Friday

I picked up a sample of Friday a while back after seeing some rave reviews for Saturday but being wary of overly sweet gourmand notes -- I have a much better sense of my preferences now and Sunday is on the wishlist but I think Friday will always be my favorite of the line, and probably a favorite of all time, because it was the first time a fragrance kicked up an olfactory memory I didn't even know I had. For me, Friday is summer in Virginia, the suburbs outside DC, a gorgeous combination of my childhood backyard with its thick woods and honeysuckle bushes and the local pool on a weekday, from the surrounding trees to the smell of the water, even the women's showers there. It's believing they kept sharks behind the grate at the bottom of the deep end because some older kid told me so. It's walking home barefoot with a sandy towel over my shoulder and stopping to feel the lambs ear planted in the corner house's yard. It's a fragrance that connects me to a version of myself I didn't think I could feel close to anymore and whenever I put it on I feel so lucky. I only learned the Arielle Shoshanna store was in Fairfax, VA after experiencing Friday and it felt so kismet, having been raised in a neighboring town and the way the scent flung me back there even though I've been gone a long time with plenty of life between me and the girl I was then. The next time I visit family down there I'll absolutely be wearing Friday to take a long walk on the W&OD trail, listening to the mix CD my dad made me.

Arielle Shoshana has created yet another beautiful scent story in Friday. Markedly different from Saturday and Sunday but a perfect companion to an already complex and artfully crafted line. Where Saturday is tropical, punchy, and juicy, Friday is bright, tart, and effervescent- a burst sparkling citrus and pear, mixed with the most gorgeous and lightly sweet honeysuckle and grapefruit blossom. A hint of that cedar comes in at the dry down too, which adds a lovely grounding element that's not too heavy. For a light, citrusy floral scent, I actually find the longevity quite impressive, I can still smell it ~4 hours after application. Friday doesn't remind me of a wild night out in my 20s, rather my ideal Friday as a 30 something- sitting outside with friends, the air is hinting that spring is near, honeysuckle starting to bloom, and fizzy citrus cocktail in hand. I love all of the Arielle Shoshana perfumes but Friday has stolen my heart and become one of the most reached for scents in my entire collection. Also, I agree with the previous comment, I'd be over the moon if Arielle Shoshana made a perfume for each day of the week!

I've had two sample sizes of Friday at this point and as I'm reaching the end of my second sample, I'm brought back to how neutral I was on this scent when I was finishing my first sample of it. How wrong I was! I might be using the money I get from family this holiday season to buy myself a full size of this after all. I've been desperately on the hunt for an interesting yet clean, appropriate for the office scent. This is the It Girl fragrance I've been searching for and its so unique I can ensure people will ask what I'm wearing. I will usually pair it with a cucumber melon body lotion/body spray if I have it around, just to really drive home that cool fruity element, but it shines bright on its own. I don't really get much of the citrus smell in this, but it definitely has a light sweetness from the pear that gets rounded out by those creamy white florals and white cedar. Last time I was doing a trial of this fragrance it was late spring and I just couldn't get what I needed out of it, but now as the winter approaches and the sun is hard to come by, I find myself clawing for this little bottle of sunshine.

I’ve sampled the entire Long Weekend line, and this one and Saturday were my favorites. Friday is pretty, very nicely balanced between the white florals and the crispness of the citrus notes. The honeysuckle in particular stands out to me which is nice, I love honeysuckle. Now that I think of it, this does remind me of Aerin Mediterranean Honeysuckle, but I think I actually prefer this one. It does feel a bit like a “designer” scent profile, and is probably the most “designer-y/mass-appealing” out of the lineup. Saturday was the full bottle I picked after testing (because it stood out to me as slightly more unique), but I may pick up this one as well. My brief thoughts on the others in the line: Monday - soft black tea and citrus, nice but not unique if you’re into tea fragrances. Tuesday - minty freshie, nice but just not my preferred fragrance profile. Sunday - cooked rice steam and nothing else, this was a disappointment and a “dislike” for me. Saturday - bright and cheerful passion fruit, reminded me of a fruity summer cocktail, chose this as my full bottle due to the uniqueness of the passion fruit note.

A strong start to the long weekend. Zesty and bright. Very lemon-lime. It’s a crisp bottle of small-batch soda – fizzy, tart, upper case citrus, lower case floral. A vivid lemon verbena takes the lead, but its edges are softened by honeysuckle petals. Pretty high-fidelity scent for a sunshine citrus; I got at least five hours. It’s also a reincarnated lost love of mine: Coach Legacy, the scent-track to my senior year, but more potent and acidic. Friday has a sweetness that almost bites. A smile is just a baring of teeth, no? But I love the sharpness to it, and something about that citrus-honeysuckle combo hits so good. I’m not a regular weekday. I’m a cool weekday. Mental Snapshot: Opening credits to a teen romaticomedy, or an indie bildungsroman. School’s out for summer. Zipping through the burbs with the top down. Kiss assault from a golden retriever. Solo cups of spiked lemonade. Forget glass half-full, it’s practically overflowing. If you dare pout, they’ll push you in the deep end and flog you with a pool noodle. tl;dr: summer seltzer 🔆🥏