Prada Candy Kiss

Oh wow!!! Prada Candy Kiss is the prettiest perfume I've run across lately! I'm not a giant fan of the OG Prada Candy; I like it, but just don't think it's *all that*. But when I saw Candy Kiss at Nordstrom Rack for $50, and read the Fragrantica reviews, it sounded like something I might like. In fact, if I'm not mistaken, it's the most loved of all the Prada Candy flankers by Fragranticans, so I thought I'd give it a try -- especially since it has orange blossom, one of my favorite notes. The moment I sprayed it, I knew: this one is a total LOVE!!! As a perfume lover, I have very wide-ranging tastes, loving older and newer creations, and Candy Kiss reads slightly vintage to my nose -- conjuring up a picture of a 1930's boudoir complete with silk stockings and pastel-colored satin robes edged with fluffy feathers. A fan of fluffy, feminine musks, such as Georges Rech Muse Poudree, La Perla White Iris, NR For Her, and SJP Lovely, I was instantly intrigued. In fact, as I sat there in my car, sniffing the back of my hand, it hit me that Prada Candy Kiss reminded me of my Favorite Perfume for All Time, Guerlain L'Heure Bleue. They share an orange blossom note over musk, with a base of vanilla, giving both a delicate confectionary/candy aspect (of course, Candy Kiss lacks the anise, almond, and incense notes of L'H B , so you certainly can't say they smell the same). Anyway, Prada Candy Kiss immediately pulled at my heartstrings! Just like so many reviewers have said before, Candy Kiss is fluffy and sweet but-not-too-sweet, and is simultaneously simple and complex. While it's delicate and does not project prodigiously, still, throughout the day it produces a lovely scent bubble that glows for many hours (maybe 6 or so?) without respraying. It's elegant but intimate, feminine and understated, sexy but not in any obvious way, just classy and comfortable in your own skin. For me, it's equally appropriate for snuggling at home on a cold winter's day or worn to an al fresco dinner on a hot summer night. What a lovely creation it is! THIS is what I live for, as a major perfume fan: stumbling on a scent that just sings to me...! :)))

I have a rollerball kit with OG Candy, Candy Florale, and this one. For some reason, I never got around to trying any other than the original. I just tried the other two. While I really like the other two, I fell in love with Kiss! I am a huge fan of Daniela Roche Andrier and her work for Prada, though I do find that every one I owned or have tried suffer from poor longevity. I'm happy that in this instance, I have the rollerball to carry with me to touch up. The musk is like cottony clouds holding the type of orange blossom I enjoy and just enough vanilla for sweetness. Musk can be so problematic, and while I'm not completely anosmic to it (thank goodness) it does seem that I get nose tired rather quickly. My biggest disappointment in that respect is Chanel 1957, which I find achingly gorgeous but can not smell even a trace within 15 minutes. This one seems to hang around longer, and I think that spraying it on will only help it since this is one I think I can spray rather heavily without disturbing anyone. I think it would work well as an office scent as well as an every day type of "spritz on your way out the door without thinking about it" fragrance. I'm honestly a little surprised and very happy I picked up this little kit quite inexpensively on eBay. As much as I do enjoy Prada and DRA's creations, neither Candy nor it's flankers were on my radar. I think it was just a matter of the name and the fact that the original is a gourmand, which is not my favorite style of fragrance. I'm glad that I've been proven wrong, as I find all three very appealing. I just happen to like Kiss the best! BTW - as is the case with most white musks, this is a skin scent, with very minimal projection and no silage of which to speak. I'm going to spritz some in my hair to see it that helps. I don't want to scream, but I like to be softly fragranced.

I don't get the hate women have for powder, face powder, for grammas, for old-style scents, for musks, nope, I don't get it and hopefully never will. Humans are covered in musks. We can have clean musks too now. We would have and still have dirtier ones too. We have and will have different musks with the help of technology. Huge variety, so chances are anyone will find what they like. And if that doesn't happen, it means you aren't a musk type, so don't even bother. And women use powder during all their lifetime, how can they hate it? They put on a cosmetics face powder every day. They carry it in their bag so as to re-apply if needed. They use talcum powder for a drier skin in the summer. They use it on their babies. They are so accustomed to it, yet the repulsion when sniffing a perfume: "blaaaaah it's powderyyyyyyyy!!!!!!" or "I like it a lot but unfortunately it is powdery after some hours!!!!, so no", it doesn't make sense to me. End of rant. Let's deal with Prada Candy Kiss To me, it's the smell of a woman's underwear drawer. It's far from grannyish and closer to what I call "intimate" scents. It's a full on scubbed clean powdery musk. Sweet done right. Soft in a womanly way, not in the little girl girly way, which I don't like at all. It does turn a little more vanillic, but nothing gourmand, just enough, and after some time of wear the orange blossom is prominent too. It reached the six hour limit that I want from a perfume, so no problems with longevity for me. Sillage is big in the first two-three hours and then it stays close to skin for sure. I love it! I didn't mess up with Candy Prada perfume line out of fear for the candy gourmand thing they carry. Not this time, this is beautiful. And whoever likes Prada Candy Kiss do try Infusion De Fleur D'Oranger, also by Prada, you won't be disappointed.

I blind bought this fragrance due to the reviews, and people comparing it to Kayali’s Musk 12. Although, I don’t find them to be comparable. I think Candy Kiss is a better comparison of Love Don’t Be Shy due to the similar feminine sweetness. This perfume isn’t a dupe for LDBS, but I feel like it’s a muskier, less (sickeningly) sweet fragrance. If you’re looking for a more wearable and inoffensive alternative to LDBS, I think this one is worth trying. The vanilla and orange blossom notes are not lost among the musks. I think this is the perfect balance between a fresh linen-like musk and a soft vanilla. This is one of the most feminine, innocently sweet fragrances in my collection. It’s an easy reach and I think it would be great for any season and setting. Despite the similarity to LDBS, I don’t find Candy Kiss to be cloying or obnoxiously loud, so I think this would be a safe crowd pleaser. I could definitely see Elle Woods wearing this! This is a great scent to layer with if you want to sweeten a heavier fragrance. I like to pair it with my loud perfumes to help round out the scent profile. Whether I layer Candy Kiss, or I wear it on its own, I get compliments from women and men. The performance is amazing. It lasts for about 8 hours and the projection is about arms length. I typically only have to spray a couple times at my neck and on my wrists for it to perform well, and I don’t have to reapply throughout the workday. Candy Kiss can be found online for well under retail price, so if you’re into blind buying, I think this would be a safe option. 💞

Is this truly just musk, vanilla, and orange blossom?? It smells a bit more complex, but maybe I'm wrong. The musk in here is very soft, almost delicate. I thought I was well acquainted with orange blossom, but I'm second guessing everything now because this isn't just standard musk or standard vanilla so I am wondering if the orange blossom is really powerful and affecting how the musk and vanilla come off. I could be way off base, but regardless, this smells really good. I sprayed this on my skin and on my clothing and tbh I didn't love how it smelled on my clothes, but my skin smells fantastic. I think I'll add this to my maybe wish list, the one I keep for those fragrances I really like, but don't necessarily want to prioritize buying at the moment. However, if I catch Prada Candy Kiss on a spectacular sale, I might not be able to pass it up. By the way, for those wondering, this smells nothing like the original Prada Candy which I am not a fan of. I don't enjoy the benzoin in Prada Candy, I'm happy to see it's not in Prada Candy Kiss. The bottle really matches how it smells, I love when that happens! This one is a winner, I really could see myself adding it to my collection some time in the future. I really love how subtle, delicate, and feminine it is. edit: I thought I edited this review a long time ago to add that this smells just like the Moroccanoil brand hair oil! Love it!