Bloody Orange by Alice & Peter

Once upon a time, there was Alice&Peter

This tale, for all who are infinitely curious, is presented to you and your imagination with the hopes of awakening your inner child. Alice & Peter, A fantasy dream world where you can stroll merrily along. Go with the flow and let your mind wander; take a break from reality to go back to an innocent, more playful time. The idea is simple: put some childhood wonder back into your life so that you reexperience a sense of joy and playfulness.

Something about these cupcake themed perfumes introduced in October of 2012 by Alice & Peter really captured my imagination.  That's Alice as in Wonderland and Peter Pan, in case it wasn't obvious.  I mean, who doesn't like cupcakes?  Of course, I may not want to smell like a cupcake (or maybe I do, it depends), but the notes listed in the 5 fragrances offered were intriguing enough that I ordered samples of each. A bit of background - while this line may be new, the perfumers are not.  Gerald Ghislain of Histoires de Parfums is the fragrance creater, with partner Magali Sénéquie as designer. 

First, here are the samples that I received.  They are a nice size, big enough at 2 ml to get multiple uses so that I can really get a feel for each fragrance.  Shipping was free, the samples were $10, and I received them in just under 2 weeks.  Considering it was peak package time with the holidays, they may arrive sooner now.

I'll be reviewing Bloody Orange first, and as described on alicepeter.com:

You won’t resist the passion of this orange!  Lively and bubbly citrus fruits merge with a mischievous carrot.  A magical explosion ensues, blasting a fresh bouquet of water flowers through the air. The aftermath is an inevitable swirl
of amber and caramel. As these forces flare, an earthy yet potent patchouli is wrapped in white musk, for a subtle relief. 

Notes listed are:

HEAD
Orange, Lemon, Grapefruit, Bergamot
HEART
Carrot, Cyclamen, Lotus, Jasmine, Cumin, Saffron, Cinnamon
BASE
Amber, Cedar, Patchouli, Leather, Vanilla, Caramel, White Musk

Clearly marketed towards younger women, Alice & Peter perfume bottles are in the form of cupcakes.  Personally, I love the whimsical nature of these.  But the real question is, how does Bloody Orange smell?

Source:  MRNY

It's delicious.  I may have started with the best (I don't know, I haven't tried the others yet), but this was love at first smell.  It's sweet without being cloying, and the initial citruses melt into a smooth blend of spices that takes it beyond the top notes.  Don't forget the carrot, as I think it has as much of a role to play as the namesake blood orange.  Some fragrances go stale on me when they get to the base note phase, but fortunately, Bloody Orange is not one of them and goes more the creamy route instead.

The downside?  I did not find Bloody Orange to be very long lasting, and I wanted it to be.  After an hour or so, I can still smell it by sniffing, but it is definitely close to the body.  I know that citrus based scents can be a bit ephemeral, so it will be interesting to see the lasting power of the others.  Bloody Orange is $49 for 1 fl.oz and can be found at Urban Outfitters, Henri Bendel, or Alice & Peter.  Next up in this series of reviews will be Cheery Cherry!

Disclosure:  I purchased this.