Pretty Machine

I first found out about this fragrance and the house of Kerosene in a post made by Florence Welch from Florence and The Machine on her Instagram page. As a fan, I was so curious to try! I remember her sharing Unknown Pleasures too, which is one of the most popular scents of this brand. However, the notes did not captivate me as much as this one did. I guess the idea of smelling like a lemon pie or a waffle cone didn't sound so appealing when compared to a mix of my favorite notes: Jasmine, Orange Blossom, with all the freshness of Bergamot and - my personal favorite - Neroli! When first spraying this, I knew there was a lot going on! But not in a bad way, not at all. It was a beautiful scent with a gentle, citric sharpness that somehow reminded me of the color silver, or steel; the "Machine" in Pretty Machine. The Linden in this fragrance brings me back to when my family and I went camping near a lake together in Northern Italy, waking up to the sound of what sounded like a swarm of bees above our tent. We were a little scared at first, until finding out that we had set up our tent under a Linden tree and that the bees were only seeking the nectar of the Linden Blossoms, innocently. Following the gorgeous floral potpourri, I sensed a surprising hint of Vetiver in the dry-down! I was not expecting to actually smell the rose and the vetiver in this fragrance to be frank, but the mix of these two notes with the Linden create a quite refined combination. Spring has just began here in Italy, but I honestly think this will be an even greater partner during the summer months!

I used to share a generous wooden art noveau apartment with my best friend during the uni that was on the street lined with linden trees. And late spring early summer sunny weekends when we pushed our big kitchen windows open, there was a huge scent bubble of honeyed aromatic linden blossoms mixing with freshly cooked eggs, strong coffee and occasional cheeky cigarette whilst sitting on the window sill. This is a true linden blossom scent with a bit more added honey note, deeper yellower and more intoxicating than I remember, but instantly familiar. Its gorgeous, well composed and performs really well. The linden blossom idea is on the steroids, its less green and tender than in real life, although lindens (that we here also dry to use for herbal tea) can smell also pretty powerful. There is a weird play with a musk on my skin, but its very brief moment in mid-phase. Pretty machine performs like a true super engine- I used a dabber for testing and it lasted on the back of my neck and neckline for hours.... what a pretty pretty thing! p.s. Its my 2nd try, the 1st time in the high summer heat, the musk in the scent was overwhelming, now when the temps have cooled a bit, its perfect.

I have a really difficult time with jasmine, gardenias, and orange blossom. I love the scents, but cannot find one that's wearable on me that doesn't choke me or turn. Pretty Machine works! I sprayed the decant twice, put it on my wrists and dabbed my neck with my wrists and that is enough. I live in south Florida, hot, humid and miserable 80% of the year, so I have to be careful with most applications. The orange blossom jumps (not screams) out at me and skips around like a little school girl. Happy, carefree and PRETTY too! It's not childish nor is it necessarily for a young woman, so don't think of those sweet girly perfumes because it is not. I don't know the other notes, I get something soft and pretty at dry down. Probably the musk, it's not heavy. It's perfect. I just love this and I believe this may be the first white floral that is full bottle worthy for me. One day...

Have you ever walked around a city during a VERY hot day, the kind of day where the heat shimmers on the sidewalk and everything smells like garbage? And every once in awhile, you pass an open doorway that BLASTS air conditioning right in your face? It's like a crisp, refreshing slap in the face- startling but sort of welcome. Pretty Machine feels just like that, it is linden / honeysuckle laundry detergent turned up to 11. Great for sticky hot days when you just want to feel clean and composed. It needs heat to both bloom and burn off the shrill top notes. In normal weather it's a bit too loud and can cause headaches.

The scent of linden blossoms — airy, pale yellow-green, light as summer breezes — is one of my favorites. Pretty Machine blends linden with sparkling citrus to make a lush yet crisp summery floral. The effect is totally pure, crisp, even sharp, without a hint of sweetness: it’s a pretty *machine* after all. this scent could have been designed for me. It’s light, cool, sparkling, with layers of floral nuance. Pretty Machine is a lot like La Chasse aux Papillons (another light, pretty linden floral) but maybe a touch greener and sharper.