Oscar de la Renta - Live in Love

Picture:Flower of Nelumbo nucifera, bean of India
Photo by T Voelker, (CC) some rights reserved, Wikimedia commons

Live in Love is an elegant, easy to wear, daytime green floral created for Oscar de la Renta by three perfumers in colaboration: Jean-Marc Chaillan, Carlos Benaim and Ann Gottlieb.

Live in love, despite its notes of classic though green notes as bergamott, hyacinth and galbanum, starts as a modern, fresh, clean green floral but without either the detergent note or the "just climbing out from the shower"freshness. The flowers are bright but not weak in appearence and there is also a complementing, subdued fruitiness present. All together this creates a watery impression, as of waterflowers in a pond. There is similarities with ByKilian Water Calligraphy and with the overall impression of Bulgari Omina Coral even if that one is much more fruity and sharp compared to the better balanced Live in Love.

After a while a shining almost incenselike note appears and starts to interact with the wet florals and their supprting slight fruity notes. This incensenote create an interesting contrast to the fruity notes and helps to put them forward. The incense like note I think is a subdued ginger and maybe traces of soft cedarwood (if looking at the notelist anyway).A very successful ginger interpretation as ginger often is too screamy, bubbeling andspritzy, almost as an overdose of  freshly minced white pepper.This interesting and appealing interaction between the "incense" and the fruity-floral notes goes on duirng the middlenotes and as the ginger tunes down the flowery/fruity notes lands in a pleasant woody, musky base.

Live in Love with it's sort of unsweet elegant slight fruity,wet floral, green notes and the classical ingredients (galbanum, hyacinth, bergamot) interpreted in a modern way is the perfect officescent suitable year around but especially for spring, summer and the early autumn. It's present but quite close to the wearer and can't offend (almost) anyone. The longevity is great,it lasts for 24h.

Live in Love is an evidence that good "mainstream"/designerfragrances could be created today also. It's seems that Oscar de la Renta has revived some of it's former glory in perfume especially with the launch of the beautiful aldehydic composition Esprit d'Oscar but also Live in Love is a good example of what could be created if the intention is there. The coming Essential Luxuries seems also very interesting and I hope I get the opportunity to smell them later on.

Live in Love could be appreciated for the fans of the fragrances mentioned above but also for those who like Dior Escale à Pondichery, Gala de Dia (review in swedish) by Loewe and By Kilian Bamboo Harmony.

Rating: 4

Notes: Hyacinth, galbanum, bergamot, lily-of-the-valley, orchid, jasmine, orange flower, rose sandalwood, cedar, woodsy notes, amber, musk

By Kilian - Water Calligraphy

Picture: Bridge Over a Pond of Water Lilies, 1899,

Oil on Canvas by Claude Monet (1840-1926), Wikimedia Commons

Taking a break in my spring-violet serie, reviewing the new ByKilians:

Sorry Kilian! Despite the creation Water Calligraphy by Calice Becker for ByKilian is a very nice, well executed water lily - lotus flower dominated fragrance it is a disappointment to med. This because WC :-) smells just like old (1996) Gala de Dia by Loewe rebottled.

Starts slight fruity, followed by white watery flowers which  conveys a natural, non-chemical, watery impression. It's like sitting in the shadow during a hot summerday at a small pond with water lilies and greenerys. WC is liniar in it's structure, well blended and with a great longevity and this fragarance willl cope with the hottest days during the summer. Wearable both for casual and to work. WC has similarities in style with Bulgaris watery, fruity, flowery Omnia Coral but the latter is sharper and headier than the sleeker WC.

To summon up: A nice, well blended, refreshing frag that I really like but it lacks the originality and non-copied style that I expect from a house in ByKilians pricerange.

Update April 2014: Water Calligraphy has grown to be a favorite watery, flower to me. I find it minimalistic and beautiful, it is calming and relaxing. It was in the end of last summer when Water Calligraphy suddenly "klicked" for me. I think that the minimalistic approach makes it easy to dismiss some of the Kilan fragrances at first. But the Kilian fragrances are not simple at all, on the contrary, they seems to have hidden layers that ensures the wearer will not loose interest over time. They are of god quality and easy to wear, sort of fragrance wardrobe staples. 

Rating: 5 (April 2014)
Rating: 3+ (April 2012)

Notes: Water lily, grapefruit, jasmine, magnolia, vetiver, cardamom

Loewe - Gala de Dia

Bild: Bamboo trees in Kyoto, Japan

Foto: Paul Vlaar, some rights reserved (cc) Wikimedia Commons

Ursprungligen publicerat på min tidigare blogg "Parfumistans blogg" på Damerns Världs hemsida i mars 2009.

Gala de Dia är en fruktig, vattnig floral komposition från det ärorika spanska läderhuset Loewe. GdD kom ut 1996, mitt under den aquatiska eran. Fruktigt, aquatiskt och floralt kan låta som rena skräckblandningen men faktum är att GdD ändå är riktigt bra. Visserligen typisk mainstream men den känns på något sätt inte lika kemisk som många andra i kategorin.

GdD inleds med persika och andra lite vattniga frukter, tack och lov inte melon. I mellanregistret finns mimosa, vattenjasmin, lilja och ros. I basen bambu, ambra, sandel- och cederträ.

GdD är egentligen den perfekta sommardoften men den går att använda året om dagtid. Fräsch och okomplicerad som inte kan störa någon. Med andra ord helt ofarlig, förutsägbar, linjär och på så sätt egentligen lite tråkig. Hållbarheten under dagen är bra. Men eftersom den passar så bra på mig blir det ändå ett bra betyg.

Betyg 4

Kommentar: Gala de Dia ligger nästan kvar på betygsskalan. Den är en bra doft i segmentet floral-aquatisk. Den är rund och blommig, inte så där kemiskt stickig som en del i gruppen lätt verkar bli. Betyg 2011: 3+.