Believe is one of the first Britney Spears fragrances when she was at the top of pop charts worldwide. It is radiant underrated guava-dominant perfume which I slept on like a bear. The greatest gift you can give to yourself is to believe in yourself. I believe Britney tried to convey this message via her presence in the media and throughout her music. I am a fan of 2000, 2010 Britney and this scent is absolutely worth the price. It neither smells extremely childish nor sweet.
It has watery guava at the top, lime blossom in the heart, which makes it soft-spoken and gentle, and patchouli in the base. However, the patchouli is neither potent nor too earthy. It is just the right amount to make the fragrance lasts and projects. Speaking of sillage, people will smell you and no need to re-apply every four hours which is a miracle for a celebrity aroma.
Believe got me numerous compliments. Not only because it is powerful but also unique. Perfumes of 2000 used to be stronger, and Believe represents an unusual smell on top of that. Reach for it before it disappears from the shelves. It is well worth it.
Flowerbomb Midnight by Viktor&Rolf Floral Carlos Benaim, Dominique Ropion, Domitille Michalon Bertier and Fanny Bal
Flowerbomb Midnight is a creamier rounder version of the original Flowerbomb from 2005. It has a jammy tartblack currant at the top, delightful florals in the heart, night blooming jasmine and peony to be precise. I am a dedicated fun of both. Jasmine is a floral classic, peony is delicate and feminine. There is a fluffy white musk in the base together with vanilla. It is definitely not an overly sweet scent, vanilla is there, but it is bearable.
Flowerbomb Midnight smells a little bit like an older sister to Musk Therapy by Initio. If you like one, you are going to enjoy the other one too. And it is a much more affordable version of that.
I personally enjoy this flanker of Flowerbomb. If the OG is too punchy and strong, Midnight is gentler and cloudier. Being a mum, I prefer this calmer and closer to the skin flanker. It is another scent which is not super popular but if you like designer fragrances, you should really give it a chance.
Cavatina by Dusita Parfums Floral Pissara Umavijani
Cavatina is the ode to lily-of-the-valley composed in French style balanced with musk mallow. It has vanilla absolute. The sweetness within the structure is noticeable and brings a pleasant comfort to what would normally be green and sharp lily-of-the-valley perfume. Especially when it settles, it lingers like a gentle pillow onto your skin.
If you like fresh spring-like fragrances with lily-of-the-valley in the heart, you are going to adore Cavatina. It is a great one in its category. Think about J’Adore by Dior the original, Jour d’Hermes also the OG. Cavatina is not as bright and sparkling. It is actually more powdery, earthy, down to earth type of a frag, leaning towards a mature audience.
As well as Anamcara, Cavatina has the same relaxing tea-like presence. Chamomilla tea if anything. Herbal, healing, comforting. A cup of tea you used to get from your sweet grandma when sick.
Dusita has a signature that effortlessly floats in and out. Cavatina does not fiddle with Asian culture as compared to other Pissara’s scents thus is not as unique as expected. Yet, still, it is a solid scent, a treat when you are sick, a hug from grandma we all need.
While the original Wanted Girl by Azzaro got a lot of attention, its flanker Tonic from 2020 is sadly sitting in the background. I bought Tonic because it is a zesty kiwi refresher for the summer.
It contains not only unusual notes like kiwi but also bamboo. You guessed well, it is the bamboo note that causes problems to some people. It settles down green in a way that it makes some individuals nauseous. It happened to me too when I first tried it. I almost returned it. I recommend letting it sit for a while, it becomes richer. Give it more tries over time. It is a fruity floral green fragrance. Light and fresh. It reminds me of Twist by Miu Miu.
Tonic is sparkling but not groundbreaking. It is the type of scent you imagine Justin Bieber or Selena Gomez to come out with. Celebrityquality, you get what you pay for. For a daily wear, office, gym, doctor’s office …. whenever on those days, when you do not want to make an effort, perfume is an easy, instant pick you up, elevating your presence.
In the end, I still have Wanted Girl Tonic in my perfume wardrobe. I wear it here and there on my white T-shirt and jeans days. We all have and know scents like that. Why not for the God’s sake!
Fleur De Lalita, Anamcara, La Douceur De Siam Amber Floral, Floral Woody Musk, Amber Floral Pissara Umavijani
FLEUR DE LALITA: Sunshine Rays and Exotic Flora
Fleur de Lalita is a stunning bouquet of yellow and white florals. There is also rose added to the mixture. The flowers are grounded with ambrette and vanilla; however, I would not say Fleur De Lalita is a sweet fragrance. As all Dusita perfumes, Fleur de Lalita is elegant, light and airy … easy to wear to any occasion you can think of. The concoction is waxy and creamy yet not heavy at all. It is a great scent to pack to your suitcase when you go on holidays because the yellow florals involved have a touch of exotica. It is an aroma to wear on your skin, clothes all over your body. To smell it from the atomizer does not do it a justice. It is somewhat in the same category as Rose Alexandrie by Armani Prive; nevertheless, Rose Alexadrie is sweeter and younger while Fleur De Lalita is attracting more mature audiences. I wore Fleur De Lalita on my summer vacay in Sousse, Tunisia. I happily reached often for this beautiful bunch of flowers when I was eating out, or just hang out and about near the beach. Pissara knows how to make floral perfumes. As simple as that.
ANAMCARA: Steaming Green Tea with Freshly Cut Oranges
When I first laid my nose on Anamcara I was underwhelmed. I though, okay, yellow florals. Then I looked at the notes I saw it is an orange blossom fragrance. Then, it hit me. Yes, orange blossom but in an mesmerizingly pure realistic form. I have many orange blossom-centric perfumes but Anamcara is different. It is not this bright heady smell but rather powdery and earthy. There is tea and vetiver added. Imagine green tea with hints of sweet oranges – ANAMCARA. Unexpectedly, Anamcara was the one Dusita fragrance that I used the most in Sousse, Tunisia. It went literally from zero to hero. Anamcara means your best friend. The one you turn to when life gets real and serious. It does feel like it. Anamcara brings a familiar comfort, happiness and clear mind. Again, a huge surprise, I did not expect to love it so much. The longer the juice sits, the stronger and sweeter it becomes. Anamcara is not the most popular in the fragrance community. It needs more attention.
LA DOUCEUR DE SIAM: Midnightin ThaiOrchardsand Herb Backyards
Ok, La Douceur De Siam, we could translate it as a dose of Thailand if you wish. The first thing you notice is that it is a sweet, seductive aroma but still in a subtle way. From the atomizer, it was my favorite; nonetheless, soon I realized, it is not a fragrance I would wear during the day. It is a nighttime, date-type of scent and that is why I tended to prioritize Anamcara or Fleur De Lalita on my holidays in Sousse. It smelled sweet, tropical, slightly spicy but to my surprise I found out, it is in fact a rose perfume. It is a gorgeous, addictive scent. To my nostrils, it tends to lean on the younger part of the geographic. It is much much more refined La Vie Est Belle by Lancôme. Or a unique, classier version of Babylonia by Ormonde Jayne. The main difference is and also its strongest selling point, the exotic touch of Asian spices and gardens. If you wear sweet fragrances like a pro, La Douceur De Siam is an interesting gem to add to your collection. I cannot decide which one of the coffret is my fave. I am simply loving them all because they are wonderful in their own ways and each of them serves a different purpose.
Coco Eau de Parfum by Chanel Amber Spicy Jacques Polge
We go back in time to 1984 in order to explore the beauty and class of Coco Eau de Parfum by Chanel. The nickname of Gabrielle Chanel Coco, meaning “darling”, goes back to her past when she was cabaret singing. This is where the daring and provocative side of Coco EDP comes to light. Coco is an elegant timeless classic, and it does go hand in hand with the Chanel philosophy but there is an oriental sensual twist to that.
Coco has the typical busy structure as many other perfumes born in the 80’s. Louds of loud flowers, we have rose, orange blossom, y-lang y-lang, jasmine and mimosa. Many amber female fragrances from that time also contained peach, Coco included. This its where the sweet creaminess comes from.
There are amber, sandalwood, tonka, vanilla and labdanum in the base. We cannot forget about civet which is the byproduct of anal glands of civet cats. The civet smell is ananimalic, dirty ambery aroma which emphases and warms up the scent of flowers. Using civet is banned now for obvious ethical reasons and is produced in a lab.
To give you a better idea of how civet smells, would be trying Shalimar by Guerlain. Here the civet note comes off even more tenaciously. Coco has that musky dirtiness to an extend but that is largely beat by spices used in the concoction like coriander, cloves and opoponax. It is a busy bee hell of a fragrance but somehow it all works astonishingly well together.
The experience of wearing Coco is pretty amazing even in 2024. If you are a very modern light-hearted chick, I recommend at least getting a sample of Coco to make sure you are not missing out.
Flora Gorgeous Jasmine by Gucci Floral Alberto Morillas
Floral Gorgeous Jasmine represents a young waxy green jasmine. The smell is citrusy and bright, reminds me of the scent of pure jasmine green tea. It is an almost childish linear uncomplicated jasmine forward perfume. It smells like a bottle of hydrating shampoo. Not particularly sexy, just clean and happy. It definitely falls into the grab and go optimistic scents category when you want to smell nice without overthinking it. A solid fragrance to middle or high school, running errands etc.
I like my jasmine slightly more indolic, little bit dirtier and mysterious. Flora Gorgeous Jasmine does not satisfy my jasmine cravings in this respect. It is too expected. Nevertheless, to give it some extra points, the lasting power and projection are actually great. The fragrance lingers over its wearer pretty confidently for a significant time. Kudos for that!
So, overall, if you do not have a luminous jolly clear jasmine in your collection and you are a young girl or at least young in heart, FGJ is worth trying. It would be hard to find someone who is repulsed by the aroma.
Miss Dior Parfum (2024) by Dior Amber Floral Francis Kurkdjian and Francois Demachy
The new directors of Dior came out with a brand new version of Miss Dior. This time, it is called Miss Dior Parfum and it is supposed to be an intense fruitchouli perfume. It does not head far away from its brief. It is a strawberry-patchouli-amber fragrance. However, the main difference is that this time, we don’t have rose as the main player but jasmine. Rose gave the older Miss Diors a lightness and freshness while jasmine can perform like a heady dominant white floral.
Miss Dior Parfum is a jammy sweet juice but not exactly juvenile. I find a slight similarity to Prada Paradox or other designer perfumes with jasmine released after 2020.
Do I like it? MD Parfum is not a bad fragrance and I am glad I tested it out; however, I do not feel the need to have a big bottle in my collection. I feel I grew out of Miss Dior’s DNA. I do not find it original anymore.
It is an elegant feminine scent yet I want to move away from designer fragrances produced by big cosmetic houses; and Dior definitely belongs to that category.
alexaperfumes 