I think I’ve been sleeping on Arabian perfumes until now. No, really. I’ve seen various shops with Arabian perfumes pop in malls and now they even have some at my local DM shop and it always smells so nice when I go past them. So, after seeing various ads on Facebook, I decided to get one just to see how it is. And, since this is my first immersion into this kind of perfumes, I chose one that is supposed to be a dupe for a famous high end perfume just to compare them.

Packaging:

First of all, I noticed that the packaging is always beautiful. All the bottles are so heavy decorated that they’re almost kitchy, but I like it, because they look like perfumed jewelry on the shelf. This one, for example, is a heavy glass bottle (like really heavy, one that doesn’t break if you drop it on the floor) with a metal label and a golden decorated cap. The cap is made of plastic, but it doesn’t take away from the overall appearance. Also, it’s a big bottle as it contains 100 ml.

Top notes: apple blossom and peach

Middle notes: pineapple and wild rose

Base notes: patchouli and musk

So, this is a mix of floral and fruity notes with just a hint of those oriental notes that make it seductive and spicy at the same time. Some would say it’s a heavier perfume, for the evening or for the winter season, but I don’t care about those classifications. If it smells good, I take it.

Price and accessibility:

Arabian perfumes are available in several online shops and that’s where I got mine. And it was cheap, just about 12 euros for such a big bottle! What more could you ask for?

My overall opinion:

So, I chose Al Ibdaa Gold because it said on the website I got it from that it’s supposed to be a dupe for Givenchy’s L’Interdit. Since I did have a sample of that perfume and it remained on my wish list, I decided to give it a try. And while I wouldn’t say it’s and exact dupe like 1 on 1, it does smell similar.

Now, I think perfumes smell different on people and every person will have a hint of some notes over others. For me, the perfume smells nicer once it settles on the skin because at first it comes up as too strong. But, after a few minutes I do smell the sweetness of the apple blossom, the exotic note of the pineapple and underneath it all a hint of patchouli. And yes, I do think it’s a sexy perfume and I did receive some compliments on it.

Also, the longevity is really good. Many perfumes fade away quickly on my skin for some reason, especially the ones that are cheaper, but this one does a good job for about 4-5 hours, which is a lot for someone like me. I used to spray perfume on me in the morning and once I got to work I swear I didn’t sense it anymore.

While I do use 5 or 6 puffs on me and one or two on my clothing, and it may seem much to some, for me at least it does the trick that I feel like I’m really wearing perfume. This only makes me want to get more Arabian perfumes and I don’t know why I haven’t tried them before instead of spending my money on mass market crap. To be honest, only high end perfumes did the trick for me in terms of longevity but I don’t have the money to buy one of those perfumes each month. Instead, one of those little gems, you bet I will purchase!