Liquid Illusion

Background: I visited a local niche perfume shop which had this stocked. I tried many scents that day but this one kept me thinking about it for three days. I had never smelled anything like it. After googling other people’s collections to make myself feel better about buying such an expensive perfume I went back to the shop and bought it. Scent: Honestly, I think this scent is amazing. Its top notes are of sweet almonds and the subtle sugariness of Maraschino cherries. It has a juicy, almost syrupy characteristic that tingles my nose in a pleasant way. And yet it doesn’t quite hit that point of being too sweet. It is invigorating. Its heart notes are hard to define, perhaps because they are blended so well together; I get subtle florals etc. Nearing the dry down I get a subtle tonka bean note that’s been blended in nicely and something like a white musk; perhaps that is the Cetalox speaking? Of course the scent is not perfect, as very few are. The longevity of this fragrance is very poor for the price I paid (maybe three hours on my skin) and the projection is also poor. It is the type of juice that I essentially need to bath in for it to take full effect. It is also a small bottle (75ml) for such an extreme price. My verdict is that it smells divine and that it was worth the purchase. But perhaps more importantly, it smells interesting. Totally unisex.

This is one of my favorite scent profiles and I can tell you most assuredly - this is not an old lady scent. This is a beautiful, intoxicating variation on the purples & powder (violet/heliotrope/iris) accord and for me opens with something just a touch spicy - not at all what I would be looking for in this perfume profile - but here, it is done beautifully. Projection and sillage are above average for me. I feel far more sophisticated than my current sweatshirt and jeans would suggest. Additional points for the lovely packaging it arrived in (a hinged box with metal plaque affixed) and the gorgeous blue bottle with heavy gold cap. Though I regularly promise myself I have more than enough perfumes in my collection....it seems this line may just be one of those magical exceptions ;) Highly recommend. (PS - I get no cherry note but a greener almond may give that scent for some)

This is one of those perfumes I have a hard time describing. It’s light but a little obnoxious at the same time. It smells fresh and clean but not in the typical or expected way. It’s quite synthetic. It is a little bit bubblegum-y and reminds me of the dryer sheets or whatever laundry product my neighbor uses that wafts a plasticky but pleasant floral scent through the neighborhood when they are drying their clothes. It’s one of my top 5 favorite fragrances and I get a lot of compliments wearing this one. Probably not a safe blind buy since it seems to really offend a lot of people’s noses who pick up different notes than I do. To me it’s very unique but likeable, even my mom who hates perfume complimented me on this. Lasts a long time on skin and clothes for me.

Liquid Illusion is a basic powdery iris (in the best way!) where the almond is adding a powdery nuttiness cloud. This is a raw almond, not a gourmand almond. The sweetness that benzoin and tonka beans are supposed to add is very subtle. That chemical note that some people are referring to I believe is 'iris concrete', since I don't get any chemicals. The sillage and longevity are light to moderate. Unfortunately I don't get those long hours that people are getting, I get about 4hrs.

I love this. I don't have words, but this is my favorite scent out of all. I'm usually use it as a date night fragrance and I've received lots of compliments wearing it as a male. On my skin I got around 3-4 hours of longevity with quite good sillage and projection, after the 4 hours mark, it will become an intimate skin scent for about 6 more hours. I 100% recommend getting this if you're into powdery iris fragrances. To be fair, is a scent profile I could not find anywhere else.