Vanilla Royale Sugared Patchouli | 64 by Kayali Fragrances

From first sniff, I am a big question mark. I have absolutely no idea whether or not I like this fragrance.

Close to skin, Royale has a smoky or rather burnt note that I've experienced so many times before. And I've grown to love it in fragrances like Blackmail and in BeauFort London fragrances. Vanilla Royale changes a lot, however, and what started off as a burnt match note has become sweeter and more of a smoky patchouli. There is something very harsh about this fragrance that isn't just dominating and making a statement, but misplaced and unpleasant. Royale has so many notes that I feel like they are all battling each other rather than complimenting each others presence.

Though the name of the fragrance is called something Royale, there's something cheap about it and it just doesn't scream quality or regalness. It's like a child in its mother's clothing - trying to be something that it's not.

I tried this fragrance in reverse, on skin first. Now on paper, a week later, I am just as confused. VRSP is sugary sweet for sure, too sweet for my liking. There is something fruity about it, like cheap children's candy. I am honestly baffled that so many people like this. I definitely get rum, like dried plum in liquor, but all the other notes I love aren't there. Or maybe they all are, at the same time, too much of them for either of them to shine. I get neither leather, tonka, spices nor vanilla. Just a sweet, sweet patchouli dipped in plum jam spiked with rum. It sounds good, doesn't it? It isn't and I don't know why.

To me, all Kayali fragrances are good in theory, but no matter how many times or how many of them I have tried, they disappoint every time. 

I tried it once more on skin and this is how it went: the spiked plum jam is richer and the patchouli gives off the burnt note, the fruitiness has gone and the scent is basically a sweet patchouli mess. VRSP tries very hard to be an oriental, but with my beloved Taj in my collection, it doesn't even come close.

One thing I do want to give Vanilla Royale credit for, is that the paper strip, even days later, smells just as potent as on the first day. On my desk, every time I sit down, I get whiffs of it and get confused, because the scent is strong, not unpleasant, but not good either.

Mandorla del Sud by Simone Andreoli

Let me preface by saying that this review won't be fair to Mandorla del Sud. Lately, I've been trying new fragrances that haven't evoked excitement or any major feelings, so I'm getting fairy annoyed.

Now, Mandarlo del Sud isn't a complex fragrance with juxtaposed notes, it is quite simple, to be honest, which might be my fault to reach for it now.

Almonds, vanilla, sugar and amber. Sounds absolutely delicious, but I have to remind myself not to expect the unexpected. What I do hope for, is a good fragrance that at least makes me think "mmm"...

Up in the air, before I even smell the freshly sprayed paper strip, I get an almond food aroma scent. Like the one my mom used to bake with. Smelling the strip, I'm surprised how delicately sweet this fragrance is despite its note composition.

When coming back from Poland, where I bought my sample, the scent wasn't on Fragrantica (I submitted it in the forum), so I wrote down the notes in hand. Now, when researching if this fragrance has more notes than those four, it has been added to the database and Fragrantica seems to have those four notes stated as the only ones too. The one and only review left on the scent is completely right. Is this even a gourmand? I also get a peppery note and Mandorla del Sud is just so underwhelming. Something about it is quite unpleasant. The peppery note is done very wrong and smells like plastic after dry down. I am not looking forward to trying it on skin.

Mandorla del Sud is an explosion of alcohol. Just after spraying, it felt like having vinegar in my nose. After dry down, the scent has the same peppery note, but on skin it smells like plastic right up front. This is absolutely terrible. It doesn't even smell like a perfume, nor a detergent, but something that is utterly bad. It smells like an inedible herb; sour, earthy, aromatic, in a grass-like manner. Mandorla del Sud has absolutely nothing to do with the wonders of vanilla, depth of amber or nuttiness of almonds. It isn't even sweet like sugar, for crying out loud. My mind keeps wandering around dill, and now it struck me, it smells like the root of horseradish! Mandorla del Sud smells like sticking your nose in a jar filled with the herbs you use to pickle salted cucumbers the way my dad has been doing since always. Not a smell I have ever wished to be made into a perfume. It's a hard pass.

Lovefest Burning Cherry | 48 by Kayali

Lovefest has a true and juicy cherry from the get go - just what I hoped for. The cherry note is what made me so crazy about Lost Cherry and I have been searching for it ever since. The difference is that Lovefest, though very similar, takes a turn already after dry down. The cherry isn't leading as it is throughout Lost Cherry's longevity (a propos, the longevity is short, embarrassingly so). 

Lovefest keeps reminding you of the initial cherry note, but quickly the depth of the fragrance appears and becomes the focal point. 

Lovefest has many, many notes, but the scent is very (some might say "well") blended and I don't get any specific tonka note, vetiver, praline, patchouli or guaiac wood. I wouldn't even call this a Woody fragrance, but an Amber Fruity.

Funny thing is, close to skin, Lovefest is an Amber, but up in the air around me, I still get the juicy fruitiness of the cherry. I love that it's still there.

I don't get any note of anything burnt, though it is implied in the name and the sales assistant told me that it had that note compared to Lost Cherry.

Just before I go on with the rest of my day, I feel like reapplying, I don't find Lovefest that strong...

After 6 hours or so, the scent was barely there... Though it has a tremendously longer longevity than Lost Cherry by Tom Ford, I have to admit, shyly, that I have a Lost Cherry dupe by Vault Essences that is absolutely mouthwatering and has an insane sillage and longevity. I would prefer having a Kayali scent than an obvious rip-off, but alas, the rip-off is by far the best performing fragrance of them all.

Spice Must Flow by Etat Libre d' Orange

Looking at the notes, I'm not sure why I chose Spice Must Flow. I do like incense and lately I've been liking cardamom too, but rose is my most disliked note from the top of my head. Anyhow, when ordering my next set of samples, Spice Must Flow came with.

On paper, incense is up in the air immediately. The note of incense is very creamy, like that of an incense stick of sandalwood, which has not yet been lit. However, very soon, the note of rose, sour as it is to my nose, appears too. When the fragrance dries down, I get a delightful note of ginger that compliments the scent very well. The cardamom is very faint and I'm actually unsure whether I can smell it or not, or if it's the ginger. This fragrance is very well blended. I must say that I was a little concerned, but what has been revealed on paper intrigues me.

Just before spraying my wrist, I came to the realisation that Spice Must Flow reminds me of a scent I tried at Sense Dubai, something about this fragrance is quite Middle Eastern. However, I am underwhelmed by how un-spicy it is. I would rather say this fragrance is warm and creamy (not in a lactonic way), but I would never call it spicy.

Lets give it a go on my skin. Spice Must Flow is very similar on skin as it is on paper at the opening, but I would actually say that it is better. The ginger isn't more gingery, but makes the fragrance fresher, the rose is less rosy, which to me means less sour. The cardamom isn't there either (as of yet), but the incense is less prominent than on paper. 

After dry down, my excitement fizzles. Spice Must Flow is better on paper than it is on my skin, where rose has become the most dominating note. On paper, the fragrance is an amber to me, but on my skin it is a floral amber (you know, I know, we all know, I don't like florals...). Funny thing is, the aura around me is rose, rose, rose, but, the fragrance is actually more like it is on paper, when I smell my wrist! 

Spice Must Flow was a ride. I interchangeable like and dislike it, I'm still not sure...

Going back to it after a hot while, I have to say that I dislike it. The rose is just too dominating, but I like how it smells close to my wrist.

Mystic Sugar by Coreterno

I have been very excited about trying Mystic Sugar from Coreterno. First of, yes, the notes are absolutely mouthwatering, but have you seen the bottle? Swoon! 

Black and gold is always a good idea, but the Gothic twist is just the icing on the cake. Speaking of cake, Mystic Sugar is an ambery vanilla fragrance. I get a creaminess from sandalwood without the characteristics of sandalwood. Sweetness from vanilla without the typical vanilla scent. Mystic Sugar is truly mystical. 

On paper, I haven't been able to smell the pineapple or even the ginger. Maybe just the slightest idea of pineapple is there, but the fragrance is mostly an amber.

On skin, I do get a juicy pineapple scent! It is not tart, but sweet and is not like that of Lamar, but realistic nonetheless. After the fragrance dries down, the note of pineapple is gone. Mystic Sugar becomes an amber yet again and reminds me of Gold and Milk by Commodity. Milk without the lactonic note and just the DNA of Gold. 

I had high expectations for Mystic Sugar and don't get me wrong, the fragrance is good, but I'm not compelled to break the bank and purchase it. 

I have difficulty describing it beyond being an amber vanilla. It is creamy, warm without being spicy, skin-like, pleasant. 

I hoped to add this to my collection just for the look, but I think I'll skip this one.

Semi-Modern Vetiver Fat Electrician by Etat Libre d' Orange

I finally got my hands on Fat Electrician from Etat Libre d' Orange. It wasn't easy, because though ELDO is available in Denmark, it is not all fragrances from the house, seldom those that I am interested in. 

Luckily, Lulua came to the rescue!

Airy sweetness from first spray, surprisingly delicate, but it quickly becomes cloying, sappy even, but still light. Ain't that an oxymoron!

I had to look up the notes and to my surprise, this fragrance is not unisex according to Fragrantica, but a men's perfume. That goes to show that all fragrances are unisex, it all depends on the nose sniffing.

On paper, I only get the sweet and gourmand notes. It is a nicely blended concoction of whipped cream, marron glacé, vanilla and myrrh.

On skin, I get the exact same smell as on paper, but with just the slightest hint of vetiver. Not the dusty and smoky kind, but more ethereal. Fat Electrician is milky and lactonic making me think of Milk from Commodity as it is the latest milky scent I have tried, but the ELDO scent is without the play dough undertone that I found in all Commodity fragrances. I wish the vetiver was more green, more fresh, because this is a heavily gourmand and sweet fragrance that slowly becomes too cloying for my liking.

Hours in, the fragrance has become more masculine on paper, actually. I can't point my finger as to what makes it more masculine, but an unknown note has appeared, which has a cologne DNA. 

On skin, the scent hasn't changed much. 

Days later, I can still smell the scent on the paper strip and it is delicious. I completely understand why this is so popular.