Showing posts with label niche. Show all posts
Showing posts with label niche. Show all posts

Monday, October 3, 2016

Rosa Nobile by Acqua di Parma c2014

Rosa Nobile by Acqua di Parma: launched in 2014 as part of the Nobile Collection. The Nobile collection is composed of fragrances that are each dedicated to a specific flower, previous editions included Iris Nobile, Magnolia Nobile and Gelsomino Nobile.



Rosa Nobile is a tribute to the queen of flowers, a particular rosa Centafolia which grows in Alba, Italy on a limited organic plantation, Piedmont. Because the scent is so fragile and fleeting, the buds have to be picked at early dawn, while the garden is still covered in dew, or else the buds will lose their potent fragrance. This painstaking picking process is only conducted during the months of May and June as the roses fragrance is at its most intense.


From Acqua di Parma:
"A fragrance with a brand new and modern personality. A unique charm in the essential structure whose base reveals sophisticated nuances. The fragrance opens with the soft and fresh citrus scent of bergamot and mandarin, enhanced by pepper notes in a unique composition. At the heart, the Italian rose is the star, with its rich intensity. The seducing touch of its velvety petals is enhanced by harmonious notes of violet, peony, and lily-of-the-valley. This crescendo of emotions continues in the base, with Virginia cedar wood enhanced by a grey amber and musk accord, creating an unforgettable blend. Rosa Nobile. A fragrance as rich as a bunch of freshly picked roses."

So what does it smell like? It is classified as a floral woody musk fragrance for women.
  • Top notes: Sicilian Mandarin, Calabrian Bergamot and pepper
  • Middle notes: Centafolia rose, peony, violet and lily of the valley
  • Base notes: cedar wood, ambergris and musk

Rosa Nobile is available in eau de parfum and velvety body cream.

The body cream has a rich, but lightweight texture that is quickly absorbed leaving the skin moisturised and delicately enveloped in the sophisticated notes of Rosa Nobile. Ingredients with emollient and antioxidant properties such as rice protein, beeswax and vitamin E, work together with rose extract to nourish the skin, enhancing its softness. A precious and luxurious cream that leaves the skin velvety like the petal of the rose.

A friend from Facebook sent me a sample and I sprayed the fragrance on the back of my hand.




Thursday, October 23, 2014

Kai by Kai c1999

Kai by Kai: launched in 1999. Created by upscale boutique owner, Gaye Straza Rappaport, who sold exclusively it in her Malibu, California boutique. She later sold her shop, but decided to continue selling her perfume oil which had gained status as a cult favorite among celebrities. Recognizing this fact, she expanded the line to include toiletries in a matching scent so that one could layer the products, making it easy to enjoy the scent all day long.

From the kai website:
""breathe in the beauty of kai, and experience the light and
                 soothing scent of today's most sought-after fragrance."

beauty lies in the simplest and purest of things. kai brings this idea to life by using exotic fragrance and natural essences in our light and intoxicating scent of gardenia wrapped in white exotics. kai captures the irresistible fragrance of the tropics in a full line of fragrance, bath, body and home care products. breathe in the beauty of kai, and experience today's most sought-after fragrance.
"as a child my family would spend summers in hawaii... there’s nothing like the scent of exotic flowers; plumeria, pikake, gardenia and jasmine seemed to grow everywhere. every time i smell one of those flowers i’m instantly back on the islands surrounded by loved ones." ~ kai founder, gaye straza (elle, january 2012)

The company claims that it is paraben, sulfate, phthalate & phosphate free. Also cruelty free, which I am glad to hear about. Plus it is made in the USA from recyclable packaging.


So what does it smell like? It is classified as a lush, white floral fragrance for women with a dominant gardenia note.

  • Top notes: fresh green notes
  • Middle notes: gardenia
  • Base notes:







Saturday, October 11, 2014

Eau de Camille by Annick Goutal c1983

Eau de Camille by Annick Goutal: launched in 1983. The fragrance was created as a tribute to her cherished daughter.




So what does it smell like? It is classified as a green floral fragrance for women. The perfume evokes the leafy green scent of privet hedges, crisp ivy, freshly cut grass and hints of the delicate floral notes of lilac (seringa) and honeysuckle.
  • Top notes: honeysuckle
  • Middle notes: privet, seringa
  • Base notes: ivy, cut grass


Eau de Camille was discontinued in 2013/2014.



A friend on facebook sent me a sample of this fragrance. I sprayed some onto the back of my hand and inhaled the scent. In my mind, the ivy reminds me of the meandering ivy that grew along the walls of my grandmothers Victorian era farmhouse. I would visit her during the summer when I was a child and slept in an upstairs bedroom that had a window just above where the ivy grew in abundance. Privet hedges lined the walkway to the backdoor. After heavy summer thunderstorms, the air was thick with the scent of electrical ozone, deep, dark privet leaves and crisp ivy. Occasionally, during the early days of June, I would also get a whiff of the first lilacs that grew in her small garden that encircled her gazebo in the backyard. Their scent was both vegetal and sweet and smelled wonderful married with the scent of freshly cut grass. Delicate wild Japanese honeysuckle shrubs dotted the property line that abutted a soybean field in the heart of Maryland's rural farm country. I used to love to walk out there, pluck a flower, pinch off the little green calyx, and suck the addictive nectar from the blossoms, wondering if the bumblebees enjoyed the sweet, honeylike taste as much as I did. The days before cellphones and the internet, when we had to entertain ourselves and play outdoors, this was one of the simple pleasures that I fervently remember. It is a shame that there aren't any honeysuckle bushes near my home now.

Sunday, September 28, 2014

Mix 17 by Platinum J c2011

Mix 17 by Platinum J: launched in 2011.

"Be yourself. Imitation is suicide."

Platinum J fragrances are hand blended using only the finest 100% pure essential oils by natural perfumer Jacqueline Clemens in Lakewood, Ohio. Each perfume is meant to work with the wearer's own skin to become her own signature fragrance.


From Platinum J:
The green goddess, laughingly skipping across the meadow of hope-filled days of endless sunshine, has bewitched us with her sophisticated yet playful mien. Touched with sun and emotion, the fiery presence of geranium and the liveliness of bergamot fills the empty space that once was inside her heart. As this settles, the crisp green goddess gives way to woods that murmur and amber that whispers "...in my sweet embrace all your pains erased."

So what does it smell like? It is classified as an oriental chypre fragrance for men and women.

  • Top notes: bergamot
  • Middle notes: frankincense and geranium
  • Base notes: amber and patchouli


I received a sample directly from Platinum J, and immediately was taken by how earthy this perfume is. It has a beautiful chypre accord and has a rich patchouli note that I find very attractive. This is not your average, everyday hippie head shop patchouli, but more of a spicy, sweeter, more refined version. Not a floral fragrance, just lots of soft woods, incense and spice. This ambery fragrance has a familiar vintage hint to it that makes me think of the 1920s and the wave of orientalism that swept over that decade.

I would imagine this perfume being housed inside of a limited edition heart shaped jet black crystal flacon and a round ball stopper with a long glass dauber, and the front of the bottle would simply say" "Mix 17".



I would wear this perfume on a daily basis, as I love how deftly composed this honeyed fragrance is. It has a seamless blending only rivaled by the very best perfumers in the business.

Speaking of the vintage aspect of this perfume, it reminds me of the time I was at a local country auction where there were a few perfume bottles sitting up on a table. I picked up the Nuit de Noel bottle and found that the stopper was frozen in place. I didn't try to pry it open, but heard some splashing inside so I knew it still contained the treasured formula. Later on, I had bid on the perfume bottles and happily won the lot.

As I was wrapping up the Nuit de Noel bottle, the stopper miraculously came loose and the sticky, brown, syrupy perfume spilled all over my hands. It's scent immediately filled the room and I was only slightly embarrassed when a little boy, there with his grandma spoke up and said, "It smells like bug spray in here gramma." Everyone was looking at me as I was trying so hard to wipe my soiled perfumey hands on some paper towels I grabbed from the ladies room earlier. The auctioneer even stopped his chanting and asked me to take the perfume out to my car...LOL...So, that is what I did.

I came back inside and went to the ladies room to attempt to scrub the old perfume residue from my hands. I scrubbed and I scrubbed for what seemed like an eternity. Finally, I sat back down at my seat to resume bidding on a lot of antique RS Prussia porcelain. For the rest of the auction, all I smelled was the honeyed perfume from Nuit de Noel still clinging furiously to my hands, however, I found the spicy woodsy dry down to be delightful and not at all obtrusive anymore. This is exactly what I smell in Mix 17, the wonderful vintage woods and amber.



Click HERE to purchase Mix 17 by Platinum J