Essence Perfume Review. Essence Does Fragrance - But Is It Any Use?

I adore Essence. For such a cheap and cheerful range, the products are top notch and their mascaras some of my absolute favourites. They have cute trends, tons of fun colour products and special edition collectables, as well as really solid products that many other more expensive lines feck up, like eyeliner and nail polish. (Check out the Essence category)


However, when it came to fragrance I was extremely sceptical. I have loads of allergies, so bargain brand plus fragrance screams "ACHOO!" at me. I attended the launch of their six new permanent fragrances (they've dabbled before with temporary lines) with a mix of fear, cynicism and curiousity.

Now, Essence is a young brand with very teeny-boppery packaging - if you want your make-up to look a little older try their big sister brand Catrice, but be prepared to pay more - so I wasn't blown away by the overly cutesy branding. When I think perfume I like to think high class, luxurious elegance, not candy colours and handwritten fonts.

Still, I decided to let my nose do the talking, and do you know what? They smell bloody good. Young, yes, but not in a SO! or Tommy Girl kinda way, and there's a different fragrance for every personality, or as Essence say, for every mood.
First things first - four hours later and I'm not sneezing or headachey, and I am THE most allergic person I know, nose-wise.  Now, I liked most of them - here's a quick summary:

Like A Trip To New York: sweetly spicy
Like A Girl's Night Out: musky and fruity
Like A First Day In Spring: probably the most traditional, with sandalwood, vanilla and rose notes mixed with fruity scents.
Like A Walk In The Summer Rain: fresh and citrus-tinged
Like A Day in A Candy Shop: sweet without being too overpowering, but did smell a bit like vodka when I first sprayed it.
Like A New Love: DEFO my least fave. Iteeked of Impulse body spray and yer granny's cologne. However, each to their own.

Advertised

The most amazing thing about the fragrances is the price. The 50ml bottle retails for an unbelievable €7.99, with the handbag sized 10ml selling for €3.49. Wowza, right? I didn't think it was possible to get a decent fragrance for less than €15. Put it this way - these are no worse than any of the celeb fragrances you'd shell out €23 for.

If you're an eau de parfum girl or a Chanel/Dior/YSL addict, then these probably aren't for you (they're for your tweenage niece). However if you want something that smells pretty delish, wears well and doesn't break the bank, give them a whirl - they are less than a quarter of the price of most mascaras for the miniature version.

They're available now in Penneys and chemists. Let me know what you think!

Related Articles

More from Beauty