Possets description:
This one is named in honor of the real Madame X, Virginie Amélie Avegno Gautreau. When I created this perfume I was imagining how a woman like her would want to smell, what a bespoke perfume for her would be like and this is what I came up with. A work of intense sophistication, very dry and very chic. The Ruined Reputation starts out as a strong part of spice and carnation and then slides into a wonderful almost foggy crystal musk. It is ravishing and a bit dangerous, too!
By the way, the real Madame X did have her reputation soiled by the painting by Sargent. If you want to find out more, read the book Strapless by Deborah Davis. It is fascinating and a perfect read when you just want to be amused by 100+ year old scandal.
This one is a must for carnation lovers! Starts out CARNATION and enough spice to clear your sinuses! Mellows out just enough. I've had it on for 5 hrs and it's still going. If you're being active and get a little warm, it kind of revs up again. Decent throw. And how can you resist the name?
In the bottle: Oh HELLO clove from Guinevere--and yet, not quite. More like Silver Carnations ramped up to the nth degree. Bracing, somewhat sour green floral, and something that comes across as a very old-time perfume.
Wet on my skin: Yep, Silver Carnations dialed up to 11. Crushed rose petals. A smidge of something sweet. Gah! I don't know what those crushed rose petals are, but they smell amazing. It SO reminds me of the few times I've taken rose petals and smooshed them between my fingers. You get the fresh, the green, the essence of the rose.
As it dries: The sweet is almost bubble gummy (I'm finding that as a common thread in quite a few of these...I don't know what that note is). The carnation is softening, becoming a bit more dewy. The crushed rose petals are also softening. I'm starting to get a kick of clove that seems separate from the carnation. There is something about this that does remind me of Guinevere, but softer.
As it dries further: Ahhh there's the crystal musk lifting all of this and making it sparkle a bit. It's pretty impressive how these heavy hitting notes are being transformed into something that feels airy. Even though this is called The Ruined Reputation, there's something here that feels demure and a bit sly like a flirty glance from under lowered eyelids.
This is a strong floral initially, then it begins to slide into floral and air territory.
Dry on my skin: I suppose I was expecting a ruined reputation to be a bit more rough around the edges, but this is smooth and a tad silky. The sour crushed greens have toned down considerably and provide a lovely base to the whole (as in Silver Carnations). I'm still getting that really fresh rose--no powder, no soap here. Just shredded fresh rose. Spices--perhaps a touch of ginger or something similar, a smidge of clove to pump up the carnation, and a teensy bit of something herbally green--keep this from being linear. All of this mixes with the musk that keeps it lifting beautifully off of the skin in such a way that it doesn't feel heavy or weighty. This is a flirt showing more skin than appropriate, but making suggestions in such a charming way that you can't help but be seduced.
Edited to add that I'm wondering if there's a smidge of cinnamon in this. Where I applied this, my skin is feeling a tad itchy. Not sure if it's the perfume or an anomaly on dry skin that should be more moisturized.
Edited further to add that now that it has been on my skin a while, I'm getting a bandages note that seems to be rising and not falling, but that could be because I am testing Havoc next it it, and Havoc is...well...creating havoc on my skin. It hates me. It really hates me.
If you can't be a success, be a spectacular failure!
oh dear. now i am back to thinking i must have this one too.
fabienne, since you are such a sargent girl, you should find an excuse to make a "carnation, lily, lily, rose." though i don't know if i would really wear it much... i'd have to have it just because of how much i love the painting.
On application this smells to me like a fruity rose with a clove kick. I know I am supposed to smell carnation but even though all the notes I associate with carnation are there they seem to be in separate parts. I will have to see how this wears over the next few hours to see if it comes together. Don't get me wrong, I am enjoying it but it is not what I was expecting at all.....much more ladylike and refined than debauched!
"Look like the innocent flower, but be th' serpent under't"
I'm really enjoying this one. Wet, it's quite pretty! The carnation is kind of green but also dry (in the wine sense of "not sweet"); this has a fresher feeling than the sweeter carnation fragrances I’ve tried lately, like Opulentia. This is dressier, but the clove is starting to come out and make it less austere.
At the early dry-down stage I do get a whiff, I think, of the crushed rose petals that others talked about. It’s beautiful but not overpowering, and there is an elegance to it; it’s not a big blowsy floral. As the clove comes out more it gets a bit sexier, but that’s not quite the word I want; exciting, maybe? It’s definitely heating up as it dries down and spends more time on my skin. I start to get the “spiced gumdrop” quality that jackieo mentioned as it gets sweeter and spicier, but it doesn't go in a foody direction per se (which I'm glad of--I love how it stays on the perfumy side of clove, like Guinevere, and the beauty of the carnation is still present).
This one really transforms from the wet stage to dry-down, but all the stages are lovely, and I love how its spiciness takes on sweetness while becoming more vibrant. I'm really glad I got this during retour.
