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Sunday, April 29, 2012

Amouage Gold pour Femme


One of the best aspects, if not THE best aspect, of having perfumes as a hobby is that you get to meet so many wonderful persons. I'm not the first blogger to point this out, but perfumistas are the friendliest and most generous people around and one of the most adorable ones is Suzanne of Suzannes Perfume Journal. In my opinion, her perfume reviews are some of  the best out there, full of cultural references to books, movies and music as well as references to Suzannes own life. Always written with great humour and spirit, draws me in and while I may understand that I might not like a perfume she writes about, according to the notes present, every time I still love to share her olfactory experience through thoughts and words in the blog.

A while ago, me and Suzanne did a little swap and through that swap I got my first real glimpse of the legendary Omani perfume house Amouage (that I thought was named Amourage until a week ago, well yes, I'm a natural blonde...). There were several samples in that package but the one I'm going to write about today is Amouage Gold pour Femme. It was the first Amouage creation, from 1983, and a BIG scent, intended for evening wear.

Gold starts out with a burst of aldehyde and lilies of the valley. As the soapy aldehydes fade the scent slowly opens up and softens. I do get rose and apricots in the heart and in the drydown, some 24 hours later, the flowers have morphed into the most beatiful, myrrh-like peach. Soft and sexy and utterly feminine. Now, just because I can't name that many notes does not mean that there aren't many notes, there are! According to surrendertochance, Gold is made from 120 ingredients. But they are well blended and balanced and fit together like a perfectly tailored dress. Or maybe not a dress, the feeling I get from Gold is more like a wall. A big massive brick wall built entirely out of the essence of femininity.

Sometimes in perfume reviews you see writings like "It didn't feel like I was wearing the perfume, it felt like the perfume was wearing me". Usually this denotes a negative experience. I'm experiencing exactely this with Gold, but in a very positive way. It's like it's connecting me with some feminine aspect of myself that I wasn't previously aware of. Wearing Gold makes me reach for my most elegant skirts and dresses instead of jeans. It makes me take my time putting on make-up in the mornings, going for a full skin routine and red lips instead of the usual transparent gloss. It even affects the way I paint my toe nails. Normally I go for punky neons, crazy holographics and glitters (my former favourite is a Japanese one containing tiny poodle shaped sequins). Now, I've been doing pale pinks and nudes - colors that previously made me shudder in discomfort and boredom. But when wearing Gold, they are not boring anymore, just classy and elegant. And that's the way I feel about myself as well!

Have you ever experienced that a perfume is altering your personality, in good ways or bad ways? I'm very curious to hear if anyone has had a similar thing happening! And, about the video, when I thought about Gold being a song this one popped up in my head. I love Patti Smiths voice, it's so strong and has so much personality. You don't mess with her and you don't mess with Gold.


Official notes (according to Fragrantica)
Top notes: wild rose, lily-of-the-valley and silver frankincense.
Heart notes: myrrh, orris and jasmine.
Base notes: ambergris, civet, musk, cedarwood and sandalwood.

15 comments:

  1. I'd say that almost all of the Amouages wears YOU, and not the other way around. It is like being taken roughly by storm of a passionate lover, it's inevitable and impossible to do any other thing than surrender to it. Both Gold Man and Gold Woman are exquisite scents, both as opulent. Have you tried Ubar yet? In my opinion that is the most opulent one, although not the most wearable. As for myself, I am experimenting with the Amouage attars right now, they are pure heaven in tiny bottles. Amouage is surely one of my favorites houses, and I am seriously thinking of planning a trip to Oman, just to check them out irl...

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    1. Actually, Ubar is my favourite Amouage so far. I'm wearing it today in order to celebrate Valborg and everything, but I don't feel ready to write about it yet. But OMG, it's good. Who thught såpa and incense would work so well together?

      I'm madly curious about the attars, but I might not be mentally ready for those kind of prices just yet...

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  2. Yes, City of angels by Royal Apothic is a focus scent for me, if I'm feeling unable to concentrate or have been for a while, one spritz and I'm in the zone again,
    Portia xx

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    1. I could sure use a scent like that! Well, come to think of it, Ateliers Trefle Pur does have a sobering and focusing effect on me, but only on some days...

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  3. Even though Epic and Ubar are "big" perfumes I feel comfortable wearing them, but Gold was the one that I put off trying for the same reason you mentioned, I was afraid it would "wear me".

    On a recent visit to the London Amouage store I let the SA talk me into trying Gold and was amazed that even with the lush floralness of it, it wasn't overwhelming at all and I'm looking forward to wearing my sample of Gold back here in the "real world"!


    (I'm also a big fan of Patti Smith :) )

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    1. I understand your concerns, I was a bit worried before I tried on the Amouages if I could pull them off. In real life I'm only 1,57 cm and I do not look like any Omani princess, but they've worked like charms. The only one I feel is way too big for me is Jub 25, but I have to give it a few more goes before I dismiss it :)

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  4. Sigrun, thank you so very much for those kind words, which made me feel on top of the world. You really are a Swedish babe in every regard (which is my way of saying I adore you!).

    Your review of Gold is spot-on ... it really makes you want to step up your game as a way of meeting it, it's just so beautiful. (Although please don't give up those crazy toenail polishes ... I want to see the one with tiny poodle-shaped seguins! It sounds awesome.) :)

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    1. You're so welcome :) And thank YOU for making this review possible in the first place! Haha, one day I have to do a crazy nail polish post, there are a some good ones in my collection. A few years ago I went to Japan to visit friends and I've no idea what kind of souvenirs most people buy when they go there (maybe kimonos, sushi mats and origami paper?), I ended up with 20 bottles of crazy nail polish. That will always be Japan for me :)

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  5. I haven't tried any of the Amouages yet, but I have some perfumes that I feel accent different parts of my personality. Cool iris makes me feel tougher and smarter, my incense frags slow me down, and Black Cashmere... well, when I'm in Black Cashmere I swing my hips a bit more when I walk. ;)

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    1. This might sound a bit crazy, but I really think irises go great with computer work. I've been wearing Iris Silver Mist and Iris Poudre to IT conferences and thinking, wow, smelling like this makes so much sense :)

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  6. It is best if I don't comment on Gold. ;) But I enjoyed your post and totally agree about Suzanne's writing.

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    1. Thanks! I had to go look up Gold on your blog, and I can understand if it isn't everyone's cup of tea :)

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    2. :) But I did find through Undina's sharing a sample and then her side-by-side that there is a "version" of it that I love in Climat. It's amazing how a few small changes made all the difference for me between Gold and Climat.

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  7. Ubar is also my most favorite Amouage. And I completely agree with everything you said about Suzanne :)

    My personality is too strong for any perfume ;) Though since I have "dress-up perfumes" (those that I wear only for special occasions) when I smell those I always think about parties/holidays/etc.

    I like Gold a lot. It doesn't overwhelm me at all. If you missed it you should read this my post. Not a self-promotion - you'll see what I meant when you look at it.

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  8. Haha, I loved reading about the blind twin test :) And it's good to know that there is a budget alternative available as a full bottle of Gold is firmly out of my reach for the moment...

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