EvaK

Dalistyle is the most discreet perfume you can imagine, to put it mildly. It's practically non-existing.
You could say soft sillage - I say no sillage. You could say mediocre longevity - I say no longevity. It is very far from being "me". To be honest I think it's boring and without character.

Don't get me wrong here, I like it. It's nice. I can't imagine anyone being offended by this or disliking it.

If it works on you, it's perfect for very hot and humid conditions. I find it very, very fresh, bright, transparent. The clean quality makes it a good work perfume - maybe especially if you work in heath care, farmacy, something like that.

If I should compare it to anything, it would be a typical everyday hand soap. Finally I think I understand the term "fresh-out-of-the-shower" scent - something that has always been a mystery to me.

Reviewing a bottle is a little silly, but it really is stunning. Unlike many others I have a spoft spot for Dali bottles...

This review is for the vintage parfum - I don't know other versions.
The initial opening is extremely sharp and bitter to my nose. The last thing I would have expected from this shock was the metamorphosis into a gentle, elegant powdery-flowery beauty! It settles sweet and classy - not femme fatale like Habanita, but I agree that there are similarities. Vtg. Tosca is not dramatic, makes me think of one of those women with impeccable style - never a loose thread from the ivory suit, never a single stain on her shoes or the matching purse. It's an incredible polite fragrance, yet you're curious to find out what lays behind all this polite elegance. There's something surprising and exciting inside. Love it.

The no-nonsense square black bottle already gives a good hint of what's inside. Don't expect a celestial fantasy garden with little fairies and teddy bears jumping around. Bandit is not like that, it's more the mood of a rainy street in a black and white movie.

The fact that it was released during WW2 absolutely makes sense. Think about the fashion of the era. Wide-shouldered suit jackets, strict lines, what we now call business-style. The shortness of cloth meant that clothes had fit tighter. The pencil skirt was born. All in all more masculine. (Dior's "New Look" wasn't born until after the war, when frivolous use of cloth again was a possibility).
This was also the time when large numbers of women went out and did "a man's job" like never before. Heavy metal industry, truck driving, anything.

Bandit fits in perfectly here with its heavy leather. Fits the lifestyle of women, fits the look of the movie stars too. Actresses looked rather vampy and dramatic during that time, not "cute".

I get the leather straight out from the second I spray, though it's not supposed to be in the opening. Quite masculine, but all the flowers tone down the aggresiveness.
As it settles,it mellows up very much with a distinct sweetness perfectly balanced with the leather. At the last stage the animalic notes adds sensuality and seductiveness - and a sort of understated femme fatale mood.

Bandit is a masterpiece. Depicts an era perfectly, but not by any means dated. (I don't know what "dated" means in perfumery anyway). This type of perfume is so unusual these days, which makes it a real statement fragrance. A beauty.

So they say Cinnabar is a heavy hitter. A powerhouse perfume. I have to disagree strongly on this. Cinnabar is not a heavy hitter at all. Cinnabar is a bloody nuclear bomb of at least 50 megatons! This is far beyond powerhouse. Cinnabar ought to be caged and locked up excactly like Hannibal Lecter was in The Silence of the Lambs... with a hotline to the fire deptartment within reach. Cinnabar might very well self-ignite.

In case I didn't make it clear yet: I love it. I am literally blown away, Cinnabar knocked my socks off and took my breath away in more than one sense. This is one strong motherf....! By default I don't belive in one-spritz-wonders, not on my skin. I have a couple of two-spritz-wonders, but I never expected to meet anything that would exceed that.
I give in. Cinnabar is definitely a one-spritz-wonder. I took one (1) spritz and found myself in a fog so thick I could barely navigate - for hours. 12 hours later it behaves like normal perfumes do an hour after 5 spritzes. I don't know how they did it, but this potion is out of the ordinary in every aspect.

So how does it smell like..? To me, note-moron as I am, it's a very, very spicy, hot, animalic, dirty-classy powerhouse perfume. Dramatic, mysterious, smouldering. A come-hither fragrance? Umm, yes.. a "come-hither if you dare" kind of thing maybe.

So, Cinnabar... the name evokes associations to the mysterious east, spice markets, velvety night skies, mosques, Aladdin's treasures, slave girls dancing with covered faces.
But is this what Cinnabar is really like? In the drydown, yes. Absolutely. In the drydown the aggressive, bold, shouting sensuality softens to unspoken promises, mystery, and a strange anticipation of something to happen.

Once upon a time I went through a couple of bottles of Opium. I haven't smelled Opium since sometime in the 80'ies, but Cinnabar reminds me very much of it. I'm pretty sure Cinnabar kicks more ass than Opium did though. Correct me if I'm wrong. In my opinion it's in the vein of Knowing too. Until now I've considered Knowing to be the mother of all powerhouses. Now I'm not so sure... Their statements differ quite a lot. To put the comparison very short: If I was an executive and was going to fire my entire board and scare the shit out of them, I'd wear Knowing. If I wanted to fire my entire board and make them come back for more, I'd wear Cinnabar.

Clove, cinnamon, patchouli, incense. What more can you ask for? This is a Grand Dame, not to be messed with - yet not overly formal, perhaps overly sensual. A Femme Fatale beyond imagination.

A masterpiece. Period.

My first impression that I'd say it's summery, I don't find anything heavy or Femme Fatale here. There's some spicyness, but not very much to my nose. Is there such a thing as "sweet flowers"? Sweet rose maybe? It stays a little citrusy on me but not sharp at all, more fruity. Very inoffensive. Definitely for summer, perhaps early fall... but who knows, it might be stronger in very cold weather. That happens once in a while. My problem with it is that it's just not strong enough - but as you may know, I'm into the heavy hitters. The louder, the better, lol! Longevity - moderate, not fantastic. Sillage - weak to moderate.
But, but, but - I have to revise my opnion. After a more thorough testing I found out it actually does last well! Believe it or not, sillage has grown on me, like as if it disappears and then comes back after a while. Never seen that before. I didn't sniff my wrist enough the first time. The drydown that sets in fully after maybe 3 hours is beautiful and seems to be better for fall/winter than for summer. So - respray often and it's a fruity summer scent, leave it be and it's a spicy/woody fall scent.