Magie Noire

[1200] Magie Noire is a classic Lancôme scent that predates the bottles of syrup that seem to be their modern specialty. A dense, green-woody chypre, it is aptly-named - the kind of scent that brings to mind witchy potions, and the dark sister to the demure aldehylic violets of Magie. It is unsurprising to me that MN was a greater success - complex yet cohesive, it is compelling throughout, in contrast to its simplistic sister. I adore chypres and greens, and while it is of its era, it is timeless. I have a vintage miniature EDT from the 1990s, and it smells beautiful and intact. MN is green from initial spray, refreshingly dry and dark, reminiscent of a forest rather than going down the more predictable route of being citrus-led. The galbanum plays a big role here, leafy and dry, enhanced nicely by the freshness of the cassis. The woody notes emerge early on, keeping the forest image alive throughout. The cedar here is much more realistic than in modern scents too. As it develops, the florals come to the fore. Hyacinth, a favourite of mine, is evident, green-tinged and lily-like. It reminds me of childhood springtime, and is a lovely inclusion in perfume, but seems to be a rarity in modern scents. A powdery bouquet develops, led by rose but comprising clean, sweet white florals. There is nothing cloying, waxy or overwhelming here; it is beautifully balanced with each note carefully chosen to contribute to the scent as a whole. The green, woody undertone remains throughout, developing into the dark, mossy base of a classic chypre. There is a lovely amber accord in the base, animalic and musky, and of the high quality that is only found in vintage perfumes. It is in the background, enhancing the chypre beautifully. It fades to a dry, musky skin scent, mossy and powdery until final fade. Sillage is moderate and longevity is long-lasting - it performs extremely well for an EDT. It is feminine-leaning, but could be unisex by modern standards. It is transeasonal, suitable for colder weather. A beautiful, woody-green-floral chypre, MN is my kind of scent, but is also objectively excellent, masterfully composed with high-quality ingredients. I would be curious to try the modern iteration for comparison, but they don't make them like this anymore. Witchy magic indeed. 5/5.

This is a “brand new” bottle, bought around last summer from Douglas, a parfumerie chain here in Germany. Brand new, my bottle did not smell much like itself. It lasted, lord it lasted. But it was very sharp and green and thin feeling, and all out of balance. It behaved like a regular perfume, without the signature “figure 8” progression of Magie Noire where you smell the base notes first, then the mid, then the top notes, and then you work your way back and forth. Going from top to mid to base notes and having that progression stay constant is very unkind to the scent. But I could smell it TRYING to do the right things at times, and I’ve tested bottles in store plenty, so I suspected I had an aging problem on my hands. Today, I know for sure I was right. This isn’t a scent I tend to love in very cold weather. It’s more of a warm weather scent for me, and 9 months of sitting mean I have my lively, vibrant perfume back. It’s always different for me from wearing to wearing, so it’s not a scent I grab when I want consistency and comfort. You can never quite tell if it’ll be a rich ambery scent (very rare, DO NOT buy this expecting something sweet, even when this version shows up for me it’s strange) or a sunny green scent or a spicy leather scent in advance. But if you want an adventure in a bottle, this scent will give you what you want. Today’s version, I’m getting something I don’t remember getting, where there’s tiny wafts of a peachy aspect. This isn’t a scent where I can easily pick out notes when it’s working properly. I’ve never smelled rose in it, or orris. Oakmoss, yes, in quantity but that’s the only bit that’s ever been a solid ID for me in this. It’s pretty heavy on civet by all accounts, but I’ve never been able to reliably pick that note out by smell, only by what it does on my skin. (Good things, for me civet is a reliable guide to things I’ll like to smell) I can’t really recommend getting into this scent if you’re not already an addict as dealing with aging a scent yourself when it should be sold ready to use is not fun for most people. But if you are an addict and you’re frustrated with stalking vintage bottles, the current stuff does (eventually) settle into being itself, as much as this scent ever settles.

I loved this perfume when I started wearing it in the 80s. It was rich, deep and seductive. It was sexy and self-assured and smelled... sophisticated. Unfortunately, my adopted mother (some 45+ years my senior) decided she really loved it and started wearing it; as a result, I stopped! I hadn't worn it for years and the negative associations have gone... and I've been revisiting lots of favourites from my youth. I bought a new bottle (I now can't remember the manufacturing date) of MN about 3 years ago... and was bloody horrified. I accept that some perfumes have been altered because of concerns about their constituents, which have been discovered to be harmful since their release... but Magie Noire was tragically different and unrecognisable. I swapped the bottle away. The worst of it was that I didn't know if I'd mis-remembered the fragrance, if my nose was screwed... or... what? A month or so ago I took a chance on a 100ml tester for sale at £120 sterling on eBay. checkcosmetic.net dated the bottle's code to 1986, and - despite the comments on this page about vintage MN's tendency to turn - I bought it. My bottle is almost perfect. It's clearly been stored well and it smells - almost exactly - as I remember it; this proves that: a. My nose is working, b. My memory is accurate, despite my advancing years, and c. What is sold now as Magie Noire is a bloody travesty. I've had a think about Magie Noire and Opium (which I conducted a similar experiment on) and believe that manufacturers should gracefully retire perfumes which they can no longer make due to new IFRA regulations... or they simply can't afford to maintain the original's quality due to the expense of the ingredients. If they don't want to do that, they should (at the very least) rename the perfumes - "Magie Noire 2" should do it. At least that would save lovers of the originals money (and doubting our senses). To summarise: If you loved Magie Noire forty years ago, don't buy it from a department store; seek out a vintage bottle. It's worth it.

1978 Glittering Emerald & Jet Chypre... There's a definite 70s vibe and a darkness here, but paradoxically also a timelessness - a combination of late 1970s glamour and Egyptian magic perhaps. Like a dark Charlie's Angel, I could imagine this scent being worn by Jane Birkin in the film, Death on the Nile,1978, or the S.S. Karnak river cruiser smelling of this. In the 2022 remake I imagine it being worn best by Sophie Okonedo or Emma Mackey, but any of the star studded cast including Armie Hammer & Gal Gadot could pull it off. I first discovered this in the early 2000s, and loved it for its otherworldly appeal, as it was so unlike scents that were being released around that time. There's a lot going on in the notes, but I'll do my best to describe what I get. Opens with a glittering green galbanum with some sharper points from cassis & a soft floral backdrop including hyacinth, but already the darkness of oakmoss & spice are peeking through. The glittering green effect is carried into the heart but deepened & sweetened with honey & tuberose, while narcissus continues the sting. Smoky incense starts to peep through, while the the exotic green base of patchouli, myrrh, & sandalwood starts to take shape. Civet is well blended here and much less forward than scents like Paloma Picasso, but may be more forward in vintage bottles. Contrast to Paloma Picasso Paloma Picasso: These are different but there is a similar vintage chypre vibe. Magie Noire has the prominent galbanum which tilts it dark green, while Paloma Picasso has a more forward civet & animalic accord. Both have excellent performance. Contrast to Diva Emanuel Ungaro: These are different, but again there's a similar vintage chypre vibe. Magie Noire has the more forward galbanum, while Diva is sweeter with a more forward honey & rose Both have excellent performance. Performance is excellent, and it really shines at anytime with the right mood, at night or when it's damp or rainy. It's a longtime love for me, 10/10. Enjoy!

I hate it... but I love it, can’t live without it!!! I remember being a kid playing with my cousins in my aunts vanity room, she had a large dresser with a big perfume selection this was in late 90’s so I was accustomed to the fresh, green, floral modern scents of that time as I was skimming through bottles something caught my eye and low and behold was a half empty bottle of Magie Noire, it was the 80’s version, I spritzed it on my wrist and took a whiff and was blown, I instantly hated the fragrance but i couldn’t get enough of it , constantly smelling my wrist over and over again something about this fragrance kept drawing me back for more. lovely. I remember the spice, creaminess, fizzy, soapy, animalic, dusty and also a faint manure tone in this fragrance, years gone by and I still would remember this fragrance, so I recently did a purchase of the new formulation and it did remind me of Magie Noire but if I would have to describe the current reformulation I would say it’s more of a modern rounder refined version compared to before, still a gorgeous fragrance but a little different, first thing I noticed missing is that it’s not as sharp, dry as before also the deepness is not as profound, the creaminess is lower in fat, the soapiness not as medicinal, the dustiness doesn’t tickle my nose, the fizziness isn’t as effervescent, the spice isn’t as hot, the animalic tone is vegan, also the manure is masked and refined, the new version is still a magnificent lovely fragrance and some notes have been heightened and some have been toned down compared to vintage formula so to me it’s a little less naughty less skanky, but it’s more seductive, much warmer with more waxy lit candle smoke. all in all this fragrance is a masterpiece and if I can linger to any memory it has from the vintage then so be it! I’ll take it! It’s better than nothing in my opinion. Please don’t ever discontinue this and please continue making it for the next generations to experience this masterpiece