Dior Grand Bal

lately I've been comparing whatever white floral-woody-musk I tested with Estee lauder modern muse but dior grand bal is the closest.on my skin it has a lot in common with modern muse.I tested them side by side and couldn't easily distinguish them. Since I love Estee lauder modern muse(it's among my top ten favorite perfumes)there's no wonder that I love dior grand bal too but I won't add it to my wantlist,it's much more expensive and not widely available so I prefer to continue buying and wearing modern muse instead.I'm going to give other tries to grand bal(thanks my lovely niki for this generous decant) and I will edit if I find anything to make grand bal superior and justify buying it Now lets describe grand bal a bit independently.it's jasmine smells like sambac jasmine to my nose,I can also pickup a hint of orange blossom and something like honey suckle but not much ylang-ylang.flowers are crisp and gentle and they have a delicate sweetness(a natural floral sweetness,not a vanilla or sugar sweetness).musk is detectable but at the same time is subtle.it has a great balance of sexy musk and clean musk.it's woody base is also very light and subtle It's more a spring and summer day scent which is also suitable for evening wear.it's charming and elegant and safe if muskyflorals are your thing.it's a complement getter and is versatile.lasts all day on my skin,it's noticable without being heavy

Continuing with my fascination with white florals, the aftermath of a refreshing evening downpour in the city centre is the perfect setting for this Francois Demachy creation in Dior's La Privee Collection. A decade on from its release, Grand Bal continues to capture in scent the essence of feminine elegance with jasmine in the starring role and in a quiet but essential cameo, the unmistakable sweetness of ylang-ylang which in this creation is not of the prominence of the Le Labo issue. This supporting role blends beautifully with the jasmine, disarming it from the piercing greenness that the flower in its fresh natural state exudes. I tend not to group scents into categories, eschewing the practice of religiously assigning times and occasions most suited to a perfume's wear. I think it does not do justice to the freedom to enjoy the pleasures of fragrance at any given moment of your choice. But I have to admit that Grand Bal is an exception simply because it is so suited to an evening of grandiose, grace, style and sophistication. The coolness of the evening with dusk now in an approaching embrace lays testament to the allure of Grand Bal as it calls out to be the perfect accompaniment to the anticipation and excitement of nocturnal festivities. Try it, you'll love it!

When I retrieved the 7.5ml from the mail, it was about 45°F outside. I immediately opened the envelope, and it had all the appearance of a tiny bottle of chilled champagne nesting in its round packaging. When I unscrewed the cap, the scent that drifted up to me was an ethereal sweet jasmine, ylang ylang, and orange blossom, the finest floral, chilled champagne. Grand Bal is exquisite. Imagine you teased out the jasmine and ylang ylang from J'adore L'or (2023) and sweetened it slightly with soft peach. That is this perfume. L'or is my new love and since this reminds me of that fragrance, I love this one too. If you own L'or, this is somewhat redundant, but there's no denying that Grand Bal is a beauty all her own. The sad part (aside from the price) is that Grand Bal lasts at most 2 hours and then she's the softest skin scent. However, what she lacks in consistent sillage, she makes up for in longevity. I can smell Grand Bal in my hair the next day. I sprayed one spray today on my wrist, showered hours later and my wrist still smells like this gorgeous sweet musk. The musk in this is heavenly.

Decided to test Grand Bal again after a year Last year I believed that Grand Bal is Esteelauder Modern Muse's twin sister.I can still find similarities between them,as they both have dominant crisp flowers and classy musk but I don't think they're dupes anymore. Now I like Grand Bal ten times more than Modern Muse,actually I feel I'm in love with Grand Bal and I'm so sad to see they have reformulated it.it's unisex in the new version and has only two notes.probably I can never have a bottle of this lovely 2012 version and it's a shame as I think it's one of the most easy to wear yet elegant florals I've ever tried Granballo isn't as musky as modern muse.there's jasmine,orange flower and ylangylang in it's pyramid but what I smell the most is honeysuckle which I love florals aren't creamy,waxy or buttery here,they're not heavy or indolic.they're not green either..florals are luminous and so crisp and cool in Grand Bal,clean without being soapy.very elegant but also easy to wear I wish the new version to be as beautiful as this one

I think I'm in love... I'm generally not a fan of straight-up white florals in the classical manner, but this one took me by surprise. The name, for once, is completely appropriate: it certainly brings to mind gala events and satin ball-gowns. It exudes both old fashioned glam and modern brightness, deceptive simplicity and textured complexity. Full marks to François Demachy for redeeming Dior's "private" collection by doing what he does best: suave, silken compositions with charm to spare. This feels like the kind of perfume a woman could wear her whole life. (crisp floral - 4.5/5)