Vert Pivoine

I typically don't love floral fragrances all that often, but I do love peony as a note, and this peony fragrance feels expertly crafted on my skin chemistry. I love the green edge that the ivy leaf provides in the top notes, and the composition quickly becomes a powdery peony-rose combo which is what I had wanted YSL Paris Premieres Roses to smell like on me. In cool autumn weather, the soft cedar note is much more noticeable, and being a lover of woody fragrances, I truly appreciate this aspect. But I have to admit, as much as I like the composition, Vert Pivoine doesn't seem to have good longevity on me. UPDATE: I thought the scent had faded out but I kept catching whiffs of it all night long, even after I had changed clothes, so the longevity is actually really amazing!! It stays very close to the skin when it fully dries down.

This is something that grows on me by every minute I wear it. The opening was never something unique or particularly likable, but after "Vert Pivoine" slides in to heart part magic starts to happen. On me it's all about rose - a delicate, feminine, sparkling rose which balances on being green/sour at some times, but always stays very true and gorgeous. Peony of course also plays a great deal here, but for me it stays in the second plan. What I love the most here is what ivy does to this floral composition, it gives the spicy and green edge making this rather refreshing and perfectly suitable for spring time. Do try this. You might fall in love just like I did.

I blind bought this because it was on sale & because I was eyeing Histories De Parfums for quite a while. And it's a great peony scent, except that the "vert" part didn't really come through. The opening is a rather tender peony/rose combo, with a little bit of greenness that I presume is coming from the ivy leaf, though it sort of hides behind the floral notes, contrary to what its name suggests. In a few minutes the ivy leaf fades away and is slowly replaced by various red fruits, mainly raspberry but also some strawberry and apple, while peony is still taking the lead. I adore how the fruit notes are portrayed here: not sweet or candied at all, but just the scent you smell when you open up a box of just ripened raspberry, fresh and rosy. There’s also a little bit of dryness from mimosa. In about three hours it starts to dry down, the red fruits are slowly getting replaced by cedar wood and musk, amplifying that dryness from earlier on. It kind of reminds me of Stella McCartney’s Stella in Two Peony at this point, but minus the pepper notes. When I tested it on paper there seems to be a hint of gardenia after twelve hours, but on skin I only got a blend of peony, musk and woody notes slowly fading away. The longevity is about ten to twelve hours on skin, although i find that the same fragrance tend to last longer on me than on other people, and the sillage is moderate.

Opens fresh and a bit sour even, with warm floral notes underneath. The floral notes get stronger quickly. I smell peony and rose and the sour notes get a more fruity bite now and become sweeter. I also smell something green in the mix, not very distinct, but it is there. AFter a while woody notes start to come through, and a tiny hint of musk. The peony/rose is going strong in the drydown, and the sour note also stays throughout. I'm impressed with the performance! Sillage is heavy, longevity long. Whoa, this is a floral explosion of rose and peonies! Totally different from other Histoires de Parfums that I've tested so far. There is nothing subtle about this scent. It has a sour note underneath, that freshes up all those big flowers in there. I don't get any distinct mimosa notes, and the sandalwood isn't prominent either. All this floral violence is a bit much to handle for me, but I have to admit it is very good. Tasty, almost. Do try if you like big florals.

I don't smell the peony in the opening, I just smell rose, a clean soapy rose. And pretty much that's it, the mimosa gives a little sweetness but it's still basically a rose perfume. After a couple of minutes it becomes less floral because of the woods and green notes, which makes this fragrance more interesting. The 'soapy' scent continues all the way till the dry down.