Paradoxe or Born in Roma? Comparing Perfumes

The Born in Roma line has been a main focus for Valentino, in both their men’s and women’s fragrance offerings. The original Donna Born in Roma has particularly been a popular release. Prada, on its end, has been rolling out its Paradoxe line of scents.

Since there is some overlap between each of these two, which perfume is the better option? Which smells better? Which lasts longer? On this page, I’ve compared the two, after testing them out.

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Tale of the Tape: Donna Born in Roma vs. Paradoxe

Born in Roma

Notes include: jasmine, vanilla, black currant, cashmeran, pink pepper, bergamot, guaiac wood

Click here to try: Born in Roma on Amazon

My Full Review: Donna Born in Roma

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Paradoxe

Notes include: neroli, pear, tangerine, bergamot, orange blossom, white musk, jasmine, vanilla, amber, benzoin

Click here to try: Paradoxe by Prada

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Opening

Donna Born in Roma kicks things off with a fruity mix and all that entails. Here, it is a bit tart, but also blended with sweet and some juiciness from citrus.

Blackcurrant is in the mix, giving it that somewhat tart and sharp aroma. But, in Born in Roma, the note does seem tempered by the use of pink pepper and a jasmine note.

Early, it will be about the blackcurrant with some bergamot. Then, the jasmine really picks up a head of steam to emerge as a major player in the perfume composition.

Paradoxe starts off sweet, but has an early pretty heavy influence from its neroli note. The pear and tangerine are the fruity notes, but I think they have more of a candy-like feel versus what I got with Born in Roma.

The neroli isn’t in the top spot for long and it shifts more to the orange blossom. Yes, it is a trio with those two floral notes and the jasmine. But, the orange blossom even seems to have more impact on my skin than any of the others.

Which of these do I prefer? Honestly, I think the Valentino starts off a bit better than Paradoxe. I like the fruity notes more, the pink pepper spice is interesting, and I think those notes work better with its jasmine focus.

Edge: Born in Roma

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Projection

Roma is on the lighter end of what could be considered moderate for a perfume. The initial spray does pack some power. So, that first 30-45 minutes is fairly strong and will have some good reach.

Thereafter, it’s more than a skin scent, but it’ll be more of an intimate scent bubble. Noticeable, but not screaming for attention.

I’d say that Paradoxe inhabits the upper end of that moderate range. It feels bolder than Born in Roma in the opening and sustains that for a tad longer. Still, most of its life will be above average but not a huge projector.

Edge: Paradoxe

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Longevity

I find the longevity of Paradoxe to be quite good. When I tested the Prada out, I got in the 8-10 hour range, wearing it on skin.

While it is not elite with how long it lasts, Paradoxe is a mainstream designer perfume that actually puts forth a very good performance.

With Born in Roma, it’s closer to 7-8 hours of total wear. Not terrible, by any means, and probably enough for close to a full work day. However, it definitely didn’t hit the same level as Paradoxe when compared head to head.

Prada takes this category.

Edge: Paradoxe

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Versatility

Paradoxe is more of an autumn and winter perfume, that can venture into springtime somewhat. Though, it strikes me as being at its best, when it is somewhat chilly outside.

With the Valentino perfume, I think that it works pretty much year round. The extreme days of summer, I’d go with something else, and also the coldest winter days. However, it has some more use than does Paradoxe.

Both are daytime and office safe. Very versatile as daily wears. I think that I’d prefer coming across Born in Roma more in a nightlife environment versus Paradoxe. It’s a bit more lively (flirty?).

So, this category is going to go to Roma.

Edge: Born in Roma

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Overall Scent

So, which one of these fragrances do I prefer? It is an especially tight race here between Paradoxe and Donna Born in Roma.

Paradoxe has the performance edge. It has some more vanilla highlights than what I get with the Valentino. However, it will mostly be a somewhat soapy and clean fragrance, with a good balance between orange blossom and jasmine notes.

It’s all fine. I like the scent, it’s not offensive, and gives you plenty of opportunity to wear it.

That being said, I like Born in Roma more. The opening act smells better to me. Beyond that, even if it’s a fairly simple perfume, I like the sustained sweetness and light spiciness here. Not as much vanilla, but I think the woody notes give it greater depth even without too much development.

Not a huge margin, but I think Roma wins this.

Winner: Donna Born in Roma