Pink Riviera

Something about this perfume has an "aura" very unlike what your skin smells like. This is probably the first perfect that I can smell my arm and say "eh" but throughout the day say, wow where is that smell coming from. When you take the cap off you smell this delightful airy floral garden fragrance that's just intriguing. You hope to smell like this, so you spray it on. Immediately you think you made a mistake, that your chemistry must be off, something is wrong with this fragrance or the melody of the notes don't mix on skin. But alas, you are very wrong. Throughout the day you get wiffs of this stunning bouquet of flowers, and you wonder, where's the garden? And you realize, it's you! So you smell your arm again, and it smells terrible. No joke. If I smell my skin directly, after spraying this on, no matter how many hours have past, it does not smell good. But this delicious and delightful aura envelopes me, and I have to succumb to the truth; it matters what you smell and what others smell, as you won't be smelling your skin constantly. Unless you do, then don't buy this. Smells very very pricey.

This house is a French fabric manufacturer that has released in 2007 a line of five fragrances named Les Fantaisies Parfumées. I have had the chance to get a sample of Pink Riviera - what an inspiring name! I learn that it was inspired by Saint Tropez. Lovely bottle and superb packaging - a pink & pale green flower pattern decorates the box, that represents the finest upholstery fabric. For a start: what a lovely fragrance! It immediately evokes summer. Starts fresh with a blast of citrus (lemon, tangerine, grapefruit, bergamot) and then evolves onto a delicate floral, around the theme of rose and jasmine. But the top and heart notes are very well blended together. There is some very fresh note similar to mint (or basil?) All this lays onto a base of sandalwood, white musk and amber. Excellent staying power. This a lovely, pretty elegant fragrance. Not ground-breaking by all means but it reminds me of summer.

A nice good quality floral fruity perfume, very feminine and thankfully not overly sweet or cloying. Perfectly suited for everyday use. I get a lot of sparkling almost watery rose, the fruit-wise the most prominent is grapefruit, the base is full with clean and a bit soapy musk. It isn't something memorable, but nice nevertheless. Longevity is on the low side - 4 hours.

I really like this one. So bad that it has been discontinued. A friend gave me a 20ml sample and I wanted to buy it - but it's obviously gone. Anyway, the start is a bit fresh (mint, citruses), but interesting. Since I'm not into "fresh", the beginning didn't catch me. But then it developes into a very nice rose-and-something scent and is really long lasting. I wore it several times to the opera and theatre and thought it's great, because it has depth but is not annoyingly cloying or "molesting".

I have this one packaged up and ready to return. It's not that it's not nice...it is. Very citrusy and peppery during first five to ten minutes...bordering on bitter/harsh. Mellows into a soft and watery Spring rose after that and stays on me that way for about 45 minutes. I'm returning simply because I have a handful of other superior rose perfumes that feel in the same vein of Pink Riviera: Stella ( no comparison really but it's a light airy rose like this one), Emanuel Ungaro Diva Rose, and few others that I know I have in my collection but can't recall at the moment. This is not anything like Perfumers Workshop, Tea Rose...just FYI. Honestly, I'm also disappointed that mint is not apparent to me at all.....I was looking forward to it. Personally, I happen to really love Route Mandarine from this same collection. It's Oriental and is much more substantial of a perfume for me but I gravitate towards heavier, vintagey scents to begin with. I think that this would be a safe blind buy if you are a rose lover or even if you are indifferent about rose as it's so inoffensive that you may still find it pleasant. I think the bottles in this line are nice and the packaging is sweet and eye-catching. The price for quality appears to be unbeatable.( $9.99 at TJ Maxx right now)