Manoumalia

Manoumalia managed to feel refreshing without any citrus or acquatic accords, and while retaining a lush darkness. Since Les Nez is a niche house, I'd be interested to know if most of the ingredients here are natural. I've worn essential oils for years, and Manou has a similar feel on my skin and to my nose. I wore this last night for the first time, it's morning now, there is no ghost of a scent. . . and I'm dying to put it on right now again - but I just can't. I *must* save the precious 2.5 mls inside my decant! My precious! *gollum* Below, the capn makes an astute distinction between "tropical" and "exotic", saying that Manou falls into the latter definition. I agree! To my nose, other beautiful, exotic perfumes are Dune by Dior (I've never owned) and Shalimar (I've owned twice). Manoumalia, though, does have more of a tropical air than either of those. Why do I think it's refreshing, you ask, when it's dark and lush not light and airy? Look at the notes - there aren't many! I can identify the notes on my skin easily, and although the overall effect of Manoumalia is intriguing and somewhat mysterious, it isn't overly complex and therefore refrains from being taxing intellectually. You can apply this perfume after midnight, when you can't sleep, and just want to hang out watching Sex and The City reruns with a cup of raspberry ginger tea... It will not distract your mind... you will simply feel it's warm presence; it is a sensual perfume and nothing more. How refreshing it is to find a warm perfume that doesn't contain the spices or vanilla that will remind a western woman of wintertime, or to find one that is sensual without the usual musk, jasmine or other indolics, and how refreshing it is when a dark and lush perfume is intriguing but not complicated... Yes, Manoumalia is a bit strange, yet not weird at all. It's about as strange as Dune by Dior. It has a natural feel, the sillage and longevity are considerable but considerate. I'm very picky with amber, and only like sandalwood in a perfume when it's blended and complimented very well. Manoumalia is full-bottle worthy and it can battle it out with Alien Parfum de Cuir for the next full-bottle spot on my dresser this fall (yes, I would certainly wear this perfume year round). Les Nez - body cream please? :) Update: I dug out my old tiny jar of sandalwood oil and managed to pour one of the last few drops onto my skin, then followed with this perfume - ohhhhhhhhhhhhh mmmmmmmmm. Manoumalia. Precious.

Very, very rich ylang ylang at the opening, with extreme warmness of spicy sandalwood is what welcomes me when I first apply this perfume. The scent itself is very, very sweet and rich, almost feel oily to my skin. Is is extremely powerful stuff and should be applied with light hand. It's very hard to describe this as it it's very complex. It might even be one of the richest perfumes I have ever smelled, it's so warm, rich, oily, buttery that I'm extremely impressed. The best part is that it has this amazing natural quality as well. My relationships with ylang ylang and sandalwood are not VERY good, but I somehow enjoy this very much. And I must say, if you do love ylang ylang and sandalwood which dominates here the most, you just MUST give this a try. It's like a cozy, warm blanket.

A beautiful non cloying tropical flower composition that is similar to Guerlain's Terracotta (or the other way around, seeing that Terracotta came out in 2014). The ylang ylang and tiare stay fresh throughout, from the opening to the base many hours later, where they are joined by a woody amber. Compared to other tropical beauties, this stays on the lighter end of the spectrum without losing the lushness of white florals, yet never thick or heavy, which is lovely as well but inappropriate in settings like the office. For lovers of tropical flowers and for those who have been searching for an alternative to Terracotta, I would definitely recommend this. It lasts longer too!

opulento e burroso, è un accordo che, benchè sia incentrato su ylang ylang e tiarè, restituisce una sensazione esotica assai diversa dal solito. questo è un tropicale maturo, complesso, con uno splendido assestamento su sandalo e ambra, che esplora territori resinosi, che definirei "grassi" ma mai dolci. è un floreale esplosivo, molto persistente (come fosse un mix di olii essenziali) e decisamente adulto. molto buono. io, come al solito, con i floreali non vado molto d'accordo, e dopo qualche ora mi stanca.

this reminds me of Montale's Intense Tiare but smells more natural to my nose. If you like blooming big fleshy tropical flowers - this is for you! :)

Perfection. Funny thing, I actually hated this at first. That was during my white-floral amateur days, lol. I was expecting this soft, slightly sweet tiare scent, something not too far off from By Kilian's Beyond Love. Instead I got something hugely exotic, not just tropical, but exotic. Resinous, humid, woody. I was slapped in the face by sandalwood, lots of it, soil-y vetiver, and a humid, fleshy blend of ylang and tiare, with a lot more ylang than expected. Sad that this was so far off from what I was looking for, I didn't touch my sample bottle for a while. But then I decided to try it again, this time fully prepared and knowing just what was. I didn't want a beachy scent this time, this time I was ready for the warm, tropical bombshell that is Manoumalia. And I fell in love. Not only with this perfume, but with the notes of sandalwood and ylang as well. The sandalwood is like a warm, resinous hug. The vetiver gives it just enough "dirtiness" to make it feel humid, like hot, tropical air at night. And the tiare and ylang smell so natural and authentic, yet completely heady, lush, intoxicating...sexy! The result? This is the smell of the tropics. It's not some beachy, sun-tan lotion smell, or a fruity umbrella drink smell, this is what the tropics REALLY smell like. It's the scent of the humid air projecting the lush florals and balmy woods. If you've ever taken a stroll through bushy, overgrown, tropical flora, this is that smell. It's floral, woody, and oriental all at once, but at the same time, it's not really any of those, because you can't really pick out a single note that makes this work, it's how they blend. What it is, is perfection.

I bought this perfume blind on the day when the perfume world heard about Sandrine Videault's passing. I love tropical scents very much when I am in the mood which is not often here in Central Europe and I have many perfumes to tide me over these rare days when I want to wear something more floral than usual. I knew it was a risky unsniffed purchase as I could not imagine what this would smell like by the reviews at all. It smells very unusual indeed and unlike any other perfume I have ever smelled. Even though it has some tropical flower in the complex blend which might be ylang ylang and tiaré and possibly some jasmine. This is a very warm oriental scent to me with a huge dose of amber and something earthy which might be the vetiver. This is more the kind of evocative perfume like Sous le Vent which takes you away to far away islands than actually smelling of those flowers growing there. To my mind it smells like getting off the plane on a tropical island and getting a whiff of the warm and humid air which transports the scent of flowers and the soil.Perfect for a day dream on a cool summer's day.

its heavy, I don't get any light in this fragrance. Its rubbery. It is tropical, but its dark and almost scary smelling. When I first got my sample about a year ago, I was repulsed by it. I was convinced that I would love it by the desciption. Now I don't hate it. But its still too heavy, too dense and it has some similarity to Songes by Annick Goutal that I couldn't get past, because it reminds me of old ladies in HEAVY smothering perfume. Still searching for that intoxicating tropical fragrance...

This one is a big tropical floral with a huge emphasis on woody notes from vetiver. The florals in here are slightly reminiscent of Dior's Poison but just with a twist. The white floral part almost mimics tuberose. At times it felt like poison but MUCH sharper and woodier. It packs a big punch and feels wispy smooth. Great one and an unexpected "like".

Rich, decadent, heady white florals, made interesting by its tightness and super-smooth blending. Narcissus, tuberose, ylang-ylang, tiare, an excellent sandalwood note (smells like Mysore EO), and perhaps a bit of violet and rose. Note separation is virtually nonexistent, but somehow the fragrance smells pleasant. Try before you buy.

Yumm, very concentrated, rich and strong fragrance, smells like tiare and frangipani together, definitely a warm golden fragrance, good for an Asia holiday, incredible sweet, but not sugary, food or honey-like, more lush and thick and flowery. Worth the money.

This one is my favorite from lesnez- rich buttery ylang ylang-i almost smell banana. It has a tropical feel but it's not immature