Ylang 49 Le Labo

Desirability: Decant

Source: Luckyscent

An acquired taste for intellectual days.

This isn't your regular ylang ylang perfume as in it's not about white/yellow floral notes, there's no candied vanilla and it has nothing to do with the beach or suntan lotion.

Chypre it is, there's tons of bitter green mossy woods on first applying. I feel like I'm hiking in a tropical jungle, the green foliage so dense and the humidity so thick you can almost cut it with a knife. I smell the ylang ylang which far from its potential to be cloying, here is ensnared by the heavy moss and earthy patchouli. The floral sweetness gives Ylang 49 some lightness in a complex and intense, almost broody character. 

It's not happy go lucky, it's definitely not stereotypically sexy (unless you dig the strait-laced librarian, not the adult entertainment librarian) but it has class and it commands attention like a lecturer inspiring you to put on your thinking cap instead of spoon-feeding you the answer. If Escada fruity florals are ditzes (I mean no offence, on occasion I smell ditzy too), then Ylang 49 is well not quite a valedictorian but at least an honours student. Comforting? Maybe. I would use this as a galvanization on pyjama-only days at home when I give up my chick literature for real books.  

Rose 31 Le Labo

Desirability: Full bottle

Source: flairflair.com

X Factor Rose.

The rose in Rose 31 smells like a rose and not a pronounced perfumed rose nor am I distracted by the presence of other flowers. It smells freshly sweet and lightly spiced, the spices gently tickling the nose but never harsh or peppery. The dewy rose seems to be the only source of hydration in this fragrance, Rose 31 for the most part feels dry, like crisp, fallen leaves crackling under your shoes. There is a hint of something sour but not the stale sweat some other fragrance lovers have reported, instead the piquancy gives Rose 31 a bit of bolshiness. 

Rose like a steadfast friend, stays with you throughout the lifetime of Rose 31 which is above average and just when its quieter nature misleads you to think it has left without a trace, Rose 31 sends up almost translucent smoky trails in reassurance. Musty in its drydown it feels like the world is tinted in sepia, the rose joined by musk and wood over time creating a grisaille palette. 

A beguiling blend of a spices, wood, musk and rose, I find Rose 31 easier to wear than its much more challenging friend Rose Poivree by The Different Company, as interesting as Rose Poivree undoubtedly is. 

Guernica, 1937 by Pablo Picasso. Source: http://www.pablopicasso.org/

Labdanum 18 Le Labo

This was my last birthday gift to myself and came shipped from Luckyscent via an amazing perfume-friend. I adore the skank Rose 31, the super leathery Patchouli 24, the hyper-realistic Lys 41, the gorgeous woody Belle du Soir, Santal 33 my favorite happy sandalwood and I was ready to be impressed by Labdanum 18.

I'm not wowed off my feet, but I'll say it's a good SKIN SCENT. It's so soft, it's practically made of fairies' wings. Not something I expected with labdanum and civet amongst its notes. 

I sprayed a copious amount on my sleeve and finally met Labdanum 18. It's a smoky, Oriental musk, with a hint of animals hiding behind the trees. Not as smoky like Le Labo's broody Vetyver 46, it's more resinous than a wood fire. 

So it didn't win the sweepstakes in projection but it's rather long-lasting, I could still detect its balmy sweetness eight hours on if I stick my nose to my arm. Good for days you want to remain discreet in office meetings before you have a rendezvous with your lover after, it's guaranteed he/she will respond amorously to this musky "like skin" but "skin rolled in animal funk and incense" scent. 

I've heard it compared to Musc Ravageur by Frederic Malle. I would say there are similarities but they are not identical twins, maybe fraternal. First I can actually smell Musc Ravageur after one spray (sorry for the repeated gripe), secondly Musc Ravageur has this potent, obvious spiciness about it that is not present in Labdanum 18. Musc Ravageur is provocative, in your face wantonness whereas Labdanum 18 is quietly alluring. Ok, Musc Ravageur would be Angelina Jolie (how could you miss all that sex appeal starting from the lips right?) versus the gamine Audrey Tautou as Labdanum 18 (watch Amelie then go watch Hors de prix). At the end of the day, it depends on who or what you want to channel. 

Turning Thirty-Three Part Trois and the Finale

Well the celebratory bottle-acquiring had to reach an end, I don't have the financial stamina to fund endless parties for a month unfortunately.. Plus one is going to New York in about two weeks and a little bit, so money has to be set aside for that trip! Osswald, MIN and Aedes deVenustas here I come! ( I got the lists from here: Best NYC fragrance stores, 23 NYC Fragrance Hot Spots and from The Non-Blonde of course.)

My package from First in Fragrance is here! Well in the country that is. The DHL tracking shows that it arrived yesterday but they haven't delivered it. Hopefully it'll arrive today, that would be perfect! That's the one containing my new love... Vero Profumo's Rozy in Voile d'Extrait as well as sample packs of Vero Kern's creations in EDP and VdE. Judging by the notes I think I will wind up liking Rubj, Onda and Kiki. I prefer the official arrangement of the notes for Rubj in the Voile d'Extrait form but according to some fragrant friends who have tried all of the line, they think I will prefer the EDP. I am looking at the EDP versions of Onda and Kiki with great interest (Onda appears to be the least challenging in the EDP and Kiki sounds really fun!).

A second package coming from a lovely fragrant friend in LA is somewhere between the US and here. That one contains a half bottle split of Le Labo's Labdanum 18, ordered and split when I was in a "I need labdanum" period. There's also lots of samples she helped me get from Luckyscent (how lovely it would be to have the equivalent of Luckyscent just down the street). While waiting for that to arrive, I have these labdanum beauties to keep me company: Solange Azagury-Patridge's Stoned (nose is Lyn Harris of Miller Harris, so you already know the quality is good. Labdanum, musk, vanilla and a buttery suede effect...gorgeous) and Habanita L'Espirit by Molinard. It's very affordable on several online stores including Fragrancex. I got mine as a tester bottle in a local store quite by chance. It's all creamy, musky and balmy creation on me, so comforting. I tested and loved Cristina by Hilde Soliani, no science needed there, patchouli, vanilla and labdanum, how could I not fall for it? It's not a well-behaved patchouli so if you like your patchouli tame and toeing the line, Cristina will not be your cup of tea. I've also got a sample of Parfumerie Generale's L'Oiseau de Nuit and I'm hoping that will be the first PG that I will get along with, I haven't had the smoothest relationship with the PG line. 

On a side note when I'm wearing one of the labdanums, I feel like a big fuzzy cat...like a Maine Coon...which kind of looks like David Bowie in Labyrinth. See for yourself...I don't know, it's something about his eye-liner.

So back to the haul...

Last night I got home to a really HUGE surprise. My family has already accepted that this perfume habit of mine isn't disappearing any time soon. I think my dad enjoys finding out where the boxes came from rather than what's in them( he's taken to asking me for the stamps on the boxes, so far I've gotten him stamps from France, Greece, Croatia, Spain, Australia, Russia and Algeria). Anyway back to the HUGE surprise. My sister got me Amouage's Fate for my birthday. How great is that?? Two Amouages in one month! Total windfall! I've wanted Fate since it came out but just like Beloved it's always been too expensive to pull the trigger and I've survived on samples and decants...but now I own not just one but BOTH these beauties! Gorgeous from box down to juice really. 

I adore Google. I just realized that this is showing on my google search screen today.

and when I scroll my mouse over it, a caption with "Happy Birthday Kristine" pops up...such a nice little extra!