Ciel de Gum

I bought Ciel de Gum last year, not knowing that it was soon to be discontinued. Honestly I don't understand the latest business decisions of the MFK brand (or, rather, the corporation that bought this once great Maison) - I mean, they have discontinued all of their best and most original scents (APOM Pour Femme, Ciel de Gum, Absolue pour le Soir, Le Beau Parfum, Lumiere Noire Pour Femme) and only kept Baccarat Rouge, Petit Matin and Grand Soir, plus the most likeable Ouds and the very bland and uninspired Aqua, A la Rose and Gentle Fluidity lines. Perhaps these discontinued scents weren't selling so well as Baccarat or Grand Soir, but they were the ones that made this house stand out from the crowd (and the present day perfume market is definitely overcrowded). I feel that the Maison has lost all of its niche credibility, which is such a shame. Worse, it looks like monsieur Kurkdjian himself has lost interest in his own eponymous brand. As to Ciel de Gum, it is indescribably wonderful - slightly smokey/incensey in the beginning, before it reveals its floral heart; and then it turns into the most delicious amber-vanilla-cinnamon combo. It lasts all day and projects magnificently. It sits exactly in the middle between Grand Soir and Absolue Pour Le Soir and complements this soon-to-be-extinct ambery-oriental branch of MFK goldies. Several years ago, in my first review of Ciel de Gum, I also compared it to Shalimar EDP and Chanel Coromandel; I forgot to add Chanel Coco to the list of "inspirations", but it should definitely be there.

Got a set of samples from the MFK website to test out some of his most famous offerings. You get two free samples with every purchase so I just bunged in a couple of randoms I thought I might like. Basically chose this one because of the weird story about it being inspired by the smell of a shopping centre. After all the hype about fragrances such as Grand Soir, Oud Satin Mood, and Baccarat Rouge 540, take a wild guess as to which fragrance in my little haul I completely fell head over heels for? None of the others even came close to making me say "Oh my God!" like this one does. Ciel de Gum, as some others have mentioned, does start out with plastic, chemicals and petrol, but that's the absolute best thing about it! I can't explain why I love this part of the scent so much, but I'm obsessed. It definitely smells like melting plastic and rubber swimming caps, over sweet flowers and my godmother's house in the eighties. The general impression is that it smells expensive but unusual, a warm floral vanilla that's really lovely. I keep sniffing it when it's on my skin, burying my nose in my wrist to get another hit of those petrochemicals. To those of you who might be put off by my description don't worry, the chemicals only last for the first half an hour. You might be glad that those thirty minutes are up, but that's when I'll be re-spraying to enjoy the delicious rubbery opening once again.

Ciel de Gum is a bold oriental done with precision and using great materials. A sophisticated, compact, french interpretation of a middle eastern kind of ambered rose. The main spice here is a warm cinnamon,there is amber mixed with vanilla and something that must be benzoin or opoponax and sandalwood that create a sweet resiny depth. I've smelled part of this idea in Dahn al Oudh Anteeque by ASAQ where the rose and oud blend so well that it's hard to know where rose stops and wood begins, all over a resinous middle eastern amber. Ciel de Gum is like a timepiece in both the precision and compact execution of its design. Yet it still evokes the ideas of the East, incense and church, autumn and winter holidays, and maintains a modern european aesthetic. Ciel de Gum creates the feeling of space--like a large room with a giant cathedral ceiling. I get compliments on the dry down. It's sexy and classy. Definitely great for cooler weather, might also be one of those spicy orientals that glows in summer. Fragrances that come to mind when I wear this--but are nothing like this in their affect and construction--are Caron Parfum Sacre, Miller Harris La Fumee Ottoman, Yves Rocher Voile D'Ambre, Scherrer Nuits Indienes. Maybe a memory of vintage Obsession. They are also rosy ambers with spice, but they are languid or more classical. If you like them you may really like this.

So beautiful and evocative! This might be my favorite out of the 10 MFK fragrances I tried. I have no idea why it isn't more popular, but maybe I just love it more than usual because it stirs up memories and feelings in me, some of my childhood and some of the better parts of later, more difficult times. It also smells really good though. The opening is woody and very peppery, the pepper in this is leaning more towards black than pink pepper to my nose. It makes me think of being in the woods or a sauna, but also of hot dry air close to the desert. I get resinous notes, almost like tree-sap but in a good way, and a cinnamon that doesn't lean towards holiday pastries. Underneath that all lies the main note, a creamy and warm vanilla that has some similarities with the one used in perfumes like Addict or Manifesto L'Elixir, rounded with a hint of narcotic jasmine. This smells natural and elegant, and despite the strong spicy, woody and resinous notes it never turns scratchy or overwhelming, just comforting and dreamy. I hesitate to put this on my wishlist because it's expensive and I only see myself wearing it on very limited occasions, it makes me feel a little hazy... But I guess I'll give in soon because it's so lovely.

I think I've solved this one. Respectively, Ciel de Gum and Grand Soir are a Tale of Two Styraxes - Liquidambar (Levant "Styrax") and Benzoin (True Styrax). Ciel de Gum is representative of the oil of Liquidambar orientalis (variously known as Levant "Styrax" oil and Turkish Sweetgum oil). This sweetgum "styrax" oil is a different product from the benzoin resin produced from tropical trees in the genus Styrax. The hydrocarbon styrene is named for Levant "styrax" (Liquidambar/Sweetgum), from which it was first isolated, and not for the true genus Styrax (Benzoin) itself; industrially produced styrene is now used to produce polystyrene plastics, including Styrofoam. To me, this would explain why Ciel de Gum reads so similarly to Grand Soir, via its ambery cinnamon vanilla heart, except Ciel de Gum features the hydrocarbon glaze of petrol, pleather and styrene.