When I say Parfums de Nicolaï Le Temps d’Une Fête centers on narcissus, some of you might decide right away it’s not for you. So often narcissus spells a crisp, virginal scent better suited to a girl taking her first communion than a full grown woman with a taste for gin. But take a few sniffs, and you might change your mind. Instead of a cloying, sexless flower, Le Temps d’Une Fête smells of warm narcissus cloaked in mossy, animalic notes. Any girl taking her first communion in it would raise suspicions of having spent more time in the hayloft with the stable boy than at home with her rosary.
The Parfums de Nicolaï website lists Le Temps d’Une Fête’s top notes as galbanum, opoponax, and tree moss; its heart as daffodil and narcissus; and its base as sandalwood, patchouli, and oak moss. The house’s perfumer and co-founder, Patricia de Nicolaï, created it in 2006. (Note: the website is as rinky dink as the house’s perfume packaging. I clicked on the link to the Parfums de Nicolaï home page only to find it blank. But if you root around in Google, you can find a link to something deeper in the website and access the site’s content that way.)
Le Temps d’Une Fête opens with a sweet, green, diffusive fragrance that might have a little neroli tucked in with its galbanum and sharp tree moss. It’s not the traditional bright citrus opening of many perfumes. Within a few minutes, the fragrance’s narcissus and hyacinth gain volume, giving the feel of spring. Rather than the rain-washed spring of Guerlain Chamade, it’s a warm, earthy spring. Instead of standing in the garden, you’re in the greenhouse among moist trays of plant starts in wooden trays with a vase of cut bulb flowers nearby. The fragrance is rich and thick.
As Le Temps d’Une Fête wears on, its sandalwood becomes more pronounced and picks up a gentle woody buzz. I don’t notice its patchouli at all. For an Eau de Toilette, Le Temps d’Une Fête lasts a long time. Both its sillage and longevity are like those of an Eau de Parfum.
Parfums d’Histoire Tubéreuse 3 L’Animale tries Le Temps d’Une Fête’s trick of warming an emphatic white flower by dressing it in an olfactory mink stole. But to me, L’Animale’s result is murky and indistinct, like an artist who keeps swishing new colors together on his palette. Although each color is gorgeous on its own, together they muddle. In Le Temps d’Une Fête, the trick works. The blend feels natural — classic, even — and the sum is definitely greater than its parts.
Le Temps d’Une Fête isn’t subtle, at least not until hours have passed and its sweet sandalwood and mossy dry down are all that’s left. It’s a fragrance that calls attention to itself and so demands a little extra attention to how you dress. Yellow is tough to wear, but I think a dress the color of the sun on the head of a golden blonde toddler would complement Le Temps d’Une Fête perfectly. Le Temps d’Une Fête would also go well with a vibrant 1940s rayon print on a swishy, bias-cut dress, or, in winter — and I think it would hold up great in cold weather — grass green velvet.
I bought my bottle of Le Temps d’Une Fête at the Parfums de Nicolaï store on the rue de Grenelle in Paris, just a stone’s throw from the Bon Marché. Reason told me to choose the 30 ml bottle, because, really, have I used more than 30 ml of anything in the past five years? Instead, fearing for all the fragrance’s moss that could be doomed by IFRA rules, I sprang for the 100 ml bottle. After wearing it a few weeks, I’m glad I did. I bet I use every drop.
Parfums de Nicolaï Le Temps d’Une Fête Eau de Toilette is available in 30 (shown above) and 100 ml. For information on where to buy it, see Parfums de Nicolaï under Perfume Houses.
Note: top image is (untitled; from greens set) by titanium22 at flickr; some rights reserved.
131 Comments
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Oh, Angela, I love Le Temps d’une Fete to a ridiculous degree. If I had to knock my ‘fume stash down to three, LTdF would make the cut.* I.Adore.It.
You’re right, I never notice the patchouli, patchophobe that I am. Lots of mossy woods too, but primarily narcissus, which I pretty much love in everything; the hyacinth is very quiet. And it does last all day for me, which is unusual wear for an edt on my skin. I don’t find it an attention-getting scent, though – it’s very comfortable for me, and I’d wear it with just about anything except a satin evening gown. Jeans? yup. Black crepe skirt? you bet. Sage-green cashmere sweater? absolutely. I don’t long for it often in the winter, but it would not feel ridiculous as many of my warm-weather scents would; I do wear it spring through fall.
Gorgeous thing in a honkin’ ugly bottle, though. The small bottle as pictured is much nicer (why, oh WHY doesn’t PdN put all their scents into that nice little 30ml bottle, adjusted for size? The little one feels nice in the hand.) than the big hair-tonic one.
* Oh, all RIGHT, the other two would be Parfum Sacre and… that Stunning Vintage No. 5, because it’s so versatile. But I’m wiping a tear for my vintage Emeraude. And Carnal Flower. And… you get the point.
But aren’t you glad you *don’t* have to cut your collection down to three?? No power on this earth could make me do that. I always joke that if I was homeless (not anything to joke about, admittedly, especially considering where I work) I would be the lady pushing a shopping cart full of perfume down that road. I’m guessing I would also snarl or hiss at anyone who came near my cart. And I would sleep on top of it, so that no one would steal my perfumes.
I’m with you. I’d leash the dog to the cart and teach him to guard it.
I’m afraid that wouldn’t work at all for me—all someone would have to do is wave a pastry about and Roxie would abandon her post joyfully. (she’s heavy on the “companion” and light on the “guard” aspect of doggism)
I however, would snarl and definitely bite to protect the stash.
Just try to approach my stash now and see how I snarl!
I’ll get my cart. We can guard each other’s backs.
I love how we stick together!
Having to cut down to three, for realz? Would stink, pardon my pun. So glad I don’t *have* to!
It would be a real Sophie’s choice.
Oh goodness! Don’t even mention Sophie’s Choice! I cried when I first saw it in the theatre back when I was “young and single.” Now that I’m “married with children” – I practically have convulsions whenever I think about that scene…
No – at least make it a Top 5 – then Emeraude would at least get in.
It really is pretty awful. I probably shouldn’t drag it into a discussion about something as frivolous as perfume!
I COULD NOT BELIEVE THAT EMERAUDE DIDN’T MAKE THE TOP 3 — shocking, really…..and to make matters worse: I think I hear muffled laughter coming from the closet where you’ve incarcerated that Slut Tocade…..poor Em.
Thank goodness perfume can’t talk! I can just hear Tabac Blond now swearing at Diva.
Oh, Em just rolls her eyes and submits graciously. It’s the Chanels that hate being cooped up with That Slut. And with L’Arte di Gucci, they don’t like her either…
I love mz.kitty
thats what my friends say about me i fought a bum over at carrs because he tried to steal my edp that pissed me off becaused he asked to smell it knowing me i let him and he wouldent give it back
love, Butterscotch
It is such a nice scent for spring! On me, it definitely stands out and doesn’t blend a whole lot with my skin until a few hours have passed, but I do love it anyway. It sounds like it’s ideal on you.
Down to three, hmm. . . NST had a lazy-day poll a year or so ago that asked, “what perfume house are you?” My answer then was “Chanel”, and that’s confirmed by my just-three picks: no 22, no 5, and (I’m surprised that I hadn’t even tried this until last week!) no 19. As a side note, how interesting that none of these has a romantic name, even though I love that over-the-top dramatic/romantic/exotic nomenclature favored by perfume houses in the classic era.
Maybe you can give them your own romantic names…
Oh, I like clean-edged modernist abstraction even more, so Chanel numerals and, of course, the classic Chanel bottles suit me just fine. Among the evocatively-named scents, I love Plus que Jamais and Bois de Paradis; need to try Chamade and L’Heure Exquise and so many others. . .
Those are lovely names. Some names border on hilarious (even if the fragrances are terrific.) Enlevement au Serail comes to mind.
At least Enlèvement has a Mozart opera as its source, which makes it less silly in my opinion (though TS/LT seemed to find it ridiculous).
True–Mozart does class it up. (Any Magic Flute parfum de toilette anyone?)
I have a Forties-era bottle-green velvet evening suit (’twas my mother’s). . . would it pair well with Le Temps d’une Fete?
Seriously, I need to try this and Chamade. So far I’ve been wearing and loving Chanel no 19 and Norell for my springtime mood. Green florals suddenly clicked with me last summer, and I’m looking for more. Sadly, so many of the best are discontinued or hard to find.
GG, I love green florals. (Thank goodness for ebay,eh?) This one and Chamade are well worth trying.
Agreed.
Hi GG – my two or three cents here: if you like Chamade (whatever formula), especially if you really like that galbanum floral opening, then you should definitely try Temps. I love the opening of Temps* – it is all in that class of grassy, spring/white flowers beauty – I think the opening of these following fragrances are all very similar – virtual sisters – and then they begin to diverge in the heart and base notes: Temps (grassy soapy drydown), Chamade (balsamic “Guerlain” drydown), No 19 (vetiver drydown), Chanel’s Bel Respiro (soapy powdery “green” musk drydown) Hmm – even the Ralph Lauren Safari would be in a similar white flowers galbanum opening…. Chamade is truly my HG perfume, so I think of her as the queen of them all, but they are all very very good…. Good luck!
* I do lose a bit of interest in the drydown of Temps d’Une Fete, which is very beautiful. For me it gets very soapy white flowers, but by no means awful. I traded it away for something special…
I get more of a woody-mossy drydown for Le Temps, so it might be worth trying to see how it fares on your skin.
Thank goodness, I don’t get soapy either.
Thank goodness for you indeed,
!
Ann – terrific description of the differences, and I totally agree with you on the point of divergence for Chamade and Une Fete.
Ann, we have such a big overlap in our preferences!
I know! We are *almost* not so evil scent twins! It is helpful for sure. There is a gorgeous white flowers frag I just found I may try and temp you with a split later on this summer….. he he heee!!!
Fine, I’ll be saving up…
Good mini-reviews, Ann. I’m taking notes for a sample order from all the recommendations in these comments. Thanks, all.
The 40s-era suit sounds ideal! Le Temps d’Une Fete is more juicily floral than the fragrances you listed, but you just might like it.
I love PdN. PdN, Hermes and OJ are my three favorite houses. I get these odd *cravings* for PdN frags. Yesterday I was really craving Juste Un Reve, and today I am craving Violette in Love.
I can’t wait to hear about the new PdN. I think someone said it’s going to be unisex…
The new PdN is L’Eau Mixte, a faux cologne with quite a bit of body and lasting power, predominantly grapefruit and rose, with an oakmoss base. I tried it out yesterday but need to pay more attention!
Thanks for the preview!
That sounds *very* interesting! Thanks, D.!
wow. that does sound good!
How’s Violette in Love?
It’s violet. Not much more to say about it… Not one of Mme de Nicolaï’s most interesting ventures.
I thought that at 1st too, but then it really grew on me. I’m not normally a fan of violette, and I think I like it because it’s more than just violette (but that may be a negative for real fans of the note). This one on me is a lot of citrus (notes say lemon but I get lime in the top) and violette, over musk and some rose. It has really good sillage on me. It’s very clean, but I still like it.
Isn’t it funny how something that you don’t like in the beginning tests can all of a sudden be perfect for you later?
I’ve definitely fallen in love with fragrances after rejecting them at first. To think I wasn’t wild about Joy for a while…
This is EXACTLY how I feel about Violette in love. Didn’t think I liked violette either, but this definitely grew on me, for the reasons you mention.
Those are some great houses. I do love OJ, too.
I’ll have to try this again. I vaguely remember expecting to love it, and then it went sour on me. But I could be confusing it with any one of a hundred other samples I have sitting around.
I don’t get much that could go sour–although it’s so hard to tell with different skin–but if you don’t like narcissus, you might not like it.
I love narcissus, so that was what was surprising. Well, what I have a foggy memory of being surprising. I went to see if there were any other PdN’s that I could be confusing it with, but I don’t think that’s the problem. Is there another perfume with “Fete” in the name? Maybe that’s what I’m confusing it with. But I will have to retry it when I get home. (Wouldn’t it be funny if I don’t even have it? I can totally see myself being absolutely altogether wrong about ever trying it.)
If you don’t have it, let me know and I’ll fix you up.
I think L’Artisan has some almondy thing, Jour de Fete? Of course, that’s coming from *my* foggy memory, so…
Yes! Maybe that’s it.
That sounds like it could be it. Of course, I have now dug through my entire collection and can’t find “fete” anything.
I’m going to have to go through all of my samples one more time…
Le Temps d’une Fête is my favorite PdN: very classical build, lovely balance between the green, floral and woody notes, with a warmer tone than green florals tend to have… Reminds me I have to pull out my bottle now that Paris has warmed up!
This one and Eau Exotique (for hot days) are probably my favorites, with Sacrebleu running closely behind. Enjoy those warmer days! The air has been smelling so good here this week, lilacs everywhere.
Lovely review as ever Angela. I don’t have a bottle of this one yet, even though Chamade is my summer HG. I definitely need to try it again!
Definitely worth trying!
I’m such a de Nicolai fan-girl that I don’t know how I missed this one. And I think I need to rectify that omission pretty much immediately. Thanks so much for clueing me in just in time for spring to really get sprung.
It flew under my radar for a long while, too. Let me know what you think of it!
Wow, a sexy, mossy narcissus? I think a sample is calling my name.
The moss is what got me, too!
I haven’t gotten around too much but I think I can safely say you can never have enough moss. ;3
You and me both, brother.
Thank you for the review, Angela. This is a wonderful fragrance, and it’s been on my wish list for too long. As of five minutes ago, that is, because your review prompted me to make an order. I really wanted the 30 ml. bottle, but like you I know I will want this one forever, so my solution was to buy two of the smaller bottles. My source had a very close price per ml. for the two sizes! Still, a bottle from Paris has real cachet. Yours will always remind you of your special trip!
The green floral is a top category for me. I love Chamade, many floral chypres, and aquatic green florals like Magnolia Romana and Fleur de Liane. The one that reminds me most of Le Temps, though, in style and feel, is Henry Dunay Sabi. It’s a bit more formal, but I get that same verdant floral quality that is grown up but still fresh, too.
I’ve only tried Sabi from a tester in passing, but I remember it as greener. I’ll definitely need to try it again, though. Who knows what I’m really remembering!
I’m going to try them side by side. I do wear Sabi occasionally, and when I first tried Le Temps, it definitely made me think of it!
Trying things side by side is always an eye-opener for me. I’ll get a sample of Sabi and try it too!
ITA agree about the similarity to Sabi – another one I adore!
I definitely must try Sabi again.
Hi Angela. Nice review, and I’m glad you snagged such a luxuriously big bottle — in Paris no less! I hope every time you spray it reminds you of your trip.
I have a sample of Le Temps, but I don’t remember a thing about it, so I’ll need to pull it out again. I do like a narcissus note and wouldn’t mind exploring more fragrances with it. My favorite so far is the Prada exclusive Narciso No. 6 — which is beautiful, but a bit fleeting, and worst of all, too expensive! Narcisse Noir has not worked for me the way I hoped it would, and I find it a bit soapy, though last time I tried it I enjoyed it much more. I look forward to trying Le Temps again; thanks for the reminder.
Narcisse Noir, at least in parfum, is darker and mustier to me than Le Temps d’Une Fete. I haven’t tried the Prada. Let me know what you think of Le Temps!
Trying it now and I really love the moss in this. I’m with asuperlongusername: can never have enough moss. This does feel very classical.
I was wondering if the phrase ‘Le Temps d’Une Fête” connotes the same lighthearted feeling as ‘Party Time’ does in English.
Somehow “Party Time” connotes beer to me. I love it for a name for a perfume, though. Have you thought of starting your own line?
Oh my gosh. I love the scent of daffodil and narcissis. I’m moving from Virginia to the Mississippi Gulf Coast and if I can’t grow daffodils down south, I shall simply perish. I can’t live without daffodils so I better be able to grow them in Mississippi! My yard in Virginia is full of daffodils. A perfume with daffodils and narcissis sounds like it’s right up my alley.
As an aside, I am an enabler. I’ve introduced my sister to Diorissimo and she is in hog heaven. Before, she was a real “White Linen” and “Shalimar” girl. Both smell great on her. So does “Diorissimo”.
This weekend I gave away all my fragrances that were “iffy” on me. Plus a lot of furniture, clothing, food from the pantry, potted plants, lamps, framed pictures, rugs, dinnerware, drinking glasses, etc etc etc. It’s very freeing to give away personnal possessions. I’m not planning to commit suicide. I’m moving and I don’t need so much stuff.
No, not much stuff–but definitely daffodils! I once did an article that required I visit an old Chinook village that had been abandoned 75 years ago. Daffodils still ran wild through the woods there.
Ooh, now I want to know more about this abandoned Chinook village!
I’ll send you a copy of the article sometime.
Don’t fret Karen – daffodils do just fine down south and they’ll bloom about a month earlier than you’re used to. Just wanted to put your mind at ease.
MMMmm daffodils may be iffy in a warm coastal climate, I cant grow them on my part of the subtropical Australian coast – but what people do is buy the bulbs from way down south, say Tasmania, than put them in the fridge for a couple of months (dont eat them by mistake, poisonous!), then you will get spring flowers. But unless you dig them up again and do the fridge thing, they wont flower again.
But you could probably grow the multi-headed things we call jonquils, and some have a wonderful perfume.
The name “jonquil” is gorgeous, too.
Oh, I think it’s good to pare down to the stuff you really love. (Mind you, I haven’t exactly done that… yet.)
Wonder if you might have a chat with a greenhouse owner in the area you’re moving to, or someone from the local comm. college horticulture dept, on what you can grow there? Or the Extension office, if MS has that?
Extension offices are terrific–I’ve called mine before with questions about blackspot and other things. I love the hotline.
Angela-thanks for a lovely review of the beautiful PdN. It was a blast shopping at the wee Parisian boutique, wasn’t it?
I’ve been sporting Le Temps frequently lately-and I somehow feel it works really well with the acid green I wore today-sort of rounded its edges ; )
Another amazing narcissus scent, little known I think, is Annette Neuffer’s Narcissus Poeticus-just a stellar heart of daffydilly-ism, well rounded with jasmine, sitting on a comforting vanilla/tonka/sandalwood. Definitely worth a sniff!
Did you buy anything at the boutique? Now I can’t remember. I can definitely imagine Le Temps with acid green! The narcissus you mention is a new one to me, but I’ll look for it. Thanks!
I got the on-sale Vie de Chateau Intense. And it is. Intense. Lately I am finding many of the PdNs very “think/dense” and too/too. Sadly the Intense is overwhelming me now. I’m going to wear the Figue Tea soon to some extra airiness.
A lot of the PdNs seem extra concentrated for the forms they are. Maybe the “lite” versions are best for some of them after all.
Oh how funny – when Silvia and I were in Paris only days after you guys we both bought Vie de Chateau Intense, but I bought it also in a cologne form which was going for a ridiculous 10 euros. I’ve found I can spray the cologne with abandon and just beef it up a bit with one spray of the intense – perfect. LT gives it 4 stars but says that some days it is just too loud……… LTdF is gorgeous though I wish it was more narcissus than hyacinth on me and the dry down can be soapy. Still, it is beautiful, no doubt about it.
So you get the soapy drydown just like one of the other commenters! It really must depend on skin. On me there’s not a bit of soap.
Ooh, another narcissus fragrance to try. Thanks for the rec!
I keep thinking I need to try this…and then I see opoponax in the notes and remember why I haven’t. How prominent is it in this one? That’s one note that nearly always goes horribly wrong on me.
It’s definitely there, but not too sweet and powdery–at least, I don’t think so. Let me know what you think of it if you do try it.
Hi Angela,
I enjoyed all your Paris posts so much – a chance to live vicariously. Thank you!! I am really drawn to PdN’s Le Temps d’Une Fete, which is not my usual kind of thing at all. It really is perfect in the spring, and I (unlike AnnS) do love the drydown – I get no soap at all.
I do have a quick question for you if you are still checking Comments – while you were at PdN, did you see Eau du Lude? I can no longer find it on any US websites, nor on her website. I wonder if it’s been discontinued. It falls into one of my funky categories – Simple Shampoo Scents – which can just be so nice on a hot summer day. Thanks for any info.
I don’t remember Eau du Lude specifically, but I have to admit I was pretty focused on Le Temps and the sale table. There were lots of fragrances, especially the home scents, that I barely glanced at.
Anyway, you picked a great one!
A very lovely review, as usual, Angela. I was wearing Le Temps yesterday and it’s a gorgeous mossy, narcissus that I didn’t think I’d like. I just put some on again after reading your review and it is a surprise for someone not into florals. Thank you, M (you know who you are), for introducing me to this. I saw de-Lovely last night on cable–I can picture Ashley Judd in a cloud of Le Temps.
I adore Cole Porter and must see that movie–especially with the thought of Le Temps to go along with it. Maybe I’ll rent it tonight.
Oh, you must see this movie. It pulls you into that glamorous time, the clothes, the music, jewelry. ‘Birds do it, bees do it. Why can’t we do it? Let’s fall in love!’ It’s de-Lovely! The cigarette cases she gave Cole at each of his openings? Wonder where they are now….Yes, Le Temps is perfect, IMHO.:)
Great clothes? Great music? That seals it!
I am a fully grown up woman with a taste for gin(!), but am sorry to report that despite repeated persistence with Le Temps d’Une Fete, it goes sour and indolic on my skin every time. Such a shame. I do feel I am in a small minority though, as this seems to be uniformly loved and admired.
Skin chemistry is such mystery. I seem to recall you’re a civet enhancer, too (not that I get any civet in this one). Well, at least you can kick back with a martini and reflect on all the other wonderful perfume you can wear!
I retried my sample (found it! alphabetized under “L”!) and I get the same indolic thing. I guess that was my problem with it before. It’s a shame because there’s a period after the top notes wear off that it goes away, but then it comes back in the drydown.
Oh, well. Sometimes it’s nice to not have one more thing to want.
It really is nice to be able to cross something off the list!
Angela, thank you for a lovely review for what sounds like a lovely fragrance. This is one floral I can’t wait to try. And when you summoned up the visual of standing in the greenhouse among the seedlings, well that did it. I could live in a greenhouse! Preferably an old fanciful English style conservatory. Nothing understated please!
Oh yes, definitely a fancy greenhouse. Maybe with an ocean nearby, so you can hear the surf crashing. And a comfy armchair for reading!
Perfect!
Brilliant review, Angela. I like so much the smell of narcissus, so it might be a try, yet I do not know where I could try it. Is Le Temps d’une Fête too feminine? Hope not.
It does read as feminine, but I think a confident man could wear it, too. In fact, I’d love to smell it on a man.
I think it would be great on a man, too.
Oh, dear. I may find myself buying a bottle of this without trying a sample first. It sounds perfectly…. perfect! I lost my taste for gin years ago, and I never made a first communion. But narcissus announces the spring, and spring is, well, eternal, if you choose to carry it in your heart. Or dab it on your wrist. Thank you, Angela, for a lovely review.
I bought this unsniffed because of its 5-star reviews and it would be at the top of my best adventure bottles yet! It really is a sweet, feminine, rich, floral, where the narcissus gives it a bit of an earthy different vibe without being all barnyard like say the L Artisan one.
I’m glad you like it!
Try a sample first if you can! I think this one is a relatively safe buy, still, it might not agree with you. Let me know what you think of it, though, if you do try it.
Great Review, Angela!! No time to read all the comments – it’s all work and no play for me today – but I wanted to quickly jump into to say:
Le Temps d’Une Fete? YES. YES. And YES.
This ranks very high among my most adored fragrances. I reach for it all the time – day or night, casual, dressy, professional, personal, you-name-it. Perfect for uplifting one out of the winter doldrums, but also terrific for announcing full-blown happy Spring.
This may have been the fragrance that most surprised me in my time as a perfumista (well this and Stephen Jones, but I discovered him a while back). I love this so much – top notes to the faint whispers near the end – that I often fantasize about drinking it. I don’t know what it is about this perfume that makes me want to taste it, but there it is.
Angela, just like you, I get the mossy-woody drydown. However in contrast to everyone else, I *don’t* get a strong Narcissus note; instead I get a big, bold, fabulous blue Hyacinth note, as if I nuzzled my nose deep in Hyacinth blooms that happened to be surrounded by daffodils in a beautiful spring bouquet.
Ok back to work now….I’ll read all the comments later…
It sounds like it really speaks to you! It’s fabulous when perfume does that. I definitely get the hyacinth in it, too.
Great writing, as usual Angela. The first paragraph is hilarious.
I’m glad you liked it. Someone helpfully pointed out that a girl’s first communion happens around the age of 8, so I messed up on that one! No 8-year-old should be rolling in the hay with anyone. But you get the point.
I was going to mention that too. However, I do love your description of scents well-suited to a girl making her first communion. Anyone who likes florals in particular has to sample many of that type before finding scents with more depth of personality.
It is a wonderful scent. Hopefully the Pope isn’t reading this, though.
I agree. This is stunning. I’m not sure what the distinctions are between jonquil, narcissus, and daffodil….but whatever is in this makes me drunk with joy. The personality of this is “sunny” but it’s a complex sunny. And it’s elegant. It was one of my first discoveries in my perfumeland journey through samples and I still love it.
I can see why you continued on your perfumed discoveries if this was one of them! It is a joyful fragrance, but in a grown up way, I think.
Angela, great review of one of my favorite scents. It is such a hyper-feminine scent which is typically not up my alley but it’s just so pretty it’s impossible not to smile when I put it on. It’s definitely on heavy rotation this spring.
I think its warmth makes it something special compared to a lot of spring-like floral scents. It will be in my rotation, too!
This has been a very cheery read, you guys. Thanks for brightening this drizzly Vancouver morning.
Angela, my envy of your trip to Paris with those wonderful women and your joining of forces with D. is surpassed by my happiness for you. I’m wearing Le Temps du Fete right now to join this happy club of lovely NSTers. It is lovely.
On my other wrist is Elizabeth W’s Lilac, which is the spittin’ image of the best kind of purple lilac. They’re blooming right now in this town, and I’d imagine in your whereabouts, too. Talk about insta-nostalgia. WHY do I get all teary — in a good way — when I smell them?
I cut an armload of lilacs over the weekend and put them in a vase on the fireplace, and they are wonderful. It was warm enough to open the windows, and my whole house smelled fresh and vaguely floral. A short thunderstorm Saturday afternoon added even better smells. Such a great time of year!
That sounds amazing!
Hi Angela,
this is a wonderful review for a wonderful scent!
I fell in love with the mossy part especially after getting a sample last October. Months later I ordered a 30 ml flacon from luckyscent – no mosses in the ingredient list, different color, harsh opening. The narcissus note is still lovely and I still like to wear it, but where are my mosses?! Now I’m wondering: Do you think one has to go to Paris to get the real stuff? Is there already a blackmarket? Well, just kidding…
I will be staying in Paris for a few days in summer and will be trying my luck there at the source – any hints?
Anyway, I’m enjoying reading your blog so much and I always learn a lot, so thank you!!!
I haven’t heard anything about there being two versions of this one. I wonder if you got a bottle from a bad batch? It’s certainly worth sniffing it again in Paris to see if it smells more like you remember from your sample. Have fun on your trip!
You’re giving me hope, great!
So far I know Paris artwise, but with your posts I got lots of inspiration to explore the perfume capital – thanks!
Thank you for this review – I loved this scent when I tried it once! Do you really think this fragrance may be changed due to new IFRA rules? What others do you think may be changed? Has Mitsouko been changed in recent years? I would so appreciate more information on this!
I don’t know if Le Temps will be changed significantly or has been changed–I hope not! Mitsouko has definitely been noticeably reformulated, although some people really like the change. (Others don’t.)
Thanks – I’ll have to trust my nose on Mitsouko, I guess! I look forward to other write-ups from your time in Paris.