There's something very wrong going on if after testing two fragrances, one by Donna Karan and the second by Hilary Duff, I positively hate the designer perfume and kind of enjoying the one by a really uninteresting celeb.
Maybe I shouldn't have had too many expectations from Donna Karan's Gold. After all, this is a lily fragrance, and I'm not that crazy about this note to begin with. Also, Karan is responsible for Cashmere Mist, one of my all time hated perfumes. Then again, she's also behind Black Cashmere, which I love and wear on a weekly basis. Sadly, this one will join the Mist on my eww list. Its Liliness is so strong and overpowering that it made my skin smell like a cheap air freshener spray. I found the top and middle notes to be downright skanky and unpleasant. It was very sharp, very strong and terribly floral. The drydown wasn't as horrible. It's softer and a little more creamy, but the Lily still prevails and made my husband wrinkle his nose at it.
I had zero expectations from With Love, Hilary Duff (seriously, even the name conjures up an image of something written in glitter, that probably smells like those fruity gel pens). The thing is, that it doesn't. There is a fruity note, but it's different because it comes from the exotic mangosteen and not from a ubiquitous berry. It also has spice, woods, incense and amber. Not exactly the makings of another teen scent (the questionable honor of doing that belongs to Vera Wang and her bastard of a Princess).
With Love is on the sweet side, but it didn't make my teeth rot. I kept sniffing my arm, trying to catch the notes as they changed on my skin and remember what it reminded me of. Finally I got it: Paloma Picasso's men's fragrance, Minotaur. Back in 1993 or 1994 I bought it for my husband (then my new boyfriend). It was very different than all the standard young men's stuff and I liked it, despite its heaviness and agressive nature. Years later I got rid of the half used bottle, (just as I discarded his entire wardrobe) in favor of more subtle scents.
I searched for Minotaur's notes, and what I found (Top Notes of Citrus, Middle Notes of Lavender, Geranium and Jasmine and Base Notes of Sandalwood, Vanilla, Leather) doesn't fit With Love, but on my skin it smells like a slightly more delicate and feminine version of the long gone mythological monster. I would have probably adored it when I was 23.
Maybe I shouldn't have had too many expectations from Donna Karan's Gold. After all, this is a lily fragrance, and I'm not that crazy about this note to begin with. Also, Karan is responsible for Cashmere Mist, one of my all time hated perfumes. Then again, she's also behind Black Cashmere, which I love and wear on a weekly basis. Sadly, this one will join the Mist on my eww list. Its Liliness is so strong and overpowering that it made my skin smell like a cheap air freshener spray. I found the top and middle notes to be downright skanky and unpleasant. It was very sharp, very strong and terribly floral. The drydown wasn't as horrible. It's softer and a little more creamy, but the Lily still prevails and made my husband wrinkle his nose at it.
I had zero expectations from With Love, Hilary Duff (seriously, even the name conjures up an image of something written in glitter, that probably smells like those fruity gel pens). The thing is, that it doesn't. There is a fruity note, but it's different because it comes from the exotic mangosteen and not from a ubiquitous berry. It also has spice, woods, incense and amber. Not exactly the makings of another teen scent (the questionable honor of doing that belongs to Vera Wang and her bastard of a Princess).
With Love is on the sweet side, but it didn't make my teeth rot. I kept sniffing my arm, trying to catch the notes as they changed on my skin and remember what it reminded me of. Finally I got it: Paloma Picasso's men's fragrance, Minotaur. Back in 1993 or 1994 I bought it for my husband (then my new boyfriend). It was very different than all the standard young men's stuff and I liked it, despite its heaviness and agressive nature. Years later I got rid of the half used bottle, (just as I discarded his entire wardrobe) in favor of more subtle scents.
I searched for Minotaur's notes, and what I found (Top Notes of Citrus, Middle Notes of Lavender, Geranium and Jasmine and Base Notes of Sandalwood, Vanilla, Leather) doesn't fit With Love, but on my skin it smells like a slightly more delicate and feminine version of the long gone mythological monster. I would have probably adored it when I was 23.
LOL! I was underwhelmed by Donna Karan Gold in the long run as well...and I also do not care for Cashmere Mist (and the feeling is mutual--it smells awful on me!). But I also DID like Hilary Duff's scent...on me, it dried down to a milky sandalwood that I found surprisingly sophisticated for a celebrity scent in general, and for a teen scent in particular!
ReplyDeleteHave a lovely holiday, Gaia!