J'ai Fait Un Rêve - clair

J'ai fait un rêve - elle

Majda Bekkali 2010

When I went over the edge into perfume mania, this was one of my first buys, after sampling it. I've since learned it contains a number of the notes I really enjoy, elemi especially, a citrusy/spicy resin from a Philippine tree of the same name. Its use here stands out in the oddly musky/spicy top note, sweetened by neroli. The heart is simple orange blossom, but the base is a symphony of woods, the related florals Jasmine and Ylang ylang, and animalic notes. Together they create a non-obvious entry into familar territory, like entering a ballroom from an opening in the floor while wearing a designer gown. Unexpected. Turns heads. They've seen stunning gowns before, but not this way. J'ai fait un rêve means, I have a dream. Don't see "clair" anywhere on the bottle or on the website, so I think that's a mistake. It's an original and inviting way of presenting Jasmine and Orange Blossom.

It reminds me of those old fairy toys where you pulled a string and they would spin around the room taking kids' eyes out.... this has the floral musk and dusty wooden corners of an average girly teenage bedroom, the dust bunnies under the bed beside the lost lipglosses and magazines.... all things that I associate with Anna Sui perfumes. I feel this could be one of hers, only elevated. I swing between feeling this is 00s fresh to somehow antique.

It starts cool and slightly spicy. Peppery elemi and jasmine intensify until it smells almost hot after a few hours... blackcurrant leaf and incense is what makes this fairytale-like, capturing the vibe I wanted Enchanted Forest by The Vagabond Prince to have.

Ethereal, gossamer qualities without a melange of aquatic florals. Weightless, despite noticeable castoreum and cumin. I see how someone might find similarities in la religieuse or relique d'amour... the atmosphere and weight in all three is quite similar even if they all smell very different. Others say it disappeared quickly but it lasted almost 10 hours on me. Pretty, underappreciated, nostalgic :)

With Majda Bekkali, you have to be quick.
Barely had the perfumes released under her name appeared in selected stores and caught the attention - or rather the sense of smell - of multiplying fragrance junkies, when one creation after another was sold out.
Completely and definitively, at least for the moment - a new launch of the fragrances in Germany is not to be expected before late spring, lamented by the suppliers.
And that is truly regrettable.

My first glance at the pyramids made me involuntarily think of the Eighties, that time when some perfumers seemingly mixed everything together that wasn’t nailed down.
The results of these experiments are already legendary today, and younger noses rightly wonder how older generations survived these bombshells without becoming anosmic.
And so, within me, the concern regarding the reactions of my surroundings wrestled with the sensational curiosity of my nose - one can guess who won...

Now it stands before me, the bottle "J'ai fait un rêve elle," initially released in 2010 under the name "Songe pour elle."
Based on the fragrance notes, I expect a powerful-spicy oriental with a lot of wood in the mix, which might suit a guy better than delicate women’s skin.
And indeed, the impression on the test strip is primarily woody and dry, with flowers and other softeners only timidly discernible in the background.
I like that - but I doubt that lovers of feminine-floral perfumes will be thrilled by this scent impression.

On the skin, however, I experience a surprise: Bright, delicate, and very youthful, "J'ai fait un rêve" opens with notes reminiscent of freshly cut green apples in close connection with the finest spring flowers, to which a subtle cedar joins moments later, lending a fragile hint of corporeality.
In the following minutes, "J'ai fait un rêve" darkens on my skin, blending flowers and wood into an impression of elegant depth, gaining warmth without steering clearly into oriental territories.
Fruitiness disappears in favor of herbaceous-green freshness, which, together with the dry wood and an underlying smokiness, generates a floral scent of a very special kind, gaining maturity with each passing hour.
It makes a rather quiet entrance, self-assured and at peace with itself, possessing great beauty that derives its unique charm from a certain austerity, a distance that keeps its secret until the end.
A dream in which I could lose myself.

Thanks to a lovely Parfumo member, I was able to test "Songe pour elle" today!

First impression: Wow, sweet!

Second impression: Hmmm, smells sweet and like caraway

Third impression: Oh... mandarin?

Fourth impression: Still sweet and woody too!

Fifth impression: My nose is going crazy, I can't recognize any notes other than sweet and woody.

Conclusion: A fragrance that can be worn in any season and at any time of day. Unobtrusive but sweet and woody! Not a special scent but also not a bad one!
I have to honestly say, describing this fragrance is really difficult!

XOXO, Mona

I discovered the perfumes by Majda Bekkali years ago at parfumsuchung. At that time, Majda Bekkali had 3-4 scents, and I was interested in "J'ai fait un rêve clair." There was also "Songe pour elle," which came in an elegant opal-like bottle and was very expensive, I think because of the flacon. It could be that it was the same scent.

I don't know how, but it happens to me very often that I want something, and it just comes... during a shopping trip, I received many samples, and among them was "J'ai fait un rêve clair"!!!!! I went crazy with joy to test the scent, but the first impression was disappointing... Too sweet for my taste. I set it aside, and after years, I happened to try it again. This time, I sniffed it carefully and detected the woodiness and cumin, but it was still sweet.

But luckily, I decided to buy the 50 ml.
From the first moment I sprayed it on my skin, I knew it was mine; I was enveloped by a warm breeze of delicate flowers and soft woods. Wonderful!!!
It can be worn in any season and at any time of day. Discreet, yet sweet and woody!
"J'ai fait un Rêve" in the depth becomes very elegant and distinctly oriental.
It was a good idea to test the scent once more; of course, I got the 120 ml.