I've never been overly fond of the creamsicle (for the uninitiated, it's a vanilla popsicle covered with a fruit-flavored ice, usually orange).1 Creamsicle perfumes, on the other hand, are a favorite, and they're perfect for this time of year, when the sun finally comes out and the bulbs start to peek out of the soil — it feels like winter might finally be over (knock on wood) but it isn't really spring just yet. Until the temperatures reach at least the high 50s (or preferably, the 60s), your favorite summer citrus might not have enough heft, but add some cream and sugar to the mix, and voilà. Spring is just around the corner.
Anné Pliska ~ Anné Pliska is a three season creamsicle (it's maybe too much for very hot weather) with amber and spices. My old friend Violetnoir described it as "like Shalimar with Dreamsicle"2 and that's a perfect way to sum it up.
Fendi Theorema ~ You knew I wouldn't leave out Theorema, right? As I keep repeating, there must be a perfume question to which Theorema is not the right answer, but I don't know what that might be. You'd be shocked to know how frequently Theorema is my scent of the afternoon, after whatever perfume I put on in the morning has worn off.
Kerosene Unforsaken ~ a spring-weight creamsicle, not as heavy as the Anné Pliska or Theorema, arguably more cheerful than either.
By Kilian Sweet Redemption ~ Jessica described Sweet Redemption as a "handmade orange sorbet topped with freshly whipped vanilla cream", so fancier than a lowly creamsicle perhaps, but for the price, it ought to be.
Antica Farmacista Vanilla, Bourbon & Mandarin ~ very popular at one time on the MakeupAlley fragrance board (Kevin reviewed the home fragrance eons ago), and my own first introduction to the idea of a creamsicle perfume. It's probably better for someone who wants more vanilla, less orange and cream.
Also worth a shot: Demeter makes an Orange Cream Pop, but I've never tried it. Profumum Dulcis in Fundo, if you're willing to go very sweet. Roca Parfums Núvol di Llimona is more like a milky lemon cake than a creamsicle, but probably serves the same function as many of the fragrances listed here. Atelier Cologne recommends layering Orange Sanguine and Vanille Insensée for a creamsicle effect; likewise, i Profumi di Firenze suggests layering Arancio di Sicilia with Vaniglia del Madagascar. And I'll put in a word for the Weleda Sea Buckthorn body products, which are 100% creamsicle (and the body oil makes a nice layering agent).
Do add your own favorites in the comments!
See also: EauMG’s Orange Cream Pop Perfume Guide
1. I never understood why they didn't make a chocolate-covered creamsicle, or better yet, an orange-covered fudgsicle.
2. Quote from the comments to For The Love Of Perfume's review of Anné Pliska.
I get a creamsicle note from Amoureuse!
How interesting…don’t remember it as even creamy, but haven’t worn it in ages.
I think it’s the way the tangerine plays off the white florals, which have a creamy facet.
Makes sense!
Amoureuse is one of the few fragrances I’ve ever loved to wear that I would also love to taste. The sweet orange, the cardamom, mmmmm.
I own Anne Pliska and this just reminded me that I’ve yet to try the new Kerosene
Do. Not ambery so not like a light version, but a great scent.
I’m adding Fendi Theorema to my list of fragrances to try.
I suppose I should check the prices on Theorema before I keep including it on these lists. Maybe I don’t even want to know 🙂
I love Dreamsicles, but for all that I’m not terribly fond of it in perfumery (likewise, chocolate). I liked Anne Pliska, but it goes too wet-canvas labdanum for my taste down in the base. I liked Theorema too, but found that the chocolate note in it started but BUG THE LIVING CRAP out of me…
Ahem. Sorry. I’m dieting and carb-deprived and not all that happy about it. Okay, centered now.
I do love Sweet Redemption a lot – I own two of those little travel refills, which were less ridiculously priced, or they felt that way, anyway. But it’s orange candy+orange blossoms+vanilla for me, with maybe a stronger floral component than a straight-up orange cream pop. (Note to self: put Sweet Redemption away until on the diet phase that allows carbs, lest SR make cravings awaken.)
Now pondering the Weleda oils, and wondering if maybe Target has them. (And if that wouldn’t defeat the point of putting SR away.)
Hey, I could probably tolerate some Organza Indecence, which does have an orange-vanilla thing going on… though there’s a bunch of patchouli in it and some spices and it’s way drier than I think of a Creamsicle scent.
I really liked the Sea Buckthorn oil, BUT, it’s orange. You have to rub it in and let it soak in before you put your clothes on. I did not find that prohibitive, but some might. Also loved the hand cream. Several people around me did not 🙂
And should have said — good luck with the diet!
Sea buckthorn oil is EXCELLENT for mature skin (which I have) but they do recommend that you dilute it in a carrier oil (argan or jojoba is what I use). I get mine from Eden b/c it is much cheaper than what my local health food store carries.
It’s a body oil so it’s already diluted (in this case, in sesame oil)
Now I am definitely getting one …hey, my mature skinned body needs some moisturization after this grueling winter 🙂 !!!
The rose one was really nice too!
don’t know of any, but really want to try Unforsaken. Almost all of the snowbanks in my yard have disappeared just since this morning!
Looks like ours are finally gone too! Yay!!
Lush’s Karma smells like an orange creamsicle to me, particularly the body lotion. A creamsicle in a forest, but creamsicle nonetheless.
In a patchouli forest, right?
I’m on a soap purchase moratorium right now or I would have bought Karma soap. The soap is not as patchouli-ish as the perfume and I agree the Karma scent reminds me of creamsicle!
The soap is my preferred form of Karma; the lotion is okay but not particularly useful for me (I use hand cream much more than body lotion), and the perfume is too strident for my taste. The smell of the soap lingers on my hands nicely and scents the entire bathroom without being obnoxious. I have to force myself not to buy it whenever I pass by a Lush shop!
My favourite format for Karma is the solid shampoo – I wish the perfume smelt more like that!
LOVE LOVE LOVE creamsicles! and I have both of those Atelier Colognes….maybe I’ll save that combo for next week’s Friday challenge (would you consider Atelier new niche?). I see Weleda all the time in my health food store….now I MUST sample! I am also going to experiment with a really cheap version of creamsicle by layering Pacifica’s Tuscan Blood Orange, Neroli Orange Blossom and Island vanilla….thanks for the inspiration!
Let us know how the layering goes!
I have two of those — Tuscan Blood Orange and Island Vanilla. I’m going to try layering those, too.
Me three. I LOVE creamsicles, to eat and/or wear!
I think my creamsicle choice is an unlikely one:
Omnia Amethyst by Bulgari.
Have you ever had one of those grape creamsicles or grape ice-pops, those intensely dark purple ones? To me, Amethyst reminds me of those. Its cool, a little sweet and quite frankly, delicious.
Now if they would just launch it in a longer lasting EdP…drool.
Ah, interesting! I have never had a grape creamsicle (and admit I was rather horrified today to discover there are blueberry creamsicles too…)
That Atelier combo is my favorite to wear to bed. It TOTALLY smells like a Creamsicle.
Excellent, thanks!
Golden Cattelya by Olympic Orchids isn’t exactly a creamsicle, but it does have an interesting cream soda note, combined with a rich pollen-heavy floral.
Love that stuff!
That sounds lovely!
I’ve never really thought about a creamsicle accord before, but now I am! I used to love them when I was a kid. I can see Theorema being a very *elegant* gelato style creamsicle, right? I like a nice warm orange blossom in the spring. My fav and the first ob I ever owned is the now defunct Laura Mercier Neroli which has a lemoncello accord & freesia in it to keep it fresh. But Lorenzo Villoresi’s Dilmun is my favorite OB – it has lots of all the regular orange & citrus notes, including a bit of petitgrain which I always like. But there is something of a food-ish, pastry accord like you’d smell if you made some baked good with orange blossom cooking water, or wandered by a pastry shop when the door was swinging open. It’s not really “gourmand” per-se like we think of with classic gourmand fragrances, nor sweet, but it smells warm. There is no sugar or musk to bung it up. I’m probably not explaining this well. It is just really pleasant. It might smell good layered with a nice rich amber…. Hmmm.
Dilmun is such a great scent, and I so rarely hear about it.
DSH Little Smile has been filling this need for me, but I have to say, that Kerosene is kind of tempting.
Little Smile notes from website: “Nurture your inner child with notes of bitter orange, creamy French vanilla, sweet French vanilla, skin musk, and heliotrope.”
OH MY. I love DSH… I think I’ve seen that one and just zoomed on past, intent on something or other else, multiple times. Thanks for the reminder.
Plus, love the name.
Yikes, I am soooo lemming this. Right this minute. I may need to scratch the itch.
Love creamsicles – though here in UK they were called something like Mivvies when I was a kid. The fragrance that reminds me most of that orange cream is Cacharel’s Liberte. It has a little fizzyness in it at first maybe Fanta with a scoop of vanilla floating but it all gets blended in the drydown. Discontinued now I fear but it was a fun frag and a real mood lifter on a rainy day.
That one had a (relatively) short life, and I never got to try it!
I’m with you – not a huge fan of eating an orange creamsicle, but love the combination in perfume, with Theorema being at the top of the list. I will be sad when my bottle runs dry.
I have enough now to last me for the rest of my days, happily.
Oh, I LOVE citrus and vanilla!! My favorite creamsicle scents are:
1. Golden Cattleya by Olympic Orchids. It includes notes of orange fruit, orange blossoms, and cream soda (along with narcissus, daffodil, orange blossoms, honey, pollen, and amber-tinged resins and musks).
2. Dulcis in Fundo. The citrus only lasts five minutes on my skin, but I still love this frag.
3. Ambrosia by Arcana. It’s a long-lasting lemon custard perfume that does not smell like Pledge. Cheap and cheerful.
I have a very old bottle of Demeter “Orange Cremecicle,” that I have not worn in at least 10 years. When I saw this post, I tried some, and it is still in good condition.
i Profumi di Firenze: I’ve been meaning to sample Arancio di Sicilia (AdS), because I love Vaniglia del Madagascar, and if AdS is any good, I might plotz with joy by layering the two.
So, yeah, I have high tolerance for sweet frags, but I can handle them because I always under-apply.
Occurs to me also that if you layered iPF Spezie de Medici with something vanilla-cream, you’d get something like a cross between Theorema and Organza Indecence. Maybe.
Hmmm … I might have a sample of Spezie de Medici.
Smell Bent’s Sunshine is supposed to smell like creamsicle and sandlewood. Haven’t tried it yet but they are usually accurate in their descriptions.
Thanks!
One of my favourites at the moment – Eau de Shalimar should fit right in! All summer here I’v been sticking to vetivers because of the heat, but I do like something sweeter in the evening. Enter Eau de Shalimar: unlike big sister Shalimar EDP she has no leather, or incense, or civet, or smoke. In fact regular Shalimar has a tendency to smell like unadulterated skunk on me… Little sister, more lime than bergamot also has a vanilla note that is as frothy, light and bright as they come.
Perhaps in different weather I would have found her an airhead, but right now, she is just what the doctor ordered!
They should do another in the vein of Shalimar Light / Eau de Shalimar.
Yes, I’v seen the cologne version advertised on some sites, but never come across a tester. I liked Initial L’eau, but not as much as this one. I think Initial L’eau might be more sophisticated (more floral)…
Oh yes, there were also two versions of Legere, I think, but I never saw those around either. Guess I arrived at the party late :p
The first one was the best, IMHO.
But was it the one that smelled most like a creamsicle? 😉
Ah, that I do not remember.
The drydown of Seville a l’Aube turns into creamsicle for me!
Another reason I should own it 🙂
The Demeter is exactly as you’d expect, fun and accurate enough but no lasting power.
CSP used to make Vanille Orange which is pretty much melted Creamsicles in an aluminum spray can. I don’t know why they discontinued it and I don’t know what I will do when I run out. It’s in my top 3 CSPs for sure.
You would think that CSP would have been a big seller.
It was a limited edition, I believe, launched with two others that I cannot remember — I think one of them was Vanille Freesia but I am not certain. I suspect they might even have been sold as a three-pack. Anyway, gone gone gone, and you’d think it would have been HUGE if correctly marketed.
My favorite orange creamsicle scents are Dulcis in Fundo, the Antica Farmacista one, and Diptyque’s Eau d’Élide. All so yummy! I love to eat them and smell them. Just received a mini duo of the Atélier Vanille and Orange so I will try that combo next.
I know I’ve tried Elide but don’t remember it. I must not have loved it at the time, and now it’s too late…
I love Eau d’Elide. It’s such a strange scent and so very comforting.
I love creamsicles! My favorite way to recreate that smell is mixing the mandarin orange oil from Aveda with their vanilla oil. Perfect and very realistic! I am so excited to try some of the suggested ones here!
Thanks, lots of great layering suggestions today!
My favorite summertime treat is the “Java Berry,” coffee ice cream and raspberry sherbet. Does anyone know a perfume with that combination?
Wow, never heard of that one! And no. Offhand can’t even think of a really great coffee ice cream perfume, and there ought to be one.
But adding: Demeter Espresso + Vanilla Ice Cream would get you part of the way there, and raspberry should not be hard.
Thanks, Robin!
Tokyo Milk Everything &Nothing is creamsicle-y. Not bad. I got sophisticated during a summer job at Baskin Robbins after senior high school year. I graduated from orange sherbet and vanilla to daiquiri ice and vanilla (or even rum raisin). Still a great summer combo. I would say Jo Malone Lime Basil +any vanilla would get that effect.
Thanks!
Late to the party but had to comment as creamsicle frags are my jam. Will have to resniff the Anne Pliska! Hypnose by Lancome and Armani Code are like melted creamsicles, and probably just as fun. I feel like lotions convey the creamy aspect better than sprays can. For spring days when only straight-up push-pops will do, complete with a hint of white plastic wrapping, I recommend the Jonathan Masters Blood Orange and Vanilla line – very refreshing, although not the cheapest.
Would Aquolina’s Gold Sugar be considered a creamsicle scent?