What Larks! - Arcana Soap

Details:
What Larks! 
Great Expectations
Arcana Soaps (bought from The Rhinestone Housewife)

Notes: 
A happy blend of English strawberries and salted milk caramels strewn across polished wood. 

Hmmm. The thing about caramel with me is that it often treads dangerously close to vomit. This perfume really teeters on the edge of that for quite some time. And maybe that's just me, because I know a lot of people love caramel scents and they are really popular in things like candles. The beginning is super sweet caramel and I never really did get a distinct note of either strawberries or wood.

It did mellow after a while, but never really changed all that much - the dry down was more of a sticky date pudding kind of caramel than the lolly kind. Perhaps that was the wood after all, warming it a little. The sillage is quite high, and I was pretty careful about only applying a smidge because it smelled so strong in the bottle. It lasts a really long time - it was still quite strong on me at the end of the day, and I could smell traces of it the following morning before I had a shower. I think I'm going to put this one away for a while and see if the sweetness mellows out a bit.

Rating: 
3/5 

Day 223!

Estella - Arcana Soaps

Details: 
Estella 
Great Expectations
Arcana Soaps (bought from The Rhinestone Housewife)

Notes: 
Quietly stunning ambre blanc and vanilla bean with a kiss of cognac.

I bought this unsniffed after reading rave reviews about it. I bought several other bottles at the same time, two of which were also perfumes I'd not tried before, and since I received the order I have not given those other two more than a cursory sniff, because I am obsessed with this. I've been wearing it most days at some point, even if at night just as an excuse to sniff it. It is so beautiful - I thought at first that it was a lot like BPAL's The Shadowy and the Sublime, but I dug that out to compare and it's not really that similar. There are elements that make each remind me of the other, but Estella is in a world of its own.

I was a little concerned that the amber would be overpowering but it's not at all - it's smooth and mellow and blends gorgeously with the vanilla. This is a very warm, comforting, girly perfume. A snuggle scent, if you like. The cognac is detectable, but it's not a boozy smelling perfume - that note just adds a grown up element to it.

Lasting power is fantastic - I've put this on first thing in the morning and I can still smell it after dinner. Sillage is medium - if you splash it on you'll probably be announcing yourself for an hour or two, but if you apply subtly it's just enough to let people know you're there without screaming it in their face. I freaking love this perfume - I am definitely getting another bottle before it disappears. Possibly even two.

Rating: 
5/5

Day 215!