L'Arte di Gucci by Gucci

Lilian

This has to be the most addictive concoction I have ever laid nose on! And discontinued! The lovely reviews of Mals86 and Chat Lunatique capture this perfume's spirit wonderfully.

Rose is a rather difficult note for me, as it is usually either too powdery, or too acrid, or dangerously close to the smell of burnt plastic. But this! This is none of those, oh no, this is a thick, velvety, fleshy, moist, scorching red rose, dripped with desire. A rose that slowly starts darkening and wilting, from the edges to the core, under the song of forbidden whispers, touched by the spell of the loss.

As a side note, although perhaps similar in structure to Paloma Picasso, Soir de Lune and Knowing, I do not find those perfumes good alternatives to L'Arte: on me Paloma Picasso screams with strong vetiver and musk, in Knowing - the prominent sandalwood eats up the beautiful rose, and Soir de Lune just seems to lack in depth compared to this one.

cynnolan

Wearing this for the first time today, and I adore it. A little black glass vial, scored at the vintage boutique over the weekend (I made quite a haul there!), and I feel like this is a scent to wear with a little black dress, pearls, high heels and nothing else - except maybe a small whip.

There is a sharp sweetness to it, and a heavy, rich floral spiciness behind that somehow. And below that there's something really earthy I don't recognize but I do love. It's deep and strong but I don't mind - I just want to sink into the fragrance. I put the tiniest dab on each wrist, and I now am floating in a cloud of confident sensuality.

allexa27

Well this is for a real chypre lover!!!Very loud,strong,heavy classic chypre.Reminds me of Pilomma Picassso and very much of Soir de Lune by Sisley.I am not a chypre fan and i will pass it,although is a great perfume for mature women

Mals86

I love Dark Rose fragrances - the ones that focus on deeper/spicier/more interesting facets of rose - so I had to test L'arte.

I bought a tiny edp splash bottle, and immediately loved it. The top notes (aldehydes, berry, green notes and a very hissy cassis bud) are immediately glamorous and almost overwhelming, although much less so when dabbed rather than sprayed. The heart of the fragrances is rose. Don't be fooled by the long list of floral notes; most of them are there to round out and soften the rose and geranium. This rose lolls luxuriously, seductively, on a mossy bed. The drydown is sensuous and deep, and the best olfactory description of "bittersweet" I've ever smelled. It smells like the beginning of autumn, following the best summer of your life... or time for Cinderella to leave the ball.

It is simply gorgeous, and quite sensual. I prefer to decant it into a roll-on bottle (I went straight out and bought two large bottles of the edp; it's nearly impossible to find now), since it can be a bit harsh in the first ten minutes when sprayed, containing a plasticky note that I don't care for, and which I don't smell at all when I dab.

I'm sure that the recent restrictions on oakmoss were what killed L'arte di Gucci; it is crammed full of moss. Well, that and the fact that the current fashion in perfumery is for sweet and fruity scents, the polar opposite of the sophisticated L'arte. Shame.

Chat Luna below is right, it is "intemperate" and slinky, and rather reminiscent of Ungaro Diva, which I also like and which might be easier to find at this point in time. But L'arte has a smolder, a smoky-eyed stare, that one rarely sees outside film noir. An amazing scent.

mahanta

My Holy Grail...was lucky to snatch both edt and edp when the prices were not that sky-high... Actually it is almost 1:1 with Sisley's Soir de Lune, but less peppery and spicey. It's dark and warm, elegant and definitely not for young girls. A woman needs to have some background to be able to wear it...and then it will become like a second soul and skin;)

Trvevil

I wore it, when I was in 9th grade. I had a black mini. I loved it. It's very solid and warm. Very sexy chypre.
EDP at first has a bit sharp (aldehyde) green notes with fruity notes that you won't find such in recent perfumes, then comes flowery base entangled with musky, leather and woody base. It has similar feel to honey through it too... It has old-fashioned feel to it- it's indeed like Soir de Lune and sister of Piguet's Bandit. I thought it was oriental perfume at time. Shame they discontinued it.

Nuppu

Yes, L'Arte de Gucci is strong, opulent and even loud. I don't know why, but on me this smell rich, honeydipped rose with something else what I cannot identify. But lot's of honeylike sweetnes.

This is a scent that Alexis from 80- Dynasty tv-series woud wear, luxuriant, bold and very femme fatale.

benzippo

I had a brief experience with this years ago and at that time, I remembered it was priced on the higher price range which of course is nothing compared to those super expensive perfumes that had emerged nowadays.

For the scent, I recalled it is rather strong, oppulent and loud with a tinge of metal nuance.

Would need to revisit as I still have a sample vial somewhere in my collection of minatures and vials....