Fleurs de Nuit (2007)
by Badgley Mischka

The bottle of Fleurs de Nuit is one of the most stunning I've seen. Gorgeous! The fragrance itself though...kind of bores me. I'm a huge floral fan, but this one just doesn't have anything special worth latching onto. Non-descript floral, in the same vein as Dior's J'Adore... I suppose if you are put off by most floral frags, Fleurs de Nuit might be wearable for you.

Fleurs de Nuit launches on an accord of crisp, green, and slightly fruity jasmine, neroli, and orange blossom. The white flowers are indolic, but not overly so, and the crisp aldehydes employed at the start are enough to generate a mild tingle, but not so much as to smell “perfumey.” Vanilla appears after just a few minutes and steadily intensifies, yet never overwhelms or over-sweetens the composition.

Fleurs de Nuit possesses a peculiar economy and precision of construction, so that what could have been a heavy, heady, and overbearing floral scent is not. I attribute this appealing sense of clarity to the piercing green neroli that persists into the heart of the fragrance. The scent projects well, persists more than adequately, and leaves a well-judged remnant of sillage behind itself. What puzzles me about this stuff is the name. Is it just ineptly christened, or is “Fleurs de Nuit” meant to be ironic? This is certainly nothing if not a bright, sunny meadow of a floral scent. No stars or moonlight here – just wildflowers and soft summer breezes. Still very nice, even if misleadingly labeled.

This is a very pretty, almost sheer, soft & lightly sweet white flowers fragrance. I can take my jasmine pretty strong, but in FdN, it is handled delicately. This is very pretty and wearable. I think it could be worn for almost any occasion, but it really speaks to soft, pretty, light situations. It is a very light and elegant choice for any woman. FdN would also be a very pretty choice for a bridal fragrance. It has a very natural "in the garden" aspect -- the floral accords are very well done and light. I mostly get the jasmine and soft peach notes, which are just lovely, and a nice well done “green” note that smells almost like cut grass or new leaves – or a very soft galbanum. There is a bit of a "traditional" style to it, but the soft lightly sweet musks in the base make it modern. I highly recommend this for white flowers lovers, or anyone who wants a soft “summer garden” style fragrance. It is no where near the oriental style gorgeousness of the rich apricoty jasmine in Organza 2007 Jasmine Harvest, nor the wallop of gorgeous jasmine in Montale’s Jasmine Full. Fleurs de Nuit has medium sillage, and the lasting power is pretty good.

This white floral smells both opulent and refined. Its sophistication suggests evening, but I think it would be perfect for a daytime wedding or a Sunday matinee at the theater. It wears like the fragrant equivalent to diamond stud earrings. I have trouble with many white florals, but this is satin smooth. It has a magnolia, bergamot, peach, jasmine thing going on similar to J'adore, and it is similarly lightweight, but J'adore works easily for almost any occasion (from business to baseball to Beethoven) whereas FdN is clearly a dressy scent. I think it's meant to be applied lavishly. There is also orange blossom; jasmine AND orange blossom are usually an unpleasant one-two punch on me, but they are tempered very nicely here. I think the amber is what lends it that close to the skin headiness and pulls everything together in a creamy, dreamy way to make it all work. I'm thinking it's full bottle worthy if only because it is almost something I normally can't wear, and I'm delighted that I can. And, okay, it's full bottle worthy because the bottle is gorgeous!