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Nuit Noir by Mona di Orio - a mini review

post #1 of 22
8/26/07 at 12:29am
Thread Starter 
The NN started off reminding me of vintage Shocking, it had a really pronounced vintage aura about it as if it had been made in another age. After the initial impression, my spirits lowered as the neroli note came through and I thought oh no, I don't like this. There is just something odd going on with neroli and my nose. The mid section with the neroli mixed in, kept going for ages. I kept sniffing my hand it still hadn't improved and thought that I was going to have to tell you that I didn't like it. After about 2 hours, it transformed into liquid gold and was really lovely. I'm not sure if I could wear this scent regularly owing to the lingering neroli note. It is very well crafted and I can see why people like it so much (if they neroli) right from the 1st spray. I read on Mona di Orio's website that this perfume was inspired by Serge Lutens.

http://www.monadiorio.com/

Barry
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post #2 of 22
8/27/07 at 10:45pm
Thanks for the review, Barry!

I was sure I was going to love this one, it sounded so Oriental and larger-than-life but it reminded me of a very fine orange flower soap instead... not at all what I expected from NN.

Carnation is so far my favourite MdO scent. Haven't tried Oiro yet, though.
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post #3 of 22
8/28/07 at 5:39am
Thanks for your impressions, Prince, and good to see you here.

Quote:
Originally Posted by tigrushka View Post

Thanks for the review, Barry!

I was sure I was going to love this one, it sounded so Oriental and larger-than-life but it reminded me of a very fine orange flower soap instead... not at all what I expected from NN.

Carnation is so far my favourite MdO scent. Haven't tried Oiro yet, though.

Ditto on both! Sorry to say, but something in Nuit Noire reminded me uncannily of Gloria Vanderbilt "Vanderbilt" (the one with the swan on it) of all scents, and it's been ages since I smelled that one .

I tried all scents in MdO's lineup, and Carnation is by far her most original scent. Did you try it, YRH?
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post #4 of 22
8/28/07 at 5:42am
I have a sample of this sitting on my desk at home. First couple of tries, I got mostly jasmine, with a hint of orange. I didn't get the musky basenotes - it seemed to wear off before the base came out. As a rule I don't buy EDTs unless they are really strong, like Poison.
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post #5 of 22
8/28/07 at 10:48am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Lady_in_Black View Post

Thanks for your impressions, Prince, and good to see you here.



Ditto on both! Sorry to say, but something in Nuit Noire reminded me uncannily of Gloria Vanderbilt "Vanderbilt" (the one with the swan on it) of all scents, and it's been ages since I smelled that one .

I tried all scents in MdO's lineup, and Carnation is by far her most original scent. Did you try it, YRH?

Thank you my dear! Yes, I tried the Carnation. I will have to upload my review and post it on here. The only embarrasing thing is that when I reviewed it, I didn't realise that the name was referring to a woman's skin and not the flower...LOL!

Barry
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post #6 of 22
8/29/07 at 1:56am
I tried Nuit Noir again last night - it's nice, and I could wear it, but I don't think I'd be tempted to buy it. The jasmine and orange are both very present but don't really meld - I get spikes of one, then the other. There is also something dirty lurking beneath the surface, yet it never really comes to the forefront.
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post #7 of 22
8/29/07 at 5:32am
Thanks for the mini review, PB. I too, have a decant of Nuit Noire. I had high expectations of it myself, but I found that while I do like it, I don't absolutely adore it. The bottle and presentation is to die for though!
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post #8 of 22
10/18/07 at 12:23pm
This is one I really want to get. I'm battling myself over either this one, Carnation or Lux. All are truely great inmo! I wonder if Mona di Orio is becoming my favorite fragrances house... Well, one of them at least. Not varied enough to earn that label quite yet, but I love these so!
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post #9 of 22
10/18/07 at 12:35pm
How differently we all perceive our fragrances! The neroli and jasmine in Nuit Noire are buried well below the tuberose note when I wear it. As for the "dirty," animalic musk component, it explodes with magnificent violence as soon as I put Nuit Noire on, and remains prominent beside the floral notes for the scent's entire duration. A skank monster on me that's on a par with MKK (!) and even approaches Etat Libre d'Orange's Charogne (though Nuit Noire is less indolic and far "prettier" than the latter). As for the constant shifting of notes (something I also experience with Jicky), I love the effect. It keeps things unpredictable in an exciting way.

Of course I'll be quite happy if no-one else likes Nuit Noire. That will just leave more of it for me.
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post #10 of 22
10/18/07 at 12:49pm
I have a sample (thank you Vibert) that I'm gonna try one of these days. Ruggles commented on it to me a week or so ago...if he's reading this thread, I'd love for him to share his comment. It made me giggle.
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post #11 of 22
10/18/07 at 12:52pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Vibert View Post

How differently we all perceive our fragrances! The neroli and jasmine in Nuit Noire are buried well below the tuberose note when I wear it. As for the "dirty," animalic musk component, it explodes with magnificent violence as soon as I put Nuit Noire on, and remains prominent beside the floral notes for the scent's entire duration. A skank monster on me that's on a par with MKK (!) and even approaches Etat Libre d'Orange's Charogne (though Nuit Noire is less indolic and far "prettier" than the latter). As for the constant shifting of notes (something I also experience with Jicky), I love the effect. It keeps things unpredictable in an exciting way.

Of course I'll be quite happy if no-one else likes Nuit Noire. That will just leave more of it for me.

A truly wonderful description, Vibert!...I'm green with envy
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post #12 of 22
10/18/07 at 12:54pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Lady_in_Black View Post

A truly wonderful description, Vibert!...I'm green with envy

Yeah, except I seem to be the only one who smells Nuit Noire this way.
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post #13 of 22
10/20/07 at 12:07pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Vibert View Post

Yeah, except I seem to be the only one who smells Nuit Noire this way.

No you're not.

Ruggles a week-or-so ago commented to me about NN: 'It is the weirdest fragrances that I've ever tried. It smells like 500 beautiful things rotting.'
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post #14 of 22
10/20/07 at 5:14pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by mikeperez23 View Post

No you're not.

Ruggles a week-or-so ago commented to me about NN: 'It is the weirdest fragrances that I've ever tried. It smells like 500 beautiful things rotting.'

What a lovely (and accurate) way to put it!
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post #15 of 22
10/21/07 at 7:45am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Indiscreet View Post

There is also something dirty lurking beneath the surface,

Quote:
Originally Posted by Vibert View Post

As for the "dirty," animalic musk component, it explodes with magnificent violence as soon as I put Nuit Noire on, and remains prominent beside the floral notes for the scent's entire duration. A skank monster...

YAY! Me too.
Really, it is dirty and indolic on me. I love indolic jasmine.
Here is what I said in my review: "This fragrance possesses a "fleshy" characteristic all its own, animalic and insistent. The effect is dusty and sweet, like sweaty skin with powder on it."
The whole thing was very retro smelling.
The olibanum note is great, too.

As far as "500 beautiful things rotting," here is what I said in my own review of Nuit Noire:
"Dispite its name and the darkness conveyed by its depth, this fragrance invokes a sweet-smelling haystack drying in the sun. The fermentation of the grass provides the sweetness; it is a balance that can tip too far into decomposition at any moment."
So, yes, I thought the same thing, too.

Try Strange Invisible Perfumes sometime. I love some of those, and they definitely smell like fermented flowers. (L'Invisible and Fair Verona were two of my favorites.) They are all-natural perfumes made without solvents, so I'm sure the rotting actually occurs.
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post #16 of 22
10/21/07 at 11:12am
So funny! This reminds me of the long-ago discussion about Vivienne Westwood's Boudoir: everyone was going on and on about how raunchy it was and on me it was very English, all orange flower bubble-bathy, prim and proper!

Same thing with Nuit Noire, Carnation is way more daring on me.
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post #17 of 22
10/21/07 at 11:22am
Quote:
Originally Posted by purplebird7 View Post

YAY! Me too.
Really, it is dirty and indolic on me. I love indolic jasmine.
Here is what I said in my review: "This fragrance possesses a "fleshy" characteristic all its own, animalic and insistent. The effect is dusty and sweet, like sweaty skin with powder on it."
The whole thing was very retro smelling.
The olibanum note is great, too.

As far as "500 beautiful things rotting," here is what I said in my own review of Nuit Noire:
"Dispite its name and the darkness conveyed by its depth, this fragrance invokes a sweet-smelling haystack drying in the sun. The fermentation of the grass provides the sweetness; it is a balance that can tip too far into decomposition at any moment."
So, yes, I thought the same thing, too.

Try Strange Invisible Perfumes sometime. I love some of those, and they definitely smell like fermented flowers. (L'Invisible and Fair Verona were two of my favorites.) They are all-natural perfumes made without solvents, so I'm sure the rotting actually occurs.

I didn't get the dirty floral vibe ("500 beautiful things fornicating") when I tried L'Invisible, but I haven't gotten around to Fair Verona yet.

Meanwhile, if this "noble rot" business appeals to you, you should try Etat Libre d'Orange's Charogne ("Carrion") some time. Truly over the top on me! Maitre Parfumeur et Gantier's Jardin du Nil does the same trick too, but not in such an extreme manner.
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post #18 of 22
10/22/07 at 7:43am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Vibert View Post

Maitre Parfumeur et Gantier's Jardin du Nil does the same trick too, but not in such an extreme manner.

Agree. Jardin du Nil by MPG is dirty-flower-lovely.
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post #19 of 22
2/5/10 at 9:26am
I am really moved by Nuit Noire. After walking away from a purchase a few months ago, I am now really wishing I had. The opening is wonderfully animalic, and the whole composition very complex, in a very vintage sense.
I published a blog/review on this earlier today.
See here: http://sorceryofscent.blogspot.com/
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post #20 of 22
2/5/10 at 4:36pm
That is a shame you passed up some good deals on NN. It is one of my all-time favorites. I re-discovered this one myself on a second try. The first time I sampled it it made no impression, but the 2nd time I let it go for 1hr or so & WOW! this one is a sleeper. Indolic & sensuous leather & orange liqeuer with jasmine. It's almost too hot to handle.
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post #21 of 22
2/5/10 at 5:38pm
I absolutely love this fragrance and just treated myself to a bottle of it as a birthday gift to myself.
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post #22 of 22
2/6/10 at 5:44pm
NN (and the rest of the line, really) is gorgeous. It feels alive, deep. It tells a story throughout the development and is never boring. This is what I want perfume to always be.
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