyone, it just does not work with me.

A sweet and salty scent that is proudly out there for you to notice. 30/100

Eau de Lacoste L.12.12 Pour Elle Sparkling

Floral Fruity Gourmand
Perfumer: not listed

I was looking for perfumes with a macarons note, and believe me, there are only few. Pour Elle Sparkling was one of them. Lacoste brand is all about elegance in sport, tennis in particular. This fragrance was inspired by female tennis fashion, especially their adorable skirts. As I am a fan of tennis, this all sounds very good to me. The bottle is cute and funky, the hopes are high, so let’s get started.

The opening is fruity and slightly spicy, the heart is delicious sweetened by cotton candy and macarons, the base – there is not much left from the frag at this stage, just a hint of cashmere wood. All in all, it is a sweet floral fruity with weak lasting. It is good for sport, after sport, when you want to smell fresh, young, adorable. Neither expect elegance nor class.

Having Pour Elle Sparkling would not add any value to my fragrance collection at this point. I already own many perfumes and Pour Elle Sparkling would not stand out. It would be just another fun scent.

A playful lively sweet skin scent for daytime sport events. 40/100

Orange Blossom & Vanilla Fragrances

Floral, Amber Floral, Amber Vanilla

If you are familiar with my blog, you know I love orange blossom and vanilla combinations in my perfumes. I know already a lot of fragrances with this note profile and I keep comparing one to another in my posts. Hence I thought it would be more practical to do a run down of orange blossom and vanilla perfumes in one video. Orange blossom and vanilla together create a lush, exotic, sweet combo that I am fascinated about. I have picked seven scents and two honorable mentions. I also give recommendations which climate and time of the day they are suitable for. Relax and enjoy the ride 🙂 xoxo

Soleil Blanc Tom Ford

Amber Floral
Perfumer: Nathalie Gracia-Cetto

Soleil Blanc is a luxurious, well balanced, summary-beachy fragrance for men and women. It has a prominent coconutty feel, together with tuberose, ylang-ylang and jasmine. It smells like a sun-tanning lotion and a beach bar where they serve piňa coladas, caipirinhas, you name it.

I respect Soleil Blanc. It is a nicely blended milky scent, slightly herbal, but I personally cannot do it. I cannot wear Soleil Blanc. I am not huge on beachy fragrances anyway, but especially those strong on coconut. Meh! I find heavy coconut suffocating in the heat. I can tolerate summer perfumes with no coconut as is Sol de Jainero Cheirosa number 62. There are creamy nuts – almond and pistachio and that I like.

A lux coconut fragrance for the beach, reminiscent of chilled holiday resorts. 40/100

Motherhood and fragrances: Let the magic happen!

At the beginning, motherhood and fragrances do not go together; but later on, they can become our motherly dark horse. Are you asking how is that possible? Keep on reading.

At the early stages of motherhood, wearing a fragrance is not recommended because babies need to get used to the natural smell of their mother. They are very receptive and this is how they recognize their mother and feel safe. An artificial aroma could also discourage them from being breast fed or irritate their soft skin. It is the best to be fragrance free for that magical period of time. I live for fragrance but believe me, it is well worth it.

Philip

The time for a perfume comes soon though. Once the baby is not a baby anymore, at least a toddler or a child, we can set up a new routine. Something light and daytime is ideal for a start. What is more, a bottle of perfume can even enhance our motherly image. People tend to remember how their mother smelled when they were little and they cherish the memories once they get older.

Dan

They remember the bottle and every time they smell the fragrance, it reminds them of their loving mother. It immediately brings them back to their childhood, when their mother was young, how she smelled and smiled gently. Scents are very powerful and we should not underestimate them. Once/if you have children, think about what fragrance you wear and what message and feelings you want to get across. It is very likely that your kids will remember.

Anyway, be patient, enjoy your babies as much as you can. The time will come and once it does, you can create valuable memories for your kids with your perfume. Just let the magic happen.

@all: What perfume did your mother wear?

Hot Couture Givenchy

Floral
Perfumer: Alberto Morillas, Jacques Cavallier

With the 2000 launch is Hot Couture almost a vintage fragrance. Yet it is a modern and timeless classic. The house of Givenchy is very often overlooked in the perfume community but they actually stand out for high quality, interesting, feminine and elegant scents. Hot Couture is not an exception! It celebrates female body and sensuality. It is long lasting deep raspberry, pepper, vetiver, sandalwood and bit of amber.

A great sweet companion for cold winter nights. I adore vetiver in female fragrances. In Hot Couture, it smells like a small private night club where you go to enjoy a cancan or burlesque show. But do not get me wrong! There is nothing lascivious about it. Hot Couture rather expresses exciting intimate atmosphere which is still cultivated. I imagine ladies nicely dressed, little bit sexy, coming to see a show.

Dark raspberry peppery vetiver. Refined, intimate, seductive and ultimately feminine. 100/100

Shrnutí v češtině: Vůně Hot Couture byla uvedena na trh v roce 2000, což z ní dělá skoro retro kousek. V žádném případě to ale nejde cítit. Voní jako kdyby vyšla včera. Hodí se pro zralé ženy stejně jako mladé slečny. Oslavuje krásné ženské křivky a vášeň pro život. Její hlavní složky – malina, pepř a rákos – mají pořádnou výdrž. Nezklame ani při chladných zimních večerech. Rákos je velmi příjemný. V Hot Couture je rafinovaný, voní jako komorní noční klub kam se jdete podívat na kankán nebo burlesku. V žádném případě to ale není drzá nebo vulgární vůně. Právě naopak! Připomíná strhující atmosféru vzrušujícího představení, které je ovšem vkusné a na úrovni.

Acqua Colonia Mandarine & Cardamom 4711

Citrus Aromatic
Perfumer: Geza Schoen

This cologne is a good example of a energizing scent for summer. It is fresh and sunny with mandarin yet deeper and spicy due to cardamom. Cinnamon and cardamom are similar spices, they both have sweet and warmth undertones. Cardamom works well with citruses like mandarin, orange, lemon, bergamot to name a few.

This Acqua Colonia has been marketed as a unisex cologne. Personally, I suggest it is leaning more masculine thanks to the aromatic spices. I gave it to my husband and he likes wearing it during the hot summer days. It has been priced well and it is something that not many people have in their collections.

A happy cardamom aroma, easy to wear for men. Screams summer time! 50/100

Shrnutí v češtině: Tato kolínská voní po mandarince a kardamomu. První vás pokropí svěží mandarinka, poté se dostanete ke koření, které je lehounce nasládlé, podobné skořici. Budete se cítit energicky a pozitivně. Kolínská je určená pro muže i ženy. Nemůžu si pomoct, ale víc ji oceňuji na mužích. Je přece jen poněkud aromatická a kořeněná. Cena je příznivá a vůně díky cardamomu neobvyklá.