Friday, March 25, 2011

SOTD: Elizabeth Taylor Black Pearls


Released in 1996, Black Pearls isn't everyone's cup of tea. Maybe that fits with the story I heard- namely that Liz had BPs made specifically for herself.

Black Pearls notes:
Top: bergamot, peach, lotus, water lily
Heart: gardenia, lilac, white rose, jasmine
Base: spices, sandalwood, vanilla

Black Pearls had been discontinued but it has re-appeared en mass at online retailers, having been poorly reformulated (by who knows). The injection of heavy elements- syrupy fruit and amber by all accounts did not improve the fragrance. The new version has not been well received by most reviewers over at MUA and Fragrantica although I don't believe the original sold very well, either. Watery florals can be tricky- (edit: melon fruit/water flowers on top of woody oriental base).

I have a 1996 bottle of the pure perfume and find it beautiful, delicate and unique thanks to the succulent water flowers, restrained use of fruit notes and a well balanced base of wood, vanilla and spice. Worth seeking out, if you've the patience to look for a bottle of the older formula. Don't quote me, but I think I recall the older bottles (except the parfum) looked similar to the columnar style used for White Diamonds....

The Vintage Perfume Vault, where the scent of yesterday's vogue lives.

2 comments:

Undina said...

I'm surprised: somehow I completely missed this perfume. It's not that I always tested all of them (even in a simpler times when there weren't 1K new releases every year) but usually I was at least aware of their existence.

Amelia said...

It was always sort of underplayed, and then vanished so I'm not surprised. I feel sad that the market has been flooded with the spurious reformulated version. Anyway, it seems an appropriate choice to mark her passing.
XO