Vanilla & The Sea

This is a warm, striking scent with personality. It’s my favorite from my sample set. It’s funky without being sharp or gross, sweet and a little floral without being particularly feminine, and dark without being very heavy. I get more of the orange than the votes suggest. The white florals are nicely blended. The whole thing is. It’s ambergris heavy which I love. Whale secretions ftw. I do worry about contributing to the popularity of ambergris in case it could have a negative effect on whales. It seems like the nasty smelling fresh ambergris that comes directly from whale intestines doesn’t have any use in perfumery, but even then humans are always finding creative ways to exploit other animals, and a lot of people are concerned. Seems like real ambergris is at least better than the ambergris imitations like ambroxan that are more likely to be tested on animals under REACH laws before going into a “cruelty free” final product. This smells marine, but not strictly marine. It smells like a temperate beach, but also a person, a garden with flowers, maybe a warm rocky place in the mountains, a sparse pine forest, and a lot of places I can imagine. It was perfect for a night walk.

Vanilla and ambergris are my favorite notes...so when I saw this guy existed I bought it immediately!! It opens with a very astringent brackish salt that definitely evokes a brisk ocean breeze. The florals start to creep in very quickly; but they’re still elusive..when you try to lean in they hide behind the green sea spray. As it warms up the ambergris and vanilla/sandalwood heart swirls around you like the smoke from a damped fire further down the beach. Nose to skin is salty ocean brine, but the sweetness of the base floats around you with the lavender lending a slightly medicinal dry beach grass/driftwood element. Projection is good for a natural - I initially put on a lot and my fragrance-whiner of a husband was overwhelmed a few feet away. Longevity is around 6-8 hours, which is a little above average for the natural fragrances I’ve tried. Absolutely worth the money!

WOW, the opening on this had my nose confused. It was expecting an airy floral and got strong oud instead. But that only lasted a few minutes before the airy florals emerged. I'm and hour in and its fading fast, I'm just now getting hints of vanilla. I'll update as I go.

This is a unique perfume that is definitely dynamic and well-blended. Unfortunately, I am a vanilla lover and this one doesn't have vanilla as the main note (which, in fairness, is also made clear in the notes provided at Fragrantica, too). This one morphs a lot on my skin, too...Starts out with the top notes being sharp and almost medicinal, and another minute I smell amber musk, then it turns into a spicy, clove-y green type scent, followed by base notes of vanilla, floral, and fresh air. It is a nice scent to try if you like atmospheric fragrances, and it is also not overbearing either--lasts several hours on my wrists, but doesn't enter a room before me. Reminds me a little of SS's Mountain Vanilla-same idea of vanilla, nature and fresh air. UPDATE: This perfume most definitely became much more smooth after resting for a few weeks after I received it! I just wore this one again today and I didn't experience the sharp top notes I did when I first posted my review. It's a really nice scent that is worthy of sampling if not having a full bottle!