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Serge Lutens CHOICES!

post #1 of 39
1/27/13 at 5:10am
Thread Starter 
I have recently received a voucher for money off any Serge Lutens fragrance that the online shop have in stock (not that many).
My shortlist is:

Santal Majuscule
Fille En Aiguilles
Arabie
Cedre

I am looking for something slightly more masculine, deep and different and have never tried any of the list above. FYI I already own Ambre Sultan and Chergui and I am a fan of masculine rose scents (Santal Majuscule?).

I have heard good things about the top three of my list, so any help on deciding out of these would be a fantastic help!

Thanks again everyone!
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post #2 of 39
1/27/13 at 5:20am
I'm afraid I wouldn't recommend you buy any of them without sniffing first. I had occasion to try booth the Santal Maj and the Fille en Aig last weekend, and while they were both okay, neither of them blew me away like I have been blown away by some of the SL's I've tried in the past. Arabie is my favorite of the 4 you have listed, but you might find it more sweet, somewhat more like Chergui, not particularly masculine. Cedre ran a line between a pleasant light wood and a thin ammonia, not especially to my liking.
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post #3 of 39
1/27/13 at 5:41am
...my choice would be Arabie...!
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post #4 of 39
1/27/13 at 5:57am
Fille for me.
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post #5 of 39
1/27/13 at 6:00am
I still didn't receive my Santal majuscule but own the other three and can say you can't go wrong with them. Maybe Cédre might be the most difficult amongst them because it's a fight description between tuberose and woods. Sometimes floral notes win, and other times woods gain more relevance.

Fille en Aiguilles and Arabie are both wonderful. Go for FdA if you like sweet pinus sap and for Arabie if you prefer a spicier and dry fruit sweet frag.
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post #6 of 39
1/27/13 at 6:16am
Arabie would be my choice.
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post #7 of 39
1/27/13 at 6:21am
Santal Majuscule is actually a let down from SL this year, it smells very similar to other recent releases from the house. My choice is either Fille En Aiguilles or Arabie
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post #8 of 39
1/27/13 at 6:34am
In my opinion Santal Majuscule is quite underrated. In fact I think it's wonderful fragrance for women and one of his most wearable.
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post #9 of 39
1/27/13 at 6:34am
In my opinion Santal Majuscule is quite underrated. In fact I think it's wonderful fragrance for women and one of his most wearable.
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post #10 of 39
1/27/13 at 7:05am
Thread Starter 
So would everyone say that Santal Majuscule would be on the more feminine side of things? Don't get me wrong, if a fragrance smells good then I don't care if it is masculine or feminine. I'm just aware that Serge Lutens can be a bit of a risk when it comes to a blind buy and I am in the market for something slightly more masculine. Unfortunately I don't have an opportunity (and don't know anywhere) to try any samples before my voucher expires!
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post #11 of 39
1/27/13 at 7:40am
Fille En Aiguilles would be my choice.
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post #12 of 39
1/27/13 at 8:37am
None of them is feminine (unless you're afraid of tuberose, in which case I recommend against Cedre). The more traditionally masculine is perhaps Fille en Aguille, coniferous incensy woody. I like Arabie a lot too, it's sweetish, spicy, bitter; it has been compared to one of those European herbal bitter liquors. Blind buying is always problematic; if you need, I'd say you can go for either Fille or Arabie, depending on whether you like incense-conifers, or sweetish spicy.

cacio
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post #13 of 39
1/27/13 at 8:57am
Fille IMO.
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post #14 of 39
1/27/13 at 8:58am
Hi MrJones, and congrats on your voucher off Lutens-fragrances. Lucky man! I love Lutens myself, and should really sample more from them.

I own Santal Majuscule myself and really like it. It's semi-sweet, floral and somewhat dark at the same time. It's definitely different from what I've tried before (check my wardrobe for info on what I like).

Arabie is good as well, but perhaps less dark. Can't really comment on Fille or Cedre, but I have Chene and really love the woody notes there.
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post #15 of 39
1/27/13 at 9:00am
Fille
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post #16 of 39
1/27/13 at 9:01am
Hi MrJones, and congrats on your voucher off Lutens-fragrances. Lucky man! I love Lutens myself, and should really sample more from them.

I own Santal Majuscule myself and really like it. It's semi-sweet, floral and somewhat dark at the same time. It's definitely different from what I've tried before (check my wardrobe for info on what I like).

Arabie is good as well, but perhaps less dark. Can't really comment on Fille or Cedre, but I have Chene and really love the woody notes there.
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post #17 of 39
1/27/13 at 9:07am
Doublepost. Sorry :/
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post #18 of 39
1/27/13 at 10:09am
Do not ever blind buy Serge Lutens, this line need acquired taste --not everyone like it, some people love one scents, while others loathe them.

SL creations are arts, it is require you to see/smell by yourselves before you buy --some scents are really weird.


Santal Majuscule is the only one I do not have yet, the others are worth owning.
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post #19 of 39
1/27/13 at 10:20am
Fille en Aiguille

A bed of pine needles smothered in pine sap laying on a forest floor
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post #20 of 39
1/27/13 at 2:06pm
FeA for me for sure. To answer you gender question about SM, I found it more feminine at first but unisex as it dries down. It's not FBW for me, though. I can't wear Arabie or Cedre.
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post #21 of 39
1/27/13 at 4:12pm
I love all four you listed. Fille en Aiguilles is piney, resinous but also sweet and spicy. Cèdre is a bubblegum spicy tuberose. Santal Majuscule is a fantastic rose and sandalwood with some cocoa sprinkled in for measure, and Arabie is a spice and dried fruits-fest. I find Arabie a bit more difficult to wear, as it is really overwhelming. As masculines, although they are all very unisex, I would go with either FeA or SM. I find SM pretty fantastic, by the way.
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post #22 of 39
1/27/13 at 7:00pm
Santal Majuscule could be worn by men, but I found it was a scent I wanted to smell on a woman rather than myself. Great creamy sandalwood note together with rose.
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post #23 of 39
1/27/13 at 7:15pm
The only other ones I would purchase would be Iris Silver Mist, 5 o'clock au Gingembre and Fumerie Turque. I have only tried Arabie from your list and I didn't like this fragrance. it smelled like rotting fruits to me, definitely not my style at all.
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post #24 of 39
1/27/13 at 8:07pm
Fille for me
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post #25 of 39
1/27/13 at 10:20pm
I'd say don't do it unless you're happy to re-sell or give away the fragrance if you don't like it. SL is not a safe blind buy if you haven't tried them before.

Having said that, I'll throw in $.02 and say that Santal Majuscule is not too feminine.
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post #26 of 39
1/27/13 at 11:32pm
I like both Fille and Arabie, but I tend to feel that Fille is the more original and more versatile of the two. I don't think twice about throwing it on when I'm going out somewhere, but I tend to be more cautious with Arabie.

Both great things though, to my mind.
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post #27 of 39
1/28/13 at 1:36am
Fille encore.
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post #28 of 39
1/28/13 at 1:45am
Yet another vote for Fille.
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post #29 of 39
1/28/13 at 1:49am
Thread Starter 
Thanks again everyone! I have decided to take the plunge with FeA, but I am now highly interested in Arabie and SM!
With regard to SM; I am a big fan of Zino and MFK Lumiere Noire, so how does SM compare in terms of the rose notes (the type of rose used) and just in general?
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post #30 of 39
1/28/13 at 2:00am
I think it is much more heavy on the sandalwood than on the rose. Lumiere Noire has a healthy dose of patchouli which this one hasn't. Imagine a delicious baked sandalwood pastry, that's SM to me.
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post #31 of 39
1/28/13 at 2:51am
I agree with the folks who say Serge Lutens isn't a house you want to blind-buy from unless you are very easy to please. It is one I wanted very badly to like, but I had to really hunt to find anything that I would want to own a whole bottle from. They don't smell bad, every one is a quality frag. Just many are kind of generic. Get samples from TPC first...
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post #32 of 39
1/28/13 at 2:55am
Kudos on the purchase - hope you like it! Fille would have been bottom of the list for me...
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post #33 of 39
1/28/13 at 3:00am
I agree with the folks who say Serge Lutens isn't a house you want to blind-buy from. It is a house that I wanted to like, but I had to really hunt to find anything that I would want to own a whole bottle from, every one is a quality frag. Just always seem to add that one ingredient that clashes- Apricots in Arabie, a floral in Datura Noir, a urinal cake note in Cuir Mauresque. Get samples from TPC first...
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post #34 of 39
1/28/13 at 4:11am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by forfreddie View Post

Kudos on the purchase - hope you like it! Fille would have been bottom of the list for me...

What would have been your top?
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post #35 of 39
1/28/13 at 4:29am
Congrats on your bottle of Fille en Aiguilles. It's one of Lutens' more distinctive scents imo. Not a fan of Santal Majuscule though.
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post #36 of 39
1/28/13 at 5:19am
Thread Starter 
Just an on-topic question, where would be a good place to get SL samples from that are in, or deliver to the UK?

I just want to try them all now...
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post #37 of 39
1/28/13 at 5:20am
Thread Starter 
Sorry double post...
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post #38 of 39
1/28/13 at 5:57am
If you write to the company they'll send you the collection of wax samples for free. It's not the same as spraying them, but you will have a pretty fair impression of what the fragrances smell like.
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post #39 of 39
1/28/13 at 10:31am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kagey View Post

If you write to the company they'll send you the collection of wax samples for free. It's not the same as spraying them, but you will have a pretty fair impression of what the fragrances smell like.

Thanks, I'll definitely do that!
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