Songes

I love Songes. But of course I do, because I love jasmine. I have jasmine growing in my backyard and during the late spring and early summer you can find me near it more often than not as I take in its gorgeous scent one breath after another. Songes is the jasmine I know and love dialed up to Spinal Tap 11. But this isn’t rock n roll. This is the sound of a rich and emotional bossa nova ballad played by a guitarrista infected with saudade during a languid afternoon while you lay on a hammock in the tropics, heat and humidity kissing skin balmed by the occasional breeze, perfectly ripe tropical fruit in a bowl next to you for snacking letting loose the fragrance of its oils and sugars and juices into the air, the smell of your high quality tanning lotion occasionally making its way to your olfactory receptors. Then, seemingly out of nowhere, like a breeze all of their own perhaps from along the tropical forest tree line or the well-tended garden of your resort: jasmine, frangipani, and ylang-ylang. The smell is intoxicating to the point you almost cannot stand it. The crafted cocktail in your hand has nothing on the effects created by this fragrance on the breeze. As I smell it now for who-knows-what-number time, it still makes me weak at the knees, a sigh and moan leave my chest, eyes roll to the back of my head, a tingle spreads down my scalp and up my back - sorry, this is getting inappropriate isn’t it?

Songes is the tropical perfume of my dreams! I have tested soooo many tropical fragrances and bought just a few (and my collection is large) many of them smell like sunscreen, cheapened w/ too much coconut, bogged down w/ unnecessary fruity notes but Songes is the tropical paradise in a bottle that I have been searching for. If you love white lilies (not listed above but I smell lily all the same) ylang, tiare, plumeria, and jasmine look no further than Songes EDP. This perfume is extremely humid, languid, and sultry. I do not get some of the negative reviews here. Songes smells exactly like tropical florals. It is so photorealistic I would swear I was somewhere in Tahiti instead of upstate NY right now. Goutal Paris rarely disappoints and many times I think I would be better off blind buying most of their fragrances instead of sampling the latest Niche brands. Silage and projection are enormous, which is what you want in a high quality and expensive perfume, any perfume really. This performs better than many I have spent a lot more on. Rest assured Songes is not for the faint of heart, it is a BIG perfume worn by someone who loves to stand out in a crowd, own a room and be the woman that everyone's eyes are on. Extremely sexy, sultry and bold this is a perfume fit for a vixen. Absolutely one of my favorites in my collection. Stunning, Stunning, Stunning!

Goutal is one perfumer in my book that can do sweet florals without it being too cloying. In general, this fragrance profile isn't really my thing, but if I'm going to go there--usually when not having access to my preferred scents--Goutal makes it both palatable and wearable. I was given a sample of Songes at a Goutal shop while re-purchasing Le Chevrefuille as a gift. So far, it's been a scent I might visit if I want something frilly and not-too-serious for the day. Ylang-ylang dominates Songes, and if that fragrance specifically is your thing, you might want to check this perfume out.

This one is hard for me to describe and compare (perhaps the powdery vanilla floral sweetness reminds me of Nuit Andalouse MDCI). I have the older version edp (not tried edt) and it is a dusty sweet powdery vanilla with tropical florals. There is a sweet softness that wraps you, in contrast to the florals-their fruitiness and indolic nature wakens you.

Languid and buttery white florals melting over amber. Heavier and more dense than many "tropical" florals I've come across. Has me imagining a 60s starlet hiding away in a glamorous bungalow, dripping with tanning oil and sweat, a plumeria tucked behind her ear.