Review by jtd
Consider this: Belle de Rykiel is the contemporary Jicky. It has lavender and vanilla, yes, but so do many other perfumes that seem nothing at all like Guerlains Jicky. Jicky backs up its lavender/vanilla food elements with civet and a hint of coumarin, taking it a half step out of the realm of dessert. (Ive never seen Jicky as a fougère. It feels like an oriental to me.) Belle adds a somewhat disparate combo of heliotrope, amber, incense and anise to side-step the gourmand trap and keep the lavendar/vanilla accord the focus from top to bottom. Although is it crisp where Jicky grows warm, Belle does wind up with a sweetness that makes its drydown come closer to gourmand than Jicky, though not by a lot.
