J Lo followed up on the success of her first fragrance, Glow, with two limited edition variations, both repeating the shape of the original bottle and including the requisite bling accessories. The first, Miami Glow, was released in 2005. It was created by perfumer Caroline Sabas, and aims at a slightly younger customer than the original Glow. It has notes of pink grapefruit, coconut water, passion fruit, blackcurrant, orange flower, heliotrope, cyclamen, sheer amber, crystal musk, vanilla orchid and blond musk.
I am not terribly fond of beach-y fragrances, so I fully expected Miami Glow to be a scrubber (i.e., a scent requiring immediate removal). Once again, I was pleasantly surprised. It starts with fruity top notes liberally laced with coconut. The fruits and the coconut both subside into subtle undertones as it settles into a sheer floral in which no particular notes stand out. The dry down is rather mild, with a warm sand accord over vanillic musk, and a clean finish that calls to mind the original Glow, albeit with considerably less soap.
It is rather beach-y, but the coconut fades enough that it doesn't immediately call to mind suntan oil, and while it does stay sweet, it is by no means as cloying as many of the fruity florals marketed to the under-20 set. The lasting power doesn't quite match that of Glow, but it is still very good. I have no desire to own it, but it is nicely done and I'd choose it over many of its beach fragrance compatriots.
Love At First Glow is this year's fragrance entry. It was created by perfumer Steve DeMercado and has notes of bergamot, neroli, Georgia peach, pink jasmine, wild rose, osmanthus, freesia, sheer musk, blond woods and vanilla absolute.
Love At First Glow is aimed at the 12-18 year old cohort, an even younger audience than Miami Glow. The target age shows in the finished product, which is the sweetest and least sophisticated of the Glow line so far. It has a very noticeable fresh accord over fruity citrus and indistinct but rather sharp florals. The fruitiness fades, and it takes on a pale woody base, but it stays very fresh and clean. I don't catch any of the soapiness of Glow or Miami Glow, and it is lighter on the musk as well.
It is the only one of the three that I found unwearable; perhaps no surprise given my advanced age. It will probably sell like hotcakes. It has been compared to Britney Spears Curious, but I liked Curious much better.
Miami Glow can be found at discount, although not quite as cheaply as Glow. Scentiments has a 100 ml bottle for $33.99, less than they charge for the 50 ml. Love at First Glow will probably end up at the discounters eventually, in the meantime, it is available at sephora.
Note: Miami Glow image via Parfum de Pub.
I liked Miami Glow much more than I thought I would. I only tried Love at First Glow on the card, so I probably should not judge until I test it properly. Still, too sweet was my initial impression as well.
Okay, I admit I spent some time re-reading this and thinking: I have two girls in this demographic, would I buy a $34 fragrance for my 11-year-old? Of course this is where I am supposed to write, she's a little girl and I want her to smell pure, like Ivory Soap! But the truth is she gets my decants and went to school this a.m. smelling like Yvresse layered with something from Clean…Sweet Layer, I think. She wore Antonio Banderas yesterday, it smells amazing on her. Should I be ashamed? Wonder if school will call and complain?!?
There should be an award for The Silliest Perfume Names, and Love at First Glow should be one of the nominees. It might even win. 😀
Miami Glow sounds rather appealing actually!
I don't know if counter displays for Love at First Glow are the same in the US, but here there's a truly dire cardboard stand-up thing with flashing lights. It's so tacky, I simply gasped. Discovering it's aimed at 12-18 year-olds explains all, I suppose (although I'm thinking more 5 – 10 year-olds!). The juice was deeply unmemorable; fruity and very sweet, and seemed to have little connection to Glow itself – I wondered if there was anything at all in common between the juices?
V, I rather doubt you will like it any better on skin, but who knows. It did make me appreciate Glow & Miami Glow more!
M, I am a firm believer in never paying full price for anything! It will end up at the discounters. The Clean fragrances are perfect for an 11 year old though, and can't believe any school could complain about those.
I was wearing Coriandre at 13, but times were different then. Schools didn't have quite so many rules.
It is a very silly name! Here is a quote from J Lo:
“You never forget your first love, you know — that privileged moment when nothing else matters. That's what I wanted to capture in this new fragrance”
Wow, I'll have to go look for that!! I didn't find anything in common with the other Glows at all.
I seem to dimly recall some press J-Lo got before she released Love at First Glow talking about capturing the smell of baby heads? Can you see what she was talking about, or was it all just a lot of falderal?
I see that she has trinketed this latest one too with a J-Lo necklace charm. Sigh. I hate this Happy Meal approach to perfumery. And I have found renewed annoyance at her insistence in interviews that she doesn't want to be called J-Lo anymore when all of HER OWN fragrances are capitalizing on the nickname, including the newest one.
K, the baby head accord is in Live, which I have only tested very quickly & need to revisit. Even based on that very quick test, it is much preferable to Love At First Glow.
I would take the Happy Meal approach if only they would give a freebie that I wanted, LOL!
I have not tried these, but will probably pass. I like her original one, but like you said, R, these are for a “younger” set.
Hugs!
Actually, did you know that the first choice name for this perfume was “Love at First Nuptial”? Really. And the accurate quote from La Lo was “You never forget your first wedding, you know — the privileged moment when nothing else matters, not like your second or third wedding, when everything else matter.” A little inside industry gossip, betcha didn't know that.
Ick! I don't want to smell like babies' head. “She wafts down the hall in cloud of babies' head.” “Hours later, he could still smell the warm smell of babies' head on his clothes.” It just doesn't have that je ne se quois … literary ring. And the cynics in all of us will raise an eyebrow: “Detached, … babies' head?”
Point taken, R!
LOL! Where was the wedding quote? The one I posted above was from Women's Wear Daily.
LOL! I didn't get much “baby head” from Live, but only tried it quickly.
I was just being facetious. 😀
HA — it sailed right over my head. I don't think you could come up with anything about a celebrity fragrance that I wouldn't believe 😉
R, will you be doing a review of Live? I am actually curious about his one. I think the bottle is very pretty (it doesn't have any of those stupid JLo charms hanging off of it).
Not this week, but sometime soon! Yes, the bottle for Live is much, much nicer!!
I have a question and was wondering if anyone might be able to help. I'm actually putting together a trivia book and I need help confirming some famous perfumes that use civet. I've seen some listed, like Obsession, Y, Spellbound, but have no idea whether they are using real civet or some synthetic. Any help on this? And can you name any other famous perfumes that use civet? Thanks much.
For obvious reasons, companies do not publicize whether they use real civet or not, and most that used to use real civet say they have stopped. But I don't have any information that will help you.
Here are some other perfumes with civet notes, real or synthetic: Amouage Gold, Chanel Cristalle, Diorissimo, Courreges In Blue, Shalimar, Bal a Versailles, Joy, Piguet Bandit, Van Cleef & Arpels First.
I used to have Miami Glow. I got tired of it. I gave it to my cousin. I have Love At First Glow. I like it. As yall can see, I'm into the Celebrity perfumes and Colognes 🙂
Well then you are in luck — there are tons of celebrity scents coming out this year!
ok, i like miami glow… but was afraid that i'd smell masculine in it… i hate the cotton candy scent of love at first glow =(
I don't find MG masculine at all, personally, but that is just me…
i think this perfume is very strong. it's quite overpowering. It doesn't smell very fruity to me, it has an overpowering scent of musk. a little goes a long way to say the least…..
“Perhaps no surprise given my advanced age”
LMAO!!!
Don’t usually enjoy celeb scents (they’re too same-y and I’m not a teenager) but there is something unusual about Miami Glow, reminds me of something from a 70s childhood, maybe a sweet or candy which isn’t made anymore? Whatever it is, I keep going back to it, guiltily, as my other French perfume bottles tsk disapprovingly and shake their lids at me…
It’s a fun scent, & everybody needs a fun scent, right?
So true! Luckily have still been able to get it on Ebay.
I was going through some old boxes today and I found a vial sample of Still Jennifer Lopez from 2003. I was 12 yrs old & I remember loving it! Being 12 of course I never bought it for myself. It was the 1st scent I was ever really infatuated with. I totally forgot about it and thought Lolita Lempicka was my 1st fragrance love. I remember I thought my aunt was wearing Still and it was Lolita. Im smelling the two now and dont know why I thought that. They’re nothing alike. Still really is a nice scent. Its so different from her others. Its probably her most sophisticated. I remember I loved it so much, that same year I had my mom by it for my nina for Xmas. And till this day, I see it unused in her bathroom! She must have really hated it to not use it for 7 yrs!! Gosh! Whatever, I still LOVE it. I need to find me a bottle. Its funny how fragrances really do evoke memories. O by the way I had a falling out w/ my aunt and cant stand to smell Lolita anymore. Wearing it now just makes me think of her! Its too bad cuz I really loved it! : (
Wow, how cool! You really should get a bottle.