Niche

Perfume Review: Lys Solaberg by Maison Crivelli


Maison Crivelli is fast becoming one of the most intriguing niche perfume houses out there. I’ve said before in reviews that they seem to have the visual aesthetic down, with a simple, luxuriously-executed presentation that is rich in texture and elegant design, but most importantly, they also have novel, high-quality perfumes to match. So I guess I don’t need to say that again but I’ve already typed the words out so….. Anyway, in summary, Maison Crivelli make beautiful smelling things that look equally as gorgeous, and I am always curious to see what they are up to. So yes, big fan.

Lys Solaberg is Maison Crivelli’s tenth addition to their (rapidly expanding) collection. As with all of their perfumes, its inspired by an encounter with materials, specifically a hidden field of lilies during a night hike through a Norwegian fjord. Maison Crivelli collaborated with independent perfumer Nathalie Feisthauer (who also created Absinthe Boreale for the brand) to create Lys Solaberg, and the result is an intriguing, yet understated fragrance that brings an unexpected, woody touch (and dare I say a little bit of gourmand) to a fjord of fresh, blooming lilies.

Let’s Sniff!

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Reel: What is #EscentualScents?

You may have heard/seen me talking about something called #EscentualScents a lot recently and you may have wondered ‘what the heck is that all about?’ Well, to answer that very question I have created a Reel over on instagram that explains the concept in full. You can check it out on my instagram profile here, or embedded below the jump! For more details on #EscentualScents click here.

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Reel: Your Scent, Your Strength, Your Style @ Ormonde Jayne

Did you know that you can visit Ormonde Jayne’s boutique in London and personalise a fragrance from their Signature Collection? Well, now you do! The process is actually really cool – you pick your fragrance (from the 15 in the Signature Collection), then the concentration (up to a whopping 50%), followed by the bottle (from 8 beautiful shades). I took a trip to the boutique last week to test out the service and I made a quick Instagram Reel of my experience.

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Perfume Review: St. Vetyver by D.S. & DURGA


Vetiver is a fascinating material. It is, at once, entirely distinct, but also completely versatile, allowing itself to be pulled into various directions – each different, but each distinctly ‘vetiver’. It’s a chameleon in that way, noticeable in its bright greens, browns and yellows, but it has the ability to take on many forms to conceal itself. Vetiver’s versatility comes from its complexity – it has a wonderfully complex odour profile with facets of citrus, grapefruit, smoke, grass, hay, mineral, salt, earth, nut, malted sugar and more. Vetiver is remarkable.

For St. Vetyver, the latest fragrance from super cool indie brand D.S. & DURGA, we are whisked away to a balmy evening in the Caribbean with a vetiver that celebrates the golden, boozy and warm facets of this wonderful material. The brand calls this an “island vetyver” that “pays homage to the famous Caribbean colognes of sailors and lovers of the sea” that boasts a pure aged distillate of vetiver. It all sounds rather exciting and to be honest, they had me at ‘vetiver’, but when they threw some sailors into the mix, I was fully sold on the concept…

So is this a fantasy vetiver that transports us to tropical islands? Let’s find out.

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Perfume Review: Musc Invisible by Juliette Has a Gun


Let’s talk Juliette Has a Gun. This is a brand that sits at the intersection of mainstream and niche, with a novel olfactory output that is luxurious yet accessible, presented at a relatively reasonable price point (in niche terms, let’s be real). The brand, which was started by Romano Ricci, Nina Ricci’s great-grandson, launched in 2006 and has since unleashed a number of rebellious perfume characters that don’t take themselves too seriously. Scents like Miss Charming, with her innocent smile of strawberries and rose, and Lady Vengeance with her velvet claws painted in a deep shade of red, each showcased Juliette as a brand with a punky attitude and a unique approach to perfume. Juliette Has a Gun is an irreverent brand that may not take itself too seriously, but certainly is serious when it comes to perfumery.

I’ll admit that some of the more recent launches from Juliette Has a Gun have been a bit lacklustre. They’re always pleasant and wearable, but scents like Vanilla Vibes, Lipstick Fever (all lippie, no ‘fever’, that one) and Not a Perfume Superdose haven’t, in my opinion, lived up to the excitement of the brand’s earlier scents. It seems like they’ve moved away from creating distinct olfactory characters to something more straightforward – the quality is still there, but the playfulness isn’t as vivid. Anyway, that said, I am always keen to see what Juliette is up to and always happy to get involved with whatever mischief she may have got herself into.

With that in mind, Juliette’s latest, the intriguingly named ‘Musc Invisible‘, caught my eye. Described as “a soft, warm and cosy composition, as comfortable and unfussy as your favourite pair of jeans”, Musc Invisible showcases Juliette at her most casual. She’s taken off her heels and replaced that killer red lip with a ballerina pink gloss, thrown on a super fashionable street look and is off to take a number of posed pictures for the gram, boyfriend in tow (someone’s gotta take the shot, right?) This is Juliette dressed down but is it interesting? You’ll have to read on to find out!

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Perfume Review: Le Lion by CHANEL


We’re just over a week into 2021 and we already have the first big perfume launch of the year, which means this is my first perfume review of the year (exciting!) and it’s for a brand new CHANEL fragrance (very exciting!!) – a CHANEL Exclusif, no less (ARGH SO EXCITING!!!). This CHANEL fanboy is very please to be kicking off the year with something so wonderful – so, let’s take a few moments away from the world and enjoy a spot of scented beauty.

The latest addition to Les Exclusifs is Le Lion and it’s a long-awaited one, having launched in some territories almost one year ago! But now it’s here! As with all of the Exclusifs, Le Lion takes inspiration from the house itself, and this time the lion, the fifth sign of the zodiac and Gabrielle ‘Coco’ Chanel’s astrological sign, is the theme. In the 1920s, Coco fell in love with the city of Venice, being inspired by its art and culture, and like Chanel herself, the city existed under the guardian sign of the lion. The lion became an emblem for Chanel, both in her personal spaces (her apartment at 31 Rue Cambon was filled with lions crafted from marble, bronze and wood), but also in her clothing, with the symbol engraved on the buttons of tweed suits or the clasps of bags. The lion is a symbol of Chanel’s tenacity and endurance and this is the theme that the fragrance explores.

Le Lion the perfume, seeks to capture this tenacious personality but also the rich and exotic spirit of Venice, the city of the lion that Coco loved. CHANEL perfumer Olivier Polge was intrigued by the emblem of the lion rather than the animal itself, crafting a warm amber fragrance (I’m not using the “O” word, this is my replacement) with a “solar aura” and a “gentle strength”. Le Lion stands out as a uniquely intense and warm fragrance within Les Exclusifs, which tend to lean light, ethereal, abstract, and it is quite surprising in its richness. The big question though, is whether it was worth the wait? Well, read on and you shall see!

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On Escentual: #EscentualScents

This is a super exciting project that I am thrilled to be a part of. As you may know, I write for Escentual as their Fragrance Expert and also advise them on all things fragrance. Over the last two years, we at Escentual have run two blind fragrance trials with journalists, influencers and bloggers, all with the aim to promote discussion about new fragrance launches – it’s been really successful and immense fun. Well, now, #EscentualScents comes to you and this time, you can get in on all of the action and fun!

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Perfume Review: Rouge by Comme des Garçons


Comme des Garçons is a brand that gets a pretty regular rotation in my wardrobe. In fact, I’d go as far saying that it would would quite be odd for a week to go by without me picking out one of their scents to wear. For me, they strike that perfect balance between novel and innovative, and pleasant and wearable, which means that I reach for them quite a lot, mostly for those in the regular lineup such as the original Parfum, 2, 2 Man (I just topped up on my bottles of both the 2s, in fact), Amazingreen and Blackpepper. Long story short, I enjoy the brand and the scents are staples for me.

With that in mind, a new Comme des Garçons fragrance is somewhat of an event for me – I’m always intrigued to see what they do and whilst not all are ones I adore (see Floriental, Copper and Concrete), I do always enjoy how they subvert expectations. A Comme des Garçons fragrance always has something to say and their latest launch, Rouge (currently exclusive to Dover Street Market and launching nationwide next year), is no exception. Described, in typical CdG style as an “encounter between religious fervour and earthen reality” Rouge attacks the the colour red from surprising angles, using a central note of beetroot to present something so familiar in an entirely unfamiliar way. To say it’s interesting and unique is somewhat of an understatement…

Through deliberate overdose and rapturous expression, Rouge presents an unexpected unison. an olfactive congregation of desire archetypal associations of the colour Rouge seen and subverted through the distinctly disruptive gaze of Comme des Garçons.

Comme des Garçons
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Fume Chat: S3 Ep6 Bon Anniversaire Editions de Parfums Frédéric Malle!

Iconic, game changing, history making, and totally awesome luxury perfume brand Editions de Parfums Frédéric Malle is celebrating its 20th birthday this year. We’re big a fan of the brand here at Fume Chat so we thought we’d gatecrash the party and say “bon anniversaire” by chatting all things Frédéric Malle and of course, sniffing some of our favourites. Listen to the episode below the jump!

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