Mod Noir

I do declare Marc Jacobs did the best gardenia perfumes. Hands down. No joke. Don't argue; we'll be here all night. Seriously, though; Marc Jacobs has honestly turned me from being extremely wary towards gardenia to actively looking for others that can compare! Previously, I felt that every gardenia scent was far too heady; an overpowering uber-white floral or had that heavy butteriness that became nauseating. This is so different. A *gorgeous* fresh, green, dewy, pretty, elegant, and feminine gardenia scent. I mean, it's kind of heavenly. The green notes are always there. The citrus less so. The beautiful gardenia and water lily support the fresh lightness, and the magnolia helps with the sweet femininity. The tuberose helps with the slightly strong white floral projection. The nectarine base is *fabulous*. It really lends a juicy fruity note that is actually awesome! It works SO WELL with this scent. The orange blossom and musk aren't so noticeable, but definitely can be made out. The longevity is pretty decent. I get a good 4-5 hours with the same amount of sprays. The sillage is enchanting. *slow-mo faint* The name is bizarre - there's nothing "noir" (black in French) about this... Except the stripes, I suppose? Is that the reason? I assumed it was because it was released as an exclusive to Sephora, but I'm happy to be wrong here. *NB: Just looked it up - Marc Jacobs called this 'Mod Noir' as a throwback to the 1960s (black and white stripes being a pretty big fashion look back then; a la Mod [i.e., modern] London of the Swinging Sixties - I like the name more now. I approve of this. In fact, well done.). In short, I love this. No nay-sayers gonna convince me otherwise. OH! But don't bother trying to find this one or "Marc Jacobs" EdP (the other *fantastic* gardenia scent from MJ; that's for another review) - they're both discontinued. Because that's how the perfume universe works. Hahahahahaha, what a joke! Suckers get nothin' now! Rude, I say. D*mn rude. I've side-eyed people for less. Repurchase-worthy (if it were possible). *** Kitty rating: 8.5/10 (The discontinuation angers me).

Fresh, dewy, clean, bright, crisp, green, refreshing, subtly sweet, white floral. I really enjoy the dewy and green fresh scent of this! The opening is green, bright, fresh, and crisp thanks to the mixture of green notes and the citrusy yuzu and clementine that really adds a fresh and bright scent. The water lily adds a nice dewy and aquatic touch while the Gardenia, Magnolia, and tuberose add a lovely, fresh, white floral scent with some soft creaminess that helps to even out the fresh and green scent. The base notes really elevate the overall fragrance, making it more than just a fresh green scent with white florals. The nectarine adds a pretty, fruity sweetness with just a hint of tanginess. The orange blossom adds a beautiful and soft syrupy floral sweetness. Finally, the musk helps to softly ground the fragrance nicely. Overall, I really love this one! I typically lean the most towards beachy/coconut, sweet, and gourmand fragrances, but this is such a beautiful fresh fragrance that’s hard not to love! It reminds me of the fragrances from around 2000-2015ish. Some of the similar ones that I love from that period include VS Pink (original), Coach Legacy, Coach Signature, JPG Classique X, and Tommy Hilfiger Freedom. They all have that really pretty, fresh, green, bright, and clean vibe. It’s very different from the really sweet gourmands that are currently popular (which I also love), it’s basically the opposite of them. I do miss these types of fragrances and would love to see the ones I mentioned come back! Mod Noir has always been one of my favorites of them! I get great performance with Mod Noir. The longevity is really good, it lasts the entire day on me. The projection is nice too, it radiates out about an arm’s length from me. I especially enjoy this one during the spring and summer. As a side note the frosted glass and black striped bottle and the name itself stem from this being launched as a Sephora only exclusive fragrance to celebrate the launch of the Marc Jacobs beauty brand at Sephora.

Not sure I get the "Mod Noir" name as there's nothing unique or dark about this perfume at all. I can see how others might find this similar to the original Marc Jacobs fragrance, but to my nose Mod Noir is creamier and the the green/citrus notes are less noticible. Mod Noir definitely isn't so watery either, and has none of the sourness. Thouh I don't feel this is different enough from other gardenia/tuberose/white florals to warrant it's expensive price tag, it's very pleasant, feminine, and inoffensive. The longevity and sillage aren't great either, but I've noticed it lasts well on clothing. I'm kind of on the fence about whether or not I'm going to buy a full bottle. I definitely like it, and it's lovely for daytime wear. I'm just confident I can find something similar at a more reasonable price. Edit: The annual Sephora sale combined with a reasonably priced gift set convinced me to take the plunge. Not even a little bit sorry ;)

I would give my right kidney for this to come back. It’s a light, fresh, green scent with the prettiest white florals mixed in. It’s a little watery, stronger than you’d expect [but not suffocating], and I have yet to find anything even close to it in production today. I still have a tiny bit left in my bottle, and it’s probably going to stay there for as long as the laws of physics allow.

Mod Noir by Marc Jacobs really is not “noir” at all because this fragrance is an aquatic green gardenia. I smell dewy grass, crisp green leaves, fresh gardenia petals that have been mellowed out by the water lily, and a light hint of tuberose. I love this fragrance because it is such a light and fresh floral. It draws compliments and is great for everyday wear. The bottle is darling!