Prada Infusion d'Oeillet and Infusion d'Amande

The luxury Italian brand of Prada announced last year that it would be making the Infusion fragrance collection a permanent part of the line, revising their former limited edition status.  They planned to reintroduce some of the previous and presumably more successful scents, and in addition would be adding three new scents to the line. After the announcement, the perfumes were not immediately available. This was done purposely to build anticipation, in what the industry terms "a slow launch". As best I could tell, the perfumes were initially only available in some European markets and those launches began last May. Here in Singapore I got my first glimpse of the bottles about two months ago at Tangs department store, and I just noticed that they now are on the Saks Fifth Avenue website in the USA. I love Prada Infusion d'Iris so I was eagerly anticipating these new perfumes. I've been a bit disappointed with some of the past offerings; I had high hopes for Tubereuse, the limited edition for 2010, but it didn't live up to my expectations. Perhaps I was just judging each new entry by the standard set by Infusion d'Iris, the original entry to the line in 2007 which I think is a classic in the making. Infusion d'Iris, Infusion de Vetiver, and Infusion de Fleur d'Oranger have been reintroduced. There are three new perfumes added to the collection: Infusion d'Iris Cedre, Infusion d'Oeillet, and Infusion d'Amande. Today I will be talking about my two favorites from the new introductions: Infusion d'Oeillet and Infusion d'Amande.

Infusion d'Oeillet

Carnation has a reputation of being a fuddy duddy sort of scent, old fashioned and a bit boring, but the flower has recently gotten some attention from perfumers and after years of dormancy there have been a sprinkling of new introductions featuring the note. I wanted to see how Prada would lighten and enliven carnation to make it fit the transparency and delicacy which are the trademarks of the Infusion line. 

The initial spray is full on fresh carnation. I find carnation to be a happy scent.  It gives me the same feeling of crisp clean freshness that I get from lavender, although the notes don't resemble at all. Next up are the cloves and they add quite a bit of spice. I get the smell of carnation, cloves and a bit of pepper for around an hour, then it starts becoming a bit deeper with the floral less defined. Patchouli and sandalwood take the carnation to a deeper place but it is very softly done. The juice in this bottle is a pretty translucent pink, and that pretty much signifies how the carnation presents itself. Although the initial spray has presence, it is overall a quiet refined scent. The carnation may start out a red watercolor rendering but Prada introduces a transparency, as if a brush loaded with water swiped the red flower and dilutes the color to a paler pink.  I appreciate carnation and I like the softness of this perfume so it may turn into a buy for me. Although the scent is lightly done I still think you would need to have some appreciation for carnation to enjoy this perfume.

Prada Amande

My first impression of Prada Amande is the bitter almond note. Almond is a funny note for me. I occasionally like it but more often than not I can't abide it, so I had no expectation that I would like this perfume. But within moments of application  it becomes a delectable doughy almond batter of fluffy goodness. Heliotrope gives a soft powdery smell to perfumes, and favored combinations include almond and tonka bean, both of which are found in this perfume. There may be a touch of iris but I don't see the note listed. The sensation is almond, creamy tonka and a light floral. It feels simple and linear but I can't stop smelling my arm. The description makes it sound heavily gourmand but it is not. Of course the almond gives it a foody feel but it is pretty, unique, and displays a light transparency. 

The weightlessness of Prada Amande makes this feel suitable for approaching warm weather but I can also picture this fragrance feeling perfect around Christmas, when perfumes reminiscent of the smells of the season seem so right. For me, Prada Amande is a big win for the Infusion line; it perfectly fits the style but offers an ingredient not so commonly available in perfumes. I think the Prada publicity shots pictured here also do a good job of displaying the feel of the perfumes. They feature pale pretty bottles, watery images and soft florals, which is a good summary of what the Infusion line offers

Apologies, I can't figure out how to get accent marks to work so the perfume names are lacking the proper lettering.

Photos from the Prada website.