IrisMann

When I first read that edding was launching a fragrance at the repeated request of fans, I was quite surprised. The company's foray into the beauty industry with edding L.A.Q.U.E had failed. But the desire of the loyal edding fan community was apparently so great that a small step back into this area was taken.

One must give credit to the staff responsible for edding's social media presence. They have done a great job on TikTok this year. First, there were repeated hints in comments that an edding perfume might be possible. Then came the announcement that one could apply to be a tester. Later, the name of the creation was revealed, and finally, the launch date in their own fan merchandise shop was announced. A discount for quick decision-makers and the limited edition sealed the deal for eager customers.

I, too, had to have this little fragrance. I ordered it immediately, and in no time, the fever dream of generations of edding lovers was delivered.

But is the scent also successful?

Much better than expected! The testers did not succumb to the temptation of selecting a creation that only smells like edding. It is truly a wearable fragrance composition. First comes a freshness without citrus, then dark wood, and finally a resinous sweetness. Over it all lies a hint of the familiar scent of the solvents from the edding markers. The longevity on my skin is very good.

The fragrance does not need to hide behind modern niche creations. The bottle is beautifully iconic. The price-performance ratio is brilliant. Let's see if this was really just a brief visit from edding in the realm of fragrances. It was definitely well-made advertising.

I was never a big fan of the Sauvage line. This overwhelming Ambroxan note really annoys me.

Then I discovered the Cool Spray and found the flanker really great. Especially the ideal companion for a hot summer. The perfume was also appealing and was purchased for the collection.

Now I was quite curious about the latest release. At first, I wanted to take a blind buy. But luckily, I happened to receive a sample.

The disappointment was huge. After all the enthusiastic reviews, I hoped for a natural lavender-licorice bomb and instead got a very expensive luxury shower gel.

I can smell neither lavender nor licorice! Neither natural nor artificial!

I only smell noble shower gel freshness. The Ambroxan is hardly noticeable. I can't pick out any other individual fragrance notes. Everything feels very high-quality. The bottle also looks very nice. But for a shower gel scent, this is just too expensive.

The Sauvage line and I will no longer be the best of friends. But maybe it's also due to my advanced age that I prefer the Eau Sauvage line.

Here I did something that one shouldn't really do as a perfume lover. The scent is often described as challenging, and yet I took the plunge and bought it blind. I find the listed fragrance notes very interesting, there are great reviews, and I already liked the bottle of "Pour Monsieur" extraordinarily well.

And now I sit here, unsure if I can wear this fragrance. I am the powdery, floral, and oriental type with a penchant for the opulent scents of the 80s and 90s.

The composition is often described as green and fresh. I can fully agree with that. But I also perceive the scent as cool and strict. The hyacinth is constantly present on my skin. A spring flower that is often offered as a potted plant in spring. But hyacinth can be very dominant. Not a sweet little flower, not a golden daffodil. No, a hyacinth is already broader in appearance and makes its presence known with its scent.

Here, the hyacinth distributes herbal aspects. The citrus freshness at the beginning is very fleeting. The rosewood serves only as a foundation in the background. The base note is not soft. No warm, soft chypre base awaits you. Here, the moss grows on cold ground. When I smell Chanel's Cristalle, the image of a mountainside comes to mind. Sparse vegetation, mosses, and lichens on a rock crystal. A light layer of snow still covers everything.

What kind of person do I imagine with Cristalle?

I see a woman, not a girl! Delicate figure but very self-aware. A certain strictness characterizes her narrow but beautiful facial features. The skin is very pale. You can partially see the veins. The hair is combed back and pinned into a firm bun. A self-assured woman. When she enters a room, she is surrounded by a cool aura. Not a diva! The clichés of ballet teachers or piano teachers immediately come to mind.

I am none of that! But I will wear Cristalle anyway. I am waiting for a cold sunny morning. Frost covers the fields in the Münsterland, and then I will envelop myself in the aloof aura of Chanel Cristalle.

A wonderful olfactory experience.

Finally, I made it to our provincial capital Münster today. There is not only one of the turquoise branches there. I also wanted to test this highly debated little fragrance.

So I headed straight for the Gucci shelf. The beautiful packaging was already smiling at me. This lovely shade of green with the golden stars looks very vintage. It feels like the 50s. But the tester was missing. The very nice saleswoman seemed to have not only professional competence but also quickly found the object of desire again. A beautiful classic bottle that also reminds more of the 50s than the hippie era.

Then I sprayed it on the test strip and on my skin. The fragrance opens with a cup of lukewarm chamomile tea with honey. I remember that scent from my childhood. The home remedy for a bad cold. The top note lasts about half an hour. Then the heart note appears and strongly reminds me of damp new paper. I believe that Mr. Morillas has borrowed a bit from Mr. Frédéric Malle and the "Une Fleur de Cassie" that was released there. In this high-end fragrance, you also find a bit of that mustiness, which then dissolves into deep melancholy. For the base note, Mr. Morillas referenced another creation from the Malle edition, namely "Geranium pour Monsieur." Both base notes are strikingly similar.

The fragrance is something different. I'm already pleased about that. The longevity of the base is quite good. It lasts over 6 hours on me. The sillage, however, is terrible. The scent stays very close to the skin.

Conclusion! For a label like Gucci, which has often been noted for mediocre mainstream products lately, this fragrance composition is very daring. You can see it in the very controversial discussions and the very different comments and statements. But finally, something is being dared again. Of course, one can also stumble in the process, but just the same synthetic fragrance goo or the overly sweet slightly floral generic scent have been enough to annoy me in recent years. Let’s commend those responsible at Gucci for perhaps not so easy decision to launch this fragrance. It doesn't happen so often in the perfume market anymore. In the end, the product is supposed to make money. The great times of fashion designers selling us a luxurious dream are unfortunately over.

Slowly, companies and perfumers are daring to try something new again. After L´Envol by Cartier and a few other dark and/or powdery fragrance novelties, Givenchy is now also taking a bit of a risk.

Gentleman Givenchy Eau de Parfum starts off with a herbal-fresh top note. No sour fruit hits you in the face, but lavender and a light touch of pepper clear the nose. Unusual after all the synthetic-fresh waters of recent years.

The heart note is pure Dior Homme in a bed of lavender. The lipstick accord is present and, with the gentle breeze of lavender, it shifts slightly towards a more robust direction, thus acquiring a more masculine side.

Then, relatively quickly, the base comes in, and I had to rummage through my memories. The scent felt so familiar. But no modern synthetic water smells so velvety. After some thought, I realized it reminded me of Calvin Klein's Obsession for Men. A comparison test was immediately initiated, and indeed, the base components of both fragrances smell very similar.

So I mean that here the 2000s meet the 80s in a sun-drenched lavender field.

A great new release that could definitely use a bit more "punch." I just can't help it! ;O) I'm a child of the 80s and 90s after all.

I hope that more innovative new releases in the mid-price segment will hit the market soon.

To the fans of the namesake Eau de Toilette, just a little warning. The Eau de Parfum is a standalone fragrance and has very little in common with the Eau de Toilette released the previous year. So it's better to test it first. But I think it's worth it.