Vetiver

Vetiver was a love at first sniff for me. I first encountered it almost seven years ago now, in a local grocery store. The store had a section at the front devoted to gifts, like jewelry or scarves, and also a lot of the elizabethW line. I used to wait in that section for my bus ride home after I had finished my shopping, and when I first applied the tester lotion of this to my hands, I was in heaven. I had never smelled anything like it - and actually, I still haven't! I have never smelled vetiver so sweet and fresh. Most vetiver fragrances I have smelled since are very dry and earthy - still wonderful, but they are nothing like this one. This is the most easy to please vetiver I have ever smelled. The citruses really play a strong role in this perfume, making the scent lively and bright. Vetiver is definitely still present, providing some herbal heft and weight, allowing this fragrance to have a presence and last decently well. I don't find it masculine at all; in fact I am surprised by the comments saying this is barbershop. If this is barbershop, then I need to visit the men's section more often! To me, Vetiver is 100% unisex. I so wanted to buy a bottle of this, but they only had a large bottle for close to $60, and that was a staggering amount for me then. So I contented myself with my weekly visits, spraying myself and applying the lotion in store. Two years later I was visiting California on my own for the first time, and encountered the elizabethW store at the San Francisco airport! And they had a petit eau de parfum bottle of Vetiver, just 0.5 fl oz and $22 - just perfect for me. I picked it up and wore it during my trip, and to this day Vetiver reminds me of being near Pebble Beach in freezing, windy November: smelling independent, wild, and free.

I wore this fragrance regularly in the mid 2000s (2004-05ish) when Anthropologie stocked it. I wasn't overwhelmed by it at the time and in fact remember it being a fairly ordinary scent that, after a few months of regular wear, became so familiar that I would forget I had it on (I suppose that could be construed the mark of a good perfume). Just the other day, I caught up with a long-lost friend who, entirely unprompted by me, mentioned that "alluring" signature perfume of mine she conjures every time she thinks about our last year of undergrad. I suppose it's due to this unexpected compliment, but I have such nostalgia for this fragrance at the moment! Though my fragrance "to buy" list has swelled beyond my means, I am going to add this one to the top with the highest hopes that it captures something about that time for me as well. And now some helpful remarks to those folks contemplating purchasing Elizabeth W Vetiver. I concur with Bigsly that this scent has a moderate sillage and is slightly more ambery than its description implies. I also echo Sweetnspicey's point about its masculine aspect. I used this when I was considerably less mature and tended to douse myself, my clothing, and most anything else in close range (no wonder my friend remembers it so vividly). In turn, it lasted all day on my body and would become imbibed in the fibers of clothing until the next washing. Yet it's not offensive if you over-use (I think). So if you take a heavy hand to the atomizer, it's unlikely you'll offend anyone (I hope). And for the price, it's a total steal!

I love Vetiver by Elizabeth W. It's a a very vibrant unisex fragrance that get's compliments from men as well as women. It's my go to signature scent as a woman who is not afraid to get her hands dirty in nature or with carpentry and show up in a work meeting in the human services field the next day. This scent embodies and accomodates this kind of versatility. I find that the vetiver is present with complimenting citrus, grass, and a slight musk tonality. I would not have thought patchouli without reading the reviews but now that I have....I can smell this as well in a whisper. Not in an overpowering too earthy tone that Patchouli evokes for me speaking to early 80's timeline but rather a warm fond memory that is whispering in the back ground.

I encountered the hand soap and lotion in the bougie bathroom of a country club and immediately ordered it from the website. It smells clean, fresh, comforting and unisex. Reminiscent of the original Irish Spring soap from the 90’s, come to think of it. Whatever, it’s really good, and I think will be an easy reach for my workplace which teeeeechnically doesn’t allow fragrances. I think I can get away with this one ;)

Vetiver is a very nice unisex perfume. It smells very aromatherapudic and it has decent longevity. My husband wears it and I spritz it on from time to time. Vetiver vibes with other fresh spicy woody perfumes like C&E Nantucket Briar and The Thymes Lotus Santal. If you like nicely balanced aromatherapy scents, then this perfume is for you.