Balenciaga • Florabotanica • Fragrances

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*TOP REVIEWER* rosbergs3 on 5/13/2013 5:24:00 PM more reviews by rosbergs3

Age: 44-55   Skin: Normal   Hair: Brown   Eyes: Hazel    

I'm surprised it has taken me so long to write a review of this stupendous fragrance. First the bottle. It is absolutely stunning with the pretty colors and stem inside. Florabotanica is absolutely awesome. It is a "different kind of floral". I remember a few years ago Clinique had a perfume out and its tagline was "a different kind of floral". Well Florabotanica really is a different kind of floral. It's not a bridal bouquet of beautiful and it's not a vase of flowers that are for mother's day. It is itself. It is very floral and very grassy at the same time. Florabotanica is like pulling over on the interstate and walking through a wildflower project that has been planted by the state. You smell the wonderful flowers, grasses, maybe some hay too. I also detect what might be vetiver as well. It is very strong and lasts and lasts and gives awesome sillage. This might even have worked as a men's scent too. To me it turns quite masculine when it has been on the skin for a while. I will always have a bottle of this perfume in my medicine cabinet. Job well done Balenciago....bravo. You really outdid yourself with Florabotanica.

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*TOP REVIEWER* Halloqueen on 4/21/2013 2:02:00 AM more reviews by Halloqueen

Age: 44-55   Skin: Dry, Fair   Hair: Brown   Eyes: Green    

I wanted to try this for ages, so I just caved and bought the small bottle untested. I was not disappointed. This is a unique scent, and not run of the mill. I think it's success depends largely on body chemistry, as I can put it on, and it's slightly different on me each time. The main note that I get from this is cannabis...not unlike the same note in Cannabis Rose (Fresh) however Florabotanica is much more complex. I really don't get much rose from it, and what I do get is a fresh cold rose, with an almost citrus feel to it. There is also a deeper note, maybe patch? that lingers. I didn't think it was powdery at all although some people automatically think "powder" when smelling rose notes The bottle is unique, and the floral pattern on the box exactly illustrates the "haunted forest" feel of this scent. Try it and give it some time to work for you.

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juliastockholm on 3/5/2013 4:04:00 AM more reviews by juliastockholm

Age: 30-35   Skin: Normal, Fair, Warm   Hair: Brunette, Straight, Fine   Eyes: Green    

I have tried this on in the shop a few times, trying to convince myself that I really like it. I want to like it. I don't really know why, but I just really wanted to get along with it.
I don't. On my skin, it smells like the eighties - not like eighties perfume, but like a plant everyone's mum kept on their windowsill back in the day. I love the smell of that plant and always have about a million of them outside in the summer, but I just can't smell like it myself.

I guess I will still try it a few more times, but I know it doesn't work on me. Probably won't buy this, but I hope other people will, so I can smell it on them.

Actually am not a huge fan of the bottle, I think it looks like its trying to hard.

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fabulousjason on 2/27/2013 12:55:00 PM more reviews by fabulousjason

Age: 36-43   Skin: Combination   Hair: Brown   Eyes: Green    

Beautiful bottle. I loved this perfume initially, but it really smelled cheap and powdery after a couple of hours.

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*TOP REVIEWER* fivezero on 2/15/2013 10:24:00 PM more reviews by fivezero

Age: 30-35   Skin: Combination, Medium, Warm   Hair: Black, Straight, Medium   Eyes: Black    

I love the bottle, but the perfume just does not work for me at all. The first blast is hairspray, with a particular cheap synthetic-smelling note that is especially bad and makes me want to choke. All of this tones down a bit after about 10 minutes, but it's still there and the rest of the vaguely floral fragrance is definitely not worth suffering for. Staying power on my wrist was about 3 hours.

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Angelsue on 2/11/2013 8:43:00 PM more reviews by Angelsue

Age: 56 & Over   Skin: Combination, Fair-Medium   Hair: Red   Eyes: Green    

Received a sample of this from Nordstrom and just put in on a few minutes ago. To me this is Aromatics Elixir all over again, but in a somewhat better modern way. It seems to have the same herbal note in it. I do not think I would spend money on this one.This is not for everyone, and definitely not an "everyday" scent. Try it first.

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*TOP REVIEWER* Arachne on 2/4/2013 12:16:00 AM more reviews by Arachne

Age: 44-55   Skin: Combination   Hair: Brunette   Eyes: Brown    

Florabotanica by Balenciaga was love at first smell. I walked into Nordstrom, sprayed a little, walked out, walked around and after 10 minutes, I told my husband I had to have it. We walked right back into Nordstrom and he bought me the 1.7 oz. The sales associate also gifted me with 2 adorable minis, so thank you Nordstrom for always being so generous. Okay, onto the review. OMG. This is gorgeous. At first sniff it was a little sharp, green and I got a lot of warm, dry woods, must have been the vetiver. The Turkish rose lingers softly in the background. It's slightly powdery in the dry down and the longer I wear it, the more I smell the hemp, which totally has me swooning. I find this wears close to me, but it's not a skin scent, I had a lovely little cloud around me for a good few hours. I literally still smelled it on me the next morning, so it lasts a pretty long time. Florabotanica is a very unique scent. I have nothing else in my collection that smells anything like this and it doesn't remind me of anything I've smelled before. The packaging is too cute. Overall, I'm in love and this might make it into my top 10 fragrances...at the moment.

Update, sadly this started to give me a headache.

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JadoreNelle on 1/19/2013 11:21:00 PM more reviews by JadoreNelle

Age: Unknown   Skin: Combination, Tan, Neutral   Hair: Brunette, Curly, Medium   Eyes: Hazel    

Smelled this and something was very familiar about it. So I smelled and smelled... what was it? Then things got strange. Was it the smell of baby wipes? No. Scented plastic diaper bags? No. Then it hit me. This smells just like scented tampons. It wasnt a bad scent but I dont want to smell of tampons. Smell the boxes of scented tampons at the store. You will see, it smells like tampons... only a bit stronger. Tampons have a scent that is faint, while this is the same scent in a full on perfume. Not for me.

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starryeyes82 on 12/10/2012 3:19:00 PM more reviews by starryeyes82

Age: 30-35   Skin: Sensitive, Fair-Medium   Hair: Brunette   Eyes: Brown    

I really love this perfume. I get mint, rose, and green notes - the mint is what sets this fragrance apart from other rose perfumes and injects it with freshness. The scent lasts a long time on my skin and hair, as well as my clothes. And I get a ton of compliments when I wear it, even from some strangers. The bottle is gorgeous and so is the packaging. I will definitely be buying this again!

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*TOP REVIEWER* stls on 12/6/2012 5:40:00 AM more reviews by stls

Age: 19-24   Skin: Acne-prone, Fair, Neutral   Hair: Blond, Curly, Medium   Eyes: Green    

Florabotanica is at least unusual. Not complicated but still charming. It's the smell of an aromatic green herb garden, very refreshing. Personally, I don't get the rose. I can smell fresh herbs, a touch of peppery carnation as time goes by and a hint of vetiver. Silage and longevity are reasonable but I would prefer them stronger. If you're looking for a modern fresh and energizing fragrance consider this one.

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knappjen on 11/17/2012 6:00:00 PM more reviews by knappjen

Age: 36-43   Skin: Acne-prone, Fair   Hair: Brown   Eyes: Blue    

Loved this at first - carnation, rose, and a kind of bright grassy fragrance (the mint?) balanced with some pepper. But after wearing for awhile, all I smelled was cheap hotel soap and bug spray, and it gave me a headache. The scent remains strong even after dry down. I normally wear Stella, so I love rose and amber, but am not getting the best of those notes in this fragrance.

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*TOP REVIEWER* Sjess on 11/17/2012 12:27:00 PM more reviews by Sjess

Age: 30-35   Skin: Dry, Fair-Medium, Warm   Hair: Red, Wavy, Coarse   Eyes: Green    

Have received a sample of this... I do love it, but it really smells like Very Irresistible by Givenchy IMHO... That is my all-time favorite fragrance, so that explains why I also like this one. But it is just too similar to justify buying a full size...

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*TOP REVIEWER* yankeerose on 11/11/2012 8:44:00 PM more reviews by yankeerose

Age: 44-55   Skin: Normal, Fair-Medium   Hair: Blond   Eyes: Other    

I received a trial.... Its defintely floral, I can also smell some type of herb mix , it has this cool hippie vibe to it. I also smell a bit of mint,but somewhere in this mix is pepper, I'm really loving that little surprise. This is not a cheap smelling fragrance, its meant for a young woman with discriminating tastes in scents. You really need to understand sublte nuances to really appreciate it. If your looking for a pure floral, or sweet in your face scent, this is not the fragrance for you. If you are someone who understands that fragrance changes as its being worn, and can appreciate those changes as they develope, this will delight you.

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babydumpling on 11/11/2012 8:29:00 PM more reviews by babydumpling

Age: 44-55   Skin: Acne-prone, Dark   Hair: Black   Eyes: Brown    

overall this is 1 of the best fragrances for 2012. I love all the notes in it, it's fresh lovely and lasting in a Flowery bomb!

I get compliments from everyone everywhere I go.Once it dries down, it is the best fragrance in subtlety. I put it in my elbow crease at night and in the morning u can still smell it. It is very pricey but a little goes a long way.

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merveilles on 10/29/2012 7:59:00 PM more reviews by merveilles

Age: 25-29   Skin: Oily, Fair-Medium   Hair: Blond   Eyes: Green    

It's the same with gucci flora.But one note is make this more powerful than gucci i don't know which note is..It stays in hours

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rena10 on 10/22/2012 1:22:00 AM more reviews by rena10

Age: 30-35   Skin: Combination, Tan, Warm   Hair: Brown, Wavy, Fine   Eyes: Brown    

tried this for 2 days....fresh at first but the drydown is horrible! cheap , synthetic green grassy dirt scent....did not like it...my bf said...its not sexy and it stinks....very very cheap smelling! drug store perfume quality....hated it!

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coolfreshair on 10/21/2012 7:14:00 PM more reviews by coolfreshair

Age: 25-29   Skin: Dry   Hair: Brown   Eyes: Brown    

This has definitely grown on me. I was a little disappointed initially as I'd felt it was very similar to their Paris scent the previous year with a little extra mixed in. It was quite strong on initial spray and went through quite a few different notes until it dried down into a pretty more subtle scent.

Although I still feel it is reminiscent of Paris it is definitely it's own scent. It is more youthful with a bit more fun. It's like the smell of a beautiful rose without the overpowering rosiness (if that makes any sense). It's a very fragrant floral and definitely has lasting power but not in an unpleasant way. It's an amazing clean and fresh scent without being horribly 'green'.

I've found that this goes through a range of different notes until it finally settles into a beautiful slightly creamy flowery smell whilst still maintaining its freshness.

I would wear this as an anytime-of-the-day scent and it could quite possibly become my signature perfume (if I wasn't so fickle when it came to perfumes).

I not so sure about the name "Florabotanica" It's not very alluring, but I'll forgive it this time. A least it smells better than it sounds.

I'm very glad I gave this a chance before condemning it to the "boring" category.

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*TOP REVIEWER* fabulyss on 10/9/2012 6:08:00 PM more reviews by fabulyss

Age: 25-29   Skin: Acne-prone, Fair   Hair: Brown   Eyes: Blue    

I had been waiting to try this for weeks! It still isn't at my Nordstrom or Saks, but I finally tracked it down at Neiman's. There were no ads or promotional materials, it was just tucked away in a corner. The bottle was less impressive in person than I was hoping; it came off very 80s to me. The scent itself immediately reminded me of ivory soap. Not even an expensive soap, just plain ol' Ivory. To call this perfume green or verdant is a joke. I didn't detect the faintest whiff of pepper or mint (the ingredients I was most excited about). I might recommend this to someone who loves soapy clean fragrances, it certainly is subtle and wearable; however, it's way too overpriced considering it's lack of originality. Perhaps this reflects the minimalism seen in Balenciaga's latest collections, but without the intellect and complexity behind it.

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*TOP REVIEWER* nathaliez on 9/28/2012 6:00:00 PM more reviews by nathaliez

Age: 44-55   Skin: Normal, Fair-Medium   Hair: Blond   Eyes: Blue    

This is very unique, it is a big floral, with a certain zest because of the mint note, but the floral notes are very fresh and vibrant
Although I am not big on carnations, in Florabotanica they aren't smelling oldish or dusty.
The scent is a typical Balenciaga, with a classic undertone yet a surprising twist
It isn't what I usually wear, yet it intrigues me!!

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KayBella on 9/18/2012 5:09:00 PM more reviews by KayBella

Age: 36-43   Skin: Sensitive, Fair-Medium, Cool   Hair: Blond, Wavy, Fine   Eyes: Green    

I have been anxiously awaiting this fragrance because it contains some of my most favorite notes….carnation, mint, rose and amber. I also am intrigued by Jacques Polges, one of the perfumers that created this scent. This fragrance is not aimed at my demographic, but for me, it’s something completely wearable (I am, as the French so kindly say, a woman of a certain age).

This first blast is very peppery, and smells like a kinder, gentler version (but not much kinder or gentler) of Montale Red Aoud. I love it. It’s LOUD. But it starts to quiet down fairly quickly. As time passes, the mint and carnation notes become more prominent, and actually work together fairly well. Then the basenotes come through, I get floral (rose) and amber. And the basenotes last and last. I really like this perfume, but it is different. It’s not for smelling like a nice, pretty girl. It’s….interesting. And I think it takes a certain aplomb to pull this one off. Test before you buy, definitely not for everyone

Notes: mint, carnation, rose, caladium leaves, amber, vetiver

I wouldn't buy again, but only because I have been hoarding perfume forever, and should never buy anymore perfume again as long as I live....maybe that will be next year's resolution. :-)


EDIT: I am bumping this up to 5 lippies. It has really grown on me. Even my 13 year old daughter will tell me that I smell good when I wear this. And believe me, teenagers can be a tough crowd!!

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