Wednesday Waftings: Sampler Set Review – Tocca Mini Discovery Collection Set

Hello and happy Wednesday to all of my fragrance-loving friends! Today I’d like to introduce you to the sophisticated and ladylike house of Tocca via their Mini Discovery Collection. Although Tocca actually started out as a clothing company in 1994, the brand is best known today for their ‘Girls’ line of perfume fragrances. Each scent bears a different lady’s name, some are specifically named after noteworthy women (Cleopatra, for example). I first discovered Tocca’s line about 15 years ago at Anthropologie. I fell in love with their fresh and ladylike Giulietta scented body wash and have loved the line ever since.

Although the word ‘Tocca’ is Italian for touch and the brand has a decidedly European look and feel, it is actually based out of New York. Their fragrances are made in the USA and the candles and hand creams in Canada. The company does not test any of their ingredients or products on animals. The full-size 100ml bottles are absolutely gorgeous. They’re made of thick Murano glass and topped with beautiful gold caps engraved with a delicate bird/leaf design.

This lovely Mini Discovery Collection is a wonderful introduction to the house and will especially be a hit for the floral lovers. These fragrances are high quality eau de parfums and most have at least a fair/good longevity and projection. The set is available for purchase from quite a few fine retailers, I will list a few of my favorite ones below. I believe the overall price point for this brand is reasonable and most of the fragrances come in multiple sizes and product options to accommodate a variety of budgets/needs.

Find it here:

Tocca EDP Mini Discovery Set (at Tocca’s Amazon store)

Tocca EDP Mini Discovery Set (at Anthropologie)

Tocca EDP Mini Discovery Set (at Nordstrom)

Read on for my ‘two scents’ on each of these ladylike fragrances:

Florence

• Scent Type: classic floral
• Key Notes: bergamot, pear, gardenia
• Other Notes Perceived: apple, grapefruit leaf, tuberose, jasmine, violet leaf, iris, musk, white woods
• Personality: sophisticated, romantic, timeless
• This fragrance available in: 100 ml bottle EDP, 20 ml travel bottle EDP, 10 ml travel rollerball EDP, hair fragrance, sapone (bar soap), 120 ml tube crema da mano luxe (hand cream), 45 ml travel-sized hand cream, bagno profumato (body wash), crema da corpo (body lotion), 10 oz candle, home fragrance diffusers, and delicate laundry detergent

This is one for the gardenia lovers! This fragrance reads as 100% gardenia on me. Each time I’ve tested it, I’ve strained to see if there are any other notes I can perceive, such as the pear or bergamot, but it’s all white flowers with a heavy emphasis on the gardenia. This gardenia reads rather indolic/mothball-y on me for the first half hour or so, then it mellows out a bit. It also helps if I don’t try to sniff it too close on my skin. I would describe this fragrance as mature and a touch classic/old-fashioned.

This is a very elegant scent that would be appropriate for any daytime event, including formal ones. The projection is good with this fragrance, it stays strong for the first couple of hours then fades a bit to a skin scent, which lasts a long time. Not everyone will detect or be bothered by the indolic qualities so definitely worth a sniff for the true gardenia lovers. This (along with Stella, Giulietta, and Cleopatra) is one of Tocca’s original scents and a long-time best seller of the house. As such, it is available in many products in addition to perfume, as listed above.

Find it here:

Florence – entire line (at Tocca’s Amazon store)

Florence 15ml (at Anthropologie)

Florence 50ml (at Nordstrom)

Stella

• Scent Type: fresh floral
• Key Notes: blood orange, freesia, spicy lily
• Other Notes Perceived: bitter orange, watery notes, wild orchid, sandalwood, musk
• Personality: flirty, sensual, spontaneous
• This fragrance available in: 100 ml bottle EDP, 50 ml bottle, 20 ml travel bottle EDP, 10 ml travel rollerball EDP, hair fragrance, sapone (bar soap), 120 ml tube crema da mano luxe (hand cream), 45 ml travel-sized hand cream, bagno profumato (body wash), crema da corpo (body lotion), 10 oz candle, 3 oz candle, home fragrance diffusers, and delicate laundry detergent

The opening is a spicy orange with a delicate, floral feel. But the powdery freesia very quickly takes over any citrus. There’s a tang of an oceanic scent to it as well. I detect maybe a tiny bit of the sandalwood but it is no strong player here. Overall, this is very heavy on the powdery freesia note and as with Florence, it feels like a more classic/old-fashioned scent to me. It’s also a touch indolic for me, for at least the first hour and then it mellows out to be much more pleasant.

I would never frame this as a super citrusy fragrance and other than for a few seconds in the opening, I can’t smell the blood orange (or citrus of any kind) at all. But I read notes from plenty of other reviewers who raved about this being a ‘sparkling orange’ or similar to an orange Creamsicle. I guess I would caution against purchasing a large bottle of this without sampling first to see how it performs for you personally. Seems to me that it does quite different things on different peoples’ skin.

Projection is pretty good, as happens with many scents it was more pronounced when worn in warmer weather. The longevity is good, about 2 hours at full strength and then 3 or so more as a lighter skin scent. If you like freesia and/or powdery florals, this will be a good one to try. I also saw many reviewers claim it was very similar to Britney Spears Curious. I’m not familiar with most celebrity fragrances so I’ll have to take their word for it but if you enjoyed that scent, this should be a good option. Stella is another long-time best seller for Tocca and as with Florence, comes in a wide variety of products.

Find it here:

Stella – entire line (at Tocca’s Amazon store)

Stella 15ml (at Anthropologie)

Stella 50ml (at Nordstrom)

Giulietta

• Scent Type: fresh floral
• Key Notes: pink tulips, green apple, vanilla orchid
• Other Notes Perceived: ylang ylang, lilac, lily of the valley, iris, rose, musk, heliotrope, sandalwood, amber, Virginia cedar
• Personality: feminine, delicate, refreshing
• This fragrance available in: 100 ml bottle EDP, 50 ml bottle, 20 ml travel bottle EDP, 10 ml travel rollerball EDP, hair fragrance, sapone (bar soap), 120 ml tube crema da mano luxe (hand cream), 45 ml travel-sized hand cream, bagno profumato (body wash), crema da corpo (body lotion), 10 oz candle, 3 oz candle, home fragrance diffusers, and delicate laundry detergent

This is the scent that started my love for this house and it’s still a favorite today. The initial spray is like a breath of fresh air with a light, dewy feel. I smell the fresh green apple right away and it’s slightly sweet in the opening. This has the feeling of being fresh out of the shower with the window open and the fragrance of an English countryside full of romantic flowers wafting in. It’s floral but so unique compared to the common/usual rose, white flower, or even peony-focused scents.

It’s lightly floral, lightly fruity, clean, slightly green, and very pretty. Perfectly ladylike, this would make an amazing wedding day scent. Also a great choice for when you need an elegant scent and want something outside of the standard white flowers combo or traditional rose. It’s a perfect daytime springy fresh floral. Projection is good and the longevity is decent, over an hour of the full scent and then a few hours more of a faded skin scent.

Find it here:

Giulietta – entire line (at Tocca’s Amazon store)

Giulietta 15ml (at Anthropologie)

Giulietta 50ml (at Nordstrom)

Maya

• Scent Type: warm floral
• Key Notes: wild iris, blackcurrant, patchouli heart
• Other Notes Perceived: violet leaf, Damask rose, jasmine, sandalwood, oakmoss
• Personality: confident, generous, distinctive
• This fragrance available in: 100 ml bottle EDP, 50 ml bottle, 20 ml travel bottle EDP, 10 ml travel rollerball EDP, hair fragrance

YUM! This is a very fruity scent; I get lots of red and purple fruit. I might refer to this as a ‘dark fruit’ fragrance. Reminds me of plums and berries, mostly. I’m thinking it must be from the blackcurrant and it’s definitely the dominant note here. There’s the teeny-tiniest hint of powder from the iris but this is not what I would call a powdery scent. The patchouli is not an overpowering presence here. It is doing its job of giving this fruity fragrance some depth and interest.

This scent feels fun, playful, and happy. It may be considered a ‘young’ fragrance but I never let any such labels stop me from wearing/enjoying a scent. Fine for daytime wear but it would be appropriate for an evening out as well. The projection is a bit lighter with this one, it stays close to the skin for the duration. Longevity is fair but not terribly long-lasting.

Find it here:

Maya – entire line (at Tocca’s Amazon store)

Maya 50ml (at FragranceNet)

Gia

• Scent Type: warm floral
• Key Notes: pink peppercorn, tangerine, Turkish rose
• Other Notes Perceived: vanilla, sandalwood, amber
• Personality: independent, brave, imaginative
• This fragrance available in: 100 ml bottle EDP, 50 ml bottle, 20 ml travel bottle EDP, 10 ml travel rollerball EDP

Gosh but I love this one! Sweet citrus with vanilla and some light pink peppercorn. The rose and sandalwood are not strong players to me. Overall, this fragrance reminds me of sweet orange candy. It’s funny, to me this smells like what other reviewers were saying Stella smells like! To me, THIS is actually the one with the strong, sweet orange note!

Projection is good and longevity is about 3 hours. This fragrance is in the same family with Valentino’s Voce Viva, with the ‘Froot Loops’ or ‘Fruity Pebbles’ feel (which I love!) Not quite as sweet as Voce Viva but close. A pleasant, easy to wear, sweet citrus, fruity-floral; for me there was nothing to not love here.

Find it here:

Gia – entire line (at Tocca’s Amazon store)

Gia – entire line (at Tocca)

Simone

• Scent Type: fresh floral
• Key Notes: ylang ylang, watermelon, frangipani
• Other Notes Perceived: apple, lemon, freesia, rose, musk, woody notes, amber
• Personality: breezy, sparkling, radiant
• This fragrance available in: 100 ml bottle EDP, 50 ml bottle, 20 ml travel bottle EDP, 10 ml travel rollerball EDP, 120 ml tube crema da mano luxe (hand cream), 45 ml travel-sized hand cream

Looking for the perfect summer scent? I got you covered right here! This beautiful watermelon scent is a light, clean, aquatic floral that was just made for a warm day. The lemony citrus perfectly blends with the watery-feeling floral notes. It’s slightly sweet but not sickly in any way, the sweetness is very light. When I say watermelon, it’s just a hint of real watermelon, not like a super-sweet fake watermelon from kids’ candy or anything. This entire fragrance is light and soft. I feel like there’s peony in here, even though it’s not listed as a note. Maybe it’s the rose doing that? I know that many fragrances have both peony and rose notes in them so that could be why I’m thinking peony here.

Anyways, it’s lovely and a wonderful daytime or formal scent, especially for summer. Very safe for office and close quarter settings. Also would make a nice date night scent, it has sort of an ‘old romance’ feel. I picture pink lace when I smell this. That said, this is not ‘old lady’ in any way. If you are familiar with D&G’s L’Imperatrice, another watermelon scent, this is definitely in the same family (I have and love both). Projection is light but not invisible. Longevity is so-so, faded after about 2 ½-3 hours, not totally gone but pretty light. If you’re looking for something ladylike and refreshing, this is an excellent option.

Find it here:

Simone – entire line (at Tocca’s Amazon store)

Simone 50ml (at Nordstrom)

Colette

• Scent Type: warm floral
• Key Notes: bergamot, sandalwood, pink peppercorn
• Other Notes Perceived: Amalfi lemon, juniper berries, mandarin orange, violet, jasmine, cyclamen, vanilla, amber, incense, Virginia cedar, musk, pine needles
• Personality: spicy, mysterious, seductive
• This fragrance available in: 100 ml bottle EDP, 50 ml bottle, 20 ml travel bottle EDP, 120 ml tube crema da mano luxe (hand cream), 45 ml travel-sized hand cream

This one is another strong love for me. Upon first spray, I immediately detect the bergamot and pink peppercorn combo (which I love). The violet gives it a little sweet powder that blends perfectly with the vanilla and sandalwood base notes. It’s woodsy but sweet, too – again, it’s very well-blended. I love the lightly powdery vanilla feel, it’s kind of like a cross between Lira and Gypsy Water, two scents I adore.

Multiple other reviews I have read claim to strongly smell a lemon note with this fragrance. I personally did not, just got a bit of the bergamot that blended well with the other notes. But enough folks mentioned it that I thought it was worth noting here, as you may also get a lemon vibe. The projection is quite light for this one but the longevity is great, 4+ hours. This fragrance is very versatile and has signature scent possibilities. A solid addition to any perfume collection.

Find it here:

Colette – entire line (at Tocca’s Amazon store)

Colette 15ml (from Anthropologie)

Colette 50ml (at Nordstrom)

Cleopatra

• Scent Type: warm floral
• Key Notes: grapefruit, jasmine, vanilla musk
• Other Notes Perceived: blackcurrant, green notes, cassis, peach, tuberose, patchouli, amber
• Personality: powerful, seductive, exotic
• This fragrance available in: 100 ml bottle EDP, 50 ml bottle, 20 ml travel bottle EDP, 10 ml travel rollerball EDP, hair fragrance, sapone (bar soap), 120 ml tube crema da mano luxe (hand cream), 45 ml travel-sized hand cream, bagno profumato (body wash), crema da corpo (body lotion), 10 oz candle, home fragrance diffusers, and delicate laundry detergent

Similar to Stella, this is another one that needs a hot minute to mellow itself out, lol The peach, grapefruit, and amber are the stand-out notes in the beginning. I also detect the green notes here as well. But the fragrance quickly turns sort of sour on my skin in the dry down. I think maybe it’s the jasmine turning a bit indolic on me? It does get better, though. Some vanilla starts making itself known and I enjoy the combo of that with the blackcurrant. The longer I wear it, it gets pretty woodsy, almost pine needle-esque (which is odd because pine needles are a note in Colette but not listed here).

Definitely a vampy, nighttime scent and not for the faint of heart! I think this is going to be a love it or hate it kind of scent for people and not a safe blind buy. Strangely the projection is quite light, which surprises me considering this fragrance’s notes. They are usually heavy-hitters. It also fades to a skin scent rather quickly, within about an hour. I can still smell it after that but only faintly.

Find it here:

Cleopatra – entire line (at Tocca’s Amazon store)

Cleopatra 15ml (at Anthropologie)

Cleopatra 50ml (at Nordstrom)

This house has a couple of other scents that I’ve not yet tried but would love to at some point. They also have several candles that look intriguing, particularly this Kauai one with notes of hibiscus and coconut leaves, mmmm!

Have you tried any of Tocca’s beautiful floral scents? If not, is there one that is calling to you? As always, I’d love to hear your thoughts! 💐

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