‘Tis the season for one of my all time favorite perfumes, Caron’s Nuit de Noel. This beautiful classic is full of comfort and joy and it’s the perfect perfume for setting the season. The following is my post from Christmas past:
On a side note, Nuit de Noel is one of those perfumes that I always get compliments when I wear it. Merry Christmas!
As you probably know, I love traditional french perfumery. I also love seeing former perfume houses being resurrected. Le Jardin Retrouvé fits both of those bills and I’m thrilled that they’re back. Le Jardin Retrouvé debuted in 1975 with master perfumer Yuri Gutsatz at the helm giving birth to the “niche” perfume market by selling and creating perfumes that were personal and which rejected mass marketing and retailing. The company flourished for years, but unfortunately, after Yuri’s death in 2005, the company faded away. But through his son Michel and his wife Ciara this “niche” brand is once again creating perfumes…the same perfumes that Yuri created back in the 1970s. A total of seven perfumes have recently re-debuted. Cuir de Russie is hands down my favorite in the line…and that’s quite something because the entire line is fantastic.
WHAT I SMELL: Cuir de Russie has a soft, warm, sparkling violet and peppery opening. It feels like it dances on the skin with its warmth, yet cool embrace. There’s so much movement to the perfume as it whirls and twirls to the delight of my nose. Not long after that initial rush and exhilaration, a cinnamon note becomes equal with that of the florals, along with the lightest of leather. The perfume falls in a netherworld between masculine and feminine and at times it feels as if it’s a demure beauty, only to feel strong, masculine and self-assured a minute later. As the perfume continues to develop, it warms and deepens as it produces a wonderfully radiating wood tinged with leather and incense. Cuir de Russie is a perfume that is full of positive energy and optimism and these days that’s a welcomed state of being. In the end, the dynamic whirl of the perfume settles into a softened powdery chypre that’s a little bit dirty, but which is incredibly easy to wear. Delightful.
From the Le Jardin Retrouvé website:
1920. The opera hall is packed. Diaghilev is presenting his Ballets Russes. You are seated with a group of flamboyant Parisians in the front row. Wide-eyed, you watch Nijinsky and his soft leather boots. He leaps, he spins, he fills the stage with the bewitching scent of ylang-ylang, violet, and cinnamon enveloping a harmony of cade wood and styrax. You wish that this moment could last forever.
Floral Leather: Ylang Ylang, French Violet, Indonesian Patchouli, Cinnamon, Spanish Cade Wood & Styrax
WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: I can’t argue with the imagery of the Ballet Russe, it fits the perfume perfectly.
THREE WORDS THAT DESCRIBE CUIR DE RUSSIE: positive, energizing, classical
WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT CUIR DE RUSSIE: EauMG, I Scent You a Day, Pierre de Nishapur
BOTTOM LINE: Cuir de Russie doesn’t try to be anything but an easy to wear, but beautifully engaging perfume. As such, I could see this as an anchor perfume in any collection. I also love Le Jardin Retrouvé’s La Nécessaire packaging where the perfume is housed in an aluminum bottle along with two empty glass bottles to transfer the perfume to, allowing you to choose how you want to use and store your perfume. Brilliant! Welcome back Le Jardin Retrouvé.
Perfume sample provided by Le Jardin Retrouvé. Opinion my own.
WHAT I SMELL: Raw Secret opens with a wave of muted aldehydes which are quickly met with a light tea surrounded by a leveled and flattened mandarin. After a few minutes, the perfume begins to project with the tea at the center. The tea is warmed, rounded and thickened in a chewy and slightly rubbery consistency. The perfume is absolutely dreamy and it feels like a lullaby that is rocking you softly and gently leaving you in an envelopment of content. As the perfume continues to develop, the tea moves more towards a dried lily of the valley. It’s incredibly soft and green without being dewy. Here, the lily blooms alongside a bed of delicate white flowers which feel like a floating embrace above a woodied amber radiating base. The perfume then starts to dry and lightly powder…and the gleaming flowers are magnificent in a way that makes me want to wrap the entire perfume around me. In the end, Raw Secret grows in projection to become a beautifully powdered floral hug warmed by amber that’s oh so comforting.
From the Phuong Dang website:
“You reach out to touch me. Linger… I smile because I am happy. Feel so safe in your warm embrace… I just want to hold on, so tightly. Please get closer, to know me… I am only me. And yet with you, I am so much stronger.” —Phuong Dang
Raw Secret Notes –
Top: Aldehydes, Bergamot, Mandarin, Red Pepper, Tea Leaves, Ginger
Heart: Jasmine Absolute, Lily of the Valley, Imaginary White Flowers
Base: Amber, Sandalwood
WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: love
THREE WORDS THAT DESCRIBE RAW SECRET: incandescent, embracing, at peace
WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT RAW SECRET: None to be found.
BOTTOM LINE: Brand creator and namesake, Phuong Dang has launched a debut collection of ten perfumes, primarily created with perfumer Bertrand Duchafour. Raw Secret is the only perfume that steps outside the Duchafour collaboration and was created by perfumer Marina Jung Allegret… and it’s one of my favorite in the line. In all, the entire collection is comprised of extraits which are incredibly smooth, refined and easy to wear.
The Scented Hound 