WHAT I SMELL:  L’Ombre dans l’Eau opens sweet, light and pretty with black current and an emergent rose.  It has a bit of a waxy finish like that of a scented candle.  After a minute or so, a green emerges, its leafy and round.  After around 5 minutes, the fragrance starts to really blossom and at this stage I feel like I have a small bouquet of flowers in hand which are a little wild and a little fruity. The composition doesn’t really change  from the rose and the green, but it seems to grow and expand off of my skin.   After about 15 minutes L’Ombre dans l’Eau starts to become sweeter… so much so that it borders on obnoxious.   For an eau de toilette this has some turbo projection and power.   Uggghhh, this just keeps expanding and growing and I feel there is no turning back.

From Fragrantica:  L’Ombre Dans L’Eau (“Shadow in the water”) is a female fragrance from 1983, based on the unusual and beautiful harmony of black currant leaf and Bulgarian rose, which blend perfectly together. 

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME:  Artificially pretty and over the top like a child beauty pageant contestant.

THREE ADJECTIVES THAT DESCRIBE L’OMBRE DANS L’EAU:  toxic, overbearing, nauseating

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT L’OMBRE DANS L’EAU: Perfume-Smellin’ Things, Bois de Jasmin, peredepierre

BOTTOM LINE:  L’Ombre dans l’Eau is a total scrubber to me that others seem to like.  I don’t get it.  To me, L’Ombre dans l’Eau smells so artificial as if its made from a chemistry set.  Adding that artificiality to a whopping projection makes my head feel like I’m being struck with a rose sledgehammer!  I see this better suited for a home fragrance than a personal fragrance, but even as a scented candle, this would make me want to leave the room.  I’m not really familiar with the Diptyque line, but this does not make me want to explore any more.

• Bone Rating: 1 out of 5 possible bones
• Scent:  Floral
• Classification:  Feminine
• Expense:  $88 for 50ml EdT from the Diptyque website