Josie Exotic Petals

I'm the only review of this? Selling now for $19.99 at Ross and quite a nice floral. Great bottle too.

Josie Natori Exotic Petals Out of the bottle, this smelled a lot like Alien Eau Extraordinaire, which I’ve had and really don’t like. This put me off of actually testing it on my skin for a good 2-3 weeks after getting my bottle! I mostly bought it as a collector’s item. Anyway, I finally tried this on my skin and mercifully, it ends up being nothing at all like Alien Extraordinaire! What this does smell like though, is very y2k/early 2000s trendy mid-end fashion boutique. Specifically, it reminds me a bit (in memory only as I haven’t sniffed the latter in decades) of Rampage, the silver and clear bottle from around 2003. Except that I didn’t really like that one either (too chemical/synthetic and fake/sweet aquatic notes) but I do like this because this is just much better done and more refined and while it’s really well blended, if you sniff closely enough you can definitely make out the individual notes and they are very natural and realistic despite this perfume as a whole overall still smelling more on the “perfumey” side vs totally natural smelling. The creamy tropical yellow florals are both realistic enough to be gorgeous in their own right but also subtle and well-blended enough that they don’t clash with the more fresh and aquatic notes. In fact, that juxtaposition in particular really scared me with this one but not only does it work, it works fabulously and smells really unique and beautiful. When I say this is “perfumey” I mean in the sense that like Miss Dior or basically any Chanel perfume (but especially the coco mad, allure, and chance series!) and also, the og 2014 version of this exotic petals flanker. It’s really interesting how this perfume manages to take fresh yet also sweet and creamy yellow floral, aquatic, and fruity accords and use them in this type of scent, let’s call it a 2000s “chypre” for lack of a better term and to not confuse with the succeeding sweeter fruitchoulis like flowerbomb/lveb and their endless copies. I can’t say I’ve ever seen this before. These 2000s chypres are already pretty limited in their scope of notes and accords usually, but I’ve seen some unusual and funky notes to be used for that type of perfume, but I can’t say I’ve ever seen it done this way! And it’s probably because you really wouldn’t expect it to work. Imagine taking the flagship Josie Natori 2014, and mixing it with a fresh/aquatic & fruity tropical yellow or tropical yellow+white floral perfume (let’s say alien extraordinaire just bc I’m having a brain fart and can’t currently think of any other perfume that fits in that category, I really don’t like alien extraordinaire so I hate to use it as an example, but also remember that’s only half of the perfume). Doesn’t sound very good does it? Sounds clashy right? But surprisingly it actually really works! It’s just subtle and pretty and not at all cloying like I was so scared, almost certain even, that it would be. That being said, would I buy this just for the scent alone? No. Despite being a unique combo of accords, it’s ultimately pretty forgettable to me. Safe and nice but not exciting. However, I’m a collector, so as a collector yes it’s totally worth having this adorable little psychedelic pop-art print bottle and I’m so happy to have it in my personal collection. PS. As it dries down/develops more, I’m getting something that very much reminds me of something else very strongly/is very nostalgic but I don’t really know what, but it’s a very golden nectary type of scent. Really nice. Overall this perfume is a solid like. The performance is ok but it’s not great, similar to the regular Josie Natori 2014 that this is a flanker of, but it’s perfectly acceptable. The sillage is quite good but it’s not in your face or too strong, which is a very good thing in my book, especially for this kind of scent! It can still be had for cheap if you can find it so I suggest snapping it up. For $50 you really can’t go wrong, and the bottle is so cool! Great little summer scent. Natori is so underrated.

Pretty tropical floral. Agree with one of the other posters that the notes combined somehow resemble a sweet pea soliflore. A tad too sweet for my tastes for everyday use but a nice and safe tropical vacation scent.

The powerful lure of a blind buy never fails, does it? After reading the notes here, I should have certainly left this on the shelf at the discounter (Marshall's/TJ Maxx). Plumeria? Blonde woods? Anything tropical in feel? All big no-no's for me. But I bought it, largely on the strength of another Natori frag I own, Natori NATORI. And now, the vindication of the successful blind buy, the sweet smell of gambling that pays off! Who could have predicted that this (yes) tropical vacation-y, golden sun ray of a fragrance could be so appealing to my cold, green, chypre-loving heart? Although yellow and white in "color," JOSIE EXOTIC PETALS is neither too warm nor too sweet for me, a success in of itself. This makes me imagine a tropical flower-scented breeze ruffling the lei draped around the neck of a carefree woman enjoying her holiday at an outdoor cafe table in Tahiti. If you don't happen to be wearing a flower necklace, this fragrance would perfectly complement a light summer scarf, preferably a brightly colored or floral one. The blonde woods are thankfully not coming through to me; the base is neither scratchy nor too creamy for me. Nor do I perceive the watery sterility of freesia, although its subtle presence may be helping keep the sweetness and warmth of the white/yellow flowers from being too much for me. It's simply a very noticeably "tropical floral" scent, energized and freshened by the citrus, which I believe is the reason I can enjoy this fragrance. The projection upon application is surprisingly strong for a recently-produced EdT. However, longevity is not that great on exposed skin (wrist); I recommend my longevity-inducing trick of spraying and trapping while damp under fabric near your upper chest (preferably that scarf I mentioned). Very enjoyable, and another thumbs up for a Natori.

I too, have smelled a fume reminiscent of this and I believe it's Tresor. This, to me, is better than Tresor, softer and more modern, but if you are curious as to what you could compare this to, it's very similar to Tresor. It's sweet, smells like it has vanilla in it, some fruitiness, and a bit of a synthetic top note. I did not like Tresor. To me, this is nice, but nothing I would go "gaga" over. I wear all my fumes whether I like them or not but this would be a summer choice with a white boho blouse. My daughter loves this. I just want to add that I own Josie Natori's Josie and that both of these scents were a big surprise. They smell nothing like I imagined they would. Josie is a Filipina and so is my mother. I grew up overseas and was exposed to the flowers that she uses in these fumes.I call frangipangi, plumeria. It was definitely one of my favorite flowers yet this doesn't evoke memories of the beloved flower that I would tuck in my hair. Josie has sampuguita, another of my faves, as a note yet it doesn't conjure any association of our national flower. I was looking for tropical powerhouses, but these, they are not. Still nice though!

I really didn't need yet another perfume but I made the mistake of passing by the perfume section in Marshalls to check out any new items and stumbled upon this. At first I didn't know how I felt about this because I tested it while burning a new candle I picked up the same day so I couldn't differentiate which smell was which. I have tested it a few times since and I'm starting to finally get this scent. It's nothing special but in that simplicity I really like it. I'm happy to find a bright somewhat fruity floral which is not too sweet. The musk I am really picking up and it smoothes this scent out. I like musk on myself so I'm happy to add this to my collection. I can not pinpoint which note makes this remind me of another scent I've smelled but I'll have to try and find what it is. This is going to be a nice summer scent oh and the bottle is really pretty.

This is not my style. Someone mentioned marine in a review so I expected maybe to like it, but although the ambergris is there it still is too fruity and candy sweet for me. It's also not so tropical in my opinion. Reminds me of a celebrity fragrance or VS body spray. No blonde woods come out on me, unfortunately. Yes the bottle is cool and pretty.

I think I'm enjoying this. The Frangipani reminds me of the sweet pea (which I think is the same plant) in Kenneth Cole reaction for her. Something in that one didn't work for me but I liked the type of smell so I'm happy to find this!