173 Candy

I wore Vanilla Lace VS body spray in elementary school in the 90s. When I became an adult the perfume trend at that time was white florals, sweet, yes (for women), but balanced with watery, marine like notes. A man could not smell better than Aqua Di Gio, for example. I dont care what he looked like if he was wearing AdG, I was sitting next to him. And all those Abercrombie flankers all centered around a marine note too. Curious by Britney Spears was a HUGE hit when it dropped in 2005. Her older, more sophisticated sister was Blue by Ralph Lauren also released in 2005ish. Unisex scents were so disgusting they didn't exist in my world. Blue was my 1st grown woman scent when I went to the mall when I was 18 and dropped $70 in 2006 dollars for Ralph Lauren Blue. I'd give twice that now to have the original formulation back again too. Girls would get kinda sassy with me at parties because their boyfriends kept telling me I smelled so good. Lol which goes to show you men's tastes in perfumes on women change too by generation. My mother's bf knew I liked perfumes and bought me White Diamonds. Something HE loved but smells like an older generation to me. I gave it to mom and she likes it. I noticed even the currently popular mens perfumes had a hint of sweet/vanilla. That would've NEVER flown with women when I was about 25. My husband is currently wearing Tobacco Vanille, though, because I got it for him and it doesn't smell too feminine to me NOW. But 17 years ago when we met at 20? I'd have ran for the hills. Lol Juicy Couture was a hit for my generation too, which is about as sweet/fruity as I ever wanted to smell as an adult woman it smelled like a teenager to me because I was a younger teenager when it came out and was the rage. But if you wanted to smell like a grown woman - you'd wear a watery white floral based perfume, Clinque Happy was a hit when I was a kid and still hitting 8 years later, tbh. Because it has that orange blossom I think. Happy is pretty much what they call a "freshie" now. In fact, a TON of freshies in the late 90s that were best sellers when I was a kid. CKI2U. Eternity. Tommy Girl. None sexy, though as they are considered today. Anyway, when the lady at the mall sprayed Libre Intense in my face as I walked by, it took me back to elementary school when we all just wanted to smell like the drugstore/Victoria's Secret sweet bodysprays. Like candy because we were children and children like candy. I was so offended she would spray such a, what I percieved as, "immature" scent in my face that I actually stopped for her and asked, isn't this immature for a grown woman? She told me that, actually, no, the perfume trend had moved from white florals, watery marines, woody, musky, tuberosey scents and grown women were wearing vanilla/sweet scents usually with an amber and sandalwood-like base note at the end. Scents that smell like something you'd eat. I was disgusted at 1st. Lol I asked her to let me smell her top 10ish best sellers and yes they were all vanilla based and/or sweet scents. Burberry Goddess, for example, just smelled like straight up linear Vanilla on top of Vanilla on top of burnt Vanilla. For $50 in 2024 $s! WHY?! You can get that for $7 @ Victoria's Secret! Cloud. Billie Eilish. BR540. They were all giving me cavities. I couldn't pick one I'd actually wear they all smelled too childlike and/or weird (BR540) to me. I asked for something a little more mature and she pulled out Candy by MLL. And I fell in love with this one it smelled the most mature sweet, yet the most gentle, the most elegantly blended. Whomever Michael Malul is, he outdid himself for Candy. He knew he was gonna have to sell to 18 year olds AND Millenials and he struck a perfect balance and I think its because of that rose waaaaayyyy in the back. If little baby elementary school me never rolled with the perfume trend of going from freshies/edibles to watery white florals for women, stuck with sweet/vanilla scents my whole life, and then asked for a VERY luxurious perfume smelling like "Candy" at 30, THIS is exactly what I'd imagine it'd smell like and its even named - "Candy". It does smell really good. I won't deny that. Super expensive too. I was shocked I got it for $50 when I later googled how much it sells for online. I just associate vanilla based scents, no matter how fancy they try to make them, with being a child. And coconut disgusts me yet is in everything now. But since I love rose or tuberose in everything (never coconut or powder though and so many roses have so much powder they smell like my granny and are unwearable - for my age), and although this does not smell like "rose" at all, it smells like it's name - Candy - but I think it's that rose note you cant even pinpoint if you didnt know it was there that makes it go from a 10 year old's to a grown woman's perfume. I'm no expert though it could smell more mature than the other bestsellers because it's blended like a dream. It was one of the more expensive ones and you can tell. It's really one of the most luxurious scents I have in my collection right now. But like I said, I'd never wear something vanilla or sweet to smell sexy...yet somehow this smells sexy like a woman's "Candy". I don't know how ML did it, but he finally 100% sold me on a sweet/vanilla. Even though it's all of the above it doesn't smell like something you'd eat, for example Choco Musk just smells like a cheap bar of milk chocolate to me. This smells like a very sweet vanilla but with a note that also makes it smell ever so lightly like a perfume. Just sweet enough yet blended so good it also smells like an actual perfume - not just like some sweet food. The longevity is great and the silliage is moderate. It lasts until you wash it off your clothes and on your skin it lasts at least 6-8 hours. It sits close, so whoever you want to smell good for, besides yourself, has to come closer and closer to smell you. Very sexy. 10/10 for a sweet vanilla based perfume and trust me that means a lot coming from me who can't wait until the "sweet" and "edible" perfume trend eventually passes and Generation Alpha is smelling BR540, Cloud, Goddess, Eilish, SweetTooth, Tabacco Vanille, etc and calling it "old". 😉 Because that day is coming before you know it. Perfume trends roll like fashion trends and they change from generation to generation. My great grandmother gave me half a bottle of Chanel #5 once, the perfume that REALLY gave birth to all perfume, and I thought "wow that smells just like an old lady". I never expected that and never wore it. Lol but when it 1st come out, everyone's grandmother was getting that as a Christmas present from grandpa...and having 7 kids because of it. Lol anyway, I love this one. Worth alll the $ it cost me.

I just got a travel size of this and my impression is that it’s nice and sweet and lovely. It has some similarity to vanilla woods however I get old ash tray vines from that one that is thankfully not present here. The opening is sweet and smooth. The rose is there but in the background. The opening has the fresh fruits of the quince but it’s not too sharp or juicy. I would describe it more dry and smooth. I also thought the travel size was a nice value and I’m quite happy with my purchase. It was a blind buy that’s to the recommendation of Ilythia from The simple chic life. I do agree this is an excellent wear all year day or night perfume. My husband really likes it, but prefers citizen Jill. They are similar and would layer nicely but that one is more sweet, fresh and juicy with the pear being the main difference in my opinion. They def share a similar dna. Regarding the packaging, I don’t love the full size bottle and I don’t think the name is a great fit either to describe the perfume. But fragrance alone gets 10/10. The atomizer and travel size packaging are nice.

Yes! This is certainly almost identical to Sol de Janeiro's Cheirosa 40 Body Mist which I love and I always have a stash of their Bom Dia body care products and also extremely similar to the dry down of Junoon Noir/Dama Bianca. ( I still don't understand how the latters kumquat note is so similar to Cheirosa 40s plum - and also now this!) I do also get the references to Casablanca and Qasamat Ebhar. (Both baked apple type fragrances) But this is a beautiful sweet plummy (quince) -vanilla with better longevity than Cheirosa's body mist and doesn't have the dense mugginess of Junoon Noirs opening (that meant I didn't wear it often). It also has a very pleasant woodiness in the base. The ombre effect bottle is stunning and the overall packaging looks stylish. I'm keen to try some of the other scents now especially, I think its Sugar & Saffron? Bravo Roger Howell. I hadn't heard of this brand before, it doesn't seem to be stocked in UK. Whenever I read the name it makes me want to shout MICHAEL MAROULI in a Rupaul voice! 😂 Impressed with everything about it !

This is such a beautiful scent. When you hear the name “Candy” you may Automatically assume that this perfume is going to be super sickly sweet, which I wouldn’t be mad at I love perfumes like that but this is something just so different than I have smelled before. It’s sweet but it’s also floral and it’s also fruity and citrus. I can especially smell the quince on the initial spray and the dry down is a beautiful vanilla amber on my skin with remnants of the quince. I have over 100 perfumes at this point LOL and I don’t have something quite as like it. If had to compare something maybe Burberry London for women? But this is something so unique and sexy and feminine. The lasting power and Silliage are really great on my skin and I always get compliments whenever I wear it. For me this is a 10/10. :)

I needed to get on here and rave about this perfume immediately. I am so surprised it's not viral on TikTok. This perfume smells so unique. I am not a huge floral girl, but this fragrance is making me second-guess that. The freesia, vanilla, and amber blend so beautifully. The citrus adds fruitiness to the sweet and floral notes and makes it very mature. The fragrance is somehow "soft", yet has amazing projection. I always get sad when my lighter fragrances are skin scents, but that's not a problem with this one. This makes a beautiful scent bubble. I got the Pure Seduction lotion from Victoria's Secret to layer with this because they smell similar. I didn't even realize Pure Seduction had a freesia note in it! Overall, I am beyond happy with this fragrance.