Manakara Indult

Desirability: Adoption by a more appreciative nose

Source: Fragrantica

I have long worshiped at the altar of Francis Kurkdjian's creations. So confident am I of my love for his work that I've blind bought many of those I have. I thank heaven that I did not blind buy Mankara as tempting as lychee and roses sound.

For I don't smell lychee or roses and I've been around both long enough to know what they smell like from green to overripe. What I do smell is...over ripe melon that is syrupy sweet and cloying to the point of being nauseating. In the background I get a whiff of something that has been burnt and it's not pleasant either. It's almost like a fragrant plastic doll that's been singed. In the drydown the melon is joined by resins. Manakara is described as a tropical fruity floral with 2 notes of lychee and roses. It smells way more complex than 2 notes (except that I don't even smell the listed 2 notes LOL).

I checked and double-checked both my sample label as well as my sample order. It is Manakara that I'm wearing. Looking at the reviews online, there are others that get melon and the burnt note too except they are polite and call it caramelized. Ditto the resins. 

The projection and longevity are amazing and for those on who this works its magic, lucky you :)

Delire de Roses Caron

Desirability: Full bottle and back up

Source: www.b-b-com.ru

Feminine. Dainty. Graceful.

This smells like a garden party held within walls covered with thousands upon thousands of rose blooms in every shade of pink and yellow. The sky above is crystal clear and blue with not the slightest threat of rain to mar it. The slightest of breezes keeps the party cool and lively with the uplifting green and floral scent of the blossoming hedges but not heavy enough to ruffle the table linen, upon which a delightful feast of pretty treats is laid out, the fruit in season is lychee and here it is in abundance from lychee Martinis to lychee panna cotta. Delicate rose petals and tiny fragrant buds of jasmine are scattered across the table cloths whilst at the corners of the party stand cavernous pots as tall as your hip holding lotus plants with guppies darting about under their broad leaves from which grow translucent pink, purple white and golden blooms. 

On me the exquisite fresh rose blooms and the sweet lychee fruit are the most dominant and although lychee can get a little dense and syrupy, Delire de Roses stays light and tender throughout, rather soft but long lasting. 

A beautiful antidote for Monday blues and somehow I'm reminded of my darling nemesis/niece warbling "Ring a Ring o' Roses".

Source: theillustrationist.com

Le Voluttuose Rosa di Filare (Kimono Rose) Bois 1920

Source: tienda.jeperfumes.com

Previously known as Kimono Rose, Rosa di Filare is one of the three pink blushing bottles of Bois 1920 Le Voluttuose (The Voluptuous) collection.I actually intended to get Notturno Fiorentino but this kind of mistake I am happy to make. 

Rosa di Filare is a sparkling, tender and sweet rose, still perched upon its stem with the morning mist lingering on its petals. The bamboo imparts a watery green freshness whilst currants and lychee add tartness and fruity sweetness respectively. In the later part there is the addition of soft woody notes and patchouli adds a hint of moist earthiness but in general the scent remains forever youthful and radiant. Perfect scent to stave off Monday blues. After wearing Rosa di Filare, I do see the correlation with a rose-hued silk kimono, airy and delicate with a slightly cool caress on bare skin. Where La vaniglia was potent and promiscuous, Rosa di Filare is like Beth in Little Women, the angel of the house.