Fleur de Corail

Coral flower references 'a day at the beach' where you find yourself applying sun tan lotion after a little dive in the ocean while a fresh, salty summer breeze transports the aroma of sweet tropical flowers. What makes it so special is that it plays with contrasts: Initially Coral flower starts of crisp and fresh with a splash of bergamot and grapefruit. As it warms up on your skin, the floral notes join in and add a creamy, sweet smell to the freshness. At this stage, the frangipani note is very dominant and makes me think of sun tan lotion. Towards the drydown it turns more sultry and smokey. Even though it's not listed, I get an incense vibe too or maybe it's the smokiness of the driftwood creating this dry, almost airy effect with just a hint of vanilla lingering in the background. I noticed that this perfumes reacts very different on skin then when applied on fabric. On my skin it's fresh and salty, like I have been near the sea all day, on my clothes however, it's sweet and creamy , almost gourmand and it lasts for days! The longevity on skin is wonderful but don't expect a silage monster, Coral flower is more of a skin scent, it hovers over your skin like little grains of salt after a dip in the ocean. I like to wear Coral flower when I'm wearing a scarf. The combination of the airy, salty smell on my skin and the sweetness of the floral notes on fabric create a beautiful effect and compliment each other very well. I think it's a wonderful addition to my collection that mainly consists out of vanilla based fragrances. Who thought that my new summer fling would come in a blue, heart-shaped bottle?

I judge fragrances separately from their exteriors, but am always utterly delighted when the bottle matches it's personality. Intrigued by the strong note of Frangipani, this bottle was an impulsive blind buy at four in the morning. When I got it, I decided to just try it instead of waiting with a piece of paper for all the notes to develop. As soon as the top notes wore off, I was immediately reminded of a small island in the Outer Banks of North Carolina that my family visited a few times. The scent seems so familiar, like something in one of the quaint little stores there. Perhaps it's because Fraginpani, otherwise known as Plumeria, is so commonly associated with islands that it found a place in this part of the world too. Perhaps it's just the sentimentality of it all, but this is a really lovely fragrance. Normally I like the big sillage beasts like the Poisons, and Muglers, or strong fragrance oils. Coral Flower doesn't have much sillage, and it's certainly a lot lighter than what I am accustomed to, but perhaps that lends itself to the closeness of that place. It's more personal in the way a memory would be. It's hard to say it's a summer fragrance; it would get lost in the heat, sweat, chlorine, fruits, and cookouts. But as summer ends, it's like watching the waves on the sand after you're too cold to go back in the water, but still want to enjoy what you experienced.

This feels more along the lines of Jo Malone than Lolita Lempicka to me, could have very well been released last autumn along with Sage & Sea Salt. Fleur de Corail opens with a sweet citrus and powdery amber in equal measure so it's neither crisp nor zesty, there is some uniformity to the composition considering the warm - in a sun-drenched way - scent that follows. The heart features a beautiful driftwood note I find very charming and relaxing, for a brief moment brought Eau des Merveilles to mind. Not that they smell alike but this kind of salty wood is fairly rare in commercial fragrances. Here is accompanied by tropical frangipani but not overly so, it's still an understated feminine woody scent rather than floral to my nose. The drydown is very much a skin scent with the addition of soft musk. Average sillage and longevity. Overall Fleur de Corail is an unusual interpretation of beachy scents, would classify it a floral woody musk rather than oriental floral. There is no suntan lotion scent to be found here but a sandy texture instead, neither is much sweetness. I find the composition nicely balanced and none of the notes dominates. It's quite likely to consider a small bottle for the upcoming summer. The relatively low price tag and beautiful bottle won't hurt either.

Hmm, I was expecting to be disappointed when I tried this after some of the reviews below (and especially seeing as how this silly doofus thought she had ordered the L de Lolita original sample). Instead, I am thoroughly impressed. The opening is very salty & delicious, I didn't get so much the sour citrus vibe as I did salty wind. The heart moves onto sweetish tropical flowers, reminiscent in my nose to J-Lo's Miami Glow, albeit more sophisticated & savoury. When I am trying to fit more information in my snout I tend to blow on the scent to disturb its molecules (easier to catch in one's nose). This method brought strong memories to my mind of visits to the beach with warm wet sand & the wind wafting sweet flowers across. Lovely. The drydown is very mildly spiced and smells similar to having just had a shower after coming home from a day at the beach. I think it is a wonderful creation and it is on my want list. PS - just reviewed the blurb & found my favourite nose Maurice Roucel was involved with this perfume. Does anyone else want to throw thier panties up on stage to this perfumer???

oh no, I have become a Lolita Lempicka fan because of my last blind buy .__.; I went ahead and snagged me a 1 oz bottle of this since I love plumeria scents and since all the reviews here are so far good, I hope I like it! the bottle is extremely cute x3 reminds me of something Id see on mermaid Melody <3 I finally have this and I tested it tonight at my job, Im so so so happy I got this! this is one of the prettiest bottles I have ever seen in my life, one of those I just cant throw away once im out of the juice x'D looks like something I'll keep in my bathroom with all my sea and mermaid/like things and about the juice x3 the best part! this reminded me of what a Princess of the sea would smell like when she splashes out of the water on to dry land!(yep, Im being cheesy with my fantasy again!) she'd smell a bit like the salty sea, along with the plumeria flowers stuck in her long mermaid/like hair then with hints of driftwood she would be clinging on while gazing at the blue and bright sky from the water..n_n.. this scent is just lovely and simple, I couldn't get enough of it,