Joining Narciso Rodriguez’s All of Me collection is All of Me Floral. The collection is described as Narciso Rodriguez’s dream of a beautiful yet abstract rose. In true Narciso Rodriguez fashion, they all proudly exhibit a beautiful musky character. But it is different from Narciso Radiante, the powdery musk they released recently.
There is very little to revolutionize when it comes to roses. Every brand has played around with the age-old perfume ingredient, producing its own interpretation. The brand says this collection is their iteration of rose for a new generation of women. I feel that this attempt at rebranding rose is because of the double-edged sword of being a classic note.
Classics are widely loved and trusted for a reason, but they can also be labeled as dated. Many rose perfumes have a powdery facet that younger people have come to associate with older women, avoiding rose perfumes for smelling like their mom or their grandma. What’s old or dated becomes new again, and what’s new and trendy becomes dated. Maybe the next generation of perfumery will be attempting to modernize the now-popular vanilla for the future’s youth.
The first All of Me, released in 2023, does have a reputation of feeling more mature, and I can see why. All of Me Intense, released in 2024, is made stronger through jasmine and tuberose in addition to the rose and bourbon geranium from the original. The addition of iris at the top only makes the intense version more powdery.
All of Me Floral takes a slightly different path:
| Notes |
|---|
| Top: Lychee and Pink Pepper |
| Middle: Plum Blossom, Bourbon Geranium and Jasmine Sambac |
| Base: Guaiac Wood, Musk and Benzoin |
Rose is notably absent from the composition, but I feel we’ll get rosy facets from the geranium. I’m expecting a watery juicy opening from the lychee, the most trendy fruity note of late. Pink pepper would bring a sharp, herbaceous tone to the table with a somewhat rosy character. Plum blossoms are an up and coming note in perfumes with a soft, sweet fragrance that can be similar to the less heady imaginations of jasmine.
Seeing the guaiac wood and musk combo at the base makes me believe it’ll retain the woody musky character of its predecessors. I will miss the creamy sandalwood, but I’m excited to see how different the dry down will be here especially with the benzoin. The composition seems more modern than the others in the collection by leaving behind rose and powdery accords.
As with the other fragrances in this line, I believe it can be a casual inoffensive fragrance fit to wear to the workplace.
