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· January 6, 2008 10:45 AM by
Audrey_H
· January 6, 2008 12:40 PM by
Dain
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Posted by Dain, Friday, January 04, 2008 8:46 PM (Eastern)
I'll admit, I did not originally intend to pair Serge Lutens with works of art, but it tickled me. The visual somehow captures the mood the perfume is trying to evoke without choking on [too much] purple prose. It is sometimes difficult to find the appropriate piece: Fleurs de Citronnier had me browsing many before I settled on the bland English charm of Gainsborough (insofar that gentility is bland; in America, we call it the suburbs), and then it was a matter of finding one equally washed out yet entirely aggressive in character, for Clair de Musc. But one whiff of Un Bois Vanille, and I knew, immediately, that it must be Van Gogh:
Though gourmand is really a very modern family, it is positively ubiquitous, to the point of cliché, for the same reason that Van Gogh is positively ubiquitous to the point of cliché, everyone likes. Vanilla is the starch of the perfume world. In truth, this would not be my vanilla of choice, that is Givenchy Organza Indécence (if they haven't ruined it with the reformulation). This is recognizable as the standard drydown of Serge Lutens, with the sweetness amplified into a vanilla orgy: dark, rich vanilla pods, a frisson of licorice, lashings of almond, syrupy cherry, while the gaiac wood and sandalwood serve as accent only (it would be better named Une Vanille Boisée). Very bold strokes, but unlike Van Gogh, unoriginal. The accolades over Un Bois Vanille seem to have two origins: (1) the automatic elite status of a Serge Lutens, (2) vanilla is yummy. Sucker me not. Rahät Loukoum is so much more interesting as a gourmand, with many of the same notes but in different proportions.
After some thought, I thought the more recognizable Sunflowers would make a better choice, and in any case, Un Bois Vanille has a sunnier feel than Church at Auvers might suggest.
Labels: perfume reviews, serge lutens
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January 6, 2008 10:45 AM,
I totally agree. Un bois vanille is unoriginal, and Rahät Loukoum is much more pleasant.
January 6, 2008 12:40 PM,
I wonder if we're not due for another shift, maybe in a few years. My nose is getting increasingly sick of gourmands, I like a little sweet to make a composition more balanced, but I find myself craving things very different nowadays, woods, leather, spices, and tobacco for example. And I just discovered lily of the valley in Un Lys and Chanel No. 19, it is so uncompromisingly unsweet, it's delightful.
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