Apres l'Ondee Guerlain for women

This lives up to the hype. I can't get over how soft and enveloping this scent is. I wouldn't wear this to work or to a black tie function but it seems perfect for cuddling and watching a movie in sweats with hubby or a romantic night out. Such a perfect fragrance.

What a beautiful and strange scent. It is so delicate and feminine it seems freakish in our culture.

It surrounds me in a veil of violet with a tinge of anise and a background of green. But its effect on me is not what-my-perfume-smells-like. Instead I am transported to a place where gentleness feels, well, normal. I am temporarily suspended from curse words and bourbon straight. This is an olfactory vacation from a hard-scrabble culture. It doesn't make me feel sexier, merely more feminine - in the finest sense. There is an internal stillness, a kindness, a peace. I spray a bit on, breathe deep, and let someone else win the rat race today.

This juice is lovely, heartbreakingly lovely.

A truly beautiful perfume. that gives you a feeling of total peace. There is something in this perfume that calms you. It really does smell of a garden after the rain. A heavenly garden that makes you feel truly special to have and to smell this adorable fragrance.

this deserves more people wearing it give it some love try it out on a scale of 1 to 100 im giving it 56 its really good but im a man and cant get away with this overall scent on an elementary grading scale i will have to say:


scent:B

Love this one,so romantic, and soft.

Violets, heliotrope, ylang-ylang, and anise combine to create a soft, sweet violet that actually smells like a flower, not a bottle of powder. It doesn’t have that sour off-note that quite a few violet and iris-themed scents do. It’s mythical violets as they were meant to be, the violet archetype if you will. To me, there’s a leather note along with the flowers, probably created by the combination of violet and mimosa, but that just lends substance to the delicate little flowers.

Initially, the sillage is tremendous, but as the scent dries down it backs off a little to the moderate range. For an EdT, it’s quite strong. It lasts 4 or 5 hours on skin, gradually fading away in a more or less linear fashion.

With an iconic fragrance like Apres l’Ondée, there is so much legend surrounding it that one can hardly help being influenced by the interpretations of others. In this light, I can see all of the classic interpretations, even though this may be a reformulated version.

It’s hard for me to think about whether I would perceive Apres l'Ondee as representing flowers and vegetation after a storm, whether it would seem wistful, melancholy, ambiguously happy/sad, and all of the other things that I’ve heard about it if it were a blind test without prior knowledge of what others think. I believe I might perceive all of these things, depending on my mood at the time, but I might also just perceive it as a nice, natural-smelling, candied violets and leather scent with a slightly vintage vibe. Speaking of vintage, for a perfume that was created over 100 years ago, this seems surprisingly modern in feel in many respects. In any case, it’s one of those must-try classics.

Many years ago I read about this scent in one of my mother's magazines and it was described as "an Impressionist Perfume". In the words of Jacques Guerlain the attempt was to recreate the scent of a garden after a huge pouring rain.
Many years after, and after long searches, I could finally first try and then buy this miracle bottled. For me Jacques Guerlain is the perfumer among the Guerlain dynasty with the greatest gift for creating not scents but sensations, emotions, feelings. All of his creations talks to the heart in a way or another.
Aprés l'Ondée is truly Impressionist in the way Manet's, Degas's, Monet's paintings are: they do not describe people or landscapes as they are, they give you the emotion of what the artists want to convey. Aprés l'Ondés is a garden under a huge rainpour where you smell the flowers drowned in the rain with the grass and the earth woken up from their sleep.
Every time I see a bottle of this magic scent I buy one. It's so rare that one can't miss the opportunity when one can be seen.
The flowers are delicate as if they were trying to shelter from the rain inside your skin. They walk with you, they live with you. I can't imagine of any other scent having the same magic power.

I appreciate the softness and cleanness of this fragrance, but it disappears on my skin extremely quickly. It also unfortunately reminds me of the scent of Palmolive dishwashing liquid, which is a scent I always liked, but don't want for my perfume. Please don't hate me for being so tacky!

I can't stand reading reviews(if it is called review a sentence which says about the staying power only) based on a decanted sample .This is a masterpiece of Jacques Guerlain stood by a century time and worn and loved by million of ladies!
This is pure heaven in a bottle and it stays on me six hours plus.
It's wet flowers of violet drawing of the first rays of sun early in the morning.You can feel the velvet touch and smell the freshness of them !

I was so happy to get a sample after
reading the reviwes
What a disapointment,
it was gone from my skin in a second.

What a masterpiece! I totally agree with Cedericeccentric that it somehow got a unisex quality to it. I know it`s not listed as a note, but on my skin I can smell something that reminds me strongly of angelica and nettle. Maybe it`s the cassia and carnation? Anyway, to me this is similar with L´heure blue in a way, only lighter and with prominent green notes/herbs to it. I picture an upper-class, tomboyish woman in England during the 1920`s. On a resort overlooking the sea she`s taking tennis classes, much more of a sporty type than her sisters who are occupied with polite conversations inside. She`s casual but elegant, wearing Apres L`Ondee to feel fresh.

This was a very delicate floral, more a violet fragrance than anything else. It had a nice anise note shimmering over the violet, making it interesting and the orris root gave it a slight earthy feel. This smells like a garden full of violets after rain. It is feminine, gentle and one of a kind, but I did not love it as I hoped I would.

I just bought a new bottle of Après L'Ondée edt 2 days ago. I have to admit, it has been a while since I wore it, but I feel something has changed in the formula. Maybe it's just my nose...
Though I always felt ALO had somewhat of a unisex quality I didn't recall it to be that spicy and woody. Is it the carnation? Because I find that the carnation in L'Air du Temps to be also much spicier than it used to. Further more I get a vintage Soir de Paris vibe I didn't associate with ALO before either.

Never de less Après L'Ondée still smells as nostalgic as ever. Like in the Woody Allen movie "Midnight in Paris", this perfume has the magical ability to transport you back to the Paris of the Belle Epoque.

I read somewhere that after an article appeared in a Japanse fashion magazine for men, Après L'Ondée became somewhat of a cult fragrance with dandies over there. Apparently the fragrance reminds them of the iris leave bath ceremony performed on Children's Day festival of their youth.

I wore Apres l'Ondee when I was a debutante at the Pierre Hotel in New York (long story there....I'm not from a rich family, I just made all the right friends). I looked at the white, fluffy dress I was to wear for the ball, and Apres l'Ondee seemed the perfect choice to match it. It is very light, especially in the EdT form, but this is a Guerlain perfume, so there is depth and richness in its lightness, like a many-layered chiffon gown. Here the layers are mimosa, heliotrope, violet, iris, and about a dozen others. Yet the composition is as lightweight as gauze, even in the vintage extrait version. One of my all-time favorites.

I would love to have a vintage sample of this... how incredible it must have been.

Once Upon A Time-there was a brilliant violet perfume that captured the heart of the modern perfume world. This was the calling card of what was to come. Jacques Guerlain produced this with little fanfare. Its bottle is an Art Nueveau mastepiece, highly sought after by collectors today.

Its contents are the sheer genius of Guerlain. 1906 ws the age of perfume innocence. This now rare formula is hard to find today. What a shame. It echos our childhood with the violet and delicate spring floral bouquet. Graceful and feminine, it is the perfect first perfume.

Mine was a generous decant from Natalie-thank you so much!

Anybody looking for a light, gentle and heavenly floral fragrance should definitely smell Apres L'Ondée. This "piece of art" from the past century can be considered as one of the greatest, if not the best, creations in its genre. A delicate, almost fragile, composition made of heliotrope, violette and iris that gently touches your skin as a slim and smooth female's hand and sings to your ears a sad but reassuring melody with a faint voice that's almost a whisper. The usual Guerlain's baritone chorus (vanilla / musk / amber) is there to add consistency and depth to this very ethereal melody, but it's drastically muted to leave space to the celestial solo voice.

Apres L'Omdée is tremendously familiar, comfortable, reliable. Someone says it smells like clean skin, someone else associates it with his / her mother's smell, a beloved aunt, talcum powder, childhood, romance...As a matter of fact Aprées L'Onde is a smell that everybody knows, consciously or unwittingly. Mandatory!

"Luxury is something pretty and discreet. Luxury must not be something brash".

Rating: 10/10

I got It this morning and I could't belive it!
I wanted It so much...I found It really unusual without being ungentle...It's definitely my favourite!

A true lady with impeccable manners. Very gentle without losing it's presence. I cannot imagine an occasion where this would not be appropriate. Absolutley gorgeous.

Smells very similar to l'Heure Bleue, except it is more fragile. Does NOT last on my skin.

I really love it! Sweet, Victorian violets, and something open, fresh and watery; I picture a refined lady from the Belle Epoque. There's definitely a bottle in my future somewhere... The only thing I don't like is the typical oily, musky, animalic drydown which all vintage Guerlains seem to have on me. I love the opening and the first 1/2 hour, but then I just feel dirty, like I need to bath. I will say that this fusty, musty smell humanizes Guerlain's older fragrances. They are the complete opposite of the loud abrasive chemical fragrances of today. Although I don't like the sillage I present with this fragrance after a period of time, I can appreciate the organic- as opposed to synthetic- philosophy behind it.

I spray it on my hair. First on my wrists (I need to constantly smell this beauty), then my neck, and finally my hair, because it stays longer like that. It's the first perfume that gives me the delicate spicy note of wild carnations- however this is not the prominent note; violets are. So true and magnificent. Then I get something like moss, while roses and anise create a beautiful accord. This is a festival of top quality ingredients, far from any synthetic mainstream imitations. Like walking within red, pink, and violet flowers, glistening in the sunbeams, after a summer rain. A fragile, ethereal beauty- her life is short, but she's so poetic, and while you are in the open air, you inhale a masterpiece.

If I could encapsulate it in a phrase I would choose this:
"The death of a beautiful woman, is unquestionably the most poetical topic in the world."
Edgar Allan Poe

Aprés L’Ondee starts with a burst of spicy carnation, anise and a splash of citrus. A few moments later you get the softest hint of orange blossom, almond and violet before it settles into a delicate powder of iris, vetiver and vanilla.

It immediately sets a quieter mood - I sprayed it on this morning, fresh out of the shower and was amazed how it managed to slow me down and become more reflective. It’s definitely not recommended for a day of energetic activity, but should be reserved for alone time or for relaxing getaways in the countryside.

Longevity is unfortunately extremely poor. I get about 15-20 minutes before it disappears on my skin. It is the weakest eau de toilette I have ever come across, and feel it would be more correct to classify it as a cologne or floral water. I’m sure this fragrance would be amazing in pure parfum, as those few moments I get to enjoy it in the edt are amazing – heaven and earth combined.

I have tested this perfume today and after aplying I can smell the violet and anise or you can say minty note. Then their is the note that I dont like. The ylang ylang is to prominent on my skin and made me a bit nauseous. So this perfume is not for me.

The reviews are praise for this scent are like no other. I don't think that there is a perfume that is so widely loved and praised, yet so completely unavailable.

What you can find is the EDT, and even that is extremely expensive and elusive. So, I ordered a 2.5 mL EDT sample from the Perfumed Court.

I got the violets, but they were weak and almost perhaps dead, as if at the end of summer. In contrast, to say, the shimmering field of violets that I visualize when I use something like "Pour Femme," this was disappointing indeed. The violets mostly disappear, and then I have a sort of grassy-vaguely flat floral heart that is distantly reminiscent of "Chamade" but not nearly as good. The base is a vanilla wood that doesn't do much of anything. Lasting power is poor, this all happens in about 2 hours.

To be honest if I didn't know that it was Apres l'Ondee I wouldn't have like it much at all. I guess the hype gets into your head after awhile.

My guess is that my sample is either old, or hasn't been stored well, or that the EDT just isn't up to standard with other concentrations. It's too bad that such a highly loved scent is discontinued, because now I'll never get to experience how wonderful this could be. At any rate I'm glad I only got a sample and didn't do something rash like bidding $150 for a bottle on Ebay.

My first smell of this perfume carried my back 15 years and across the Atlantic to Florence on one the worst days of my life. I was there on business and grimly miserable since my marriage had just broken up and it was a coppery hot July day in a place I didn't want to be. To make things better a heavy rain opened up and drenched me to the skin. I dashed into a museum that turned out to be the home of Dante Alighieri. I walked through that fine home loathing myself for not loving his city that he pined for in exile. The misery increased until I became teary and snuffly. I ultimately ended up in an arcade on the top floor looking out over the old city. At some point the rain stopped and the sky cleared to that lovely grey-white that I've only seen in Italy. That's when I realized that my nose was being flooded by orange blossom and geranium in tubs and pots, that in that light were the most intense red and white I'd ever experienced. Within seconds I'd reached a place of serenity that I hadn't felt for years.

Thus the power of scent and the necessity of perfume.

This may be the best orange blossom I've ever experienced in a bottle. The violet is there but it somehow purifies and intensifies the orange. The carnation is subtle and the iris is purple. If I stroke my wrist hard I get a delightful mint that is probably a dry anise. Even the EDT is absolutely intoxicating. If you love great florals you should seek this out.
Sillage: medium
Durability: good so far
Fabulosity: heaven may be located in this bottle
Price to value ratio: the pearl of great price
10/10

review based on the Eau de toilette
(Parfum extrait is no longer available)

To me, this scent is a porte-bonheur, evoking the music of Claude Debussy and impressionist paintings...(1906!).

The aldehyde C.14 had not yet been invinted in 1906 (it came 2 years later), but in 1877 the German chemists Tiemann and Herzfeld had managed the syntheseis of the "aldéhyde anisique" using a substance called anethol - and this is what was used to give Apres l'Ondée its muted charme. I can't tell if the formula has changed over the years - and if so - how - but the fine balance of the notes, the magic of this composition always makes my heart sing! I am no chemist - let alone a perfumer - and I always feel that unless you don't know 100% what's in a perfume (and would they ever tell us???), there's always much speculation going on about the actual components which I am in no position of taking apart.
What I can say is that Apres l'ondée is very well rounded - it does not fall into pieces, top-notes are not much different from the scent's heart - it is all a lovely, consistent cloud of sheer beauty.
Apres l'ondée is a quiet scent, I feel comfortable wearing it... no fabulous sillage, no monster-longevity... I can reapply the EdT during the day without disturbing others...and enjoy the fragrance again.

Apres l'Ondée is a perfume which speaks of tranquility, of quiet landscapes, of tenderness, too. It has a meditative touch, it's the epitomy of a finely balanced perfume where every note is 100% necessary, nothing superflous... nothing to be added or to be taken away. Harmony in a bottle. An absolute masterpiece.
10 out of 10 points on my personal scale

(Edt Review)

This is l'heure violette!!

Is all about wet and delicate ethereal violets, with that nostalgic feeling which Guerlian re-used for l'heure bleue, but Apres l'Ondee is not as heavy, and doesn't last much. It's funny but the most beautiful things in life doesn't last long either, so I dont feel sorry or disappointed by Apres l'Ondee. Another Outstanding masterpiece from Guerlain.

The softest and gentlest fragrance, a beauty! There's a bit of a blast at first spritz with the citrus and bergamot and a hint of anise-that doesn't bother me in the least. Slowly dries down into powdery and dewy florals of violets and then the coolest vanilla emerges. The vanilla base really strikes me as cool, not cold, like a chilly, unexpected breeze in the spring.

Apres l'Ondee doesn't make me want to lounge around and reflect on things like L'heure Bleue does, it's more of a dreamy romantic scent, it's more positive, it puts a smile on my face.

I love violets, TRULY love them, combined with just about anything, actually, and thought I'd never run into a fragrance that was just too much violet, but that day has arrived.

Like harlequin, I was deeply saddened to discover this respected beauty likes neither my skin nor my nose, after a promising, even glorious first 15 minutes. In fact, the first 15 minutes would make me part with Big Money if I happened to be testing it at the perfume counter and made a snap decision, but that would be a dire mistake.

After 15 minutes all I get is tinned violet candy, sugar and baby powder... the people I was with while wearing it yesterday actually wrinkled their noses when they asked what it was. Talk about having the wind taken out of my sails, wow! I knew after those 15 minutes that it wasn't something I'd ever wear again but I didn't think I really smelled bad to other people's noses.

None of the gorgeous basenotes appear when I wear Apres l'Ondee, and certainly no anise (another of my favorites that nearly makes me drool, as in Aimez-Moi, a true violet wonder.) Actually, there's not one single note in Apres l'Ondee that I don't enjoy in other fragrances... so why doesn't this Grand Dame like me?

I've made no secret of the fact that I detest the use of "old lady" to describe a fragrance, and I certainly won't use it here, but in Apres l'Ondee I've finally run into a a fragrance that I think I'm still waaaaay too young to wear. In fact, my Apres l'Ondee experience was a spot-on impersonation of my great aunt's sacheted hankie box, one with a hinged lid that was covered in a quilted satin material.

I can only hope to encounter this beauty on other people. And I'll do the world a favor and not wear it myself.

This is a truly glorious perfume! On my skin, the notes play gently like notes on a piano- or like rain gently falling against a window. There is nothing cluttered or muddy about this scent at all. I find it elegant, simple, intellectual, and introspective. A real pity it is so hard to find in the US these days. :(

At one point I was indiscriminately adding every Guerlain creation to my "want" list. Well, that practice came to a screeching halt after my blunderous blind buy of a 100ml bottle of the eminently unwearable (on my skin..) INSOLENCE. However, APRES L'ONDEE made the cut: already on the list. And now, thanks, to generous fragrantican lulia, who sent me a spray atomizer decant "juste comme cela", I can affirm that this gorgeous beauty belongs on the list!

APRES L'ONDEE strikes a balance between classic Guerlain--which to some people is unapproachable, inaccessible, or just too demanding to wear--and Guerlain's recent attempts (with debatable success...) to cater to just that crowd. Although this composition was created in the early twentieth century by the master himself, it captures the floral Guerlain essence without the incumbrance of all of the heavy artillery that comes with L'HEURE BLEUE and SHALIMAR, both of which are decidedly more oriental--and blue--than APRES L'ONDEE.

To my nose, APRES L'ONDEE is all about purple flowers: violet, iris, heliotrope--an abundance of royalty is here on display. The violet is the most dominant note to my nose, and here it has not been destroyed by the admixture of candied raspberries and plastic. No, this is voluptuous violet as it was meant to be, naturally sweet, and altogether unadulterated by scary molecules synthesized in organic chemistry labs. This is breathtaking violet in all its abundant simplicity.

Iris and heliotrope play supporting roles in what is a bouquet with the characteristic powdery Guerlain texture and lightly vanilla-ized scent but without the intense notes which can make other Guerlain classics difficult to wear.

APRES L'ONDEE remains on my wish list! Thank you lulia for sharing this wonder with me!!!!!

I can see why many like this it is artistically brilliant. But I honestly just cant wear it because it smells to me really significantly like oriental food, the spices in cooking, maybe strange I know but it really just triggers that for me. Wonder if anyone else finds this. I do think it could be pulled off by some.

to harlequin1572

There is a good method to avoid change of the scent due to contact with skin - spray it on your clothes. The perfume will smell exactly like from the bottle.

This is a sad moment for me: I have finally decided to admit that my skin simply will not accept the glorious gifts this masterpiece has to offer.

Out of the bottle, the scent is exactly as the previous reviewers have described - a field of flowers freshened by raindrops, and you think, A scent like this will make the ugliest frog seem appealing to a princess! But it seems my skin is worse than a frog's, turning this field of dreams into a disturbing duet of aniseed and spicy carnation that makes me physically tense. Not a hint of violets or iris; just a spice drawer all the way through. (Why me?!?!?!)

While I'm looking for a human-to-frog skin graft, I'll ponder this unbearably harsh lesson about sampling perfumes first, no matter how well-reviewed.

EDIT: I've heard rumors that Apres l'Ondee might have been mildly reformulated and made spicier. If that's true, maybe I'm not a frog after all. What has slightly better skin than a frog? - maybe I'm a lizard...

Apres L'Ondee is a soft dewy floral that actually reminds me of rain. It's one of those scents that takes me back to my childhood. I had an aunt that was about 12 years older than me, and I remember the scent of her lipsticks and perfumes on her dresser. That's where Apres L'Ondee takes me, to my aunt's bedroom, playing with makeup and listening to Moon River on her little record player. It also reminds me of another favorite Guerlain, Champs Elysees, and they share some notes: anise, mimose, rose. But while CE makes me feel happy and uplifted, Apres makes me feel a little melancholy and pensive.

Albert Einstein once said “The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and science.”

I believe Al said this after sniffing Apres L’ondee. With this many ingredients, and with this many years gone by, an awful lot can go wrong but doesn’t. That is the beauty.

This isn’t a perfume as much as it is an emotional experience. Whenever I put this on, no matter what time of year, I’m instantly transported to the springtime of my youth. I lived in Minnesota, where spring meant goodbye to snow (sad), and hello to grass shoots, tulips and baby birds (happy). No other perfume captures melancholy optimism with such perfection. That is the mystery.

Here’s the rest of Einstein’s quote “He to whom this emotion is a stranger, who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead: his eyes are closed."

Don’t let Apres L’Ondee be a stranger.

Usually I am not fond of older guerlains-the base is too old fashioned for my taste. Apres L'ondee however almost smells modern, like something Annick Goutal would create. Really does smell like flowers after a rainfall, fresh and feminine! I can detect gentle notes of jasmine and violet and something vegetal. it smells natural and gorgeous- very balanced as well.

I'm just getting to know this fragrance- it carries a long trail of expectations, as do many of the older Guerlain scents- and I am pleased to say that, finally, I've found an older Guerlain that I like and that likes me back!

I'm not even going to try to compete with the poetical rhapsodies of other fellow lovers of this fragrance- for me, it can be best summed up in just two words-

Violet creamsicle!

A beautiful perfume. these days perfumes smell synthetic. If you like violets, then you will like this. It is a soft, gentle perfume. that has been blended so well. I find it comforting, romantic and nostalgic.

My Great Aunty Kitty wore this perfume. She was a very classy lady. As a child I loved going to her house. Antique clocks would chime in various rooms and the smell of this perfume would gently waft,making you feel comfortable and secure. This perfume is truly beautiful, just like my beutiful Aunty Kitty.

I have heard that many love L'Heure Bleue and write off Après L'Ondée as less complex-and I have also heard that Après L'Ondée is the more beautiful-and more melancholy fragrance-more approachable than the other more popular classic. I became acquainted with the smell of L'Heure Bleue from working a few years in a retirement home-clean but powdery anise is that blue hour, that familiar old signature sillage.

I can smell the iris (among other notes) in common, but this stormy scent has a crisp and muted quality-a fresh violet, that epitomizes violet perfection for me(I don't like violets generally)....
This is the scent of burying yourself in tender leaves, covering yourself in violets, feeling drizzle, smelling the scent before a fantastic storm-the sky becoming grey and charged....And then you wake up at your great-grandmother's house (whom you are not acquainted with)-there is a gentle powdery scent in the air-a dusty but cozy and eerily familiar aroma. The rain is pounding on the windows, you are seated on a faded lace-covered cushion in a well-preserved sitting room-the branches stir at the windowsill and all seems still. That is Après L'Ondée....

The initial crackle of neroli fades into a tapestry of anise, violet, and jasmine. These smoky, dusky colors are punctuated by violent jabs of carnation, woods, and dry benzoin rising from the base. These is something melancholic about Apres l'Ondee, but there's also something sharp and edgy about it. It seems more lively than wistful, more cranky than soothing. Too spicy to wear to sleep, too memory-provoking to release the imagination.

Unfortunately, Apres l'Ondee does not sit right on my skin; it feels nervous and off-kilter. I count myself lucky to have no desire to own this one; it's quite overpriced.

I had to have this after reading the reviews, so I made the trek to the Guerlain store on Bloor Street. Absolutely beautiful scent - like an elusive memory. This is the fragrance I have been seeking but could never describe.

After rain... A cloudy, dreamy morning. Ghosts haunting your great-grandmother's distant estate. Wet birch-tree benches. Pale ethereal Degas' ballerinas dancing on the crushed violet petals. Fluid visions of the past. Or the future? Transparent, like solemn tears, which you can't tell from the rain drops anymore. Yellow pages of a Virginia Woolf's book. The ticking of an old clock. At first, a crisp, pure voice of my little sister being born and then a subtle incoherent murmure of my great-grandmother on her deathbed. A daily reminder of how fragile human life is. After rain, so be it. EDT only, which is so so subtle, gosh I literally have to pour it on to enjoy this masterpeiece. Pure parfum I found costs $3000. It is a crime.

The violet/mauve hue of the label suits it very well, because of the heliotrope/iris notes; I think of it as the 'quiet Guerlain', as it has the depth and richness of the underlying base that is characteristic and distinctive of the older Guerlain fragrances, but it not nearly so loud as L'Heure Bleue. For that reason you can wear it during the day, and even to work, and rely on it being distinctive but not overpowering. It is certainly going to mark you out as different, but perhaps in such a low key way that people are not entirely conscious of it. Classic and classy, but still romantic

Since I recently got my hands on this stunningly beautiful gem it has been in heavy rotation. I'm getting afraid that these precious 100 ml will not last for very long.

Apres l'Ondee has everything I want from a perfume. The anis, violet, jasmine and vanilla is dominant on my skin and the scent is extremely soft and comforting. It's wonderful for lazy days, evening wear or right before going to sleep when you emotions are a bit more sensitive. It washes away a stressful working day and I have even sprayed a little on my pillow as suggested from a forum member, which also made the bed to a heaven for a few nights.

As said before this perfume lacks the social dimension as it doesn't create attention among surronding individuals. Insted it is a quiet, clean and calming fragrance which I love to enjoy on my own.

I joined Fragrantica hoping to track down my one and only signature. Instead I have learnt about the aroma-therapeutic qualities of different fragrances and how to be more aware of how I feel and how different fragrances can influence my emotional life. And for that I'm very grateful to this forum.

There is something uncanny about this breathtaking masterpiece. Uncanny (Unheimlich) in the Freudian sense: familiar but foreign; paradoxical; seductively troubling.

What I find most disarming about Après l’Ondée, is its balance of sweetness and solemnity. The name signals a degree of separation between the fragrance and the rain. But for me the distance feels spatial rather than temporal, like watching the rain from the warmth of a sumptuous room. Subtle lemon and prominent heliotrope keep it joyful. A gentle dose of violet and the predominant, cool iris root add a sense of longing and nostalgia. Vetiver and benzoin balance bitter and sweet. The overall composition is rich but lilting, grounded but uplifting, distant but welcoming. Like a pastel painting displayed on a stone gray wall.

I mourn the parfum version which is no longer produced, but I am confident its ghost haunts the exquisite EDT.

High quality, long-lasting, and remarkably different from the Guerlains built on a vanilla base.

This is the only scent that brought tears to my eyes the first time I sniffed it. It is so melancholic, so bittersweet!
Having said that I love and admire it totally. No perfume has ever moved me so emotionally and I see that as a good thing.

MASTERPIECE, but-- what Madame Butterfly would wear while comMitting harakiri. the deee-lish guerlinade under the sepulchral, DEPRESSION-INDUCING vile-et isn't enough reward. hurts me to write that.

My love for perfume all started with my purchase of a bottle of Après L'Ondeé... .
It has to me one of the most intense olfactive memories and associations and I treasured the fragrance like it was the most precious thing to me.
I love it, it opened a whole new world to me. I will keep on wearing it.

I recieved a tiny sample, and a great pleasure. Sometimes I check the Fragrantica database information on notes and history before testing, and, sometimes not. This time I just casually chose my new scent to test, popped open the cap. I thought..oh, a garden scent! I cannot say floral, I cannot say green, all I can think, and picture- is garden. At first application I thought of how odd and intriguing the scent is. I also thought it reproduced some cloudy familiarity from childhood, perhaps the favorite of an Aunt of mine, or a similar soap or dusting powder. Those were my initial impressions. I came here to the database to gather the details, read about the composition. I can write and say that I am mesmerized by the combination of sandalwood and mimose. I love the spicy tingles within all the floral notes, and the base is strong and a combination of all the deep, earthy scents I love. I cannot write too much here, perhaps I am in awe, and a bit confused at the same time while experiencing this scent for the first time. Others here before me have fashioned thier ideas and scenes so well. Please Please, read below and take thier well crafted words to understand better how wonderful, unique, and complex this scent is.

This is the kind of fragrance that you wear for you, and you alone. It's the scent I wear when I'm home with my husband and our daughter on lazy weekend mornings. It's the scent I reach for before I go to bed. While it is not a fragrance that I get many compliments on, that's not a bad thing. Let me explain: it wears very close to the skin and gives the impression that you smell beautiful, clean and fresh - not that your perfume does. I love the opening notes with their slightly herbal and grassy edge. As the scent develops it becomes the most beautiful aroma of slightly spicy, fresh flowers. I think it's carnation and violet I love so much here. How wonderful that it's feminine without being sweet. It makes me feel calm and happy. To me it's a beautiful scent to be worn casually.

I love this one. It's sweet but fresh and not at all artificial - reminds me of gorse-flowers - that wild honey smell. Plus it has been around since 1906! Let's celebrate the enduring scents from the past rather than buying into the new ones which smell like alco-pops!

I agree with Jalutschka; this is Debussy set to scent, and Monet's palette in the air, an Impressionist masterpiece. It is all pastels and sweet melody, gently smudged outlines and sustained chords, and it is so beautiful that it brings tears to the eyes. The anise, violet and carnation, along with the woody resin base, give Apres l'Ondee its shape, and iris/orris root gives it its wistful elegance. The sweetness of the heliotrope keeps circling round -- every time I think, well, it's gone, and what could I expect of so ethereal a fragrance? -- there's the heliotrope again. This lasted, even in eau de toilette, for more than four hours on my dry winter skin, and I expect it might persist longer when the weather warms a little.

This is spring in a bottle: the beauty of blooming things, the delicacy of their blossoms, and the ephemeracy of pure joy. Spring doesn't last, but it is all the more beautiful because it passes so quickly, and so it is with Apres l'Ondee.

A very unusual fragrance. I didn't think I would like to wear this when I first sprayed it on, though I was instantly aware of its quality. There is no hint of sweetness and it doesn't seem in any way feminine to me (not masculine either - very neutral). I am aware of the aniseed note all the way through and this gives the fragrance a melancholic and haunting quality that makes me want to keep having another sniff, so that I find myself captivated and intrigued. It is so beautifully blended it is impossible to pick out most of the individual notes (except the aniseed), which is typical of so many Guerlains. I agree with klonk that it is a true work of art. Definitely worth trying!

Light, creamy violet and vanilla. Gorgeous and clear like watery violet over ice cream. A very beautiful and ephemeral fragrance, hard to find now.

A legendary melancholic blast from the past! i've associated it with my mothers much older professional associate, a very graceful and beautiful woman that wore Chanel suits, spoke fluently french, had the perfect chignons and was educated in Wien. She died from cancer in her mid-fifties and this was her signature scent. With all this on mind i could never wore this just cause i can't possibly fit in this tremendously radiant lady's shoes. Sadly i can't experience this spicy womanly opening, the wonderfuly mild lighthanded greeness, wth honeyed sweet nothings and the lovely perfectly judged spicy amber drydowmn. An undeniably classic.

This smells Divine! Clean, floral opening. What amazed me is that there was no "sweetness" in the top notes which I found unique for a lady scent.
the middle note are decadent blend of lots of flower but I can feel the lovely dewy-green aroma now and then. It purplexed me so much I test it twice within 24 hours. So rich and opulent but manages to give the freshness aura. This is something I would love to wear to a formal meeting because it gives "nice & reliable-person" feel. Though wearing it to bed will surely give me the restfull sleep and a sweet dream!

A work of art. Truly the most beautiful scent I ever had the chance to wear... Soft floral, romantic, fresh yet warm, slightly sweet and powdery, sophisticated, classy, sad and happy scent. A perfume that really awakes emotions.