Bal d'Afrique Byredo for women and men

I really love this perfume. When I first sprayed it on, some of it went onto the scarfe I was wearing and I could not stop smelling my scarfe all day. It really is lovely on my skin. I have compared it to Gypsy Water and even though, Gypsy water is nice, it has too much lemon for me. Bal D' Afrique has less lemon and is more elegant for day or night.
Love it!!

I could not choose between bal d afrique and hermes vetiever tonka. So I bought them both. First weeks I thought these perfumes were identical. But now, when I had time to well test both I can tell that:
Bal d afrique is the weaker sister of vetiever tonka. It is more vibrant, brighter, lighter, more flowery if you would. More feminine. Lasts nothing on me. Gone before lunchtime if I spray it in the morning.
Vetiever tonka is a darker, tobacco vetiever, loooong lasting and deep scent, absolutely beautiful and enjoyable. Quite a masculine scent. My husband kidnapped vetiever tonka bottle , he loves it too.

Yes these perfumes are similar in the opening, but only for a few moments, then they take their own unique character. I prefer vetiever over bal d afrique simply because the later does not last. Otherwise they are both so fantastically chic!

this is beautiful! the opening is something out of this world, delicious. Got to have it!

This opens fresh honey very well Luscious will get drunk with this juice.
You feel light, feeling the sea breeze and at the same time very elegant.
Do not think the common, it is very special I smell this flower that is African too.
To love all that try this brand, it really is worth niche.

I classify it thus:
Smell: 10/10
Projection: 8/10
Longevity: 8.75 / 10

On my skin this fragrance is sweet flowery orange, that becomes a bit soapy after a while, probably because of the violets. Personnaly, I would wear it in the summer, it 's a nice clean sent, good when it's hot. Has a great longevity

Great unisex fragrance. There is a very nice balance going on here. BD opens with a very peaceful accord of florals and citrus. The citrus will drop off, to be replaced by more florals, but it’s not overly feminine. It’s done very well. I get jasmine and violet at the heart of the fragrance which is countered by the cedar, vetiver and amber dry down. Balance is the key to this fragrance. It is blended almost perfectly, lasts a great amount of time, and the sillage is just right down the middle. Not overpowering nor nonexistent.

Bal D'Africa is pure class. It is very well blended. The overall feel is of a warm humming, expensive smelling fruity amber that seems almost alive on your skin.
This fragrance is said to be inspired by African culture, and that African Marigold is included in the top notes. It's wondeful, it's a must have.

Such a great one! A lovely surprise from Byredo as they usually seem to dissapoint me.
The first blast is bubblegum sweet citruses and cyclamen. As soon as it settles fantastic mouthwatering vetiver joins in and a very natural smelling marigold adding the green twist.
I can only agree with people saying that "Bal d'Afrique" is a happiness in bottle, very up lifting, very unique. When it is at it's heart part it finally becomes "unisex" as the opening was purely sweet and feminine. The heart part is joined in by cedar, it gets a bit dryer, still very sweet, but wearable by males.

Even though the price is high for Byredo and it stays close to skin, also longevity is around 6 hours on me, I simply cannot say "no" to my urge to have a full bottle of this. A fantastic offering. Worth the price as it makes me happy.

All I can think about is artificial banana flavoring. I guess this is Josephine Baker's banana dance, but not as lusty.

Sweet and woody, with a hint of flowers, this is a perfect unisex fragrance. This would be lovely if it wasn't for the fact that the fragrance is almost too subtle. I could barely detect it most of the time!

I sampled this today, and quite liked it.
At the time, I knew I had smelled something like this before, but I could't put my finger on it.......until I later when I was at home. It is VERY similar to another bottle I have in my collection.....Pal Zilleri Collezione Privata Viaggio d'Africa.

out of all the byredo scents i really like this one together with Pulp. this one is sweet, fresh and florally. the dry down is woody with sheer vanilla. its very pleasant, clean, unique and complex. its a very sophisticated sweet scent.

Right now, I could eat myself! LOL. Simply wonderful! Love it!
Quite similar to Vetiver Tonka by Hermes.Highly recommended to both men and women. Not overly masculine and not overly feminine. Just perfect. Very moderate sillage, more like a skin scent.

I went to Stockholm today and bought this one!
The staff was really nice and he talked about the different scents! I loved that place and also love this fragrance!
The smell was for me unique, something I havent smell before, I went for a quick walk and then I decided to buy it! Its a really sexy nice smell, I love it!
Longevity on this should be aroung 8 h which is great!
for me this is a def buy! 10/10 <3

I took an immediate liking to Byredo BAL D'AFRIQUE but was confounded as to what this perfume reminded me of. It was on the tip of my tongue, but I could not figure it out. Then I took a look at this site and saw that five people had listed Hermessence VETIVER TONKA as a smell alike. Then it dawned on me: they were right!

How can a perfume with neither vetiver nor tonka among its listed notes smell so similar to VETIVER TONKA? That is the real mystery. Or is it? Both vetiver and violet are listed above (though vetiver is not listed at the other site I checked), and the violet might contribute to the sweetness in this composition. In fact, my impression is that notes are vague metaphors for what the perfumer hopes to convey the impression of in his or her creation. I do not smell any tagetes in this composition, though it is listed as the number one most detectable by Fragranticans. To me, this is much more about vetiver than flowers.

Yes, BAL D'AFRIQUE smells like slightly sweet vetiver. Calm and powdery and a bit spicy. I like it. Do I like it more than VETIVER TONKA? I think that I might, but I'm working from memory, as my Hermessences vials were drained a while back. I do feel confident in asserting that anyone who likes VETIVER TONKA will like BAL D'AFRIQUE as well, and anyone who does not probably will not. The Hermessence was launched in 2004, and this one in 2009, but sweet vetiver was a good idea then and it is now, too.

Lovely fragrance but nil staying power. I've practically showered in it and 30 minutes on I can hardly smell it. My little 2ml sample is going to disappear fast, but I'll enjoy it while it lasts!

***News Flash*** My anosmic husband can smell it across the room, apparently. Maybe it's one of those scents you can't smell on yourself.

WANT TO TRADE!

The vetiver in this is why I could never adapt to it, it just makes it feel a bit too masculine for me. I was captivated by it initially in the store, I was looking for something different, new, not recognizable...well I found it! I ended up using this as a bathroom spray and it does make the place smell wonderful. I wish I would have worn it for the day before purchasing...it's an expensive bathroom spray.

I can see why so many love this, just too masculine for my taste.
I've got just under half the bottle left of 50ml if anyone wants to trade.

There is not too many fragrances that are smelling so different because of your current mood – but Bal d’Afrique really does. Sometimes it is sweeter, another time it is more woody and dry. In some days I realy hate this fragrance but in the next I can fall in love whit this masterpiece – kind of schizophrenic emotions. I feel huge sentiment to Bal d’Afrique because it was one of the first few niche fragrances I bought – you know this euphoric feeling :-). Also the place where I found it was so unforgettable… my wonderful vacation in Catalonia, Barcelona. So now when I’m wearing it the pictures form the past develop in my mind. Bal d’Afrique is kind of fresh and herbal but not harsh, not poisonous, very smooth. It is very balmy in the same time and creates airy, a little dusty aura. I can imagine Vicky and Cristina can wear it easily and Woody Allen could as well ;-)

I'm experiencing a true love/hate relationship with this fragrance. At the time of writing my first review, I just couldn't get along with the perfume. Wanted to love it but had to conclude that I didn't. Then, lo and behold, I tried it again and loved it (see below).

Now I hate it again. The violets jump out at me and the perfume seems brash, awkward and just unpleasant.

Sadly, have to relegate this one to the swap list. I can't wear something that seems so changeable! It's one thing to have a perfume evolve on the skin, changing over time to reveal its various elements, but quite another to have it send me running for the soap one day only to seduce me the next!

Sadly the bottom line is that this is now a scrubber for me. :-/

***UPDATE***

Oh, how wrong I was... I do indeed ADORE this perfume.

I tried this scent again, this time making sure that I washed the skin first to remove any trace of body lotion near my wrists. The lotion I use is unscented but I read somewhere that even an unscented lotion can interfere with perfume. I also tried it when my nose was fresh, rather than after smelling a few others in the store.

The scent opens with a fresh citrus zing, but not as sharp as it seemed last time. The sweet floral accord is smooth, sultry and superbly feminine. I feel seduced and mesmerised by Bal d'Afrique. The sweetness is never cloying as it can be with gourmand or vanilla-type perfumes, it is fresh and subtle, suggestive of the fruits I mentioned in my earlier review. It also has a slightly salty, cool accord - it's not always obvious but it's definitely there somewhere.

Good longevity, lasting at least six hours on my skin, days on clothing. Projection seems fair, but I find that very difficult to gauge, so your mileage may vary.

The understated sensuality of this fragrance makes it ideal for any time of day or night.

I've been wearing this for a couple of days and it is my new signature scent. I am delighted. I'm so glad I decided to try this perfume again. Had I missed out on this dream of a scent it would have been a minor tragedy.

I simply can't stop smelling my wrist and my boyfriend adores the perfume as much as I do. It smells very similar to Clive Christian's X for women but is less scandalously priced!

Superb fragrance, cannot say enough good things about it.


***YET ANOTHER EDIT***

I'm starting to suspect that my opinion of this depends largely on how liberally I apply it. If I apply sparingly, I find it far more pleasant than if I'm heavy-handed. When I apply too much I get those horried violets that I despise so much. With just a couple of sprays I end up with the lovely salty, slightly cool and androgynous scent that I love :-D

At first sniff I thought I adored this fragrance, but grew tired of it very quickly. Upon application there was a momentary dash of sharp lemons, followed by a couple of hours of what I thought were fruits, so I was surprised when I read the fragrance notes here and saw that the only presence of fruit is in the citrus top notes. I thought I was smelling berries and perhaps peaches, but evidently not! The fruits were sweet and juicy which I loved at first, but was disappointed when the scent developed into a rather banal floral base. I had hoped for something richer, warmer and deeper. Perhaps the vetiver and cedar come to the fore for others, but not on my skin. I smelt no trace of amber whatsoever. I would have given a great deal to smell the heavier, grounding scents of vetiver and cedar but alas, they never arrived.

It reminds me of the sort of perfume I always try to avoid in department stores - generic, feminine (bordering on girly), floral, but pinkly sweet and lacking any development.

I hasten to add that I acknowledge perfumes develop differently on different people, but this one is definitely not for me.

The search continues for my new Signature Scent.

P.S. Merry Christmas everyone!

I just bought this fragrance today at Barney's NYC (12/13/11) and I LOVE IT!!!!! I tend to group scents by season. This scent is something that can be worn all year, but it is a floral with musk notes. I thought this scent is great for now (Fall/Winter). As it dries down, the notes deepen and becomes very sexy. I cannot wait to wear it to work tomorrow.

It combines well with a Serge Lutens Vitriol d'Willet. Oh boy, what a wonderful combination.

Smells like some sort of bubblegum. It is sweet and delicious. It does not last long and the sillage is not strong, actually is more like a close to the skin fragrance, but for 2 or 3 hours every time you get a whiff of it a big smile appears on your face. Bal d'Afrique is joy in a bottle.

Very nice blend of citruses, white flowers, violet and cedar - nothing really stands out for me. Well, maybe the smooth and green cedar note, which is a sniffer for me as always (meaning I have to sniff my wrist every so often, because it's making me curious). It's creamy and woody, yet quite sheer. I don't detect much of a projection and even less sillage, this is one for yourself and yourself only.
You cannot judge by the name however. It's a little bit like with Un Jardin Sur Le Nil - I seriously doubt there's a single square inch of Africa that actually smells like this.

Shares quite a lot of characteristics with their "Pulp", although the impression of rotting fruit in the garbage is not so strong here.

I bought this unisex eau de parfum just this week. This is the second Byredo fragrance I purchased (the other was Pulp). I'm a big fan of Byredo (aside from Creed). I love and am intrigued by this fragrance. A light, sweet scent with interesting notes. It's not too feminine and not so masculine either. It could possibly be comparable to YSL's L'Homme, but this is way better (and pricier--but well worth it).

This fragrance is said to be inspired by African culture, and that African Marigold is included in the top notes. However, the African Marigold does not originate in Africa at all, but in other continents including South America. Byredo fell for its conflicting name, but nice try (and nice addition to this fragrance). I'm overall pleased, and prefer this over Byredo's Pulp. I'm excited to see what Byredo fragrance to get next--I'm torn between Rose Noir and Oud Immortal, or even Gypsy Water.

Cheers,

M.R.C., age 28
Bay Area, California
USA

I love the most of Byredo perfumes, but this one is really THE BEST! When you wear it, it feels like you're wrapt with love, it some kind of happiness, that remain with you for whole day.

This is just gorgeous. I get really lovely fresh cut tropical pineapple on me with a very light woody dry down - although I note pineapple isn't listed as a note. However while I only have nice things to say, I'm not sure I can justify the $235 asking price in Australia.

...yes, it won't stay with you all day...but for the view hours it is present it will render your world.

if a perfume could make love to you...this one would be it.

Have you ever bought a microwaved meal because the picture made it look really good; but when you heated it up yourself it became a mooshy, nondescript mess?

Bal d'afrique. I poured half the bottle on my décolleté, but over the next three hours it became completely forgetable.

Since this doesn't sell in the US i'm not sure of the price point, but to me this wears like a low end offering with far-from-quality ingredients. Can't recommend it.

You have the feeling that you are taking a walk in a flower market.You get a burst of lovely feminine flowers!Among flowers is the beautiful presence of orange that blends wonderfully with jasmin and cyclamen.

I bought the "I Married Adventure" set by Byredo after lusting after it for months. I have to say, though, that I'm universally disappointed in each of the scents in the coffret.

I love how this fragrance is blended. I think this is a sophisticated scent that can be worn by male and females. There is something about this that sometimes reminds me of Prada Infusion D'Iris. Must be the orange flower, vetiver and cedar? I think it would be wonderful in the fall by a campfire or among the scent created by autumn leaves.