A full bottle of Belle en Rykiel, by Sonia Rykiel, has lived silently in my cabinet - boxed up - for several years. I bought it unsniffed after a particularly compelling review by Luca Turin in which he mentions, 'mint, lavender, dry amber and woody floral notes.' Luca Turin and I disagree on so many perfumes that I'm annoyed to have gotten sucked in by his review. Must have been my second glass of wine. In my defense, BeR comes in a cool bottle.
After spritzing, testing and comparing Belle en Rykiel with others that always come out on top, I decided to wear it to work one day last week, willing myself to like it with a whole body application. Luca Turin can be annoying, but he's not stupid, so I can learn to like it.
I don't like it.
Belle en Rykiel has a twanginess that kills any other good thing that might happen. What does twangy smell like, you ask? Like Italian dressing heavy on the vinegar, or fruity/medicinal cough drops, or plain Greek yogurt or incense that stings your nose before it has finished burning. You know, twangy. Pile the fruit and floral on top and it's just...no. Plus, Belle en Rykiel freezes in the top notes, never drying down, never evolving. Instead, it just sits there waiting for something interesting to happen, oblivious to the fact that I'm hoping it will get interesting at some point.
I can't imagine why I would ever wear Belle en Rykiel again. It's no scrubber, but as I changed into my sweats after work, I found myself wishing the perfume would fade like the memory of my work day and slip out the back door before anyone even realized she was gone. But, as fate would have it, the lasting power is colossal.
What was the last perfume you tried to love, but couldn't?
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I THINK that I have a difficult time with mint as a perfume note. I'm saying that I think I do because I really was put off by LUSH's ..Weather Turning.. which has mint.
ReplyDeleteThat is a cool bottle.
I'm such a curmudgeon that I'm not going to try to love perfume that I don't love anymore. But don't quote me on that...I'll probably get sucked into wanting to love one soon enough that my cranky resolve with melt away quicker than you can say "Scrooge." ;)
Hi Carol - I've never tried Weather Turning, but I generally love mint in perfume, so I was hoping for something wonderful. I don't know why this particular perfume lured me in and made me want to love it so much. Perhaps because I have loved other Rykiel perfumes, like Rykiel Woman and Le Parfum. But, alas, it is not a chemistry match for my skin.
DeleteI think you're right - why try to love any perfume when there are so many out there that I actually do love? And many others that I have yet to fall in love with. Thanks, as always, for your comment!
Oh, I LOVE Belle en Rykiel! On my it definitely evolves -- the top notes, I'm not crazy about, but the drydown is one of my favorite smells on the planet. SO GOOD. Almondy, ambery, sweet slightly filthy patchouli, mmmmmmmmmmmmmm. MORE FOR ME!
ReplyDeleteElisa, I'm jealous! The concept of Belle en Rykiel is beautiful, but it sucks on my skin. Almondy, ambery, slightly filthy patchouli? WTF? I got none of that and instead was stuck with rather annoying ripe plum top notes for the whole day.
DeleteChemistry matters - in fact, I think it makes all the difference in the world. Glad to know Belle works for you!
Two fragrances- Ellen Tracy Peoney Rose and D&G Light Blue- both my skin will oddly hyperdrive through the top and mid notes and Ker Plunk me down in the base .So I don't wear either one . Life is too short for the misbehavers to get my skintime. Jennifer/bookwyrmsmith
ReplyDeleteHi Jennifer - I've never tried Peoney Rose, but I have tried D&G Light Blue...it's more boring on me than anything else. Love your description of 'hyperdrive through the base' though. You're so right that life is too short to tolerate perfumes we don't love. Thanks for your comment!
DeleteI love BeR...on other people. I got caught the same way you did, good ol' LT. Bought a bottle, not too expensive, and came with the solid version, which I find wearable. But it was just too...too... MUCH on me! I felt smothered. So I gave it away, and of course my girlfriend smelled heavenly in it. Mrph....
ReplyDeleteMarla, I have a colleague that also smells good in Belle en Rykiel, but it just sucks on me. Yes, it's just too much of everything that doesn't work. I'll have to think who I could give this to. My sister has great perfume skin...maybe her chemistry is right for BeR.
DeleteI've tried desperately to enjoy Avril Lavigne's Forbidden Rose, but I just couldn't bring myself to. I bought the 30 mL bottle on sale (which explains why) and wore it to school one day, and when I got home I ran to the shower to get the awful stench off - it was that bad. Great blog, BTW! :D
ReplyDeleteHi Gil - I've not tried Avril Lavigne's perfume, and now you've saved me from having to! Why is it that we sometimes push ourselves to love a perfume in spite of our best instincts? I, too, have worn perfume that I had to shower to recover from. Sucks, but it happens. Glad you like my blog - thanks for your comment!
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