Oblique Rewind

This is my first review, and as such, I wanted it to be a review of the perfume I used to love so much! (I have also posted as a guest a few posts down :-) When I first bought it I didn't know much about perfumes - and to be honest, I still don't! It's only through this great site I stumbled upon a few months ago, that I have started to try and identify the various notes I smell in a perfume. Unfortunately I don't have a bottle that smells as good as the original did, mainly the top notes and the colour of the perfume have been affected by time. The freshness of the fruity top notes has turned into something too sharp, stingy and oily, that reminds me more of a heavy oriental/aromatic note, which of course isn’t the intention. The middle notes still smell divine! I think it is the sweetness of the honey and the aroma of the cashmir wood that have such an intoxicating effect on me. I always thought I got some kind of almond note in there; almonds, or almond tree blossom, or maybe even cherry blossom? I remember smelling a tester (the one that lead me to try the perfume on skin- and buy it eventually) and it had a picture of blossom on it, even though the description here doesn’t mention any cherry or almond blossom. The lasting power was great on me; when I was in high school I used to spray twice a day: before going to school, and before going out in the afternoon/evening. This was enough for my signature perfume to last all day long. Even after a few hours had passed, I remember getting unexpected waves of the middle and base notes – this was always such a pleasant surprise! I also used to get compliments on it, and I remember feeling ‘feminine’ and sexy, but in a fresh and youthful way, that suited my age at that time. I loved the fact that this perfume stood out from the rest, the unique oriental and slightly gourmand character of it – sweet and mysterious notes, all in one. Sadly, this perfume was discontinued -too soon in my opinion- and I haven’t been able to find another one that could give me the same thrill. Maybe I’m biased, after all this perfume is emotionally charged with memories of a youthful and romantic time in my life. But I really do long for a new signature perfume, a scent that won’t be too popular and over-worn, yet something original, playful and feminine at the same time. Not necessarily a perfume that smells similar to Oblique RWD, more importantly a perfume that will inspire me enough and create the lust to smell it daily, a scent that will make me feel special while wearing it, and fill me with optimism, passion and confidence.

So unique and lovely!! It is sweet and cherry from the get-go...I do get a bit of cherry cough drop on first spritz, but not really in a bad way...plus, it fades fast into just a rich warm cherry. Just a faint hint of nutty pistachio warming it up and making it more interesting. The middle notes quickly make this a cherry pipe tobacco and honey-scented fragrance on me, with this being one of the best honey notes I've found in a long time. Rich, warm, resinous, sweet honey. Jasmine sweetens up the middle notes just a bit, but the star of this middle ground is clearly the rich honey and the cashmere wood. The complete drydown on me contains very little patchouli and is all amber and the carryover of the rich cherry/honey mix. It is a warm, gorgeous, comforting, sexy scent. This is not a skin scent--sillage is decent but not overpowering, and longevity is about 5-6 hours with one spray. This is definitely a unisex scent, but it is rich and sweet and sexy on me and I am hoarding every drop of this one. Sadly, this gorgeous, rich, complex gem is discontinued, but I would snap up a backup in an instant if I located it at a great price. EDIT: For Whaea: Compared to Cherry in the Air, this one is rich and sweet, deep and a bit smoky. Cherry in the Air is also very gorgeous, but tart and fruitier with a much softer dry down, in my opinion. :D

I am frustrated with Givenchy recent releases and I am happy I own this trio to remind me that Givenchy were one of the big 5 (along with Dior, Chanel, YSL and Guerlain. Well, not anymore since Hermes just blew Givenchy and YSL away - I praise Galop every time i can, Twilly is also excellent, but that’s a different topic). In my mind the Obliques are one of the first to give birth to the recent hysteria of limited series, and trilogies. Setting trends is a key fashion aspect, and Givenchy did just that with this unpretentious, carefree and youth-marketed trio. Rewind is the female of the species, but it does not make it deadlier than the rest. It’s a joyous cherry flavored vanilla scent to soothe the sweet tooth. Wonderful sillage, beautiful persistence. ****(*)

My first ever perfume LOVE! <3 I got it when I was back in high school (10+ years ago) as a hand-me-down from one of my former, perfume-obsessed teachers; we were discussing about perfumes and I asked her about this fragrance I had "sniffed out" on her earlier that month and she just said "Oh, that one.. I'm totally over it. I still have half a bottle left, I can pass it to you, if you want." :) She said to her it smelled a bit like pipe tobacco, but to me it was just DIVINE. So beautifully balanced between the cherry and citrus and the wooden notes. I absolutely ADORED this perfume, I was so sad to learn that it was discontinued. Please, PLEASE Givenchy, bring it back! :(

My first "real", expensive perfume as a teen. I loved it and I think I would still enjoy it. Sometimes I smell on the empty bottle for nostalgia... If you like sweet, warm scents with gourmand and cherry notes, you should try this if you're able to find it. It's an unique scent. Update (2019): This was one of my first reviews and it doesn't say much, so I'll add that this had a deep, ambery warmth and nuttiness that made it quite different from the average gourmand of today. But I still think it would come across as modern nowadays, maybe this was discontinued because it was ahead of its time. My empty bottle still holds a bit of the scent and I sniff it from time to time.