November 2024 - Fashionicide // Fashion, Makeup and Beauty

Sunday, November 24, 2024

FRAGRANCE REVIEW || Khaltat Blends of Love - Ljubovj

As you may have already read, I've been paying a lot of attention to fragrances of late, and I'm back with another fragrance review and this one is arguably the husband's most worn fragrance of 2024. Personally I would have worn this more myself but given Khaltat Blends of Love perfumes are not actually sold anywhere in the UK at present, I've been restraining myself from spraying it on like there's no tomorrow.

Ljubovj is absolute beast mode stuff, the whole street will smell you coming, and it'll linger around after you've left a room for few hours too. In fact, I have found this with every single one of the Khaltat scents that I own. But first..

Khaltat Blends of Love brand - who are they?

The Khaltat Blends of Love brand is part of Mohamed Hilal Group. The group houses Anfasic Dokhoon, Hind Al Oud, Khales and Khaltat Blends of Love.

I own scents from each of these brands and I love every single one that I own. They are each unique, very middle eastern and the longevity is always next level, as you will have read in my review of Anfasic Dokhoon's Shay Oud.

The difference between each of their brands is that they cater for a variety of budgets and tastes. Khales are the most affordable, then it's Anfasic Dokhoon, going up a notch you have Khaltat Blends of Love with the most expensive being Hind Al Oud.

Sticking to Khaltat's Blend of Love for now, the brand offers sophisticated, classy scents. The term 'blends' is very fitting for their range, in my opinion Khaltat blend their scents to absolute perfection, they smell friendlier or gentler on the nose than the likes of Anfasic Dokhoon and Hind Al Oud, yet still manage to pack a punch, and the sillage is insane.

I would say that the Khaltat Blends of Love brand is a great entry point for those who are just getting into actual Khaleeji fragrances and aren't quite ready to move onto the heavy hitting insense and oudy perfumes just yet. It's also great for those days where you aren't in the mood to wear the heavy stuff, or for nights out and celebrations, as their fragrances last and people will smell you even when you've left the room.

Ljubovj notes

Ljubovj means love in Croatian. In fact, most of the Khaltat line are named 'love' in various different languages, hence why they've called it Blends of Love. In fact, Khaltat even means 'blend'. It's quite clever branding, something that the MHG group seem to take pride in.

The notes of Ljubovj are as follows:

Top note: Pomegranate
Middle note: Sandalwood
Base note: Agarwood (or oud)

What does Ljubovj actually smell like?

There's quite a lot going on with Ljubovj, which makes it really difficult to describe. In a way, I think that speaks volumes as to how expertly Khaltat have blended this fragrance. The first thing you will notice is the sweet, powdery smokiness of sandalwood, and a gentle twang of fruitiness, followed quickly by the warmth of the oud.

Somehow, they've managed to blend these all together without being so powdery it becomes talc, without being so smoky you feel like you might choke, without being so fruity it becomes sickly sweet, and without the oud being so strong it's animalic. It's a well balanced fragrance and I also find it quite comforting.

It's really easy on the nose, it has just the right amount of everything to make it all work together in a way that suits pretty much anyone. From reading the notes, you might think it's possibly a feminine fragrance, but that warmth and power, combined with the gentleness of the pomegranate means it's pretty much gender-neutral. Which probably explains why the husband loves the juice in this fragrance, as do I.

Bottle of Khaltat Blends of Love Ljubovj perfume

Longevity and sillage

Ljubovj is a delicate, soft fragrance, and as such you might expect the longevity and sillage to be fairly in tune with that, as softer fragrances often give the illusion that a gentle breeze will just blow them away. Nope, not in this case though.

I use 3-4 sprays of Ljubovj on my clothes and I find that the smell doesn't just linger around until the end of the day, it doesn't seem to even weaken at all.

As for sillage (projection or how far the fragrance travels), I've had comments from a handful of people who have said they were able to smell my fragrance even when I had left the room. It is difficult to ascertain the level of sillage a fragrance really has until you either receive comments from others or you smell it on others. And from my experience, it's true, you genuinely can smell Ljubovj after you've left the room, as I've found when the husband has left the house wearing this stuff.

If you're thinking of wearing this scent to the office, I'd say to reduce the amount of sprays, so the office jobsworth isn't whinging about it being 'too strong'. There's always one.

What other scents I would recommend by Khaltat Blends of Love?

I own a range of fragrances from Khaltat Blends of Love and tbh, I love them all for various moods and occasions. The ones I own:

AI
Amour
Ask
Assayroon Hob Al Emarat
Dragoste
Enchantment Oud
Forever Oud
Grá
Hob 1
Hob Sultan
Liebe - this one is their best seller
Love

I have some of their perfume oils and body mists which are equally excellent and high quality.

Cost of Ljubovj

Khaltat Blends of Love Ljubovj comes in a 65ml bottle and costs 550 AED, which converts to around £120. It is sadly only available to purchase in the Middle East from MHG Boutique and in the malls. Although, from speaking with the legend that is Mohamed Hilal, he did say MHG Boutique will be offering international shipping soon!

If you're planning on visiting Dubai, they do have a concession stand in Dubai Mall, which I'd recommend visiting if you're on the hunt for Khaleeji scents.

Friday, November 15, 2024

What is a Water Perfume and Why You Need it in Your Life

I first spoke about water perfumes (some refer to them as shower perfumes) last year on my Instagram stories during my visit to Dubai, where these types of perfumes are pretty popular.

Every time I mention water perfumes, I’ve noticed it seems to pique some interest, so I figured I’d share much more on what I know about them, and point you in the direction of some brands who offer this type of perfume.

So what the heck is a water / shower perfume?

Great question. Your typical fragrances are alcohol based, as the alcohol acts as a solvent that binds the perfume oils together, and evaporates quite easily. This is what helps a fragrance leave a scent trail, and is the meaning of the term sillage - how far you can smell the fragrance from your wrist.

As the same suggests though, a water perfume is actually based on water, and contains no alcohol. They’re widely used in the Arab world, and are mainly used as a body mist after taking a shower. They say these types of perfumes stick to the body when the skin is still damp, which is why you might hear it being referred to as a ‘shower perfume’.

Just a note, without the alcohol in there to act as a solvent, it’s important to give the bottle a good shake before you spritz it on.

Throughout this post I'll be talking about Ibraheem Al Qurashi's Special Musk range. Whilst these are classed as shower perfumes, they do actually contain a little bit of alcohol in them, so are not completely alcohol free. That being said, they have the same 'feel' as a full-on water perfume.

What are the pros and cons of water perfumes?

There are several pros and cons to water perfumes. Let’s start with the main pros:

They could be a feasible option for those who have sensitive skin that might be irritated by alcohol based perfumes. For example, body mists by the likes of Bath & Bodyworks are alcohol heavy and could lead to skin irritation.

As it’s alcohol free, it’s ideal for those that believe applying alcohol to the skin is haram (forbidden)

If you like layering different types of products on to improve the sillage of your fragrances, such as applying a scented body cream, then applying a perfumed body oil on top, etc. Then applying a water perfume after a shower on damp skin as a base could help improve the sillage and/or projection of the other fragrances you want to apply on top.

Main cons:

Shelf-life: sadly, water perfumes usually don’t have a long shelf life at all. One water perfume I have says it’s best used within 12 months of opening.

You will likely not get much sillage from a water based perfume when it’s the only product you intend to use. That being said, it is fantastic for layering, particularly as a base for all of your other fragrances.

In what order should water perfumes be applied when layering?

That is entirely up to you. The husband mists the perfume all over straight after a shower on damp skin.

I on the other hand, tend to moisturise the body first, usually with a scented body cream as I love layering scents for stronger sillage and projection. Whilst the cream is still damp on the skin, I will mist the water perfume all over so the fragrance has something to cling onto. Think of it in similar terms to how makeup primers work with foundation. It needs a tacky base for the foundation to grip onto to prolong the wear of your makeup.

Who makes water perfumes?

I found on my travels to across the Middle East, to the likes of UAE, Qatar and Oman, that there are countless brands offering water based perfumes, with a pretty big range in price tags too.

Here are just a few options to think about:

>>> Ibrahim Al Qurashi Musk Collection:

Ibrahim Al Qurashi are a Saudi brand who started off their business in Mecca, but their range is not completely alcohol free. Despite that, it has the feel of a water-based perfume, although the alcohol makes the sillage a lot stronger. I’ve been using the musk collection by Ibrahim Al Qurashi for several years now and it’s the one I most often reach for. From speaking with the locals, the range is super popular in Arab countries and also offers the same scents in hair mists.

The husband typically applies Powder Musk after his morning shower, and there's fairly strongly sillage to this one. It typically radiates from his chest, even in the evenings, although I suspect this has something to do with the alcohol content.

Their range contains many different types musks for all tastes, including blueberry musk, candy musk and even a cardamom musk. My favourites are Powder Musk, Special Musk, Blueberry Musk and Luban Musk. However, this range is not the easiest to get hold of in the UK. Which leads me to…

>>> Ard Al Zaafaran Ithra Dubai collection

Ard Al Zaafaran is much more readily available in the UK and their Ithra Dubai collection looks and sounds suspiciously similar to Ibrahim Al Qurashi’s musk body mists, with pretty much the same types of musks. From my research, the Ithra Dubai collection is alcohol free and is about half the price of Ibrahim Al Qurashi’s range. You can find them on Amazon here.

>>> Lataffa Thameen Collection

Lataffa are a UAE brand and their products are widely available for purchase in the West. They are also really affordable. They created their Thameen range which looks suspiciously similar to Ibrahim Al Qurashi’s collection, again with multiple different types of musks on offer.

I personally haven’t tried Lataffa’s Thameen collection but I am aware that these are not actually alcohol free, despite being intended for use in the same way as a water perfume. The scent ‘So Poudree’ from the Thameen collection looks and sounds very similar to my fave ‘Powder Musk’ by Ibrahim Al Qurashi. You can find their So Poudree here on Amazon.

>>> My Perfumes Water Perfume Collection

I came across My Perfumes whilst visiting the perfume souk in Dubai, which can be found within the gold souk area. My Perfumes are ridiculously affordable and I purchased the scent Oud Sharqiya, which cost me around £5! The scent is gorgeous, but is one that sits very close to the skin. They also sell a matching perfume oil.

>>> Islamic stores

Ah, the good old Islamic store. If you’re based in the west, UAE brands may be a bit tough to get your hands on. But fear not, if you just happen to live near an Asian population centre in the UK, you’re bound to find an Islamic store somewhere, and these days they’re pretty much bound to sell water perfumes, or as they might call it - alcohol free perfumes.

The concept isn’t exactly new, and has been around for a number of years already, as some Muslims don’t agree with applying alcohol based fragrances to their skin. When Googling, try searching for terms such as ‘alcohol free perfumes’ and you will find lots of Islamic stores selling these types of fragrances at fairly affordable prices.

And that’s my round up on water perfumes. Any questions, let me know.

Sunday, November 03, 2024

My Personal Fragrance Journey

Wow, it has been such a long time since I last posted. If you’ve been following me on Instagram, you may have noticed that over the past few years I’ve started talking a lot more about fragrances, particularly Arab or Khaleeji fragrances.

How it began

During lockdown, when many of us had so much extra time on our hands (goodbye commuting), I got to thinking about how much stuff I’d accumulated over the years, stuff that barely ever got used. One such thing I’d accumulated a lot of, and never used much of, was fragrances. I had a few in my collection that I’d ‘saved’ for special occasions, but the reality is, how often would I even go to a special occasion, a wedding, a special night out etc - and are these ‘special’ enough? I’d need to be going to a special occasion every week for the rest of my life to use these fragrances up, so they were just sitting there collecting dust, a colossal waste of money.

So I did something different, and just started to use them all. Even the ‘special’ ones. And a funny thing happened: I loved it, I started to really appreciate these fragrances, and they boosted my mood and confidence.

Over time, I found myself being able to detect the notes of the perfumes I was wearing without even referring to Fragrantica’s list of notes. I recall visiting Selfridges where one of the shop assistants challenged me to detect the notes in one of her fragrances. ‘Saffron’. She was stunned, nobody had been able to guess, and it left me wondering if I was developing a nose for this kind of thing, did I have a talent?

French perfumery VS Khaleeji perfumery

After all the lockdowns were behind us, and I’d been vaccinated, my first overseas trip was to Dubai (where else, really). Fragrances are a huge part of Arab/Khaleeji culture, and Dubai is probably the place to visit to evolve and expand your fragrance palate. But their fragrances are markedly different from what we’re used to in the West. Here, the focus is on the French - think Dior, Gucci, Maison Francis Kurkdjian etc.

Whilst French perfumes are sold and loved in Dubai, they also have their own style of fragrances - Khaleeji perfumes. These smell very Middle Eastern, ouds, woody, resinous, sweet, so intense you feel you could almost choke.

Of course the French houses have created their own Oud-based fragrances, but the majority of these are aimed at the Western palate, something much lighter. So light, that sometimes the oud can barely be detected at all. So you have to be cautious taking recommendations from someone who says they love Oud - do they love the Western ideal of oud, or do they love the raw, animalic, intense Ouds of the Arab world?

That’s not to say that all of the French takes on Oud are bad, they’re not. Some are huge hits in the Gulf region, such as Dior’s Oud Ispahan, Frederic Malle’s The Night. The latter is pretty oud heavy and quite animalic, hence its hefty price tag. Either way, there are different types of oud-based fragrances, and these all have a different appeal.

How I’ve been learning more about fragrances

I’ve been learning about fragrances through extensive research and through speaking with the locals on my visits to the likes of Oman and Dubai. Only through talking to the locals can you begin to understand the importance and significance of fragrance in their culture - for example, many Emiratis create their own signature fragrances for their homes, or the Omani taxi driver who gifted me some fragrance oils his mother made - the art had been passed down for generations in his family. These conversations really solidified the notion that fragrances are an integral part of Khaleeji culture.

I also found it fascinating that each Gulf nation has their own identity when it comes to fragrance styles and tastes. For example, Oman is famous for its frankincense (or Luban), and the locals live for it. Their love for luban is often acknowledged by fragrance brands - Saudi brand Ibrahim Al Qurashi, famous for their musk water perfumes, created a Luban Musk version exclusively for sale in Oman.

Also note that when I talk about learning, I’m not talking in the past tense here. I’m very much aware that I’ve barely even scratched the surface of the Khaleeji fragrance world, but I think I’ve learned enough to start sharing what I’ve picked up so far. I’m particularly aware that my stories on Arab perfumes pique a lot of interest, particularly from those who visit the Gulf and feel overwhelmed by the endless choice of fragrances. So I will use this space to share what I have learned so far, my personal experiences with fragrances, as well as my own recommendations.

What type of fragrances I’m enjoying at the moment

I still have a great deal of respect for French perfumery and the craftsmanship that goes into it, I think they’re great for those days where I don’t want something heavy. For example, Mizensir’s Perfect Oud is… perfect… for those kinds of days. It’s soft and powdery with a light sweetness to it and a nice gentle shade of oud. If you’re new to oud, this would be a much gentler introduction to it than something harsh, heavy and animalic.

But for those days where I’m craving the heavy, beast mode stuff, I’ll always go for the Khaleeji perfumes, and more often than not I’ll go all out on the layering - I’ll probably need a whole other post at some stage on layering scents. Something I’ve learned on my fragrance journey is that I lean heavily towards scents geared towards men. I just don’t like the sickeningly sweet, fruity, floral scents that women are supposed to like.

In Khaleeji culture, they do have scents geared towards men and women, but they don’t restrict themselves to ‘pour homme’ and ‘pour femme’ scents. That suits me down to the ground, as it’s how I approach my tastes and is the essence of who I am - no to standards imposed upon us by society, and yes to what I like.

Anything else?

A real bugbear of mine since the inception of this blog has been the lack of credit or acknowledgment for my research, knowledge and work. It’s happened so often over the years and it can get quite frustrating, as I’m not your standard influencer who just churns out meaningless, thoughtless content to earn a quick buck.

I invest a lot of my time into research, and put a lot of myself into everything that I do here. So on that note, if anything you read here has been useful, or has inspired you, don’t be shy - tag me, link me, tell me all about it.

Also, do I change from Fashionicide to Fragranticide? Answers on a postcard, and stay tuned!

"An oasis of colour, in a sea of nudes."