Santal Blush

Batches are inconsistent. Ive tried it in store on skin and it really smelled like Indian food for the next couple of hours. I love Indian food, but not as a perfume. I have a small bottle, and its still spicy without being savory and its much smoother.

I get a beautiful combination of cinnamon, ylang ylang, and the smoothest sandalwood. I believe the ylang ylang mixed with the sandalwood is responsible for the incredible creaminess. It feels effortless & elegant. This is one I have overlooked so many times but I am so glad I finally gave it a true wear test. It’s now in my top 10!

I like sandalwood but this is just strange idk how to explain it

Santal Blush was an important fragrance earlier in my scent journey. I smelled it on someone, was amazed, tried it on myself at Nordstrom, and was so confused it didn't smell the same on me as it did on her. An important lesson. I've since realized this is a lovely sandalwood, but there's a slight soapiness that turns me off. It's creamy, impressive, and musky. There's a lot of good stuff going on, but I think the spices in the opening don't quite work for me. Then once the spice wears off, it becomes overly feminine for my taste (unisex is a basic requirement for me).

Caramelly in the beginning with a hint of vanilla, a healthy amount of soapiness, slightly in your face on first spray (but not in a bad way), then a hint of a very delicate whisky, wood-soaked alcohol, then becoming smooth and creamy and finally settling into a warming but sexy sandalwood scent. Very classy - mostly an evening scent but can be also worn during the day if the setting permits a strong perfume. Definitely one of the (if not the) best sandalwood scents outs there, closely followed by The Merchant Of Venice's Sandalo Australia (sandalwood but with a different scent profile), 301 by Bon Parfumeur, and L'Eau Fatale by Sultane.

I bought this on sale after hearing Taylor wears it as I am a big fan of hers. Unfortunately this was so headache inducing - the benzoin was way too strong. The dry down is nice but atp why buy it. I ended up returning it

Ugh. Just terrible. In fact, this is so toxic I was convinced they swapped out my little sample vial with a fake. I looked at the notes & nope, this is the real stuff. The cumin & fenugreek overpower the sandalwood & turn this into a cross between something out of a 1970s Avon catalog & a taco.

A co-worker was killing everyone every morning and someone finally asked, it was Santal Blush. A cross between a freshly cleaned hamster cage, with fresh shavings, and someones spice cabinet.

I finally got the full size bottle and it smells DIVINE.The spice smell in the first spray might be challenging.The spices are just too much.İt's sooo unisex like it can suit both genders perfectly.A little sweet but definitely not cloying,so sexy but not too feminine or too masculine,powdery but doesn't give a old grandma perfume vibe.Definitely a fall-winter scent.It can be too dangerous for spring-summer.May be suitable for cool spring nights-evenings.For floral notes I do not get the ylang-ylang and jasmine but a hint of rose.The use of the sandalwood in this perfume is absolutely gorgeous.That's exactly the kind of use I love for sandalwood.The first 2 hours is literally HORRIBLE,especially the carrot seed note and the other spıce notes.Its too much even for a Tom Ford fragrance.I literally can't stand the first hours but when it comes to the middle notes and the drydown.İt smells like the most luxurious high-end cream ı've ever smell but its for drydown for sure.its sooo good and definitely one of my favorite Tom Ford scents.Its so long-lasting and have a really strong sillage.The old formula and the bottle was so much better than the new one.PLS BRING BACK THE OLD BOTTLE AND FORMULA. New formula first hours 3.3/10 New formula drydown 8.5/10 The old formula fırst hours 5/10 The old formula drydown 10/10 pls bring back the old bottle design and the formula I'm literally begging on my knees.

It smells like the shavings that come out when you sharpen a pencil; the first 10 minutes of brutality (Indian cuisine) are over, then sandalwood and cinnamon blend wonderfully together. Not many people will like it, but it might even spark a fight over whether it's for men or women (I'm not saying unisex, mind you). A warm, sweet scent that gets better with time. It could be someone's signature scent, but whose? Not mine.

Tbh it’s very unisex. Love it as a man. Has a sort of rich, bourbon type smell on me.

The opening was interesting, different for me and at some point kind of nice since the drydown smells like pencil shavings so much it brought me memories from high school and my latest drawing sessions. I like the smell of spicy pencil shavings but not so much as to buy this fragrance. It lasts forever on my skin. I wish Cherry Smoke's drydown had such perseverance...

For all the Indian noses here, this smells like Lacto Calamine. Not sure if that’s desirable. Enough said.

A few years ago, I tried to trade for something discontinued, and I linked my fragrantica wardrobe, and told the other person "have a look and if you see something you like, maybe we can trade...", and funnily enough, they zeroed in on this one, and asked when it was purchased. Unfortunately, it's something I bought for myself, but my wife uses it, and I got it in mid-to-late 2014 -- apparently, sometime in 2017 or so this was reformed to FILTH, and the pre-reform bottles were suddenly in demand! I couldn't trade because, technically, this is my wife's now, and with that said, it sat in the back of my mind for the last few years. Today I tried it again, and OH BOY this is different -- muskier, more vanillic and sadly a poorer version of the 2014 bottle I/ my wife has/have. I put it on and my wife didn't like it the same way she likes her bottle. It's changed, and for the worse, I'm afraid. It's gotten less awesome and it just feels dialled in -- like a crappy clone / dupe version. Veil Santal Blush 2017 AD.

Got a mini bottle and tried it out- disappointed because I could barely smell it and it faded in about 2 hours. Wondering if I got a fake one or something.

Smells like the inside of a curry house that is burning nag champa! Hard pass!

If it were up to me personally, this fragrance would be renamed “Santal Shavings (Detention Edition).” This is straight up freshly murdered pencil. One sniff and I’m back in elementary school, watching some kid unscrew the wall sharpener like they’re diffusing a bomb, only to unleash a chaotic plume of pencil dust into the air. Suddenly it’s snowing cedar flakes, everyone’s coughing, and the teacher is yelling, “WHO DID THAT?” Meanwhile, I’m just sitting there inhaling Eau de No. 2, wondering if this is how I go out. It’s not even “subtly woody.” No, this is you forgot to do your homework and now you’re chewing on your pencil for your sanity. If you’ve ever wanted to smell like you live inside a freshly sharpened Ticonderoga… congratulations. This is your moment.

Very unpopular opinion here, but to me this smells like pencil shavings or the inside of a memory box. It reminds me of the smell that comes out of my mom's old hope chest when we crack it open to grab a quilt. I don't know why, but I assumed there would be a bit of vanillic sweetness in the base, even if only a tad. There is not. It smells like a cedarwood 4x4 from Home Depot with a dash of resin and spice. I get zero florals. Interesting for sure and masterfully blended, but not for me. You would love this if you like woody-spicy fragrances without sweetness or florals.

@mr. eclectic—no evidence this is being discontinued? It’s on Tom Ford’s “best sellers” list. Any source?

my first frag im really sad about them discontinuing this. i remember the glory days wearing ts every single day without a care in the world. now that its gone, i cant even smell it again. stores carry bottles that are either empty or extremely alcoholic. i wouldn't bother buying this beauty--it's out of its prime. im pretty sure if you buy this youre gonna get a crappy batch thats j a shell of the original i miss santal blush it was my fav by far, mr. eclectic

Santal Blush is an underrated gem from the Tom Ford Private Blend collection. Its only issue is its marketing towards women instead of unisex, at least initially and for quite some time after its release anyway, as it unforgivably pigeonholed the perfume to the point of nearly being permanently discontinued. The “blush” in the name certainly doesn’t help, as this lends to the idea of makeup. However, it's the sandalwood that is “blushing”, not you the wearer. There is a lot unwinding in this perfume. First is a scrumptious blend of cinnamon, a very mild cumin, and a sweet and rooty carrot. The spices are strong, yet very gentle at the same time. Ylang-ylang and rose are present as well, particularly the ylang-ylang which is pushing its often sweet, starchy, banana facet. The rose is very quiet, red, and acts as breadth - not a starring role or really even a supporting role compared to the rest of the notes due to its very low vocal volume. The whole does have a bit of a powdery floral feeling, but the spices and ylang-ylang give the powder a gentle muscularity and a reddish-orange glow. The creamy banana ylang-ylang lays over a readily apparent sandalwood accord that is deeply pleasant to smell. Yann Vasnier did an excellent job of handling the materials in the preceding layers to not hide the sandalwood accord for a sole appearance in the dry down, but instead they dial-up all of the facets of sandalwood to a saturated, richly hued, and vibrant presentation from the beginning. Like three actors on a stage, hand in hand and ready to take a bow, we have sandalwood’s Eastern spice inflections thanks to the spicy opening on the left, its creamy and slightly sweet intonations thanks to the ylang-ylang and carrot in the center, and at the right its resinous white woody character thanks largely to the sandalwood but is significantly helped along by benzoin at the base. Musks help to keep the “blush” creative brief during the final dry down and skin scent. If you want to know how it is a Santal tree can blush, here you go - how it is that it’s body heat can rise up to accent its innate spiciness and floral qualities, and shade itself from pale yellow to reddish-orange cheeks and a big smile. I find this perfume very easy yet fun and interesting to wear, whilst being hopelessly addictive and charming. This is one of the best to enter the Private Blend collection and remains one of the best in it. It’s a shame that it's not widely recognized for that, and that Lauder/Tom Ford do not seem to particularly care to change the narrative of it. So I have some back ups, just in case the warm blush should ever turn to a cold shoulder.

Woody-spicy opening. Smells like authentic Indian curry. Transports me to a rasoighar in Andhra Pradesh. I’m standing over a hot iron kadhai, balancing a masala dabba of brilliantly colored spice tins in the crook of my arm. Wafts of woody lusciousness rise from cedar & sandalwood logs burning beneath the kadhai. A uniquely specific olfactory cacophony.

Very similar to sacred wood， both with an excellent creamy note but extortionate price, need a dupe!

not a swiftie at all but i heard that this is apparently taylor swift's signature scent. i was like oh shes a billionaire i wonder why she chose tom ford considering its so accessible. went and gave it a sniff and OMG. idk ab her music but ms swift DEFINITELY knows a good fragrance. i cant even highlight specific notes becuase its soooo well-blended it's literally a seamless warm woody floral. it smells like LUXURY ik all her private jets smell like this wow wow wow def my fav from this house.

This composition is very smooth. I get a heavy dose of cinnamon in the beginning, and the predominant midnote is the slightly buttery ylang ylang. The sandalwood base is soft, not pickley. I don't detect any oud or any of the overtly savory listed spices. Very unisex, classy. Spicy enough that I'd reserve this for cool weather.

Love it Tom Ford absolutely nails sexy night time 2010s perfumes and this is one of the best

wow i totally expected something better... tested it in a niece perfumenparlor, and it barely smells on me, lasts less than 1h, it s cheap, very spicy, not elegant at all. i have a sandalwood based dupe that smells better! and the oud... barf

This smells to me like a fireplace burning in winter while wearing a cashmere scarf! I love it, my signature scent!❤️ It is in my opinion the best sandalwood scent on the market, creamy woody OUDy sophisticated! JUST WOW!

Allergy in a bottle. I wore it several times, not wanting to believe I made such a mistake. Several of my all-time faves have been from Tom Ford, so what could go wrong, right? Everything. The "spices" have an unpleasant smell, not like an exotic marketplace of your imagination but like you spent the day cooking curries and neglected to take a shower. And it made my nose itch and my eyes water until it began to feel like a medical emergency to get rid of the bottle. Unappealing, and potentially torturesome to one's surroundings. Ambroxan and synthetic sandal bomb. Avoid.

just so gorgeous...this is my perfect easy to wear everyday business casual scent. Smells more of perfumed wood than it does actual dry woods