This is my granny’s cooking of fragrance. It is the most “comfort” fragrance that I own. It is warm, soothing, and just as cuddly as a my favorite soft cardigan. Bvlgari Omnia is a fragrance that I will always have around, just like my grandmother’s recipes. It isn’t my everyday fragrance just like honey cakes and mashed potatoes aren’t my everyday meals. I always will have this around. This is my soothing fragrance and I have been wearing it a year after its launch in 2003.
The thing that I have learned about the original Omnia is that you will love it or not. And you can “smell” it or not. Evidently on some people it fades very quickly or their sniffers are “immune” to it. Others can smell them hours later but they can’t smell themselves, so they don’t bother wearing it because perfume should make you happy first. I on the other hand, smell it. Currently, I have been wearing it for 3 hours and it smells just as strong as when I spritz it on. I also smell it on my cardigans, scarves, clothes after I wear it and when they have been sitting in the hamper for a few days. But, that being said. I know that it isn’t a “strong” fragrance to begin with. It wears pretty close in the beginning and it continues to wear closely. It is a cuddle fragrance, it’s intimate.
Omnia is simple, really. It is described as a “modern or*ental”, that it is. It is a warm blend with a slightly citrus top note. But what sticks with me is the masala tea. So imagine a sweet, slightly spicy blend of masala spices (think cardamom and saffron) with hints of milky sweetness like a condensed milk. It is more of a Kashmiri Chai seasoning (with notes of almond, cardamom, saffron, cinnamon, cloves) but instead of green tea, an Assam rich, black tea leaves. So in essence, it reminds me of a very Northwestern version of Chai, something that Tazo or Oregon Chai would do. Because it is Kashmiri with dark tea but sweet with a hint of white chocolate and vanilla flavored steamed milk. Now you can see why it is so comforting! It sounds very sweet and spicy, but is “sheer” and just slightly gourmand. It is more like smelling the steam from a hot cup of chai served from your favorite coffee house. (Less spicy, than those served at Indian and Pakistani restaurants).
I like the bottle, many people do not. It is plastic (cheap, I know) with warm tea colored plastic and chrome-ish accents. But, it does represent the infinity symbol and I like nerdy stuff like that. Even the name is soothing, it sounds relaxing/meditative and “omniah” is an Arabic word for “wish”.
The 1.33 ounce retails for $68 and the 2.2 ounce for $88. It is an ea de parfum and should last a long time. But, this is one that you should definitely try before forking over the dough. You may be one of the people that skin eats it. I recommend this one for those that don’t like floral fragrances, like light fragrances (Omnia is like a strange warm version of D & G Light Blue), fans of chai tea, like tea based scents and fans of comforting scents. It isn’t too foody or gourmand or sweet. It is one of my favorites. I wear it all year.
It can be found at discounters like Perfume.com.
One of my favorite mainstream perfumes!
It’s a mainstream gem 🙂
Great review Victoria! I agree that this one is a kind of love or hate fragrance. It was a flop here in Brazil, so the stores discontinued it. The good thing is that you can still find it at discounter stores and at internet it’s not expensive at all. I have the same impression of you, it’s a spicy scent, comfort, that starts with a good dose of saffron and then settles down to something milky, slightly creamy and sweet. And for me it can be worn in hot and winter days.
I just find this to be the ultimate easy-to-wear comfort scent. I like the creaminess with the spice. It’s like a cup of hot tea. I hate that it is wasn’t popular. Luckily we can still find it at discounters 🙂
I am so sad to be on my last bottle, and I can’t find it anywhere (except on Amazon for ridiculous amounts of money). Do you know of any similar fragrances that are available? Thank you!
I am so upset that this one was discontinued when they continue to launch other Omnias that aren’t as good. My advice to check discount sites like Fragrancenet, Perfume.com and FragranceX to see if a bottle is available (this reminds me that I should try to find a back up bottle too!). I’ve also heard that it can show up at discounters like TJ Maxx or Marshall’s. *Hopefully* you can find a bottle for a reasonable price this way.
Sadly, I haven’t found anything exactly like Omnia. It’s one of my favorite perfumes. I can think of a few that may be similar but they aren’t exactly like Omnia. Here’s what I’d suggest sampling:
Diptyque Eau Duelle – a soft vanilla fragrance with chai tea.
Jacomo Art Collection #08 – This may have been discontinued but I remember seeing it online for cheap within the past year. It smells like chai tea – tea, spices and milk.
Burberry The Beat EDP – Oddly something about this reminds me of Omnia (spices/tea) but it’s more floral and opens with more citrus. This may be a good “summer” scent.
Lolita Lempicka Si Lolita – Very peppery and spicy and then dries down to a sweet, creamy base.
Hopefully you’ll find Omnia or something else to enjoy! It really makes me sad that it is gone now. It’s so wonderful and one of my favorites to wear.