The Smell Of Miu Miu
It's been a while in the making, but back in August Miu Miu released their first ever scent. Caroline Javoy, vice-chairman of marketing at Coty Inc describes it as;
“unique, youthful, bright colors and sophisticated.”
THE BOTTLE
The very first thing that strikes you with this is most certainly the bottle. The pale blue quilted flacon mirrors the iconic Mui Miu matelassé leather bags. It is topped with a red perspex disc and overall it's very beautiful. I could have taken photos of this bottle all day long. This is the sort of bottle you just don’t throw away, even after the perfume has finished. It is the perfect design for the first Miu Miu scent.
THE PERFUME
The fragrance was created by perfumer Danielle Roche Andrier, known for her creations for Prada, Bvlgari, Marni and Bottega Veneta.
This scent is classed a white floral, however to my nose the green notes are far stronger. I get a strong green tea note, even though it’s not listed. The main focus is on lily of the valley, supported by jasmine and rose as well as a special ingredient, created by Givaudan, called akigalawood. Akigalawood is a note of patchouli, and works to enhance the pepper and woody aromas of oud.
“Akigalawood has a similar profile as patchouli, combined with vibrant spicy shades of pepper and precious oud wood.”
OPINION
Is this what I expected from the first Miu Miu perfume? Honestly, no. In my opinion it’s extremely underwhelming and not nearly as unique or individual as you might expect. It’s definitely a daytime scent, as the longevity and sillage is poor (on me at least). I have a lot of perfumes which I use to layer and this is one of those. I layer it over over warmer, deeper perfumes to add a crisper, brighter accent to them.
It's not a bad perfume - I liked it enough to buy it - but it's not a special perfume either. It's an everyday, 'nice' scent but you won't leave a trail of sniffing admirers behind you when you wear it.
As with most department store perfumes, it's fairly simplistic in composition and inoffensive - you can wear this in the office and no-one will complain you are stinking out the place! In my opinion, this lack of depth is the perfume's downfall. I'd have rather spent more and got a richer, more complex creation - something that really stands out.
This sounds like a negative review, which I suppose it is in many respects, but I have worn it every day since I got it, albeit layered with other scents. It's not that it's not a nice smell, because it really is, it's just not what I expected. I wanted it to be more challenging and far less mainstream. I feel it's too one dimensional. However, if you are looking for an elegant daytime scent, as I was when I bought it, then this is as good as any out there.
QMichelle