Poudre D’Orient Le Labo for women and men

I was initially taken aback somewhat by Le Labo POUDRE D'ORIENT, which must have dashed my expectations--though I must say that it's entirely unclear why I should have had any in the first place... In any case, my first reaction was that this composition was similar in some ways to Prada INFUSION D'IRIS--which also surprised me a lot the first time I wore it. In the case of POUDRE D'ORIENT, I felt as though I was perceiving a dominant super-finely powdered cedar supporting the composition. Yet cedar is not listed among the notes.

Whatever accounts for the fine powdery quality of POUDRE D'ORIENT, I have to say that I am becoming addicted to it. Now that I know what's in the bottle, I find myself reaching for it more and more... The violet and vanilla mingle with the pseudo-cedar powder to produce a very pleasing texture which is not too sweet and does not actually smell like vanilla (good news for those who dislike vanilla frags...). The patchouli, too, is very low key--if detectable at all. Of course, that's in part a result of the preponderance of über-patchouli perfumes on the market today, many of which simultaneously offer super-saturated vanilla solutions. This creation is nothing like those, you may rest assured.

I really like POUDRE D'ORIENT and recommend it to those who appreciate gently woody violet perfumes.

This is such a fascinating fragrance, yet it's one that takes a while to become accustomed to. After the first wearing I didn't like it all too much, but since wearing it these last few days, I must say I'm quite hooked.

Poudre d'Orient is a dusty and unique violet fragrance. It opens with a very cosmetic-type smell, like the scent of old-fashioned lipsticks and pressed powder. After it settles, the muskiness disappears leaving a smooth, slightly powdery and feminine violet.

It's quite an intimate fragrance in the sense that the sillage is not all that strong. It also has an adorable quaintness, which is like a breath of fresh air for me. Poudre d'Orient is perhaps not as strong as Le Labo's heavy hitting fragrances like Oud 27 and Rose 31, but it carries a lot of presence.

The drydown is the best bit. I smell an icy and creamy blend of violet, vanilla and patchouli. It's only slightly sweetened on the skin, and I can honestly say it's one of the prettiest vanilla drydowns I've come across so far. I enjoyed it so much more than Vanille 44 by the same house.

It's a pity these fragrances are only exclusive to Anthropologie stores. I would have liked to see these fragrances hit the Australian shores. Le Labo irritates me sometimes when they make half their fragrances exclusive to certain parts of the world. Since they are one of my favourite niche houses, I won't rest until I've tried them all.