This is a scent that I enjoyed very much because it challenged me but didn’t offend me. Isabey Lys Noir is an odd combination of notes – lily and a dry dusty patchouli. It’s one that won’t wow right away unless you know that you like lily, or white florals, and the florals in the opening here smell very medicinal because the lily is blended with tuberose and an indolic one of at that. The combination of lilies and tuberose wouldn’t really be strange, but the dry down leads to a cocoa-patchouli that’s dusty and dark, like a forgotten piece of old chocolate in a wooden drawer. When I smell indolic florals, I sometimes try to block out the smell of mothballs, but Lys Noir embraces all things old and dusty from the opening to the closing of its progression. It’s a bit of a slowly developing perfume, making you think you’re wearing a garland of florals but ending the day with this really old-school 70’s patch that could have come out of a Lush store. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Apparently, the original Lys Noir came out in 1924, and this is a reworking of that scent.
I love my sample and enjoy wearing the scent because it is so weird, and I confess, I do love dusty patchouli, but niche weird scents are not what I normally reach for, and I have realized that I like to experience them in sample format rather than springing for a full bottle. I highly recommend bringing a handful of samples with you on vacation, along with perfumes you’re already familiar with in your own collection. it’s good to have new things to wear but also references of the types of things you really love and are familiar with. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
