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131po25 – :
Got this one as a gift from my sister, no doubt given also because she perceived it to be a bit too unisex for herself, who likes sweeter fragrances.
However, I really do apreciate it! The silage is enormous and the breakdown is surprisingly feminine and attractive. Its not my “go to” scent in any regard, but I am a girl who seeks human connection, who works with passion and who is lead to the heart of issues so I guess GAPS description of the perfumes wearer describes me!
I didn’t think two notes could radiate such lovely nuances on my skin.I need to find me a man who will wear this scent with me. Really I do. Its a keeper.
What I dislike about this is the spray top. Its very diminutive and broke, so when I depress it to spray the juice, perfume seeps out from the top. Really after having this assertive rectangular bottle and this wonderful, heavy metallic type top, its pretty unnerving to have the spray cap be “weak” so to speak. I think GAP needs to work on that.
Otherwise, a winning scent for those who understand it. Certainly no soapy cliche here. I’m glad to have it.
anp059JeomiWogkig – :
Anyone who says this fragrance its “too feminine” did not wait until the dry down. Anyone who says this gave them a headache must have bathed in it, or they where in a location that must have been really hot with no ventilation.
ONE–the dry down is totally unisex. It is not heavy, so yes it leans on the feminine side because of that and 1 of the notes is a fruit…
UNISEX frags TEND TO BE EXPENSIVE, not this one. JUST AS GOOD AS NICHE (in smell not necessarily quality of ingredients. BUT it wii get you just as many compliments though!!!!
TWO–it is not too strong, because it mellows out quite nice. The patchouli is just as strong as the apricot. TOTALLY UNISEX.
THREE–if you are a lumberjack type guy and everything has to be tough like you eat hammers and raw steel for lunch…stay away.
IF you consider yourself a metrosexual and are always looking for something different, look no further. I personally have not smelled any thing like this –man or woman.
FOUR–IF you like ANY OF THESE…Midnight in Paris, CK One, Eclectic Collections (ex. Carte Blanche or Magnet), Paris Hilton for Men, Thallium, etc) you should at least smell this from the BEGINNING to DRY DOWN.
ANY SEASON, ALL OCCASIONS (except interview or important business meeting)
Probably performs best in Spring or Summer.
8.5/10 unique
Tokole – :
I really like the scent, it is heavier than perfumes I am used to, but I still like it. I think it is ideal to wear during winter, but I used it during summer and spring and also during day too.
It has very intense scent, and people were quite divided wheter they like it or not…. 😀
hobotoff – :
A simple nice bottle that i like.
On to the fluid:
Not fresh/bright fruity and not dark/earthy.
Deep apricot in the middlenotes, reminds me of raisins. The “overall”-smell from this perfume is unfortunately not that great.I love patchouli and i detect it but i love a perfume with Either mysterious notes or simple, strong & clear notes .
To much alike my olderbrothers aftershave.
a little spicy BUT so unoffensive that it might as well could have been a Axe-spray.
I feel sad to describe it this way, because this is not a bad perfume. But not good either.
Fits your brother 😉
RamZ – :
It’s hard to believe that this cologne is made on damascus and patchouli, because it is really powerful and different. For me, it’s the best of the “The Individuals”.
During its evolution, it reminds me – at times – of Obsession by Calvin Klein. But this one is not powdery; It is fruity and creamy, sour and sweet, with a duality that varies according to the skin of the wearer. Even because it’s unisex!
In fact, I think it’s interesting to quote that I’ve already seen reviews of other people saying that this is also one of those cases where certain specialized perfumeries in niche would love to put their hands.
And don’t be fooled by the popular history of the brand, because all the colognes of the “The Individuals” are excellent and have projection and lasting over many others that cost twice as much or more.
This one is sexy and engaging, and fits very well in pleasant climates and nocturnal events.
cajnik – :
I’m so happy, this bottle is finished finally (I put it on the toilet in my house)! I really couldn’t stand this smell. It’s just very synthetic, sweet and boring scent which gave me a headache. I will not buy it again. Never ever.
etk646InsuffBooni – :
It’s the worst perfume I bought. I have it sitting in my closet unused. I am trying to sell it but no one likes it.
error404 – :
I bought this on ebay for pretty cheap, but the bottle arrived with a busted sprayer. I’ve been a little wary of using it as it seems to leak more juice than it sprays.
With that said, it’s very nice. It’s a light, transparent scent that you could douse yourself in and not offend anyone. I don’t get much of the apricot (which is a good thing), and instead I get more of a smooth spicy scent. I agree with those who compare it to Obsession, it’s just a lot more toned down. Overall, a very nice cheapy. I’m tempted to try The Artist now.
nanhov – :
A soft spicy/floral/fruity scent and a bit powdery. There is a sweet synthetic fruityness on my skin and the opening is quite nice. Then I get some cinnamon, vanilla and, I think, some rose in the background. There are definitely more notes than shown above. The Lover was very inexpensive (£7), so it is excellent value. It’s an OK scent and fairly pleasant – it’s also quite unique too. Could be a grower!
легенер – :
Wow! My first full day of wearing and it’s complete love! A very beautiful and complete fragrance IMO. Reminds me of Guerlain Cologne 68 and a bit of L’instant de Guerlain pour homme. I can’t believe it cost me £7.99! I’m stocking up!
thankfully the apricot isn’t overdone as its not fruity to my nose. The patchouli is not too heavy, all in all the notes (and there must be more than are listed here!) blend perfectly into a soft characterful depth. It smells so much More expensive. Quality.
ikost – :
nice apricot suede and patchouli that actually smells really nice, u just gotto give it a good 20 minutes to drydown and u have a great smell and experience
its actually a very dirt cheap giveaway price for a scent that is just like a 300 dollar niche brand so its a great buy!
vego71 – :
This is a freshly sweet and very fruity patchouli scent. Nice and uplifting but I wish the lasting power and sillage were at least as in the case of Gap The Original, because 3 hours are definitely too short even for a realtively inexpensive perfume!
To me, The Lover is very relaxing and much more on the feminine side as regards unisex fragrances. I like it as a night scent, just before going to bed for it helps me unwind and forget the day’s struggles.
I do not get the idea of the name, though. It could be “The Dreamer” or “The Healer”, but nothing close to “The Lover”… there is not much sensuality about the fragrance.
miri – :
I won this on eBay and wasn’t particularly excited about it coming at all. I thought it was going to be one spray…”blah” and give it to mum or sister…but no,this is fantastic. Yes it is simple but in no way boring.
Every time I sniff my wrist I get another facet of the fragrance be it the peach or the patchouli. There is also the warm fuzz of ISO e super beneath the surface that gives the scent a more rounded feel.
There are a lot of niche companies out there that are charging silly money for similar fragrances that are not as nice as this. If you see this cheap it really is worth a ‘blind buy’.
sanek1987 – :
Its my favourite perfume. Well, one of my favourites anyway. I’m utterly in love with this. It turns me on a lot, but doesn’t turn my man on so thats a minus, but i’d say it’s a very confidence boosting perfume.
sata – :
I like it. A lot, actually. It reminds me very much of SJP Covet.
The so-called list of The Lover’s ingredients is just silly, there’s much more going on than apricots, mint and patchouli and I’d bet that one of things going on is geranium.
I doubt if this is anyone’s holy grail but it’s brisk, invigorating, outspoken and it straddles the gender line with flair.
impaskapeks – :
This is a nice one. The first time I tested it, it seemed way too masculine and heavy for me. Even a little suffocating. But when I tried it the next day it settled faster and I started to smell the apricot slightly balancing the patchouli, making it softer and warmer. Now I think this is really unisex, although a tiny, tiny bit more on the masculine side. Not exactly my thing but still very nice.
It lasts all day, although you may need to reapply once if you like your scent getting noticed because it loses its intensity after an hour or two.
Also it says on the box that in addition to patchouli and apricot there is a ‘mint leaf’ note.
I like this one but I am rarely in a mood that would make me want to wear this so its up for an EU swap if anyone is interested!
Update: swapped a while ago and now I find myself missing it a little. For me it’s the type of fragrance that I don’t use when I have it, but once it’s gone I wish I had it somewhere close at hand to sniff every once in a while, although not necessarily to use.
cjy071Bessinepome – :
I just got a 3.4oz bottle of The Lover blind over the internet because it was so cheap and the reviews were OK so I felt compelled to give it a try!
At first I was a bit confused about the smell. I knew it was classified as unisex but my first reaction was that it definitely smelled more male than female. It was heavier smelling than I was expecting, a bit spicy and I couldn’t smell any fruit at all. It actually reminded me for some reason of Benetton Cold which is also a unisex scent and is OK but I’m not crazy about it. The difference though is that Benetton Cold is lighter and fresher, whereas The Lover initially smelled heavier and ‘musty’.
The longer The Lover was on my skin though the more I started to like it. I thought it would be quite linear and wouldn’t change much on my skin but it mellowed out and the spiciness wore off (thank god!). It then started to smell a lot softer, less heavy, more feminine and I could begin to smell the apricot peeking through. It actually was smelling quite sexy at this point and very much a skin scent.
So, I am liking The Lover now! I don’t know that I’ll grow to totally love it but I definitely do like it and it’s another interesting scent in my (too rapidly expanding!) collection! If I had to grade it I’d give it 3 stars out of 5 at this moment but that might get even higher the more I wear it!
limon74 – :
thats what the heck it smells like. obsession!!!!!!!! I KNEW IT WAS SOMETHING!!!!!!!
Rabtrerajen – :
Gap the Lover makes me hate Patchouli!!!. The patchouli in this fragrance is dirty and greasy-like. It’s kinda manly and not attractive at all. There is no fruit to be found either because patchouli is so strong. It’s not fresh nor clean to me. I might be smelling an old bottle. Why is it called the Lover? I am gonna call it the Stinker instead.
lkq517intitytek – :
I love this one. It would be good on a man or a woman. Smells like sexy and earthy. The patchouli is not very dirty making it very wearable.
Milisadream – :
A very interesting EDT. Have similar input notes of apricot with a little floral, yet not lose its character so unisex. Its middle notes are a softer apricot, and mixed, and vanishes in a fragrance that seems to have a touch of leathery, fruity touches blend. Its base is almost equal note, only proliferates more that touch of leather.
It has ranging in age from young men to less than 60 years. Her time of year is universal. A fragrance that despite being fruit is dense, it is annoying but has a touch misteriosoy loaded. It stays on my skin for about 6 hours. Its use is preferable for intimate events, with romantic touches. Very interesting and fruit load.
nick1057 – :
To Fragrantica Admin:
For the GAP individual collection, there is a missing bottle in Fragrantica > Gap The Artist. I have it and I like to put my review here… hope you can add it soon.
Or anyone can guide me how to inform admin to add missing fragrance?
tizanaene – :
These Gap series of perfume assemble simple fragrance with a very strong personality tag line (which is very Gap style-simplistic), the smell of The Lover really give you a warm, sweet feeling and give you a lover-feel, one note: it last very long on me, more than 8 hours.
Валик – :
This smells of patchouli and apricots, just as explained. Still there really isn’t anything particularly sensual about this scent. What’s important to the Gap and it’s recent efforts in the fragrance market is the bottling and scent seem fresh, and inspire frequent usage… like soap! The problem with that however, is rather than selling a scent or an experience, they are playing into a lifestyle concept. For 5 dollars, it doesn’t really bother me, but in all honesty, the scent rings kind of stupid.