Lys

Lys is such an appealing, aromatic fragrance. It's somewhat of a floral aquatic that isn't pierced with thin, sharp citrus notes, nor does it swim into marine/oceanic territory. I had hunted down an aquatic as it was lacking in my wardrobe and ended up acquiring Issey Miyake's L'Eau d'Issey Lotus... big love. If it weren't for Lotus, Lys would be on my shelf right now. By comparison Lys is a rather humid aquatic with a lake full of beautiful waterlilies. Smooth, spicy, warm air and some bitter, green lemon give Lys some wonderful depth and structure. Lotus hovers at a higher altitude. More unisex than the gentle sweet floral of IM Lotus, Lys remains anchored, almost like peppery roots below the water's surface. Lys will remain on my radar if I ever finish or rehome my green conical bottle.

Upon first sniff it appears all the notes jump out at me at the same time. Well, that's a first. But as I give it time to settle I try to pick out individual notes and it is very hard to do I think for me because the cedrat, bergamont and verbena are very much pronounced, not giving the other notes much breathing room. I think the rose stands a fighting chance but it is overshadowed by the nutmeg. I see this as a more masculine fragrance mahaps because of the vetyver, verbena and oakmoss but I guess it can be a unisex for someone who can wear it with aplomb. I do like it though when I'm feeling in a 'macho mood', if not I might layer it with something a bit girly-flowery.

I like this more every time I try it. I'm still not the biggest fan of water lily, but that note fades within an hour or so and I'm left with a surprisingly warm and creamy citrus-magnolia-musk. If (when) I ever have a water lily phase, I will certainly come back to this little charmer.

I ended up with a sample of this from a lot, and I wasn't expecting much since I'm not really a fan of water lily. Though, I'd be willing to say it's far and away the best water lily scent I've smelled yet (likely because the lily doesn't overpower this). The citruses are mellow and clean, and the sharpness of typical lily/citrus scents is not present. What makes this more appealing to me is the coriander, nutmeg and the woody notes - it warms it right up and makes it more approachable. Though appropriately unisex, I think I prefer this scent for men. It's a sweet, clean and subtle scent that completely upstages fragrances with similar notes or profiles. Of the 06130's I've tested, this one has the best sillage and lasting power.

The topnotes of this fragrance are very lily-centric with citruses, evoking a waxy lily. It's pretty and not indolic; lily lovers will like this one very much. It seemed too waxy and too much lily for my taste for the first 45 minutes to an hour. But in the drydown, the vetiver and oakmoss come in to balance the lily and citruses, resulting in a really lovely scent. I never thought I would be saying that I liked a fragrance with oakmoss, since this note is the bane of my existence in many vintage chypres. In this modern chypre, however, it is very nice. The vetiver is grassy and fresh smelling, not smoky. All in all, a surprising fresh, green, but not harsh chypre with lovely floral notes that are not too sweet. A very well done fragrance with high quality ingredients.