PENHALIGON'S The Changing Constance Eau de Parfum

There are few fragrances which have me more conflicted than Changing Constance. I am absolutely in love with how it smells and adore this composition without wanting to change a thing about it.
I think the current votes are somewhat off. To me the caramel and vanilla notes are entirely entangled. It's very hard to separate them. And this perceived saltiness is an aspect of this mix, rather than something that stands out independently. The cardamom is very present throughout. So much so that in my mind it is a cardamom-dominant fragrance and the rest simply gives it a platform. What is way underreported is the pimento note, though. In the very opening it's almost as strong as the cardamom, but begins to fade out as it develops. I think a lot of people just don't recognize it and thus perhaps clump it in as an aspect of the "salt" note? Pimento is hard to describe, but to me it feels like a translucent, peppery veil. It's not nearly as aromatic as black or white pepper for example, but it makes the composition tingly and lively in the opening, and fits in between the saltiness of the caramel, the tobacco in the base and the vaguely oriental spiciness of cardamom.

Now, here's my issue. If this was just something that happened to me I could perhaps write this off as a personal experience and leave it at that, as my skin is as dry as the Sahara. But as it very clearly is a common occurrence, we need to address the elephant in the room. As beautiful as this fragrance is, the longevity is poor to the point of being offensive. And I do mean shockingly poor, especially given the retail price. It performs much worse than most EdTs I have. The fragrance stays close to the skin from the beginning, and I could probably get a couple of hours out of it at the most. Which is not what any of us are expecting from it, I suspect. I've had a few samples now, all of them from Penhaligon's and as much as I want this, I just struggle to justify the purchase of a full bottle over so many other fragrances that perform like the luxury product that we're paying for and not like a watery body spray.

A stunning grown-up caramel gourmand dream! It actually smells so well-blended that the notes are hard to single out when you don't look at the list, it just smells so warm, spicy and beautiful. But when you read the notes it all makes sense: An ultra creamy, milky salt caramel note with absolutely no hints of the burnt, crunchy tones other caramels have, with cashmeran blended in to amp the creaminess further up. Vanilla adds even more coziness, but it doesn't turn cloying. The spicy notes of cardamom and pimento are a great choice. The cardamom is dry and warm and smells just like it does in Swedish pastries, while the pimento is really hot and spicy, especially in the opening. A little bit like a ginger note, but even more fiery. It's uncommon to get this sensation from perfumes and I love it.
I don't really smell tobacco here though, instead I get some booziness in the opening and a slight woodsy vibe behind the spiced gourmand goodness.
To me this is strictly a fall/winter scent. It's warming, cozy and sexy, feminine and sweet without being overly girly.

Admittedly I ignored Penhaligons for a long time because the traditional "old English" image is a little bland to me, I just never found it appealing. If you think like this, please go out and try Constance (or whatever sounds good to you from the Portraits collection), they're not boring at all and very well-made.

This scent is ridiculously stunning! It’s smell so yummy and mysterious and enchanting 😍
But god I have to press my nose to smell it..
The longevity is not even that bad but the projection is completely inexistant, if you want to smell it you need to be less than 5 cm away from the spray patch.
And I can’t imagine buying such a beautiful perfume with keeping this frustration of not smelling myself :(

An absolutely beautiful fragrance. Delicious cardamom which is my favourite spice note in perfumes, blended with the most gooey salted caramel. The salt isn't sharp here but just enough to add that special yumminess to the fragrance. This concoction lasts for a good 6 hours after which the vanilla starts peeking through. The drydown has that sweet vanilla but the cardamom is there too, albeit extremely light. I walk around in this yummy bubble of gourmand goodness- a little sweet, a little savory. Its divine. It smells special, warm and comforting. All weather perfume. It's beautiful even for cool summer nights. Not cloying at all. Its compared to Prada Candy but that's a straight up sweet perfume. It doesn't have the complexities of Changing Constance. It does not smell like Kilian Princess. Its unique, its happiness in a bottle and it's a big love for me ❤️

As many others have said, its a beautiful fragrance that has the lasting power of a Demeter fragrance. So, so disappointing for the price. But to be honest, I dont think I would buy it even if it were the price of demeter too, as I hate perfumes that dont last.