Perfumista

How 'in' of Lebreton to have a perfume named perfumista because that's exactly who this brand seem to be for, by my estimation. I mean this certainly tickles my fancy, you can tell by the opening that it's a classical perfumery trope turned up to 11 and that would be hyper, chypre, powder with musty, aloof, haunting of roses which comes on stronger and stronger until it's almost Arabian in stature. Not for the faint of heart and certainly not for those who moan about folk smelling like an old lady. To me this perfume opens in such a bright, powdery way with hints of exotic floral like ylang or something but it's so shortlived before locking into a much less spacious but much more diffuse musky rose and patchouli, which I have to warn you although not loud is pretty prominent for the next 12 hours or so (at least it was on me) then the dank in the base!!! It was there all along but genuinely couldn't smell it until the 14 hour mark or so....and reminscent of Amouage gold in this sense, the animalic base comes chiming through but in quite a muted, skin scent sort of a way, exactly how it should do!!! I found it to be that spicy, dirty hair and civet, saliva skin thing of the costus based, Kouros/animalis type of base, but very subtle and nestled in to a pretty huge, dark-ish powdery rose perfume. This is the reason why this perfume is so good, that lurking depth which sets it apart from a billion and one overly strong and silly rose perfumes. What a ride!!! Highly recommend this, even though you may mistake it for another rosey dominator, the subtle differentials and progression make this perfume great. The relatively, cleanliness of the opening, evoking fruity, powdery chypre, to the more hardcore perfume fan heart and the dirty bird base, perfumista should appeal to perfumistas, it definitely does to this one and I didn't think I could get so enthused over a massive, fairly opressive rose like this but I did!!

I only really got this perfume on the second wear. It’s complex and goes through dramatic shifts. First thing I smell is a swoon-worthy embrace of jasmine grandiflorum, in all its sensual, nocturnal glory. Then over 5 minutes or so, Jasmine morphs into rose. It is made jammy by subtle fruit notes, but only in the opening. I smell the same raspberry note as in Incarnata, but it is much more fitting here. Then, the patchouli makes itself known, and stays on the scene for the next few hours. It is mintier than I like at first, but grows on me as the base notes begin to warm up. There is the sweet resinous character of Peru balsam, and its combination with the strong rose note reminds me of another sexy rose perfume: Papillon’s Tobacco Rose. But Tobacco Rose is all about salty, sun-warmed skin to me, whereas Perfumista stays more botanical, and yes, more perfumey. There are still traces of jasmine, and the rose and patchouli form that classic harmony, familiar but distinct: less earthy than in Voleur de Roses, less herbal than in Radical Rose, less sweet than in Eau Capitale. Many hours later, the base reveals a beautiful musk note with *just* the right amount of sweatiness. And rose remains apparent throughout. If I was in the market for another patchouli-rose, I’d snatch up a bottle in a heartbeat. And let’s be honest, I still might.

On paper, this looks like something I would not like: fruit, flowers and patchouli. I’ve never been a fan of fruit and patchouli. Especially when it registers sweet. But, in the hands of Anatole Lebreton, it’s a magical potion. I pick up fruity notes, plums and berries in the first few minutes. Then florals—Jasmine and a beautiful rose—announce the opening act. Dry down is a sweet, patchouli musk. Great performance to boot. I would further describe this as a mainstream scent with a twist. Looking for a decant or a good deal on a used bottle.

This is a perfume that you have to allow to evolve on your skin. It was never meant to stay one thing, but it was meant to stay the same on your skin. It starts out a fairly bright floral that is bursting with Spring and sunlight. But, then you will get the other fruity notes as it progresses. My impression of this scent is classic elegance. This is something that you *could* wear just about anywhere; but, I will wear it with maxidresses for brunch and mimosas with friends.

This will be discontinued due to regulations and high production costs. Get this beauty while you still can!