Elijahrb67

Guerlain's Lui is a bit of an illusive fragrance. We all know by now that the fragrance went through a rebrand along with the rest of the L'Art & La Matière collection, but even after this, Lui has always remained a bit of an illusive fragrance within the Guerlain collection. In my mind, I always saw this fragrance as the opposite rendition of the similarly named Liu. The two are almost like yin and yang to me. Liu is a sparkling, aldehydic floral, while Lui is a dark and intense carnation with leather notes. Lui is the antithesis of Liu, simply put. Of course, I doubt this was Delphine Jelk's intention, but in my mind it gives a story and meaning to the similarity in name. All of this aside, Lui is a very beautiful fragrance and a great carnation. The carnation here is met with a shockingly sweet and thick benzoin note, along with a vanilla that I found similar to the Vanilla Planifolia Extrait 21. These two, in combination, help mellow out the usual bitterness that I find carnation to have. I am also getting hints of pear within this fragrance, especially in the earlier hours when wearing this. All of these things combined create for a wonderfully unique, dark and seductive scent that is truly one of the more inspiring to come from L'Art & La Matière collection.

I wish Guerlain would do more outlandish fragrances like this. As weird as it sounds, I feel Lui fit better in L'Art & La Matière, even in it's short life, than many of the other current entries into the series do. This fragrance truly felt like it belonged in the line, and it stood out from many other creations by both Guerlain and other houses. Maybe, with a bit of luck, Guerlain will bring this back to the states some day. Though, given their love for discontinuation, I don't see that coming anytime soon.

Giorgio for Men will always be a nostalgic fragrance for me. My Grandpa, who is just as much addicted to fragrance as I am, has always been partial to Giorgio, and smelling it reminds me of a trip I went on with them in the summer of 2007. We were going to St. Louis Missouri, and much to my Grandpa's displeasure, he forgot to pack any fragrance in his bag. We stopped by a local drug store that happened to have Giorgio for Men on discount that day, so that was what he picked. The coincidence of that being his only available fragrance, and the fact that my Grandpa is a chronic over sprayer has forever burned the scent of Giorgio into my mind, which is a good thing of course! Years later, I went back to St. Louis with other family members, and everything that we saw there still reminded me of Giorgio for Men. It's a small memory, but a good one nonetheless. I can't say that I would wear this scent myself, as it's just not my usual cup of tea, but I do enjoy it. It's a powdery scent with a bit of a fruity tinge, but it's made to lean masculine with a bit of fresh citrus, dirty patchouli and some very dry woods in the base. I do also get tinges of leather as it dries as well, but a very clean and supple leather as opposed to anything animalic. For it being an older scent, and one that can be had without hurting the wallet too much, it's actually exceptionally well formulated. I have not smelled any vintages of this fragrance, but I found the current formula to be quite good.

Another funny story to add, I actually no longer own this fragrance, as I dropped the bottle months ago, and it shattered into a million pieces. My closet and bedroom still smell of this fragrance even after 5 months having passed since dropping it, so I suppose that we can say the performance here is good? This is also the first and only bottle I have every broken, and I'm crossing my fingers that I don't do it again.

In Greek mythology, the Hesperides were nymphs of the evening who were meant to represent the light of sunsets. They have historically been depicted as delicate and beautiful women, oftentimes found near a sort of fruit tree in a lavishly depicted countryside. I think this fragrance represents this historical depiction well. L'Eau des Hespérides is a very supple and gentle fragrance that is immensely fresh, yet feels warm, like the evening sun is beating down on your skin on a hot summer's evening. The notes of peppermint and bitter orange are the most prominent here, which give it that aforementioned freshness. However, the immortelle is present as well, giving a bit of a gentle touch to a fragrance that could otherwise been seen as a bit harsh. The fragrance doesn't dive much deeper than this, but it accurately depicts a pastoral scene of the Hesperides that can be seen in many renaissance era paintings of the titular figures.

For what it is, I feel that Diptyque has done well to capture a very specific feeling with this fragrance. I like to think of this fragrance as a citrus "freshie" for someone who is looking for something a bit more alternative than a run of the mill fresh scent. It stands out from the crowd because of this, and adds to why I enjoy it so. I normally tend to avoid fresh fragrances in general, as I feel they can be a bit underwhelming or pedestrian, but L'Eau des Hespérides is most certainly an exception.

Throughout my fragrance journey, I have been silently trying to find the "perfect" rose fragrance. Eau Rose stands out as the closest I have come to fulfilling this goal of mine. This is a rose that has a very clear goal, focusing solely on the natural beauty of the rose. What makes this fragrance so compelling to me is that it is very linear, fresh and vibrant, while still maintaining just the slightest bit of powder and sweetness. It never leans too far into syrupy or jammy territory, or in the opposite direction, bitterness and harshness. There's also a gentle fruitiness, which is quite typical in rose fragrances, woven into this composition. This fruitiness works well with the composition, and helps to amplify the freshness of the rose. In general, I found that Eau Rose seems to sidestep the excesses that many rose fragrances of today seem to gravitate towards in favor of a bit of a more serious take on the note, rooting itself in a sort of clarity and of course, the feeling of the color pink.

For those who could call themselves seasoned rose lovers, Eau Rose provides a refined take on the note that is elevated above many others. And, for those who might be unsure of rose fragrances, it offers an inviting introduction that is extremely pleasant and graspable. I don't think Eau Rose is reinventing the rose by any means, but it is certainly giving a worthwhile and appreciable take.

I’m still a bit confused on Diptyque’s Les Essences de Diptyques line. For a brand that has decent prestige, and is know for having some quite stellar creations, their ‘exclusive’ fragrance line is not feeling very exclusive, but rather a bit bland. Bois Corsé is not an exception to this, and I still found it an odd, and not entirely pleasant fragrance. The opening is very astringent, with a dry and powdery side as well. There is a very prominent woody note with a turpentine feel to it that seems to dominate the opening. To add, there’s also an underlying sweetness from the tonka , which is making the entire thing clash. This opening actually lasts for a fair amount of time, but the dry down is a somewhat better experience. The dry down consists mainly of powdery tonka, and the same woods from the opening, but they’re now toned down and easier on the nose. Despite it being more enjoyable I still found it to be awfully bland. It never really goes anywhere deeper than just vague sweetness, which is disappointing. I am truly having a hard time imagining this fragrance being the ‘essence’ of anything other than perhaps a furniture polish of sorts, or maybe some kind of unpleasant cocktail with lots of bitters?

I can’t fault Diptyque for much here though. From what I’m gathering this line as a whole seems to be aimed more at an abstract concept where they are attempting to capture the scents of things that don’t really have a scent. This is especially the case with Corail Oscuro, and the newly released Lauzulio, both of which seem like they wouldn’t strike as much of a nerve. Looking at it from a more artistic point of view, I can definitely appreciate the work, but at this price point I can think of better options that are more enjoyable and exciting to wear.