Hermes Hiris

I have a love/hate relationship with Hiris like I do with Iris Silver Mist, but with Hiris it’s physical, with ISM it’s psychological. I agree with every negative review I read about Hiris. I get the hairspray, the metal, the carrots; yet I also agree with the positive comments. I get the blue sky, and the lovely almond which is the ultimate comfort note for me. So I would have to say I love this fragrance, but it tends to wear on me--the top notes are too sharp, the drydown kind of cloying, even though I love the overall effect. I'm always on the fence about this one.

I can't get past Perfume Shrine's review of Yardley Iris where a strong resemblance to Hiris was highlighted. I went through two bottles of Yardley Iris using it as a cheap splash, suffering through the lavender opening until the soft woody iris came through, and as Elena promised, it was very similar to Hiris. As with Hiris it didn't adhere to skin and snuck away. Other similarities extend into Kelly Caleche and Eau de Narcisse Bleu. Hiris does stand alone, a pedestal apart from Prada's Infusion D'Iris and Armani's Pierre de Lune, but it's very expensive now and I ponder its worth in monetary terms. Victoria Frolova's first review of Hiris stamped it as a budget scent, an everyday fragrance that was office friendly. Well, it sure aint a budget scent anymore. Perfumery is a science of aroma chemicals and molecules and improvements are happening all the time. Perhaps our perfect cool iris is in the pipeline. I don't think Hiris is my perfect cool iris, I prefer some projection or a cheaper price.

Love this. When first applied, it does remind me of carrots covered in earthy dirt. But it is oh so nice once that fades away. It smells sophisticated and richly feminine. Others complain that it doesn't last long, but for me it does. Try this if you like Prada Infusion d'Iris. This one willl knock that one right out of the water. It is quietly reserved, but elegant at the same time. It makes me smile when I wear it. The gorgeous blue frosted bottle with the golden cap is perfection. I will always have some of this concoction on hand.

Hiris is a introverted elegance a well-poised muse
never reveals herself within words nor action just
her scent of Iris, Hiris opens with it's homage the
Iris a flower a symbol of refinedness and modesty
a scent of cool orris earth adds to the sharp coldness
of the fragrance, the coriander subtle enough not to
cloy over the iris but noticeable in it's spicy drydown
diluted amber dries the top note, delicate and elusive
note of Rose opens the middle note softens the sharpness
of the Iris with it's velvet texture a demure beauty
Neroli turns the fragrance a bit citrusy and grounded.
The drydown consists of unsweeted honey makes an organic
and woodsy finish to this almost of a masterpiece of a
scent next dry cedar conjours a feeling of a forest
after the midnight rain fresh and finishes with almond
tree an nutty accord.

Hiris is a class of it's own not Loud gaudy kitschy
it doesn't take bright colorful sequins dolly heads
fake rhinestones on bottle it's a simple dark blue
bottle less is more.

This is a beautiful, dry composition. Iris with a carrot, earth and ambrette. Ambrette's funny on me: in Chanel No. 18, it smells like vomit, like someone threw up on a bunch of flowers. I wrote a long since deleted review of the Chanel, indicating this was the main problem when I wore No 18. In Hiris, the feel of ambrette might be one of the factors that keep it from seeming too ephemeral -- this is just a guess -- I get a hay-like musky skin scent (? weird description) and ambrette is sort of warm, but Hiris is not a warm scent -- so, yeah, really odd. Maybe I just don't understand what ambrette does, exactly. Overall, Hiris is a cold scent with substance.
At first it seems transparent -- and sure, it is -- but it's remarkably resilient and solid. Lasting power is terrific. It's like toughened glass: you see through it, but it's not delicate. Love the earth. I hear a lot about how this smells like the roots of a plant. I'll take your word for it. It's wonderful and grounding, whatever it is.
The fact that it isn't floral overload is fabulous. I don't like many scents with major iris, except for this, the icy Lutens and the juicy / warm Ferre by Bourdon (called, unsurprisingly, 'Ferre'), which is much better and a more expansive version of his Iris Poudre. Oh -- and No 19 and No 19 Poudre -- both of which have a great framework for the iris, but don't make the note as prominent as in Hiris, in case that's what you're looking for. The Le Labo one was, quite frankly, dull -- I don't like the LLabo line, except for the Menardo (all hail her). The Different Company one was nice enough but, as far as I recall, had some other note that takes attention away from the iris -- violet, maybe? I don't remember exactly. I love violet, so that's fine, but if memory serves, TDC is not a totally iris-y iris. I'm undecided by the VC&A, but know for sure I wouldn't pay the RRP.
Now -- Iris Silver Mist is cold as Hiris, although less 'papery', more layered and earthy, and possibly the only other scent I know that makes a really chilly iris. The Lutens is more textured, more 'tinny' (in a good way) less linear. But the sheer force of Hiris -- cold, flat, modern, complex, see-through, solid, dry -- is a worthy rival.
Giacobetti does to iris what she does to campfire smoke in Chaman's Party: she keeps the major player resilient but supports it with an interesting cast.

So the Lutens would be some superbly dressed, robot-ninja with a will to kill (yeah, baby! love her -- she has weapons!). No. 19 would be a CIA operative and also the wiser sister of the corporate killer that is Gucci Envy (Envy's far more ruthless and she smells of money). No 19 Poudre would be -- pretty much anyone. You know what I mean? That anonymous person you can never describe to the police. "She looked...normal.". The neighbours never suspect her of whatever crime she's committed, because she's so normal. But she lived in a mid-terraced house on an average income and how exactly did she get all those bank accounts in the Cayman Islands and where is she now?!

Hiris reminds me of taking a stance and resolutely saying no. And just not budging. Not for fear of death. Not for love or approval. Not for anything. I guess in a woman like this is unattractive, unappealing, take your pick of negative adjectives. In a man, this sort of thing would be considered a virtue. It's tough to write a strong female character without a love affair that goes right or wrong, a high pressure job done well or badly, active tenacity... or big, big guns (and I like chicks with guns so I'm not knocking this one).
So one day, I reckon, I'll skip the guns and ammo stuff and just think about a chick, a pretty regular chick with no apparent issues. A chick that isn't defined by what she wears, or the gun she carries, or her biceps, or some guy she's after or not after (seriously -- how often is there not a love interest?). She'd just say no. And keep saying it whether it means that no one likes her or she's not a team player or it'll be the end of the world unless she says yes. It'd start with a no. And maybe stuff will happen in between that questions her perspective, paints her as a psychopath or colours her wrong (and god forbid) not very nice. But at the end, her answer will still be -- you guessed it -- no. I'd scent her with Hiris.

Not as iris-y as I was expecting. Opens with what seemed to me more of a lily note which made me wonder if I received the right sample. I suppose this is the carrot-y note everyone is talking about. This predominates over the iris. Not a bad fragrance: very cool and refined and nice for summer, but not particularly grand either. The bottle is very attractive with the gorgeous cobalt blue.

Nice Work! a lovely light rooty iris witht he same dolorous quality as Iris Silver Mist. Not as complex and not as long lasting, but a lovely everyday fragrance for iris lovers. I much prefer this to Ferre or Iris Poudre although for a fresh iris bouquet I would still go for Bas de Soie. I find Hiris a bit fleeting but it was os cheap online that I can spray a lot - and I do

It's interesting to read that the carrot note seem predominate to so many of us. Huh. We're all so different, thank heavens. I get iris, iris, and more iris. I can live with that. For some, this is a summer frag; for me it's all winter coziness that sooths my tired soul a bit as I bite the bullet, bundle up, and grumpily stomp out the door to face a nasty wind that chills to the bone. I bought a small bottle of this unsampled and on a whim and lucked out for once. It's a lovely scent on me and somehow I can imagine stars of the 40's and 50's wearing this one if it had been around then because it strikes me as subtly glamorous.

Oh my !!! Wasn't expecting to like this at all, given that it is a light scent. But what hasn't been mentioned is that it is a fascinating scent. Really loving Hermes. While I do not love all their frags, there is no mistaking that they do not skimp on quality. Hiris goes on sharp, metallic with that unmistakable bitter carrot seed note (check out essential oils and you'll know). Then there is an underlying delicate sweetness that pokes out occasionally. Then the lovely comforting smell of bread dough (not baked). It is unlike anything I have ever smelled and I ordered a bottle immediately from Hermes. And did I mention the packaging? I would wear it as jewellery if I could. Heavy, heavy rectangular with rounded edges in cobalt blue frosted glass with mushroom shaped cap of acrylic and gold. Stunning.
Now, I don't buy for the packaging, but I appreciated that they respect my business (and the money I paid for this) by giving me the best they could. Thank you! This is a light scent that I think will perform best in hot weather. For now, in the dead of winter, I get the best performance from spraying on my decollete and clothes. I should also mention when I tried the tester, for the first few minutes I smelled absolutely nothing, nada, zip, zilch, then after about 10 mins., it starts and reached its full beauty at about hour 2 then faded to a very lovely light musk by about hour 5 or 6, yet I can still smell it sometimes the next morning. Lasts forever on fabric and is practically the only scent I can stomach when I'm feeling the flu. Blows my mind completely that Turin rated this beauty so poorly, but then again Bulgari Black got 5 stars, rather a lot for honey and treacle trapped in the treads of car tires. I guess even he makes mistakes. This one's a mystery and a beauty and I highly, highly recommend. Please Hermes, never stop making this!!

Lovely iris fragrance. This doesn't seem nearly as sweet as many other iris fragrances, nor is it steely-cold. It's a neutral iris that is very easy to wear.