TMI time - Diptyque fragrances
As most of you know, the French perfume house Diptyque had NUâEST pick their favorite scents to add to their Concept Zone (if you donât know what thatâs about, check out the boys introducing it) and hereâs what they picked⊠Spoiler alert: it suits their personality shockingly well.
The name comes from the Do Son beach in Vietnam. The main note in this fragrance is tuberose (a white flower related to lilies and somewhat similar in its scent), but it also has orange blossom, and jasmine. Other less noticeable notes: mandarin leaves, pink pepper, iris, rose, galbanum, benzoin, and musk. Diptyque once said that âanyone with blood in their veins will succumb to the irresistible temptation of this insolently seductiveâ scent and basically every single review describes it as heady and so smooth that it has an almost creamy quality. Itâs not as sweet as youâd expect from a floral, apparently, but itâs very bold and not the subtle type of perfume that makes people wonder if youâre wearing something. It also doesnât change much throughout the day, so itâs very much a signature scent. It tends to come up a lot in lists of sexy perfumes but at the same time, itâs fresh and summery, which isnât surprising given that summer memories are the entire concept of the scent.
Fun fact: Diptyque is somewhat famous for making unisex fragrances - all the membersâ picks are, by the way - but Aron straight up picked a female fragrance and Iâm not surprised, because since years ago heâs mentioned he likes sweet scents. But what makes this scent cool is that although itâs (obviously) rose-themed, the concept is not rose the flower but rose the plant, with leaves and stems and thorns and all, so itâs not sickeningly sweet like your grandmaâs powdery makeup, but fresh and airy like stepping into a garden. If you do get past all of that, the other main notes are peony, lychee, and black currant. Less noticeable are bergamot, jasmine, geranium, musk, cedar and white honey. Very much spring-like, happy and young and playful. Most reviews say rose scents tend to bring to mind a bouquet, but this one is more like youâre gardening - thereâs something wild and flirty about it rather than classic and sophisticated. Lots of people say it almost inexplicably sorta smells like chocolate even though thereâs nothing even remotely linked to it (theories blame the honey and fruits), and because of this chocolate and roses association, it tends to be very popular around Valentineâs Day.
Vetiver is a type of grass, but it smells earthy because the grass isnât actually used in perfumery - itâs the roots. This is, naturally, the main note, followed by grapefruit, musk, rose, and ylang-ylang. It also has a bunch of citrus and spices: bergamot, lemon, orange, carrot seeds, nutmeg, clove, and cedar. I saw a review describe it as âthe perfume version of comfort food: it just instantly cheers you up because itâs so sunny and cozy at once - happy because of the fresh citrus notes, comforting because of the warm spice notesâ and lots ot people express similar opinions. Very bright and sportsy but itâs not meant to be very noticeable - from afar it basically smells like soap and itâs not strong at all. Diptyque itself has said that this scent is meant to evoke opposites - such as soft and strong, fresh and warm, familiar and mysterious, childish and mature, feminine and masculine - but itâs about harmonious blending, not shocking contrast. Itâs ambivalent and creative, both/and rather than either/or, and according to Diptyque, itâs meant to âgo beyondâ these divisions to âreveal unexpected facetsâ in a âkaleidoscope of ⊠nuances ⊠in an unusual interpretation.â
The name of this fragrance translates as âskin flowerâ and itâs dedicated to Hedone, the Greek goddess of delight, daughter of Eros and Psyche. Like the name suggests, this is meant to be a very subtle fragrance, like your actual skin just magically smells impossibly nice. With musk notes for Eros and iris notes for Psyche, the star of the fragrance is, however, aldehydes, an artificial component often added to laundry soap, giving the perfume what Diptyque calls a âcottonyâ quality, like fresh clothes. Other notes include ambrette, Turkish rose, ambergris, carrots (yes, carrots), angelica, sandalwood, pink pepper, leather, bergamot, and amberwood. People tend to describe the mood of this fragrance as âintrovertedly radiantâ - itâs fresh and bubbly and bright, but not overpowering, and in fact many people combine this fragrance with other perfumes they might have. Soft and gentle, this fragrance has won some pretty prestigious awards exactly because it is very carefully calibrated to make people say âYou smell niceâ without thinking of following it up with âWhat perfume is that?â because it doesnât feel like youâd be wearing any. Itâs very much classic and elegant, understated and light. It also is something of a chameleon-like fragrance because reviews always mention that the scent in the bottle and once itâs on skin are very much different: the end result varies from person to person, and changing your shampoo or your soap or the way you do laundry can dramatically change what notes people will pick up from this fragrance.Â
Meaning âfriend of the fig treeâ in Greek, this scent is⊠basically an entire fig tree. Its main notes are fig leaves, fig sap, fig tree wood and figs. Underneath that, thereâs coconut milk, and green and woody notes, but these are not the main point: the concept is picking up figs, so you first smell the trees and then the juicy scent of the fruit itself - and not much else. The other notes are just there to add some rich, creamy quality to make it more sophisticated, but they are miles away from being meant to dominate the fragrance. Thatâs a bold creative choice: fig is relatively uncommon in perfumery and itâs definitely not at all usual to have an entire perfume dedicated to it. Reviews unanimously urge potential buyers to try it before buying it: people either love it or hate it, no middle ground - itâs that original. With this fragrance, Dipytque is trying to paint an image of a Greek paradise, and apparently itâs very realistic, almost disturbingly so, and therefore, it tells a story and demands attention - I mean, if a room suddenly smells of figs, people tend to be curious about it. Because of all this, itâs considered an edgy scent, the kind an avantgarde artist might wear.