Les Heures de Cartier: L'Heure Convoiteé II

Feminine fragrance, very affected, where the impetuous carnation reigns supreme, undisturbed, surrounded by soft and at times more intense notes of Iris, and sweetly fruity and juicy notes of strawberry. A fragrance that evolves towards powdery, reminiscent of the dark and dusty boudoirs of the dancers of the Pigalle nightclubs in Paris, always surrounded by a cloud of powdery face powders, immersed in floral scents. Undoubtedly a fragrance for women who love this genre. Like all Cartier artistic creations, the fragrance lasts over time.

This is all about CARNATION. There is a hint of citrus in the top, then a very creamy, spicy carnation. Smooth. I also would swear there is sandalwood in this, too. The drydown has a bit of wood in it. This "reminds" of Bellodgia but is not as complex as that masterpiece. This is good. A modern carnation with a classic/vintage vibe.

beautiful fragrance! a long lasting trail of strawberry/carnation/iris reminiscent of "L'air du temps". One of my favourite carnations EVER. long lasting and with a perfect projection. A masterpiece.

L'Heure Convoitée II is roughly translated as "the coveted hour". It is an unusual, distinctive perfume, featuring a multifaceted, fruity take on carnation. Spicy, sweet and soft, it is a deeply sensual "red" scent that is as compelling as it is beautiful. Mathilde Laurent has once again created a deceptively simple masterpiece. HCII opens with what I can best describe as tinned peaches - sweet, fruity and syrup-like. The objective of the « Les Heures » line is to evoke memories in a Proustian manner, and even though tinned peaches evoke childhood memories of simple, homemade dessert for me, this is surely not the intended effect of this particular scent, as the notes do not correspond. After about a quarter of an hour, HCII settles, and sweet, candy-like strawberry emerges, joined by spicy, clove-like carnation. This is such an interesting pairing of notes - I haven't smelled this accord before. It becomes very powdery as it dries down, with delicate iris emerging, adding its distinctive soft melancholic quality to HCII. It provides a cool "yin" counterbalance to the spicy "yang" of the carnation note. This scent fades after several hours, becoming a powdery skin scent with a hint of cloves. Sillage and longevity are moderate. A feminine-leaning, but potentially unisex scent, the carnation note - rarely a focal point in perfumery - is given a rare opportunity to shine. Impressive stuff. 4/5.

I smiled when reading the review below by Enrium, where they say: "A feminine-leaning, but potentially unisex scent..." I am a man who loves to wear perfumes designed for women and this was too femme for me. Carnation is one of my favorite notes, but the strawberry is intense, realistic (+), and quite girly in this one. Girly as in teenage girl. Powdery notes are nice too, but feminine. There is absolutely nothing masculine in this fragrance EXCEPT the carnation. To me, carnation smells alternately spicy (like clove) or waxy and aseptic (like sticking your nose to a fresh stack of copy paper.) Combined with the powder and the strawberry, you get Barbie. Don't get me wrong - I think it's a beautiful and totally unique scent. Kind of thinking of ordering another sample as I write this...