Absolutely Vital

I won a full bottle tester of Absolutely Vital at the Sniffapaloosa Fall Ball. I love it. This is definitely a perfume for grown-ups. I'm not good with notes, etc. but I can tell you this smells like Christmas with all the balsam and other greens. So glad I was introduced to this wonderful woody fragrance. If you like spicey perfumes you will like this.

The opening reminds me whiskey and cola, then it's woody and spicy. I've always wanted to try Diana Vreeland fragrances,it's worth the price. It's niche type of scent but the lasting power could be better Interesting is that this fragrance is similar a bit to Samsara,Stash and many other sandalwood fragrances. Yet it has it's own identity.

Honestly, during my initial tests I felt a bit disgusted, since the flowers are present, but mixed with the other ingredients, they seem pretty dirty. Not in a sexy way, in a very confusing one. It's a weird mixture between something carnal that reminds me of some aspects of a warm body (maybe even unwashed for a day or during a fever, since it's a bit disturbing) and something edible, but slightly off-putting... The closest and most specific comparison regarding the edible part that I can find is a white bread roll soaked in water, to the point it looks like a sponge - I remember the scent well, since my mum used to add some to a kind of meatballs for better texture when I was a kid. Afterwards, the flowers get tamer and softer and the bready reference gets clearer - when the last phase settles, it's unbelievably cozy and rewarding, like a buttery shortbread made from high quality butter, and it's very creamy due to sandalwood and vanilla. I had a colleague comment: "Does anyone else smell cookies in here...?" and another one confirm when I used the fragrance in the office. This drydown is lovely, not too sweet, not cloying, and the quality is certainly there. I would definitely recommend the perfume, however, even though I believe my experience might be a very personal interpretation, I think it's better to sample or order a decant before buying a full bottle here.

pathetic; for an EDP, this is all alcohol and water, shame on her for the price; basically, it goes on with an alcohol burn then you get this faint watery saffron scent and a watery creamy sandalwood; what a waste of my money; sooooo many better fragrances out there

It's very similar to Profvmum Roma Santalvm. Sandalwood with fresh tire burn marks. I don't like it, but if you dig Saltalvm, you might wanna try this too, it's a bit more on the feminine side, jasmine in drydown.