We all have a genre of perfumes that we struggle with. That may be an understatement because I think most of us have GENRES that are difficult for us to wear. The reasons can be as simple as we simply don’t like them because they remind us of a time in our lives or a person that we’d rather forget. Sometimes perfumes feel like wearing shoes a half size too small. They only work for short periods of time but they make us feel uncomfortable. Other times, it can be more complex. Some things do not work on our skin for a variety of reasons. Sometimes, it’s us or our “skin chemistry”¹.
For me, one of my “Struggle Genres” is that of that of the unofficial fragrance the type, the “dewy floral”. These are the sort of perfumes that smell damp while also being a sharp floral. I can wear cool florals or crisp, green florals, but these “dew drop florals”, no. These tend to go very “shrill” on my skin. It’s hard for me to explain but on my skin, these have a piercing quality with an unpleasant sourness. I realize, that like many lip colors that I pretend work for me, that maybe this genre is not for me.
NEST Dahlia & Vines is a difficult one for me because it checks all the boxes of a “dewy floral”. But, there’s a lot of rose in it and I love roses. It’s one of those perfumes that gives me mixed feelings.
Dahlia & Vines is a dewy floral that opens with a damp peony and a sharp, citrus-y rose. As I suspected, it goes sour on me but not like that of a freshly squeezed grapefruit. It’s “off”, like a fruit that’s too ripe. As the dew drops evaporate, I’m left with this proper tea rose and tart raspberry (that lies somewhere between violet leaf and a Jolly Rancher hard candy). Most of the wear of Dahlia & Vines is an abstract fruity-floral. It’s more like walking through a conservatory garden because all of the flowers and blossoms and fruits are mixing into one large aura of floral-ness. But, it doesn’t exactly smell “realistic” because there’s an abundance of white musk. The dry-down is like a peony and squeaky clean white musk. This fragrance never went down a path of vanilla or amber. It chose a theme from the beginning and it stuck with it. This perfume is all about FLORALS.
After wearing it a few more times, I realize that the peony is the most prominent on me, not the rose. Peony has never been an easy note for me either. Overall, it does smell like a dewy garden of pink flowers. Even though I love rose perfumes, I don’t really gravitate towards the “cute, flirty” varieties. (The “cutest” rose I like is Serge Lutens La Fille de Berlin and is that even cute?). Another thought, this must remind me of some perfume or body spray that was popular when I was in junior high which is very possible with notes like peony, raspberry and musk. I can’t recall or even say that it does remind me of something from my youth. But, it seems youthful to me even though nothing about its marketing or anything else should give me this impression. It’s a pink fruity-floral in a beautiful bottle. I can’t say it’s noteworthy but I can say that it wasn’t a total mess on my skin!
Notes listed include peony, dahlia, narcissus, rose, garden vines, pink pepper, lychee, raspberry, white musk, vanilla and grapes. Launched in 2013. PERFUMER – Jerome Epinette
Give Dahlia & Vines a try if you like dewy florals or fruity roses. Or if you like perfumes like Elizabeth & James Nirvana White, Estee Lauder Pleasures, Stella McCartney Stella Nude, Lucy B Royal Peony Rose & Mandarin Musk and/or Gucci Envy Me.
Projection and longevity are average.
The 1.7 oz bottle retails for $68. A travel size is available for $25². Both are available at Sephora.
Victoria’s Final EauPINION – Dewy, pink fruity-floral. After experiencing this opening, I expected for this one to be awful on me but it wasn’t. Will I run out and buy a bottle? No. It’s still not a “me” fragrance but I wasn’t expecting for it to be.
¹For more on this topic, please read this post on Colognoisseur.
²There’s also body creams in this line. These body creams are extremely fragrant from my experience. I think the body creams are stronger and longer lasting than the EDPs!
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I am most definitely in the same camp with you as far dewy florals are concerned. So sharp and unmerciful on me, they usually morph into something akin to a never ending sharp metallic floral musk on me, the worst being Beyond Paradise by Estee Lauder and J’adore by Dior.
You perfectly described what dewy florals are on me – sharp metallic floral musk. Many leave me with a headache and the ones that don’t, smell so “off” on me. They are not fragrances for me.
I’ve only tried Beyond Paradise in store and on paper. My husband wears the men’s version which is like cucumber musk (and now discontinued). I don’t wear J’Adore because my mom does 🙂 So, I’m not missing out. Clinique Happy is the WORST on my skin. It’s that metallic, sharp thing with an addition of sour skin. My skin destroys Happy.
I think I tried Clinique Happy once and NEVER again, I got rancid citrus musk. So very very wrong. The worst part is I know this can work on other people, but not me. Florals have always been a hard one for me and dewy florals a dirge of bad.
Smelling it on other people is when I realized it was a ME issue and not the perfume! It’s truly vile on my skin.
I can do florals. I love roses and green florals. I have a handful of white florals that work for me. But, any “dewy” or perhaps “fresh”, I have to be prepared to scrub if I must when I sample those.
Had the same dilemma with hard to wear fragrances with the latest Amouage Myths for women. Great work but really to be reserved to be smelt at the museum.
I still need to try the new Myths! I’ve heard they are the most interesting that the brand as launched in years.