Le Feu D'Issey Light

Le Feu D'Issey Light has one of the best bottle designs I've ever seen. It's also an accurate representation of the perfume itself; fiery and a spicy core, but softened by a milky, dewy veil. The opening surprises me every time I apply it. Anise and bergamot give the opening it's refreshing, sour and bitter bite; mahogany lends a smooth, woody touch. Rather remarkable is the rose that blooms amidst these aforementioned notes - it's very fragrant and full, but not prominent. I can't really make out the coconut, but I guess it serves to give the opening a bit of sweet- and fullness. After the opening has settled, almost immediately a very nice jasmine pops up along with the milk note, giving the fragrance a floral, milky edge. The milk note used in LFIL is of the warm, creamy, soft kind. It's really lovely and complements the rose really well. The rose is amplified in the middle stage, which makes it a bit more noticeable. Hortensia and caramel lurk in the background. After the middle notes start to fade, a very smooth sandalwood appears. It interwinds beautifully with the rose, jasmine, anise and milk. Cedar and guaiac wood amplify the woody impression created by the mahogany. If I concentrate, I can smell the slightest whisper of vanilla and amber in the drydown. The musk appears almost at the end of the ride, giving Le Feu Light a slight plushy feeling. It starts of quite strong in the beginning, projecting quite aggressively the first hour, but it dries down to a skin scent after about 2 hours. It lasts about 7-8 hours, which is long enough for me. To conclude: it is a really nice fragrance, worthy of all the hype. Try picking it up if you have the chance, you will not be disappointed. On a side note, it quite reminded me of Declaration D'un Soir. DuS is more spicy and woody though and obviously misses the milky touch, but lovers of Le Feu Light should still check it out.

(Half of this review went away when I edited, sorry...) Le Feu d'Issey light is a feminine frag, but, which is not frequent, it quite stands aside of any gender role playing, so it can as well serve as unisex. It is independent, original, it plays its notes like it wants to. None of the many and various notes is cliche or obvious - you smell rose but it never gets floral-romantic, you smell milk and caramel but before it gets sweet, in your face sexy or childish, you fall into woody notes (very noble here) that, on the other hand, never go too far in the rambo-neandertal masculinity that you meet in woody perfumes so often. Lovely perfume that will give you charm but won't take your wit away. Of course the original is much more interesting, but it's so hard to get it and prices are so absurd that I will easily content myself with ligh version.

I bought both Feu while in fashion college in Toronto at 19 years old. That was a wild time for me. And this was the perfect scent for that time. Many cold late nights, working, studying, playing, lots of boys and fancy clothes and fast cars and dangerous situations. I would get asked what I was wearing every day. There was nothing like it at the time. I’m a loud and firey person and this was the perfect scent. When those two bottles were empty and the line had been discontinued, it was a sad day. I now lean towards green scents to tone down my fire, but there is always a thought in my mind about tracking down a vintage bottle. I wish they brought it back. I’m going to try some similar ones soon.

I adore this perfume. I could never choose a favourite perfume as what I wear depends on my mood, what I'm wearing, the weather, even the seasons. But if I had to pick a signature scent this would be a top contender, I've used it since it's release in 2000. It is very nice on me and develops into a warm, ambery scent that hooks peoples sense of smell and makes them often lean in to ask what I'm wearing. I like the fact that the sillage is subtle as to me there's nothing worse than the smell of really strong perfume on someone that you can detect from 10 feet away.

Oh this is good stuff. A creamy, powdery sweet milk + licorice smell. I do get the whiff of citrus as mentioned; I would've guessed lemon. It's soft but not weak. It's warm but not stuffy. I could see this being worn year round. It's like a mother's hug and cuddly as a cashmere sweater. I am sad that it's discontinued but so happy to have discovered it and I'll keep and use my bottle sparingly. Quite the hidden gem, this one is. I've never tried the original but now I want to check out more fragrances with milk as a listed note.