April Violets Contemporary Edition

Imagine waking up on a sunny Sunday morning, yawning sleepily, walking into the garden with a cup of tea in hand to view a chorus of Violets, dew still on their faces turned to greet the Sun. I have always loved the Original version but I must admit I do love AV 2015 update. AV 2015 is definitely more modern, lighter and instead of being centre stage it is more a garden bed full of Violets framed by an English garden full of all your favourites. Roses, Sweet Pea, Lily of the valley, Heliotrope... Definitely a more realistic scent made with 95% natural ingredients makes this less cloying and powdery than the original. It does wear closer to the skin and you do have to spritz more often than the original but I don't mind because I just love that opening Verse... "All things Bright and Beautiful" By the way this is lovely layered over the original April Violets if you want to give those shy Violets a push to the front of the stage.

I’m one of the few who actually prefer this new version to the older one. Having owned both, I can say that each version offers a different portrait of violets. The original had a sweetness and a bizarre (unlisted) melon/carpet shampoo funk note that I didn’t personally feel too crazy about, though the overall fragrance wasn’t bad. This new version smells fresher, less sweet and much more powdery in a cosmetic powder kind of way. As someone who loves powdery scents, this is perfect for me, but if you like your violet deeper purple and more syrupy/candied/vibrant, I can see how this would be disappointing. The new One smells like expensive violet talc to me with subtle mixed florals and green notes in the background and I don’t get any fruits or major sweetness. Between the two, I prefer the new. I get good staying power. It provides a very soothing and calming sensation. The ingredients are supposedly more natural too.

@raw umber I Am with you) I definitely prefer this version to the old one and among current series of Yardley that I have tested (literally all of them) April Violets is the only one that deserves kind words. It is fresh and velvety, definitely April-spring-alike purple gentle flowers, full of water from running streams in the forest, smell of ozon and have this cute powder at the end, very young non-sweet type of powder by the way. By the refreshing crispy mood it reminds me of Prada's Infusion d'Iris L'Eau d'Iris, which is also crystal-clean, but very refreshing fragrance. I Am able to smell this fragrance on me for a very long time, so it might be question of personal perception of the notes, as some ppl complain on longevity.

I’m really sorry to anyone who had and loved the original April Violets and is upset with the new version. I’ve never smelled the original, but I get the frustration of losing a beloved fragrance. I would love to get my hands on the original so I can compare the two. I actually love this. It opens green—a GOOD green, like fresh cut flowers, not a bag of grass clippings. It is powdery in the dry down, but is still a really fresh, floral fragrance. While the actual violet flower is not a note in this, it still has the “essence” of violets to my nose. I have the hand cream and powder as well, and layer them after showering for better performance.

I love this. April Violets and Anna Sui are the two fragrances I wear when I want to smell like beautiful baby powder. Whereas Anna gives a more classic warm baby powder vibe with the rose, there's something green in April Violets thay gives it a cooling and oldey-other-worldy twist. Its not the smell of rain drenched violet leaves and earth so much as the memory of the smell, recalled when you open a diary and a forgotten pressed violet - long dried - slips from between scented pages. Theres something so nostalgic and dreamy about this fragrance. Its LOVELY and perfect for bedtimes.

I haven't tried the older version of this scent. So all I can say is that I like this current Yardley's April Violets very much. It's soft and very feminin. It smells like violets on a spring day; exactly what I wanted when I bought it. It's powdery when settled, which is nice if you like that kind of scent. I do. To me this fragrance is more sweet than fresh:much more white peach than citrus together with the flowers. My favourite of the current Yardley's flower scents.

This is a lovely soft scent, barely there so I understand all the comments on not smelling a thing. I wore the hand cream on a very hot day, wow, there is your scent. Hand cream is way more powerful than the spray scent. So if you like this buy the body care cos at this price it is worth it. Everyone I came into contact with asked what I was wearing as they loved it. It smells expensive. The only Yardley I like.

Sweet -but not candy like- frag reminding early spring violets. I have its deo spray and has no staying power but the feeling after spritz is reviving...

A nice scent, but longevity is terrible, so much so that I use it just as a body spray.

First of all, this perfume isn’t a floral scent. If you’re looking for parma violets, this won’t work for you. There is something green (violet leaf), but the scent is dominated by powder and some sort of wood (doesn’t smell like sandalwood to me), giving a very dry impression. It’s well blended to the point the notes feel compressed together into an impenetrable block, there’s no airiness or room for any one note to be easily defined or picked out, which also makes it feel dark, like a forest floor that has recently dried out after a rainstorm. It’s pleasant enough and feels calming (i do enjoy hiking in forests), but I can’t help but feel it’s half a perfume where the top and middle notes are missing. I think it may be better suited for layering with a wet forest type of scent, or perhaps something with violet flowers. Low to moderate sillage and longevity.

I'm really curious what the original smells like because I love violet perfumes. I do enjoy the contemporary edition but it is definitely not a crowd pleaser. The opening spray is earthy that literally smells like dirt. This is the complete opposite of a clean fragrance. Then the violet shows up with a green element and what I would describe as a softer green not a sharp screechy green. When I spray this I envision a lush garden full of purple flowers and moonlight. I wouldn't recommend a blind buy but I purchased a full bottle for next to nothing.

I agree with Pilikins, this is actually really nice. Very similar to Balenciaga L'essence, although not quite as amazing. But for the price this would make a good substitute, especially as L'essence is discontinued and very hard to find. This version is quite different from the original in that this isn't sweet parma violets, but more woody and green, but that doesn't make it bad.

I never tried the non-contemporary version, so I cant compare. But I like this one. Recently, I really am enjoying the calming effect of powdery scents. They dont scream for attention, but are quietly there. This one is very powdery, a bit sweet, a bit green with a hint of flowers. On my skin the scent leans to being soapy. The overall impression is soft, romantic.

Granted, I'm not familiar with the original, but I don't get the hate. This is a pleasant aquatic violet that grows more powdery in the dry down. Siliage and longevity are more like a body mist, but it's cheap enough to spray like a body mist. It also blends really well. I love violets and while this isn't my ideal one, it's versatile and extremely affordable.

Nice perfume, but so sad that it doesn't smell anything like april violets anymore, wish they didn't discontinue the old version wich actually smelled like the flower! Oh well other than that i like this perfume too, its soft and sensual with fruity undertones so will rebuy, have gucci violet for when i want to smell like violets

I don't know the old scent, and it certainly has violets. "April flower scent including violets". It's not just an "overwhelming violet scent". Beautiful and pretty. Light and easy to wear.

Love the original version so i really want to try this too! Unfortunally it's only available in the UK at the moment so unless i go there i won't get my hands on it :(

Lovely perfume if you are into powdery violet. Great for layering as a base if violets are your favorite flower scent and wont that added Spring note

This smells just like the old face powder from years ago. The bottom of an old make-up bag.I like this fragrance, very powdery and sharp.Rating 7/10.

Cool and crisp, yet smooth. Purple violets on a chilly forest morning.