Velvet Love

This is probably the most beautiful carnation fragrance I have ever smelled hands down. I'm so glad I blind bought this in a huge 5 oz size. I am a carnation nut and adore it. One of my most favorite flowers of all time. The ylang ylang softens this fragrance and makes it quite feminine IMO but a man could pull it off if so inclined. Very beautiful combination of carnations and ylang-ylang. This is a fragrance that can both attract and repel. It is a suit of armour. Worn by a dangerous yet attractive woman. Where gardenia is a haunting and dangerous beauty it kills by drawing its prey close but killing it slowly and meticulously like a spider. Carnation draws it's prey close but if the lady wearing it is not in the mood for attention she will strike without mercy like a viper. The carnation lady kills quickly the gardenia lady kills slowly. Both are for strong women but are deadly fragrances in different ways. This is a fragrance to wear on days when you want to feel at your most powerful. Strike quickly and walk away. Leave them stunned and speechless. Absolutely Gorgeous. Velvet spice for the one you love.

Oh my word! This is a bomb - in a good way. I wore this for the first time this morning. This smells awesome and the sillage and longevity of this are unbelievable. It smelled better and better as the day went by. I was at work for 9 hours and after I left went to my hotel, the front desk person asked me what I was wearing. This the best one from this line. It is well worth the price I paid for if from Fragrancenet. Ladies if you have a few $10 to spare without breaking the bank, you should buy it!

I love this perfume so so much. It is my 'meditation' fragrance, it calms my soul every time. Spicy-sweet, carnation and incense-like nuances is what I mainly get, a little bit sharp and vivid at the beginning but the dry down is so smooth, almost vanillic. I feel warm (not hot) weather brings out the best of this fragrance.

I love this! It reminds me of an intense version of rose the one but with out the vanilla and rose smell if you get what I mean. Very rich and delicate something you can wear out or enjoy the glamour it provokes. Definitely something very beautiful

One of the best carnation blends ever, period! Done by a favorite perfumer. Slightly old fashioned but in a good way, truly timeless.

One of my best perfumes ❤ Spicy, elegant, and long lasting

There's something to this fragrance that reminds me of my childhood. I get a creamy ylang ylang powder with light spicy carnation. The carnation smells natural and not exaggerated/clove like. The ylang ylang also smells more of a natural floral scent and not the overly obvious tropical vanilla blend. It is creamy and a bit banana-y though. Something to this fragrance is powdery and reminiscent of dolls. However I feel as though someone from my past wore a fragrance similar to this as it reminds me of walking the hallways of my elementary school. Maybe it was the dolls we used to bring in our backpacks to play with. There is something so comforting and nostalgic. I can't quite recall a vivid memory but something about this is involuntarily taking me back to a different time in my past. It's beautiful and "vintage" in an effortless way. I've tried many of these Velvet series from D&G and I think it's one of my favorite exclusive lines from a designer. Each of them are so unique and different from one another, and there's such a variety in the lineup. They all smell well blended and of good quality ingredients. You can tell these fragrances are a step up from the normal designer stockpile of releases. This is sort of what I expected from Oeillet Sauvage by L'Artisan Parfumeur, but the lily in that one was too astringent and the carnation/ylang combo a bit too overly cosmetic powdery and pungent. A part of me wishes that this was easier to get ahold of, but then the other part of me is understanding that time and effort went into this fragrance that might not have been were it not for its emphasis on high quality exclusivity. I believe that now that the temperatures are dropping this perfume shines beautifully, whereas I am unsure of how it will preform in the spring/summer months. I'm just admiring what it is in the here and now, and at the moment saving up for a full bottle has begun.

Velvet Love opens with intense, spicy carnation and syrupy-sweet, banana-y ylang, just as promised in the notes. There is a conspicuously missing pepper, but I'm glad to miss it. The sharp, almost savory carnation and smooth syrupy ylang contrast so nicely together it would be a shame to unbalance the duet. Along the drydown, the carnation mellow out and is slowly taken over by a bourbon vanilla that is clearly in the formulation but is mysteriously absent from the note listing. This vanilla-ylang stage lasts a very long time, before eventually settling to a tropically spicy vanilla without much florals presence. The throw is bombastic and the fragrance up close is intense, so 1-2 sprays is almost excessive. Despite the simplicity, Velvet Love feels rich and complex. The carnation smells like sniffing the actual flower, rather than soap or potpourri, an experience I have had with other carnation-lead fragrances. The ylang smells just like my 100% ylang essential oil. Velvet Love took me a few wears to enjoy, since the carnation is so aggressive in the opening and it lends the scent a vintage flair that I don't care for. However, the drydown is as warm and smooth as the velvet it's named after, and very tropical without relying on suntan coconut or other stereotypes.

Oh my. I was not expecting this to be so good. It starts a bit musty and alcoholy and then quickly dries down to what smells like a bouquet of carnations with light dusting of incense or patchouli. They smell a little dirty and earthy which I have not yet experienced in a carnation fragrance and I love it Looking at the notes I see it has ylang ylang and pink pepper, neither of which I have a great understanding of, so take my note identification with a grain of salt. Carnations in general are SO refreshing, and juxtaposed with other notes they are endlessly fascinating. I absolutely love them and wish they were used more in perfumery. They have this watery-spiciness that cannot be explained. I am separately becoming a steady fan of Rodrigo Flores-Roux and was surprised to see his name on this fragrance. And this understated bottle with cute velvet cap and classic square D and G lines. Of course this is discontinued. I feel like all of my favorites are no longer available and have to be used in moderation which is disappointing. Great fragrance.

I bought this fragrance today at Saks and I really like it. It is a very nice floral. The pink peppercorn tones down the floral, so that it is not over powering. It is a very refreshing floral. It smells velvety, but you can wear it through the day. The packaging is beautiful. It is as if you bought an expensive piece of jewelry. I can wear this fragrance all year long. I cannot wait to see what responses I receive when I wear it.

Update: When the fragrance dries down, I smell vanilla. I am not a fan of vanilla. The top and middle notes are great, but 4 hours later, I smell a clear vanilla scent on me, which I am not a fan of. The problem is that from what I can see, the fragrance has carnation, pink pepper and ylang-ylang. Is there vanilla in this fragrance?

Update #2: I went back to Saks today 05/16/12, and I confirmed with the D&G salesperson that there is NO vanilla in the composition. Hooray!

Such a disappointment... I love carnations so much and I adore Oeillet Bengale Aedes de Venustas. Here you get some average carnations and after 10 sprays it last only an hour, then disappears to dusty unpleasant mess. Maybe I got bad bottle...

A candy-floral opening, drying down to a sweet floral...nothing special here for me, not a bad fragrance, just not noteworthy nor worth the $$$.

So strong.Don't like it.Only in a cap Гвоздика соло.Тяжелый.Из крышечки намного лучше.Но на теле не Айс.

wow, i got a sample at Saks and totally hated it!

Sigh....another one bites the dust. I bought samples of Velvet Love off Ebe and I was so disappointed. Now the samples may well have been old; and my skin eats scent so keep these facts in mind. I am a huge fan of carnation I love it, and again here it is paired with pepper a note I loathe in fragrances. If I want pepper I will sprinkle it on my food. I have the Lorenzo Villaresi Garafano and while at first I loved it, after repeated use I found the pepper too strong in this though it does wear off. The sillage and longevity are incredibly good I can smell the Garafano hours later. Freshly sprayed with a liberal hand the LV Garafano could clear a room. I'd say the longevity is comparable to my Boadicea, a gift from my adored friend in England. Sadly, in comparison within an hour the Velvet Love deflates like a balloon losing helium. Initially I got an animalic note a definite whiff of skank not my favorite: as I said this sample may have been old because I have tried vintage fragrances that start exactly the same way. I will say that the dry down was a lovely true carnation reminiscent of Bellodgia , just way too soft for me. I definitely will not purchase this in a full bottle it is far too expensive for such a weak and unsatisfying composition.

I was hoping not to love this one, but I do. Carnation, pepper, and that sweet D&G dry down. What's not to love? This seriously smells like a cross between the ylang-ylang in Guerlain Ylang-Vanille and the spicy carnation in vintage Wicked Wahine. It's so smooth and rich. The pepper is exactly the right amount and the carnation, which is sometimes too sharp is actually perfect in this. It smells fresh and bright. The musky D&G base is slightly sweet and super sexy. It's the same base as in D&G Pour Femme - in the last part of the dry down - the only difference is this has a drop dead gorgeous smooth carnation rather than marshmallow. It really does smell like a velvety carnation. On my other wrist, I tested Villoresi Garofano, which is much too sharp, to my surprise since I love Villoresi, but this D&G wins hands down. No contest.

This is an underrated gem. Love at first sniff for me. Very sensual, glamorous floral. Reminiscent of old school perfumes because of course carnation is associated with a begone era of perfumery, but it’s done in a wearable and modern way here. As much carnation as you like here, topped with some slightly animalic sweet tones of what smells to my nose like honey although it’s not listed in the notes. Ylang doesn’t dominate on my skin at all, but adds a certain creamy smoothness. A silky, spicy, seductive floral. Big love ❤️

Tried this today and instant love. It contains 2 of my favourite notes, Carnation and Ylang, so i am not surprised i love it. It reminds me of the other creamy carnation in my collection, Fragonard Billet Doux, with a serious dash of creamy ylang. The pepper is hardly noticable imo. The price scares me though, i am used to buying niche and rare. Guerlains, but when it hits 200 euros......

I love Serge Lutens fragrances, but I was looking for carnation and vitriol by SL was too far away from what I was chasing This D&G is wonderful, and if you close your eyes you can find a Serge Lutens woman walking with naked feet on a Mediterranean beach, the carnality of D&G married the sensuality of Lutens. It is D&G Velvet Love yes, but remind me SL...... in his best

A GORGEOUS FRAGRANCE. To my nose, it's basketfuls of spicy, fragrant, golden ylang-ylang petals mixed with the woody balsamic notes of real vanilla beans, drying in the sun. A spicy, powdery exotic floral fragrance with a woody, sweet undertone; the scent of new adventures in the lush sun warmed forests of Madagascar, barefooted and excited.

Carnations are really well done. The sweetness is deep and beyond ylang-ylang: I get honey and honey wax, and some animalistic secretions. The same thing with pepper: the complexity goes beyond black pepper. I personally get more pink pepper with some bitter herb and carrot seeds. Dina_France (YouTube perfume reviews)

how much pepper would you say is in here? i love love carnations, but they always pair it with pepper, which is a note i can never do... is it strong in this composition?

Eating fried bananas with nutmeg while smelling carnations dusted in pepper, smooth dry spicy floral, very good.

This is a beautiful bottle. I am hoping the fragrance will be spectacular.