Here is my round-up of what I wore this week!
What are you all wearing in the run up to Christmas?
Happy December, everyone! We made it to the last month of the year.
Yesterday, I made a post on instagram about my three favorite perfumes to wear this time of year. I think of them as my festive fragrances. As you can see, the scents are:
I have previously written about these three here on the blog. They are all within the same genre, and they all bring some sparkle and brightness to a time of year where we don’t have much daylight.
What are your favorite scents to wear around this time of year?
Notes: fig leaves, almond milk, and sandalwood.
Premier Figuier is very aptly named, since it was the very first fig fragrance to become available on the market. It was created by Olivia Giacobetti, who also crafted that other famous fig fragrance, Philosykos. She certainly knows what she’s doing when it comes to fig notes because both Philosykos and Premier Figuier have stood the test of time. L’Artisan now refers to Premier Figuier as a “benchmark” fig scent, and they offer it in an EdT and an extrême format. I have yet to sample the extrême, so this write-up will just focus on the EdT.
Premier Figuier opens with bright green notes of fig leaf, quite similar to Philosykos. But I don’t want this write-up to become just a comparison to Philosykos and, luckily, Premier Figuier takes a different approach pretty quickly. A creamy coconut note appears a few minutes after the green opening, which adds a texture and a sweetness to balance out the stark leafy green notes.
I would have expected the almond milk note to add to the creamy texture introduced by the coconut. Instead, I find that the almond note has a slightly powdery texture. It’s not overly done, and it’s definitely not enough to make this a cosmetic-type scent. The almond adds a delicate softness to the central leafy green notes, and Premier Figuier takes on a resemblance to a cashmere cloud. The scent is extremely pretty at this stage, and it has moderate projection, so it’s not too delicate.
Unfortunately, the Premier Figuier EdT doesn’t have great longevity on my skin, which is why I definitely need to try the extrême. The scent heads into the woody dry down between the 3-4 hour mark, when I’m still in the mood to bask in the gorgeous cloud of soft green notes. But the sandalwood in the dry down is very nice. It adds just enough texture to anchor that creamy note that has stuck around, but it’s not too overpowering. I can detect a dry fruit note, as though the figs have been dried in the sun. It’s enough to balance out the sandalwood and keep this fragrance focused on the fig note.
Overall, I find Premier Figuier very pretty and a little bit dreamy. It feels more romantic to me than Philosykos, which pitches its green notes in a more sharp and realistic way. Premier Figuier has a lot of texture to it, and that helps round out what could be some rough edges. I enjoy both of these fig scents, but they reflect different moods. Premier Figuier could almost be a comfort scent with its lovely creamy and powdery notes. My next goal is to sample the Premier Figuier Extrême and see if that changes my opinion at all.
(I said I didn’t want to make this write-up a simple comparison between Premier Figuier and Philosykos, but I ended up comparing them anyway! I guess it’s just too tempting when the same person composes scents on the same theme.)
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Premier Figuier is available from L’Artisan’s website. L’Artisan fragrances are available at Barney’s New York, and they are starting to become available at Sephora. Samples and full bottles are also available from Luckyscent, which is where I got my sample.
The image is from Luckyscent, while the info on notes is from L’Artisan. For what it’s worth, Fragrantica has a different list of notes for this fragrance. But I decided to go with L’Artisan’s official take on the notes.
Notes: fennel, lime, aldehydes, pink pepper, cinnamon, cabrueva, cardamom, leather, incense, rose, heliotrope, musk, vanilla, benzoin, hyrax, and tonka bean.
The nose for L’Artisan’s exclusive Mon Numéro line is Bertrand Duchaufour. As is typical of Monsieur Duchaufour, Mon Numéro 10 is packed with different notes, and the list of notes copied above looks rather overwhelming. Even so, Mon Numéro 10 is not overwhelming as a scent. In fact, it’s quite simple. As many perfume reviewers have noted, Mon Numéro 10 bears a striking resemblance to Coca-Cola, cherry cola to be specific. What can I say, I like Cherry Coke, so it’s not a problem for me.
This is an incense-leather fragrance. As with all incense fragrances of late, it wears quietly on me. I wouldn’t say it’s quite skin scent territory. After initially applying it, the fragrance settles into my skin in a pleasant way, but with minimal projection. However, Mon Numéro 10 is spicy and warm, so I could see it projecting more strongly on other people.
Patchouli blooms on my skin fairly early on, along with a mix of cinnamon and I assume nutmeg, although I don’t see it listed in the notes. The aldehydes are to give some lift and ensure the fragrance doesn’t become too dense early on. There is also a soft rose note that peeks through, adding a floral aspect and some balance to the otherwise spicy composition.
I don’t wear a lot of leather fragrances, and I wonder if fans of more traditional leather fragrances dislike Mon Numéro 10. Because, there is no denying it, the drydown is leather and cherry cola. It’s as though all the spices swirl together to create a sweet syrup (in this case, Coke syrup). Despite the anchoring base of vanilla and tonka bean, there is something liquid about the composition at this stage, as though you’re pouring the fragrance onto the skin. The memory of the aldehydes lingers, adding an effervescent quality. This is the point at which you truly have cherry cola in perfume form. But, blended with the dark, cedar-infused leather, it makes for a nicely rich combination.
Bertrand Duchaufor initially created only one bottle of each fragrance in the Mon Numéro line, making it an outrageously exclusive collection. L’Artisan then opted to make Mon Numéro 10 part of the permanent line in 2014. There must be a reason that Powers That Be are fans, and I assume Mon Numéro 10 has some kind of mass appeal for it to be made permanent.
Understandably, some people don’t enjoy the soft drink association present here in Mon Numéro 10. But I have to say, I personally love this one – enough even to go for a full bottle! I found it festive enough to wear during the holidays, while the warmth and quiet smokey incense makes it perfect for the cold, dark days of January. This is a delicious warm and spicy perfume that resists the urge to pull sweet or gourmand until the very end, when it goes full-on leather laced with cherry cola. The combination of leather/cola is more appealing than you might initially think. It works well, and is even a little bit seductive.
I bought my bottle of Mon Numéro 10 at Barney’s New York. Samples are available from The Perfumed Court.
Image and info on notes is from Luckyscent.
I haven’t posted in a week, and it isn’t because I fell off the face of the internet. Rather, a freak change in weather has had me perplexed about what perfume to wear. It reached 85 degrees here yesterday, which is extremely unusual. I’m pretty sure that we were battling snow at this time last year. My clothing wardrobe and my fragrance wardrobe have been completely thrown off by this sudden heat. I’ve been digging around my stash of samples and bottles this week, and this is what I’ve come up with to wear:
L’Artisan Parfumeur; Timbuktu: This opens with a splash of sharp green mango, so sharp that it’s almost limey. I normally don’t go in for anything so evidently fruity, but the fruit is quickly balanced by a warm woodiness coming from the papyrus wood heartnote. I view this fragrance as a version of Un Jardin sur le Nil with a bit more oomph. The fruity green topnotes are sheer enough for warm weather, but the basenotes of wood, myrrh, and vetiver anchor this scent and ensure that it’s long-lasting. The wood gives off a strange kind of sweaty vibe in the drydown but, what can I say? Sweating L’Artisan appeals to me. I loved my sample so much, I sprung for a full bottle of this.
{Timbuktu: $100 for 50 ML, $145 for 100 ml}
HEELEY; Menthe Fraiche: As you might expect, this one begins with a blast of mint that’s so strong, it’s almost medicinal. Menthe Fraiche develops into quite the herbal composition, with notes of green tea and some bergamot creeping in. Again, no surprises, but this is quite a cool, icy scent. Once you know the name of this fragrance, it performs pretty much exactly as you’d expect. This is an incredibly refreshing mint with herbal undertones. Menthe Fraiche gives the sensation of briefly cracking the freezer open on a warm day. I wore this one on St Patrick’s Day and it served me well all day.
{Menthe Fraiche: $136 for 100 ml}
Parfums de Nicolai; L’Eau Mixte: This offering definitely leans masculine, as the citrus is abrasive and astringent at first sniff, and remains detectible all throughout wear time. However, I love wearing it on truly hot days. Not every office building/shop/restaurant has turned on air conditioning yet, and this is the perfect fragrance to cut right through the humidity. There’s a fizzy effervescence here that’s really appealing. Jasmine and musk anchor this and keep it from smelling too much like a sparkling orange juice cocktail. I get around 6 hours of wear time out of this, which is quite good for a cologne.
{L’Eau Mixte: $45 for 30 ml, $115 for $100 ml}
All three of these fragrances are available from Luckyscent.
Do you change your fragrance wardrobe according to the season? What are some of your warm weather favorites?
Image: The Open Window, Collioure; Henri Matisse; 1905
This Side of Perfume 