L'Ombre Dans L'Eau Eau de Toilette

Usually... I would hate something like this. I cannot always get behind the rose heavy scents, but this... wow... simply blew me away. It is so light... so refreshing... But beautifully composed. Diptyque really is a perfume powerhouse and you can just smell the quality immediately. This one surprised me. I was standing in Mecca doing the rounds sniffing at each bottle on the Diptyque shelf and I just kept going back to this one, totally mesmerised and perplexed by it's quality. I was also quite attracted to the simple design on the label, so dainty and understated, it stood out amongst its peers of more intricate landscape illustrations. I did not really like Eau Rose, which just goes to show that rose, for me, struggles to really pull a good balance in a scent depending on what's surrounding it. For example, Byredo's 'Rose Noir' was quite delectable and rich, very palatable, but their 'Young Rose' was screechy and headache inducing, high pitched and sickly sweet. Ironically, Eau Rose may be the more mature rose scent compared to this, but L'Ombre Dans L'Eau sparkles with a delicate and breathy bat of the eyelashes, sweet smile: juicy currants smashing into soft dewy rose petals, tang of thorn and leaf, then carried by a current of waves (that ambergris...) into an earthy bed of myrrh and amber. Yes oh yes oh yes. This is the fresh green floral fragrance of dreams. This is soooo... astounding. I wish I could put my finger on what it reminds me of, as it has a quality that is deeply comforting to me. Perhaps it is its general air of nostalgia... I like strawbrrymelk's allusion to the gothic in this scent because it is indeed of some quality— it's probably the myrrh. Church-like, in that way. I can picture green green trees after rain, flanking a gorgeous old church, and in the church yard, closed in by iron gates, budding white roses, tinged with pink. Fleshy. And you pluck one, the thorn digs into your finger as you wander inside. 'Father forgive me for I have sinned'. Hail Mary, full of grace, The Lord is with thee... She's a girl of certain innocence, but one that is subdued sad and forlorn. She'll make you smile when you think about her, and in a crowd, you'll long to hear what (little) she has to (is willing to) say, because whenever she speaks it is always in a quiet manner immensely profound and well educated. Nothing is overstated. No superiority whatsoever in her intonations. Her books are hidden behind heavy cupboard doors, and their margins are lightly marked, notes taken only, with pencil. L'Ombre Dans L'Eau lifts off the little cream note that possesses a scrawling of 'listen to me' atop a carefully burnt disc: White Poppy 'Something Sacred' Sea Oleena 'Calvisius' Lovesliecrushing 'Plume' Lewis Baloue 'Bringing You a Rose' bar italia 'Rage Quit' Anna Laplantine 'Where it Goes' Woo 'Don't Delay' A vial is all I possess currently but I'm so taken by this scent that I feel feverish for a full bottle. • 3 Feb 23 • The girl that helped me at the Mecca that I acquired the tester from, we really hit it off, chatting for ages all while testing perfumes and dissecting their scent profiles. We added each other on facebook. I went back to the store the next day she was working and she told me it was her last day there, and offered to gift me her employee's discount for any perfume of my choosing. Such a kind, thoughtful gesture rendered me so overwhelmed with weepy joy, I couldn't believe it. I plucked out the 100ml of L'Ombre Dans L'Eau. I can now say, from wearing it properly, this scent seems to really project beautifully off my skin. I adore these notes in tandem, though I noticed included in the ingredients is citronellol, which once I saw, I could not ignore the citronella smell. This made me fear it to be of an 'insect repellant' quality. Luckily, it dissipates. I wore it over to my friends house and when I hugged her, she hummed 'wow, you smell yummy'. We went swimming in her pool, and apparently, she said, when I jumped into the water, a big wave of the scent burst out after me and she was hit with a wall of L'Ombre Dans L'Eau. I was quite surprised to hear such a thing! To me, this is a delicate and intimate scent, but I seem to get nose blind quite easily. But it turns out, it's quite a powerful fragrance! At least powerful enough to withstand the wash of chlorine. I guess it performs well in its natural habitat: dans L'Eau.

You are roused from your sleep to the tranquil sound of softly chirping birds and the warmth of the early morning sun on your face. Summer has just started, and the heat hasn't quite set in yet. You rise to greet the day, don a freshly-laundered simple cotton number, and exit your cottage through the back door that opens into your secluded private garden. It rained last night - the sun's rays glisten in a thousand tiny facets of light, caught in the smattering of water droplets that cling precariously to the petals, leaves, and stems throughout your garden. The Bulgarian roses your spouse planted are in their last wave of blooming. Their luscious petals strike a vivid contrast against the backdrop of your black currant bushes that are heavy with their first round of berries and residual rainwater. Using your bare hands, you spend a few moments harvesting the ripest berries you can find. Next, you carefully select and cut a handful of the roses to create a long-stem bouquet. Carrying the bouquet in one hand and a sachet of currant berries in the other, you silently exit your garden and start walking barefoot down the trail that leads to the thicket of evergreens behind your cottage. Your footsteps are muffled by the pine needles and damp moss that cover the path. A short time later, you reach the river - you hear it before you see it. You've avoided coming here since the accident last summer - your throat seizes and chest aches once you catch sight of the calmly flowing waters. The pain passes momentarily, and is replaced by a longing, a need, a calling directly from the depths of the water straight to the center of your heart. You reach the riverbank, and follow it for a few moments until you come to a willow tree that partially overhangs the water. It's trunk is obscured by a thick leafy curtain of delicately swaying branches - you gently push them aside, and let them fall back into place behind you as you enter the willow's domed canopy. The branches flow down and around you, cocooning you as you kneel at your spouse's gravestone. You pay your respects, and place all but one of the fresh-cut roses on the stone marker. Afterwards, you sit on the cool mossy bank at the base of the willow tree and slowly eat the currant berries while overlooking the glittering water. A gentle breeze rustles through the leaves. When you finish the berries, you pick up the last remaining rose and carefully remove it's petals one by one, gently tossing them into the river. The image of the floating petals swirling between flickers of light and shadow on the water's surface mesmerizes and soothes you, and you slip into that space between dreaming and consciousness. You see the soul of your deceased spouse, reaching out and calling to you from the rocky depths, pleading for you to join them. You oblige, and step into the cool water to meet in an ethereal lover's embrace. Sinking further into the darkness and trailed by a smattering of rose petals, you look back one last time at the dimming sunlight streaming down from the water's surface...and everything fades to black.

This is the one that opened my eyes to the photorealistic world of Diptyque, and made me want to try them all. After I smelled it for the first time only just over a year ago, it quickly made its way into my short list of utmost favourite scents, and is the only scent I never tire of wearing everyday for many days and even weeks in a row. L'Ombre dans L'eau is, in my world and my humble opinion, a true masterpiece. To me it evokes a calm feeling of a relaxing summer day, in the South of France for instance, on the banks of a river. It is not too hot, the weather is perfect, the sky is blue with a few white puffy clouds. Birds chirp in the background. I am strolling under the shade of lush dark green leaves. The air is dry, and I perceive an astringent smell of the greenery. That is the opening. The scent is bright and beautiful. Then, depending on the real weather I am in, the smell can morph into different ways. In the same day I'm wearing it, it will also change. Sometimes it's like the breeze picks up and brings soft wafts of black currant buds. Sometimes they are accompanied by black currant sweet fruits. Sometimes I smell that tomato leaf people talk about. Sometimes the wind brings the smell of tender rose buds. Often during the stroll I smell the whole rose bush, which is how I most love roses in perfumery: the flowers, the leaves, the stems bush, and the soil underneath. Oh that soil! Sometimes the breeze picks up a little stronger, and the water will caress more grass and flora, bringing a beautiful damper green smell. L'Ombre dans L'eau lasts all day on me, bringing me the calm of this riverside stroll during my whole day. For an edt and a Diptyque, it's longevity is excellent. I have tried the edp many times, but (and most people might disagree with me on this matter) on myself and as with most Diptyques, while the epd is usually deeper, the edt versions brings me a little extra sparkle and joy. Plus when I compare trying the edt and edp on each arm, I have never found the edp to outperform the edt. (With the exception of Eau Rose, but I'll leave that discussion for another day and meriting their own reviews in their own pages). On a last note, as with most Diptyque photorealistic scents, I most enjoy them not when I'm in the middle of a bustling sophisticated city, but when I can enjoy a slower paced moment and with contact with nature.

without a doubt, the best thing i have ever smelled. the further i delve into my exploration of fragrances, the more frequently i run back to this scent. the central white rose is the star of the show to my nose, but it’s beautifully complemented by the shadowy cassis and slightly marine ambergris. it conjures up an image of a secluded faerie garden under a cloudy sky, or even shakespeare’s tragic heroine ophelia. contrary to diptyque’s current marketing, i hesitate to call l’ombre dans l’eau unisex; it’s almost hyperfeminine, so confrontational in its bracing green stemminess that i can see how its cold, elegant confidence can be perceived as having a masculine edge. the notes aren’t traditionally “seductive” in that they eschew warmth and skank of any kind, yet i constantly get compliments wearing this from people of all genders (especially other women who want to know what i’m wearing!) i’ve also seen it described as gothic by others before, though i can only imagine it being gothic the same way early cocteau twins’ music was— melancholy, yes, but comparatively romantic and delicate, in stark contrast to ‘80s heavy-hitters like dior poison. speaking of cocteau twins, this scent really reminds me of their music as a whole, and i’m looking forward to layering it with ethereal wave, the new release from liis fragrances that’s directly inspired by them. the reviews on this perfume seem to be rather polarized, and i can’t say i blame anyone for that. the scent profile isn’t the most conventional, and both sillage and longevity admittedly aren’t the best. but for anyone looking for a unique rose or a true, green freshie, l’ombre dans l’eau is THAT girl. that true, one of a kind, wistfully aloof it-girl.

okay, so i had doubts with this perfume. first time i smelt it, i was like... wayyyyy to green, and took a step back. but as i waked around the store with the tester in my hand, i gave it another sniff. i was confused, i didn't know if i liked it or not, yes it was still green but the sweetness came through. Then i tried it on my hand, and then i realised, it smelt like a very green bush, people mention it smelling like a tomato.no. it smells like tomato leaves (i think thats what cassis smells like). and you get this fresh rose, which is syrupy but fresh and not too sweet like eau rose. This rose does not smell plasticky at all, i love this rose (i am picky with my rose). like 70% green, 20% rose. then there is something that breaks between them i wanna say its 10% berry like. This is your fresh (freshest and greenest) summer scent, it can't be for any other season, wear this when you are running errands on a sunny day. This gives off an artsy feeling, like you need to have taste to like this scent, i see this on 20-30 yr old's cause of the lack of powderiness and heaviness. Not your strong in the face scent, this is an in and out projection, you get whiffs of it every now and then. Its dreamy in the sense that i've never smelt anything like this, very much like a fairytail scent (idk why it reminds me of romeo and juilet), but it feels like you wearing your summer dress, and laying out in the grass under the sun. there is this dark element to it, feels like a plot twist idk. its you either love it or hate it, there is no in between, so test it out if you get a chance to, otherwise this is the scent which will grow on you as you keep wearing it. Edit: i still love this scent!!!