Breath of God is described by Lush as being a 'critically acclaimed, perfectly balanced perfume.' They go on to claim that this fragrance bridges a gap between masculine and feminine smells; creating one that is universally pleasing to all, and one that develops differently on everyone who wears it so that it moulds to your senses, not yours to it. I suppose, like every opinion, there are going to be those of us who agree with those claims and those who very much disagree. Unfortunately, I am in the latter category.
The first time I experienced the Breath of God scent was when I tried the toothy tabs of the same name, which I thoroughly enjoyed and have been buying ever since. A few months later, and Lush release Inhale/Exhale, a limited edition bath bomb that also presents the same scent. Again, after initial concerns, I ended up enjoying the experience very much and raved about this unique scent that I just 'had to try more of'. However, when I dared to purchase a bottle of the Breath of God perfume, my reaction was very different to the above.
Described as being a 'thought-provoking fragrance', there are many elements that make up this perfume. There is a mixture of sandalwood, cedarwood, rose, ylang ylang, neroli and benzoin oils, which have all been blended together to create this distinctive smell. Immediately upon smelling this, I can pick up the strong, woody scent of sandalwood alongside the undertones of smoky cedarwood. Then straight after, I also get elements of the lemon and grapefruit oils, which masks the poignancy of the other ingredients somewhat.
Unfortunately, I did not experience the 'gentle, yet fresh delicious flavour' that Lush describe it as, nor the vanillary, melon-citrus fragrance that other reviewers as described it as being. Instead what I smelt was a mixture of men's aftershave and burnt charcoal - the overwhelming smell you get if someone sprays themselves with too much Lynx and you get a strong whiff up your nose before you have a chance to hold your breath.
Rather than being able to isolate individual smells and enjoy different layers of scent, I found that Breath of God's fragrance was very domineering and very heavy. To me, it felt as if there were too many ingredients in the mix, which caused them to clash with each other rather than working to create a well-rounded perfume.
However, like most Lush scents, it quickly fades into a delicate-yet-strong smell that continues to evolve throughout the day. In it's defence, it did remain on me for the entirety of my work day and it did get more bearable when it had mellowed somewhat. However, I still thought that it was a very masculine scent and not something that made me feel uplifted or sensual at all.
It seems to me that this is very much a 'marmite' type of perfume; you either love it or you hate it. Unfortunately, it didn't match well with my personality and made me feel very boisterous when I had it on. It's too overpowering for my liking and is not one that I'd use again.
Vegan?: Yes.
Scent Family:
Breath of God Liquid Perfume
Breath of God Toothy Tabs
Inhale Exhale Ballistic
Under The Umbrella Tree Bath Bomb
Have you tried the solid version? It is to die for. Suchhhh an improvement on the liquid.
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