Bora Bora

Liz Claiborne Bora Bora is such a beautiful, strong, aquatic floral. The only thing it has in common with Dior J'Adore, however -- to my nose, at least -- is that both are aquatic florals. Well, and they were both blended by Calice Becker. They certainly share the cool, fresh, pale, luminous quality characteristic of aquatic florals. If Bora Bora resembles anything, it is is actually Coach EDT, the one in the small, rectangular bottle with the Coach emblem and fake silver Coach tags. Both perfumes have a prominent water lily note, plus the most beautiful fresh, shampoo-ey feel. But even this comparison is a stretch; Coach EDT is sweeter than Bora Bora, with jasmine and guava, while maybe it's the ginger in Bora Bora that cuts the sweetness...? Because of the ginger, I tried it next to Hermes Twilly, but that ginger-tuberose combo is SO strong on the ginger that I had to put that with my ginger perfumes. Bora Bora, on the other hand, has just a touch of ginger, along with a ton of water lily, and good dose of tuberose. But, in spite of being a tuberose scent, Bora Bora really is, most of all, an aquatic floral. Incidentally, it has really good longevity (especially for a cheapie), lasting for a good 7-8 hours. The perfumer, Calice Becker has also produced such masterpieces as Estee Lauder Beyond Paradise and J'Adore, Donna Karan Gold (an interesting salty lily!), Narciso Rodriguez Fleur Musc for Her, Tom Ford Velvet Orchid (plush!), Tommy Hilfiger Tommy Girl (nice floral tea scent), Oscar de la Renta Coralina (cool violets!) and Oscar Flor (fresh tropical fruits!), Versace Dylan Blue (apple shampoo!), Avon Dreamlife (osmanthus!) and Far Away Gold (ylang ylang!), CK Secret Obsession (interesting plum + nutmeg!), as well as a bunch of Kilian. Truly a master perfumer!

I blind-bought Bora Bora based on reviews and notes and have no regrets. I didn't initially care for it but I've come to love the tuberose note. I'm a fan of orchid, mandarin orange, and orange blossom notes, so purchasing this frag was a no-brainer. It's such a lovely clean, somewhat sweet, and floral fragrance that's perfect for Spring and Summer daytime wear. The ginger and sandalwood temper this fragrance down and stop it from becoming overly sweet. It opens with strong fruity florals but it doesn't take long for the scent to settle. The tuberose note is noticeable in the dry down. In terms of wearability, the only way I'd wear this to an office space where I may encounter people who are sensitive to fragrances is if I use an extremely light hand on my pulse-points but not my neck/décolletage. I may dab a little behind my ears, but that's it. This fragrance packs quite a punch and has good longevity and sillage, so using a heavy hand will induce a headache for you and those around you. When it comes to hot, summer weather, I plan to wear this in the evening when it's cooler, but not during the day. It has the potential to become cloying since it's strong and has sweet florals plus the tuberose. So I prefer it for Spring, cooler summer evenings, and warm-ish fall days. Unless you hate tuberose, it's a safe blind buy and you get a lot of product for the price point. I can see this being a repurchase once I'm done with my flanker.

Because I only re-entered the world of fragrance about a year ago, I knew nothing about Bora Bora. I bought bc a YTer had it in her Summer list & it is heavy on the tuberose. That required a lil more research, it made several ppl’s list, so I bit. Bora Bora is such an easy reach on a hot Summer day, it does so good in our humidity. Even though I had seen/read that is was a good one, I was still pleasantly surprised by this one. This is fresh yet warm. It is watery without being watered down, bc it projects pretty dang good. It is not heavy on florals except the tuberose. The tuberose is not bubble gummy, it with the sandalwood provide a soft creaminess. Mixed with the ginger, you get that warmness. All the while the water lily & mandarin keep it refreshing at the same time. This loves the sunlight as I do, it makes Bora wake up and shout. I am very pleased with my purchase. The performance is not beast mode, but it is really good for the price. I don’t have the think about grabbing this bc it performs so well in our heat. Now, it would be a waste of perfume to wear out in cool/cold weather, it will disappear. I can see the comparison to J’adore, but not a dupe. This is a good everyday, warm weather, day out, to the gym, or to work fragrance. Not complicated, just a simply nice easy fragrance. 10/10

Bora Bora was a surprising blind buy. I almost expected this to smell dated because of the bottle but to me this is kind of a timeless, clean sunscreen, white floral. It smells tropical, like a beautiful floral, tropical shampoo without being “coconut.” There’s something in the dry down of this after about three hours that gets a little vanilla candle- ish, but I’m not mad at that. I just recognize it as the same base note sent that diamonds and emeralds by E.T. has. I love that one too but they are different enough to own both. This one is more of a white floral blend where you really get sort of a gentle jasmine-tuberose, and diamonds and emeralds strongly features the gardenia! I even looked up the perfumer and noticed it’s Calice Becker, and then tried to compare to see if they had the same perfumer but there’s no listing for diamonds and emeralds. I wouldn’t be surprised if they were made by the same perfume company if not the same nose. Anyway, this is really mood lifting— a pleasing, fresh, creamy floral well blended for anybody who’s into that like I am. The great daytime perfume but I think I’d actually like to wear this to bed. It also reminds me of Tease by Paris Hilton and J’adore.

I am giving this post an edit because this has become my most used perfume. This is such a beautiful, fresh scent! It has mandarin orange in it but I don’t smell that at all here. This does not smell citrusy at all to me, and definitely not tropical or beachy as some have described. I do think it’s more floral and maybe a bit powdery, but overall, very clean, soft, pretty and feminine. Sometimes I enjoy spraying this on myself before bed. It’s one of those type of calming scents. Longevity-wise, I don’t think it’s all that fantastic, but for the price it’s acceptable. My only issue with this is the cap. As others have said, it’s awful. Very cheap plastic that’s a pain to put back on. Still worth it, though. I paid $15 for a large bottle of this at Ross and would definitely repurchase! There’s another variation of this perfume as well that I am very excited to try.