Tears

As the name suggests, Tears is meant to evoke the scent of tears. While many describe its freshness as soapy, I experience it differently. Soapy fragrances often carry a sharp, almost prickling edge—the kind of tingling sensation you get from holding baby wipes too close to your nose or accidentally getting shampoo in your eyes. Tears, however, avoids that harshness. The lilac note transforms the composition. It’s soft, creamy, and distinctly powdery rather than sharp or citrusy like many fresh flowers smell, lending the fragrance a gentle, diffused quality. If anything, it smells like the lingering freshness after a shower rather than the act of washing with soap itself. There’s also a subtle salinity woven throughout. The salt is present but diluted, giving the scent a skin-like quality. It doesn’t mimic the sharp taste of actual tears; instead, it feels restrained and delicate. I imagine this is intentional—an attempt to capture the vulnerability and quiet intimacy of crying rather than its literal saltiness. A faint dampness runs through the fragrance, strengthening the association with tears. In the end, I would describe Tears as the scent of wet lilacs touched by a gentle, salty rain—a delicate, almost poetic reflection of human emotion expressed through nature.

A few people in the cons mentioned how it smells like lotion. That made me chuckle a bit. I can see how one could conjure that association, but only if you're looking for it in the opening. The dry down on me is very floral. Tears by Regime Des Fleurs is soapy, but to me lilac is soapy as a whole. If you don't like that note, you probably won't like a lot of lilac scents. I am very grateful to be one of those who thoroughly enjoy such smells. Melancholic is a great way to describe this, but melancholic in the way one would feel while staring out of their bedroom window while it rained. It invokes a feeling of comfort in me that no other perfume has. Safe to say I will be repurchasing, and will need to very soon, as I've made quite the sizeable dent over the few months I've had it. A bit of a disclaimer. As a whole, I am not drawn to "offensive" fragrances, whereas many desire their perfumes to project. For that reason, some may dislike the lack of sillage/projection in this fragrance. I believe it matches the perfume's aesthetic; it is a secret for you and yours to share. That concept is very poetic to me. TLDR; If you don't mind the clean scent you initially get hit with, you will be pleasantly surprised. It is very well formulated and inoffensive. Beautiful lilac.

I adore this scent — certainly lilac first, and it’s such a natural, shimmering, iridescent lilac. The juxtaposition with cognac, olibanum and ambergris is unexpected; it makes this fragrance truly unique and gives it depth and some maturity — just enough that while it might be a perfect fit for an elf (or a fairy, as @smmcmurthy points out), it is not a scent that accents purity or innocence. This elf has seen some things and developed a taste for subtle contradictions : ) I do wish I could detect fleur d’orange, rosewater, or pink pepper a little more. But for a blend of this beauty I would also be afraid to ask for any deviation from what it already is! Orris becomes more prominent in the heart and dry down, with a bit of clean powderiness (far from dustiness however, thankfully). It is fittingly ephemeral in performance — it has a bit of projection for an hour or two, but after three it’s gone for both myself and others. If only RdF made matching 15ml bottles to carry around! I have found ‘Tears’ to have better projection and staying power than ‘En Passant’ by Olivia Giacobetti for F. Malle, however (which is the only other lilac fragrance I enjoy, but that one is pure lilac garden after rain, whereas this one seems much more creative to me). 9/10

This was love at first smell for me. Ordered it the same day I got the sample. I've never smelled a fragrance quite like it - and it's definitely NOT a safe blind buy! It's very naturalistic, atmospheric, and moody. It smells like fresh cut, dewey lilacs resting on satin. The first day of spring when it's juuust warm enough to open your windows: the almost watery, delicately floral, cool spring breeze gently tossing the white curtains. It's a true spring fragrance both literally (spring flowers) and figuratively: it's a mourning, a eulogy for the cozy winter nights, and all the things that couldn’t make it through to emerge again from the cold dark; but it is also a deep breath of fresh air filling your lungs, looking ahead to all the beautiful things to come. "Nostalgic for memories you never knew you had" is truly the best phrase to encapsulate this fragrance. It smells antiqued and slightly powdery: like a Victorian era painting of a corseted woman, applying vintage makeup in her dressing room with the widow open. It's a melancholic, hopeful, haunting, beautiful mystery.

This is a very lovely clean scent. It's a sweet rosewater floral, with lovely soapy notes. It's very vintage smelling, which I like. I definitely smell the lilac and orange blossom. The orange blossom smells synthetic, more like a bunch of white flowers to make a Neroli scent. I wish I could smell the orris and the ambergris more. I feel like I smell it more towards the heart, but it's still incredibly soapy. On my skin the first notes are very peppery (which I love) Then it becomes a deep rose fragrance (also love) There is a green note with a soapiness floating beneath it. It's soft, a little more musky on me. There's a salty ambergris that I like, however, there is a note I'm not quite sure what it is, in the heart that feels like it's battling it a little. It stays very clean and it smells really nice and classy on my skin. I quite like how deep the rose becomes on me because on paper it doesn't smell as rich.