I'm such a perfume fiend, and find it hard to resist fragrances with pretty packaging. When it comes to choosing fragrances, I tend to opt for sweeter scents but not sickly sweet, so the YSL Black Opium range was perfect for me as there are a few perfumes to choose from. The ones I have here are Yves Saint Laurent Black Opium Eau de Toilette 50ml* and Black Opium Nuit Blanche Eau de Parfum 50ml* but there is also the Christmas Collector Edition, Black Opium Wild and Black Opium Eau de Parfum. They range in price from £54-£87 depending on the volume.
YSL first launched Opium in 1977 with the elegant and stylish woman in mind, who moves in sophisticated social circles and left her mark on all whose lives she passed through. The woman in mind in modern society has the same boyish insouciance that comes with knowledge of who she is and what she wants but with a new character who is a complete intermix of darkness and light; feminine and sensual. Being an impulsive and on the move, she seeks her next fixation, accepting no compromises, taking no prisoners, and that suits her just fine. She's the Black Opium woman.
The Black Opium Eau de Toilette bottle is a modern classic with the squared design softened by a circle at its heart, with a tribute to the Eau de Parfum. Daringly feminine, the rose gold glitter features on the bottle, with light coming through the circle. The scent breaks with a zingy blackcurrant accord, with a juicy pear accord to add a unique sweetness. There's a sharp citrus twist with notes of mandarin peel, then a whirl of fragrant jasmine tea blended with orange blossom to give it a sensual white heart to the fragrance. The breakthrough is the addictive Black Opium signature; coffee bean notes, teamed with a creamy white musk, underpinned with a white wood accord.
Black Opium Nuit Blanche which has the addictive hallmarks of its Black Opium Eau de Parfum predecessor. It brings a hypnotic energy to the dark of an endless night that reeks of spontaneity and being high on life. The unpredictable bourbon pepper accord provides an intensely pure and electrifying spicy-floral character, with the central core of exhilarating orange blossom absolute. It's sharp, fresh and brings a crisp warmth that gives a new fresh flower dimension to the fragrance. Lastly comes the signature Black Opium base; the coffee accord. Blended by alchemists, the ultra-absolute vanilla is its carrier to add a subversive darkness, with underpinning Sandalwood essence and a veil of white musk wraps it up, leaving a trail of carnal desire in its wake. In the stunning Black Opium bottle, with a black that's burnished to leave a black-red hue, with a sheer lacquer finished with silver stars.
