Aside from make-up and skin care, I think one of the things that women are obsessed about are fragrances. Perfumes, body mists, colognes.. all the good-smelling stuff we ladies love!
When I was younger, I’m already satisfied with Lewis and Pearl colognes or that strawberry-scented Brat Splash from Bench. But as I grew older, I started to appreciate the finer things in life. Branded scents, that is.
Being the stingy person that I am, I still find ways to save haha! I only said branded scents, I never said having to buy the original versions all the time XDD But buying perfume “versions” doesn’t always mean saving money though. There’s a lot of them available everywhere, but only a few are really worth it. Most of the time, you end up wasting 350 pesos (because that’s their usual price lol) because all you get is 80% water, 15% alcohol and 5% fragrance oil. You’ll know it the moment you get the item itself, which, more often than not, smells different compared to the “testers”.
When you get lucky, you meet someone, a high level alchemist, who makes perfume versions that actually smells the same as the original ones.Luckily for me, I met one online, and her specialty are Jo Malone scents.
The first time I bought from her was last month. I bought Vanilla and Anise and Nectarine Blossom and Honey.
It only took me several days to order again. On my second time, I added English Pear and Freesia along with Blackberry and Bay for my friend.
Here’s what I have to say about the scents that I have used so far:
Vanilla and Anise – MY FAVORITE! You may not be able to read my IG post clearly, but I was telling how it smells a lot like Bvlgari Omnia Crystalline, but milder. Too much Crystalline can be painful to the nose, but you can never have too much of Vanilla and Anise. It smells so feminine and classy! It has powdery notes, and perfect for romantic dates and sexy times lol
Nectarine Blossom and Honey – I was expecting this to smell really sweet, but I was wrong. It smells sweet, yes. But the kind of sweetness that you’d wanna sniff over and over again. The best way for me to describe it is FRESH. It smells like spring, despite not experiencing spring yet lol. But you get the idea. It’s perfect for afternoon stroll with friends, or just the right scent to use when you go to school.
English Pear and Freesia – I guess my understanding of the pear scent is different from Jo Malone, like how I was wrong with my expectations on Vanilla and Anise. If you’re thinking about Victoria’s Secret Garden’s Pear Glace, it’s nothing like that. This one actually smells citrusy, because maybe pears in England smells like citrus lol. This smells like a unisex perfume, because it’s not too girly unlike the first 2.
These inspired scents come in different sizes; 10ml, 3oml, 50ml and 100ml. You can choose (for a fee) a glass bottle for the perfume if you want. As for me, I only chose the original packaging.
The seller is even kind enough to put washi tape around the cap to seal it and avoid the product from leaking.
As for the the lasting power, it lasts up to 12 hours! You read that right! Twelve hours! And I am not exaggerating!
Just a tip from the seller (and it really works) – you have to spray it on your skin, not on your clothes. The perfume is oil-based, and you could actually see the oil once you spray it. Don’t worry though! It won’t stain your clothes. But if you don’t like going out with your body skin looking oily, you have to spray it around 10 minutes before going outside.
I really love these Jo Malone versions and I’m so lucky to have met the alchemist online 🙂
A Red Rose in the Black Darkness 