Qasamat Morhaf Rasasi: When in Rome …

Qasamat Morhaf by Rasasi
Oriental Floral

Qasamat Morhaf does not jive with me. Or does not jive with me yet. I know that the fragrance has many notes but I mostly smell oud. And the oud is dirty and sweaty. Not the clean oud we find in Oud Silk Mood by MFK. Rose, amber and vanilla pop out too, but oud is still starring. I sprayed it in the room and had to let some crisp air in. It is a powerhouse, one spray and you are done.

A part of the reason why I am sceptical about Qasamat Morhaf is the fact that here in Central Europe we are not used to wearing potent oriental ouds. We definitely have the weather for it, it can get quite cold during winter; however, it is not the tradition here.

If I lived in the United Arab Emirates where I could walk around rocking an oud smell in the dead heat of summer, I would proudly do what the Romans do. But as I live in the countryside surrounded mostly by conservatively thinking people, I am afraid I must return this bottle because it would not get any love at all.

Reve d’Escapade Givenchy

Photo: parfemy-elnino.cz

Reve d’Escapade was a limited edition sold at airports worldwide; so, unfortunately, you can’t get your hands on it any more. Its collection brother Un Air d’Escapade is also discontinued, but at least still available on sites like eBay or Amazon. But it is not quite the same.

I was lucky to be gifted a miniature Reve d’Escapade from my mother in law and absolutely fell in love with this fragrance. It is a beautiful rich peachy rose with woodsy notes and incense. It can be compared to Donna by Trussardi due to its fullness and creaminess; however, Reve d’Escapade is rosier and without white flowers. The mixture is blended splendidly, the perfumer certainly did a great job. As the name suggests, it is truly an escape to a dream. I am devastated I cannot buy this perfume anymore. It could very well be my signature scent.

Creamy thanks to peach, edgy thanks to sparkly rose, warm and mysterious thanks to incense. A masterpiece! 100/100

Truth or Dare Madonna

Photo: theperfumesale.co.uk

Madonna wanted to create a scent that carries a memory of her mother yet in a modern and vampy way. Her perfumer of choice Stephen Nilsen created a mixture of white flowers, together with warm musk, amber and vanilla; and he did well. It smells yummy bubblegummy. If you like tuberose and gardenia softened with vanilla, you are their customer. It’s in the alley of Michael Kors signature; however, doesn’t quite reach Michael’s complexity, sophistication and uniqueness. Nevertheless, with its strong sillage and projection, it makes a solid celebrity fragrance. It’s been out there for a while and now, it’s been discontinued, so if you want a bottle, you’d better harry up.

A sweetened strong Oriental Floral with boldness and nostalgia at the same time. 50/100

Silver Rain La Prairie

Photo: parfemy.heureka.cz

I first tried Silver Rain at the airport duty-free and was blown away. Beautiful! Icy, sparky yet sweet and comforting. Also, an interesting combination of different notes makes up for a very unique scent. It sticks in my mind. I can’t think of any woman who couldn’t wear Silver Rain. It’s so well-rounded and universal it fits any occasion and any kind of lifestyle. It’s a great gift idea on top of that.

Mesmerizing! A simple yet complex, timeless choice. 90/100

Ylang in Gold M. Micallef

Photo: parfumo.net

Ylang is a creamy, coconut and vanilla scent, rich one, out there. I also smell peach in it. I don’t usually wear scents like that so it was quite a challenge to get used to it. It’s been the fourth day I’ve been wearing Ylang and I must admit that the first day was difficult. It was cloying, I didn’t feel at ease.  Today, it’s better and I can appreciate the richness, uniqueness and the holiday vibe. But still, it’s not something I would wear on a regular basis. I reckon it’s more for a special day, all dressed up and with a full makeover. It doesn’t seem to be heavy at the beginning but later on, oh my goodness, the stuff gets musky.

Ylang is a Goddess, a gourmand for an extrovert lady. 30/100

IN2U Calvin Klein

http://www.infoparfum.ro

We can look at IN2U from two different perspectives. It depends if you see a glass half full or half empty. Ok, let’s say that you’re an optimist. The impact of IN2U by Calvin Klein on you will be amazing. You‘ll see the fragrance as adventurous, juicy, refreshing and it’ll fill you with stimulating energy. If you’re a pessimist though, you may not give the scent a proper chance. It’ll be another fresh, citrus scent which doesn’t linger enough. So? Tough luck!

The top notes give the fragrance its typical sourness: red currant leaf, pink grapefruit and Sicilian bergamot. The middle consists of cactus and orchid. Cactus, hmm, interesting. The base is sweet due to vanilla and amber. Red cedar adds a bit of darkness to it. So in the end, it depends on which side of the river you are. I guess that I’m somewhere in the middle, fifty to fifty.

It’s a quality oriental floral where you get what you expect, nothing more nothing less. 50/100

Decadence Marc Jacobs

Photo: http://www.sephora.com

Decadence is a powdery and somewhat dark perfume. The idea is to make a more mature fragrance in comparison to other Marc Jacobs’s treasures like Daisy and co. And it works! It doesn’t evoke youth and joy in any way.

Nonetheless, I’m still confused by Decadence. I can’t recognize which time of the day  Decadence is suitable for. It’s too heavy and powdery for the daytime and too flat and spark-less for the nighttime. I’d say that it’s ultimately a nighttime fragrance, however, It’s missing here an edge or sex appeal.

Decadence represents a change, bold move, ground break. If it was its only purpose, it’d work perfectly fine but the scent doesn’t have this sole goal. As a perfume, it’s practicality from day to day goes steeply down. 20/100

Sexy amber Michael Kors

When I first sniffed sexy amber I thought: “Nice but another woody amber fragrance.” Just to note, I put on only a small quantity, not a huge amount. I didn’t feel it on me during the day, yet I received compliments. So, apparently, other people could smell it which surprised me. I honestly hadn’t though its projectivity was that strong.

Photo: http://www.beautybase.com

The simplicity of this perfume is impressive. It consists of only three notes: amber, jasmine and sandal wood. Obviously,  it’s not that complex, layered and balanced as Allure by Chanel for example; however, we must give Sexy amber extra credit for making a big show with only few actors. You may object that Alien by Thierry Mugler has also a scarce number of notes and still makes a huge impact, and I am not going to argue with you, nevertheless, TM comes across much more aggressive and heavier. I don’t know how Sexy Amber does it, but it turns sweeter on me, inoffensive and very pleasant. But still has the classiness and sensuality that we expect from the name.

To me, it’s a dark horse. You don’t expect much, but get a lot. It’s a Joker which you can secretly have and use it when it’s the most needed. Hmm, I am thinking that I should have this one in my collection because you never know when you need it.

Sexy Amber is a dark horse among perfumes. It doesn’t look complex, different nor extra sexy at the first sniff; nonetheless, you’ll face a huge surprise. It’ s everything you though it was not at first and it’s perfect! 90/100

 

 

The One Dolce&Gabbana

The One opens with tender notes like peach, litchi and lilies. The dry down is sweet yet sophisticated. The One is very popular across countries, among people of different ages and walks of life. It’s known for its femininity, charm, comfort and friendliness.

Photo: http://www.bol.com

My personal experience with The One is also positive and I can see exactly why it has won the many hearts across the globe. However, I also have to point out a few drawbacks. The immense popularity of this fragrance goes hand in hand with its common character. It’s not a perfume which would be exceptionally different or distinctive. It’s a pleasant friend but not a femme fatale. Moreover, its power and longevity is not killing, therefore, we can expect an overall weaker impact.

The One is a lady-like, nice companion. Always decent, sweet at its best and popular among a wide spectrum of audiences. 60/100

Ubar Amouage

I was looking forward to trying something outstanding, different and unique so I decided to go for a niche perfume; however, I soon realized that Ubar Amouage wasn’t the best pick for me.

Photo: http://www.olfactoriastravels.com

Amouage Ubar reminds me of Shalimar – its heaviness and musk is obvious, I can almost smell civet. If I had to choose between the two, I would probably choose Shalimar because it does bring something extraordinary and new to the table. I don’t have the same feeling about Ubar Amouage though.

Ubar Amouage is warm, sexy and very very intense. Unfortunately, it neither fits my personality nor goes with my current state of mind. It doesn’t even fit my taste in perfumes. Even if I try hard, I cannot think of an occasion where I could pull this off.

But wait, if you are looking for something extreme, don’t be afraid to reach for this warm, spicy and glamorous fragrance. You will feel ice melting.

A jewel which heats up a frozen kingdom. For a specific audience only. 10/100