Featured Fragrance Review: Les Plus Belles Lavandes De Caron

It's s been a while since I've talked about fragrance here but everyone who knows me knows it is a huge passion of mine. I wouldn't call myself a fragrance snob, but it would be accurate to say that I am very discriminating and I have strong likes and dislikes. I generally do not go for mainstream scents that you can find in any department store or Sephora. This is not because I am an elitist, it is because most mainstream fragrances seem to have something in the base that irritate me and many seem to dry down to the same musky scent after a while on my skin. There are always exceptions though and I'm willing to try anything new that sounds like it would be up my alley. That said, when I heard that there was a new fragrance from Caron, I ran as fast as my little feet would carry me to that swanky little oasis to check it out. I was not disappointed.

The newest release from Caron actually came out last summer but was only available in Europe. This summer, it has made it's way stateside. Caron's House perfumer Richard Fraysse was inspired by Carons' Impact De Pour Un Homme Parfum fragrance to create a new, lighter lavender eau de cologne. To be honest, I was expecting not to like it because I generally do not like lavender scents. Many of them have a medicinal edge on me. This scent is so lovely that I bought it on the spot. Along with Caron's "Impact de Pour Un Homme" this is the best lavender scent I've ever tried. The notes include lavender, amber, vanilla and musk. If you like Impact, I suspect you will love this. The major difference is, Impact is a little more amber heavy (but not heavy by any means) and the lavender takes a backseat at the latter stages of wear, whereas Les Plus Belles favours the vanilla and musk but the lavender is present throughout all stages of the dry down. Les Plus Belles manages to pull off being a warm, snuggly fragrance while being incredibly light and barely there. It is an eau de cologne and is meant to be liberally splashed on the body as a summer fragrance even though it comes in a spray bottle. I was told that is is available in a 750 ml bottle overseas, but it is only available in a 100 ml bottle in the U.S. for now. It is considered a shared fragrance that can be worn by men as well as women and I totally agree on this. Despite the vanilla, it is not an overly sweet fragrance and a man could easily pull this off as well. I would actually love to smell this one on a gentleman.

In comparing Impact and Les Plus Belles, I feel the lavender throughout the life of the fragrance on my skin with Les Plus Belles. With Impact, the lavender becomes more muted and the amber becomes more prominent toward the latter stages of wear on my skin. The musk and vanilla in Les Plus Belles make this scent very soft and wearable, but they in no way make it heavy or overly musky in an "in your face" way. There is no way you could over apply Les Plus Belles. As a matter of fact, I am going to have to carry around a atomizer with me to refresh throughout the day because it is so light it fades after a couple of hours on me. The good thing here is that being a cologne, reapplying is expected and it is so light and refreshing that application is a treat for the senses.

I'd also like to mention something of interest if you do happen to like these scents, Diane of Caron mentioned that she likes to pop open a Pour Un Homme bath bead or two and rub the rich lavender amber oil over her skin and layer it with the lighter Les Plus Belles Lavandes to give it a bit more oomph. I have tried this and my thoughts on this are...WOW. The oil from the Pour Un Homme bath beads is fabulous. It is not a soap, it is a pure fragrance oil that feels wonderful on my skin. It is so rich and ambery with that wonderful lavender tinge to it that it's truly noteworthy. If I was to smell this on someone I would have to ask what it was, it is that great smelling. And this is coming from a girl who normally hates lavender. If I had to summarize the feeling that this creates for me in a nutshell I would say that it makes me think of a very expensive french spa, soothing yet energizing.

I am truly enjoying this fragrance in the evenings before bed due to the softness of the vanilla just as much as after a shower or in the morning with the refreshing tonicity of the lavender. I am impressed with how it manages to straddle the line between refreshing and soft and comforting. If you like lavender or even if you normally don't but are looking for one you might actually like, do check this out. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised! The selling price for a 100 ml bottle is a very affordable $80. This fragrance can only be purchased at the Caron boutique on Lexington Avenue and 58th street in the Phyto universe space at the time of this writing.