Perfect Kiss

I received a sample of Perfect Kiss Eau de Parfum in a swap. The company appears to have changed its name from Creative Scentualization to Sarah Horowitz Parfums. The notes are listed on Lucky Scent as "jasmine, honeysuckle, amber, dark chocolate, sandalwood" and the fragrance claims to leave one "smelling positively edible." I definitely notice an "edible" scent on the first application, but to my nose it is an unpleasantly strong fruity-vitamin scent that occurs with the collision of the shrill jasmine, cloying honeysuckle, and extreme amber. Strong amber scents don't sit well on my skin, but I do appreciate understated amber notes. I often enjoy the smell of amber notes abstractly and on others, such as Thierry Mugler's Alien and Alien Sunessence. This amber, though, is too much, and the other notes compete with it instead of complementing it. As the top notes fade a little, it does settle down into a more acceptable amber/chocolate/sandalwood base, but it still feels like the notes are shouting over each. The ingredients have a warmth that smells expensive, not like the screechy synthetic feel that cheaper scents can suffer from. Nonetheless, these notes sit on my skin instead of blending into a pleasant drydown. Maybe it is a matter of chemistry, but Perfect Kiss is far from perfect on me.

Sarah Horowitz Parfums PERFECT KISS is an appealing oriental vanilla perfume with a notable chocolate component. The overall effect is close to gourmand, but there's enough wood and amber to keep it from being edible. I am reminded in some ways of the house of Laurence Dumont Les Senteurs Gourmandes series, especially the vanilla chocolate perfume. The difference is that there is no patchouli is this composition whatsoever, and it is quite a bit less sweet as well. Because of the absence of patchouli, this fragrance may well appeal to people who have a problem with that note, which since the launch of ANGEL has often been combined with chocolate and vanilla to produce seemingly endless variations on the ANGEL theme. PERFECT KISS is a very simple composition, but it smells natural and nice.

I love a deep scent for evening wear particularly during the winter, but if used sparingly, can be used for spring and summer too. Because of the deep scent of dark chocolate, I use this to layer with other perfumes to make them deeper, you know, give them more depth, and even prolong longevity. I use the perfume oil, not the eau de parfum by the way, and a little is all you need. I do not find this particularly sweet. In fact, with the dark chocolate, it can be slightly bitter. With the right chemistry it can be worn alone, but it’s amazing layering it with something like Stella, CLEAN Reserve Skin, a patchouli based scent, or experiment and create your own custom scent, maybe even your signature.

I tried a sample of this fragrance this morning. Here in Pennsylvania, we are having a rainy, chilly somewhat dreary spring Saturday. However, after I put on this perfume, I imagined the warmth of the sun, and a wonderful bouquet of flowers. Coincidentally, this perfume has a hint of chocolote, which is so appropriate for the day before Easter. This perfume is like an Easter basket filled with wonderful spring flowers and chocolate bunnies!

I wouldn't call this "oriental", with the chocolate notes, it's more "foody" :-) But it's nice. Pleasant. The first few moments are fresh and lovely, later it becomes more rich and warm. A pleasant scent!