Fragrances -By Kilian - Back to Black
ajblondie 1/6/2012 8:50:00 AM
I knew that when By Kilian did a very generous sample giveaway on Facebook and I was a lucky recipient that I would love at least one of the fragrances in my sample pouches, back to black was the one for me. It is sweet, very sweet at the start, which I did not expect to like, this is then tempered down with the swirls of cherry tobacco smoke and vanilla, this is the bit that I love (I am and always have been a non smoker but I can still appreciate a tabacco note in a fragrance, after all, its only a plant) I admit that the perfume seems to be on the expensive side but at least you can buy a re-fill for half the price which is not only very economical but environmentally friendly as well. I did buy the travel bottle (when you have as many perfumes as I do 30mls is actaully a good amount) and should I ever use it all up I can just buy the re-fill, you see I can totally justify the expense. Back to Black for me has above average sillage and lasts the full day.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Fragrances -Le Labo - Vanille 44
ajblondie 11/27/2011 1:21:00 PM
I am still kicking myself that I ordered a sample of this perfume, £6 plus the fact that I could only buy it during November should have sounded very loud alarm bells in my head but oh no I was sucked in with the exclusive only through November pr that le labo use. I sprayed and did exactly what I told myself I should not do and that was fall in love with, I am not a lover of out and out vanillas, for example l'artisan is way too vanilla for me, Le Labo have managed to do something really special with their vanilla, it twists and turns as you wear it, sometimes there is a sweet almost creamy floral aspect to it then next there is the woods and smoky aspect, always with a faint underlying creamy vanilla. I then checked the prices, as I only have 3 more days if I want to buy it, I wanted to cry but I still want it, maybe the small 15ml bottle will keep me happy for now.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Fragrances -Ormonde Jayne - Frangipani Absolute
ajblondie 7/15/2011 5:33:00 AM
This was the first fragrance that I tried from my Sample box from Ormonde Jayne as I felt from reading the compostions that I would like this fragrance the most. I will not lie, intially it was not love, but only because I expected something more tropical and more creamy, what I got in the initial spray was fruit, or limes to be precise, I am not a fruity kind of fragrance girl so I dismissed it and was ready to move onto the next sample, then I got a 'wow you smell good' from BF, which almost never happens, his comments usually in the line of you smell like an old lady to that smells like camel pee, when trying other samples, so when he said I smelt nice I decided to try again. The second day that I tried the sample, I got the hit of limes again but it was a lovely sunny day so the limes were very befitting, this dried down to a gorgeous sparkling floral tempered with the hint of fruit but not overbearing. It is most definitely a sunny day perfume but the best bit is that no matter what, this perfume makes you smile. This is second on my list of purchases from Ormonde Jayne, having being kocked off the top spot by Ormonde Woman. The only bugbear that I have is that it does not last as long as I would like it to but that will not stop me from going ahead and ordering a bottle.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Fragrances -Ormonde Jayne - Ormonde Woman parfum
ajblondie 7/15/2011 5:15:00 AM
This was the last sample that I tried from my Ormonde Jayne sample box, as reading the composition I did not think I was going to like this fragrance, in fact I had decided on buying Frangipani, followed by Tiare then Tolu. that was until I tried Ormonde Woman, wow this had me at hello when I first sprayed it, it was exactly the fragrance that I had in my head that I wanted to own (but did not think I would ever find) I wanted floral but with a woody background, check, I wanted unusual, check, I wanted sexy but not overpowering, check, I also wanted creamy skin scent, yet again check. My only bugbear is that Ormonde Jayne perfumes do not last as long as I would like them to (3 hours and still going strong for Ormonde Woman but do not expect it to last past 5 hours) So this has now increased the amount of Ormonde Jayne perfumes that I would like to own but this one is definitely going to be the first purchase, now where are my credit cards???
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Fragrances -Penhaligon's - Artemisia
ajblondie 7/5/2011 6:42:00 AM
This is a nice pretty 'safe' floral, it is not ground breaking in any way but is a fragrance that you could easily wear every day and not annoy people. The dry down is quite sweet and creamy, the SA was also wearing this perfume and on her I could detect a a slight citrus note but sadly on me this was not present. Is it bottle worthy, for me personally I don't think it is, as I have many florals that I would choose over this one.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Fragrances -Penhaligon's - Amaranthine
ajblondie 7/5/2011 3:49:00 AM
I really wanted to love this fragrance after reading so many reviews on it but sadly it is not a perfume that I can pull off, It would be like doing the walk of shame every day that you wear this perfume, I would love to be this 'bad' girl, who doesn't? but I m just not her. I can however appreciate this perfume for the masterpieve that it is, the dry down for example is stunning, a woody musky note that I just had to keep sniffing, I can strongly smell the banana leaf in this perfume but mixed with the musk it gives it that 'bad' girl skanky edge, I would still recommend everyone to try this perfume but I suspect there are only a priviledged few who can actually wear it.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Fragrances -Serge Lutens - Un Lys
ajblondie 5/13/2011 7:55:00 AM
Firstly a big thanks to other MUA reviewers who rated this perfume, I bought this perfume based on the reviews given without smelling a sample beforehand (which considering its E130.00 shipped is a little bit stupid) the other deciding factor was it is not available in a retail shop over here so has to be ordered from Paris, which to my mind makes it that bit more special and exclusive and I would not find every Tom, Dick and Harry wearing the same perfume. I have to say that I love this perfume, it is exactly what it describes and that is an intense Lilly fragrance, I can also smell the green lushness in the dry down but generally, whilst wearing this fragrance I get lillies all day. I did not pick up the violet that others have smelt in this fragrance but I do not claim to have a sophisticated 'nose' I do get the vanilla though, in the last stages of the fragrance. This is exactly the type of fragrance that I love which is a beautiful creamy floral fragrance. I could only get this fragrance in the exclusive bottle over here which is a dab bottle, this is different for me as I have preferred to use spray fragrances for years, however I love the dab bottle as you can be more precise where you put the perfume. The only downside being you can not spray and walk into the fragrance. Would I go to such expense and hassle again to have this perfume, yes without hesitation, I could happily now live with only 2 fragrances in my life (if I really had to) and it would be this and Serge Lutens Datura noir.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Fragrances -Serge Lutens - Douce Amere
ajblondie 4/11/2011 11:03:00 AM
Another really unusual fragrance from Serge Lutens, I did not expect to like this one but I really really loved it, I could not stop smelling my wrist and was gutted when my tester ran out especially as I cant seem to get this perfume in the UK unless I order it from the Serge Lutens site. I get the sweet and bitter, I especially get the absinthe which is what I thought I would not like about it but I actually love it. I will be buying this fragrance and biting the bullet to get it from the Serge Lutens website.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Fragrances -Serge Lutens - A La Nuit
ajblondie 4/11/2011 10:49:00 AM
The Jasmine in this one is very evident and whilst I do tend to like floral perfumes, I find there is a very fine line between a great floral and smelling like an old lady, this one for me personally was just too reminiscent of what my Gran used to wear years ago. I did however toy with buying this one, it was a toss up between this and nuit de cellophane, I chose the latter because it was just that little bit more unusual. I love the Serge Lutens range because not everyone wears them, a lot of my friends have not even heard of them, which means I will always smell differently to eveyone else which is far better than smelling the same.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Fragrances -Serge Lutens - Nuit de Cellophane
ajblondie 4/11/2011 10:41:00 AM
What an unusual perfume this is, on the plus side you will not smell like anybody else whilst wearing this perfume, it is a long way off any mainstream perfume I have ever smelt. The description of night flowers smelt through the cellophane is a really good description of this perfume. The intial spritz, I got the night flowers and it was a gorgeous creamy floral which is typical of the types of perfume I would go for, as it progresses to the dry down you get the cellophane smell coming through stronger than the floral, this is where the perfume becomes very unusual. I still like this perfume despite the cellophane smell and I did buy a full bottle of it, I just dont think I would buy it again, I would still choose Datura Noir over this one. As with all Serge Lutens perfume, they are very much love em or hate em perfumes, they are all a little bit different and they all work differently of different people, I do love going and smelling them all though as each one always has unexpected elements to it.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Fragrances -Serge Lutens - Datura Noir
ajblondie 4/11/2011 10:26:00 AM
I have been searching for a perfume for many years now that I could fall in love with, I may just have found it with Datura Noir. As with most Serge Luten perfumes they are a little bit more unusual than mainstream perfumes and you either love them or hate them depending on your skin chemistry. On me Datura Noir is a gorgeous creamy floral, I imagine a warm day with beautiful white flowers, a hint of almond but not overpowering on me. It sits well on my skin from the initial spray through to the mellow creamy dry down. Maybe I have become addicted to the deadly Datura flower which is said to be a hallucinogenic, whatever it is it keeps me coming back for more. I imagine that this will be my number 1 perfume for many years to come, although I will keep searching for others.
3 out of 3 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Liquid -Chanel - Vitalumiere Aqua
ajblondie 2/17/2011 8:56:00 AM
I have searched for many years to find a foundation that I love as much as this one, I have combination skin which is a nightmare as my skin seems to absorb foundations within my t zone, not so with this product, it stays put all day which is suprising considering it is a light to medium coverage. The packaging is a bit cheap looking which is unusual for Chanel but at least you can take this plastic little bottle anywhere with you and not worry about breaking it. I will be buying this again once it has run out and I have recommended it to all my friends.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Lip Gloss -NARS - Belize
ajblondie 2/17/2011 8:47:00 AM
I have to say that I will be buying this colour once it has run out as I love it, it is a fairly neutral pinky colour which really suits my skin tone. On the down side it does smell funny and if you lick your lips a lot, it tastes like it smells. On the plus side, it does seem to last quite well for a gloss, I wore it to a ball and I was quite suprised to see that every time I went to re-touch my make up there was still some on my lips.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No