La Dame aux Camelias - Night Cologne

To me, the fragrance opens with a powdered rose with hints of orange and orange blossom. I also detect a hint of lychee, which isn't listed. The powder is very pleasant and not "old lady-like". The fragrance goes on into a sweet rose-musk, with the fruits and powdery fading into the background. The rose is sensual and non-aggressive. The musk is warm and clean. The development is minimal and overall the scent is quite simplistic. Since this perfume is named after the Dumas (fils) novel (and part of the jardins d'ecrivains line up) there is no way I'm not gonna talk about this scent in relation to the source material (and the Verdi opera because I'm an opera nerd). I think this scent would work quite well with the character of Marguerite/Violetta. The scent is sexy, sensual, and feminine in a classy and sophisticated way. Her sexiness shines in her lavish structured gown with layers of silk and lace, not a leather mini skirt and stilettos. She is a high class courtesan entertaining the best of the Parisian society, not a lady of the night who pulls her dress up for half a penny against the wall of an alleyway after a night of gin and bar fights. This is also a very intimate scent that I can easily associate with her retreat to the province with her lover, wearing a white silk nightgown lying idly on a soft bed all day in a luxurious mansion, whispering sweet nothings. The only thing that's a bit lacklustre is that I wish there is a little bit of dirtiness. If you're familiar with the novel you would know that the camélias on her signifies whether she is on her period to provide sexual service. And women on their periods usually have a very faint smell on them. Perhaps I also want a little hint of sex, because she is a sexual being. Or maybe something a bit darker or melancholic to reflect the languorous nature of tuberculosis, which she suffered. This fragrance is the facade of the woman she presents to the public rather than her truest self - a fallen woman yearning for love and not money, who is slowing dying from tuberculosis. And I'm ok with that. It is advertised as a night cologne and I can definitely see why. This scent makes me want to go back to bed, wrapped in weighted blankets and the scent. It'll be perfect for being in bed with a lover (or alone pretending to have a lover in bed). But rather than saying this is exclusive for nighttime, I think it is better to say this scent is a cologne for romance and physical intimacy. This scent flirts with its presence with murmuring seduction. In addition to sensuality, it makes me feel feminine and beautiful and "lady-like". It's also calming and serene. I swear and curse a lot, but wearing this scent somehow suppresses my tendency to do so.

Before I write a review, I'll tell you what the scales above show. No one "has" this perfume right now, though 5 people voted. 3 females users +25 have each voted "love", "like" and "dislike", but left no reviews, didn't vote in the other categories. Have they sampled "La Dame", I wonder? It's a hard-to-find fragrance. I obtained my carded 2ml sample by writing in french to the Parisian company with a specific request. A male user -25 has voted "like" and also "spring" and "day". I'm inclined to think that he has tried 'La Dame', because if a male were to wear it in earnest - he would typically have a limited time in which to do so, for it is intensely floral upon immediate application. 'La Dame' is the only perfume for women offered by Jardin d'Ecrivains; perhaps this male user tried this by mistake because it said "cologne", or for a lark. Update: 'Gigi' is the other perfume for women by JD'E! I've now voted: like, spring, summer, fall, night. I've also voted for the notes. No doubt that "La Dame" is for the nighttime, in my mind. Personally, I wouldn't wear something like this during the daytime, it feels very emotional to me and therefore risque. It begins more flirtatiously than any other perfume I've tried... An illicit, adult flirtation by a woman who is giving all of her heart away, including what's leftover of the innocent, girlish parts. *All* the hopes, dreams and cares she's ever had are suspended in midair during the time of just this kiss. One kiss, and much more. The top notes of this perfume smell like they could be the heart of a perfume - bountiful camelias, colourful rose and attractive juniper - only they are flying, vaulted. If I were a man, and a woman left this scent on my bedsheets, I would sigh for hours, never leaving the room, intoxicated, for the beauty of it, and of her. I'd never forget it. This isn't "love" for me because I'm not as comfortable with musk drydowns as most people and perfumeheads. This musk, though, is on par with Chanel's musk. "La Dame" is the second Jardins D'Ecrivains scent I've tried, and the quality is excellent. They behave beautifully. I really do sense an ascension in the top notes, while the base is deep. I feel the aura and the scent lift above me, even moreso in 'La Dame'. And so, in a way, it reminds me of lying on a bed, and before the man bends to reach my skin, I'm already touching him; emotionally, mentally he is wrapped up in perfume.

La Dame aux Camelia's opens w/ a bright lemony verbena. I enjoy verbena and I don't think it is used as often as it should be. It has a nice refreshing lemony herbal quality that adds brightness to a fragrance w/out being overpowering like bergamot can sometimes be. Cardamom and orange blossom are there but not as strong as the Verbena. As this perfume goes along it becomes a beautiful May rose w/ a nicely done iris and Camelia. The iris in here is just stunning. This perfume is softly cosmetic, it smells like an expensive lipstick but lipstick combined w/ herbal tones, a soft and distant sweetness of orange blossom, a light dusting of cardamom, and beautiful May roses. At first, they are young tender buds tightly holding on to their scent but as they open, they become slightly animalic w/ a bit of leather undertones w tart berries and as they grow in strength, they become quite powdery and musky. This perfume has a brightness that stays throughout the duration of the perfume. La Dame aux Camelia's is a brilliant combination of many of my favorite elements in a perfume. It is powdery, musky and floral but it has a quality that is often lacking in powdery floral perfumes, it remains very bright and refreshing while still being a powdery lipstick fragrance. Womanly, while remaining a bit youthful, it is really the best of both worlds. Stunning and full bottle worthy. 12/27/22 Searched high and low for this and not a bottle to be found. Why do they discontinue beauties like this? Sad. Edit/6/3/24 finally I have this beauty in my collection. A good friend I met here blind bought a bottle and since it wasn't for her sold it to me. Wearing it today. So happy! Thank you Fragrantica friend!

Hello again, 3 years later! I just dropped by to say that a month ago I was visiting New York City during a summer heatwave. Traveling alone, I had packed light and therefore chosen my travel perfumes (all sample sized) carefully. LDAC was the perfume I decided to wear for the meeting I had in Soho. I was going to meet an artist in his home studio to view his work and discuss collaboration. I wore this because it's elegant and the sillage is polite. Applied lightly, it behaves very well in high heat and in small spaces. I had never met this artist before, and I didn't want to wear something complex like a Guerlain, or stylish like a Chanel. I contemplated wearing Nicolai's Violette in Love because it's well-behaved but thought it might be too immature and flighty. Well, ladies and gentleman. I fell in love. It only took about 4 hours, and I didn't really realize it had happened until I awoke in the middle of the night, bolting upright. Perfume is very important to me. I wear it daily, and it brings me joy. It affects my mood, attitude, and confidence levels. If something significant happens to me, I always remember what perfume I was wearing. I'm not saying that I believe a perfume is magic enough to help you fall in love... but who knows. Maybe some of us need all the help we can get, and anything's worth a try. What I'm saying is that I hope you all find your "La Dame aux Camelias", on a sunny, sweaty, breezy, perfect day in your favourite place on earth, surrounded by inspiring art and a truly wonderful person who sets your heart on fire.

As soon as I applied this, my nose sent me an "old lady" warning because of the sharp soapy initial blast, but it quickly turned into something beautiful. Even reading the term "soapy" in a review is usually enough to make me lose interest in a fragrance, but I'm happy I tried this one. This isn't old ladyish. Instead it's more what a now older woman wore in here youth, in a time long since passed, when she was a young beautiful vixen with more handsome men than she could count. This is a classic style, but instead of being polished and chaste, it's brimming with sexuality. It's soapy heavy powdery florals (the kind I would otherwise steer clear of) balanced out with spicy herbs, and enriched with lots of musk and tonka. It's absolutely beautiful. I'll wear this to bed, when I'm having a romantic picnic, or anytime I want to add +10 to my femininity, but never when i'm cold! This needs warmth to keep those sexy notes alive. I run very cold and need to be careful when I use this. -Sometimes I layer this with Tokyo milk's Honey and The Moon and it's divine. It makes it both younger and sexier since Honey and the Moon turns into a very creamy honey musk on my skin. A very sexy combo