Jo Malones French Lime Blossom

Next in line for Citrus Week is Jo Malones French Lime Blossom. Undina pointed out to me that this one isn't really a citrus, but more of a green floral. You are right about that, but as I'm not a details person, anything with any far fetched citrus connection can be a Citrus Week candidate so here comes French Lime Blossom.

It starts with a crisp lime note and gradually fades to floral. I easily pick out roses and liles of the valley. I love the idea of how all Jo Malones fragrances are made to be layered  and I've really tried to like them. Unfortunately we have some sort of skin chemistry issue. I've tried 4 scents from them and it is always the same story. At first spray I'm thinking "wow, this one is lovely, why did I think I didn't like Jo Malone". After an hour or so I think, "hmmm, maybe this one was not so great on me". After 3 hours or so they have matured into full fleged distaster and I'm rushing to the toilet to wash them off. Sadly, French Lime Blossom was no exception. After a few hours it smelled like sharp detergent and I couldn't bare to walk around wearing it.

So I'm rating French Lime Blossom a 2 out of 5. Jo Malones do smell great on other people, so if you tend to like them you should probably just ignore my negative review here, but this one was not for me.

Comparison Jo Malone "Orange Blossom"+"White Jasmine & Mint" vs "Tubereuse Criminelle"

When thinking about the notes in Tubereuse Criminelle, two other samples in my perfume collection came to mind; Jo Malones "Orange Blossom" and "White Jasmine and Mint". Jo Malone fragrances are made to layer, shouldn't these two add up to something similar to TC? They both have white flowers (ok, no tuberose, but jasmine will have to do in a pinch), orange blossom and mint. I decided to do a little comparison. One drop of Serge Lutens Tubereuse Criminelle on one wrist and a small spray of first JM Orange Blossom and then White Jasmine & Mint on the other.

Smelling these two next to each others is like having a chat with a seductive but slightly insane femme fatal on one side and a innocent little girl on the other. TC just keeps expanding in all possible and impossible directions. There is good, there is evil and there is the just very strange stuff in between.

JM Orange Blossom first smells exactly like when you use your fingers to peel an orange. No more, no less. A safe smell. The "White Jasmine and Mint" isn't very noticeable at first. I suspect it takes the edge of the orange but I don't really notice it. Half an hour later the jasmine is more prominent. The little mint that there is feels vaxy and plasticy, like the first seconds when you put a Mentos in your mouth. You feel the smooth surface, there is a hint of mint, but it hasn't started to dissolve yet, releasing its menthol. About an hour later, I'm getting mandarin and lemon. There might be a hint of dirtyness, but when compared side to side with TC, it's hardly worth mentioning. This is an ok scent. Relatively fresh with lots of citrusy notes. I have to try it on its own on a warm summer day. And I think I might have been very hash when I've said before that I hate orange blossoms. I now recall that I was pregnant when I formed that judgement. They are not that bad.

So, the verdict of today's exercise: The result of layering Jo Malones "Orange Blossom" and "White Jasmine and Mint" is not bad, but it's NOTHING like the legendary Tubereuse Criminelle.