The eponymous Sonia Rykiel is an amber fragrance targeting the ladies that was was launched in 1997. I think it’s a gourmand oriental. The nose is Emilie Bevierre-Coppermann, responsible for a slew of creations such as Givenchy’s Play, Comme Des Garcons Serpentine (of which I have a bottle of and will later review), and along with Mark Buxton, Paco Robanne’s Black XS for her.
Sonia Rykiel is a designer best known for her knit wear, so this sweater T is a cute representation of her stamp on the fashion world. What does it smell like? Let’s find out!
Sonia Rykiel is a 90s classic must-have fragrance for oriental lovers. People have mentioned Calvin Klein’s Obsession, Vicktor & Rolf’s Flower Bomb, and Thierry Mugler’s Angel, when talking of it, and I see how people might see facets of those fragrances in here, but no, it’s different. If I had to compare it to something, Ungaro’s Diva, a staple in my mother’s wardrobe that was also a 90s powerhouse, comes to mind. This more complex Sonia Rykiel concoction is strong, but on me, longevity, sillage and projection are subpar. I’m picky when it comes to performance, though. It and does morph a tad on skin as it goes through its phases. It’s got a hearty start, but on me it lives close to skin.
- pineapple, black currant, Mandarin orange, passion flower, ylang-ylang
- patchouli, rosemary, iris, jasmine, violet, rose, honeysuckle, lily-of-the-valley
- benzoin, vanilla, tonka bean, sandalwood, amber, cedar
Sonia Rykiel is a bright and resinous EDT that has a lot of sweet fruitiness in the top notes, but for me, it drives quickly past the fresh greenness into a floral, caramel and molasses center. I feel like I’m on a summer beach boardwalk where the salty wind is blowing past the white flowers on the hills and picking up the scents of caramelized popcorn and salt-water taffy as it wafts its way to my nostrils. I detect some spiciness stirred into a vanilla-scented après sun body cream. It’s not exactly heavy, but there is a syrupiness to it – more like a hard cardy. Smelling it earlier today, this is what I get. But last night when I sprayed it, I thought it greener, slightly fresher, and I could more easily smell the pineapple
The pineapple is not a fresh and juicy pineapple; it’s a sweet, baked spiced and sugared version of the fruit. The juice is a little syrupy. This fragrance truly blossoms on skin after an hour or so, I feel. That’s when the patchouli does its magic. I think you’ll have a challenging time finding complex blends like this with newer perfume releases. The downer with this fragrance is that once the opening completely fades, which does take a while, it gets a little soapy.
This is an older bottle and it’s not mine; I’ve borrowed it from a friend of a friend just yesterday. I’ve thus not spent too much time getting to know it. It’s also discontinued, so I won’t be servicing you guys much to sing it high praises if you can’t get a hold of it. But like with other discontinued fragrances, I do believe you can find a bottle out there if you search for it. Let me know if you do! There is an EDP version of this in a gold bottle, a rose version, and what looks like a lighter, fresh version coloured blue. I haven’t sniffed them.
To me, this well-blended sinuous scent is not a must have to any of you who don’t already know it. I feel it’s a perfume most people would purchase if they owned it 20 plus years or so earlier and wanted a fragrance to sniff to take them back to particular positive memory or feeling from the past. I never owned this one, so I don’t have memories associated with this. However, it does take me to the 90s and that taffy on the boardwalk vista. It’s a yummy floral, slightly spiced caramel bombshell. I like it, and although it’s a little perfumy and dated, thanks to the caramel, I feel it’s still wearable today.