We don’t do a lot of cruelty-free perfume reviews on this site, and I’m not sure why. There are so many good ones out there! I recently got to try samples of the Aroma M Geisha Perfume Oils. Aroma M is the company that produces Cherry Bomb Killer, which I reviewed recently (great stuff – totally different target market).
First of all – I love the whole Japanese/geisha theme. Score one point for Aroma M. Secondly, the packaging is gorgeous. I haven’t seen the packaging in real life, but it looks amazing in the pics. Each perfume oil roller is wrapped in traditional Yuzen paper from Kyoto (based on patterns used for making kimonos).
Here’s what I thought about each scent:
Geisha Blue – Designed to be calming – with blue chamomile, green tea, jasmine and leafy greens. I found this to be a very floral scent.
Geisha Noire – My favorite! It’s a spicy, sexy, warm scent with amber and sweet tonka bean. It reminds me a little bit of Opium – but slightly sweeter.
Geisha Violet – Violet (old-fashioned – prized by women in the Victorian era), Lilac, Japanese Lotus and Bitter Chocolate. Very interesting, but the chocolate kind of threw me for a loop.
Geisha Pink – Sugared plum, fresh orange and vanilla. Very sweet and young scent.
Geisha Blanche – White flowers and lychee. Reminds me of fresh laundry mixed with flowers. I like it!
Geisha Green – A sexy version of a “green” scent – absinthe, violet, black currant and mandarin orange. Softened with amber and sweet tonka bean. This one is MBB writer Gretchen’s fave!
Geisha Marron – A French-Japanese fusion. Muguet, Japanese Magnolia, Chestnut Blossom, Mandarin, Bergamot and Grapefruit. Very fresh scent.
Geisha Rouge – A warm, spicy scent. Tonka Bean, Tobacco, Vanilla, Cinnamon, Anise, Clove and Sandalwood. I like the incense-like undertones, but the cinnamon, clove and anise don’t do it for me.
Geisha O-Cha – A scent based on the Japanese tea ceremony. Green tea, sweet orange and vanilla.
Aroma M founder and American born artist, Maria McElroy, synthesized her love of blending colors and textures with her passion for scent. After receiving an MFA in painting from the San Francisco Art Institute in ’86, Maria continued her studies in Australia and became a Certified Aromatherapist with Queensland Institute of Natural Science.
“Blending fragrances in a bottle is like mixing colors on a palate,” says Maria. “The scent becomes pigment, the body becomes the canvas. The nose responds to scent like the eye to color.”
Seven years in Japan, studying Kodo, the ancient art of fragrance, Ikebana, Japanese flower arrangement Koto, Japanese harp, Shiatsu massage and Zen Buddhism solidified Maria’s appreciation for Japanese culture and aesthetics. Romance also flourished back in New York where Maria met her Japanese born husband. Aroma M is based in New York but is now known worldwide. Find a retailer near you to purchase.
