Perfume Thursday: Truth or Dare by Madonna

If you like big powerful florals and in particular love tuberose then rush out and buy yourself a bottle of Truth or Dare by Madonna.  Retailing at approximately £14 for 50ml, this is a bargain!  It reminds me a little of another tuberose (Fracas by Robert Piguet) which at more than £50 for the same size definitely makes it worth taking a punt on Madonna's perfume.

Created very much with her mother in mind, Madge wanted to re-create her mother's scent but give it a fresh and new twist.  Now I have to be honest and say I'm not sure she has successfully achieved the fresh and new bit since one whiff of the bottle and I was transported back to 'old fashioned' perfumes which are definitely...well....old fashioned and not fresh and new.

It is a strong floral, so strong that you drown in flowers - although some of us got hints of bubble gum, apricot yoghurt and plastic too.  There are no top notes (hey Madge - that's where the fresh aroma should have come from!) but instead it wades in to floral middles and sweet sweet base notes making this perfume heavy heavy heavy (but I reiterate - great value for money!)

We chose this perfume as it contains neroli which is our aroma of the week, but for me the neroli has been drowned out by the tuberose, gardenia and jasmine (I told you it was a big floral - there is lily and lily of the valley nestling in there too!).

The perfume has lasting power courtesy of the big base notes (vanilla, amber, musk and benzoin) and some could detect it 6 hours after the initial spray (some were keen to wash it off 6 minutes after the initial spray...)  It is well structured and will certainly stay with you all evening if you spray it before leaving the house (reinforcing it as a true bargain !)

Personally it isn't a perfume I'd choose to wear as it is too heavily floral for me - I prefer I'm currently favouring a leather, animalic, dirty, incense aroma-theme which actually would have been the perfect aromas for the 1990s Madonna perfume.  But for those of you that enjoy florals and have £14 rattling around in your purse, it's well worth the spend.

Convince me I should try another floral - what is your favourite?