Bath and Body Works Forever Red

Forever Red is the big holiday fragrance release this year for Bath and Body Works.  Holiday releases have been very hit and miss for me from this company; two years ago, I love Secret Wonderland but last year Be Enchanted did not work at all with my skin chemistry.  I am happy to report already that Forever Red was released today at Bath and Body Works and this fragrance has already proved to be a hit for me, I have already purchased items from this fragrance today and it was so worth the wait.  I first smelled this fragrance early last month when small fragrance samples were available at the store and I knew that this was a fragrance that I would be wanting in all the full sizes right when it was released.  Forever Red is a strong floral fragrance, the kind that I love to wear and it smells like nothing this company has ever released before.  This fragrance reminds me very much of a Marc Jacobs fragrance and it can really be worn as a perfume instead of just a light mist of fragrance.

I wanted the Eau de Parfum in this fragrance ever since I smelled the small bottle of fragrance and it topped my Most Wanted list for this month.  We are first going to look at this product and then the other forms that are available in the fragrance.  "Our most luxurious longest lasting fragrance blends opulent notes of fiery red pomegranate and delicate peche de vigne, a rare and fleeting French peach. Soft petals of red osmanthus give way to notes of addictive velvety marshmallow and a surprising finale of rich vanilla rum that leaves an unforgettable impression." 

The top notes of this fragrance are: Fiery Pomegranate, Rare French Peach, Luminous Apple.  The heart notes are: Red Peony, Night Marigold, Red Osmanthus.  The base notes are: Rich Vanilla Rum, Velvety Marshmallow, Oak Wood. 

This fragrance starts of with a slight pomegranate and peach notes, normally I hate the scent of pomegranate but it is so light in this fragrance that it works well with my skin chemistry.  Within minutes, the top notes have worn off and then floral notes really begin to develop on my skin.  The Red Osmanthus note is the strongest note in the fragrance and really makes the fragrance pop on my skin.  The fragrance ends on a bit of a sweet note for me, with the vanilla and the marshmellow notes beginning to develop and mix with the floral heart notes.  Osmanthus is a flower that is related to jasmine and magnolia and therefore is a floral note that works very well with my skin chemistry and will last all day long for me.

This fragrance is available in an EDP instead of the traditional EDT, the EDP has a higher concentration of fragrance oil and will last longer on the skin while smelling truer to the fragrance notes.  It is also is available in the Fine Fragrance Mist, I tried this version on also and it smelled more like a pomegranate and vanilla mix on my skin, I much prefer the EDP.  In addition to these two forms, it also is available in the EDP Rollerball, an easy way to keep the fragrance in my tote bag. 

The rest of the forms are the traditional Signature Collection body products; Shower Gel, Body Lotion, Triple Moisture Body Cream, Golden Sugar Scrub, and then a matching lip gloss.  The lip gloss is a sheer red, a shade that I already own from Buxom and wasn't really interested in this time around.  In addition to the EDP, I bought the Rollerball, the Shower Gel, and the Triple Moisture Body Cream.  The lotion and cream smell very similar to the EDP, heavy on the floral notes.  On the other hand, the Shower Gel smelled a bit more fruity and much lighter than any of the other products. 

This is my favorite fragrance release from Bath and Body Works this year and is my favorite ever since Paris Amour was released in the middle of 2011.  I hadn't bought an EDP from this company in over a year and I was so excited that I found a new fragrance to wear from this company.  And the packaging?!  Lovely and like nothing that I have seen from this company in the past, I am so excited to display the EDP bottle on my dresser (when I can get enough room cleared off)!

photo courtesy of Bath and Body Works