Yves Rocher Yria is a floral oriental blend. It isn’t the most exciting that I have ever sniffed in this genre but it isn’t the worst either. It’s a very basic oriental floral, pretty true to the genre. It’s resiny with lush petals and a base of sandalwood. It’s a pretty scent and the price is right. Most oriental blends may be too overwhelming and overpowering for “day” wear. I think of Yria as a lighter oriental that could work at anytime. You can’t say that for most of the blends in this family and that is coming from me and I love strong fragrances. And this is coming from me, so maybe it is too heavy for the average person… hmm…Yria hits me as a pretty floral blend at first. For a very short moment, you get bergamot/orange blossom like citrus. These then melts into a rose and jasmine fragrance. I pick up  much more of the rose than I do the jasmine. In fact, I like to apply a jasmine solid perfume under this to really emphasize the jasmine. It’s floral but in a classic floriental way. It has lots of “warmth” grounding it. For a long time it wears on me as a rose/amber blend with the slightest warmth of amber. After some time, the sandalwood shows up and keeps the blend grounded. It’s a warm floral fragrance with classic powdery softness. The dry-down is a rich, warm, close wearing sandalwood. It does wear nicely on me and the lasting power is about 4+ hours. Because of the rich oriental notes, I do think of this EDP as being more appropriate for fall and winter wear. Worn during these times, it doesn’t appear to be so “heavy”. I could see this one as really “heavy” if worn in the middle of summer, like most floral oriental blends.

The company lists the following notes: bergamot, coriander, jasmine, sambac, rose, amber, tonka bean, and sandalwood. The 1.7 oz. spray goes for about $39. This is a fair price for this fragrance and Yves Rocher often runs amazing sales. I would say to give this one a try if you like Halston Women, Borghese Il Bacio, Guerlain Samsara EDT, Estee Lauder Tuscany Per Donna, Avon Candid, Lancome Attraction, Prada L’Eau Ambrée, and/or Must de Cartier.

Weekly Cheap Secret:

I love these little old school highly fragranced body lotions. I hope Avon realizes that this “retro” packaging is what sells these Perfumed Skin Softeners. Well, at least it does for me. I like to have them out, there isn’t a logo, a label. They are just in a “sphere”. They really look nice in a boudoir. They retail for about $5 and are frequently on sale for about 99¢ on Avon’s website.

Candid is a nice fragrance for those that like a classic late 70’s floral oriental type fragrance. I love a late 70’s oriental. It’s a dated blend of heady jasmine, red roses, woodsy but feminine sandalwood with vetiver. It manages to smell “fresh” and clean, I guess because of the vetiver. The scent isn’t very complex. It’s all blended together to make a feminine, fresh oriental scent. I find that it does mix well with pure fragrance oils of any of the scents mentioned above. I love to wear it with either jasmine or rose to bring out the feminine quality. I can make it more masculine and zesty fresh with a spritz of L’Aromarine Vetyver or Guerlain Vetiver. Since the product is heavily scented, I can still smell it wearing very closely to my skin after all day wear.

The lotion is thick but not buttery. I still find that at night I need to apply a heavier cream to keep from being ashy in the winter. I just use this skin softener for the nostaligic novelty. And it does wear nicely with fragrance oils and some of my more “classic” fragrances.

The Mainstream Monday: Sniffing A Popular Fragrance

Elizabeth Arden explains this fragrance as a “radiant woody floral and a modern expression of sparkling radiance“. I would definitely say that this fits into that category of “modern woody floral”. It is woody but not in a super masculine way. At first it comes on as a bit fruity with hints of citrus and stone fruits such as plum. This lasts a very short time on me. It then smells of spicy wood, like a mix of sandalwood and dry cedar. But, it floral in an “aquatic” fragrance sense of the word. It is floral with the hissy notes of “orchid” and “wisteria”. But, it is all blended together so if it is very difficult to go “oh, there is the wisteria and here is the sandalwood”. It is all blended together and this wears on me for a long time. At times I’ll sniff and smell the woods and then again I’ll sniff and pick up a certain floral sharpness that makes this smell almost soapy fresh. Eventually, all I smell is warm sun-baked woods with generic “clean” musk. It isn’t a horrible fragrance it just doesn’t have a lasting impression on me. I find it boring for a “Mediterranean” fragrance but find it interesting for a “sea” scent if this makes sense. I think this fragrance could of really benefited from a fig hint and herbs, but then again, I can find that elsewhere because that already exists. But for a “sea” scent,  I can appreciate that this scent is clean and fresh without being “aquatic” and overly hissy.  Overall the fragrance is a very clean “wood” scent that can be worn all year round. It’s “easy” to wear and it is a nice fragrance if you can’t stand the thought of wearing something sweet, foody, or overly floral. ( I have to love it for that).

I do find the bottle pretty for a mainstream fragrance. It has smooth cerulean blue glass. The glass feels heavy and it feels expensive. The cap is a hammered silver-ish something. To be honest, I can’t remember if it was metal or plastic. So, if it is plastic, then it did a good job of tricking me. It really looks like a pretty piece of resort wear jewelry and I have to give Elizabeth Arden props for this one.

I would say that you may like this if you like Michael Kors Island, Estee Lauder Sensuous, Avon U by Ungaro, Versace Versense, Demeter Laundromat, Pucci Vivara, and/or Dolce and Gabbana Sicily or Feminine.

The 1.7 ounce retails for $47.50 and the 3.3 ounce retails for $57.50. And there are extras like a shimmery body powder (very cool), body cream, and body lotion. A good time to pick this up is when Elizabeth Arden offers one of their GWP specials.

This fragrance is what the name implies. It is a rich, warm, and seductive scent. The packaging is perfect and contains a skull and crossbones, suggesting the poisonous side of the product. (Who doesn’t love the antiquarian styled packaging?) Initially I wasn’t attracted to the product despite its cool packaging. To be honest, I found the name dull and boring. “Sexy” is an overused and bastardized word. I mean if it is being used by some slimy designer on HGTV to describe a ceiling fan, then it is dead. Yep, dead is “sexy”.

However, I am so pleased that I was talked into and had a chance to try this fragrance. Dead Sexy is warm and comforting without being overly sweet. It is perfect for these chilly and drizzly and moody western Washington days. This fragrance is the epitome of the “modern woods” fragrance genre. In the beginning this fragrance is a high quality vanilla liquor and a dry, rare woods blend. It is almost oud-ish but less abrasive. It has a bit of a smokiness which is what I think makes this so sexy. It reminds me of being in an Old World “bordello” filled with the abstract incense smoke and fine wooden furniture and the softest linens, surrounded by ebony panels. It’s luxe and goth in An Interview With A Vampire way. Once it starts to dry down, it is more of a “woods” scent. The vanilla is there but it isn’t as “liquory”.  The vanilla is smoky and incensey. It just smells of a melange of  rich and slightly sweet “modern” woods. These woods aren’t dirty. They are round and robust and very feminine. There is the faintest aroma of delicate white petals. It smells more like your in this “bordello” and you pick up a whiff of little white flowers in a vase next to a candelabra filled with burning candles. The florals are there but almost ghostly, you catch their cold “feeling” every now and then amongst the warm woods. In fact, this blend is a great balance of “warm” and “cool” like a rich mahogany bed with crisp, smooth sheets. It has a mix of exotic and precious woods, smoky vanilla, rich amber-like resins, and a dash of flirty petals. It’s a beautiful thing, really. This scent reminds me of vampy Theda Bara. This is a must have fragrance for all the real-life vamps and working goths out there.

This fragrance is a sexy (not my favorite adjective but fitting for this scent) scent that isn’t overwhelming like most “modern woods”. I wear it during the day. It is soft but very rich and bewitching. It wears closely to the skin for a few hours. I say about 4-5 hours of wear. It contains notes of deep vanilla, exotic wood, white orchid, and ebony. I would say to give this one a try if you like dry woodsy scents, Tom Ford Oud Wood,  Tom Ford White Patchouli, Estee Lauder Sensuous, Donna Karan Cashmere Mist, Nanette Lepore Nanette, Prada EDP, Calvin Klein Euphoria, and/or Laura Mercier Minuit Enchanté.

The 1 ounce spray retails for $28 (a steal) and can be purchased at b-glowing.com.

This is one of my all time favorite florals. It is bold and old-fashioned but strangely very wearable. It is everything that I love. I love heavy, almost bitter florals such as jasmine and tuberose.It has notes of sweet honeysuckle and tart orange blossom. It is a white floral bomb and it has a tendency to wear you which I have no problem with. This is a fragrance that demands attention. It is a “woman” fragrance. It smells so feminine but not “flirty”. This scent isn’t frivolous. This is for a woman that knows what she wants. She knows she is attractive and sexual and she isn’t being coy about it for one minute. And she isn’t being trashy about. She isn’t a bimbo putting Revlon Fire & Ice lipstick stained cigarette butts out into her bourbon, she is elegant and refined even if she is sipping on brown liquor.

The top notes are citrusy but only in a floral citrus way such as an elegant orange blossom way. This is not that “fruity” type of citrus. This is more of a scented viognier kind of citrus. In fact, this fragrance reminds me very much of a viognier with its white florals and hints of honeysuckle and citrus blossoms. I’ve always wanted to have a bar with all of the drinks inspired by fragrances, but that is another story. You start to smell gardenia like notes, shortly a jasmine and tuberose bomb goes off. It has that ripe bitterness. It is beautiful. There is a short blast of sweet honeysuckle. Minutes later it goes back to the jasmine and tuberose. It stays this way for a long time but it becomes grounded by faint hints of warm woods. It isn’t too woody, it remains floral throughout the entire wear. It’s an elegant thing really.

My husband goes nuts for this one. There is nothing subtle with this fragrance. My husband’s sense of smell is not as sharp as mine and I find he doesn’t take very well to “hints”, he needs a fragrance to be all up in his space. He isn’t the only male that loves it. I’ll wear it out and I can tell that it turns heads.  Occasionally a gentlemen that doesn’t understand unspoken social rules may ask me about it. That’s fine with me. I’ve had a few South American ladies actually ask me if I was wearing Carolina Herrera, we’d talk shortly in the grocery line about the love of the fragrance and how it isn’t subtle. They’d share stories about how their hubby purchased them the pure parfum in the late 80’s and how badly they wish they could get their hands on that again. I can only imagine how glamorous and amazing the pure parfum must be.

The bottle is simple, not one of my favorites. The only thing nice I have to say is that I love Carolina’s font. I just find the bottle dull for such a glam fragrance. The box is polka-dot, one of Carolina’s favorite prints. Carolina should know a feminine fragrance, she is a queen of dresses. I would say that you would love this if you loved jasmine and tuberose based fragrances such as Piguet Fracas , Patou Joy, Micheal Kors, Marc Jacobs, Jo Malone Honeysuckle & Jasmine, Estee Lauder Tuberose Gardenia, Tocca Cleopatra, Chantecaille Le Jasmin,  Guerlain Jardin de Bagatelle, and/or Serge Lutens Fleurs d’Orange. The 1.7 ounce EDP retails for $66 and the 3.4 ounce for $90. I know that when I run out, I will repurchase. *Currently available at fragrancenet.com.


Carolina Herrera Perfume for Women Eau De Parfum Spray 1.7 Oz by Carolina Herrera

From: BigDiscountFragrances.com

Givenchy Amarige is a nice woodsy-floral (“oriental”) fragrance. It is warm and floral. It is one that I have had in my collection for quite sometime but I often overlook it for reasons unknown. I guess because it is a fragrance that I like, not that I love.

At first spritz, it is a heavy floral mix of gardenia, ylang-ylang,  and neroli. It manages to have a robust but somewhat “powdery” note. This gives the fragrance a subtle yet old-fashioned vibe despite its 1991 release date.  (Depends who you ask, many find this a “dated” fragrance). It “bubbles” with mimosa and faint citrus fruit and blossoms. There is a touch of stone fruit but very faint and I have to wear this many times and “think” about it to find it. This stage is brief, the fruity stage. It dries down to a thick gardenia fragrance but it is much warmer than the initial spritz. It has a bit more of a souring gardenia and tuberose vibe. It eventually turns into a gardenia with “woods” and a little more sweetness from something like vanilla and amber. It smells “exotic” and a little complicated. This isn’t a bad thing. Givenchy describes this fragrance as a fragrance “in love” and a play on “mariage”. At first,  it is flirty, soft, and delicate. It is happy and energetic. Then is becomes warm, sensuous, and seductive during its lifespan. It wears for many hours on me and I find it very hard to believe that it is an EDT and not an EDP!

The bottle is OK. It is sturdy with a disappointing plastic top. It is made to represent a blouse designed by Givenchy for Bettina Graziella which had a dramatic and sculptured neckline.

The 1 ounce retails for $47 and the 1.6 ounce for $62. There is a 3.3 ounce and I think it goes for $82. I would say, if you haven’t already tried this fragrance, that you may like it if you are the type that likes Jean Paul Gaultier EDP, Kenzo Flower, Dior Addict, and strangely Avon SSS Soft & Sensual body products line. This is also a great fragrance for the gardenia and tuberose lover. I really go for this one in the fall and winter because of its warm base notes. It is a great “winter” floral. I also find that it is too strong for me in the summer. Actually I should give a warning, this is a “strong” fragrance according to many noses, I mean I did compare it to Addict!


Amarige Perfume for Women Eau De Toilette Spray 1.7 Oz by Givenchy

From: BigDiscountFragrances.com

Could any fragrance describe the Pacific Northwest better than Kiehl’s Forest Rain? I mean just the name is so Northwestern, crisp evergreen forests and lots and lots of rain. Forest Rain is a unisex fragrance and it is EDT spray that retails for $38.50 for 1.5 ounces. The bottle is simple, sturdy evergreen/Douglas Fir colored glass. It is simple with an apothecary styled label.

I love this fragrance. Keep in mind that I am the kind of gal that loves “masculine” scents and loves patchouli and “foresty” scents. This is a great scent because it is very woodsy yet fresh and floral. It reminds me of a walk through a damp, spring forest. It is woodsy and spicy in an evergreen/cedarwood and sandalwood way. It has dirty hints of patchouli. It is made fresh by vetiver, oakmoss, and citrus rind. This gives it a certain “zest” and keeps it from being too headshop. The most original aspect of the fragrance is its aquatic and wild floral hints of muguet. So many wild lilies grow in the forests in Washington. I was so shocked in mid-spring. This has been my first PNW spring. After months of being locked inside to keep out of the rain, I went out. It was still chilly and damp in the forests. Oakmoss was made “fresh” by the rain, but there was a different odor. It was all of these wild lilies popping up everywhere. They have that certain wild muguet/ lily of the valley odor. It is sweet, floral but really muddy and dirty smelling because they are so close to the forest floor, near oak moss and decaying fir needles. This scent completely describes the forest floor in spring. It is warm and woody and cool and floral. I was shocked when I smelled this fragrance after a romp through the woods. They are similar. Kiehl’s formula contains 122 fragrant oils. Damn, the forest is complex. Forest Rain is made pretty and complex by a nice touch of musk. The musk keeps the fragrance grounded to the skin. For an EDT, this scent is very long wearing. I would give it an 8 hour time span. I have to say, even though I am a fragrance flirt, I keep coming back to this one. It is perfect for rainy days and it is a great fragrance for transitioning seasons. This is a scent that I will definitely keep around. It is complex, natural, and moody. I wish the company would make it in a travel rollerball as well.

Does anybody know what these are? They are everywhere and have such a lovely scent?

Does anybody know what these are? They are everywhere and have such a lovely scent?

First off, I fell for this product because of it’s adorable and “eau” so Pacific Northwestern packaging. I love the raven and snow owl imagery. I just love it. I love nocturnal animals and I wish I could more raven and crow merchandise. So, Pacifica got me with with this one with packaging alone. And I just happen to like the fragrance.

OK, so for a solid perfume, Pacifica’s formula is pretty creamy. It comes in a tin about the same size as Burt’s Bees lip balm tins. It has the nice imagery on it 🙂 It is composed of many wonderful and moisturizing, natural ingredients. It is a solid perfume so it wears very closely to the skin. Since it wears so “intimately” it doesn’t appear to last very long. However, if you are a fan of solid fragrance, then this is not new to you at all. If you don’t like solids, Pacifica makes a spray too. That I have not tried.

Now to the fragrance. I love the version of the solid. It isn’t very “junipery”. I have a juniper outside the window and I love its evergreen aroma. I also love the aroma of the berries which I have tried to squish into some strange oil based concoction to burn in an oil burner. That idea failed miserably. This solid fragrance has a bit of that juniper berry vibe. It has a faint evergreen fragrance, almost like a martini. I mainly smell zest of grapefruit. I usually don’t do citrusy fragrances but I can do this one because it is kept level by the “woods”. This fragrance smells “cool” because of heliotrope and that makes it much more femme. I think the juniper turns a lot of ladies off but it shouldn’t. This is not Pine-Sol. It has enough floral to make is less “piney” and the citrus makes it very tangy. That being said, this is not a winter only fragrance. The citrus makes it totally wearable in warmer months. I actually wanted this to much more woody, but Pacifica had to pretty it up 🙂 I think if you like woody, herbaceous scents then you will really like this. Especially with the $9 price tag. Oh, and if you like Demeter Gin and Tonic or Martini. And if you want a “wintery” citrus than this is nice.

And, I know that this says that this is a solid perfume review only, I must comment on the body butter. It doesn’t resemble the solid perfume at all! That is my warning. If you want to slather yourself in the Avalon Juniper fragrance than you will be disappointed by the body butter and vice versa. If you want a fragrance that smells like the body butter don’t buy the solid. The body butter is very, very fruity. It smells like sweetened grapefruit juice. It is a little tangy but mostly sweet. It almost smells like a tropical cocktail. They played up “berry” but not juniper berry. It wears very nicely with the solid, making it more of a complex and more of a “girl” scent. I personally won’t be purchasing the body butter again because it is too LE Escada fragrance and not “earthy” or “woodsy” enough despite its nice texture.

This fragrance is very “walking through a Pacific Northwestern evergreen forest in early spring”. I love it for that because I am a big fan of forest walking, especially in cool air. It is also a nice unisex fragrance. Or at least that is what my husband says. It wears much more “woodsy” on him. I think he even uses it on dry skin patches since the rich soy and coconut wax base make it a nice moisturizer.

My poor juniper in one of the first days of the great Seattle blizzard of '08

My poor juniper in one of the first days of the great Seattle blizzard of '08


Tokyo Milk Parfum in Ex Libris is a nice fig inspired fragrance. I find it very earthy and wearable all year. Of course this is coming from a fig perfume fan. But, this isn’t my “typical” fig fragrance that I have in my collection. This is not Diptyque’s Philosykos (one of my all time favorites) or L’Artisan Premier Figuier (one of my other favorites) . Ex Libris is much more “fresh” in a feminine way. It manages to smell of earthy and woodsy fig trees,  punches of white flowers with a dash of zesty cardamom. It smells of the milkiness of the fig leaf without being super sweet because it is grounded by the bark. It isn’t “fruity” and not a bit Fig Newton like some fig fragrances. But, the scent isn’t overly woodsy and it manages to smell quite flirty. It is a tumbling bouquet, but not in an obnoxious solo season way. This floral, magnolia, can smell pleasant and like fresh summer blossoms or like pick me up in the winter because it is grounded by the earthy fig. I would say that the strongest note is the cardamom. It is the “citrus” that my body won’t devour. Cardamom is a special plant. It is both cool and minty fresh (mojito-ish) and warm and spicy like ginger. Cardamom freshens up the fragrance without making it smell like Pledge. It makes it fresh enough for spring and summer and spicy enough for fall and winter. It is all a matter of perspective. You would think that this fragrance blend would be sweet or gourmand because it contains fig and cardamom which is commonly used in Indian and Asian desserts, but it isn’t a sweet fragrance at all. The fig is very earthy and brings back wonderful childhood memories of hot Atlanta summers. It smells like my six year old hands and bare feet climbing sunbaked fig trees. The cardamom is spicy but manages to be fresh. The florals make this scent uniquely feminine, but not disgustedly feminine. This is not Estee Lauder Pleasures. This is much more complex. It has earth, spice, skin, and florals. It is complex without being moody or showy. It is a nice all year blend. In fact, this fragrance is what I have wanted many of a Guerlain Aqua Allegoria EDTs to be. It has that kind of clean sophistication but with a longer wear. It starts out as a woodsy figgy white floral and turns into an earthy, spicy cardamom green tea like fragrance held together by the staying power of crisp, white musk.

The bottle is OK. It is simple glass bottle with an alphabet typeset sticker. It isn’t as showy or glamorous as the other Tokyo Milk Parfum stickers. But, I am a nerd so I should like it. But, I am more of an IPA nerd. Slap some IPA symbols on this baby and I’ll be in linguistic heaven. I can’t possibly complain about the price. It is $28 for 1 ounce. It wears nicely and wears for at least half of the day which is quite sometime for a fig inspired fragrance. Most fig fragrances disappear in an hour or so, I give this one 6 to 8 hours. That isn’t bad, since I have compared this to the Guerlain Aqua Allegoria EDTs which last a maximum of 1 hour on me in the summer. I recommend this fragrance for those that like fig fragrances and that are kind of sick of the “whole” fig fragrance, those that like gingery, spicy scents like Origins Ginger Essence, those that like “tea” fragrances by Bvlgari, for those that like zesty watery splashes like those by Diptyque or Guerlain, or for those that think “fresh” scents is something more sophisticated than a Davidoff Cool Water or Estee Lauder Beyond Paradise. I am a fragrance flirt and I really see myself using this one frequently throughout the year. It doesn’t feel fadish and feels very “me”. It is available at beautyhabit.com and b-glowing.com.

I’m usually not a fan of popular fragrances. Especially fragrances by individuals like Calvin Klein or Ralph Lauren. Not because I am a snob, it is just I think that many of them smell the same. They aren’t bad. I just don’t want to drop $60 on something that doesn’t rock my world. I’m pretty simple really, most of the time I prefer single note essential oils. I have a bottle of Euphoria. A small bottle, but I do have a bottle. It isn’t too bad for a mainstream fragrance. I have sniffed niche stuff that was more boring. I really like the bottle. I know that it has enemies but I think it is very sleek and would make a nice topic for a women’s studies class 🙂 The bottle is actually metal and not some chromey looking plastic. (It is very rare to not see crappy, cheap bottles anymore. Even Guerlain resorts to plastic caps sometimes and that pisses me off : ) The bottle is heavy and sturdy. Alot of people don’t like its sleek design but I find it interesting. I forgot who designed the bottle but I’d give him a high five.

Euphoria is a sweet woodsy oriental. Sometimes I find it too sweet for my tastes. It just depends on my mood. I’m 24, so I grew up in the gourmand era. It doesn’t shock or amaze me. I’ve smelled Angel on ladies since I can remember. There wasn’t a time in my life that gourmand wasn’t main stream and purchased by every lady or loving man that wanted their lady to smell of dark chocolate and creme brulee. Gourmand will become the “grandma” fragrance. Euphoria is creamy but not in a vanilla way. It isn’t chocolaty, it is just thick and creamy. It is balanced by woodsy sexiness and this helps to “grow up” this fragrance and not make it to teeny. It is fruity in a bitter pomegranate way. It wears very nicely on me. It doesn’t turn too sweet. Actually, the rich woods are what linger on me. This fragrance just smells robust. I would sum it up as a creamy, pungent pomegranate juice in a woodsy amber container. It’s nice for a mainstream product.

The eau de parfum spray is available in many sizes, 1 ounce to 3.4 ounces. The EDP sprays wears nicely and for some time. I can smell it on myself all day, so I would say that it has a minimum of 12 hours of wear. It is also available in a touch parfum. I love the gel idea. It can travel and it doesn’t have that alcohol reminder. It smells a bit more woodsy than the spray. There is a shower gel, body cream, and lotion. I’ve tried the lotion and it smells wonderful. The lotion is long lasting and a pretty good moisturizer. I think it would be all you would need in the spring or summer as far as fragrance goes. The fragrance is strong and some may find it too strong for a warm, summer climate. If an advertisment has the models engaging in foreplay, it is probably too heavy of a fragrance for summer or warmer climates. Just a personal rule. I really think if I run out of this one, I would repurchase. I would of course buy the smallest size because I have so much fragrance or I would wait for it to show at a TJ Maxx or something.
Or get it at:

Euphoria Perfume for Women Eau De Parfum Spray 3.4 Oz by Calvin Klein

From: BigDiscountFragrances.com