KENZO

It is very nice

Adorable little weirdo scent that I hated myself for purchasing, but ended up loving it for many years after. On a tester strip, it was totally a floral, a very good one. On skin, it was a LOT more powdery. Powdery, soapy and creamy notes don't bother me, but if you dislike powdery scents steer clear of this one as Firmenich's Muscenone makes this the mother of powders. That coupled with Parma violet and cyclamen aldehydes (lilly of the valley here) and it's a combo of all things despised by many. The reason I hated it at first was a distinct synthetic, almost plastic scent, that also reminded me of cheap perfumes and sprays we sniffed as teenagers in hopes we could pull it off as an affordable alternative to actual perfume. Thankfully, it diminishes over time, the opoponax is very softening here and warms what would otherwise be a cold composition, leaving a fluffy aura of freshly showered scent. like someone below, I too have a naive spouse who thinks this is just how I smell after a shower. I have seen him sniffing and borrowing my products before finally asking where that nice smell comes from. I get compliments wearing it, and someone said I smell like a kind mom in the best way ( not one to suggest motherhood is incompatible with seductiveness at all, but this isn't a seductive scent. If you're looking for a sexy scent, keep walking, this is more on the innocent, clean side for sure. I don't think it smells like Johnson's baby powder but many reviewers do and I wonder if that's not where the kind mom comment came from). I was surprised because I find the scent tricky, walking the line between bothersome and great, which Kenzo often does for me, but this one made me an addict nevertheless. The only time I didn't get rid of a perfume with the dreaded synthetic, plastic note. However, I have heard of people who think powdery parma violet smells like plastic doll heads, and a surprising number of people are nuts about the scent of doll heads. You could sell me iodine and alcohol disinfectant for a lot more than it's worth so I ain't creeped out, if you want you some barbie head in your perfume, sniff this one and knock your little heart out, you cute weirdo. Be warned that this is freakishly strong. Projects a mile and lasts until your next shower (pretty sure it would last forever if it wasn't being periodically washed off, it's sorcery), the most sparing way you can come up with to apply will be just right. The bottle is a mix of tacky, cheap, cute, artsy, pretty, elegant, testing me just like the juice, but winning me over in the end. Looks precarious but doesn't topple over btw. My bottle seems like it'll last until the grave since I apply so little, but I don't know if I would repurchase if I ran out. There's lots of stuff out there to try. But it would be interesting to smell it again many years after not using it. NOT a safe blind buy or gift! NOT for the sensitive, prone to allergies and headaches, or anyone turned off by shower and powder scents. I'm frankly stunned I've kept using it and got hooked, and even more stunned it got good reactions when I wore it. I think applying a minuscule amount is key to making this work, though even so I still prefer not to wear it at work or in crowded places. One to try though, as if you like it, it's an unexpected big like. softens me when I'm stressed too. The only reason I took a lippie off is because it's appeal is so subjective. It can enchant and annoy at the same time, like the impossibly fluffy cat you love but who'll growl like satan if you pet it at the wrong time and dote on you two hours later. And if you're not a cat per...err.. kenzo flower person, you'll want to chase it off with a broom and ship it to your worst enemy. Me, I like a crazy cat.

This one is hard to make my mind up about. At first, I kind of hated it. The spicy opening of liquorice and cumin smelled terrible to me, like solvent, thinner, something my partner uses on his tools, or maybe wood finish. There's mandarin there that also smells like a workshop chemical at first. This settles after a good few minutes (quite long. Wouldn't spritz this on right before leaving the house). Then it's warm spice. I can see why some say it's like the inside of a spice cabinet, it is. It's christmasy too, perhaps the mandarin combines with the spice that way, although it's not a very distinctive mandarin to me, like when you peeled one after another from those big bags on sale every winter as a child. But it's as close to Christmas mandarin spice as you get in a fragrance, that I know. I can also see where mentions of christmas candles come from. The base reveals a convincing, nice amber note to me, then blends into warm milky spice, chai latte as some said. The liquorice note refuses to go away almost until the end, and I really don't like liquorice. I enjoy the close to the skin base notes most in this perfume. The sillage and projection are middle to a bit stronger than average to me, not as monumental as fragrantica reviews had me expecting, though it's possible my bottle is reformulated. a bit strong (i do reapply, and I don't with most fragrances, but that might be because I'm still trying to smell whatever propelled people to call it a life changing Ropion masterpiece), but not a beast like Chopard Cashmere imo. I wouldn't blind buy this one and don't think i'll repurchase, but if you can get a mini or a swap and like spice, it might be worth a try. I'll continue to use it in hopes I can "figure it out" and because, despite some aspects of it being bothersome to me, I've noticed I miss it when i'm not wearing it. The warm quality makes it a potential comfort scent. Doesn't really smell like perfume, it's more organic kind of spice. I think this one takes getting to know over a longer period of time, it seems to grow on the wearer and perhaps that's how it became a favorite of many. The bottle is interesting for collectors. I personally prefer my bottles as simple as can be, but the elephant on the cap has won the hearts of many users.