Illamasqua Freak Eau de Parfum

Illamasqua Freak Eau de Parfum (£59.00 for 75 ml) is the first developed and launched by Illamasqua. I received a sample (so the bottle pictured above is a lab sample or decant, not representative of the actual packaging). The top notes include Black Davana, Opium Flower, and Belladonna. The heart notes include Poison Hemlock, Datura, and Queen of the Night blossom. The base notes include Frankincense, Oud, and Myrrh.

Initially, it’s woody and floral, with the strength of the floral carrying the scent for the first half hour to hour of wear. The florals sweeten and lighten a little from Queen of the Night blossom after it opens but the general tone of the fragrance is still darker and heavier. It stays sweet and floral for another hour before it transitions into the next stage, where the base notes tend to resonate more. I prefer the scent as it moves into those later stages, because it becomes more resinous with an underlying smokiness. For me, it was still floral but less so but shaped by hints of incense and a toned down sweetness.

It has a fair amount of sillage, leaving a trail of scent behind the wearer; it’s not overwhelming, but there’s a faint hint that follows. If I only spritz on my wrists, the sillage is minimized, but if you do full body sprays, you might want to save this one for nights on rather than for the office. Three hours into wear, it was still at full strength, but it seems faded and subtler by the fifth hour yet still lingering after eight hours of wear.

Freak is set to launch at select Sephora and SpaceNK stores in November, but I don’t have the price point yet.