Kiki Eau de Parfum

Kiki elevates the simple pleasures of lavender. The first few hours are a technical marvel, as refreshing top notes defy expectations by maintaining their presence and verve for a surprising length of time, weaving in and out of the olfactory "view." The fragrance opens with lavender: armfuls of dried lavender, dazzling fields of fresh growing lavender, and cocktail glasses full of lavender liqueur. At various points in time, zesty, juicy citrus pops in and out like a bright ray of sunshine. When you aren't paying attention, somehow the huge lavender mellows out into a soothing accent for passionfruit - fresh, sweet, yet oddly carnal - for a time. Then the balance shifts again, with varying degrees of fresh, bracing, herbal, floral, and soapy lavender, at times infused with bergamot, at other times veering to caramelized brown sugar facets or coming back to melt into the vibrant passionfruit. As the brighter, tarter notes start to quiet down, the caramelized, sun-warmed musk gradually shifts the balance from exuberant to cozy and indulgent, like a lavender macaron. The caramel tones are persistent but quiet and not overdone. The musky base, which reminds me of some old-school Guerlains, feels especially sultry and coy pushed up against the prim, clean scent of lavender. Kiki is breezy and easy, but never a bore. Before I tried Kiki, I didn't feel the need or desire for a feminine lavender... it seemed like strong lavender belonged in bath products, room scents, or prototypical masculine colognes. But then I sampled the extrait, and though it was not love at first whiff, I kept coming back to it. I'm so glad I took the risk and went for the EDP blind. The extrait is comfortable and rich, but flat and linear compared to the shimmering, multi-faceted EDP. The two formulations are closely related, but have different personalities.

I love all sorts and blends with lavender, it suits great to my chemistry and my mind loves this smell, but I have never even dreamt of having caramelised one, with passionfruit on the top. It could be a recipe for disaster for any other fragrance attempt, so I do believe in certain magical super powers of Vero Kern herself. She obviously is a very skilful aromatologist, because she didn’t kill a one single molecule of the actual lavender, by adding caramel and exotic fruit to it. Lavender remains lavender, as a main actress in this beautiful phantasmagoria of notes. Kiki has very nice, dreamy soul within and I appreciate fragrances that do possess one. In perfumes like that you actually able to establish a connection between the scented molecule and the cells of your body, like one chemist from Guerlain house once put forward the idea of a certain parallelism between scented vibrations and those emitted by homeopathic granules and since remedy must be individualised to be effective, the perfume should obey the same conditions and be “individual”. What I wanted to say is that there are lots of lavender types in the world of fragrances, but Kiki is the one that closest to that “individually yours” lavender somehow. Certain awakening to me and stimulus to the intellect. Love.

Vero Kiki (2010) - passionfruit lavender - #verokern created a fougere, chypre and gourmand all rolled into one. Starts with Passion fruit mixed Lavender - herbal, pine-like in a juicy almost guava-bubblegum accord. This main top note stays there for quite sometime and as it softens hints of minty Geranium meshed in with sticky cumin-caramel comes in the foreground. Thankfully, it doesn’t become too sweet and the accord is masterfully airy. Cumin was delivered in careful doses. As it dries down, the earthy chypre structure comes out. A creative masterpiece.

If I am going to go fresh or fresh spicy it has to be like this kinda odd. I love the description of Irish Spring in there and I get that but I like it. It is like a blast of fresh air. Just got this after I finished up a sample, so I can't wait to get to know it better. I love this gal's perfumes. Not the usual mass market, not that there is anything wrong with that, frags.

Wow, Vero Kern was a genius. Who on earth mixes lavender, caramel and passionfruit? And who on earth can make it work? No one any more i assume, but Vero could. I own Kiki in all three versions but this is my favorite, it has a lovely lightness to it. God, the passionfruit is gorgeous. One of my all time favourites. So happy I found a bottle, since it’s not made anymore.

I think Kiki EdP is a masterpiece. The levander and caramel together create a fantastic accord, which not too sweet, light and creamy but there is a deep feeling too. Sillage and lasting power both are excellent. I adore this, Vero Kern is one of the best parfumer ever IMHO.

The Kiki Eau de Parfum almost the spitting image of the Extrait version, the only difference being that a greater emphasis on lavender, airier and less smokiness.

Don't be scared of lavander . It is the most beautiful perfume that I try in my life !!!

The moment I smelled KIKI I thought *lavender*! This is the first fragrance I tried that is primarily focused on this beautiful herbal note. As a lavender lover, I liked this interpretation of the lavender with some tropical notes of passion fruit and slight aroma of caramel. The composition strikes me as very French, sophisticated and reminds me of a Provence country side with endless fields of lavender under the blue sky. The composition opens very aromatic with strong almost menthol accent, bergamot and lavender. It is not citrus fresh but more like lavender/bergamot fragrant bath oils. The passionfruit note becomes noticeable after a few minutes and it is sweet and tropical. I have to admit that I like this note layered on the strong aromatic notes. I also can smell a bit of patchouli. It is barely detectable at this point but it adds a nice nuance to the composition. The heart notes are lavender, lavender and more lavender on me. I do not detect the geranium at all but the caramel accent is quite lovely. The dry down is light musk, lavender and a bit of caramel. The dry down is too light, too close to the skin, and too short-lived for my taste. If you love lavender you have to try this one. It is quite interesting and unusual interpretation of this note. I wish the dry down was more interesting and longer lived. I will have to try the pure parfum extract to see if it has better longevity. (Overall score – 8/10)

Ok. You guys lavender and carmel sound kinda gross its true. What the Hell! I just put Kiki on and Vero Kern is becoming the Stanley Kubrick of perfumes. He created some severely unsettling content for viewers out there ; but clearly stayed true to his own mission and no doubt acquired a degree of excellence that is a rare achievement. All i know is I can see the poison is all of Vero's perfumes, but taste and scent aside each time i put one on i feel good. I know that its not possible for everyone to agree with the kind of perfumes she makes but i guess thats what makes them so special...and well /expensive. A lot of people say this is the least favorite of the three (there is also mito now). If you ask me this would be the easiest to wear daily of the bunch.

Kiki EDP emphasizes the passion fruit. The sweet sourness of passion fruit pairs beautifully with the herbal bitterness of the lavender and the fresh minty smell I associate with geranium (think of Frederic Malle's Geranium pour Monsieur with its invigorating spicy freshness). I sense some powdery notes and musk in the base of the EDP, which help keep the passion fruit in check. I find the sillage of the EDP to be much stronger than the Vd'E but I think it's because my skin tends to project fruity notes well. The lavender is all smiles in Kiki EDP, not the cold astringent quality it can have in certain perfumes. The musk is perceptible but not overwhelming, the scent stays quite fresh and aromatic throughout its long lifespan.

Kiki comes on with a bright hit of true, sharp lavender, exactly like crushing a bit of a fresh shrub in your fingers. A few minutes in there’s also some citrus, slightly sweetened to blur the edges. The far drydown is the gauziest imaginable light caramelized froth, delicately sweet without being the least bit sticky. The whole thing is mostly over in 5 hours. Kiki is a “simple pleasure” — it’s just a sweet light-and-bright high-quality lavender. I like darker and more herbal lavenders even more, but sunny fresh French-countryside lavender is lovely too.

I also, found kiki EDP to be, by far, my least favorite of the trio. I find the initial scent is very unpleasant, the musk and patchouli, and maybe the geranium, smell like benzoin to me and I simply can not abide that particular smell. It remains like this for about an hour, and then the more pleasant scent of citron makes its scent known. Then I smell just a bit of the sweetness of caramel, which lingers for a few more hours. Some might really enjoy this scent, so the best thing to do is sample it yourself.

I agree with Ladykarl that Vero Kern is becoming the Stanley Kubrick of perfume. Her creations are simply amazing. What really gets me is the seamlessness of her perfumes. Meaning on my skin nothing stands out but rather translates as a masterful blend. I have to intensely focus my attention to call out individual components but even then I'm just pulled into the full aromatic experience. Kiki EDP is lovely, very Parisian, Rive Gauche, artsy-bohemian, but also very elegant.

Mm. Tropical chewy toffee. Literally edible. Candyland lovers only.

Ooops. My skin picks up fruit notes of this composition, and I get super sweet combination of citron and something sweet and tropical. I guess this might be passion fruit from the list of notes. One would think that top notes won't last for more than 15 minutes or so, but here am I, stuck like a fly in a super sweet fruity concoction. Some fruity fragrances do that to me, and I suspect that the end result will be the same: after the top notes disappear from my skin which they occupied for too long, the fragrance will be gone entirely. No lavender, no geranium, musk or even caramel. I had a similar experience with Tauer's Un Rose Vermeille: giant raspberry and then gone. No go for me.

While I detected some vague fruit at the opening, it is overpowered by a screechy lavender/rosemary combo that chokes out any other random notes in this fragrance. I get no caramel whatsoever in this - zero, zilch, nada. I expected an exotic take on lavender and got Fabuloso household cleaner instead. Horrid. Still on the hunt for a lovely lavender which apparently does not exist in perfumery.

Apologies to all the Vero lovers, but Kiki is not a favorite. On my skin she is simply Yardleys' English Lavender Soap with a dry down of Irish Spring and patchouli. I don't get any caramel and I'm happy for that. Kiki lasts for hours, smelling clean and fresh and a bit like the soap isle in the drugstore.

On me, it smells very much like old-school makeup: powdery, waxy iris, smoky vetiver, with a touch of civet. It has that vintage vibe that really doesn’t do it for me.

I can smell nothing more than talc and lavender ... reminds me Felce Azzurra Paglieri. I was expecting much better.