Fantasy Intense

Smells like a giant patchouli cupcake, for better or for worse. (I never knew cupcakes had such a distinctive smell, but they really do.) I kind of hated it when it first arrived, because the first few sprays smelled like straight wood and patchouli, and reminded me of a magazine. However, I like it more and more as time goes on, so either my nose is warming up to it or it's developing in the bottle. Still, the wood and patchouli notes are really strong in the opening, and it takes almost an hour for the delicious, creamy, white chocolate cupcake to emerge—BUT, when it does, it's really yummy. I don't get much fruit or the flowers personally. For me, it tends to take on this sort of rich, lactonic note on my skin, which is actually quite lovely, and something I don't get from the original Fantasy. As someone who struggles with longevity on my skin and nose-blindness, I was really impressed by the performance. I put some on my arm before I went to bed one night, and by the morning, it hadn't budged in projection. Not inherently overpowering, but strong. You could probably choke out a room if you really wanted to; otherwise, a few sprays is good. Definitely more of a nighttime fragrance, but I like it on cold, cloudy days as well. I've decided I definitely like it, but I don't think it's a love, at least not yet. First I'll let it sit and see if the patchouli/wood dims and the white chocolate/cupcake strengthens over time, and then I might change my mind. As of now, it's still a tad on the mature side for me as a nineteen year-old college student, though I have been wearing it more and more. All in all, a very interesting, thoughtful, non-linear perfume. The bottle is beautiful, and I think marketing it to millennial women who enjoyed Fantasy as teens is super smart. In my opinion, if you're mid to late twenties or older and you a) like patchouli and woodsy notes and b) enjoyed the original Fantasy, it's a pretty safe blind buy. Edit: I smelled it again after winter break, and I've decided: it's a love. I think my nose has matured. This is yummy woody patchouli cupcake, and it's lovely. Edit #2: Oh my gosh, the lychee is really starting to come out, especially when sprayed on my clothes, and it's delectable. Amazing for me because I love lychee :)))

No other perfume flankers get me so excited as do Fantasies. With a few mediocre exceptions these potions of happy never fail do entice me. Sure, Fantasy was supposed to be something teenage girls would wear as someone very clever in the marketing team assumed that they would be drawn to smell of sweet edible high calorie things. And they do exactly that, whilst retaining classic perfume pyramid development with top, heart and base notes which makes them quite different from most other celebrity gourmands with their linear monotonous meh. Even though Intense has that recognisable Fantasy core of kiwi, lychee with white chocolate and cupcake accord, both the opening and base are totally revamped. Sour quince has been swapped with creamy juicy pear. And not only there's a beautiful dose of modern rendition patchouli, the musks and orris are less gritty in the base than in the original one. Overall effect is not more intense as in lasting power, but I assume simply by the way patchouli always impacts the silage. It's also somewhat more silky and sophisticated, I would say almost elegant. I like to enjoy perfumes as art, not constrained by gender or age group they are or used to be aimed at decades ago. I don't like to follow trends and even most of the fraghead communities that are tainted with snobbery and 'the new emperor clothes' effect. It grinds my gears when they say that the mainstream scene is worthless trash. Or it reeks of cheap synthetic. Big part of their coveted luxury or nyche perfumes do not contain a single natural ingredient. The artistry of a perfume isn't determined by the nobility of the rare or natural and expensive ingredients. It's simply not true, just like it's not that easy to create a pop music hit that would become multiple platinum so is to create a perfume for the mass market and that perfume to remain a best seller for nearly two decades.

One of the things in life I regret most is throwing out a couple of bottles of perfume in the mid '10s. Among them were Fantasy Armani diamond, burberry Brit, and Escada Magnetism. A couple of years later I really wanted them back but I found out they were reformulated due to the new IFRA rules. I vow to never throw out a perfume EVER, because God knows which ingredients will be next to be eliminated in favor of cheap unpredictable aromachemicals. Wary of the reformulation of the original and being a massive fruitchouli-lover, I found a 100ml bottle of Fantasy Intense for only €40. Easy blind buy! During the opening I regretted my choice. Where was the sweet litchi? Why did I smell so much iso-E? It smelled like Fahrenheit, that's not what I wanted! But slowly waves of Fantasy were coming my way. My friend came closer, and closer, and now, after a couple of hours I feel HUGGED by a beautiful soft vanilla sugar warmth with Fantasy sparkle. How can a perfume be so inexpensive, but so good? The drydown is on par with perfumes that literally cost 10x as much. Thank you Britney and your perfumes, for creating this masterpiece 💜

I am so impressed with Fantasy Intense! I wasn’t expecting to love this so much, and truthfully, I’ve never worn the original, just the Midnight, which I didn’t feel was very sexy or dark as the name implies (though I still love it). This one.... Yummy and spicy sweet- just so intoxicating and delicious! I think this could be a cool-cold weather signature for me, personally. I like woody notes and patchouli, if blended well, and this is very well blended, coming off like a high end perfume instead of a cheapie. If Midnight Fantasy was the Britney Spears line doing “sexy dark” I can see why some Fantasy fans are shocked by the woody and patchouli notes, but after sniffing some big, womanly heavy hitters, I feel the earthy notes in this are tame. The Fantasy line bottles are beautiful and fun, and I feel like the dark fuscia red color reflects the scent well. Would you like to smell like you’re having a white chocolate cupcake party in the woods? Yes for me! Longevity was 5-6 hrs for me and my shirt smells dreamy next day. People who don’t enjoy patchouli in their perfumes might want to think twice but I’m all in. Gorgeous.

This scent...come ON NOW! Omg you do not have to be a Britney fan, (I'm ambivalent), to enjoy this fragrance. I'm telling you, this is crazy, and worth every penny and more. I wanted the bottle first, because, sparkly, shiny, red, just being real. It's gorgeous. But the scent itself is freaking amazing. It's yummy as heck. Mouthwatering. I expected it to be obnoxious and cheap, it is not. It is so delicious and fruity and fun but not *too* fun, like you can be way over 16 and love this stuff. It's juicy. It's superrrr long lasting. If you put her on before bed, she will wake up with you in the morning. I get into perfumery because I think it's fascinating how a scent can alter mood, almost like a drug. But I'm almost afraid to get too deep into it because it seems like once someone becomes knowledgeable about scents and notes, they can't appreciate a great cheapie like this anymore. $20 for a luxurious, juicy, fruity scent paradise? I always want to be able to appreciate that. Gonna be rockin this little gem alllll summer, baby!