It's Friday! And it's Uncle Serge Day...our community project for the week: wear something by Serge Lutens. What did you pick?
As always, do chime in with your scent of the day even if you aren’t participating in the community project.
I'm wearing the gorgeous Serge Lutens jasmine bomb, A La Nuit.
Reminder: Next Friday, 3 October, is Purgatory Basket Friday...find a sample you haven't been able to make up your mind about, give it a second chance.
And for those of you who like to plan ahead, see Scent of the day ~ Friday community projects 2014, where I'll try to always have the next six or seven weeks mapped out in advance.
Unfortunately, I have to remain commando until about 4 o’clock today. I work at a store that sells fragrance and it’s just not very fun to wear my own perfumes when they inevitably get covered and mixed up with about 1,099,989,348 different things. I just don’t get to enjoy the progression.
When I’m home though, I think it will be Fille de Berlin or Boxeuses!
Have a great Friday, hope you sell lots of perfume 🙂
But how lucky are you to get to sample a million-plus different things! 🙂
Aw, thanks guys! It is a pretty wonderful job. I smelled tons of perfumes and we do custom blending, so I got to make a bunch today too, for some really nice folks. Now I’m thinking Boxeuses!
Iris Silver Mist for me. I felt a little self-conscious serving foggy carrots on the Metro, but roundabout now it’s a beauty.
Ha, love “foggy carrots”!
Bahahaha, for me, it’s cucumbers wrapped in tinfoil. But I think I prefer “foggy carrots”!
I hesitated for a long time between Sarrasins (my favourite Lutens floral), Turnip Surprise and La Myrrhe. La Myrrhe won, as I wear the w others much more regularly.
I love A La Nuit but even though I own a bottle I never seem to wear it.
Joining you in La Myrrhe – my only bottle of anything Serge, and a true love – today! I don’t wear it often either, though. It seems too precious for everyday use.
(Turnip Surprise? I may have missed this discussion.)
Think Iris Silver Mist! and Blackadder.
Have you tried combining it with other fragrances, like Joy or SSS Jour Ensoleillé, to bring out the jasmine? I love A la Nuit alone but seem to wear it most often for layering.
I never layer perfume.
“I love A La Nuit but even though I own a bottle I never seem to wear it.”
I can say the same thing about various bottles I own, and I’ve never been able to figure out why. I think this would be a good poll question.
In my case, Sarrasins won out overLa Myrrhe, but it was a hard battle.
Iris Silver Mist will get an outing later in the year. I love wearing it when it’s already cold outside. Which should be soon!
I chose La Myrrhe as well: I didn’t even remember that I had it until I started going through my samples to choose what to wear today. I like it a lot.
Happy Serge Day! I’m wearing Fille en Aiguilles.
You smell great, of course!
Snap! Me too! You DO smell great! 🙂
Decided to go with my first SL purchase – Sa Majeste La Rose
That is such a lovely rose. It is what roses should smell like, but rarely do these days. I love Sa Majeste and have flirted for years with FB purchase. Have you tried La Fille de Berlin? Similar theme, but with a darker threnody running through it. I love that one as well, but I’m a sucker for photoreal rose scents 😀
I adore La Fille de Berlin. Last spring, I almost bought La Fille de Berlin at the time, as I had a sample and loved it, but impulsively went with Sa Majeste after on spray. But I still want a bottle of La Fille de Berlin!
I’m halfway through my bottle of La Fille de Berlin, and that is saying something with the size of my collection. I think both Sa Majeste and La Fille are beautiful.
For some reason Sa Majeste conjures a specific image of walking in a rose garden with the last of the morning dew on yellow roses. It is a flash that has stuck with me. I would be bummed if that fragrance were discontinued and I hadn’t grabbed a FB. Few fragrances make me feel like that. . .and it was my mother’s first SL to ever sniff, when we went on a trip to SF years ago. We both loved it. You smell amazing today!
Went with Chergui today, although probably too hot for it. 🙂
Wish I could steal your weather!
Wearing Chergui on one arm and Bulgari Black on the other. Really, I do not smell that much of a difference, even with the rubbery beginning for the latter. It’s a cool, rainy day, so they fit.
I have to do this experiment!
Scent Twinsies! I’m in Chergui as well… a tiny spritz in the center and even smaller spritzes on the back of hands (that’s 3 or 4 less spritzes than usual). Still too hot to really wear this, but I am really enjoying it – it’s been too long since I’ve worn this.
This is so fun! I love SL. I am wearing the subtle but beautiful Clair de Musc today in the office, but will layer with la Fille de Berlin tonight. I think they smell great together.
Funny but I nearly never layer a Serge…that does sound pretty.
I have an old (maybe 10 years?) sample of Clair de Musc that has never grown on me – thinking of trying it again next week for Purgatory Basket Friday!
Oh my word – I’ve ruined my Purgatory Basket day just now! I dug out my old (10 years? More?) sample of Clair de Musc (which I thought I was completely on the fence about) and spritzed it on at bedtime … and I love it! How did this go unnoticed all this time?
Fille de Berlin is on my FBW list. I drained my decant or I’d be wearing that today. I’m putting it on my XMAS list!
I have to try this. Fille de Berlin is so lovely, and Clair de Musc is one of my favorites. That sounds like a genius idea! I’ve never really layered perfume, but I think I’ve been inspired.
SOTD: Midnight Bath and Body Works for men
You’ve mentioned Midnight for Men several times. It seems to get a lot of love on the Interwebs. The idea of spices and caramel appeals to me. Does it stay spicy the entire time?
I broke down and put on a very small dab of Sa Majeste la Rose. I’m so glad there’s the option for the little ball screw on cap, so I can dab. It is just so lovely, but it’s not a rose day for me (even though hubbie always likes when I wear roses). I’m layering with L’Air du Desert Marocain to add some scratchy heft to the whole. You can’t go wrong with a massive rose and a dark amber. Have a great weekend everyone! Cheers!
What is this cap option? I’ve never seen this magic. You can spray and dab a SL FB?
When I got the bottle I have (via swap), it had on the standard sprayer nozzle, but there was also a little screw on ball shaped cap in the box that could be used instead. I immediately put on the screw cap b/c it just seemed like the spray was too much. It’s my only SL and I’ve never seen or handled a new in box bottle. Maybe it’s a really old bottle? I don’t know – someone else here probably knows better than I about this cap vs. sprayer option. I’ve had it for a few years now and it’s half empty and I don’t know how long the swapee had it before me.
The two SL bottles I purchased came with the screw top cap on the bottle and a pump spritzer in the box. I’m guessing that is standard packaging…
Mine also came like that – but the cap of the sprayer nozzle won’t come off, so it’s not usable in spray format. Not used to dabbing, so I over-dabbed Sa Majeste just now … and it is now super super Majeste. Not complaining!
This is cool – I sometimes prefer to dab. Good to know – thank you Ladies!
I like that “super majeste”. Yes! This thing is going super strong at almost 12 hours for me now!!!
nebbe, if you check out Fragrancenet for Serge Lutens and there are many available, you sometimes get an option of “tester bottle”. This is usually cheaper than because it will come with only an atomizer top and the bottle is bubble-wrapped. The normal package is the bottle with a ball cap that you can unscrew and replace with the included atomizer. SL perfumes are very easy to decant / split because you can simply pour into or use a calibrated dropper to fill an atomizer.
I read somewhere to layer, of all things, Bellodgia with L’ Air Desert Marocain. It’s fantastic! Who woulda thought? I usually don’t layer, but I thought, what the heck. Tonight, for Uncle Serge day, I will wear a la Nuit. They SAY jasmine is a better soporific than lavender. Hmmm
I’m at home this morning so indulged in a healthy dose of Boxeuses. It’s so delicious and perfect for the cool, sunny early fall weather.
Boxeuses is my other bell jar wish. That plummy leather/suede is the best. As soon as it turns a bit more cool here, I will pull out my decant.
It’s the only one I own. Bought it last fall at the Palais Royale in Paris and only hope I can return there someday.
I’ve had such a tough time getting on with the Serges, in general. It’s just not a house that feels very comfortable to me, for some reason. Still haven’t tried some of the more recent releases, but not feeling like I need to.
Adore La Myrrhe, and it’s the only one I own. If a bottle of Fleurs d’Oranger (modern, not the old cuminy stuff) or Datura Noir fell out of the sky, as Robin says, I’d wear those. There are several others I like (Chene, Douce Amere, the much-maligned Serge Noire, Bois et Fruits). And there are some I don’t have much feeling for one way or the other. but many of the rest of the line I hate and despise and never ever want on my skin ever again. Ever.
(Ducks thrown missiles.)
Which does bring up the issue of perfume hate… oftentimes I get really snarky about a fragrance when I can see the potential to please me, but there’s just some quirky off-note in there that BUGS THE LIVING DAYLIGHTS out of me. Like Chergui? there’s an accord in there that smells like all the old-people houses* my grandmother used to drag me to visit when I was a kid. Fumerie Turque? there’s a note in there with fuzz all over it, smells like a petting zoo. The back end of a petting zoo, that is. Tubereuse Criminelle? Cannot manage the Rotting Raw Chicken Of Death in the opening, even if it does settle down and become beautiful later.
* I am insensitive and a horrible person. I know. Point is, those COULD have been love, but they’re not, and I get cranky about it.
I’m only glad that I’d swallowed my mouthful of tea *before* reading your post! You gave me a good laugh this a.m. I feel the same way about the musk note in 95% of the perfumes out there!
I love your “Rotting Raw Chicken of Death” description, it cracks me up, every time. The weird thing is that is precisely what fascinates me about TC. I put it on again to smell that top note. I also love Tania Sanchez’s comparison of TC as the Ethel Merman of tuberoses. That weird camphoraceous blast with the salty, meaty note is freaky fascinating. And I’m a weirdo 😀
I don’t get the meat note (thankfully). I think the top notes smell exactly like Icy Hot (the muscle cream)
Yeah, I could have handled Icy Hot just fine. But that rotting meat thing… once smelled, I can’t UNsmell it. I’ve tried.
What houses do you get on better with?
Even though I own a fair number of Serges it is by no means my favourite house. I often find them too “dense” for want of a better word. The exception being ISM, which is an outsider in the Lutens establishment.
I do find them very interesting, but I just don’t wear them nearly as often as I do my Goutals or Nicolaïs.
I even find the classic Guerlains easier to wear.
I tend to get on fairly well with Chanel – and Parfums de Nicolai. Outside those two houses, I am all over the place.
Mals86 I think you hit the proverbial nail right on the head. The first Serge I became acquainted with was Serge Noire. I think my first thought was “the Emperor has no clothes.” Little has happened since to disabuse me of this notion. That being said, I still try this line when given the opportunity. I do like Borneo 1834, because it is so dry and so evocative of it’s inspiration. I group this fragrance with my beloved Yatagan because they are both so arid in feel. I am very curious about Gris Clair and Lavende et Encens because I have a hankering for quirky lavender fragrances. Caron Pour Un Homme is in heavy rotation but is very civilized, I long for something a bit stranger. I also find the base of Chergui and Borneo, well, a bit pedestrian. I applied Borneo 1834 before typing this reply, and it has already faded and lost the promise of it’s fascinating opening……
What a hoot you are! Gosh, I hope I don’t smell like old people houses today having worn Chergui as my SOTD.
Uncle Serge I can appreciate, but it is not a house that I’ve found much to love and therefore, willing to spend some money on. Which, to be honest, is too bad because his prices are quite good — especially the older stuff.
Like stinker_kit I too am interested in trying the lavender based scents he does.. one day soon I hope!
LOL Old people houses!
L’Orpheline is the only one I have, and last time I wore it, I didn’t love it. This morning started out covered in fog, though, illuminated gold by the sun, and this scent seemed to fit that atmosphere. It’s still a little too dry for me, but I was blown away by how beautifully it comes to life in crisp, damp air. I’m glad I gave it a chance to grow on me today, and I appreciate it more now, even if it probably won’t ever become part of my permanent collection.
Interesting – need to sniff that one, cause I have a lot of damp air in my neck of the woods.
Serge Lutens really isn’t my house but I hunted through my samples and tried Santal Majuscule which, after a lovely opening turned too austere and dry on me. I then tried Sa Majestic La Rose which, while pretty, is wearing on me after a couple of hours. Scrubbed both and am now wearing something more me–Oriza Legrand Jardins d’Armide
That’s exactly how I feel about Sa Majeste La Rose. I wonder if it would layer well.
De Profundis for me today, the last of my 8mL decant, and I drained a 5mL earlier this year. It is my bell jar wish. Now I just need a ticket to Paris and a perfume pilgrimage to the Salons Shisheido.
I love A la Nuit. It is my favorite jasmine. I think of it as “JASMINE!” which softens to lovely soft floral.
First time wearing my sample of chypre rouge and it’s actually lovely. The sweet part subsided and now it’s got some wood/smoke and herbs to it. Not a powerhouse, though i am conservative w tiny dabbers (and w time spent in waiting rooms).
El Attarine, a beautiful spicy jam. I mean, gem!
I think you meant jam……
SOTD is an old favorite- Un Bois Vanille. A blind buy that fits me like a glove. Its a go anywhere, do anything, wear whatever kind of fragrance. It’s a desert island pick for sure.
I wish Uncle Serge would come up with a 3 or 5ml discovery type of collection- you could pick and choose 3, 5, or even 10 scents to create your own type of coffret. There are SO many I would love to try in this line but access is not the greatest =(
Hope you all springboard into a fantastic fume filled weekend =)
Oh, you know, that would be really good, a Serge mix-n-match coffret.
Thumbs up for being able to mix and match. I think it’s a very consumer friendly way to offer scents. I’m pretty sure a lot of people would explore the line and ultimately, purchase more juice. It’s a win-win for everyone 🙂
I wish every brand did this! Shoutouts to Andy Tauer and Hermes.
I second the “WooHoo” shot out to Hermes and Tauer! They offer great options 🙂
Oops! That’s “shout” not “shot” !
and Malle!
Ok, well not quite as you can’t really choose, but hats off to all those who offer coffrets.
OOh yes I would love that. We’d have to be able to choose from the non-exports too
Absolutely! I reall would like to get my nose on some of those 🙂
I spritzed on Douce Amere and it smells great!
I want to go for a run first, but I shall be spending my Friday evening in Tubéreuse Criminelle.
I have an odd relationship with SL – I like and/or admire many of their scents, but they are rarely FB worthy for me. So far, the only exceptions have been TC (which is easily my favourite SL AND one of my top all time favourites overall) and Bois de Violette.
I actually remembered the project this week! Thanks for wearing Uncle Serge all week so I was prompted, R. Quite alarmed that I can’t find my bag of recently-in-rotation samples; I’ve had a crazy week, so perhaps I left it in the car. I’d been planning on wearing El Attarine, but it was in the bag, and it didn’t feel like an Arabie (one of my favourites) day, or Santal Blanc, or Chene, or Douce Amere – which are my FBs. I dithered between La Myrrhe and Boxeuses, and ended up in La Myrrhe, which actually seems lovely and perfect today. I used to think it smelled sort of weird, before I was really into niche. How opinions change!
I was going to wear El Attarine too (still wish I had a bottle of that), and Tubereuse Criminelle & Chene…did not manage to fit it all in.
That makes 3 of us in La Myrrhe, it’s beautiful isn’t it?
Bois et Musc.
It is very SL quirky + calm. I really like this one.
It’s very serene fragrance, isn’t it? Quirky + calm is a perfect description.
After going through my Serge corner, narrowing it down and trying to decide between A la Nuit, Louve and Borneo 1834, today I went with Borneo 1834 which, while I loved the first couple times I dabbed it, I discovered has some strange progressions on my skin when applied more liberally. At first, I got this wonderful hint of fruit, more stewed stone fruit than anything else, and then the patch and lovely dry cocoa. Within moments, a soft leather crept in, and while I enjoyed it at first, it began to take over everything else to my nose and smelled more like a basic cologne leather accord that I’ve smelled too often to enjoy
So, I’m rather sad that it wore so differently on me today but glad I didn’t splurge for a bottle when I was tempted after the first couple tries. It is nice, but I think I’d like it better on someone else.
It’s funny how some perfumes change after a couple of wears. Sometimes if I go back to one after a few weeks, though, the offending note diminishes. (Anne Pliska and its Play-Doh note come to mind.) My budget is still too low to buy a bottle of something I only occasionally like, though.
I’ll be choosing between Douce Amere and De Profundis today, and then I’ll probably shift to Ambre Sultan this evening for porch reading in the autumn chill. Warm and cozy.
I’m new around here. I’ve been reading for a few years, but the split meet is forcing me to finally ‘show my face’. I know it closes tomorrow, but would anyone be interested in splitting Bois de Paradis? I’ve long finished a sample, and I’d really love to have more. It’s a fall favorite. I’d be happy to host a split of it, but I don’t post much anywhere, so I figure people wouldn’t want to deal with a ‘stranger’. I’ll need to pop in more often before the swap meet starts up!
It’s a real autumny day today, so I’m wearing Puredistance M.
Sorry uncle Lutens…
That is one of the most amazingly sexy perfumes a guy could wear
Yes, it’s very sesual and to me it’s also a very cuddly perfume composition. Ideal for cold and gloomy days.
You made me want to wear it tomorrow but it is supposed to be hot again. How I wish fall would stay fall and not bounce around all over!
Serge Noire, dry, spicy and wonderful. This one does not get nearly as much love as it deserves, I think. Thank you, perfume fairy!
I didn’t love Serge Noire for the longest time but eventually (I think after a reformulation) its bone-dry incense seduced me into buying a full bottle. It’s awfully good.
Nearly went for La Myrrhe but landed with Sarrasins in the end. I’m getting some fruity aspects from it today, and for some reason it feels dirtier than usual. But Serge Lutens is just one of my favouritest favourites, my desert island perfumer of choice, my what-if-you-had-to-choose-one-perfume-brand-for-the-rest-of-your-days. Hell this weekend will be SL weekend! La Myrrhe tomorrow!
I’m wearing the sweet bomb Datura Noir. I do love the dry down.
I’ll have to try DN again–I don’t think I smelled what everyone else does.
SOTD is Bois de Violette – it was just meh on initial application (from teeny-tiny sample vial), but after half an hour it’s delicious. Pretty!
I love Bois de Violette, it is just wonderful. But unfortunately on my skin it doesn’t last longer than half an hour! You’re so lucky you can enjoy it for longer!
It’s five hours later now, and BdV is very faint but still noticeable (if you get close enough to my wrist) … I guess I’m very lucky! 🙂
I chose Douce Amere as well. I completely forgot until I read morgana’s comment that I have a little bit of Bois et Musc–if I’d thought of it I might have gone with that one instead.
I went with Bas de Soie today. It was the first Serge that I really liked. There are several that I like, but still more that I haven’t tried yet. I’m seeing several mentions of La Myrrhe today, and I haven’t smelled that one at all. Must get a sample.
And it’s my birthday. Yay!
Also, I just saw this article on Slate about a company making a cologne inspired by Che Guevara:
http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_slatest/2014/09/25/cuban_company_creates_che_guevara_cologne.html
Happy Birthday, Sweetgrass!! Hope you have an excellent day:D
Happy birthday! Hope you have a really great weekend.
Happy Birthday! Wishing you a wonderful day, weekend, and year ahead!
Have a wonderful birthday! Hope a kitty somewhere is buying you a nice big bottle of perfume.
We all have such well-trained cats when it comes to birthdays!
I have five cats so does that mean I get five bottles of perfume for my birthday?
Depends on their training. Some just do a group present
Ha! Cheap cats.
Ha ha!
Happy Birthday!
Happy Happy Birthday!
Thanks, everybody! My cats might just be getting me a bottle of something, but I don’t know what yet. 🙂
Happy birthday!! I hope your cats get you something wonderful-I am sure they have the best of taste 🙂
Happy Birthday!
I’m also wearing Bas de Soie, for the first time. Pretty! You smell great.
La Fille de Berlin for me! I received a bottle as a birthday present this summer, and it’s going to be one of my fall favorites.
It is a beautiful rose, and must have been a lovely birthday gift!
I was surprised and very happy! 🙂
I can’t decide if I want to wear Arabie, Sarrasins or ISM today. Or maybe De Profundis.
SL SOTD 5 O’Clock au Gingembre. Not thrilled. I do love Chergui on my husband, but have not found an FB-worthy Serge otherwise. I quake at going in to Barney’s (Chicago) to test – the manager gives me the pip and the SL SA doesn’t let you get a word in edgewise. Did have an FB of Fille en Aiguilles (perfect for a knitter, right?) but the more I wore it the more it bugged me. (It has found a happier home with Alnysie.) Others have mentioned a “Lutinade” and perhaps that’s what annoys…
Have you dealt with Andy at Barney’s? If not, ask for him. He’s always been very pleasant and patient with me. Many times I’ll just tell him that I’d like to wander around and sniff. No one bothers me and the other associates seem to be less aggressive because they know that I’m his customer. My favorite SL associate there was Bryce, but he transferred to Beverly Hills last year. What I don’t like, though, is how they have associates right at the bottom of the stairs, asking if they can help as soon as I walk in. I sometimes feel a little bombarded, especially as my eyes are still adjusting to the dimmer lighting!
Thanks for the tip. I will ask for Andy the next time I’m there. Yes, that bottom of the stairs thing bugs me and there’s no way out…
I actually take my two grade school children with me to Barney’s in Chicago. I let the kids smell everything, which they enjoy and the SAs don’t seem to know how to react, so they leave me alone! As soon as my husband arrives, they swoop in, however!
I’m wearing De Profundis… it’s so lovely, and a souvenir from Paris. I don’t wear it often because it doesn’t seem to be a casual fragrance, but I always enjoy it when I do.
Hi, scent twin! (waves) I’m glad to see someone else loves dP. I love the chrysanthemum note–which reads marigold to my nose. It’s a fragrance that is difficult for me to explain why I enjoy it so much. It’s so very different from anything else I have. Treasure your bell jar and memories of Paris 😀 Be well.
Wearing Volutes today, lightly inspired by the one sniff of Chergui I had three other week.
Definitely a cozy blanket by the fireplace while grandpa snores his pipe type of thing. Or, you know, another day at the office. 🙂
I’m one of those people who withholds just a bit when you first meet me. I call it caution, but some people interpret me as aloof. Once I know you and feel a little more sure of our connection, you’d be hard pressed to find a warmer, more loyal person than I.
I’m wearing Bas de Soie today because she reminds me very much of myself. Cool and aloof at first, but upon wearing her for a bit, she opens up and becomes as warm and lovely as a breath of spring air.
I would also describe myself that way. It’s nice when you find a perfume that fits your personality so well. And, after looking up the notes of Bas de Soie, I have to try it! It sounds amazing 🙂
Let’s see if my browser crashes this time…it suddenly hates NST this morning.
Since there’s nobody here to offend but the cat, I’m wearing a dash of MKK and a whole lot of Ambre Sultan. I dont generally think of Lutens as suitable for layering but I do love this combination.
I do hope my sillage doesn’t escape and go on a rampage. Anyone stopping by to offer to trim the trees (we have brush pick up on Monday and the yard company vultures have descended) will be very sorry.
Bat actually seems to be unaffected by my choice and is purring away happily on my lap.
SOTD is Rahat Loukoum, my very special bell jar from an all-too-brief (and ‘only’ thus far) visit to Paris with a fortunate stop at the Palais Royal. It softens on my skin to a wonderful honeyed almond and is a favorite of mine in the cold winter months.
I own that one, too… a friend made the purchase for me in Paris. Now that you’ve reminded me, I’ll dab some on at bedtime!
It’s so magic, isn’t it? I would never own a full bottle because it’s oppressively sweet on my skin, but it is fantastic stuff.
I sprayed Chergui before going to bed, and since it was past midnight it was technically Friday. And in the morning I put on Bois de Violette as my SOTD.
Chergui is probably my favorite SL fragrance. Bois de Violette is lovely but a little too sweet – I enjoy my small deacnt, but I doubt I will purchase a full bottle or even a larger decant.
Had a hard time picking this morning, but went with La Fille de Berlin, because it’s become a ‘go-to’ scent for me.
I went to bed wearing Chergui and someone in my dream forgot what he was talking about because of the beautiful smell.
Today I’m wearing the Sultan of Amber.
Chergui and Ambre Sultan are my two favorite Lutens perfumes! And Chergui works great as a “sleep scent”.
Feminite du Bois for me today. Really working well for chilly fall day at the office.
I am wearing Vetiver Oriental, for which I am not exactly on the fence about, but my feelings have never tipped over into love for it. I have deep like, I guess. It sure isn’t boring, but it may be too sweet, for me, for what it is.
I am wearing De Profundis today…there is something about dabbing it on from the lovely bell jar.
Yea! Another de Profundis fan! Come sit by me 😀 Hope you have a wonderful day.
A la Nuit is on my purchase list. Today was Fleurs d’oranger, my only FB. It was a glorious whiff of high summer on one of the first days of autumn. Love it.
I’m in everyones favorite root brew 😉 To me, ISM is quite refreshing on a hot day. On me it stays quite close, and despite the basic wet rooty-ness, I still find it quite a refined and sophisticated scent. Seems I am alone in this? (My bottle was bought last year so it may be weaker than the older one…)
I totally agree – it’s a refined and sophisticated scent, and very beautiful.
Glad there is some agreement!
Oh I was SO waiting for this Uncle Serge Day:)! I’ve been hesitating between Féminité (its my “me” scent so I wear it quite often at stressful days to calm me) and Fille en Auguilles. I decided to cheat a bit: I wore Féminité on one arm, Fille on the other during the day (You bet colleagues were following me around, I smelled like an enchanted forest on top of the Atlas Mountains all day. 🙂
and now, Fumerie Turque, and a little ommmmmm with a good book and a finger of scotch. A perfect ending for the most stressful of weeks. I deserve it, more than ever.
Yay for Fridays.
Great choices! Fumerie Turque doesn’t seems to have been overshadowed by Chergui, but I prefer FT.
Feminite du Bois for me 🙂
So am I as womanly as a forest then? 😉
Now you are just being greedy – you can’t be a river AND a forest! Goddess of one or the other – that’s the deity rule 😉
Mmmm just for today, dear Magician, and just because it was too warm for Cuir Mauresque … 😉
oooh! I’v only smelled the wax sample of Cuir Mauresque, but I loved it! Okay…you can be goddess of the soukh, and/or tannery too.
Feminite du Bois for me too! I haven’t worn this for awhile, but I generally don’t wear any of my Papa Serge scents in really warm weather. Tonight I’ll spritz on some MKK and see how my two new kitty house guests like it. They belong to my sister and are visiting for a few months.
FdB is weird and wonderful!
I went with Chypre Rouge, the first Lutens I ever bought a full bottle of. Wine Gums and a hint of licorice cigar, pine resin and oakmoss soaked in honey. It’s so strange and so extraordinary. There’s nothing else quite like it.
Joining the La Myrrhe contingent. It’s one of my all-time favs but, oddly, I only have a decant.
Basically, by the time I had figured out that I could obtain a bell jar through ShopFrance (no affiliation), I started to worry that it might have been reformulated. I’m not sure, but I don’t think my export bottle of Bois de Violette smells quite as rich as my earlier decant.
Haven’t seen anyone mention Daim Blond. Went with it; love it as the temperature drops. Shout out to the Tubereuse Criminelle folks, which was the other choice. Never got the Raw Chicken of Death thing, and a bit worried about it now 🙂
Daim Blond is perfect for fall!
I too love me some Daim Blond – well chosen!
Nuit de Cellophane, which really holds my attention on the one arm and accidentally overdabbed Sa majeste la rose on the other. I will be power flower house when I god to bed spoon, and hope to still smell great when I wake up
Looove Nuit de Cellophane – you smell delicious.
“God to bed spoon” is maybe the greatest mangled-by-autocorrect phrase ever produced. I would like to try it myself.
*go
I have a sample of La Fille de Berlin on one wrist, and La Majesté la Rose on the other. Variations on a theme but this novice nose of mine is having trouble noting the differences…
I’m in the “other” jasmine bomb, Sarrasins, although I own A La Nuit as well. Sarrasins is more autumn/winter me, A La Nuit is spring/summer me. I always feel like I should have blonde hair when I wear A La Nuit, whereas my gray fits with the worldly Sarrasins.
Only own one SL–Chergui. Turned in 12 chapters on a manual I am writing and decided to reward myself with a trip to the gym today. Used a free sample of Angel shower gel and have been a little scared about topping that off with Chergui. But later this afternoon I take my little boy who is now 11–five years out from his brain cancer dx– to get his routine brain and spine MRI. I decided a little scent muscle can only bolster me. Can’t handle my perfume? Then get out of radiology sort of thing. So here goes!
Oh, good luck with your MRI. Hope the Chergui gives you courage and comfort.
If I was 11 and being taken for yet another medical procedure, I would love my mom to be wearing Chergui 🙂
Congrats on the 12 chapters!
Yah… he could be a docent at our local children’s hospital… but I like the idea of standing him in good stead by smelling great. 😉
Chergui can only help – sending good and healthy wishes!
Sending you both good wishes while also wearing Chergui! (There must be a million people wearing it today, so that has to help, right?!)
A perfume circle is a more appealing concept to me than a prayer circle, and miles ahead of a chain letter.
Best wishes for a clean report!
When I started following NST Serge Lutens was one of the first unknown brands that appealed to me and I went into the archives to read all the reviews. Later that year I went to Amsterdam and got the chance to try some of them IRL. Totally mindblowing!
I was lucky finding halfused bottles of Santal Blanc and Ambre Sultan from the big online auction site and they are among my most treasured scents.
My later excursions into Uncle Serge land has not been as succesful with nothing even coming close to tempting. For today I reached into my purgatory basket and retried Chene and Borneo 1834. They actually were perfect this autumn day and I might have to reconsider my judgment…
Late again but I’m still wearing the small sprays of Ambre Sultan that I applied this morning when I thought the weather was going to be cooler. Anyway, it’s gorgeous whatever the weather.
I’m wearing Muscs Koublai Khan. It’s my favorite SL *and* if pressed to commit, my favorite perfume ever. I could just roll in the stuff!
I do have a very special bell jar of El Attarine, which I bought in Paris, and I am interested to read that a number of people are wearing that one today. It’s more gourmand-ish than my taste usually leans, but I love the dirty cumin note. I’m working on a small decant of Ambre Sultan and really love the dusty spices and herbs in combo with the amber. I recently picked up a bottle of Fille en Aiguilles at a discounter online and am finding it to be sharply piney when I’d remembered it as so incense-y… hmmm…. hoping it will really grow on me this winter!
I tried a bit of MKK on skin at Barney’s today when I went to try L’incendiaire again, and for whatever reason, there is no skank on me – and I really want the skank!! Maybe my skin just eats it, but it makes me sad because I love a good dirty musk (Miller Harris L’air de Rien is one of my absolute favorites). It smelled almost *clean* on me (perish the thought), but that could be because it was dabbed from a bell jar instead of sprayed.
In any case, I bet you smell fantastic!
I love Miller Harris L’Air de Rien too! I’m crazy for Jean Desprez Bal a Versailles too, which is definitely in the same vein. Can’t get enough of skank either!
Sorry you felt disappointed by MKK! I tried The Party In Manhattan because it’s rumored to be so skanky and didn’t find it that way at all. Guess it just depends on the person…
I see the story about the loss of your cat below. Sorry to hear! Wishing you happier times ahead.
Sign me up for this club too! I think Bal a Versailles is like every perfume I have ever loved and then some. Condolences on your cat, I know how hard that can be.
My mom wore Bal a Versailles in the 70s (or maybe the early 80s) and it’s so hard to imagine her being drawn to skank … but times were different then, I guess. Or maybe my mom was different then … hmmmmm. 🙂
Perthgirl’s comments below make me think I might have smelled a reformulation, but I also just might not have the skin for it. I’ll try The Party in Manhattan – maybe it could work for me!
I got a sample of MKK just recently, and it is the first “animalic” musk that actually smells dirty to me (or possibly that I can actually smell). “Have some sheep been through here recently?” I remember thinking.
Bal a Versailles, on the other hand, smells quite blandly woody to me, at least in its modern iteration. Nice, but not at all skanky.
I ordered a mini of the Bal a Versailles, and I’m hoping for good things, but we’ll see…
Also – from what Perthgirl says below, it’s possible I’m smelling a new, cleaned-up version of MKK and the sheep have been moved elsewhere…
I read recently that MKK has been re-formed and de-skanked, as FdOranger was de-cumined. Boo 🙁
Noooooo! I want the stinky!!
Firstly, I need to say that I am so, so grateful for the many sweet expressions of sympathy about my cat on Wednesday. Your words really touched me, and I actually shared them with my mother and sister, who both say thank you as well. I say it often, but it continues to be true – this community is characterized by kindness, and there is no better quality to have. Thank you.
Secondly, I wanted to mention – I stopped off at Barney’s today and smelled Serge’s L’incendiaire, to go with today’s theme, and….crap, I really like it. Of course I am not Trump and can’t spend $600 on a bottle, so the question becomes – does anyone know anything that smells like it? I may be asking too early, as only those that live near a Barney’s have had a chance to smell for a few short weeks, but if anyone can suggest anything, I would be very interested to hear. I definitely get the incense but have trouble picking out the other notes – supposedly carnation and woods among them.
I’ve now had a chance to go back and write to you all individually, so please see my personal thanks there.
I’ve worn nothing but the Divine* Serge’s perfumes for 12 years… first Fleurs d’Oranger, then Tubéreuse Criminelle and now La Fille de Berlin. There are others that I’m fond of, but I don’t love them enough to wear them.
I would so like him to create a proper strong leather (Daim Blond is nice, but mostly tuberose).
*I can’t think of anyone less avuncular than Monsieur Lutens.
Is Cuir Mauresque too busy a leather for your taste? I had a tiny sample, and it never failed to make me smile. I felt like I should wear it with a leather jacket to a metal or better yet a goth concert. Mr. Lutens’ fragrances are extraordinary.
Late to the party 🙁
I wore Fille en Aiguille during the day then Bois et Fruits.
I was wondering though, what Uncle Serge would think if he read this. Hehe. I mean, we call him and no other perfumer ‘Uncle’, and we have a day dedicated to him. I wonder if he’d be flattered or if he’d think we were all nuttier than squirrel s**t… 🙂
Perhaps he’d think both things 🙂
I think he would take it as his just due!
One hundred sixty-nine comments. Whew! Today I’m using up my one and only Lutens today, a sample vial of A La Nuit.
Someday I would love to try A La Nuit from a bottle with an atomizer. It is beautiful dabbed on skin, but my heart belongs to the first few minutes when the perfume is fresh like a living jasmine blossom. I have to wonder if I would get more (or less?) of that effect in a spray.
I love jasmine. The pink jasmine which blooms during May in California is the ultimate fragrant flower for me. I sniff it like an addict when it is in bloom. It goes straight to my heart.
I love jasmine, and love A La Nuit. I always spray everything as I love to be able to smell me 🙂
However. A La Nuit sprayed on a hot day can be like be eaten alive by a giant jasmine monster. Just sayin’ 😉
Isn’t that a good? Love jasmine monsters. I will have to try Sarrasins too, which someone mentioned above.
I am constantly searching for the perfect jasmine. I was so disappointed that Joy always turned musty on my skin so I gave my FB away. Then I discovered A la Nuit and have been hankering for a bottle ever since.
(PS I am a long time lurker, and registered yesterday specifically to take part in Uncle Serge day. Thanks, Uncle Serge!)
It can be good, if the oxygen can beat past some of the jasmine molecules to help me breathe 🙂 and like Merlin said, it is BIG, then does drop off rather rapidly but imo a lot of jasmines do that.
And welcome Mariannesque- glad you could join us 🙂
Welcome mariannesque!
I found A La Nuit to be first too much and then very soon too little. Screamed on me and then became an almost imperceptible hum.
Welcome, Mariannesque 🙂
Pacifica has a perfume called California Star Jasmine.
Jasmine soliflores are among my favorites and I have never tried A La Nuit. Correct me if I am wrong, but I think Pacifica has a jasmine fragrance that is the very same jasmine you describe as blooming in California in May.
Oh, I see you’ve already mentioned it!
SOTD = Iris Silver Mist
It was my first Serge Lutens / first bell jar. It’s My Preciousssssss.
today I’m waring Oellet bengale by Aedes De Venustas…I love it
I wanted to keep the theme going tonight/this morning. Since Borneo 1834 was pretty much gone by dinner time, I dabbed on the last little bit of a Rose de Nuit sample afterward (why don’t I own this yet and why isn’t it easier to find?) The cool air and bonfire smoke from our neighbors has blown away my RdN after spending some time out on the back porch with some wine and our cuddly outdoor kitties. so I’m moving on to SL number three–a couple sprays of A la Nuit, settling in with a book, favorite blanket and opening the window a bit to bask in crisp fall night air mixing with jasmine and the last lingering bit of smoke on the wind. Happy Serge Day, everyone. It’s been fun to read everyone’s opinions on an often polarizing fragrance house.
Iris Silver Mist this morning. It wore off after a couple of hours, so for my evening plans I put on Chergui. Still going strong hours later.
I love a good many of the SL scents: Encens et Lavande, Tuberose Criminelle, Mandarine Mandarin, Miel de Bois, MKK, A La Nuit, De Profundis, Borneo 1894 (winter only or I suffocate on the dry down in Oz), Bois de Vanille – but because I am not going out in public today, I went with one arm smelling of Fourreau noir and the other Fumerie Turque. The first is cuddly and warm on me like washed bed sheets, the second is just delicious and tobacco-y.