Sixteen92 The Beautiful and the Damned & Theda
So for once, I'm going to review something that's actually available at the moment! Sixteen92 just released Part II of their summer release, a re-release of four scents from last year's summer collection. (Paper Moon, the fifth scent from last year, is now part of the General Catalogue. I have it too and may review it in the future with some of my other Sixteen92 perfumes.) The collection was inspired by the Jazz Age in 1920s America.
Of the four scents, I own two:
The Beautiful and the Damned - Sparkling pink grapefruit, strawberry, raspberry, and currant with soft violet gardenia, and Tahitian vanilla absolute.
Theda - Tart sangria infused with ripe summer fruits (white peach, nectarine, berries, citrus), dark vanilla, wild vines, rose absolute.
I got The Beautiful and the Damned for pretty much one reason alone: grapefruit! I love me some grapefruit, but unfortunately citrus scents have a tendency to read like soap or some kind of cleaning product and often don't work out for me.
In the vial, the grapefruit really shines through. It's a very realistic ruby red grapefruit, bright and lovely, giving me high hopes for this perfume. Once on my skin, a soft floral peeks out from the background. The citrus is actually more mellow than I expected. The downside: no longer that tart, true-to-life pink grapefruit. Upside: definitely not cleaning fluid, either. Overall it's a soft, pretty scent that manages to be sweet without being overly saccharine. It has a little more throw than it did when I first tried it, eons ago. I used to find this perfume fairly faint, like many of the Sixteen92s that I've tried, but now I can catch wafts of it floating around when I have it in my elbow.
As it settles down, hints of vanilla appear, grounding the scent. I can't specifically point out the other fruit notes from the description, but other scents really round the perfume out nicely, making it way more than just the grapefruit I got in the cold sniff. This is a gorgeous, well-balanced fruity-floral. It lasts several hours on my skin, staying fairly linear throughout. Normally I can't review a perfume without automatically making scent associations with other similar perfumes, but I don't think I have any other scents quite like this!
Theda pretty much sold me on a single word as well, and that word was--as you might guess, from a recent university graduate... sangria. However, the description for Theda also touches on plenty of other things I love, notably peach, citrus, rose, and green things (admit it, you totally want to know what "wild vines" smell like too).
Upon cold sniff, it's exactly as advertised: fruit and alcohol. The booziness shines through even more once applied to the skin. As it starts to settle down, a really beautiful peach note comes out to play! I also get the berries and citrus, all swimming in a sea of wine and whatever else goes into sangria. I really love the fruitiness in this scent; it's super tart and juicy and realistic. This makes me want to drop everything to go have a little siesta on a beach somewhere.
The throw on this scent is moderate, although it's mostly the boozy sangria I smell wafting around. I have to sniff up close to be able to pick out individual fruits. After a while, it mainly hugs close to the skin. After about three hours, it does start going a little wonky. All the sharp greenness from the wild vines comes out at once, mixing with the remnants of the fruit. If you're a rose-hater, I wouldn't worry too much; I get nary a hint of rose for the entire duration of the scent. Because the throw isn't huge, I also wouldn't fear the alcohol notes in this one. I found it quite pretty and wholly work-appropriate.
Both of these were really unique scents, perfect for summer. I liked that these scents were girly and sweet, but still complex and unique. Like many Sixteen92 perfumes, these don't have the greatest longevity, but the throw was a lot better than I recall from the first time I tested these. Sixteen92 is also offering the Summer Part II scents in lotion and hair oil forms. I think both The Beautiful and the Damned and Theda would be really nice as body and hair care products! I definitely recommend both of these scents, and will be happily using up my samples.
Of the four scents, I own two:
The Beautiful and the Damned - Sparkling pink grapefruit, strawberry, raspberry, and currant with soft violet gardenia, and Tahitian vanilla absolute.
Theda - Tart sangria infused with ripe summer fruits (white peach, nectarine, berries, citrus), dark vanilla, wild vines, rose absolute.
In the vial, the grapefruit really shines through. It's a very realistic ruby red grapefruit, bright and lovely, giving me high hopes for this perfume. Once on my skin, a soft floral peeks out from the background. The citrus is actually more mellow than I expected. The downside: no longer that tart, true-to-life pink grapefruit. Upside: definitely not cleaning fluid, either. Overall it's a soft, pretty scent that manages to be sweet without being overly saccharine. It has a little more throw than it did when I first tried it, eons ago. I used to find this perfume fairly faint, like many of the Sixteen92s that I've tried, but now I can catch wafts of it floating around when I have it in my elbow.
As it settles down, hints of vanilla appear, grounding the scent. I can't specifically point out the other fruit notes from the description, but other scents really round the perfume out nicely, making it way more than just the grapefruit I got in the cold sniff. This is a gorgeous, well-balanced fruity-floral. It lasts several hours on my skin, staying fairly linear throughout. Normally I can't review a perfume without automatically making scent associations with other similar perfumes, but I don't think I have any other scents quite like this!
Theda pretty much sold me on a single word as well, and that word was--as you might guess, from a recent university graduate... sangria. However, the description for Theda also touches on plenty of other things I love, notably peach, citrus, rose, and green things (admit it, you totally want to know what "wild vines" smell like too).
Upon cold sniff, it's exactly as advertised: fruit and alcohol. The booziness shines through even more once applied to the skin. As it starts to settle down, a really beautiful peach note comes out to play! I also get the berries and citrus, all swimming in a sea of wine and whatever else goes into sangria. I really love the fruitiness in this scent; it's super tart and juicy and realistic. This makes me want to drop everything to go have a little siesta on a beach somewhere.
Both of these were really unique scents, perfect for summer. I liked that these scents were girly and sweet, but still complex and unique. Like many Sixteen92 perfumes, these don't have the greatest longevity, but the throw was a lot better than I recall from the first time I tested these. Sixteen92 is also offering the Summer Part II scents in lotion and hair oil forms. I think both The Beautiful and the Damned and Theda would be really nice as body and hair care products! I definitely recommend both of these scents, and will be happily using up my samples.
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