Ellie Nuit Parfum Review

Let me start by saying that I would NOT pay $180 for 1/2 an ounce (15ml) of this perfume. However, since it's a parfum concentration, the sample would last you quite some time, and I'd recommend Ellie Nuit to anyone seeking a sweet, dense fig fragrance on a bed of wood.Having obtained a sample of this just a few days ago (and not having very high hopes for it), I put a tiny bit on before my morning run. It was cold outside, and the scent is warm and comforting. Gourmand and slightly sweet, but not overly so, and not candied at all. I would definitely put this in the fig family, and say that it is a distant, denser cousin to Un Jardin en Mediterranee by Hermes. It is more "perfumery" than UJeM, and sweeter and more feminine as well. I liked it quite a bit, though I won't be running for the...

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Serge Lutens: An introduction

I have just recently climbed aboard the bandwagon of Serge Lutens followers. I first tried Serge Lutens in my first batch of samples from Aedes, and this was a mistake. I tried A La Nuit which was far too sweet on me. Since then, I've discovered that Serge Lutens has a very high ratio of misses to hits, because his fragrances are risky. In fact, they may be more "smells" and "scents" than traditional perfumes. Since then, I have tried a few others, and am now planning on writing to his boutique in France for the famous wax samples, so that I can try more (his samples, even on Ebay, are notoriously expensive). I like Serge Lutens Five O'Clock Au Gingembre the best of his line thus far. Though listed as a unisex fragrance, it's very masculine to my nose, particularly in the deep drydown...

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Niche Sample Reviews: Rose Opulente by Maitre Parfumeur et Gantier

Rose Opulente is a pure and simple rose solifore scent. There seems to be no other notes--- just a classic rose. It reminds me in some ways of the rose perfume that I used to wear in my teens from Victoria's Secret, except slightly less sweet. I've tried several other fragrances by Maitre Parfumeur et Gantier, which were all more complex. Not my favorite.Image from FourSeasons, where you can buy this and other Maitre Parfumeur et Gantier fragranc...

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Lys Carmin by Van Cleef & Arpels - Perfume Reivew

I was lucky enough to score a sample pack of the new Van Cleef and Arpels Collection Extraordinaire which was released in September, and I split the samples to send to a friend yesterday. In doing so, a tiny bit of the Lys Carmin got on my fingers, and I realized that though I've had the sample set for about a month, I hadn't actually tested this one yet.The marketing materials say that Lys Carmin is a blend of Lily, Pink Peppercorn, Ylang Ylang, Vanilla and Sandalwood. In the top notes, I was struck by a slightly soapy quality. In the first minutes, I thought of flowers and a really expensive shampoo. Since there was so little on my fingers, I didn't get the opportuntity to really test it out. I decided to wear it today.So, I reapplied to skin this morning. This is a slightly soapy,...

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