I'm sooo excited! After several weeks of going on a "perfume fast"(which I was forced to do because I couldn't couldn't find a perfume I liked and I didn't want to buy another bottle of my D&G's The One), I finally got a new scent. I bought La Petite Robe Noire a few days ago after smelling it on a colleague. I loved the sweet softness I perceived on her and after confirming the name of the perfume, I proceeded to stalk it in stores and online. Unfortunately(or should I say fortunately), I couldn't get the EDP formulation at the perfume stores close to me, some didn't even have it in stock at all. I had to check online for the perfume which turned out to be cheaper online than in some stores.
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| Fresh out of packaging. |
What does it smell like?
On first sniff/application, It has a beautiful fruity sweet smell like Ribena and vanilla( that's what comes to mind! :-). I don't find the sweetness sickening which is a bit surprising because it contains Liquorice. I don't like Liquorice as a sweet, I find its sharp smell to be really irritating(It is about 50 times sweeter than sugar) so when I find out that a perfume contains liquorice, the chances of me buying a full bottle of the perfume are slim. However the sweetness of the liquorice was balanced by the fruitiness of the red berries and the bergamot which has a certain sourness. I think anyone who likes a fruit sweet smell (which includes most women I know) would be convinced to buy it on first sniff, its definitely pleasant enough.
Thirty minutes later, the initial fruitiness gives way to some herbal spiciness. I'm not sure whether its the tea or the rose in the middle notes but I like how the perfume gradually reveals itself and gives way to the spiciness of its heart. You don't sniff yourself thirty minutes later and experience a drastic shock.
A few hours into the day, it finally reveals that nuttiness I first got a whiff of on the pack. It is glorious and warm. I think half way through at the middle note, the initial warm effect one feels is slightly reduced by the spiciness but on dry down, Its back to its warmth. Or maybe after some hours, one becomes used to that level of warmth? Either way, its sufficiently balmy and sweet throughout. And make no mistake, this is a vanilla fragrance. You will smell the vanilla from the first sniff to the dry down several hours later however I don't think its that annoying generic vanilla scent in most perfumes rather its a complex vanilla, a vanilla with a story to tell.
In terms of longevity, La Petite Robe Noire is good enough and lasts most of the entire day. For the sillage however, I don't think it has a strong sillage; I mean, no one has asked about or really noticed the fragrance on me. I did smell it on my colleague though so it probably reacts differently on my skin(not that I mind anyway). Would I wear it every day? Definitely! Then again, it depends on your fragrance personality. While some people might find it a bit too chic for day wear, some(like me) would like to be more glamorous with their day scents than their day clothes. I like La Petite Robe noire, its a pleasant fruity floral; a modern offering by a historic perfume house. I won't call it girly, rather I would say its youthful and fresh. Like Guillaume Henry (Former Carven designer) once said, "[Freshness] is not question of age, its a question of identity" and I think this is a fragrance that a lot of women would identify with.
