Rose Ispahan

The crown of Yves Rocher's creations together with the regular vintage ISPAHAN. I sniffed it in a newly opened YR shop in Belarus about a decade ago, just when we started to embrace all things western businesswise, and I dreamed, and dreamed, and dreamed for days, months and years of owning it and to be able to spray it on an early sunday morning wearing a soft white or pink angora cardigan while drinking hot steaming tea and looking at the runrise through huge wndows overlooking a blossoming garden! I wanted so much to be that happy grownup woman who has it all, and by all I mean Rose Ispahan as nr. 1 on the list! more than 10 years later - I still don't feel grownup, but there's a bottle of this perfume in its extrait version sitting on my dresser, and I start learning to embrace life the way I thought I would have at this age: I am learning to feel content and search for happiness from inside, rather than looking for a source of it elsewhere, and Rose ispahan is just the best catalyzer for the process! The only true "rose" rose fragrance - pure rose scent, unspoiled by any oher competing florals (if they are there - they don't intefere) with a hint of musk and white chocolate or white rum or something. I hadn't smelled enything similar before and I haven't found anything comparable after: it is indeed very unique, extremely feminine, strong and yet not overpowering and so oh so soft!!! It is like a halo that floats around. I am in love with it and have been for many years. Hunting down every pure perfume bottle I spot on ebay and will never stop wanting more! Even the EDT version is strong enough to last for hours, and the packaging is just so beautiful, especially the matte glass of the bottle! - it actually visulally depicts the scent's auralike qualities! There was a time, when the purpose of creating a scent was producing something SPECIAL, unlike other perfumes, something distinct, something making a woman feel like she's the only one wearing it. And this is that kind. If you get hold of it ( discontinued years ago, so doesn't make a frequent appearance ) - take a chance on it: just for its uniqueness it deserves to be worn at least once in a lifetime.

I adooooooore this fragrance, one of my all-time favorites. This one wins first price in the category hidden gems. The quality is unheard of, even after all these years it hasn’t turned, and I bought a used plash bottle. Yves Rocher had some really good perfumes in the past, and still they sometimes have a nice one. This for me is their queen, together with Rose Absolue followed by Cantate and the Secret d’essences line. It’s a velvet vanilla rose, edible, flirty and fresh. Not a jammy rose like Rose Absolue, and nothing like Mancera. Much more classy. Vintage for non-vintage lovers. It think this is understated sexy. Clove isn’t very noticeable. Mimosa gives it a powdery full bodied hint, but no straight up pollen here thankfully. Moderate to big sillage, and lasts a working day on me. You will smell this on yourself and others will too. Best in fall or spring. Minis are quite available. I managed to get 2 full bottles of this for reasonable prices (under 40 euro). It's worth the hunt, trust me.

I adore this fragrance! It has the most unusual scent! While it is true that sometimes the rose can appear to end up lost underneath the other scents at first, if you are patient the rose slowly wends its way up and out and you will start to notice it now and then, peeking out. It's not really a "rose" fragrance, despite having rose in the title - or at least, that is what I've discovered; yet roses are indeed growing in that garden. To me, this is a desert garden, the flowers growing there hardy and not given to ostentation, saving their energy for staying alive rather than flaunting themselves with strong scents - so the spices of the desert rise in the wind, and underneath that, we get the hints of flowers sneaking in. I can't think of any other way to explain it! It's a pity it isn't available anymore ... unless you can find someone who had the sense to stockpile some and is now selling the little bottles on eBay for %40 or something :-)

I miss this fragrance, but fortunately it seems that unopened packages stay stable for a long time (unlike some others, like YR's Ode de Joie which I also miss terribly). I opened a new bottle purchased recently on eBay and am getting as many compliments on it as I did back when Yves Rocher was still selling it. It's very feminine but with a richness and sensual gravity to it. Am trying to work up a similar fragrance from essential oils. When Yves Rocher switched over from father to son, the fragrances really went downhill and many favorites were immediately discontinued. None of their more recent fragrances really do it for me, and I don't get compliments on them either. Very sad, as for years they were my secret weapon.

I ran out of this wonderful perfume over a year ago and can't find anything I like as well. Ebay is outrageous! I have spent a small fortune looking for something I like as well and nothing comes close! I miss this scent so much it makes me sad thinking about it. to me, it was subtle and intoxicating even after wearing it over a year. Why it is no longer being made, is a crime. why are all the wonderful scents discontinued and tacky stinky ones replacing them? I suppose after wearing something for a really long time, it becomes part of you and it really hurts when its all gone, like a lover who has left for ever. I still miss it!