Piper Leather Illuminum for women and men

Cuiron. Piper Leather is almost a literal reproduction of the soft peppery-suedey accord of the sadly discontinued Helmut Lang's Cuiron. If for a few aspects it may sound as a total rip-off, now that Cuiron have become extremely rare and you have to pay up to $250 for a bottle, Piper Leather is the only plausible alternative available on the market. Nice projection and good lasting power.

If you already own the Helmut Lang, stick with it, otherwise Piper Leather is an extremely valid alternative.

Rating: 8/10

Another mistake made by this maison in my opinion. Piper Leather opens up with some pepper and other spices mixed with civetta in a combination that has no appealing effect on me. I was unable to detect a bright, easy to spot leather note in this one. If you're looking for a leather based fragrance please avoid this one. Do not trust the name of this fragrance. The notes in here are so unbalanced that you will regret blind buying it.

I think Tommy Bahama (original) would be a wiser choice if you're going for this look- it's a more-complex rendition of the black pepper/coriander sparklies atop sexy base. Or Dirty English, for that matter.

The pepper and olibanum are very strong to my nose, so strong that I have to really concentrate to pick out the leather, which is a shame. There are many leather fragrances that I appreciate but this isn't one of them. Personally I think this is more of a man's scent than a woman's, because the pepper and olibanum make it sooooo heavy. There's little trace of the animalic side which the listed civet and leather notes suggest.


I have found all the Illuminum perfumes I've tried to be a little clumsy. In my opinion most of their fragrances are either brash and loud or so fleeting that they vanish within a couple of hours, but your mileage may vary.