Darling Nikki

The folks at Vilhelm Perfumerie are wizards in branding fragrances with out-of-the-box pop culture imagery. It's anyone's guess what the blueberry notes in Poets of Berlin have to do with David Bowie or the basil in Basilico & Fellini with the Italian auteur, but you can't say the marketing is not innovative. Darling Nikki is, of course, a playful homage to the controversial peak-era Prince song and its title character, a sex fiend who pleasures herself with a magazine in a hotel lobby. What would Nikki have smelled like? According to Vilhelm Perfumerie, squeaky clean. The song may have a bit of a dirty vibe but if this fragrance is to be taken on face value, Nikki was a relentless bather. Forget leather and wood - they may linger in the background but before you spray, know that you'll be basking in soap for the whole day. It's a fleshy, nuanced, crisply peppery soap with the slight smoky edge characteristic to the Vilhelm brand, and it keeps you interested for the very long duration of its stay. It lasts the whole day on my skin and projects like a beast. But if smelling like you're fresh off a long bath from morning to night isn't your thing, you might not like Darling Nikki. You might even hate it. Bottom line: don't blind-buy this because the listed notes and the Prince connection are pretty misleading - I can't imagine Prince himself wearing a fragrance this soapy, that's for sure. It's daring and super niche and I’ve learned to love it, but it's definitely not a basic-bitch crowdpleaser. But nor was Prince, or Nikki of his song for that matter, so maybe that's the whole point.

The opening is almost nauseatingly plasticky, and I cannot get enough! Lipstick? On my fading leather smoke-infused handbag? It's more likely than you think... makeup and crumpled-up love notes along with bitter orange peels that have been forgotten. Overspraying this would be an act of clear aggression against the public, yet I want to drown in it. Wearing it makes me feel hot in an off-putting way. If it occasionally gives me a headache, it's 100% worth it. And the drydown... gorgeous. Gently sweet smoke and nostalgia for a place I've never been.

I chose this perfume for fall and winter season and ordered it ultimately by description. Absolutely no regrets as it perfectly matches cold weather, cozy sweaters and expensive restaurants. I love the heavy luxurious vibe it is giving, like a fur or a woolen winter coat. My husband smells incense, his younger brother smells saffron and the main accords for me are probably pepper and smoke. Can't smell mandarin or cassis at all(

Ok, so I love love love this! It’s in my top five for a reason it is like sex in a bottle. Like an ‘80’s era strip club-a classy one though. And it’s discontinued-how unfortunate for me. So if anyone knows of a dupe or hates it yet has a bottle gladly trade or purchase whatever just need in my collection forever and mine broke in a move. Teardrops and that is all!

Darling Nikki smells like my grandma's fur coat: a mixture of cigarette smoke, hard fruity candy and strong perfume that you happen to smell on that coat. Something about this combination made me so nostalgic and took my nose down a memory lane. Vintage-feel scent that is unlike any fragrance I've smelled before - strong, playful and powerful.