Child Perfume

I never really believed the hype around Child. I did know that some of my favorite celebrities wore it such as Britney and Lindsay. When I found out how much an ounce cost, I couldn’t justify the purchase until recently. I figured that if I ended up not really liking it myself, it would be an easy sale on a gray market site since there’s such a dedicated fan base. Now, I have never tried Jennifer Aniston’s debut scent. I do remember a good friend telling me that she loved it but hated that it had absolutely no staying power (which has been echoed in the reviews on here) so I ended up steering clear of it for all these years. I guess Child smells pretty similar to Jen’s ‘Lolavie’ fragrance but it’s not a replica. I believe she was another part of that celebrity cult following dedicated to this oil also. She probably drew inspiration from another cult classic, Coty’s Sand and Sable. The first day I wore this, I wasn’t expecting much. I think I finally understand why this is so hyped up and expensive. I got the butteriness of the tuberose almost immediately, then the soapiness of the citrus, musk, rose, and mimosa followed. You do get the purple flowers that lend to the slight powder in the backdrop. I don’t get the indoles from the jasmine but more so the sweet and fresh pikaki. In summation, this performs like a dream. I’m not just talking about the sillage and longevity but those are both of course really good. There’s just something special about a potent oil like this where it absorbs into your skin and works some inexplicable magic on you. Child exudes a clean, polished feel and I always feel rejuvenated and uplifted when wearing it. I wish this wasn’t so pricey but I feel like once I start running low, I will feel justified in rebuying. I already have a lot of white floral dominant scents in my collection but after having worn this and really tested it, there’s something substantial about the quality that sets it apart. Still though, because I have a tendency of having champagne taste and a 40 oz bank account... if anyone DOES happen to know of any spot-on dupes for Child without that Child price tag, please share with me! P.S. So far, the only perfume I have been able to find that comes close to duping Child is Fleurs de Nuit by Badgley Mischka. It was a happy accident because I wasn’t looking for something close to Child but found it nonetheless. Fleurs has amazing quality and performance but it’s a notch or so below Child. Also, it’s not exact but very close.

So, you know how when there's a hype about a perfume and then you smell it and you don't get it and then years later you revisit it and still don't get it, but are ready to try and see, for reals this time, what all the fuss is about? Ya, that's Child in a nut shell for me. Well this internal war story has a very happy ending, in fact, it's quite unexpected. Just the other day, I made my way to Fred Segal, went straight for this oil, put it on, then went to the beach. Remarkably, the initial Jasmine accord (which is actually lovely, but not much a man pleaser) turns into I-don't-even-know-what. It's like soap, meets fairies and they dance and sing and sprinkle you with their magic dust, forcing you to betray your set in its way nose, and completely fall in love. I don't know how it's possible, but it happened and now I get it. It's so multifaceted, it literally morphs into 3 separate perfumes. Jasmine, pure and beautiful, but only for a few minutes. Then onto soap and beach, with something sharp and enticing (I can't help but compare it to J LO Glow at this phase, which is the dominant phase) and finally, finishing with the most amazing incense-y skin musk with a hint of sweet Amber. The dry-down is what I live for. I do believe there must be a bit of crack in there too somewhere, because I find myself addicted. When I'm not wearing it, my nose can smell it and I immediately ache for it. But all of this aside, what it really comes down to, for me, is how it makes me feel. Its a truly empowering scent. Unlike any other scent I own. I feel like the sexiest, prettiest, most interesting girl alive. I am bewitching and mesmerizing and nothing is out of my reach. That's some powerful stuff, evoked by one little vial of oil, one cannot ignore. So, naturally, after my day at the beach, went back to the shop, bought the damn charmer and now we're in love. The end.

Another love! I've had this on my buy list for a long time and when I saw someone selling the oil at a discount I snatched it up, and I have zero regrets. Opening notes are strong, mentholated but unsweetened tuberose (thank God, Fracas went straight to bubblegum on me) and for a few minutes I was unsure if this would work. But then, the lilac came in, a gentle powdery break to the white florals and kept them from becoming indolic. It's definitely the lilac I smell alongside the tuberose, I don't get the jasmine on my skin. And then upon dry down, the musk comes in. This actually does remind me of a Jasmine heavy scent: Bobbi Brown Beach. But take out the jasmine and replace it with Tuberose. It's also giving me Kai vibes, but maybe it's because I also own that in oil format. Although Child reminds me more of Kai in it's EDP form than the oil. Kai oil is more creamy + sweet. Wheras Child is more powdery + white musk with the white florals. Overall this is an amazing scent, I'm so glad I own this now. I'm really lucking out on my blind buys lately (finally! For so many years I had fail after fail) One thing I will say is strange, but in a good way: The sillage of Child perfume oil is so strong! I can really smell it on myself wafting around in the air. Which is uncommon for an oil, they are notorious for sitting close to the skin. I got on the website to try and find more information about this fragrance and I noticed they now sell an extrait de parfum spray (50ml), but I think for what you get, even at the higher price point, the oil is very much worth it. I know if (and that's a big if) I use this up, I'd have no problem shelling out the money for this at full retail price.

Child (the oil rollerball version) was my signature scent for roughly 14-15 years before I started detecting slight changes in the formula a couple years ago and even ordered directly from the Child website to ensure I wasn't getting a wonky batch. After some digging, I learned it had indeed been reformulated to comply with new regulations (GLURG). I am not sure what ingredients specifically changed, but to my nose, there are some differences in the transition of top notes moving into the middle notes. Regardless, I still love it even if it performs slightly differently than it used to. The drydown seems to be the same. This is a long lasting, happy, beachy California perfume oil in the vein of Kai & Monyette Paris. I've worn all three at any given time, but Child emerged ahead of the others as my "daily driver"and consistently garnered more compliments than any scent I've ever worn (well, aside from the highly polarizing original Mugler Angel formula in the mid-90s/early 00s). Child is often described as a pikake (Hawaiian jasmine) scent but I've always smelled more tuberose than jasmine. All the flower notes combined together with the musk base are what really give it the unique profile – clean, innocent, dewy, mildly intoxicating, and slightly sweet on a bed of woody, vanillic musk. This is not a sunscreen or coconut beach, but it evokes the beach vibe. Before the reformulation it was my consistent comfort and signature scent. I didn't feel like myself without it. I wear it less often these days, but I don't ever want to be without it because it was a huge part of my fragrant life for so many years and it still brings me a lot of joy.

This is my guilty pleasure perfume. It's really cool that it's an indie scent, but it's a pretty one-dimensional white floral that doesn't change in the drydown. And after hearing John Mayer going off about how much he looooved Child, then smelling it on countless bubbleheaded ditzes, I put my bottle away out of shame. It just didn't seem sophisticated enough for someone over 30 to wear, you know? This was sad because it's a really beautiful fragrance - sexy, long-lasting, with just the right amount of sillage. I was therefore very happy when I moved to Japan and discovered that Child was pretty much unknown here. So I can wear it without worry of anyone's preconceptions. And the compliments! My dentist, strangers on the train, even a young friend who would grab my arm and pull me close because she said she loved the smell so much. (I ended up gifting her a bottle on her birthday.) I have both the oil and the spray. They're both nice, but I prefer the oil.