My mam wore YSL Opium in the 80ies and all that that implies. For me that implies shoulder pads, red suit jackets and big huge hair - SERIOUSLY HUGE HAIR. My mam is generally not a lady for a signature scent but YSL Opium was her scent for a long time. When I think of YSL Opium and my mam during that time I think Dallas and Dynasty - basically massive hair and shoulder pads. Mother dear is still a fan of very groomed hair but thank god she has gotten rid of the shoulder pads.
This year YSL have released an updated version of Opium called Black Opium*, I was interested to try it out because as a child I always remember Opium being quite a heady and overpowering scent. Black Opium is a little more sparkly (including its pretty fantastic looking bottle) and a little more modern than the original. The scent is still a strong, powerful and sexy scent but think of the YSL Opium Woman woman being slightly more rock chick than Dallas chick.
The scent although strong - definitely a sexy evening fragrance - it still has some sweet elements to it. While having a perfume discussion with my personal perfume guru Artdonatella told me she thinks that YSL Black Opium is a mix of Lancome La vie est belle and Viktor and Rolf Flowerbomb. I love both fragrances so I am a fan of YSL Black Opium. I did take time for me to adjust to the fragrance (especially after wearing lighter fresher fragrances all summer).
Top Notes: Pink Pepper, Orange Blossom, Pear
Heart Notes: Coffee, Jasmine
Base Notes: Vanilla, Patchouli, Cedar
Whats interesting to me is the base note of YSL Black Opium is Patchouli. I love the Patchouli, I love how rich it makes fragrances, but there is something about the way Patchouli mixes with my skin that makes it not suit me. I adore the fragrances Angel and La vie est belle but they just don't sit right with my body chemistry one of the things I love about them on others is Patchouli. I don't have this problem with YSL Black Opium. If your looking for a fragrance that's a little sexy with some sweetness try YSL Black Opium.
