Living in Hypnotic Poison today, nostalgic thanks to the playdough vanilla that’s in here, the remnants of a cherry halls still on my breath, warm and comfortable, almond cookies to dip in tea.
It’s been top of mind, since Luca Turin wrote that the formula was fairly cheap and so it seems to be a scent that lends itself to be copied: most notably in Zara’s Hypnotic Vanilla, so of course, last week, I popped into a Zara store and tried it on my skin. As a diehard fan of Hypnotic Poison, of course I would want a cheaper version, why wouldn’t I? I’ll save my money for more perfume. At first sniff: yes, it’s the same.
I held my nose under everyone that day and asked what they thought about my new perfume. “You already had this one” was the response. It’s got the same powdery vanilla that stands out most, but it’s missing the almond-cherry that drew me to Hypnotic Poison to the first place. Where’s the benzylaldehyde. Maybe it’s there, but I haven’t gone back for another spray. I wasn’t under the spell of the Hypnotic Vanilla where I wanted to keep thinking about it.
The nose doesn’t lie, but then late in the day, the time that Hypnotic Poison has usually disappeared, the Zara Hypnotic Vanilla was still going strong, with a telltale Zara twang, that sharpness of a note played too loud or too long. The magic in all things is when there’s something hidden, fleeting, ephemeral, whether it’s a kiss, your favourite dessert, the first perfectly sunny day of the year. They’re only good because we just can’t hold on to them the way we want to. Take away that, and you’re taking away the magic, so I’ll say that if you’re in the Zara store and you smell Hypnotic Vanilla for the first time and are blown away, get the Zara. But if you’re looking for magic, don’t worry about potency, and enjoy whatever you have. Clearly, if I finish this larger bottle of Hypnotic Poison, I’ll get another one. Maybe a mini. I’m not getting a dupe.
My perfume friends tell me that I need to smell the Pure Poison and add it to my shelf, so I’ll be trying that next, and see if gets under my skin.
