Serge Lutens • El Attarine • Fragrances

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elaborate on 8/21/2009 10:45:00 PM more reviews by elaborate

Age: Unknown   Skin: Other   Hair: Other   Eyes: Other    

I love Dior's Dolce Vita (DV). I love it's sweetness, the peachy creamy fluffiness, and the cumin/cinnamon note that sets off the fruits. I spritz and spritz the EDT. Lateron I bought the parfum too. An older bottle of the parfum smells richer and more complicated than a younger one. The difference is noticeable when put side by side, the reformulation doesn't make it bad IMHO, but some of the interesting naunces imparted by the use of a wider set of spices are gone. Turin gave DV 2 stars, he says, DV used to be glorious but is reformulated into a chemical mess. I think he's being too harsh but I agree with what he said about the earlier version being superior.

This summer I visited Paris. In SL's HQ I smelt El Attarine for the first time. I said to myself - this is the original DV, enhanced, kind of like a "DV Extreme". So despite the million jars of DV I hoard at home, I plunged for a 75ml Bell Jar.

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eelriverrose on 5/6/2009 7:17:00 PM more reviews by eelriverrose

Age: 56 & Over   Skin: Normal   Hair: Brown   Eyes: Hazel    

Lord, another snoozer from Serge. To my nose, it is sort of like a combination of Rouge, Louve and a pinch of Arabie. I get wisps of the spices, cedar, and immortelle, but the effect is desultory, a bit like opening an old cedar chest and experiencing a subtle exhalation of woods, dust, potpourri and sadness. It has the cloying undertone I recoiled from in Rouge. I get the feeling I'd need to use quite a bit to make an impact, as I used more than an average amount from my sample vial and still barely smelled it. I prefer a treacherously expensive scent that is a bit more concentrated! Perhaps sprayed rather than dabbed, perhaps on a warm summer night rather than a rainy spring day....I might have a more favorable response. It's a nice scent, but as Paschat remarked, too complicated and indistinct for it's own good. The drydown after several hours is soft and nuzzly warm -- a little like Parfums de Nicolai Sacre Bleu! -- but it doesn't entirely redeem this scent for me.

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Judix on 4/20/2009 5:16:00 AM more reviews by Judix

Age: 30-35   Skin: Combination, Fair-Medium, Warm   Hair: Brunette, Curly, Fine   Eyes: Brown    

I am so sad this lovely piece doesn't get more love. To me it's the best option if Arabie is too fierce for you. Reminiscent of Santal de Mysore and of the Bois series but with a gustative sweetness that still does not make you drool for food all day. I find it very classy and yet sultry. I got a Bell Jar last week and I have absolute no second thoughts about my 110 euros.

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*TOP REVIEWER* Wyrmiax on 3/10/2009 5:02:00 PM more reviews by Wyrmiax

Age: 44-55   Skin: Very Oily, Fair-Medium   Hair: Brown, Straight, Medium   Eyes: Hazel    

Like sunshine and syrup. Gets a faint sweaty note in the drydown.

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*TOP REVIEWER* therese108 on 9/28/2008 11:20:00 PM more reviews by therese108

Age: 36-43   Skin: Combination   Hair: Black   Eyes: Black    

Sampled this brand-new addition to the Exclusive bell-jar line in the Salons du Palais Royal Shiseido. The young, femme SA was very helpful. There's a row of pre-dipped blotters for all the scents that you can sniff, and if you do decide to test one on skin, she spreads it on your wrist with a blotter and advises you to take a walk in the park outside for 20 minutes while the fragrance develops before making a final decision. Well, with El Attarine I couldn't get past the blotter. Meant to evoke golden topaz and the sun, El Attarine smells the opposite to me, like a humid night of wild sex with a person who possibly hasn't bathed in weeks. Yes, fans of Muscs Koublai Khan will get a definite sense of deja vu from El Attarine. Along with the animal musks I smelled a lot of oud, commonly worn and favored by Arab women but a dense olfactory experience for everyone else. When I commented that El Attarine was "tres animalique," the SA seemed highly amused. I couldn't tell whether she agreed with me or thought I was a total nutter. Anyway, on paper this is most certainly a fall/winter scent that I recommend MKK fans try. I'd love to see a review by someone brave enough to actually wear the fragrance on their skin. El Attarine's notes include honey, cumin, red saffron, poppy seeds, jasmine, woods and immortelle.

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debrsl on 9/27/2008 7:33:00 PM more reviews by debrsl

Age: 44-55   Skin: Dry   Hair: Brown   Eyes: Brown    

At first, the orange and spices are fresher. It eventually becomes orange potpourri.

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