I'm turning into my Mother - I even smell like her now!

At some point we all turn into our mothers, don’t we. You say something one day and wonder when your mother inhabited your body; you put an outfit on, look in the mirror and cringe; you answer the phone and your Aunty launches into some random conversation thinking she's speaking to your Mum. Sigh. For me, the turning point was perfume.

My Mother has a beautiful collection of perfume, but they all come from the same fragrance family. Different brands, similar notes. She definitely has a signature scent family - green, floral and a bit of soft floral for good measure. Me? I have always worn sweet perfumes – anything woody oriental, with the odd floral thrown in (I'm fussy about my florals though - tropical beach flowers only). Until now.

I recently started wearing Juicy Couture's newbie Peace, Love & Juicy Couture, and suddenly I was like ‘hang on…I smell like my ma…and I like it…’ Up until this point in my life our tastes have always been very different, but I actually found myself liking something that my mother would like (and wear – she sniffed, she approved and she tried to steal). Not sure if this is my tastes changing or whether Juicy have produced a scent that just appeals to a broad audience.

This fragrance is firmly within the green perfume family - earthy floral to the power of ten with lots of citrus rind, and some wood thrown in for balance. Top notes of lemon tree blossom, blackcurrant bud, sweet apple, hyacinth - middle notes of jasmine (YUM), magnolia, poppy, honeysuckle - base notes of patchouli and musk. The bottle is super cute - a heavy (faux) crystal stopper, a string of turquoise beads wrapped around the top, tassels in various shades of pink, and the Juicy Couture crest in gold. Very Malibu hippy and California cool.

Me, my Mama and my Sister

I'm not quite ready to give up my sweet perfumes just yet (I just bought another bottle of Estee Lauder Bronze Goddess even though my first one is only half empty) but I am definitely happy to add this new fragrance into my repertoire. As for smelling like my Mother, well, I'm turning into her more and more every day, so it was inevitable, right?

Juicy Couture - Peace, Love & Juicy Couture
Price: $79/30ml, $99/50ml, $145/100ml
From: Myer and David Jones
Why you need it: If you love free-spirited, floral fragrances, then this is for you. Try it if you like Private Collection by Estee Lauder or Virgilio by Diptyque.

Product image courtesy of Juicy Couture
This product was provided to Stuff That I Bought for consideration - see our disclosure policy. Stuff That I Bought attended the launch event of this product.

I got the Power! It smells like sexy man. Not at all like douchebag rapper.

Personally I think 50 Cent is a douchebag and I don’t like to bring him any extra attention – he does a good enough job of that on his own with his twitter diatribes and whatnot (incidentally, check out Queen's English 50c for a hilarious translation service of all of Fiddy’s tweets).

No, I write today because I think the lid on Fiddy’s latest fragrance Power is really cool. It’s a metal disc with nuts and bolts, and a beautiful intricate pattern engraved on the plate in the middle. Tres masculine. I also like the way it smells, but then again I am quite partial to wearing a men’s fragrance. My very first fragrance was actually the men’s Tommy from Tommy Hilfiger – I still have a bottle in my stash and pull it out on occasion.

In fact, the make-up of my beloved Tommy is very similar to Power: top notes of green citrus and fruit, followed by darker woods, peppers and berries, and then dry base notes. Maybe that’s why I’m drawn to it. Power has more bite to it though...it lingers on the skin, and I really enjoy the way the oak moss and black pepper dance with the nutmeg and lemon. Sublime. Either way, I had to steal it back off my Fiancé – we both can’t wear the same fragrance, can we?

Price: $49/50mL or $79/100mL
From: Myer, Priceline, Perfume Connection, some pharmacies
Why you need it: It’s a good masculine fragrance without being too masculine (sorry Fiddy) – excellent for girls who like something a little stronger.

Picture credit: lighthousebeauty.com - this product was offered to me for consideration

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Sweet Tarts, Ring Pops, got that candy bling - thanks Mariah!

Embarrassing confession time: one of my all time favourite songs is Fantasy by Mariah Carey. It reminds me of a really good time in my life, it’s a fun song and whenever I hear it I can picture the video clip with her rollerblading along in little short shorts.

You may have figured out by now that I have a total sweet tooth, so when Mariah’s three new Lollipop Bling fragrances landed on my desk I was on them with the kind of voracity I usually reserve for a bag of Party Mix. Sugary-sweet candy perfumes make me happy. It’s a simple pleasure and not necessarily the most sophisticated of fragrances, but they are fun to wear and they make me feel good. That’s what beauty products are all about, right?

Honey (yellow bottle) is a bright and sunny daytime fragrance with a mix of honey, pineapple and freesia. Freesia is one of my all time favourite flowers and perfume ingredients, and it blends perfectly with the sweetness of pineapple. Yum!

Mine again (red bottle) has chocolate and raspberry top notes and a subtle middle note of magnolia. I think it’s the most ‘adult’ of the three and would be appropriate to wear out at night.

Ribbon (blue and pink bottle) is the most candy of all of the fragrances, with the sugary scent of blue raspberry and a hint of floral. This one is (apparently) based on the blue ring pop that Nick Cannon proposed to Miss Mariah with. How romantic!

All three of the bottles have Mariah’s signature butterfly on the top, and the boxes are covered in holographic candy, butterflies and swirls. I love that Mariah doesn’t ever want to grow up – as long as she keeps producing confectionary fragrances and bubble-gum pop tunes, then I’ll keep lapping them up.

Price: $49
From: Myer, Perfume Connection
Why you need them: To sweeten up your day

These products were offered to me for consideration

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Which house on Crescent Row do you want to live in?

Originally published on Sassi Sam

Firstly, I love the concept behind Crescent Row. A whole family of fragrances, each with their own unique personality much like any street. The first set of Crescent Row fragrances (Laugh with Me LeeLee, Something about Sofia, My Place or Yours Gina) were just gorgeous and I can get behind any sort of product with a back story. You’re not familiar with it? Let me enlighten you…Jean’s daughters Maggie and Annie (as in Jean Ford, one of the creators of Benefit) were on a trip to Bath in England and were inspired by the beautiful Royal Crescent. The girls envisioned different types of chicks living as neighbours on this iconic strip, and Crescent Row was born. And now we have three new girls moving into the neighbourhood.

Of the three perfumes there is one I am head over heels in love with, one that I like and one that doesn’t work at all on my skin.

On paper Lookin’ To Rock Rita should be right up my alley but it just doesn’t smell on my skin. Perfume is a very personal thing and works differently with each person’s skin chemistry; for some reason this just didn’t work with my skin and seemed to disappear as soon as I sprayed it. This was disappointing because it’s a beautiful scent with very coconut-y top notes followed by fig and violet. When I sprayed it on my guinea pig it was beautiful and had a slightly tropical feel (probably the coconut top notes – coconut always makes me crave cocktails and sunshine!)

Garden of Good and Eva is best described as fresh. The initial hit of pear and watermelon is very crisp, and then it mellows out as the rosebud and jasmine comes through. To me this is a really summery fragrance and it works well on my skin. It reminds me of being in the country and was very enjoyable to wear.

My favourite of the three is So Hooked On Carmella and I have been wearing it obsessively since I first got my hands on it 2 months ago. It is an exquisite blend of vanilla, rhubarb and peony, and smells like Baileys. Honestly, I’m totally cool with smelling like Baileys! This is definitely the creamiest and smoothest of the Row family, and is lovely and girlie.

Price: $59 each
From: Benefit stores/counters
Why you need it: There is something on the Row for everyone and a new perfume is as good as holiday! (especially if, like me, you didn't get a real holiday this year)

These products were sent to me for review through Sassi Sam

One to share with the Grandkids

Whoa Mama! Talk about the ultimate lust list item. Bulgari is celebrating 125 years by releasing an exclusive super special limited edition (all the important stuff) Eau Parfumée au thé vert 125th Anniversary Celebration Coffret (translation: box set). This is 350mL of glorious perfume in a pump atomizer engraved with silver filigree work, an extra refill bottle and a Bulgari silver funnel. Lush.

This is real family heirloom stuff. It doesn’t come cheap though at $329 AND it won’t be on counters – you have to buy it through the Cosmax office. Mainly because there will only be ten of these sets released in Australia. Talk about exclusive.

On a completely unrelated note, does anyone have $330 I can borrow? I promise it’s for a good cause...

Price: $329
From: The Cosmax office – call (02) 9695 5678.
Why you need it: To celebrate the history and class of an iconic fragrance brand. The ultimate must have for the perfume addicts collection.

Picture credit: Cosmax