Tinaciouslee

*this was written so long ago, I’m just publishing it now. I will post a couple more fragrance-related content and then I’ll be circling back to beauty product finds and bags real soon!

Surprise – I’m not done building my perfume collection. I have, in fact, added quite a few bottles so far and have plans to add more in the coming months to, hopefully, complete my daily rotation.

So, I was at the mall the other day and learned about Zara perfumes. I’m no expert on fragrances, I do not shop at Zara and knew even less about their cheap and chic fragrances so I literally had to do a lot of sniff tests while I was there and googled things to find the notes.

It appears that the brand is pretty well-known for their fragrances because there was a small crowd at the perfumes section. They also ran out of paper strips so I had to spray some of the scents on my arms and clothes, which was a total invitation for a migraine.

I picked up two fragrances that stood out for me that day then went back the next day for the third. I’m bad at describing perfumes but I will try by best.

Waterlily Tea Dress

Of all the perfumes I’ve sampled during the first one-hour sniff sesh I had at Zara, this was the one that stood out for me.

The good and the bad: It smells lovely and it’s surprisingly complex considering it’s a cheapie. But I will level with you, this was fucking screechy. Also, it has a jasmine note, which guarantees instant headache for me.

I did check the notes but when I was testing, I was not detecting the jasmine so I thought it’s just one of those background notes that you can hardly tell or dissipates once the scent dries down. I gave it a chance because it was the best one I’ve tried and I loved the dry down, it’s just fabulous.

When I got home and gave myself a spritz on the chest, I knew instantly what’s gonna happen lol. But, all’s not lost, I do have a trick to make some fragrances more bearable for me – spritz on the belly, and the back instead of the chest, neck and on pulse points. I did that and it was all good.

Performance: When I wore this the first time, that’s when I noticed the screechiness, which lasts a good 1.30 to 2 hours. You don’t notice this at first spray. But it tends to come on too strong and hang around if you over-spray. Once it dries down, it gives a delicate, soft, lovely fragrance.

You’d think a cheap perfume would last only 30 mins max but this one, I can still smell it the next day after a shower. The staying power is impressive. I would wear this on cooler days because this can get hella cloying in the summer.

Bottle: I’m not too crazy over the bottle design, the cap looks like a top hat. But it’s magnetic so that was cool.

Nude Bouquet

When I think about girly, pretty, feminine perfumes, this is the exact scent I have in mind.

The good and the bad: It smells elegant and does not trigger a headache. This is probably one of the perfumes I’d wear for meetings because it makes me feel like I got my shit together. It smells like a rich tita. This will be an easy reach for everyday!

It has a cherry note, which to me, does not come through at all. A pity because I’ve always been intrigued by cherry notes. The floral scent is very soft, feminine, discreet.

Performance: The performance is a solid 3-4 hours, which is pretty good for a cheapie. For the price and quality, I don’t mind reapplying and buying a smaller bottle to stash in my purse. This is best worn in the spring or summer – it’s fresh, delicate, not cloying at all. I would also recommend this for layering to extend its performance and add more depth to the fragrance.

Bottle: The bottle design is elegant, albeit plain. It reminded of Elie Saab’s Le Parfum bottle design.

Elegantly Tokyo

I went back to Zara the next day specifically for this gem. I tested this out the first day and wanted to get it outright but got Nude Bouquet instead because I read it’s their bestseller.

I regretted it even more when I found out this was part of a collection made in collaboration with Jo Malone. So the next day, I just had to come back for a bottle.

The good and the bad: The scent is very similar to Waterlily Tea Dress, which, incidentally, is also part of another collection by Jo Malone so you can imagine my surprise!

They had the same bottle design so I thought they were from the same collection but apparently, one was from the Emotions collection and the this one is from the Vibrant City collection – different collection, same nose. Amazing!

Right off the bat, I liked this better than Waterlily Tea Dress. The jasmine note is still there, unfortunately, but it was more subdued. If you are sensitive to jasmine, or white florals in general, I would not recommend this one. It remains, a jasmine-based perfume.

I noticed I don’t do well with white floral notes. If it’s a cheapie, it’s fine but for designer perfumes, I will stay away from this kind of note.

On first spritz, the jasmine comes through strong, almost sickly sweet but then it backs up, mellows down, and you get this gorgeous dry down that’s warm, woody, slightly sweet and fresh. It’s described as an oriental fragrance but I don’t get that at all. I think it will need more spice to be in that category but that’s just me.

You know what’s weird? I detected a bamboo note on this one but I read it only had three notes or something. I was so positive I was smelling bamboo but told myself eh, then read this piece and indeed, it has a bamboo note! Very cool.

Performance: It’s quite the performer, goes on strong for a good 3 to 4 hours before lingering into a skin scent for the rest of the day. I can still smell this on my clothes the next day.

Bottle: Same bottle as the Waterlily Tea Dress. I don’t care for it, honestly. I prefer the old design.

Overall, I am truly impressed by the quality of these perfumes guysth! I plan to get more at some point.

I do plan to pick up a couple more to add to my cheapie collection – maybe I’ll get Gardenia, Hibiscus, Nobody Knows,