Re: Your favourite lavender fragrance
10 years ago
Sleuth:
Hi, could you suggest a good lavender fragrance for me? Preferably a fresh one that's good for spring, and not a heavy fougère. (I already know Platinum Égoïste, Pour un Homme, L'Occitan p.Homme, Eldo Antiheros, Rive Gauche and the one from Prada)
Sleuth, this is a difficult question.
One of my prefered lavender fragrances is "Oxford & Cambridge" but this is definitely a heavy fougère. I think a good
and fresh lavender perfume is yet to come.
The problem ist that ever since the success of Caron's "Pour un Homme" in 1949 the "serious" lavender perfumes follow the trail of combining lavender with vanilla (i.e. Nicolaï's "New York" or Odori's "Spigo"). A variation is the combination is lavender plus other oriental notes like tonka (Social Creature's "Utopian"). I particularly like Utopian but I would not call it fresh.
Then there are Serge Luten's "Gris Claire" and d'Orsay's "Arôme 3" which are a bit on the unisex side. Arôme 3 may be called fresh but it is very soft and tender.
Maybe Villoresi's "Wild Lavender" is the fragrance for you. It combines lavender wit a fresh laundry musk.
Actually, my advice would be to try a plain and simple lavender water as you can get it from traditional English brands as Geo F.Trumper, D.R. Harris or Taylor of Old Bond Street.