Ta'if

My first niche fragrance, my first love among refined scents. As I approached the niche perfumery, I had the chance to attend a very interesting and cozy event by Linda Pilkington in "Il Profumo" (boutique in Milan). She then was presenting her "4 corners of the earth" collection for the first time. Before leaving, I asked the owner a spray of a rose fragrance because rose is one of my favourite notes. I tried O.J. Taif and F.M. Une Rose. I came back some weeks later to buy Taif. I love it. I just love it. It is floral, gourmand, sweet, powdery. The rose note is quite dry, not succulent. There is a well blended contrast between the simple botanical rose note (you can smell it is not a moroccan or a damask rose) and the powdery sweet orchestra around it. There is a gourmand side of it but fortunately not a fruity-vanilla-cookie-Iwanttoeatyou effect. It is more like an arabian delicatessen tasting experience. There is something playful that keeps it soft and delicate even in the dry down. It makes me feel optimistic and calm, classy and unique, confident and kind. I like how the clothes smell the day after and how friends recognize my scarves because of it. The only rose perfume that reminds me of it is Delina, which is not listed in the above "this perfume reminds me of.." list. In any case, Delina is way more childish and cotton candy-ish to me.

Stunning. It turns even better on my skin than on the paper. This is a very light, airy, date-rose fragrance that avoids all stickiness of the dates and all the potentially nauseating cloyingness of rose. I'm not usually a fan of the way OJ makes all their fragrances "airy", but it works very well in combination with the date and rose here - it makes the perfume very versatile, very subtle yet persistent, and very elegant without being too in-your-face. If you're like me and find a lot of date+rose fragrances way too sweet (Jardins de Misfah by Une Nuit Nomade, for example) and that they turn sticky/headache-inducing on your skin, give this one a shot. It's date+rose for people who don't usually like date+rose. Scent: 10/10 Polarity: Unisex to feminine Projection: Soft Longevity: Good --- Edit: I purchased from the brand recently, and am completely perplexed at how different the scent smells in my new bottle. I've left it for about a month to macerate. The new bottle - absolutely NO smell upon opening. Bizarre. Now, about one month later - still very weak, and a very strong, synthetic green aromachemical. This isn't my first issue with the house. The quality control needs some work. The perfume itself is still great, but buyer beware.

This is a delicious easy to love, sweet rose fragrance yet not heavy or cloying. Its not a complicated or mind blowing avant garde but it is still a heavenly rose fragrance. I love this as much as I love 4160 Tuesdays Raw Silk and Red Roses. Saffron and the ta'if rose really compliment each other beautifully with the dates adding more sweetness making it verge on becoming a gourmand. The rose was very strong from the start along with the saffron with the sweetness of the dates becoming obvious half an hour in. The pepper and freesia keep the scent lively and bright with amber giving greater depth. I suspect the jasmine and neroli also contribute the brightness of this luscious fragrance. The saffron and amber are definitely the most enduring notes here. The UK has some of the most amazing daring perfumers on the planet as well as possibly the most conservative. British ladies do tend to be conservative about fragrance which is why SJP Lovely is so popular. Loud brash fragrances heavily applied are a big no no. If you want different then I dare you to check out the fragrances from 4160 Tuesdays. Sarah pushes the boundaries with her amazing story telling creations.

I just got this and i really like it. It reminds me of another fave of mine, sweet diamond pink pepper, which makes sense bc the notes are similar down to saffron. SDPP— it is more of a linear scent, but for whatever reason i dont go anosmic to it, so i smell it all day. Taif i kinda go noseblind but do I think the base and drydown is a bit more complex in this with more amber coming through. I think i get more orange flower too. I think i like the kayali a little more. But this is good too. this is an all season scent, all occasion. It could be an office scent or date scent. I will have to wear a bit more to appreciate the nuances. Note: i layered this with hermes eau de merveilles edt and got a lot of compliments:) i think in winter i would layer with vanilla or chocolate or leather. Update: i wear this more and more! I love it. I saw a u tube review and they talked about the petrol note and i can pick up on it now. Great with orange scents! Reminds me less of sdpp, just its own unique thing to me now. Great for super hot days. Floral but fresh not sweet or cloying.

I didn't expect to fall in love with Ta'if as I'm not fond of rose-heavy fragrances. At first spritz it was as I had expected. A beautiful ripe blousony rose. While I carried on with my day however, the rose blossomed into far more than that singular deep pink note. Sweetness of dates, warmth of spicy saffron, tickling prickles of pink pepper, rich resinous flow of amber. The rose now joined by broom and orange blossom. An exotic resinous veil pulled around the whole beautiful story. My nose and heart now overtaken by a dream of 1,001 nights, magic carpets, colourful bazaars filled with silks and stars and mystery and playful camels (ok... now I'm getting carried away, but having a whole Arabian fantasy sneak up on you will do that). Swoon-worthy Ta'if, I'm intoxicated. Edit: This has become one of my most worn fragrances. Sometimes I hardly smell the rose and the orange blossom plays the star. Or the pink pepper. Resins always present. So beautiful.