Iris de Nuit James Heeley

Desirability: Full bottle

In the description listed on Heeley's website, "♀ : Sensual, delicate, creative and individual." 

Springtime (The Reader) Monet. Source: pinterest

Iris de Nuit is a more wearable version of Iris Silver Mist- at least it is to me. I am a huge Lutens fan but as much as I admire the artistry of Iris Silver Mist, it's a bit hard going sometimes between the two of us. If the Lutens was steely silver and Tauer Pentachords White aptly named, then Iris de Nuit wears like a soft mossy green. A stroll alone through Nature, surrounded by living things and shrouded in sunlight. A time for introspection. 

It opens with a bit of sharp pepper, the starchy orris is front and centre throughout, delicate powdery violets and the vegetal sweetness of angelica that's just a teeny bit green, which I've grown to love thanks to the herbal nectar that is Angélique Noire. Although Angélique Noire feels quite fine, Iris de Nuit is even lighter and dry. A calming woody musk keeps the scent from being too ethereal. I read somewhere that cedar is used as a "grounding" note and I can see how it flexes its muscles in Iris de Nuit. Projection is good and longevity average, I got about 8 hours of wear each time. 

I find myself agreeing with the vignette from the official website (as above), Iris de Nuit is not a giddy girl or brash lout, instead he/she would be content in a library or art class, the kind who is comfortable not speaking to anyone for days without feeling lonely but on the other hand can be relied on being charming and sociable. The type that most people remember warmly without truly knowing intimately, being described as "different" without any negative connotations attached. 

Misia Chanel

Desirability: Full bottle

Source: pinterest

Violet scents were what led me into the world of fragrances. I was obsessed with smelling everything with violet flowers and leaves from dewy life-like violets to dark, moody violets. As a result I don't just have a violet corner in my wardrobe but a full section with violets to suit my every need. Even then, I still keep adding new discoveries but at a much less feverish pace.

If like me, you adore the smell of Guerlain lipsticks with their waxy floral scent, you have to try Misia. Violets, roses, powdery iris and lots of buttery orris abound in Misia which shares some vintage make-up elements with Lipstick Rose but on me, Misia is more powdery and green (at the beginning) whereas Lipstick Rose is rather sensual and musky all the way. I don't find them similar at all actually.

It starts off with aldehydes and fresh flowers, the powder quickly presenting itself and at this stage Misia is very feminine and delicate. It gradually deepens and feels more tangible with the entrance of orris, resins and vanilla. The drydown is a heavenly affair between the flowers, powder and balmy base notes with most of the green-ness gone by now. Lipstick Rose feels more solidly reassuring whereas Misia seems more flighty- I mean I know Lipstick Rose is there all the way whereas the illusion of diaphaneity lets Misia play hide and seek with my olfactory nerve.

I'm very much in the camp of "wear what you like" but I find it hard to categorize Misia as anything but female. Or should I say feminine. Where Lipstick Rose reminded me of knockout cheesecake models, Misia brings images of Art Deco fashion to mind- simple outlines using gorgeous top quality materials. The scent has soft to average projection but stays on me for quite a number of hours.

Spending time with both Misia and Lipstick Rose put me in the mood for classics and I shall share this precious song that came to mind.

Jo Stafford. You Belong To Me

Daimiris Laboratorio Olfattivo

Desirability: Full bottle

Source: Fragrantica

March 2015 is my month for "Eat, Pray, Love". I can't remember the last time I was off for a whole month. Since I'm between jobs I decided to run away from my tropical home to the other side of the world with little stops on the way. Packing for a month especially when one is going to experience all four seasons through that month is no joke and in order to keep my luggage weight reasonable, I obviously had to tone down on the perfume bottles. The problem is when one has so much choice and favourites it gets difficult to choose ONE, I know, first world problems right? Anyway in the end my scent of the moment Daimiris got to come on my soul searching trip. My arguments for choosing Daimiris were as follows.

Spicy and warm, the smell of cardamom and saffron is unmistakeable in the dusty and earthy opening of Daimiris. Beneath the spices you have a blast of heady booze and rich leather, all perfectly proportioned with no rough edges. When I first tried Daimiris while in a hurry a few months back, I could not make out the candy note and vowed to go back for a more leisurely second try and voila! The "daim candy" note is so yummy and true to the taste of the crunchy chocolate almond candy but despite the candy note, Daimiris is not all that sweet and I would say it is more of a spicy oriental than a gourmand. Iris which gave the dusty and earthy/rooty effect of the opening is very much present in the drydown showing its buttery side, saffron prevailing till the end with a subtly sweet amber and an animalic musk contributing to the happy coziness that is Daimiris. Despite all its richness, I find Daimiris to be more of an alluring reddish-gold silk than a thick blanket of spicy warmth.

So gourmand + musky + oriental. It has a few of my favourite things, good projection and longevity and is one of those well-rounded and charming fragrances that you can wear anywhere, even on long haul flights without invading the personal space of the person in the seat next to you. Into my bag it went, wrapped in my wool scarf for insurance against baggage handlers using my luggage for discus practice. 

Lolita Lempicka Parfums Lolita Lempicka

Desirability: Full bottle

Sweet and gourmand without the gag or diabetic factor. 

Ok so there are way too many fruity floral gourmand combinations out there, most of them smelling too similar and generic. Ok so I get totally confused by how many flankers there are for the Lolita Lempicka fragrances, it's just as bad as the spinoffs of Thierry Mugler Angel, Alien, Womanity and almost more numerous than the progeny legitimate or not in some ruling families. Anyway I digress...

Lolita Lempicka (the original I speak of) like Mugler's Angel is one of few scents that I will always have in my wardrobe no matter how ridiculously large it gets or how many white hairs or lack of hair I have in the future. Lolita Lempicka and Mugler's Angel in my opinion are THE royalty of gourmand scents. 

A fanfare of syrupy black cherries on vanilla ice cream before the protagonists come in. The major players star anise and licorice add a nice twist to this sweet gourmand, a spicy sharpness contrasting the thick creamy praline, giving Lolita Lempicka a darker side like the wicked witches and sisters that are a staple in any good fairytale. I've mentioned a lot of sweet treats but Lolita Lempicka in reality isn't that sugary, it's nicely balanced between the spicy aromatic herbs, the sweet bits and carrot-iness of the iris/orris root. Feminine and fun! 

If you need any further persuasion look at that bottle (ok maybe not the best argument if I'm selling this to a guy), that polished apple that looks like it was made by fairies is whimsical and cute without being childish. And the price tag? I highly approve and wish many more perfumes could be priced as sensibly. Plus Parfums Lolita Lempicka could give a few niche houses lessons on projection and longevity. 

Pentachords White Tauer

Desirability: Decant

Source: Fragrantica

In a nutshell, this smells like a rich vanilla cake with a thick frosting of buttercream and decorated with crystallized violets. The initial part truly does smell gourmand but after some time, a powdery sweet iris emerges from all this richness, in a delicate posy with fresh violets. In the drydown, the powder drifts away to be replaced by warm woody notes backing the suede-like iris and sweet violets.

This is comfort in a bottle, be it stuffing your face with decadent treats or nestling in a rocking chair before a warm fireplace with the smell of an approaching Spring in the cool air. Average projection with good longevity, I get at least eight hours wear. A much more approachable take on iris than Lutens' Iris Silver Mist which I enjoy smelling but not wearing. 

Iris Silver Mist Serge Lutens

Source: flickr.com

I have adored Serge Lutens' fragrances since my first bottle of Ambre Sultan which remains the watermark of amber perfumes, the purchase marking my first foray into the world of serious perfume loving and my eternal fixation with this house and its stirring creations. 

Iris Silver Mist is an oddity even in a house full of the weird and wonderful and I empathise with the multiple polarising reviews scattered across the internet. This wasn't instant love and I'm not sure it is love yet, but after spending a bit of time with it I would say it's a definite like, it's wearable art that's subtle yet long lasting.

Carrots, earthy, mineral, rooty, vegetal, yup I am smelling all that from the word "go". It's unmistakeable and I can never forget it, pardon the pun but it's rooted in my head, the raw carrots that is. After smelling like I've been digging with bare hands in the soil for the better part of an hour, it changes as if I've uncovered something cold and metallic in the soil and it's just this weird earthy yet rusty or the smell of blood would be a better if not more peculiar match. Uncomfortable to say the least and I will admit I felt a little queasy in the stomach and I do not have blood phobia.

Source:herbangardener.com

Thank heavens and everything else in between that the awkwardness passed and like a metamorphosis, Iris Silver Mist rises from its rocky beginnings and it's all smooth-sailing from now on. Roll the credits. Or rather roll out the red carpet for one of the most smooth, buttery suede irises I've smelt yet, delicately sweet like sugared flower petals, subtly spicy (I smell cinnamon) and living wood like a walk in a forest while the weather is cool enough for warm breath to come out as puffs.



I've read comments labelling this funereal, aloof, untouchable, melancholic and the like. I can't say I agree. Iris Silver Mist makes me think of Cabiria in Nights of Cabiria, a prostitute with a heart of gold, on a never ending search for love and redemption. Unfortunately she keeps getting her heart broken and slowly grows bitter and disillusioned about life and love, well until she falls for the next scoundrel. Right after the most recent of heartbreaks while she is still in tears, she comes across a group of young happy people and she begins to smile again.


Maria “Cabiria” Ceccarelli (Giulietta Masina): I guess there is some justice in the world. You suffer, you go through hell … but then happiness comes along for everyone.

Dama Bianca Xerjoff

I've tried my best to avoid testing Xerjoff because falling in love is not as Aerosmith claims "hard on the knees" but expensive on the pocket when it comes to perfumes. As Fate would have it, a sample came my way from a generous perfumista.

Dama Bianca shares similarities with some of my loves, like Tauer's Pentachords White, a major stakeholder in violet and orris root, but Dama Bianca feels softer and smoother than White; the initial part of Le Labo's Ambrette 9 where it's a light fluffy cloud before its unfortunate dry down; the sweet sensual vanilla and creamy sandalwood of Musc Ravageur.

white fairy, courtesy of s765.photobucket.com

A powdery vanilla opening, not as powdery as Teint de Neige, not as sweet as a gourmand, near to Musc Ravageur's level of sugar and cozy. The vanilla and powder share the spotlight for a short while before introducing the rest of the cast, but always remaining in the forefront. The other members are introduced as a group, first you notice the tartness of the citrus, subtle but with an important part to maintain in the scent. More major players are iris and musk/musk mallow(ambrette), that give Dama Bianca its earthy sensuality and creamy sandalwood that enhances the vanilla, these are all more prominent with time, Dama Bianca projects quite well for near five hours on me and thereafter becomes a skin scent. Lastly you have flowers in a featherweight role, adding a sheer gossamer veil over everything. Putting it simply, it's something I picture a fairy wearing, pretty dreamy stuff.