Bas de Soie

This is now my 3rd review of this perfume. i have decided to condense my previous two into this because i tend to yap and i wont guarantee this review will be any less yapful So.. where to begin. this is a very complex and rather challenging scent, something you wouldnt expect from its simple composition. hyacinth, galbanum, iris, musk. how difficult can that be? yet, this perfume is extremely inconsistent in its behaviors. which isnt an issue for me, but may be one for someone looking to blind buy. The opening is pretty consistent. it starts with a clean powdery floral ionone filled musk, with a very purple, almost artificial grape-esque filter over all of it. this is beautiful to me because i love violet. it never goes into laundry detergent territory. the iris + musk in the back does create a sense of clean clothes inside an old wooden closet, but not in a modern aldehydic synthetic soapy fabric softener way. this is a good thing because why would you pay 240 to smell like a 4 euro product? then it goes in two directions. one of them is indeed a photorealistic hyacinth. The hyacinths i have smelled in real life smell honeyed, sharp, green, spicy, heady and strong. not in a jasmine way. i find spring florals to smell rather similar to one another ( daffodils and hyacinths smell similar for example). Bas de soie captures all of these facets except for sharpness. which may as well work in its favor. the iris becomes woodier, the galbanum shows up slightly, and the musk disappears (good, i dont really LOVE musky florals). the powderiness turns into a snow like powder, not all too different from the powder in iris poudre. its never dusty play-doughy or stale. rather, its a compact powder with the slightest addition of wax. Theres an earthiness in the background, way more soil-like than De Profundis from the same house. Snow, leaves, cold breeze, hyacinth, sun and soil. the imagery is a perfect rendition of a hyacinth blooming in the first spring suns. Its so beautiful. spring is my favorite season and this just makes me yearn for it even more. This version of the development is a 10/10 for me, and most likely all other lovers of spring. I dont know if hyacinths bloom in snow, i dont grow them outside. so maybe its all a delusion. but it still works. u might as well replace the hyacinth with a daffodil in this picture. I love this version and i would consider it a signature.. But thats not where it ends. theres a second route this perfume goes sometimes, sadly.. lets call this bas de soie v2 After the same opening, this perfume may decide to go extremely green on you. like, a crazy amount. v2 becomes a GRASS scented perfume full of damp soil. theres no florals or iris in here. The sharpness of the green becomes very overwhelming and almost gag inducing. like rotting leaves almost. If u try hard enough you may envision laying in the grass on a warm spring day, which it actually does come close to. i love that smell when im in that environment, but idk if it goes well on my skin. The dirty grassy greenness is juxtaposed with the musky cleanness mentioned in the opening. eventually it calms down and becomes less sharp and gross, which is pleasant but not very unique. It does evoke an image though. an image that fits the silk stockings name. it smells like fresh socks covered in damp dirt and chlorophyll after running in grass. theres no foot stench here, no. but theres a silky linen scent in the background while the bitter greenness persists. The greenness is nowhere near as good as de profundis, which is indeed an herbal almost medicinal green. I give this version of bas de soie a 7.5/10, because even though it goes rancid for a few seconds, the drydown becomes a nice green grass field which i do enjoy but dont seek out in perfumery. At least not with a development like that. I havent found a pattern in the way this perfume develops. it really does depend on the day. doesnt matter if i come straight out of the shower or if i use lotion or not. It may as well be my nose thats at fault. I have tried comparing spraying and dabbing but nope, if it chooses to develop one way it will continue to do so all day long. the only consistency is applying it to clothing, where it actually does retain its v1 smell. but the opening notes last longer and they dont develop much, as most scents dont on clothes. Longevity is great, projection isnt powerful. which may as well be a blessing since u wouldnt want others to smell rotten leaves as u walk by. Still, i love this perfume and i will choose to ignore its negatives because v1's beauty vastly outweighs the grossness of v2. Be careful though, this wont be an easy daily wear scent. Some will find it simple, which it may as well be. but making something good out of simplicity is no easy feat at all, and sheldrake did it very well here. Also why does everyone hate the bell jars so much? yeah its impractical but having extra steps to apply this perfume actually makes me enjoy it more. It makes me take the time to appreciate what im doing instead of spritzing and leaving my room. Theyre also really beautiful

"The iridescence of a dragonfly's wing." Wow. That's it. Hyacinth is among my very favorite floral fragrances in the world. It's the first sign of spring. It's the smell of my childhood, that laced with tulips and daffodils. It's a warm, clean, green scent with some honey and spice. Bas de Soie... what are you. Cold, metallic, iris with a pleasant powder (that says a lot coming from me). It's like a smooth stone. Completely not what I was imagining seeing the notes listed with hyacinth in the lead. It's not spring, it's green but a cold green. Smells like an art gallery. Like somewhere clean and air conditioned and full of beautiful people. The hyacinth is there somewhere, lacing through like the silk it's named after, weaving in and out to remind you of it's presence. It's a taunting hyacinth. The powdery note comes up higher and louder as it sits, but it's very pleasant. Very classy. You can imagine a lady powdering her face as she does her hair and slowly dresses herself. There is something spicy about it too, which sharpens the crisp blade as it snips through the soft floral. It feels the way your cool pillow does against your face after a humid hot summer day. It's so refreshing. So clean. So pure smelling. Virginal. It's wonderful, just almost makes an 8/10 which unfortunately rounds it to a 7.5. It's good. But it makes me think of children. Of something that hasn't been touched before. It's a strange clean scent. I seen a reviewer said it smelled like fresh cotton sheets, I can get those vibes too, but it's cold. And I don't feel a fondness towards cold cotton sheets forgotten in the wind. I want to love it though, because there is a hidden warmth about it. It's so taunting. Very interesting. Very unique. Edit: It just keeps getting nicer! I really appreciate this scent. I will come back to it in the future. It might get a bump up in the scale for me. I have a feeling I won't be able to get it off my mind. Edit edit (2022): Bought a bottle. I really love it. It's powdery, soft, extremely dainty and fem. Makes me feel like a lady. Darling.

A combination of fresh and cool hyacinth with powdery notes and green earthy undertone that tends to create a classic atmosphere. Hyacinth has a brilliant and beautiful reflection in this perfume and iris has given it an exquisite and luxurious look of soapy powder. The green and earthy sense of the perfume combines it with an old and classic charm. . لاین "گل های چیده نشده" سرژ لوتانز یازده عطر با محوریت گل های مختلف رو شامل میشه و با دِ سُوا(به معنی جوراب ابریشمی)نام عضو سنبل محور این خانواده هست. سنبل برای من یکی از دوست داشتنی ترین گل هاست که همیشه مشتاق تجربش در عطرها هستم و نماینده سنبلیِ سرژ از بهترین گزینه های این تجارب بوده. . رایحه رو آثارِ سبز، تلخ و خاکیِ باریجه آغاز میکنه. این حس سبز و خاکی فورا به عطر قدرتمند سنبل ملحق میشه و بعنوان سبزیِ ساقه و برگ و خاک گلدان به ایفای نقش میپردازه. سنبل با رایحه شیرین و خنکِ گلی نزدیک به موگه (تا حدودی یادآور کرم های دست و صورت)، دارای رگه های آکواتیک فلزی و یک ته بوی پلاستیکی آدامسی(که در سنبل طبیعی مخصوصا وقتی رو به پلاسیدن میره هم حس میشه) در مرکزیت عطر میدرخشه. این سنبلِ خیس و خنک با حس سبز و خاکیش توسط آکورد پودری قدرتمندی آرایش شده. ("یونون" ها که بوی زنبقی بنفشه ای رو بازسازی میکنن) زنبقی خاکی و نفیس که همراه با یک تلخیِ بادامی(کومارین) حالتِ خشک و غبار مانند پودر رو به زیبایی انعکاس میده و شمه ای از بنفشه خنک و پودری آرایشی که وجوهِ سرد و فلزی گلیش با سنبل مچ میشه. این هاله های پودری در مجاورتِ حس سبز و خاکی و سایه هایی از رز به عطر حالتی کلاسیک و کهنه میبخشن. به مرور رایحه با جرقه های ادویه ای و شیرینِ میخکی گزندگی و گرمای ملایمی پیدا میکنه و در نهایت زیر پتویی نرم و لطیف از مشک به خواب میره. . تنها عاملی که سعی در تعرض به کیفیت و واقع گرا بودن عطر داره حس شیمیایی فلزی آکواتیکِ خفیفی هست که در ترکیب با سایر مواد عطر برام رایحه تافت مو و لاک ناخن رو یادآوری میکنه و البته ناخوشایندِ من نیست. . در این کار هم مثل اکثر اعضای لاین گل ها، روح شرقی و تاریکِ عطرهای سرژ لوتانز کمترین نمود ممکنه رو داره و در فضایی نورانی شامه مخاطب رو نوازش میکنه. این عطر چندسالی هست که از شیشه های ۵۰ میل به شیشه های ۷۵ میلِ بل جار(زنگوله شکل) منتقل شده و همچنان در حال تولیده.

I really like this! I was a little nervous about testing as I had read that hyacinth can be a difficult note and I worried that hyacinth + galbanum + musk might be too much. But I have been trying to sample all different types of iris scents recently, having recently fallen for iris in a big way. Then the other week I tried on E.Coudray Jacinthe and Rose and was surprised to really love it, and I adore Heeley's L'Amandiere so I went ahead and gave this a try. The opening is quite bitter, I guess from the galbanum and hyacinth but within a few minutes the more bitter note subsides and the hyacinth comes through more strongly. I enjoy this it feels very lush with just a hint of bite remaining. It really feels like pushing your nose against a hyacinth bloom, it has a moist, lush damp feeling (does that make sense?Looks awful written down, I mean it in a good way!). About an hour or so in the galbanum seems to take its leave almost entirely leaving just a hint, and the iris and musk come fore. I really like this, it smells very unlike anything else I have tried. I don't really get the silk stockings thing in honesty. Although I guess I could imagine an aged pathe video reel of a woman sat at her vanity putting on her stockings, and she could quite feasibly be wearing this scent...I'm being taken in my marketing again aren't I?! Anyway, I like this. My husband dislikes the opening, finding it "acrid and bitter", but he thinks the heart and drydown are pleasant. In fact, he told me this afternoon that I smelled like "bluebells, chocolates and coffee grounds"! Decent projection of about 4-5 feet, excellent longevity for me of around 7-8 hours, it may have gone on longer but I resprayed at this point!

I can't believe I never reviewed one of my favourite perfumes before! I guess having my 10 year old daughter secretly spraying it on herself, and then commenting on how it smells like Maman, and how beautiful the scent is, made me pause. I said to her: "this is a bitter and difficult perfume to like; it's not fruity, nor floral, nor sweet. What do you like about it?" She said:" it actually smells sweet to me. It is just beautiful and I know I don't have kids' taste". Ok. Maybe what she likes is the smell of of Maman. But still, even then, BdS is a stretch for most children. So now, I feel compelled to write a review: BdS is one of my favourite fragrances. I am odd that way: I like über bitter fragrances and I guess a combination of galbanum, hyacinth (bluebell) and iris is my dream come true. The slightly rooty, yet somewhat powdery and sweet bitterness makes me swoon. It does warm up on the skin, and looses the first shock of full frontal metallic and bitter assault, but it never becomes a warm, embracing perfume. In this respect, it reminds me of Mitsouko -- minus the peach and the dry woody/mossy smell. I know these two are not the same, but somehow, they strike the same olfactory chord. BdS always retains its aloof, sophisticated and intellectual allure... I see a beautiful and composed woman serenely writing with an ink pen in a library full of musty books. This is a love or hate affair. My daughter and I happen to love it.

This is it--my perfect hyacinth. I love hyacinths so much. They are fairly rare where I live, so when I encounter them in bloom, I absolutely have to stop and sniff. The actual flower smells green and spicy at the same time. Hyacinth perfumes can be really sharp. Piercing. Painful. Headache-inducing. But Bas de Soie is smooth and clean. Perfectly crisp, spicy, fresh and dewy but also contains a base that seems slightly soapy/musky. As a reference point, Bas de Soie smells like a modern, simplified version of Chanel No.19 (specifically the EdT, one of my favorite Chanels ever), with it's powder/hyacinth/iris/galbanum combo--the exact combo that makes No.19 so special. When I smell Bas de Soie, I am transported to a garden in London in the winter. The scent is like cold rain puddles building up in a flower bed. From where I stand, this is one of those rare perfumes that has an ange-ou-demon complex. While it is clean, oddly sweet, and seems innocent enough, as it wears I start to feel it gives an aura of feminine sensuality that kind of makes one turn their head and say, "Wait a minute--I thought you were innocent?" It's subtle, but I am pretty sure this perfume has a poker face. Perfumes such as Bas de Soie, ones that make me contemplate them deeply, are the ones I consider to be masterpieces. It was immediately full bottle worthy for me.

Finally figured out what makes a difference! Its the weather! Idk why i didnt think of such an obvious factor... This is truly a spring scent. A warm sunny spring day that is. Cold weather makes this one a bit harsh and gross as i’ve stated before. The green notes becomes rotten and sharp and almost sulphuric... On sunny days, above 12 degrees celsius, there is no such issue. It starts to smells more like the hyacinth in chamade and anais anais, but doesnt contain the sweetness of chamade and the variety of other flowers in anais anais. It truly becomes a real hyacinth thats soaking up the sun (yes ive compared my wrist and the flowers side by side). It also projects wonderfully in this weather and turns into one of the best things ever. Now i know to stay away from this in the winter months... Knowing serge lutens perfumes, the whole ‘cold turning the greenness into something rotten’ may be the whole point. Its not like i have the same issue with other green perfumes. And the difference is rather drastic. Like yeah a lot of perfumes smell different depending on the weather but the differences arent as drastic as fishy sulphuric rotten leaves —> heady realistic beautiful gorgeous stunning showstopping hyacinth. I strongly doubt it was an intentional choice, but if it is, props to Sheldrake for creating something so artistic and real.

If malachite had a scent, I imagine it would be that of Bas de Soie: polished marble smooth, cool to the touch, an unusually radiant melancholy with elusive circular patterns. My nose interprets this impressionistic galbanum-highlighted hyacinth (the way the pink ones smell) converging with orris as ivy leaves in a shady place, covering an ancient stone wall. Yet, what it first seems delicate and rain-dappled soon reveals a corporeal element: the silk stockings are unfurled and the flesh is laid bare. Bas de Soie is petals, leaves, warm bodies colliding with cold air, steam from spicy hothouse flowers, fresh cut stems leaking phloem under gray skies, guttation from the fecund green epidermis. As I write this, autumn has arrived and this is one last gasp of what the past spring brought forth as I begin to watch the sweet decay of the season. This gives me that same damp, somber feel as de Profundis where I can almost hear in my head an immediate rainfall and I just gaze into the foliage and watch the drops collect onto the leaves until I can see my own reflection in them.

This is so beautiful and transports me straight to a meadow of flowers in the spring. However, I already have a scent which is quite similar that I also love: Just Like Heaven, by Tory Burch. That one has an added rhubarb note which gives just a bit more of a fruity crispness and I feel rounds the scent of the hyacinth out more, without drenching it in sweetness. This is a more powdery version of that and I'm guessing it's due to the added iris note. It's not entirely unlike Prada Infusion d'Iris, with its powdery purple florals. This one manages to stay a bit more green and natural. I'm undecided on if I love this yet, and if I would seek out a full bottle, but I feel the pressure to make my decision quickly as Serge Luten's scents have been repackaged, and quite a few of them smell different than they once did. The longer this wears, the more I fall in love with it. I'll finish my little decant and make my final decision, but I feel this may have turned Full Bottle Worthy. Longeivty is quite good, over 5 hours it is still noticeably there.

Fresh, tender-crisp, brightly floral yet gentle and dewy, Bas de Soie uncannily captures the refreshing rush of the chilled, humid air you get when opening a florist cooler, this one filled with hundreds of newly blossomed and recently cut hyacinths ...breathtaking. I made sure to back up my bottle the moment I fell for it, which coincides with my first wearing of it. I was utterly smitten from the very start, and I just don't think I could bear any tweaking of this delicate, shimmering silk stocking. I have a spool of antique French silk ribbon that has an iridescent shift from dusty purple to chartreusey green, which is precisely the color I imagine when I smell, or even think, of BdS. Gorgeous, lustrous, purpley-green silk. All that said, there's really nothing overtly feminine about Bas de Soie. The florals are green (um, purpley-green) and soapy and not very ornate, so it comes across as more tailored than frilly or flouncy, and it smells just as serene and beautiful on my husband as it does on me.

Bas de Soie is a scent I wore from a sample while out walking at night several times, and it's a challenging floral indeed. Where its sharp green-ness can sometimes be refreshing or, indeed, "iridescent" as the brand describes it, it also has an almost metallic coldness to it which can be hard to take. Bas de Soie, to my nose, is primarily composed of some synthetic which is called "hyacinth". Hyacinths in real life do have a green floralcy to them, but ultimately don't smell as cold or hard as this note here. Guerlainophiles may recognise this synthetic hyacinth note from Chamade, where it plays an important role in the opening. While Chamade then moves on into sweet resins in the base, Bas de Soie merely gives up to powdery iris, thus the whole scent is composed of powdery, sharp greenery. For such a challenging suite of notes I think Bas de Soie handled the execution very well indeed, but ultimately I prefer Chamade's gentler and warmer approach to this idea.

A fragrance of night from high above during the winter months This is, currently, my favorite fragrance for evening wear during the Winter months in the city where I live. I would imagine that the experience of looking at the night-lit city from high above smells like this fragrance; the scents are of incense, the paper of books, furniture upholstery and woodworking. This fragrance smells of Iris, to me, only as a dry Orris Root, in its powdered form. From having experienced a wear of other fragrances on the base of Iris, I suspect that the creation of the fragrance, itself, and of its separate notes, is different than the Standards would describe this process. I would imagine that the Designer, Serge Lutens, were to wear this fragrance, together with many women, like myself, which would create an aura of a shared experience and some sense of safety.

This is a powdery and soft floral that I like quite a bit, despite my reservations. It reminds me of a dusty lavender color at first, cozy and antique. As it warms I smell a soft clean soapiness underneath, a bit like cold cream, or an unscented shaving cream. The metallic aspect comes out a bit when I think about it, but it is antique bronze, not shiny or sharp. Smells wistful and pretty in an anhedonic way, not chipper or proud. Subtle and strange enough to not really register as a perfume. As it develops I like it more and feel the clean and comforting warmth of the fragrance. Like a sleepy morning in cotton sheets and old money. Not sexy, at all, I have a feeling men wouldn't like it on me, but it might be nice on a man?

bas de soie 1.7 oz bottle Bas de Soie leans more to sophisticated or retro type scents. Hyacinths back in the day in perfumes such as YSL Y or Molyneux Vivre were known as the opulant flower in perfumes. Elizabeth Taylor adored hyacinths. Hyacinths have a bitter green edge and captured well here in Bas de Soie. A make up boudoir powdery Iris evokes memories of when women sat at their boudoir tables, dressing gowns and knew looking ones best was good for god and country. Its a refined gorgeous floral never bombastic. Its soft and alluring. About 30 min in the florals show in their cool splendor. Aristocratic in nature. Make sure your well dressed if you wear this scent. Its polished like a 1950s pin up. This is naughty.

This was applied from a sample dauber tube, not sprayed. At first I smelled the hyacinth, all of the plant, as if someone had pulled it up by its roots and then lopped off the top and stuck it under my nose. After thirty minutes I am getting a softer hyacinth with iris peeking out from underneath. And now the musk is starting to show up, but the green is still there. This is a soft, powdery scent with a warm base. A stunner. I will definitely wear this again. Update: I used this again today and can still smell it after five hours. It is now a delicate musk with a spicy overtone. very long lasting, although more of a skin scent at this point. A full bottle of this may be in my future.

Words fail me to describe how absolutely magnificent Bas de soie is to me. Whenever I smell this I close my eyes and my brain sends me images like: a whirl of silvery snow on a bright winter day, a translucent wing of a dragonfly, a perfect purple hyacinth, stem, leaves, bulbs and all confined in a block of ice, sunbeams reflected in a milky ethiopian opal, a green and purple silk scarf blowing in the wind on an early spring morning. It is my absolute favorite of the SL perfumes, I have never encountered one quite like it. Even its coldness I find unique, it has such un air of luxurious aloofness, wafting timidly yet quite tenacious, I can still smell it on clothes for days.

It is amazing how noses and tastes differ. This is a love at first sight for me. I must confess that I do love green scents and this is very very green indeed. Earthy, dry, not a hint of sweetness to be sensed. This is roots, earth, leaves, the whole damp dark garden. Not a blossom in sight. I agree that it may come across as cold, austere, especially in the first hour or so. As time goes by it warms up on my skin and is less stringent. I disagree with the reviews that say sillage is minimal. I think it radiates quite nicely. I had tried other serge luten fragrances before and none of them really wowed me. This one has. There really is a serge lutens fragrance for everyone.

First off hyacinth, then powder, then iris and hyacinth combining smoothly to give the most wonderful, well-blended scent. The hyacinth is very restrained though, not at all harsh. It’s perhaps a little melancholy but really, really lovely. Also the first iris scent I’ve tried where I feel truly at home. The spice is barely there, but the scent is long-lasting - excellent! Good value! It’s dry too, I love powder scents so I’m very happy with this. I’d love my lingerie drawer to smell of this. Very definitely a mature and reflective scent. I’d buy this tomorrow if I could. - Christopher Sheldrake has done it again - 10/10.

Bas de Soie is a silky opalescent fragrance,though it first tastes like apple sorbet. I thought it would feel transparent on my skin ; I expected a ghost fragrance as it were, something fleeting, impalpable, and almost unnoticeable. The word "Iris" refers to rainbows (other spectra, admittedly), and indeed, Bas de Soie is this damp, cold and colorful trace that stands against the sky on rainy days. Yet, it feels soft, too. It's powdery. It warms up on your skin. After several hours, it's a delicate silk shawl which is both discreet and enveloping. Great longevity, quite a good projection.

I thought i'd give this juice a go as it has two of my favourite smells in it , hyacinth and iris , not knowing what to expect really and really looking forward to the nose experience . The bottle arrived today and to be honest to me it doesn't smell like a perfume to me it smells like a cottage garden in the spring , fresh green floral and not to sweet , it's amazing how close it is to the real thing ( probably makes no sense at all lol !!!!!) but highly recommend this stuff ,I know it's pricey but the quality is up with the best, love it !!!!!!

Cannot believe I've never tried this until now and sssssoooo happy I blind bought the bottle. Yes it's very much like Chanel 19 which I also adore but I think this lacks some of the sparklingness of C19. Not that's a bad thing, just different. A slightly rounder softer green. More hyacinth I guess. Definitely old fashioned in the most wonderful way. I don't know if I'd completely categorize this as a floral. More chyphre floral to me, but then I'm not an expert.

Bleak day, late fall. The sky is too jaded to don any color, stuck somewhere between pale blue and gray. The trees are empty, breathing fog, cold and moist. Cold silk over young skin. Her body lotion and icy, faint perspiration transferred to it over the past couple of hours. It's going to rain soon. If only. Vision of spring: intensely blue filed of hyacinths, with thick, milky, poisonous petals and leaves.

Such an evocative green floral perfume with hyacinth and with the strong charismatic attitude of Galbanum, remembering me of 80s masterpieces, it is my self confodence hero, which I wear for imoortant meetings at work to make the max impression of mine, without a single hesitation. Boosting sillage with solid longeivity, I am absolutely in love with this masterpiece

The most divine hyacinth scent! Absolutely beautiful. The opening is a bit heavy, but after an hour it becomes just pure delight. Since early childhood I am absolutely in love with the smell of hyacinth, it's my favourite flower smell of all time. The realistic hyacinth in Bas de Soie is already a win, and the spicy notes make it absolutely perfect for me.

Aloof and dignified. A pale flower that is unapproachable and lives for itself. The opening briefly reminds me of some of the classic chypre flower scents, but BdS has almost no colour which I actually like. An abstract canvas in black and white, like a Mondrian, clean and perfect. Sillage: extremely minimal Silkyness: extremely soft Longevity: one hour

Absolutely gorgeous! Divine hyacinth, and altogether a gorgeous, feminine, smooth, fresh yet creamy, and soft, delightful floral. I love hyacinths, and this is very very easy to wear - not sharp or screechy at all. It has a gorgeous rich and powdery dry-down, and also there is a nicely gentle spiciness to it. I LOVE it!!!

Fanny wrote: "A pale flower that is unapproachable and lives for itself". Similarly said! I use it when I want to be separated from all that when I want to be lonely in a crowd.

Bas de Soie was released in 2010 and its name means "Silk Stockings". Serge talks about a mass, with voices in a low tone, soft as silk. It doesn’t seem to me a memory of his life in Morocco, but of his childhood in France. Serge defines the concept of this creation by saying: "A ritual, an image: slim fingers carefully slip the stocking up the leg, from ankle to thigh...The woman alone, scented with a blend of powdery iris and hyacinth, keeps our attention. The iridescence of a dragonfly's wing”. Bas de Soie has notes of galbanum, hyacinth, spicy notes, Iris and musk. Compared to the other perfumes of the House, it comes to seem simple, in terms of olfactory pyramid. But make no mistake, because the fragrance is very good. Right off the bat, we think of a super powdery fragrance, with that dry makeup smell from the iris, as became known in Dior Homme collection. But it is worth remembering that the same flower can present different nuances and it all depends on how it is crafted, including, according to the species chosen. Bas de Soie was designed over the image of a woman wearing her socks but is far from being a feminine perfume. The output is floral and strong and, for some reason, makes me think of flowers of purple color, even though the smell is green. The galbanum gives a balsamic aspect and, fortunately, without bitterness, reinforcing the nuances of the hyacinth. The iris is slightly powdery and exudes more nuances of violets than earthy nuances. Finally, the musk arrives with its soapy facets and ends the evolution, which seems to follow the progress of the stockings on the legs. I read many comparisons of this perfume with Chanel No. 19, but I don't agree with them. On my skin, the latter is greener and bitter, not counting that has numerous flowers in its composition, such as jasmine, narcissus, etc. However, I think it’s more elegant. Bas de Soie is more neutral, verging on unisex. If it's to compare with any other fragrance, I would say that after some hours on my skin, reminded me of Prada Amber Pour Homme, but with steroids. The projection is very good and the lasting is satisfactory. In my opinion, Bas de Soie is a great perfume for those who do not give up on sophistication and search for a fragrance for every day and constant use.

I contacted Serge Lutens directly because I see so much conflicting information about their perfumes being shared, for men, or for women. Guess what, they responded they are ALL shared...Every last one of them! Just as it should be. I am a man and I wear what I like. Even if a perfume is supposed to be for women once I decide to put it on it's then on a man so at that point it's also for men as far as I'm concerned. I was drawn to Bas de Soi because I love both orris and hyacinth. I am still searching for the hyacinth soliflore of my dreams that smells just like the living flower because this is not it, although I do really like it. Combined with the orris and the green note of galbanum it produces its own unique pleasantly sweet, green floral with a background of musk and spices to add depth and warmth. This is a safe perfume, nothing risqué or that will take time to grow on you, you'll either like it from the first try or you won't. I just recently was sent some vintage Jovan Grass Oil from the 70's and was surprised at how much it has in common with Bas de Soie. Of course the galbanum green notes they both have in common as well as the sweet floral notes that are supposedly clover flowers in the case of Grass oil but as a perfumer I know that alpha, beta, and alpha methyl irones are doing most of the magic in both perfumes.

All the other Serge Lutenses I've tried were sweet, warm winter scents, that could generally best be described with the word "comforting". Bas de Soie is a big departure from that: it's quite cold, not at all sweet, and far from comforting in any conventional sense, but I really like this one as well. The opening is a little bitter, as others have mentioned: it's a realistic, none-sweet flower (hyacinth?) combined with lots of galbanum and some spice. At this point it's quite cold, a bit metallic and almost harsh without quite getting there. I personally love galbanum so I don't mind this at all, in fact it might be my favourite phase, even though it's so far removed from the bright and often sweet scents I usually like. After a while the galbanum disappears almost entirely to the background and what remains is a more mellow, softer version of that initial cold sharpness, with more focus on the flowers. Very nice, elegant and grown-up; I think the name is quite fitting. It could be worn in all seasons, but it's probably at its best in winter and early spring, those hopeless, cold, stark months. Not because it compensates for those characteristics in any way, like most winter perfumes do with their heavy sweetness, but just because it accentuates their difficult beauty.

I was very impressed at first sniff, and this rarely happens with Serge Lutens (fragrances that are often so complex, I appreciate more in their developing stages). The first sniff strikes me as a strong, fresh, hycinth note. I LOVE hyacinth, as a flower, in fragrances. Bas de Soie is a green fragrance, that can remind you of Chanel n.19 (in the same family or with the same vibe). Contrarily to many other reviewers, I do not get a powdery iris here. There is some cool iris, not the powdery iris you could find in Villoresi's Teint de Neige or Infusion d'Iris. Rather a metallic, cold iris (like Città di Kyoto or Hiris by Hermes). Forget Iris Silver Mist though! That one was masculine and cold and all about metallic Iris, almost disturbing. Bas de Soie is all about hyacinth, and a happy one. Again, the name is distracting. By the name only I would think of a sensual, silky oriental frag (being Bas de Soie equivalent to Silk Stockings), yet it is not your typical sensual/oriental perfume. Bas de Soie is a green floral, sensual in a sophisticated, classy, lightly selfish, self assured and ladylike way, just as Chanel 19 could be. A very well executed frag, with good lasting power & easy to wear in a number of occasions. Definitely a must try.

Full disclosure - Serge Lutens' PR gave me a bottle of this before I went to interview him in 2011. At the time, it wasn't really my cup of tea. I passed it round at a girls night in, and people thought it smelled old-ladyish, a bit prim and dainty - no-one wanted a decant. But over time, I've come to love it. I adore the smell of hyacinths and long for them to flower throughout the winter, heralding spring. But it took me a while to pick up the iris in this fragrance (I thought for a long time I was anosmic to it until I trained my nose better). I mentioned to Serge that BdeS didn't smell the same way from one moment to the next and told me he wanted an instability between the accords, so that the fragrance veers between hyacinth and iris - one moment you smell one, the next you smell the other. I now find this fragrance very beautiful and comforting, and lovely to wear on a spring day when it's bright but cold and you're longing for warmth. It also lasts a long time, like most Lutens, and has a very soft buttery drydown without a trace of the house's characteristic cumin sweatiness. My practice is to give away half of all fragrances that come to me via my work (for good karma), but I'm now quite glad that no-one else liked it!

This is not my usual cup of tea at all a super floral scent for folks who love that sort of thing and you know what? To my surprise I can appreciate it too. The opening is a naturally musky scent which is far too off putting for me but still screams quality. My mum often keeps hyacinths in her house when she has trouble with the drains, hoping the pungent smell will mask it but I think it just combines and makes it worse! They always smell very 'wet' with a kinda bittersweet bouquet which is not entirely unpleasant but teetering on the brink. There's a hefty dose of green notes in here too initially, supplied by the galbanum and that wetness and musky natural floral is both accentuated and balanced by the powdery iris. The saving grace here is that the drydown is really good and works alright on my skin. I also sprayed some on a card and could smell it clearly, upto a week later. I was surprised how much I actually liked it in the end but the opening and scents like this are just not my cup of tea. If you're a lover of florals I think this is another excellent composition and well worth checking out.

My first sniff is instalove and I start plotting a full bottle purchase. The hyacinth is pure plant juice, celadon alien blood—a scalpel to cut through the dross of this world. The silvery blue color is just right. But then, two hours later, I am perhaps influenced by other reviewers. Truthfully, I do detect fishy and eggy notes. Yes, a drop of bleach, fresh filet on a plastic cutting board, a metal poaching dish, uncooked meringue. I wouldn't say these notes are at the forefront, but they do complicate the fragrance. The niche I intended Bas de Soie to fill was a cool work scent, a chilled glass pressed against the face in midsummer. It isn't innocuous enough for that. The second trial, all the notes hit me from the beginning. I'm getting more iris, and I realize this smells like cold cream. There's something masochistic about it, like the pleasurable sting of Noxzema. I like it. But I'll need to psych myself up to wear it around other people.

A very contradictory perfume. At first spritz I smelt a lot of green--something like watercress and flat-leaved parsley. This became a sort of mint, very fresh mint leaves, overlayed on the sweet high note of Iris. I kept sniffing and that mint remained--it is actually still detectable on my sleeve the next day. Then a spiciness: carnation and clove. And finally, very strangely, just as scorpiosheep said, a whiff of stale cigarette. This is how I picture it: An elegant woman is sitting in the bar of a Grand Hotel. The wool jacket of her suit is hanging on her chair back. Her blouse is satin. She is smoking, sipping a vermouth, and wearing Chanel No. 19. She stubs out her cigarette, grabs her jacket, and excuses herself to go to the ladies' room. While there she carefully reapplies her lipstick and pops a stick of spearmint gum in her mouth.

Opening is straight hyacinth (almost a soliflor) with a very small side of iris. One might say there's a very faint background of galbanum but to me that earthiness is already inherent in the hyacinth note alone. Again, basically a soliflor. Mostly linear, then gets a bit powdery and abstract (I do get the stockings imagery; idk why but it makes sense). There is an odd sour note that occurs off and on later on in the dry down. The opening blast and immediate drydown is the high-quality archetype to judge all other hyacinth frags by. However the drydown as it progresses I think may appeal to a bit more of a niche audience. I do like it, myself - that said I'm into more difficult, moody, melancholy frags right now. If u want a happy hyacinth, go for Tom Ford Vert de Fleur.

I still don't know whether I like it, but I have never met a perfume that merged with me the way this does. It didn't smell like vintage talc so much as feel like it: it evoked cool fresh cotton sheets on just-shaved legs on a cool evening after a warm day, and it evoked it so strongly that I just curled up in bed and basked. It's very sensual but not in the conventional voluptuous way, more a calm languid awareness of one's own body. I was surprised to react so strongly to it, since I would never have thought to try this had it not been one of precisely two SL samples in the shop I was in. Perfume's weird like that sometimes, thankfully.

Very nice scent of hyacinth and iris, a bit startling at first but pleasant nevertheless. However, it was the drydown that amazed me. It was so reminiscent of Bond No. 9 Chinatown, I was sure that my child's therapist who came to our house is wearing Chinatown. When she said no, I thought my son got into my perfumes yet again and sprayed Chinatown. This was not the case and that is when I realized it was Bas de Soie that I sprayed the night before! I know that the notes are totally different, that is why I am amazed! This is not a love but close enough.

July 2015 - Interesting frag. Top notes remind me of formaldehyde. Sweet but something of the biology lab about it. Very subtle after the dry down. The hyacinth and musk are both present. I quite like BdS and am glad I was persuaded to try it. January 2017 - update. After trying quite a few different Iris-based fragrances, this has become one of my favourites. So much so that I asked for a fb, as a Christmas present. Over the last year, I have learned to detect iris and I really like what I have found in BdS.

Bas de Soie perfectly embodies a society woman of past decades with a perfectly coiffed, classy poodle-cut hairdo. It is elegant, powdery, floral, and sharp. Somewhat bitchy and defintely no-nonsense. The woman I imagine wearing this perfume is in front of her vanity pulling on her stockings for a night out with her husband, and her kids are making too much noise. All she has to do is give them "that look" and they instantly quiet down. I like this.

Count me among the fans; it smells lovely on my skin from start to finish, and it lasts a long time. But I get virtually NO hyacinth at all, which is what I was seeking -- on me, this is all iris, iris, iris. Which, luckily, I like very much. It's a powdery iris, very soft. Really lovely -- but not a hyacinth. It happens that I have several pots of hyacinths in my house right now, scenting entire rooms, and Bas de Soie is not that smell.

I tested out this fragrance on a brutally hot day. To me it smelled floral, soapy, light, with decent longevity (esp given it was such a hot day). To me the dominant note is rose. Overall the scent seemed somewhat simple but classy and pleasant, perhaps a tiny bit "mature" smelling for me (maybe it's the vintage iris note?) . Anyways, I definitely want to try this out again in different weather.

Not sure why I did not review this perfume the last time I wore it. Perhaps I was rendered speechless by its beauty? On ne sait jamais. Well, now that the vial is drained, I feel compelled to jot down a few words as a future reminder to myself that I do indeed appreciate this scent and would love to have a full bottle. Of course, I love iris and hyacinth, so that did not hurt...

I don't detect any of the metallic and the Orris is very powdery on me. That coupled with the galbanum makes it a perfect dry, cool summer scent - as though I were oblivious to the heatwaves in Italy and I never ever sweat. Unfortunately, my 4-year-old daughter says it's headache inducing to her: she's a straightforward citrus gal. So I can only wear it when she's not around.

idéal par fortes chaleur, très frais, mixte, rafraichit par son iris frappant, pas dérangeant pour l'entourage; convient aussi bien à un homme qu'à une femme; tenue moyenne et sillage également; dès que la température atteint les 30 degrés, je le porte systématiquement

this scent makes me sick, after an opening very harsh and medicinal ( but in the bad meaning of this word ) it becomes dizzy and like poisonous thing, it smells like old cosmetics became dangerous to use, i want to vomit after 5 minutes, can't stand it !

But. Have Galbanum or labdanum inside no?

I have found in Serge Lutens perfume house a group of florals that are less complex , not hard hitting , resinous, spicy and more wearable . I truly appreciate Serge’s artistry and uniqueness . I’m in awe of his mastery but I don’t feel I can pull off some of his quirky , well received masterpieces and this discouraged me from buying those fragrances in the past . Not for the faint hearted and I’m in that group . However , I have now amassed 8 bottles and counting , in the last three months. I just can’t get enough of his simpler and softer florals . Being a green, white floral lover , I thought I would like Bois de Soie but the spicy notes ruin it for me . But saying that , I do love the freshness, greeness and coolness of the fragrance . I own a few of SL’s cool, soapy florals and they are right up my alley . Hyacinth as most reviewers mention is the star of the show , vying for dominance is the galbanum . The galbanum creates its bitter , herbal notes which I’m not fond of but understand its necessity in this fragrance’s journey . I love that the Iris is not a powdery one on me and as usual , the SL signature musk base which is so well done for me . Overall , I don’t mind the fragrance after the spicy notes dissipate . But not bottle worthy.

Green and purple scent. Clean, soapy, fresh at the start with the star hyacinth, cold iris, galbanum, roses and spices. In the humid style of De Profundis, but less disturbing. I also have Gris Clair memories, perhaps of lavender. This evolves as a fresh, sour soap powder. Clean, simple, a little retro and feminine. Naturally pleasant and refreshing on the skin but with a mossy launderette trail that softens in the finish. More daytime.

I wanted so much to like this fragrance - I generally love chilly iris scents and the reviews here, while polarized, were intriguing (perhaps all the more so because of the difference of opinion). Unfortunately, it just doesn't work for me. In fact, it's the only perfume I've ever had to scrub, since it turned my stomach a little. The 'iciness' that some reviewers have referred to wasn't a problem - sometimes an air of aloofness is exactly what I'm looking for - but there was something a little screechy about this one that made me feel ill. I can see where the funereal/formaldehyde allusions come from. For me, however, it was more akin to the 'nails on a chalkboard' sensation or the slightly chalky, soapy taste of cilantro (yes, I'm one of those people!) that tightens the back of the jaw. Perhaps the hyacinth/galbanum combination was just too much for me. I think those who compare it to No. 19 are on to something - they're different fragrances, of course, but the character is similar. Personally, I'll stick to the Chanel but those who seek to project that kind of aura might try this scent. I emphasize 'try' - it's not a typical Lutens so I definitely wouldn't buy it blind. Lasting power and projection were good, in fact, too good - but isn't that always the way with scents we don't like?