Violetear

Violetear is a stark, distant character; it's as if Jean Patou's Moment Supreme traded purple prose for Camus and Sartre. Lavender oil eclipses the composition much like MS, but is somehow rendered sullen here, with cold iris flower adding to the effect. It feels disjointed and devoid of warmth, peculiar, elliptical even. What remains after a relatively short time is an oakmoss with nothing for it to cloak, bare and vulnerable, like a chill in the heart. This is not one to wear when one needs cheering up. It's bleak.

This smells like lavender essential oil w/ iris and violet nuances that are very slight. It is also very, very earthy and dirty smelling. I like oakmoss but it has to be handled w/ a deft hand or it comes off smelling like dirt. Again, the source material or the way this perfumer handles the materials is a bit off putting to me. Many of the fragrances I have tried w/ the exception of Rose LA and La Valse has an aromatherapy smell to it instead of a smell of a fine perfume or the opening is completely off putting and takes too long to go away. I had high hopes for this brand, and I adore natural perfumery, but I think I will stick w/ Hiram Green, Providence Perfume, Abel, and Gather Perfumes for most of my natural collecting. I am also exploring Laro and bought their Yellow Rose. This company just doesn't seem to have the skill set to take natural materials and create a true perfume. The best fragrance is the La Valse and she uses vanillin so that is not all natural and it smells so close to Nina Ricci L'Extase Rose Absolu that why pay the high price? This line was a complete waste of my time and money.

Opening is beautifully dense and floral. Don’t let the iris and mimosa scare you, this definitely is powdery, but not cloying and headache inducing like many powdery perfumes. This is perfectly grounded. As you wear this, it teeters back and forth from feminine unisex to masculine unisex, without fully excluding either. I bought it for my girlfriend because (even after testing it 10 days (2 samples)) I was in love, but not sure it was for me. She loves it because she gets a classic feminine style floral chypre, and now I love it because I get a slightly subtle indolic mens office scent. 3-4 sprays, in this insane southern Florida heat, unlocks a powerfully intoxicating sillage.