Talisman eau Transparente

I have to write something about this beauty and my personal history with it. I am a Balenciaga addict, wanting ALL of them, if available for an acceptable price.. I ADORE the regular Talisman, and in my vintage perfumebooks the Eau de Transparante was described next to the original, with almost exactly the same notes. I think an overlap of 75%. So when I bought it, it seemed quite different.... I thought, how can this be, was my vintage book wrong? But now, quite a while later, I sprayed it on, and INDEED it DID smell the same!! But indeed lighter.. I think my ability to smell is growing after all these years. This perfume is so incredible subtle, that the complexity cannot be read instantly. I am glad I learned to smell better, because I am really getting to understand perfumes better for what they intended to be!

On the opening I get very little, and I'm tricked into thinking it's wishy-washy. No! Over a short period it starts to unfold, and gets stronger, with first white florals, then fruity aspects coming through. I start getting ready to go out, and as I'm moving about and my skin heats up, it gets stronger still. I'm surprised by the performance! This is a crafty little "eau" which isn't very transparent at all in the drydown, and to its credit there's no evident fixative base keeping it going like there would be in such a scent from your average designer or something like MFK. There's also a sort of spiciness underneath it all providing just a touch of warmth which, again, gets stronger the more it heats up.

Here are the notes of this special perfume: Black current Bergamot Mandarin Lemon Grapefruit Violet leaf Olive flower Rum Anjer Freesia Rose Hyacint Orchid Ylang Ylang Sandalwood Oakmoss Amber

Oh and I forgot, for a better overview of the notes involved in this perfume, look at the notes of the regular Talisman and think of an similarity of 75% of the notes all in a lighter touch!

I am totally new to Balenciaga scents. In this I smell Ylang Ylang. freesia,Osmanthus, Rum, Amber. My first impression was of an incense shop, maybe that is the Ylang Ylang, Floral middle notes then back to the incense shop but with an added soapy smell in the drydown. Beautiful little bottle, nice colour, great name but I am simply not getting this one. To me it smells like the perfume of a bygone age but perhaps it is just that the little bottle I have obtained is aged. I wa so determined to like this that I am giving it the benefit of doubt and will try again, but so far not keen.

I am sorry, I have to disagree with Action on this. And probably I am wrong, as everybody knows that Action has the biggest perfume collection of all times and give notes of fumes out of memory, you never even heard of. Sure, Talisman and Talisman eau Transparent share something and I think the name nails this pretty well, but only like Rumba and Talisman share something. A clear realtionship, but not like EdP to EdT, more like mother and daughter. In Rumba the fruits are bold, dark and loud, in Talisman the fruits are bold, sweet, gourmand and dense, in Talisman eau Transparent the fruits are the same like in Talisman, but with additional citrus (grapefruit?), no gourmand, less sweets, and - I know, very uncreative, to say that, but it's true - more transparent. Rumba = a 38 year old woman, selfconfident of herself and her sexuality and her life, she knows, what she wants and gets it, brooding and passionate Talisman = a 22 year old young woman, beautiful in her feminine youth but immature, a little insecure at times, but very funny and so loveable, she doesn't know, what life holds for her, she simply loves the fact, that she has all possibilities and life's at her stake Talisman eau Transparent = a 16 year old teenager, very cool and very shy at the same time, unsecure, she doesn't feel or look like a woman yet, more unisex (early Kate Moss is the personification) Two years before eau Transparent CK One emerged out of nowhere and blew all boldness, all craziness, all passion away. That was the paradigm shift of the early 90s. Talisman and Talisman eau Transparent are the best example for before and after CK One. I can imagine the people at Balenciaga were in despair when they released Talisman in the same year as CK One, the total opposite of it. Epic fail. "Make Talisman more One, for heaven's sake!" they might have shouted through the offices, "we still have all the original essence of Talisman left and nobody will buy it! Mix in three times water and watever it is, that they use for One, that citrusy stuff, which everybody finds now very modern. Tame it down big time! Let's cut the losses by cutting the frag, guys!". I haven't found my way to Talisman eau Transparent yet. It's ok, but also smells fairly masculine and thin, but maybe I find a way to love it some day. I am as in craze about Balanciaga as Action. I needed all of them, so I have eau Transparent in stock waiting for the perfect occasion to be appreciated. For now I wait.

I love Balenciaga.Talisman is a serene yet seductive scent that my cousin used to wear when we were 17.The elusive sense of "water" is intense,although the ingredients should give you fruity expectations.It is elegant and playful too.The freesia dominates,making it beautiful to wear around spring.

I LOVE BALENCIAGA PERFUMES...... My favorite : Quadrille ! (that was my mom perfume !!!!) The second : the fleeting moment (la fuite des heures in French) Oh my goodness !!!!! Just gorgeous !