What’s in a name?

Vanilla Era goes fast in our house because I like to occasionally layer it with Soda Snob by Snif or White by Comme des Garçons and my partner wears it often now that she’s out of Whiff of Wafflecone by Imaginary Authors. I picked up this bottle of Sugar Baby on sale when we needed more Vanilla Era.

From the name, I assumed it was going to be a sweet gourmand, maybe a bit candy-ish with just a hint of white florals to balance it out. Often in the contemporary world of fragrance, I find that names, marketing, branding often get the better of people. A scent called “Bog Witch” will get wears from a specific type of person even if it smells like an old shoe and wet dog blended by an absolute novice. And despite enjoying nearly everything I’ve tried from Boy Smells, I thought maybe the name Sugar Baby was doing some heavy lifting. (50% off was a fine enough incentive to find out.)

I was wrong - kind of. Wrong enough to admit I was wrong. Sugar Baby has a sweetness to it, obviously, but it’s actually much more beautiful than I expected. It blends a sweet, musky gourmand base with gorgeous floral notes, and a hint of grapefruit in the opening. It surprised me. It could be for a 20-something done up on a Friday night, but it could also be when you want to feel like the internet calling Kyle MacLachlan babygurl.