Black Opium

Dark Crystalline Blend, but the Almond-Vanilla Drydown...ahhhh! This scent has remained popular for over 10 years for a reason. Opens with a dark crystalline blend of Moroccan orange-blossom, pear, pink-pepper & coffee but already the almond-vanilla in the base is swelling through. I like the opening of this, but the drydown is where it's at, imho. I love the woody-almond-vanilla in the base, that makes it stand out from other scents that might seem similar initially. It's great on its own, or layered with dupes, or other almond scents. I've posted some layering combos for this in the layering threads. Overall: Gourmand-ish dark crystalline coffee-jasmine scent with almond-vanilla drydown and excellent performance for year-round wear. It's a love for me. Enjoy! Contrast to To Be Born to Shine by Pollice: Inspired by Black Opium Yves Saint Laurent, this isn't meant to be a clone but more of an approximation with a twist: sweet coffee with jasmine, apple-blossom & cinnamon. Both are sweet coffee-jasmine scents, with Black Opium has added almond and Born to Shine having added apple-cinnamon. I don't get the woody-almond notes in Born to Shine that I get in the drydown of Black Opium. Born to Shine has a more vanillic rather than woody-almond drydown. Both have the dark crystalline texture and excellent performance although Black Opium slightly outperforms. Contrast to Midnight Addiction Bath & Body Works: This is a dupe of Black Opium with good approximation, and it does highlight the almond which I love. However, the performance is not as strong as Black Opium, and more what you would expect of a perfume mist (although well above average for a mist). Love them both for different reasons, and they layer well together.

listen. listen. i do not care. this is *THE* IT GIRL scent to me. maybe thats because this was one of the first designer fragrances i really fell in love with, but if nobody got me, i know YSL black opium got me. i don't remember who left this comment, but someone described this fragrance as being a "young teen's idea of what a mature woman would smell like." i'm not going to lie, they were completely right. BUT its a really good fragrance. it serves. CUNT! and maybe it is nostalgia clouding my lens a little bit here, but the syrupy coffee notes and jasmine HIT SO GOOD!!!! if this fragrance was a person, she would either be the nicest sorority girl you've ever met who always rocks pleaser black heels (girl dont do it... youre gonna get varicose veins), or the mean girl in highschool who grows up to be a charge nurse. NO inbetween. i'm going to be real here, things get popular and become "basic" for a reason... black opium is one of those things. it's fine if people don't like the fragrance, but hating the fragrance based on the sole reason of it being popular seems shallow, and contrarian just for the sake of being contrarian. if youre gonna be a hater, BE A HATER FOR REALLLLL 💯💯💯 anyways. i got distracted. this is a nice fragrance! it's cute! if you want to wear it, wear it! literally who gaf ! overall rating: 8/10 — she'll always have a special place in my heart 🐦❤️❤️

Certainly! Black Opium by Yves Saint Laurent is not just a perfume, it has become a true pillar of modern perfumery since its debut in 2014. It is the fragrance that cleared the concept of "floral coffee" on a large scale. The soul of the fragrance: Rock & Glamour. Black Opium is built on a vibrant contrast between the darkness of the coffee and the brightness of the white flowers. It is a fragrance designed for the night, for those who love to be noticed without giving up an enveloping sweetness. The first spray is fizzy. Pink pepper and pear offer a juicy freshness that prevents the fragrance from immediately feeling too heavy. In the heart, the protagonist emerges, coffee, mixed with the creaminess of bitter almond and the femininity of jasmine. It is an almost gourmand mix made sophisticated by the bitter note of liquorice. The finish is warm and velvety. Vanilla dominates, supported by patchouli and woods, which give a sensual trail and an almost "dark" depth. Bold, magnetic, nocturnal and deeply sweet mood. Despite its 10 year history, Black Opium remains a contemporary classic. It is the ideal choice if you are looking for a gourmand but not childish perfume, capable of balancing the sugary sweetness with a more "dirty" and mature touch given by coffee and patchouli.

This is one of my signatures for fall and winter and always will be. I am obsessed with it. I feel like if I had to choose just one fragrance for winter this would be it because it is very satisfyingly to me. I love the coffee vanilla and orange blossom combo. It’s very sweet, sexy, mysterious and feminine and the scent makes me feel very happy, I think due to the orange blossom note and there is something about this fragrance that is so calming to me. Orange blossom in here is definitely the star of the show for me, I get coffee and orange blossom the most. Orange blossom is my favourite note in perfumery. It is such a magical flower that makes you feel you are standing in a beautiful sunny spring garden, orange blossom is a very sweet, solar and honeyed scent. I love the use of orange blossom in here as it blends with the coffee and vanilla so well and gives a little spring joy on a cold winters day. I also get a little spiciness in here which is very sexy. Even though it’s very mainstream and overused I still find it a very interesting scent. You can also wear it in spring I just would not wear it on a hot day because I find it shines the most in cooler weather because of the coffee and how deep it is but it’s nice in spring because of the orange blossom and jasmine to.

This was the first perfume I ever received as a gift when I was a university student. The bottle has followed me through nearly a decade of life including late nights, different friends, and a relationship that has long since ended. Only recently have the last drops begun to disappear...I had to order another bottle. I remember exactly why I chose it back then. My boyfriend at the time leaned in, smelled it on my wrist, and told me it smelled erotic. At twenty-something years old, that was more than enough justification. Even years later, I still receive compliments whenever I wear it. This is a sweet coffee-vanilla fragrance that has an atmospheric touch. It smells like the air of a fun night out. It reminds me of an espresso martini, neon lights, and pounding music. It is a basic bitch Starbucks frappuccino threaded through the spicy warmth of clove cigarettes. Some people dismiss it as an outdated millennial perfume. But this should not be considered evidence of mediocrity. Just because it is no longer trendy doesn’t mean that it doesn’t stand the test of time. It is designed to smell good, not different. The fact that so many people still love it is a testament to how effortlessly it works.