The Revenge Of Lady Blanche

EN. The Revenge of Lady Blanche by Penhaligon’s strikes with an elegance that seems gentle at first but hides a determined and sophisticated character. Upon wearing it, a refined green and floral freshness immediately emerges, almost aristocratic in tone, yet it never slips into something banal or predictable. In my view, calling Lady Blanche an exclusively feminine fragrance is a conceptual mistake. As with many Amouage creations, here we are faced with a niche fragrance that has no defined gender: it adapts to the skin of the wearer, expressing itself differently each time. On me, Lady Blanche reveals a perfect balance between floral delicacy and a subtle spicy undertone, creating a distinguished, elegant aura without ever being overly sweet. There is nothing “purely feminine” about this composition: it is a true unisex fragrance, intended for those who appreciate nuances and reject imposed labels. It’s an ideal choice for those who seek something noble and discreet, capable of making a lasting impression without ever shouting. IT. The Revenge of Lady Blanche di Penhaligon’s è una fragranza che colpisce per la sua eleganza apparentemente docile, ma che in realtà nasconde un carattere deciso e sofisticato. Appena indossato, si avverte una freschezza verde e floreale molto raffinata, quasi aristocratica, che però non scivola mai nel banale o nel prevedibile. A mio parere, definire Lady Blanche un profumo esclusivamente femminile è un errore concettuale. Come per molte creazioni di Amouage, anche qui siamo davanti a una fragranza di nicchia che non possiede un genere espresso: si adatta alla pelle di chi la indossa, esprimendosi ogni volta in modo unico. Su di me, Lady Blanche manifesta un equilibrio perfetto tra delicatezza floreale e una leggera vena speziata, creando un’aura distinta, elegante ma mai leziosa. Non c’è nulla di “puramente femminile” in questa composizione: è un profumo unisex autentico, destinato a chi sa apprezzare le sfumature e rifiuta le etichette imposte. È una scelta perfetta per chi cerca qualcosa di nobile e discreto, capace di lasciare il segno senza alzare la voce.

Opens with the fresh floral and green spiciness of spring flowers; fresh cut daffodils in a vase and a distant aroma of a hyacinth breezing in as its warms in the spring sun on a kitchen windowsill somewhere, the daffodil sap still sticky on your fingers. The sandalwood in the base and green, earthy, herbaceous Angelica pull the subtle flowers together into a beautiful, calming, aromatic, slightly spicy effervescent floral accord. This continues on into the dry down with a little bit of creamy orris butter, some sweet violet, powdery iris, green damp angelica.. it’s refreshing, cool and clean yet gentle and very much at one with nature, like I’ve just sprayed a pure botanical on my skin, with crushed petals distilling in the bottle. This is an understated, elegant and unique shear perfume of fresh, green, cool, dewy muted powdery florals. I actually think it’s quite unisex and yet I feel confidently feminine wearing it. I can imagine Lady Blanche sitting on a blanket at the side of a large pond on her estate, a white lace parasol blocks the sun from her face as she gazes onto to a beautiful scene, reminiscent of Monet’s The Waterlily Pond. She is poised in ladylike elegance yet a little curl on the corner of her smile indicates that she just might be full of mischief. Whilst the other ladies walked, she rode, defiantly astride her horse definitely not sidesaddle, on her way here. I found this perfume a beautiful and divine skin scent. I could have happily breathed it in all day long. Alas, unlike a Monet painting, its long lasting oil medium that has lived on for over a century later for all to enjoy, this beautiful yet light fragrance disappears all too quickly. Frustratingly so. Lady Blanche has got her revenge, she’s rode off to frolic with the stable hand and left me olfactorily bereft!

The Revenge of Lady Blanche is a well-blended fresh and warm scent. It is a rare composition and even rarer a good one among its counterparts. Mugler aura is also a blend of freshness and warmness but it is not as well-blended as this one though it is still a good perfume. Its freshness and warmness are kind of separate. What I mean is that you smell the freshness in one sniff and the warmness in another. However this one is not. The freshness and warmness come to your nose at the same time. I don't know how they do this but indeed it is a succeed. It is a confident, ambitious beautiful woman who has her own career and life. She is not a dependent of men. The freshness is her in daytime, acting as a protective shield covering all her secrets and ambition underneath. On the other hand, the warmness resembles her dangerously beauty and deadly lust for money and power which are unknown to anyone. But this is exactly what makes her tempting and beguiling. On the test paper, it is sometimes fresh and sometimes warm after dry down. I know it seems weird but that is what I got from the fragrance. Nonetheless, on my skin it is much warmer than fresher that the freshness almost disappear or covered by the warmness and I could only smell a hint of freshness although it still smelled good and blended well with my own chemical. I have to say it smells much much better on skin that on test paper so you have to try it on skin to see its amazing performance.

There is beauty in simplicity. For the first hour, when I close my eyes and inhale, I can smell honeysuckle, and maybe orchids? Orris is the note is listed on the Penhaligon's website. The florals feel photorealistic, as though I'm in a riotous flower garden. There is also the "powdery" or "soap suds" note/feel, which I've picked up on in the other Penhaligon scents (Empressa and Luna). For me, these notes often burn my nose or make it feel like my nostrils are drying out. Here, though, I didn't find it overwhelming or unpleasant. The website also lists a sandalwood base, and I think this reveals itself after an hour or so. After two hours, the florals fade away, and there is just a gentle sandalwood/musk left behind. Hour three onward is a "skin scent", an occasional gentle whiff of a molecule (iso-e super?) with only a hint of florals remaining. This is my dream flower scent. I wish it were longer lasting, though at the same time, the softness means that I would feel confident wearing this EDT anywhere, from a job interview to a date. I don't pick up any sugar, fruit, or spiced notes, which means that this one is probably never going to be a favorite for the teens–20s crowd (as opposed to Flowerbomb, for example). For me, though, I'm glad those notes aren't in this scent. 10/10 for its elegance and simplicity. 7/10 for its longevity, knowing that it's an EDT.

The Revenge of Lady Blanche is a lovely green floral featuring some of my favourite notes. Hyacinth is an underrated note that brings me back to springtime during my childhood, while iris is perhaps my favourite note of all. Here, they meld together beautifully, making for a high-quality springtime scent in the manner of Chanel No. 19. RLB opens with powdery, green-tinged iris, floral and delicate. The hyacinth follows, bold and heady, even slightly waxy, but also very green and sap-like. The pollen-y narcissus emerges after a little while, very realistic and slightly hay-like, rounding out the florals to perfection. It fades fairly quickly, becoming a soft, powdery skin scent. Sillage and longevity are moderate. It is a feminine springtime scent for everyday use. A simple, beautiful springtime bouquet, RLB is my favourite from Penhaligon's so far. It is a little sheer and subtle for my liking - I would have liked a mossy chypre base to ground it - but ultimately, this is a top-notch green floral freshie. 4/5.