Fabirss

Kiris Royale and Sex on the Peach are my favorites from the Barista Collection and while it took me some tries to get to like Sex on the Peach, Kiris Royale was love at first sniff. I'm kind of a sucker for powdery scents, so from the moment I read the notes listed on the heart and base I knew odds were I would like it. Even the blackcurrant listed as a top note was not enough to put me away and I fell for it the minute I tried it. Kiris Royale is so well balanced in terms of gender neutrality that you would think it was suited for women when worn by girls and also that it was designed for men when worn by guys. Its powderiness is more of the grownup style, very different from some baby powder fragrances available at the market. The rose gives a hint of its cousin Sex on the Peach. The cardamom on KR light and pleasant, while the cumin on SotP was a punch in the nose - and maybe this is why I loved KR immediately while I had to get used to SotP in order to appreciate it. Overall you get a solid composition with a boozy rose/violet duo combined with powder, soft woods and a cozy touch of musk.

Well composed in terms of notes and also well balanced in terms of gender neutrality. The opening is slighty citrusy, with a nice coolness probably from the aniseed. Then it evolves to a spicy middle fase and finishes with a boozy frankincense. The path from top to base is not very long. My only complaint relates to the blue pigment: leaving a blue spot on the skin, you can surely expect a blue stain on your clothes. Overall a nice creation from a brazilian beginner parfumista.

I’ve tried a few of Donna Karan apples and dismissed all that I made acquaintances with. Then I saw Be Tempted and felt tempted to give it a try, so I ordered a sample of it. My intuition kept saying that it would not suit me, for both blackcurrant and blackcurrant bud, in medium to high doses, are not my buddies. Anyway, stubborn as I am, I sprayed it only once on my forearm and that was enough to smell this blast of extremely over sweetened red apple immediately accompanied by a loud blackcurrant bud. And this way the fragrance stayed for almost half an hour – the amount of time I manage to bare with it. Then I had to scrub it! At least it disappeared with only one scrub. I’m sure some lucky ones will find this one adorable, but it is not for me.

Two years ago I received a complimentary sample of Mon Exclusif together with a very successful overseas swap. The fragrance was really intriguing: subtle, yet very present; watery and somehow salty. The most prominent note was the salted caramel, but I could only perceive it after having faced the not-so-interesting lavender in the heart. I did some research after placing Mon Exclusif on my watchlist but soon decided I should let it go without ever owning it, the main reasons being its price and the difficulty to get it in the country where I live. A little after making acquaintance with Mon Exclusif I found out it was discontinued, with Mon Guerlain advertised unofficially as its substitute. So off to Mon Guerlain I went and probably due to Guerlain's worldwide campaign, Mon Guerlain landed pretty fast in stores near me. My expectations were not sky-high but I still got frustrated after testing it. While Mon Exclusif was a lovely composition, with delicate - yet noticeable - notes floating around me, Mon Guerlain was lavender. From top to bottom, all I get was lavender. There's a tiny touch of caramel, but it is far from the salty note that smelled so lovely on Mon Exclusif. I must say that my frustration was probably unconsciously driven by my admiration for Thierry Wasser. I simply adore many of his creations - Dior Addict 2002 being my all time favorite -, so probably I was expecting something more elaborated than what I got. I truly understand that Guerlain is a business company that, like all other companies, is based on profit. And I also understand that Mon Guerlain was made to be a crowd-pleaser that could drive more costumers to Gerlain's counters all over the world. And can you think of something more crowd-pleaser than lavender? Well, the good thing about still owning a bottle (a 50ml only, thank God!) of Mon Guerlain is that everytime I wear it, for the sake of being a Wasser’s Guerlain, I get reminded of the fact that lavender in not my thing. Sadly.

I recently acquired a bottle of Mon Parfum and the seller sent a vial of Royal Muska as a complimentary gift. Of course one brand new bottle of Mon Parfum should satisfy me, but you know that vials have the power to increase one’s collection and immediately decrease one’s bank account balance. So I ordered a full bottle of Royal Muska the same day I tried it. And what can I say about it? I can say that on my skin it is musk from top to bottom, with a tiny touch of ylang-ylang and woods. I didn’t get the peach, or the raspberry. The rose listed was also absent. But the precious (really precious!) woods combined with the ylang-ylang and the musk almost drove me crazy. I know that this baby is nothing new under the sun, but at the same time the composition is so balanced, so beautiful that you just can’t resist it. It is simple and yet very sophisticated. It is clean, soft, clear and very comforting. And how about the hide and seek thing? Well, that’s how this fragrance plays with you, even under the hottest and most humid weather. No matter how much I spray it on, Royal Muska only will show up when it wants to, making me get whiffs here and there, randomly. And believe me: this only makes me love it even more.