Downtown Deja-Vu

Sampling Day Three Fragrances Downtown Déjà Vu, “inspired by the experience of strolling through a 90’s shopping mall” and a very fun, bright, sweet blend involving a prominent cotton candy note, paired with fruits, rose, iris, linen, and cinnamon. It has some of the makings of a gourmand with the main counterpoints being the floral heart of rose and iris, which play nicely against the sweets. Evolution-wise, it’s predictably a bit sharper in the opening, a bit sweeter in the dry down overall, but the cotton candy aspect is rather consistent throughout, with more of the fruits in the background in the opening, the florals in the heart, and the cinnamon in the base. The note breakdown rings very true for this fragrance, a rare experience for me. Comparison-wise, it reminds me a bit of the Dua original “Your Wish is My Command” in the similar blend of cotton candy and rose, and more vaguely it reminds of other fruity cotton candy fragrances like Gallivant Los Angeles. Overall, I love it! It delivers on the fun promise of walking through some food stands at a mall or in a carnival and taking in the sweet whiffs, and it performs well. Even with the above comparisons, it does not overlap too much with either and is a really lovely wear, something I’ll want to try on some more, I think. Downtown Déjà Vu is EDP concentration and is priced at $225/130/35 for 100/50/10ml, in line with most of the house’s pricing, and is sold through the house website. Again, I positively love the 10ml option as a way to try it out before buying a larger bottle or to have a travel-ready option. 8 out of 10

My review is from a 2 ml sample. I did do a full day wear test but it is limited as it came from a sample and not a full bottle. For context I live in Florida so there is heat and humidity and while most of my day I am in air conditioning I do spend time outdoors and this worked well in the heat for me. Overall this had very decent longevity and projection, lasting 6-8 hrs before becoming a more intimate skin scent. This scent is familiar or perhaps the word is nostalgic yet is still extremely unique. Not a linear scent, it transforms as it wears, and each facet is delectable. I can smell the cotton candy accord throughout, but it is not cloying or sickly sweet, more as if you walked by a cotton candy stand as it was being made and the scent carried to you in the air. I also smell the apple and at times it feels like it is candied apple - like the ones you get at the fair with the red candy coating. The sweet outside with a crisp green apple middle. In the mid I get hints of cinnamon, but it is subtle and not spicy to my nose. And it is combined with some powderiness from the iris, but it does not feel old fashioned in any way. I also get some traces of leather/suede reminiscent of walking by a leather goods store in the mall back in the 80's-90's. The dry down is sweet and musky - very addictive and captivating. Edit: I had to buy the full bottle of the one. Could not get it off my mind. Still love it and find it addictive.

This brand’s sample set is the most excited I’ve been with perfumery in months. I agree with a lot of the comments saying that this takes you back in time. It’s a really nice journey that you go on during the first hour of this aroma. Smelling this in the air, in the opening, I think of being a kid eating cotton candy and I’m walking with my grandma as we pass by an old church. Then we go home and I play outside. I can smell the clean laundry coming out of the air vents as gmom washes everyone’s clothes, but the cotton candy lingers from earlier in the day. Towards the midpoint, it seems like woodiness starts to make its way out and things get warm and ambery with the cotton candy still pushing. It starts to die down at this point for me. Then I’d go inside and take a nap. Great fragrance! In the air, the notes that really stand out to me are the linen, cotton candy, amber, iris, musk, and maybe cinnamon. The other notes I can pick up on skin, but not much in the air. I’d say that this is a good everyday scent for a lady. I think it’s unisex if it’s situational, or personality based. Because of my personality and vibe this wouldn’t work for me, but I think this is something you could wear everyday if sweet, clean, fresh, some early powder, and an ending tinge of warmth matches your personality.

This opens with a department store type of DNA fruity perfume smell, but with more refinement. It’s like a nice designer perfume that could pass for a niche one lol. As the scent develops the fruits become smoother and less “perfumey”. The heart of this where the scent becomes much better, it’s a gorgeously smooth blend of a creamy iris, a flirty rose, and a crisp linen smell with hints of clean sweetness. This scent is playful, it’s musky, and subtly sweet. The dry down takes a turn to darker territory with a smooth suede, reminiscent of a dark brown suede jacket. The cotton candy addition is a weird one but it works, and there’s a pinch of cinnamon but it’s not that noticeable, really only there for depth. This scent feels like the cool girl with the fringed suede jacket and a white tee, walking through the mall in a small town eating cotton candy, the smell of her bold red lipstick lingering past.

Fantastic. It's very complex. Not WOAH complex, but starts as a fem citrus floral vibe, soft roses. Into a red fruity, rose, linen, cinnamon/amber combo. The fresh linen is very synthetic, but not at all over powering, it's just a good musk for sillage. Overall, the scent smells feminine (for most men, me? I will absolutely wear this, to me this is 100% unisex and I scored it that, but I'm also hetero, and I know most men will deem this as 2005 girl spray) to me this is definitely early 2000s mall. Fun playfully not too sweet but enough citrus and cinnamon to be snuggled up on. This fades away into an amber, fresh rose. Insanely sexy after 4 hours. Great grab, but not a dumb reach. For artistry, 8.5/10. For practicality, or implications 7/10.