Wednesday 20 April 2016

My guide to celebrity perfumes - collection + recommendations (Part I)


Hey, jelly beans! Today, I'd like to talk to you a little bit about celebrity perfumes, and show you my collection! Celebrity scents are bit of a love and hate thing... Generally speaking, people that avoid buying celebrity perfumes do so because they dislike the celebrities behind them, and don't want to be paying for something promoted by a given person (i.e 'I could never wear something made by so and so!). The truth is, celebrities are rarely involved in the perfume-making process. An independent perfume designer composes the fragrance, the given celebrity then approves it, sticks their name on the label and that's it. They give their general preference as to how they'd like the fragrance to smell, but it's the designer that actually creates the scent. Did you know that the same person that's composed a few of the Paris Hilton fragrances also works for Marc Jacobs? Kim Kardashian's perfume designer team has created some scents for Hugo Boss and Lacoste. It's really all about the label, and I've learned to never judge a scent based on the name behind it (same logic applies to fashion, makeup etc.). I'm not saying that a celebrity fragrance is ever going to top Chanel or Dior in terms of quality, but they can all be enjoyed and appreciated equally. Celebrity scents are fun, affordable and for the most part, very easy to like!



BRITNEY SPEARS
Britney Spears perfumes are amongst the sweetest and girliest I've ever tried. The original Fantasy (pink bottle) was actually one of the very first perfumes I ever bought, and I used to absolutely love it during my teenage years. It basically smells like cupcakes and white chocolate, with a hint of fresh kiwi. I still like it, although admittedly I don't wear it as much as I used to. I much prefer the Intimate Edition (white bottle), which is a lot more grown-up and sophisticated, whilst still sweet and feminine. This one reminds me of a luxurious body lotion, and it is also my boyfriend's favourite (he's very difficult to please when it comes to perfumes!). If you're interested, you can read my full review of Intimate Edition here.

I also have big versions of Midnight Fantasy (blue bottle), and Hidden Fantasy (red bottle). The Midnight edition smells just like blueberry muffins, although it does come across as a little 'synthetic' so I don't reach for it often. Hidden Fantasy is a little lighter and less sweet - it reminds me of orange-flavoured sweets with a hint of vanilla. These are both nice, girly perfumes, although I much prefer the original Fantasy and the Intimate edition, which are a lot more wearable and of better quality.

Fantasy - £8 for 30ml at SportsDirect (random website for perfumes, I know, but they offer the best price!)
Intimate Fantasy - currently £14 for 30ml at Boots or £12 for 50ml at allbeauty.com
Midnight Fantasy - £19 for 100ml at allbeauty.com
Hidden Fantasy - £12 for 100ml at FragranceDirect



KATY PERRY
Whilst Katy Perry perfumes are amongst my all-time favourites, I'm not a huge fan of the cat-shaped bottles. The weird, alien kitty design just doesn't appeal to me at all (although admittedly, it is quite eye-catching), so I tend to keep these buried deep inside my perfume drawer... The scents hidden inside are absolutely lovely, and a lot more grown-up than the bottles might suggest. Meow (pale pink bottle) is one of the most delicious perfumes I've ever tried - it smells like a soft cloud of marshmallows and cotton candy, with a hint of refreshing pear. It's sweet, but not overly so - it's more of a warm, delicate and comforting scent. Purr (purple bottle) is more fruity than sweet - it reminds me a little of Dot by Marc Jacobs. It smells like apple juice and peaches, with a hint of sweet coconut.

Whilst I love the two alien kitty scents, I'm not a huge fan of Killer Queen (red bottle). It basically smells like a cheaper version of La Vie Est Belle by Lancome. The two share similar fruity-sweet notes, but Killer Queen is a lot more artificial and has poor longevity. I don't hate it, but it's probably one of my least favourite celebrity perfumes, and I'd rather recommend Purr and Meow.

Meow - £19 for 100ml at BloomingWay (check out your local Savers, though - that's where I picked up mine for under a tenner!)
Purr - £13 for 50ml at allbeauty.com
Killer Queen - £9 for 30ml at GordonsDirect (also available at TKMaxx for the same price)



BEYONCE
In my Beyonce collection, I have three perfumes from the Heat range - the original Heat (red bottle), Midnight Heat (purple bottle) and a large version of Heat Rush (orange bottle). Surprisingly, the original Heat is my least favourite out of the three - it's easy to wear, but something about it smells like melted candy. That specific 'syrupy' quality is a little cloying, and makes this fragrance smell quite cheap. I much prefer Midnight Heat and Heat Rush, which are more unusual, tropical and exotic. Heat Rush smells like a delicious fruity cocktail, with lots of blood orange, cherries and passionfruit. The Midnight edition is a little darker and more grown-up - it smells like plums and spices, with hints of earthy patchouli.

There's also the Rise (tall yellow bottle) perfume, which is very different from anything in the Heat range. Whilst pleasant enough, this one feels a little flat and generic, and I don't reach for it as often. It smells vaguely citrusy, with faint hints of flowers and bland woods. It's nice enough for casual wear, but there isn't really any depth to it and I wouldn't recommend it as much as the Heat range.

Heat - £7 for 30ml at allbeauty.com (often found at TKMaxx for the same price)
Midnight Heat - £9 for 30ml at DirectBeautique
Heat Rush - £10 for 100ml at allbeauty.com
Rise - £15 for 100ml at Superdrug (I've seen it in Poundland for less than a tenner, though!)

Part two of the post will be coming up in the next few days, including the rest of my celebrity perfume collection (scents by Rihanna, Taylor Swift, Jessica Simpson and Nicki Minaj, amongst others!). I currently have 23 of these total - which may seem like a lot, but when you consider that I have 160 perfumes... 

What are your thoughts on celebrity perfumes? What are your favourites? Would you like to see a post on my full collection of perfumes?


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