Lumière Noire Pour Femme by Maison Francis Kurkdjian, 2009

Few components for a great new classic floral with a plenty of mystery and balance. The rose is austere and well combined with a nocturnal note of narcissus that spaces out the austerity of the rose with more indolic/penetrating floral sparks. The note of patchouli is the spicy backbone of the composition around which the spicy/floral components circulate in a cryptic valzer of classicism and refinement. The spices are pungent and sweet while some secret ripe fruity component is possibly hidden somewhere. A great, deep, rich, full bodied rose coming out articulated, spicy/floral, dusty (pepper, ambergris?), more than vaguely baroque, slightly soapy/waxy and adumbrated (by rooty/spicy elements).

l find this to be quite a fresh, cool, soapy but elegant rose; a much "cleaner" scent than l was expecting. More of a pale pink or white rose than a dark, ruby red. There's a hint of sweet fruit in the heart, along with a narcissus which is beautiful but devoid of any dirtiness. ln the base, the patchouli is barely detectable & again, very clean, not earthy at all. The projection is low, & four hours in it's barely there. l need to try this one in warmer weather, as l suspect a little heat may bring out more of the darkness & dirt that l craved from it. And for me this is definitely more of a spring/summer fragrance than a winter one.

Absolutely gorgeous, could easily be a modern classic. I get narcissus, though it's not too heady, subtle rose, and clean patchouli grounding the composition..no skanky notes (eg cumin) on my skin. If anything it prevents it from becoming a clinical, soapy floral (many modern florals are).. Lumiere noire is not a casual scent- it almost demands some class! Well balanced, feminine and unique with excellent sillage and longevity.

A sexy gorgeous complex and well contructed perfume by the talented Mr. K . I got spicey rose and patchouli which did 'sort of ' remind me of Aromatics Elixir . It's beautiful and darkly sexy .

I think this is really, really gorgeous. Narcissus is one of my favorite scents, and in this fragrance it is wickedly interesting (I don't know why that adjective came to mind, but there is something about this scent that is kind of naughty to me)

OK- on another note, I'm finding this line reminds me of body smells, and this scent, to me, smells like your lover's body after he's stepped out of the shower and dried himself off. (See the naughtiness creeping in?) I'm afraid to find out what was the inspiration for this fragrance...

this scent lasts all day on me, and does not fade into something 'unfresh'. IMO this is his best scent for women.

Very sophisticated, perhaps a bit too sophisticated, meaning cool and abstract and synthetic. Leather is not listed among the notes, but to my nose this is predominantly a clean leather fragrance with accents of unsweetened fruits, perfumey florals and discreet spices. Pleasant enough but I wish it would make more of a statement, not be so blandly elegant...