Rose Prick

First off, the Alhambra Rose Petals dupe is pretty fire if you want a cheapie of this. Onto my actual review: Rose Prick was kind of the first rose fragrance that made me fall in love with roses years back. I encountered it upon investing on my first bottle of TV as a small sample I was given with Rose D'Amalfi. Though I found Rose D'Amalfi brighter and intriguing at first, at the time when I couldn't really appreciate much of the notes besides "Sweet Lotion," but after a while, I went back to Rose Prick. It's soft and sweet and surprisingly earthy for a scent. It reminded me of rose jams I would have with some of my toast or my ice cream. Where noir de noir chose to up the patchouli to an almost chocolate-like consistency, this just straight-up made Patchouli as "soil" as patchouli can be while taking a much softer approach. In comparison with NDN, the rose is also inverted to a lush, softly-spicy sweet rose, again, like jam in contrast with NDN's more dense and fuller take on a rose. Of course, over the years, I've come across far more radiant examples of rose-patchoulis like Radical Rose (my forever reigning king of roses) and the one that made the warm spicy rose-patchouli mainstream, POAL. Certainly, MP and FM make perfumes with far better performance wise and sillage. A real bang-for-your-buck, so it was easy to just forget about Rose Prick near completely, but I was gifted a bottle recently that made me look back. I've realized that I've always used Rose Prick as my standard for what I like in a warm, sweet rose. Sure, there are those that rise far greater that it does now to my nose, but I can't help but treasure it just the same. Rose Prick, despite the name, isn't really sharp, which fits its pastel bottle perfectly. Then again, a prick isn't always...'sharp' so to speak. The szechuan pepper introduces a nice sharpness at first but that goes away within 30 minutes, persisting as something more citrus-like (which is what the dried peppers indeed smell like) and the turmeric (having some dried in my kitchen) is what I know smell as the oddly bitter and soil-like opening open first spray. Within minutes, It reveals a heart of a soft but radiant rose that's sweet without being close to gourmand (in comparison to the biscuit flakes and rose jam of Rose D'Amalfi). The patchouli more or less supports the soil-like smell you get in the background and the tonka bean does provide an almost 'vanilla' like touch that gives way to the sweetness of the rose. All in all, it feels like a lighter, pastel take of the usually dark rose-pathcouli combo. I've worn this to parties and events and I always like how I smell sweet but clean. It's not powdery on my nose, but I could see why someone would say that it is. I can't tell you if this does smell like a grandma scent because...my grandma smells like lavenders mostly. In terms of practicality, you can try the Alhambra dupe first (be warned that sometimes, you just get a bad bottle) and let it macerate for a bit. it's pretty convincing with a stronger tonka-vanilla note. Then, you can try Rose Prick at the store and make the choice. Personally, this projects better from the neck and chest more than wrists!

This is one of those fragrances that surprise me in the sense that I don’t feel like it deserves the relatively low rating that it gets. I’ve read enough opinions on fragrance all around to know that patchouli is not everyone, but Rose Prick to me seems very inoffensive compared to fragrances like Noir de Noir and Black Orchid, who both also have a lot of patchouli. My guess is that this gets a lower vote from a lot of people because of the expensive price point? I agree that it’s overpriced. I find that the Runway Collection from the Private Line is actually more simple and it has less of that ‘Tom Ford’ flair that their regular Private Line collection has. The Private Line is expensive as it is, but these particular ones are very much overpriced. But they are good quality as far as I’m concerned. Rose Prick specifically is not beast mode as far as projection is concerned, but it has good lasting power. I don’t think that if people would get a waft of you, they would immediately pinpoint that it’s rosey. It’s one of those perfumes, to me, that takes itself to a whole fragrance experience of its own where you don’t have to pick apart the notes. I like that about it. I think it’s unique, but not to the level that it can become ‘weird’ to some people. The spiciness is fresh to me, and there’s something green about the fragrance that I really like. In all honesty, I was familiar with the Maison Alhambra dupe ‘Rose Petals’ before the real deal. The dupe has a little bit more of a middle eastern vibe, but all in all it’s a great likeness. It was after testing it in the London store that I felt like I needed the real thing. I was tempted to buy the gift box in London, the package with the 50 mil and a 10 mil travel set, but I couldn’t justify it considering the fact that I could get the 100 mil for a cheaper price point at a discounter. So that’s what I did and I have no regrets. I feel like you can wear this one to pretty much every occasion.

Ahh-maze-ing! This is, hands down, my favorite perfume. I never thought I would be a rose girl, but here I am with my growing rose garden thanks to Rose Prick. Rose Prick is the most unique rose scent I've come across. The spicy Sichuan pepper notes complement the overdose of rose that still retains a powdery softness while being grounded in sensual patchouli. I couldn't quite put my finger on what made this scent so unique, and I attribute it to the turmeric. I can't pick out the individual turmeric note, but it's there adding a subtle sweet spice creating perfection in this blend. After skimming some of the previous reviews, most people tend to have a problem with the heavy patchouli. For me, the patchouli isn't heavy in the least--it's just the right amount. However, this is coming from a patchouli lover. Although Tom Ford's private blends straddle the line between designer and niche, this has the depth and uniqueness of niche perfumery. I highly recommend giving this perfume a whiff next time you're at the TF counter. As a side note... I work in science and have access to a gas chromatographer/mass spectrometer (GCMS). My colleagues and I ran a few different perfumes, mostly designer, through the GCMS. Lo and behold, Rose Prick had the most complex and strongest volatiles out of all the perfumes we tested, meaning it was, hands down, the highest quality out of the lot. TF smacks a crazy price on their perfumes to create exclusivity around it. Setting that aspect of pricing aside, this perfume is super high quality. It still doesn't warrant the exorbitant price IMO, but it's comforting knowing I'm not just getting sh!t with a designer label. I'm getting high-quality ingredients. PM me if you'd like to chat about science and/or the science of perfumery! I'm a total nerd, perfume very much included.

Rose Prick by Tom Ford, a fragrance that manages to be simultaneously prickly and velvety, just as its provocative name suggests. The Rose with Thorns launched in 2020 and created by nose Guillaume Flavigny, Rose Prick is the "wild" interpretation of a private garden. If you are expecting grandma's classic romantic, soapy rose, you are wrong: here the rose bites. A pinch of pepper and freshly vaporized earth, the impact is pungent. Sichuan Pepper and Turmeric create a cold, almost vibrant spicy opening. It's not the usual citrusy onset; it is a reminder of the earth and the thorns that protect the flower. The heart of the fragrance: The "Triangle of Roses" The true protagonist is an opulent bouquet composed of three fine varieties: Rosa di Maggio: Sweet and honeyed. Bulgarian Rose: Intense and liqueur-like. Turkish Rose: Spicy and deep. Together, these notes create a "fleshy", dense and incredibly realistic rose, which dominates the central scene. The base: chipré elegance as the hours pass, the fragrance settles on a base of Patchouli and Tonka Bean. The patchouli gives it that modern Chypre character, giving depth and a "dirty" but refined nuance, while the tonka sweetens the finish with a creamy tip. It is elegant but rebellious. The matte pink bottle contrasts with the juice inside, which is bold and not at all shy. It is perfect for those who love fragrances that evolve on the skin, going from an almost "spicy" start to an explosive floral heart, up to a dry and sensual base. The touch of style: Wear it with a minimalist or total black outfit; you will let the perfume tell your complexity. In summary: A modern floral masterpiece that celebrates the beauty of the flower without forgetting the danger of its thorns. A must-have for collectors of Tom Ford's Private Blend line.

oh wow... this perfume... it doesn't smell particularly sugary or feminine for the bottle to be pink so already the design is misleading. it's not sweet, it's not anything that anyone would look for in a fragrance, and actually it is quite bitter and heavy on the patchouli. can be worn by men, something really smells messed up about it. do not purchase if you want a perfume that smells good. this is difficult to understand and for a rose perfume, does not smell enough like rose but it is one of my top 8 favorite perfumes, please don't ever discontinue this work of art. i cannot pinpoint or describe what is so disturbing about this perfume but i love it. also this fragrance is quite addicting, i cannot stop sniffing my hand. it's perplexing, almost as though i feel i need to find out what i love about it but it is so intoxicating. 💘✨️💝 the ideal setting for this, at least in my mind.. would be traveling. i've mentioned this in another review.. but TF fragrances strongly evoke a desire to change the scenery. the longing to dissociate by changing the setting and changing the music. i don't know if anyone can understand what i mean to express, but that's what TF fragrances do for me which is appreciated because it really offsets a comfort and complacency (or i'm sorry, not complacency as in making excuses but more like a want to find new places to explore) whenever i just feel... too content (which isn't necessarily a bad thing, to feel comfortable and at peace with myself is a good thing usually). for this reason alone, this is for sure one of my favorite perfumes.