WHAT I SMELL: Rival in Love opens with a lightly sweetened blood orange that’s quickly met with a juicy, ripe and enticing lychee. It’s so incredibly intoxicating in the softest of ways as there’s nothing sharp here as the perfume just lilts upon the skin with a light and soft sheath of cottony musk. After a bit, the sweetened and soft opening moves to the more round with a lightly peppered rose making it’s entrance. Where the opening was light and demure, the perfume is now more mature and seductive. Here, the perfume begins to radiate and amplify, but never in a way that shouts. As Rival in Love continues its progression, a patchouli enters grounding the florals with a buzzing woodiness. Here, the perfume seems to be in conflict as you can tell that the patchouli is being buffered by something else that is trying to get out on top of it. As the perfume finishes its internal fight, a sweetened vanilla and lychee come out to make the perfume the perfect mix of innocence and seductive maturity. Rival in Love is one “love” of a perfume.
From the ByBozo website:
ByBozo Rival in Love. What next? A seductive scent of sexual energy. This is what passion smells of! It doesn’t hesitate to reveal all its emotions, so varied… Gentle and aggressive, Rival in Love opens with a sharp tango of blood orange and lychee. But in its heart dances a rose and an elegant jasmine, separated by a clove. This is a fight! The firey rain leaves behind the jealous patchouli, but it’s calmed by gentle vanilla What next?
Top Notes: Blood orange, Lychee
Middle Notes: Rose, Jasmine, Pepper
Base Notes: Vanilla, Patchouli, Benzoin
WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: A fight for love that ends in the most beautiful of ways.
THREE WORDS THAT DESCRIBE RIVAL IN LOVE: subtle, enticing, engaging
WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT RIVAL IN LOVE: None found.
BOTTOM LINE: Rival in Love is my first venture into the ByBozo line of perfumes and it’s a fantastic first foray. The perfume is so well blended and is sheer and yet bold at the same time. And for those of you who believe that bottle is just as important or as nearly as important as the perfume, ByBozo delivers with a fantastic weighty bottle and magnetic cap.
- Bone Rating: 4 out of possible 5 bones
- Scent: Oriental Floral
- Note: Paul Emilien
- Classification: Unisex
- Expense: Prices starting at 58 Euros for 15ml eau de parfum
Sample courtesy of ByBozo Paris. Opinion my own.
WHAT I SMELL: Chameleon unfolds on first spritz all soft and warm with delicious, bergamot, edible fruits and ylang ylang. Surprisingly it’s not too juicy or really sweet…instead it’s just so very inviting. In fact, it feels as if you’re walking down the street and you catch a whiff of a fragrant tree whose rapturous scent grabs your attention with its intoxicating spell. After a short while, the perfume delivers a creamy accord of frangipani that really begins to radiate off the skin. Underneath it floats a layer of sandalwood in the same vein of Guerlain’s Samsara (and that’s a good thing). After some more time, a light chalkiness enters which soon begins to powder slightly after which the creaminess returns which a small dose of sweet. The perfume then quiets to the perfect stage of just the right amount of creamy, sweet and floral. Chameleon is everything tropical, but instead of overpowering the wearer with heavy handed florals, instead you seem to float in sun drenched flowers dancing in a sun-kissed breeze.
WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: Vintage tropical florals.
WHAT I SMELL: ELENYA gold opens with a soft, smooth, rich and opulent bergamot combined with a subdued but very creamy black orchid. A perfectly subtle cardamom joins the bergamot and black orchid helping to even out the citrus and floral to make a beautifully flattened, but rounded presence. The perfume at this time is weighty without being heavy and is exotic in a very controlled manner. In addition, there are no sharp edges as the perfume takes it time in developing which makes the perfume feel that more substantive. After some time, the black orchid peeks his head out again along with the most creamy of unsweetened coconut. After some more time, a light sandalwood begins to buzz underneath the creaminess. A little sour, but just perfectly so, the sandalwood brings the right amount of depth to the perfume along with a woody vetiver. For me, ELENYA gold is hard to pin down because its overall mix of notes makes for a very smooth, almost custard-like perfume…it’s easy, yet grand.
WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: Gold leaf. When applied to the skin, the most razor thin coating of luxury is now yours to wear.
The Scented Hound 