Violetta Penhaligon`s for women

Violetta is a smoky and haunting violet. It's devoid of the innocence often associated with violet fragrances, and instead it's deep, musky, and a little bit sensuous. It's slightly sweet,and slightly green,but there's a dark accord in the mixture, that makes it a worthy choice for the mother-murderer-artist character in Janet Fitch's novel White Oleander. Olfactory memories are used so powerfully in this novel that Violetta gives me that chill I'd get if I'd ever known a real, live Ingrid Magnussen. (Also, I'll never smell l'Air du temps, Ma Griffe, or Love Potion No. 9 in the same way after reading this novel!)

Very strong and clean scent of violets. I absolutely love this perfume, but realize that it wise only to use it at special occasions.

I just got a bottle of this and while I don't have a strong dislike towards the scent, it is by far not my favourite fragrance either. It can easily give you a headache if you use too much, and I always do! This opens with a strong smell of something similar to a medicinal bottle or even similar to those throat lozenges we used to have, as kids. As the scent settles on my skin, it becomes more pleasant, more worm and soft. I still don't necessarily get a smell of violets, certainly not the violets I remeber and love so much, from my childhood . I rather get a scent of musk and something citrus like instead. Anyway, all in all, too synthetic for me.

Violets, violets, violets! I am a February-born girl, and the violet is my birth flower. Violetta is the perfume that most strongly says (or, rather, shouts) "violets!" to me. It's a green, woody violet, and not much else. As literal as those violet mints you can still find on the checkout counter at some grocery stores. Violetta is pretty much that candy in perfume form: A pure shot of the little purple flower.

So far I have never met a Penhaligon perfume that I like, and Violetta continues the perfect record. At first this blue-colored EdT smells like alcohol with a super-strong, candied, very artificial, slightly leathery, violet scent.

Unfortunately on first opening the sample vial, I spilled some on my desk calendar, so will have to live with those notes for a longer time than I’d like. As it dries down on my skin, it just turns to raw ionones, and not the better ones. I wish I could smell the vanilla musk that’s supposed to be in the base, but the so-called violet completely drowns it out.

For an EdT, this stuff is incredibly strong. This is one of those perfumes that I feel compelled to scrub off rather than suffer through. After all, I can smell it on my calendar if I feel like continuing the experience. Actually, after about 8 hours the calendar starts smelling fairly nice, the sort of green leaf and violet flower notes that some other reviewers describe, but by the next morning it has developed a sour note like towels that have stayed wet too long and are badly in need of laundering. Two days later it’s still there, living on my calendar, sending sour violet sillage all over my desk.

I think the biggest problem is that the scent is way too strong, or at least some of the aroma chemicals are way too concentrated. I really don’t have the patience or the cast-iron nose to wait half a day for the odor level to reach a tolerable point, and I don’t want to experience a dirty-towel drydown. Definitely not for me.

Note added later: The scent on the calendar persisted for about a month.

Violetta was the only fragrance I ever tried that gave me an instant headache. The brutally synthetic air-freshener violet clobbered me so suddenly that I couldn't enjoy any part of the scent. I do recognize that Violetta is part violet, part dusty vanillic musk, which is a brilliant concept, especially for a violet soliflore. I'm not going to say that this is a bad fragrance, just that it's not for me. One could argue that its lovely scent needs to be experienced in very small doses, and perhaps not so much as a body fragrance as much as a room/wardrobe freshener.

Do you know, in spring time, when the snow is melted everywhere else but not under the big trees.... they still have some snow under them, being the the shade, and dead leaves, wet and dirty, and the little violets come and poke their pretty blue heads through the piles of dead dirty wet leaves from last fall? Well, this is exactly what Violetta smells like... fresh young and crisp violets, wet leaves and dirty old snow... lovely to see and smell, because they say "spring" with all their might, but I don't think I appreciate my skin smelling like that... Violetta is not for me, although I admire it immensely and I will enjoy my sample. And yes, if I was to own a bottle, probably I would grow to love it. If you want a true to nature violet perfume, this is the one.

violetta is the pure essence of violet.it makes me think about a bed full of violets crisp and fresh with a trace of morning dew on their leaves...lovely and clean scent

One of my favourite fragrances ever. Gorgeous, gorgeous violet scent.

This is a very green violet - no sweetness whatsoever. I quite like sugary sweet violet scents, but this one is a pure violet. And very sophisticated for a floral.

Very surprisingly I cannot detect the iris (I hate iris). Nor do I get any musk (and I adore musk). I just get crisp greenness with pure violet, almost like a violet-filled forest after the rain.

Expensive, but well worth it in my opinion. I tend to use a light hand with fragrance so I rarely get comments on my perfume, but this one has received compliments.

I have been mildly troubled (il ne faut pas trop exagerer...) by the relatively recent preponderance of plastic and candied violet notes in perfumes that I might have appreciated, if only the violets had been neither plastic nor candied!

No such problem with Penhaligon VIOLETTA: this is a splendid rendition of non-plastic, uncandied violets. Hurrah! I really love violets, so I welcome the new experience of well-made violet perfumes, even if they are nearly as simple as a small bunch of the flowers. VIOLETTA has a bit more going on, but all other notes present serve only to embellish the focus: violet in all of its magnificent glory.

Highly recommended for those drawn naturally to natural-smelling violet.

I think probably one of the cleanest violet scents there is, and also possibly one of the best.
The lemon definitely adds a clean crisp note to this, but definitely does not impart a citrus note of any great discern. I was also a little worried that the geranium would take centre stage, it can be overbearing at times and usually imparts a rose overture which I am pleased to say does not occur here other than the faintest whiff a very light floral lingering in the top.
The violet in this really is the king and queen of the show, and this is just as it should be. From top to bottom the violet is the star, and there is nothing prettier than a parma violet with a supportive cast. The musk in the base is incredibly light, it supports the violet, adding a soft comfort but does not overstep its bounds - it knows it role in the show ;)
Slightly woodsy in the base, the cedar also adds a fresh crispness to this, it isnt powdery like say Berdoues Violettes de Toulouse, which has a very powdery soapy finish, Penhaligons Violetta is crisp and clean to the end.

I am a little disappointed that this only comes in an EDT, an EDP would have been heavenly! The sillage is rather nice. I also have the accompanying body lotion which compliments its perfume counterpart beautifully, the lotion is one of those that is just as nice the fragrance itself! Credence should be paid to attention to detail in the perfume of all proportions, while the violet is the star there is homage to the other notes and it makes it a beautifully balanced perfume that I am very pleased to own.

This was soft, fuzzy and so full of violets... at first. After a few minutes it turned into something of a dishrag smell! I can't figure out how something so nice turns into something so unwearable.

I got this in a Penhaligon's sampler. This is quite a lovely fresh floral combination with violets being center-stage. Perhaps some of the clean feel is due to the lemon opening. Also, the drydown is a very light musk. I could discern the iris as well, but I'm not sure about the geranium. The fragrance lasted a couple hours on me - better than Borsari Violetta di Parma. I may want to purchase a whole bottle of this one. I tend to like Penhaligon's perfumes.

It's a pretty good combination of flowers with sandal and musk. Everything is in it's place, nothing excess. I love Penhaligon's perfumes.

Just as Aiona said, the musk is not 'scary'. If you tend to steer away from perfumes based on the musk note do not be frightened - the violets take center stage in this perfume, and even the cedar doesn't seem to make much of an appearance.
Unfortunately I cannot shake the associations I have with violet - that of the little tins of violet pastilles my mom used to buy for us when we were little...violets to me are CANDY, CANDY, CANDY.
This is a very clean and light violet, so if you enjoy violets and don't automatically associate them with candy, I urge you to try this.

I love violet perfumes almost as much as rose . This is light and summery . It is not as dark and woody as the violets I pick from my garden .

I have never smelled Parma violets, but if they smell like this, then I would love them! This is a very juicy floral scent -- initially it reminds me of the smell of fresh Thompson seedless green grapes, and some kind of flowers -- I guess the violets. As it dries down, I can smell the sandalwood more and more. It's a very nice light floral , and I'm not usually a fan of florals. The notes above list "musk" but this is not a scary musk. In fact, I don't really get much musk out of it at all. The juice really is a pale light blue, just as the picture above depicts.

I love it, it smells just like parma violets :D