Today is my 17 year wedding anniversary. My husband informs me that the 17 year gift is furniture and since he didn't purchase me any furniture, I'm taking that to mean that I can go acquire what I think is appropriate. What do you think?!

My beloved Mike is the one who purchased this fragrance (Anais Anais) for me several years ago. There are many things which my husband is good at and selecting fragrances which work incredibly with my body chemistry - is something that he is superb at.

When he first gave me this scent as a gift - I wriggled my nose. Floral?. I'm not a floral girl. He insisted that I spray it on and I delayed that action for as long as possible...

Some background...

For the longest time, I didn't wear perfumes and when I did, I seemed to be attracted to the ones which had a sweet base to it. Vanilla is something that I adore smelling however, no matter what fragrance I purchased, the combination of a sweet base and my body never seemed to produce one of those magical moments.

Side bar: You know - magical moment - when the scent you're wearing is subtly distracting - for you and for those around you. For me, this has been one which has consistently - over at least a decade - generated those moments.

Now back to Anais Anais...

The first bottle Mike purchased for me was the 1.0 EDT (Eau De Toilette Spray). It came in a really nice, pearly white, round bottle with an unknown pastel flowered picture wrapped around the width. The sprayer was a classy silver and the top was a dome cap.

The box read, A captivating fragrance with top notes of fresh, delicate orange blossom and hyacinth leading to heart notes of sweet rose, white lily and enchanting jasmine. The base is warm amber and cozy sandalwood with a hint of frankincense sealing the harmony.

I avoided spraying it as long as I could - remember - I said I'm NOT a floral girl. And sandalwood??? Isn't that a GUY thing?! When I could wait no longer, I misted two times on each wrist, rubbed together, and waited.

My first reaction - whoaaaa! That's some strong stuff! The top notes of this perfume are quite "florally" and I was concerned about how I was going to escape into the bathroom and wash it off without Mike noticing.

After about fifteen minutes, the fragrance settles in and for me - it mixes with my body chemistry in a way where I feel classy AND really sexual. (oops! did I just say that?!)

The Eau de Toilette scent will stay with me for about eight hours without re-applying. I find that from hour 1-5, I am at the height of my this is better than a million bucks thought. Okay, not really, but during those four hours, I find that it makes me feel incredible, regardless of the crappy day I am having.

The size of this particular bottle (1 ounce), allows me to safely stow it in my computer backpack so in case I want to reapply, I can easily do so.

This scent changed the way I thought about fragrances. Although I continue to wear it on and off (for over a decade now), I will also sample other perfumes which have an oriental/citrus mixture. Most work fine however, my absolute favorite from this family of fragrances is Anais Anais.

Recommended: Yes