Lavender Extreme

You're all gonna come for me cuz I'm going to sound so BASIC compared to my usually (somewhat) more expressive and eloquent self haha..... I felt COMPELLED to come write a review of this because... I'm really confused... You see... I was gifted one of those HUGE decanter bottles of this from a very very good friend... When I saw this GORGEOUS metallic silver box I knew it was Tom Ford but really had no clue which fragrance came in this unusually-colored packaging... And THEN... i saw it: L - A - V - E - N.... Ohhhh nooooo!!! I thought... One of the ONLY notes I HATE... Ok I'm going to give this a try since there's ONE perfume I own and LOVE despite having some noticeable lavender in the top (Maître Parfumeur et Gantier Ambre Précieux).... So I decanted into a gorgeous spray and gave myself a liberal dousing and .... oh...! Wow that's definitely a lavender blast.... Ok ok haha I'll live... "It's the thought that counts right?".... But then.... IRIS....? am I crazy? This sure is getting POWDERY.... yeah there's coumarin / tonka .. probably vanilla too, but there's IRIS ... The lavender faded fairly quickly (probably to the dismay of millions) and I couldn't have been happier... It rather quickly transformed into a powdery orris / tonka / almond / cinnamon... Even a BIT lactonic (only a tiny bit).... I'm now wearing it today having attended a big celebration banquet luncheon and today was perhaps my FOURTH full wearing and I absolutely LOVE this perfume... Do I like lavender now? Honestly I'm keeping an open mind but I actually DON'T THINK I do... I think there's a very strong / striking realistic lavender in this but it SEEMS to morph into something less lavender and more powdery where it lasts FOREVER... impressive longevity... 9/10 and I'm still confused.

I love Tom Ford perfumes however (many will take offence I’m sure) I always have found his perfumes a case of mass marketing hype. I always take caution to sample his latest releases before purchase. Unlike his contempories for the price e.g Xerjoff, Stephane Humbert Lucas 777 and say Parfum De Marly - I find TF to usually last half as long and project at a fraction. I blind buy these and I am rarely disappointed. Unfortunately for them though TFs specialty is great at creating a straight forward “as promoted” scent regardless of its price/performance. I love lavender. I have tried many and other than L’occitane there just aren’t many quality build scents out there (feel free to educate me - maybe I have missed some). I received a number of samples finally. Third bottle in and I’m very impressed. A natural bright lavender bodied out a bit with some tonka (the tonka is mostly prominent nose to skin) and slightly darkened with some cinnamon. The other notes are purely complimentary to add to the body. I didn’t get the same as some below where the tonka starts overriding until today so maybe there is a subtle variation dependant on the chemistry/heat? Despite being classed as a male scent it definitely works for women. Business or casual, cold or hot climate. Despite the fact it is an anosomic scent and whilst suffering the usual TF performance v price I am getting a fairly linear scent a few hours in and good wafts as I work. Next to TF TV this is probably the better in performance compared to Lost Cherry, Plum Japonaise and Mandarino Di Amalfi that I also own and much better than Fucking Fabulous and Beau De Jour at least in linearity and longevity. Looks like I’m up for a bottle...

Overdue to sample this latest Tom Ford release, Lavender Extreme. The eponymous note is obvious from the start, though the other part of the name is puzzling, as nothing feel especially “Extreme” or even “Intense” about it. That said, it’s a nice semi-sweet, semi-powdery lavender blend that feels easy to wear from the onset, and I’m a fan. The note listing is fascinating: lavender, lemon, violet, rose, geranium, cinnamon, and tonka. Primarily a floral bouquet but nonetheless with sweet, spicy, powdery, and citrus influences. It feels balanced and complete. Like others, I do get a bit of the “Play-Doh” vibe, particularly at the opening when it’s going through some changes, but by the dry down, I don’t get much of this at all. Interestingly enough, I’ve had other non-fragheads tell me that they get the same Play-Doh feeling from Dior Mitzah. It’s not particularly a problem for me in either case. Performance is decent on my skin but not on the higher end, roughly somewhere in the range of the last two provocative releases of Lost Cherry and Fucking Fabulous, the latter giving slightly better performance on my skin than the former. Overall, I’m instantly a fan of the scent itself, but as with most Tom Ford offerings, price is a major issue. Lavender Extreme is in the higher echelon of Tom Ford pricing, at $320 for 50ml or $815 for the 250ml flacon (I don’t yet see a 100ml size for sale online), so it’s a very tough sell at retail pricing unless you positively love it. 8 out of 10

In my opinion, this is an exceptional fragrance. I'm not really sure what other people were thinking in regards to saying this was not good. If you are not a lavender fan, then obviously you should not pick up a fragrance called lavender extreme. It's really common sense! Obviously it opens up with a hint of lavender which is exactly what I was looking for. It is a sweet vanilla lavender, with the other notes being more of an supporting character. Definitely leans more feminine, but I can imagine a really attractive man wearing this and him almost being irresistible. The longevity is not as long as Noir de Noir or vanille, but it lasts long enough to consider the price has value. It really is unique in that I've never really smelled another fragrance like it. It still has that expensive feeling from typical Tom Ford fragrances. I purchased mine at full price the moment after I smelled it for the first time at Nordstrom. It really hit me hard and I couldn't resist. I would undoubtedly recommend this fragrance to friends and have a sample ready for anyone.

April 2019 Got a sample at Neimans. When is lavender not in style? Initial spray, lovely lavender for man or women. Husband loves lavender and has an extremely stressful corporate job. Thought I would gift this to him and sneak in some aromatherapy to boot. Maybe this will calm him throughout his day as he wears it. Very quickly after initial spray, the burst of lavender quiets down. Thats good. Corporate America does not appreciate blasts of fragrance wherever you go. But, coming in for a greeting handshake, sitting side by side in a board meeting or on the plane, this would make the statement you want. Its classy and subtle. I could even scent his tie or my scarf with it, giving it a bit more presence and for a longer time. Scent would be appropriate all year, day and night. Business casual to formal and afterwards... to bed. (wink, wink) I agree these Tom Fords are very overpriced, but I can appreciate not smelling like everyone else because the price point is not reasonable for the masses.