Believe: Sub-Tropical Moist Guava Goodness

Believe Britney Spears
Floral Fruity

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.

Mod Blush: Charge, Buzz and Happy Place

Mod Blush by Ariana Grande
Frank Voelkl
Fruity Floral

Ariana Grande fragrances are hardly a disappointment. Mod Blush is a brand new release and it has a resemblance to Grande’s first perfume Ari. They are both sweet but where Ari is gourmand sweet from marshmallows, the sweetness of Mod Blush is fruity and fresh.

It is an everyday pleasant smell for a chic young girl. And I am in my mid thirties and I like to wear it too. Why not! It gives me good vibes. I wore it the other day when I went to the mall and it was perfect. Okay, it is not a fragrance I would wear to a meeting to impress my business partner but as we know in the fragrance community, there is time and place for everything, and perfume especially.

With regards the notes, there is passionfruit in the opening which is quite prominent. Passionfruit is usually yuck for me, but here, it is more fresh than creamy with no bad aftertaste and I enjoy it a lot. So Mod Blush has a beautiful sweet fresh fruitiness, the next thing I notice is gorgeous white pillowy musk. A soft cloud floating around looking pretty relaxed.

Can Mod Blush be a signature scent? Maybe not, but it is a fragrance that makes you smile and feel good.

Perfume Empties 2024: 30+ bottles

Dear follower,

thank you so much for your support. I appreciate it a lot. I have prepared the first bunch of perfume empties from 2024 for you. You know I do not take perfume purchases lightly and I am committed to use up my beloved fragrance bottles. If I seriously do not like a scent, I either return it or re-sell it as soon as possible. The most of my perfumes I am using and enjoying my life with them. Fragrance makes makes me feel alive!

Here, on my blog and YouTube channel, you can explore the journey with me. If you want to see Etat Libre d’Orange, Lancôme, Hermes, Dior and Ormonde Jayne and much more, keep on watching …

Eilish: Baking Cookies Before Leaving to Party?

Eilish by Billie Eilish
Amber Vanilla
Steve DeMercado

We cannot talk about Eilish’s first fragrance without mentioning the bottle. It represents a sleek female silhouette of the upper body in an amber metallic colour. It is quite an art piece that you can use as decor in your living room without actually touching the perfume. In press coverage, she reveals that the bottle design celebrates human beings. It shows her favourite part of her body and her favourite shade of colour. She highlights repeatedly that the juice inside does not have a gender. It is for everyone who enjoys it. Ok, that was an intro to the design, let’s get to the actual scent.

It is a cozy interesting vanilla smell, gourmand without being sticky sweet. I can picture myself wearing Eilish during fall and winter staying home watching TV. Relax and rewind. Exactly what I strive for right now. Spices, wood and vanilla.

Sometimes it simply smells like cookies in an oven, other times I feel strange unspoken sophistication. Intriguing. I am undecided right now. Would you wear Eilish only at home or would you go clubbing with it? Let me know. I think it is a likeable scent with a hint of sex appeal too. Eilish is a fragrance at least worth checking out. Her number 2 is on my wishlist.

Thank U Next 2.0: Innocent Pretty and Likeable

Thank U Next 2.0 by Ariana Grande
Floral Fruity

Because I enjoyed Thank U Next the original as well as Ariana Grande fragrances in general, I had to get Thank U Next 2.0 too. It was only available in Douglas Perfumery and luckily was pretty affordable as celebrity fragrances are.

Juicy fruity musk. That was my first impression. It has prominent fruity aspects. I would be lying if I said I smelled a particular type of fruit. It is all underlined by a musky sweetness.

Definitely a pleasant floral fruity which has a bit of depth. Again Ariana Grande proves to offer something more than just an average celebrity scent. It is fluffy and comfortable to wear, and sweet but not sweet like candy to the point that a 35+ woman would be embarrassed to wear it. It is delightfully candied, not cloyingly sugary.

It is quite a departure from the original. The juice in the pink heart bottle is more gourmand with coconut, thicker and a tiny bit more unique. The transparent – pastel purple bottle is more innocent and pretty, mass-pleasing. I happily own both but If I had to choose one, I would go for the original because it is a more interesting dense long-lasting scent.

Midnight Fantasy: Dark Fruit Salad with Vanilla

Midnight Fantasy by Britney Spears
Floral Fruity
Caroline Sabas

I cannot believe this perfume was launched the same year I got my high school diploma – in 2006. It was released only one year after the mega-successful original Fantasy. Unlike me, many Britney fans did not sleep on it. Shamefully, I got my nose on it only recently. I am sure I have the reformulated version as it is not as strong and long-lasting as other perfume addicts describe; and most importantly, there are no crystals around the neck of the bottle.

Anyway, the juice itself is reminiscent of Christina Aquilera’s scent from 2007. Fruity vanilla. Except Midnight Fantasy is juicier, projects more and lasts longer. There is a fruity top containing mainly cherry and plum, a touch of flowers barely detectable and then vanilla, amber and musk.

It is good for what it is. Designed for a younger audience, suits young wearers pretty well. As you would expect, men like it on women. It is simple, sweet, and likeable.

I do not necessarily see Midnight Fantasy as a night-time or a clubbing fragrance. It is not very potent. You can put it on out and about anytime. I will definitely use up my 30ml bottle but I am not planning on repurchasing. I think that Britney’s fragrances had their time; and unfortunately, so does Britney. If she changed her style, music and produced more sophisticated perfumes, it would be a different story. I think there is still a chance.

Thank U, Next: Rafaellos, Macarons … Anybody?

Thank U, Next by Ariana Grande
Floral Fruity Gourmand
Jérome Epinette

Thank U, Next is not a typical celebrity fragrance as it is unique enough to position itself in the designer perfumery and it has a decent lasting power and projection on top of that.

It is a sweet girly scent but not quite completely; as a result, a mature woman can wear it as well. It has this cold decadent coconut note that I personally really enjoy. A similar thick “Rafaello” coconut can be experienced in Crystal Noir by Versace. The coconut is the serious mysterious part of the creation while macarons account for sweetness, fun and youth.

The aroma manages to smell like pickles here and there. It is not prominent. The “pickle” smell just pops up unexpectedly every now and then. It does not bother me though. I still enjoy the scent and I like pickles anyway 🙂

The juice definitely performs better outside when it is cold. It is when the macarons come out. I think that Ariana Grande took a chance and created something unique inside out – the juice is a stunner and the packing is pretty cool as well.

Ari: Super-duper Wearable, Pretty and Voguish

Ari by Ariana Grande
Floral Fruity Gourmand

Who would not know Ari?! Loving that pom-pom! It is the first perfume by pop artist Ariana Grande from 2015. A fresh raspberry marshmallow smell. Because of the soft marshmallow effect, it was pretty original on the market back then. There were fragrances containing marshmallows; however, Ari is not a try-hard and is neither overly sweet nor fluffy. It has the right amount of sweetness and freshness at the same time.

Young girls Ariana Grande fans were the target audience of this fragrance; nonetheless, anybody can shine in it. It is the girl next door scent, your second skin all year round. Even if you do not like sweet fragrances it will be difficult for you to dislike the scent. In this respect, it ticks the celebrity perfume box; however, so as the designer stuff. The bottle and its juice are gorgeous somewhat cute as well as stylish. Be careful about where the sprayer is pointed though because I sprayed my pom-pom by mistake. Shame on me!

Miami Glow JLo: The Summer Spirit of A Vibrant City

Miami Glow by Jennifer Lopez
Floral Fruity
Caroline Sabas

With Miami Glow, we go back to 2005. The scent means to represent the soul of the city of Miami – shopping, music, beach, good looking people, fun, love. The funny thing is that I visited Miami in the year 2005. I loved the vibrant city and yes, the eau de toilette has the spirit of the things mentioned above.

It has a juicy and creamy top with passionfruit, coconut milk and pink grapefruit. I am not huge on coconut but this milk form does it for me. It feels like a small watered down dosage of coconut. Not the thick sweet heavy material we know. The mid is floral and not very dominant. The aroma quickly changes to its base notes – vanilla and musk. It is a slightly sweet slightly soapy and clean floral fruity with a hint of coconut. Something that I definitely going to enjoy during summer or on a beach. Welcome to my collection.

Delicate Sandalwood Heaven called Adam Levine

Adam Levine by Adam Levine
Amber Floral
Yann Vasnier

Adam Levine is the frontman of the American pop-rock band Maroon 5 and this time comes with a spicy herbal woody fragrance for women. It takes us by surprise. Not only it is inexpensive, but also incredibly unique; and most importantly, smells divine. By unique I mean it is not a safe blind buy and I would not call the perfume exactly mass appealing.

It has spices and marigold in the opening. Marigold brings beautiful aromatic and herbal qualities. Then it contains a huge portion of Australian sandalwood which provides us with softness, almost powderiness in the composition. The base is sweet and soft with vanilla and benzoin. It is long-wearing and people can smell it on you yet it somehow belongs to the inoffensive category. It can star in the office as well as at a concert. I reckon due to its creaminess and delicacy. It is for women but men can easily wear it too, from my point of view. Thanks to Adam Levine, I have learnt that I really enjoy wearing sandalwood. Cheers!

A spicy warm sandalwood celebrity scent. Extraordinary and versatile.