Have you missed me? I know it’s been a long time since I’ve posted (umm…months), but here I am. Long story short, everything is fine. I’ve just been so busy with my new career and in general, life. Something had to give and it was this blog. After taking a break for my own sanity, I’m ready to talk about perfume again. Here I am breaking my multi-month sabbatical to talk about a white floral by French niche brand Initio that has a ridiculous name, Addictive Vibration.

Addictive Vibration is a warm, heady floral. It opens with beeswax and orange blossom. It smells like the glow from golden hour sunshine mixed with nutmeg. This opening is dry, warm, heady with a hint of powder (that powdery “solar” amber like that in Mugler Alien). The spices mixed with musk bring to mind the cozy comfort that I get from things like Malle Musc Ravageur. In the heart, the orange blossom goes a little “grape jelly” like the orange blossoms in things like Serge Lutens Fleurs d’Oranger. Additionally, it has a cool breeze of tuberose. Addictive Vibration reminds me of other perfumes, but only in pieces. Together it’s its own distinct perfume. The dry-down goes into a direction that I was hoping something that opened like dusk and grape jelly would go into. It gets funkier, more animalic with amber-hued honey, tobacco-like vanilla bean pods and a lot of oak-scented bourbon. But, that’s not all! It’s the musk. The musk is everything that I loved about Malle Musc Ravageur (pumpkin pie spice, baby powder and cocoa butter on skin) but with more of a salty, mineral quality….it’s like the weirdness in Malle Dans tes Bras. That weirdness is like sweat and sweet, powdery mimosa blossoms.

In summary, this is a very Maurice Roucel-y composition. (He’s the nose behind Malle Musc Ravageur, Malle Dans tes Bras, Guerlain Insolence, Hermès 24 Faubourg, Le Labo Labdanum 18 and the list goes on…). For those unfamiliar with his work, he’s really great at creating compositions that have a velvet-y, dense feel. He’s also amazing with combining the raw sensuality of white florals and animalic musks until they almost come across as vulgar because they are just so carnal, flesh-y and literally smell like sex. Addictive Vibration is a sweet white floral with sweaty, musky skin and unwashed, rumpled sheets. It’s a post-coital orange blossom.

Notes listed include apple blossom, orange blossom, vanilla orchid, musk and honey. Launched in 2016. PERFUMERS – Maurice Roucel

Give Addictive Vibration a try if you like white florals or frankly any of Roucel’s perfumes. Or perfumes like Serge Lutens Fleurs d’Oranger, Mugler Alien, Moresque Regina, Jean Paul Gaultier Classique, Lancôme Poême and/or Malle Musc Ravageur. After wearing this some more, I realize it also makes me think of the now discontinued CdG Daphne – sweet, incense-y white floral.

Projection is average and longevity is above average.

The 3.4 oz retails for $305 at Osswald. Samples are also available for purchase.

Victoria’s Final EauPINION – Sweet, spicy orange blossom and musk. If an orange blossom could be a sex symbol, well, here ya go.Does a perfume get more Maurice Roucel than this? Is that even possible?

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*Sample obtained by me. Product pic from the brand. Mamie van Doren from fanpix.net.