Tainted Love

Just received this today via sephora, I can easily say that Tokyo Milk is becoming a new fav. of mine. 2 scents I blind purchased this && Arsenic based off reviews && I love them both!! As soon as I opened the box I caught a whiff of this heavenly scent && said OMG!! On the my skin it's very delicate I get a lot of the orchid and vanilla && the mix plays well && is just beautiful! I kinda of get a licorice quality from it too as mentioned I also get a vague familiar under tone that reminds me of my YSL Body Kouros it's as if to me Lolita Lempicka && YSL Body Kouros had a baby, I just Love it! As for all the votes for this just being a winter scent, I don't see why it couldn't be perfectly suitable for a cool summer night out on the town it's soft enough, I know I'll for sure wear it when I go out layered w/ a nice fruity exotic scent BAM! there ya go!, && agreed I don't see this really lasting long on the skin, but as curliegurlie stated " Some folks seem to ask a great deal from their fragrance. I just like to smell nice. This does it for me."...agreed I don't care how much long it lasts as long as it smells good I can always re-apply...It's a fantastic scent reasonable in price what's not to love I can see this becoming a reg. scent of mine && I'd deff. purchase it again. Hmmm.. I think the next scent(s) from Tokyo will be Bulletproof && Excess && I think I'll deff. get this body lotion to layer! Curious? do try it! :) Overall: 9/10

Tainted Love (Dark) by Tokyomilk starts off with a vibrant burst of green, possibly from the green tea note, but this green facet doesn't stick around for long – just about a minute. Soon, the enchanting vanilla takes the spotlight and starts to dominate the scene. However, give it a little more time, and the real magic happens. The fragrance evolves into a beautiful blend that's neither overly sweet nor overly floral. Instead, it's a creamy symphony of vanilla, sandalwood, and orchid, creating a cozy yet undeniably sexy aura. There's something subtly spicy in there, and maybe a hint of tonka bean, although it's not listed in the official notes – a pleasant mystery. Tainted Love (Dark) is astonishingly versatile and beautiful. It feels like it could be worn in almost any situation and season, and it might even make for a fantastic signature scent. While it may not have the longest longevity, the affordable price makes it easy to reapply if needed. In a nutshell, it's an addicting fragrance that I can see myself reaching for frequently, especially when the leaves start to fall in autumn.

Tainted Love is a very sweet and simple fragrance, with a lot to love. Where to start? What caught my eye was the name and the bottle.Simple yet sophisticated, all the tokyomilk dark perfumes come in a matte black bottle with different designs in white. A beautiful vintage key adorns the Tainted Love bottle and makes it a pretty addition to any collection. On to the fragrance itself. I find it to have great longevity. I would wear this to work and would still be able to smell it wafting in the air hours later. I've also gotten more compliments on this perfume than any others to date. It doesn't have a ton of notes, but that's okay because the ones it does have blend together just lovely. This is a sweet vanilla oriental perfume. Tea and orchid gently embrace vanilla with just a hint of woods. Also seems like some sort of citrus could be hidden in here. For some reason when I wear this I imagine myself timewarped into the eighties, looking out a stained glass window in a dark room. If you want to smell sweet but mysterious, this will be a perfect scent for you.

This one really crept up on me. I got a free sample at Sephora, tried it once, and couldn't decide how I felt about it. I tossed the sample in my bag just to have in case of a perfume emergency, and sure enough, one eventually arose. I liked it more that time. I eventually bought a rollerball, which eventually led me to buy a full-size bottle. Personally, I've never smelled anything quite like it. It's definitely mainly vanilla, but there's also something almost...sour in the background? Maybe it's the tea? I don't know. It makes it more complex than plain vanilla, anyway. For me, any scent that doesn't dry down to old lady powder/cheap hairspray/dish soap (which is a common problem for me) is a victory, and Tainted Love doesn't commit any of those offences. It's noticeable but not cloying, and I find the lasting power to be adequate. It's definitely not for everyone, but it's in my regular fall/winter rotation.

GREEN VANILLA & SANDALWOOD. This has a powdery, tonka-like gauze over green vanilla & sandalwood, and the tannins from tea read leather to my nose. Picks up cherry nuances as it dries down, but it's relatively linear. There are reminders of Joop! Le Bain, but this scent makes me think of being on a motorcycle in summer. Small projection but moderate longevity, that may perform better in the heat. I only have a small sample, but performance may improve from a full bottle with dark storage after first sprays. Contrast to Joop! Le Bain: These are different, but my first thought when smelling this was that I'm smelling JLB, however TLTM is woodier & darker, and I get a more forward leather note from the tea. JLB has superior performance. TLTM may perform better in the heat. Overall: Beautiful scent profile, with moderate performance. This is the perfect scent to wear on a summer motorcycle trip.Enjoy!

This is a perfume that truly depends on body chemistry, I think. My reaction to this perfume is different from some previous reviewers, both in how it smells and how long it lasts (about seven hours on me). This may have common notes, but I don't think the resulting fragrance is common at all. To me this is different from the usual vanilla scent because it's vanilla bean--maybe it's not as "dark" as the name might suggest, but it's a huge difference to my nose, just like the use of the actual bean transforms the taste of food. The orchid is very present on my skin and lovely in combination with the vanilla, and the tea is dry and surprising. It almost smells like incense on me, and while other reviewers have said this is white tea I would have guessed lapsang souchong or something equally strong and flavorful. The entire combination is a little smoky and definitely intriguing.

I first had this as a rollerball and lip balm set and fell in love with it then. It's lovely, sensual, slightly unusual, not too strong and very seductive to my nose. When I found it again and tried it in spray form recently I was worried about sillage and longevity and as it seemed very soft, softer than I remembered, the shop owner (the lovely Hannah at Lore in Melbourne) told me to step outside and smell again. I did, came back in and bought a full bottle on the spot. Definitely more tea and tobacco than vanilla but that could be just my skin - and I have many vanilla perfumes to compare it with so I know my nose doesn't deceive me here! I agree completely with Alikat's description of Tainted Love. A leafy tea and woods delight, get up close to someone wearing this and I dare you to not want to nuzzle them!

This bittersweet vanilla isn't your little sister's kind of candy sweet-everyother-typical-vanilla. Nope, Tainted Love is slightly sinister. She's a bit of a good girl gone bad... but in a vanilla gothic kind of way. It does start out with a familiar bright top that seems slightly citrus. After a few minutes, it calms down and turns into a slightly powdery (just the right amount), almost chocolate-y scent-yummy. Then comes the cozy drydown of a sandalwood vanilla. Slightly dry, not heavy or overly sweet. I personally like that one has to come in close to get a whiff of this delightful concoction. This is not the type of scent you want assaulting people's noses. It takes away the mystique. This is a heavenly creation! If you want gourmand that isn't saccharin sweet, a great pick.

This is my favorite from the dark collection so far. It smells sooo good😍 I recently went on a Tokyo Milk buying rampage because, honestly, I love the bottles and love to add nice bottles to my collection. The scents are all a bit odd to my nose, so I don't really wear them, but I do love Kabuki! Tainted Love isn't even my style of frag, but there's something so nice about it. This isn't sweet or milky, it's woody and fresh. My skin really brings out the sandalwood, orchid and tea. Not so much vanilla for me, but I'm thinking I might try and layer it with Coco Figue. Something about it kinda reminds me of D&G Pour Homme. I even layered this with Katy Perry's Indi one day and it's a great combo.

This was my first TokyoMilk fragrance, and I loved it. On me, it was woodsy and sweet with a hint of vanilla. It reminded me a bit of Yves Rocher's Cantata from the '90s, but Cantata was classier and more mature. This is classy, but still a little bit innocent. There is something heavily romantic but just a tad mysterious about this fragrance. I could imagine a young film noir actress wearing this. I'm surprised that so many consider this a unisex scent because, for me, it is only feminine. It's strong and heady right out of the bottle, but quickly turns to a whiff of vanilla before fading to nothing. I have reviewed several TM fragrances, and my complaint is always the same: zero longevity.

This is a fascinating scent. I DO NOT tend to go for vanilla fragrances, but Tainted Love made me overcome my typical aversion to that typically too-cloying ingredient. This vanilla is sort of bitter and dry, not sweet and oppressive. The sandalwood, orchid, and tea all manifest in a slightly edgier way than normal, giving this powdery scent some teeth. At this point, when I have 100+ perfumes in my wardrobe, I am really appreciative of unusual scents and this one is certainly different. Love it. It also has really reasonable staying power on my skin - unlike what a lot of other people have been saying in their reviews.

I am surprised to see this getting so much hate, but then again, I am also surprised to find things I can't tell from every other loud floral cacophony being praised as the height of modern perfumery. I like simple scents I can layer or wear to work. Orientals have always been my weakness, and things with a warm sandalwood or vanilla base have always been my favorites. This somehow conjures a dark currant and pipe tobacco vibe to me, despite not being listed notes. A fall or winter staple for me, I just wish it had a little more longevity.

I love this, it is my perfect vanilla. Not a teenybopper fruity vanilla perfume but not a musky grandma version either, perfect for a sophisticated 20-30 woman. There is a touch of chocolaty smokiness that keeps it warm and sexy, the sandalwood is definitely present but the orchid keeps it from being too earthy and the vanilla is deep without being too sugary or overpowering. I can smell it on the inside of my elbow after a long day, but only slightly. Layering with the same scented lotion really improves the longevity.

At first I was meh, its alright, yet I find myself reaching for it quite often. Because my skin loves it! My advice don't be discouraged by the negative reviews, test it for a few days. On my skin it opens a bit citrusy then dries down to a smoky woodsy vanilla. I bring a small rollerball in my purse everytime I wear this, doesn't last long unfortunately so I don't mind reaplying here and there. The tiny rollerballs are super cheap and usually come in a set with a travel size hand cream which I adore.

I get all four of the notes that are in this: major vanilla and tea leaves, minor orchid and sandalwood. This all comes together for me in a comfy, milky, yet sensual fragrance. I also get the tobacco vibe that other reviewers have and assume that's the tea leaves. I love this scent. Unfortunately, Tainted Love doesn't last very long and it's a skin scent on me. I got this in a sampler with some of Tokyo Milk's other Dark Curiosities and appreciate the overall presentation.

This perfume is new to me, so I may revise this later. So far, I love this scent! It smells sweet, but not like cotton candy sweet, more like caramel or toffee. The dark vanilla bean is obviously the strongest note, but I smell the sandalwood a lot too. On me, the perfume dries down to a nice sweet cedar scent that is warm and comforting. I am so pleased with this because it is cozy and heavy on the vanilla.

I fell in love with Dead Sexy at first spray, but Tainted Love took me a bit longer to come around to. Now I can't stop thinking about it. The vanilla note feels very different between the two and this one really conjures up images of dank, mushroom covered tree stumps in a dark forest. Bottom line, it's like Dead Sexy's older goth sister and I absolutely love it. Longevity is decent but not great.

my FAVOURITE scent ever! i got a sample size of this 10 years ago back when sephora carried it and i thought about it for years until i could find it again. i don’t love super sweet vanilla and this is the perfect dark and mysterious yet sweet perfume. the sandalwood and orchid are not overpowering but help add the right balance imo. this perfume is definitely giving soft romantic goth vibes!

There is something boozy/dirty about this vanilla. If you stick your nose on your arm too soon after spraying, that sandalwood can almost give off a faint smell bitter/burning scent. So, it might not be a safe blind buy for some people if that's a note that can turn sideways on you. When this warms with your body, it is yummy and edgy. I love it. Doesn't last very long though.

like most other sweet perfumes with woody bases, the vanilla and sandalwood cling to my skin. i get hints of tonka bean as well, but im not complaining. it smells like a hug from a middle-aged hippie who wears rings on every finger. the orchid and the white tea don't last very long on me, the latter being the most persistent. i could wear this every day and never get bored.

I literally bought 5 bottles of this because I love it so much. It’s orchid and spicy, just a lovely sweet dry down. The tea notes are chefs kiss and I couldn’t love it more if I tried. I’m biased, orchids are my jam. This is also dark, it’s punchy and creamy on the dry down. But she’s date night for sure. I wear this a lot for myself because my damn she’s so so good!

This was a blind buy for me; I almost regretted it based on the negative reviews. I'm glad I gave it a try though because I am loving it! I applied this lightly to my wrists and I smell a dark vanilla orchid. My best comparision of this perfume is that it is the black sheep sister of Hanae Mori: a little bitter, dark attitude, and a tad of dry humor.

I love it though it is a MILD perfume - mostly vanilla that dries down to sandalwood and I am happy with that scent - I find it peaceful. I like that it is very vanilla nd not terribly exciting, though I think the sandalwood darkens it up a bit. Some folks seem to ask a great deal from their fragrance. I just like to smell nice. This does it for me.

I really love this perfume but it doesn't stay on the skin long enough. Ive been wearing this perfume for almost a decade and I always buy it when i uave the chance. It's a lot more playful of a scent but still edgy and alluring. It's much more candy like but in a good way. Just wish it didn't sell out so fast. It is sweet and vanilla forward.

Tainted Love is very lovely. I really like the combination of tea with dark vanilla beans, orchid and sandalwood. Very beautifully sweet, comforting, fresh, moist and deep, and quite dark. Very alluring and sensual. Feminine, elegant and sophisticated. Smooth and clear, mysterious and delicate. Lovely. And lasts for so long!! Beautiful.

I love this perfume, it's a little spicy at first & normally I don't like spice but this one smells nice! It dries down to a nice soft sweet vanilla scent & it's a little dark & mysterious but the only thing is this scent doesn't last at all on me. Even if I sniff my wrists an hour later it seems to of just disappeared, it's very faint.

I had this one a long time ago and the smell is just so vivid in my memory it’s crazy. It starts off kind of fresh and light, and then immediately gets heavy in the BEST way. It’s sexy, it’s a little different, and it has a lot of complexity close to the skin. Absolute banger. The lotion version is also phenomenal.

Dark, boozy, and very intimate. BABY powder, vanilla and a burning fireplace. A sweet, intense, SEXY, perfect DATE night perfume. Highly addictive and intoxicating in the BEST way. I love it. One of my favorites from the dark collection. Song to describe this perfume, Devil Eyes by Hippie Sabotage. BISOUS

dark, exotic, smooth vanilla bean that appeals to those of us who usually loathe the scent of vanilla as too common. this vanilla? slaps your ass and makes you her bitch. really no idea why...must be its pairing with orchid and sandalwood that gives it its edge. tainted love indeed! MEOW!

Nothing sweet about this. Dark, mysteriously different. One I would choose to wear with leather, black, brown or charcoal. Reminds me a lot of the original Angel. A strong presence of tobacco. I love it for being so unusual but it doesn't last a long time so will need re-application.

This was my first ever "real" perfume and I still love it to this day. I bought it from Sephora back in 2014. Something about this smells like fruity pebbles, but like gothic, mature fruity pebbles. It's perfect as a cozy bedtime fragrance but also as a "going out" fragrance.

I add this to Bath and Body Works Warm Vanilla Sugar to make the B&BW scent less cloying and young and honestly I love that mix. On it's own it doesn't last very long and is okay. It's difficult to find a nice inexpensive sandalwood/tea/orchid combo so I continue to buy it.

I bought a sample of this a few years ago and loved it. I remember adoring the boozy vanilla scent during my college years. Now, I just bought the full EDP bottle and fell in love with it all over again. The scent makes me feel expensive and classy.

Very nice! Fragrances notes on the bottle are - dark vanilla bean - Orchid - white tea - sandalwood I can detect them all vanilla and orchid dominates this. I really love this because it not overpowering yet has great staying power.

So good. So familiar, yet unique. I get so happy when I smell this sweet, vanilla perfume. It gets floral & powdery at the dry down but it starts out very gourmand/edible. It definitely has an addicting quality.

This is my favorite of the Tokyo Milk lne so far. I get a licorice and tobacco vibe on my skin with a hint of vanilla. I received this gem in a swap, and i think i found my signature scent!

I have the this sexy little lady's roller ball. Just a couple of tiny dabs on my pulse points and I'm in a rich dark castle full of orchids and vanilla-incense. The silage is astounding.

My only addition is that this us a high level bleh scent. Maybe it's because I prefer more masculine and nostalgic or older scenes, but this doesn't do it for me. A 4/10 at its best

Definitely a powerful vanilla scent in this perfume, but also has an underlying tobacco, cigar like smell to add some depth. I like it every once in a while to switch things up.

One of my big favorites. I'm indifferent to vanilla but I love it here. The mix with sandalwood is so pleasing. Very unique, very charming ^_^🖤

One of my favs, have bought multiple bottles. It reminds me of Clove cigars, smoky sweet. Wish it lasted longer but smells lovely on the skin.

Lovely vanilla. I've been complimented on this multiple times by other women while wearing it out and about on the daily.

This is the fragrance that got me into fragrance. Im very particular and this is my Holy Grail so far.

It is absolutely exquisite and addicting. I discovered it through Adam Lambert.

I love this scent, but I wish it lasted!

I do like this, BUT no, not unique. The name and the scent just don't match one another - this is not dark, dangerous or "Tainted." (I know, I get the 80's song reference.) Been a vanilla perfume connoisseur for a long time and this is a really familiar combo. I like the name and the bottle, but honestly, out of what I have and have smelled, the cheapie bottle of Dana's French Vanilla I have had for years smells almost identical, if a little sweeter. Not bad for the price, though, and the bottle IS cute. A safe, pleasant, generic vanilla-based frag, with some light woodiness at the base that becomes powder a couple of hours in. Blendable/a good base for other scents, but don't get this expecting to be wowed. Good for those new to vanilla frags who don't want something overly sweet or foody/gourmand. At least it's not overpriced. Later: Okay, so wearing this a few days, I find that this smells like it's missing something, it's unfinished, just goes straight to the drydown. I have tried layering a couple of other scents from the Tokyo Milk line, and find that Kabuki with this smells really nice and adds some missing complexity. It adds nice creaminess to the really sweet-tartness of the grapefruit in Kabuki.

I wore this regularly back when Sephora carried it in stores maybe 13ish years ago. I remember it being a fairly simple but lovely vanilla scent. My nose is able to distinguish scent notes much more accurately today but in my memory this was a vanilla forward scent, the sandalwood, orchid and tea were there to just add complexity to the vanilla and pull it away from the gourmand territory. It wasn’t a super deep or dark vanilla to my nose, the sandalwood kept it lighter and smoother. I really want another bottle of this again as I always intended to get it again. However I am always hesitant to purchase an old love that I haven’t smelled for years as sometimes I find my nose has changed and I don’t enjoy them as much! But I think this old flame is worth that risk. Tokyo Milks new Wuthering Heights collection just reignited my excitement about their brand as Wuthering Heights is one of my all time favorite books. I have also always enjoyed Tokyo Milks dark whimsy esthetic.

This is an "oldie", but as the weather gets cooler, it's well worth revisiting. The earlier reviews write this off as being a "pedestrian vanilla", but I really don't agree. Yeah, vanilla is DEFINITELY the star of the show, and forget about "tea" as in the green tea style of clean-spa type fragrances. This ain't that. Nope. It's verrrrry boozy! Like "don't even consider wearing this if your hung-over" kind of boozy! Reminds me SO MUCH of bourbon or a dark rum! I can see how it's gender neutral, as it has a a deeper, darker feel that puts me to mind of a nice cardamom or tobacco fragrance. There's no patchouli- which I appreciate - and it's not anchored with other typical base notes like musk or dry-type sandalwood, either; although it does get a touch of wordiness in the drydown. Nope. It's anchored with the scent of decadence. Great Fall date perfume, or for cuddling by the fire, but not something I'd want to smell on a minor.

I love this fragrance--it's a sweet, smoky vanilla that dries down into a soft powder that manages to retain its darkness for a few minutes. But a few minutes is all I get out of it. Half an hour after spraying, I can literally smell nothing on my skin--the sillage is beyond poor. In fact, if I didn't know the source was legitimate, I'd have assumed I got a counterfeit bottle because it's such a weak fragrance. What a shame that this lovely scent doesn't last longer! Yes, it's inexpensive, but I feel like I have to reapply it constantly to get anything at all. My boyfriend agrees that it disappears quickly, so I know it's not just me becoming desensitized to it after a short time. Gorgeous packaging, great price, lovely fragrance, but it doesn't hold up like other Tokyo Milk perfumes. If it had more lasting power I'd buy it again but unfortunately, it simply doesn't last long enough to make it worthwhile.

this is an absolutely beautiful scent that i picked up for a very reasonable price considering my bottle is about 8 oz. elegant and mysterious. the vanilla is original, mature, and balanced out extremely well by the sandalwood and tea notes. it's a really interesting moody smell while also being something i could see someone wearing casually or being someone's signature scent. i would call it unisex. if you wear this i probably think you're really cool and interesting and want to be friends with you. night owl, witchy, plant parent, black cat, introvert. totally goth. one of my friends said this smells like old people but he's 19 so i don't really care what he thinks lol. i don't love it with my skin chemistry, not a safe blind buy buy try it on your skin if you think it sounds like your vibe.