Tabu by Dana

Carla

Tabu. It's tacky, cheap, trashy, cheap, tempting, cheap and Oh did I say Tabu is so cheap? Is it good though?
Surprisingly, Yes! Why? Because its kitschy and tasteful at the same time. A controversial vintage scent that will never go away because its what a girl wants, well sometimes that is. This come hither spicy oriental sends a message of a woman who's been around the block a few times, literally! When worn in the appropriate atmosphere and applied sparingly, this scent can be simply the best, well almost. Is it better than all the rest? No not quite,
but certainly give it a whirl as it does have some magic attached to it. Beware of the initial spritz though, it's like "WHOA Nellie"! Quite biting to say the least, but don't be dismayed yet, continue on and enjoy the ride!

With a somewhat overkill of sweetness, Tabu an enigma encased in a simplified bottle, is a strong, powerful, spicy oriental with lasting qualities that will permeate your skin as well as the air around you. It has an unforgettable aura that will portray you in an innocent way or in an uncouth way, whatever way you work it.From beginning to end the 19 notes in this down and dirty scent will have you and your significant other mesmerized to the 9th degree.

Experiment the possibilities of this fragrance with enthusiasm as this could very well be "The Sweetest Taboo"!

Action

Hi Geegee,
I do agree with you once more!!
Good luck!
Action

geegee

Ive had this perfume for a while now & i despise the first couple of hours of it. Then it settles into a really beautiful & subtle powdery glow & smells nothing like it does on initial spraying.

Its such a shame that it is so rank for a while because the dry down is a total dream & it lasts a very very long time too. Ive worn it all day & my fella can still smell it on me when he comes home.

If you want to wear this & will be mixing with other people i suggest you spray it at least two hours before leaving the house.

sky76sky

Great review SNS - the lipstick-on-teeth city lady sums it up for me, too ;p

SedNonSatiata

The first spritz: toxic.
Drydown: reminds of Bal à Versailles.
But while BAV makes me feel like an insouciant naughty girl lolling in a tangle of rumpled sheets, Tabu transforms me into a preoccupied, sleep-deprived woman, dressed for work, unaware of the lipstick on her teeth.

PávelHenry

1 word: beautiful!

One life of history beneath this name "Tabu"... a mark in Perfumery History!

Ivy

My grandmother had this perfume. She actually gave me her little violin shaped bottle and I kept it on my dresser for years. This scent will always remind me of her and my childhood.

guest_suque

oh and another thing- for those of you who think the scent is to strong or heavy- I spray it on my stomach and lower back- smells great when you rub against your guy and it lingers lightly on his skin

guest_suque

I love this scent- I use it daily as an inexpensive perfume and also as a very expensive air freshener. When ever someone walks into my house- they compliment how great it smells!

soniamcalear

I wouldn't be caught dead waring this stuff! But one of the cashiers at Tower Mart wares this scent and one morning when I went in for my soda, all I could smell was this beautiful soft scent permeating the whole store and it dawned on me it was her Tabu-how surprising was that? I still won't ever ware it but love the smell of the room when some else is waring it.

guest_sherry

Tabu Perfume has a special place in my heart. it was the first perfume I wore as a 16 year old girl and now am a woman turning 56. strangers comment on the beautifull scent when I walk past. It was the perfume of my youth, of first love. it is probably the first scent my son knew me by as a baby. I wear it daily, my one indulgance. I am an artist who lives on a ranch so I don't do nails and spas. but I 'Do Tabu'. It's more than a signature scent for me it evokes all the rich memories of my life.
I truly love it and was heartbroken to hear that you are discontinueing it in favor of a 'New Tabu' fragrance lacking in quality. please don't discontinue the original scent we love it.

Malegria

That`s one chameleon of a fragrance.
I`ve been very lucky to try a vintage version, and as almost all vintages, it is softer then the contemporary version. Starts off so strong that can easily knock you off you feet!My favorite part is the heart notes - it`s a flowery abundance,a little arrogant, may be a bit too pushy, but still you can`t help liking it. It`s like a whore with a golden heart!would not be surprised if Mae West wore smth of this nature. Surprisingly, the animalistic notes were not so pronounced on my skin, but flowers definitely had their say!
I think I will end up getting a bottle for myself and use it as a time machine in the golden era of silent movies.

desmondorama

After reading the reviews, I desperately wanted to know why this perfume is so popular.

Sadly, my tester experience was disastrous! I'm sure it suits some women well, but I recognised it as the fragrance that the grandmothers (guests at the hotel) tend to wear at my workplace.

It's not an 'old lady' fragrance; but it's certainly favoured by them. Perhaps they wore it in their youth.

Anyway, the mystery of it's popularity still remains.

I noticed that the Tabu brand by Dana Perfumes has recently released other limited edition fragrances in a more modern line - Sapphire, Diamond, Black Pearl and Tabu by Day as well as Tabu by Night in immaculate white packaging of EDP strength.

Bravo to them for remaining so popular among mature women!

HOPE007

I have seen this and never tried it... after seeing reviews I wanted to try it and was intrigued as I normally love orientals. I tried it not once but twice and both times there was something about it that really bothered me and actually gave me a headache, which I never have an issue with fragrances... and I left it on to let the scent develop, but still I just couldn't stand it. Something about it reminds me of some sort of car air freshener that it must share notes with. How I wanted to love it based on the reviews as it sounds like such a diamond in the rough, but me and Tabu just do not work at all... :-(

guest_Aneja

I would have to say I love this fragrance. At first try I was taken back to a childhood time when my mom would buy me rootbeer barrell candies. And my brother woudl burn inscence. I absolultely love the orential spicy sexy/sultry scent. I do admit I love to wear this at night with a little extra sandalwood and cedarwood oil. For those who like just a little scent spray in the air above you and walk under it letting it dust you in the fragrance, it is much easier on you that way. I love all three stages in this fragrance. If you like Tabu try Tigress by Faberge'. If you want some adventure and sultry experience try Bakir by a drop or two, then stand back and watch out for the complements from not only men but women too. One for winter and Christmas time. Love love love these three.

NebraskaLovesScent

I recently purchased a large vintage spray bottle of Tabu, having heard too many negative comments about the newer versions.

It smelled familiar, and at first, it did not smell pleasant on me. Tabu had a pronounced synthetic rubber/tuberose scent upon application that I have since learned will dissipate in about 15 minutes.

After the horrible opening disappears, it's a beautiful oriental scent that is hot, sweet, spicy and full of patchouli, but ultimately stays close to the skin.

A bit too much for day time and a definite no-no for the office, but I'll save this one for the chilly winter days and nights at home, when I want to curl up under a blanket with a warm, sexy scent.

guest_

What is going on. I just purchased a gift set. The product was just horrible. I wear nothing but Tabu. So for Christmas did you do something different to sell the 3 piece set cheap at walmart. I have worn Tabu since I was 14. I am not 59. This was just terrible. I hope when I purchase the cologne alone it is not like the gift box. I just can't believe what I was smelling. I should know what to expect from Tabu. The cologne was like alchol and the loting was well I had to take a bath it was just that bad.

Care

I have worn and loved Tabu since my late teens/early 20's. My husband likes the perfumes I wear, but absolutely loves Tabu. It seems to be the only one he can identify, in spite of the others that I wear so often, which all seem quite unique to me. So, whenever I want some attention from him, I know just what to wear. It helps that I love to live in this warm, exotic, sweet-incense fragrance myself.

vioversilver

This is one of my favorites , it really works well on my skin, rich, warm, spicy, very sultry, especially the dry down , give it a chance to work with your skin ,Very , very sexy ...

Not a fizzy , girly scent (Nothing against fizzy or girly ofcourse) instead this is full and voluptous .

For those who like anything retro, check out the old Tabu print ads from the 30s' 40s' and 50s' on the internet - very vampish, very suitable for this perfume!

guest_Spicy

I was given a bottle of Tabu by a friend in the '70's in a beautiful black bottle that looked like a long black dress. I loved it, used it, threw the bottle away (how I wish I hadn't!) Years later I discovered it again and have bought it many times since but have never found it in that bottle, Shame!

Tala

I just did a side by side comparison between Tabu and Magi Noir by Lancome. 14 notes shared. only 4 different notes. I always loved Magi Noir and nice to know how Tabu is so similar to such mysterious scent.

milena

VERY STRONG AND SEXY,I WORE THIS WHEN I WAS IN HIGH SCHOOL.NOT AN EVERY DAY PERFUME.I DO STILL LOVE IT. BUT ON OCCASIONS.

giddalti

My grandma used to wear this. I loved my grandma very much, but ... Grandma, please don't be offended ... that Tabu stank something fierce. Tabu is tabu to me, folks. Ugh!

Tala

I love this seamless fragrance. So many big names copied this original. YveSaintLaurant made Opium, then there is Estee Lauder Cinabar and finally Calvin Kline's Obsession. If you do a side by side comparison they all share identical notes. About 11 of the notes are the same!! Yet Tabu remains humble and unassuming. It is better than all 3 for different reasons, mainly it is more wearable. The dry down is fantastic. It is a must have for fall and winter. The perfect Bohemian style of fragrance.

Scentgoddess

OH dear, this scent just doesn't do it for me. I can appreciate that it suits some people. Definitely not my taste. I don't like to give bad reviews, and crush anyone's favorite perfume. But definitely an acquired taste. Much too woody and spicy and quite masculine. Has an 'old spice' quality.

BronxBeauty

One morning several months ago, I took the advice of several posters in this forum and tried Tabu, which they had touted as a good, inexpensive scent.

"It smells like incense," said one. "Like an Indian bazaar," said another.

The scene was the basement perfume counter of the Herald Square Conway -- a sleaze palace of a store, if you've ever been there, but a good place to buy cheap cosmetics. The guy behind the counter let me spritz my arm and...

Yow!

I felt immediately assaulted by a note that smelled like cheap whores. Like cheap whores in the Bronx, even! (I get to diss the Bronx. I live there.) This was an Eau de Hot Sheets Motel, if there ever was one.

Repulsed, I fled the store with the stuff still drying on my arm.

Then, a funny thing happened. It dried, and whatever note had so shocked my nostrils disappeared. By the time I got to work, all I smelled was this rich, spicy scent. I enjoyed it so much, I kept sniffing my arm all day. That stuff lasts.

Which just goes to show, I guess, that you shouldn't trust the top note. So, to those who touted Tabu, I say: I think I'll buy it

liquidiridium

This always reminds me of dark autumn days & nights. Burning leaves. My mom always wore it when it got cold. She wore the oil I think. Bewitching smell.

Philyra

He walked away from her place, his heart still racing with excitement. The moments of pleasure now floating away, but her scent engraved forever in the corners of his memory: a wild jungle animal, strong, dominant, confident; a warm embrace of spices with a precious bouquet of flowers. An alluring scent into a forbidden world of pleasure he wanted to revisit eternally.

moonruby

Ah! long time no see...

I used to see Tabu on chemist countertops being sold very rather cheap prices.
Its fragrance is very hard to wear appropriatly, so dont wear this to the supermarket unless you want the entire check-out line in a sneezing fit.

Polymath

Still a real attention getter that is easy to overdo. I still wear it, usually in the winter, usually at night. It reminds me a lot of Fracas.

guest_peanuts

You need to get the perfume instead of the cologne for the spray and less strength. Tabu is not a cheap perfume.

The best thing about Tabu is that you have to use very very little and it lasts for hours and hours.

A perfume that is not as strong, which is also made by Dana, is 'Ambush'. It's also a very long lasting one, but not quite as strong.

I have worn Tabu for years, have switched and tried different perfumes which were alright, but I have never ever gotten more compliments continually over the years than I have when I wear Tabu!

I'll never stop wearing it!

Castor

A strong amberine, patchoulesque, vanilla and caramel combo dating from a time perfumers worked almost exclusively for women. Things changed and by the end of the 1970s and much of the 1980s these kind of oriental scents were offered to men: this let Karl Lagerfeld's for men and CK's Obsession make their grand debut - CK's Obsession for men becoming a success. Surprisingly for someone who did not live in the 1930's, Tabu reminds one of these two.

Please, don't think Tabu replaces some of 1980's classics like the ones before mentioned. Simply a remark on the fact that it is quite interesting to notice a strong family air among them.

I have been suggested to try Stetson as a male counterpart of Tabu.

susieqrj

I always had prejudice about this one: when I was a teenager, I used to mock about Tabu, saying that it was smelly, cheap, and so on.
But yesterday, after reading the positive reviews, I decided to give it a try.
Bought it at a drugstore (where you can find a great sort of cheap perfumes - it costed me about 2 dollars for 60ml - 2oz) and tried it at my skin.
Incense. That´s my very first impression of Tabu. And it was kinda pleasant. I just tried a little on my hands. Later I´ll try it fully on my skin.
(I don´t know if the perfume produced here in Brazil smells exactly as the one produced outside or if the concentrations are the same. Also there are three new versions of Tabo for sale: Tabu Romance, Tabu Flores and Tabu Segredos - Romance, Flowers and Secrets, respectively -. I don´t know if these versions only exists here in Brazil).

Updating (14/05/09):
Today I tried it fully on the skin and I have to say: it is very strong. The impression of incense/esoteric store only happened at the first time. Now that I have it well aplied on my skin (the bottle don´t have a vaporizer, I have to apply with my hands), it is kinda sweet and something on it annoys me. Could it be the Civet?
I´m still trying to get used to it, the fragrance is not bad but it´s almost like a bright sign, screaming "Hello, I´m here!".
It´s been 4 hours since I applyed and the smell is still intense. I don´t know it leaves trails as I walk, but I´m still engolfed with it, exaling it.

falovalo

The best word to describe this is VERY. VERY spicy, VERY rich, VERY oriental, VERY loud and VERY long lasting.

maid_marilyn

It's extremely difficult not to overdo this one - even one spray can be too much for most social situations. I use the cotton ball method: I spritz the cotton ball with Tabu, and then dab the cotton ball on my wrist. Even when I apply it this way, Tabu is still almost too strong for me to wear.

Used with some serious moderation, this is a warm, spicy, beautiful scent. I get lots of cinnamon from this, plus amber, oakmoss, and loads of musk, of course. I hadn't thought of it before I read tessture's review, but I think she's right: Tabu does remind me of rootbeer. Spicy, musky rootbeer. I also get the comparisons to Shalimar, but Tabu is far heavier, muskier, and not nearly as classy. Still, for a tenth the price of Shalimar, you need to try Tabu if you like heavy, spicy orientals. (I paid $1.99 for my little 15 ml bottle and I can honestly say it was worth every penny.)

KalteStern

I wore this as teenager, usually when I wanted something VERY strong that could survive bars and discos, which may be part of it's rep as a perfume of the night; it can take the heat.

It also has that sweet heavy oriental overall structure that many men seem to love. But be warned, if you don't like it, it can make you feel sick and you will be desperate to wash it off, as it's so pervasive. But for its usual price it is a hell of a bargain -think of it as cut price Shalimar for those on a budget

ferrari

It's strong and spicy. Remindes me something between Guerlain Shalimar and YSL Opium.
Nice in few drops, but for me I think will be to strong in few spray.

missk

This is a fragrance which I happen to see quite often while I'm out shopping or browsing through the stores. With its distinguishable black, white and red bottle and the matching talcum powder in its box not far away, this is one inexpensive fragrance many seem to avoid.

I was surprised to find this fragrance in my mother's room, covered in dust and pushed to the darkest part of her closet. It was obviously my father's attempt at buying my mother a fragrance, but trying to do it on the cheap. I found myself reaching for this bottle and dusting it with a tissue, only to spritz a small quantity onto my wrist.

Seconds later I was met with a wonderful and totally unexpected, warming scent. It took me to a place where I had visited so many times as a child; a quaint, little store filled with incense, tiny trinkets, tie-dye saris and colourful wind chimes. It had such a carefree, quirky and unique style. Such a sensual and warm fragrance.

I promptly asked my mother to give it one more try, to which she discovered what had captivated me only minutes before. Never again will I judge a fragrance solely on its price tag. This fragrance is a true gem in the world of scents.

megannsmom

I too remember my Mom wearing this! To my baby nose, she smelled warm and rich and soooooo grown up. I should buy a bottle, just for the memories.....

lilinah

I've always liked Tabu. It was one of the first scents i bought for myself, a tiny little bottle. I had already commandeered my mother's bottle of Shalimar, which is still one of my favorites. Both are spicy and oriental, but Tabu is heavier and darker, almost oily, while Shalimar is a bit brighter. I still like Tabu, but it's definitely not a scent to wear to the office. And i wear Shalimar more often.

F_A

After reading so many controversial opinions about Tabu, I finally had a chance to try this famous fragrance myself (thank you Belle de Sud!).

From the first sniff I find it very oriental, like Indian market:) It is rich, spicy and colorful. Then animalistic notes come into play and remain till the very base. Those animalistic notes are somehow airy, light but sultry at the same time. It makes the fragrance smell sexy and alluring.

Strange but when I first tried this fragrance I somehow remembered the adult movies of the 90s :) You know, the ladies in satin underwear, a lot of hair spray, bright make up, pearl necklaces:) I think they could have used Tabu.

Still I was sniffing my wrist, thinking what this scent reminds me of. There was something very familiar, not the movies :D And then suddenly I remembered (do not laugh!) - it smells exactly like my dog after bath when I wash him with the flowery dog shampoo! The smell of a clean lovely smelling animal.

It is really a must try fragrance for anybody who's into oriental-flowery-animalistic fragrances. The staying power is very good!

sapphire73

I want this perfume, it's so spicy and exotic. It is very strong though and it lasts for ages.

Chatnoir

A real power scent. On me the patchouli dominates, followed by the spice of cinnamon. Tabu lasts and lasts on me, a great feat, and a testament to its initial strength. In small doses, this is a sexy fragrance.

emily1981

My grandma used to tell me that when she was young that only the happy ladies of the night wore this scent. Later in life she often wore it and thought it was still racy and "taboo". I think its a fun rather sweet scent and wear every now and then.

tessture

A very strong, very oriental fragrance. I get powdered rootbeer/cola notes that are very strange, but not bad. There are definite incense notes and some spice, but reminds too much of another woman. It's just not my style and you must try it on before buying, unless you can get the really cheap bottles now available at discount drugstores. To me, it's dated and really, really smells like rootbeer. To others, it's sex in a bottle.

MandaBee

I have always adored this scent on my Mom. It's just so sensual and feminine that I was always jealous that she got to wear it. But it's definitely a scent for grown-ups ;-)

girlsrideharleys2

Ahhh..my moms signature scent. She smells so good when she wears this and always gets positive reactions to it as well. I love it on her ;)

feyza

This parfume very resembles to cacharel's Eden.if you like it,you will like this..very powdery scent.

Aiona

I tried this yesterday, and did *NOT* like the bottle. There was no way to get just a little bit of spray. It was either "deluge" or "nothing" even though I sprayed it a couple of times in the air to try to figure out how to get a LITTLE bit. So I ended up with my wrist drenched in Tabu.

This meant that the topnotes were absolutely unbearable to me! It smelled like road tar mixed with cinnamon and florals.

So, I walked around the store for a while, holding my wrist at arm's length, waiting desperately for it to dry down. It still was very caustic to me.

But when I finally stepped out of the store, and into the breezy night air, I realized I smelled a lot like my maternal grandmother. I think she may have worn this on occasion. And from a distance, it's powdery amber drydown is kind of nice.

But to me, Tabu is a Rules girl. You can't get close to her in the initial stages. She has dirty secrets that only those close to her know, but she wants you to follow her, fall in love with her first, so you can overlook her faults when you finally discover them. (Up close, it still smells like road tar mixed with cinnamon.)

I like it, but won't buy it. I already spent a buttload of money this month.