Serge Lutens Iris Silver Mist

Serge Lutens Iris Silver Mist - Rumor has it that during the making of Iris Silver Mist, Serge Lutens kept telling Roucel that he didn't have enough iris (pallida) in the fragrance, put more in, until Roucel dumped every iris compound he could find in it, took it back, and Serge pronounced it perfect, and that became Iris Silver Mist. This is the pinnacle of iris. Remember, iris is not the flower, it is the root, and it tends to smell a little carotty at the top. Iris Silver Mist has that charming little spice note that you don't notice for a while until that blast of iris starts clearing out, and then you smell it, flitting along like a little butterfly in this Iris-zilla. This fragrance was created by Maurice Roucel, one of maybe two Serge Lutens fragrances that were not created by Chrisopher Sheldrake. Iris Silver Musk is in the Floral Woody Musk fragrance group. 

The Hundred Classics Pick (Luca Turin & Tania Sanchez)

Reviews of Serge Lutens Iris Silver Mist from noses that may or may not sniff like your nose. 

from kafkaesque - "The “most sinister iris imaginable” — or perhaps, the most futuristic one. Iris Silver Mist opens on my skin as cold as iced vodka. The perfume actually has some of the drink’s same, lightly alcoholic, clear aroma when it is a thick, syrupy, frozen liquid, though it doesn’t smell like pure alcohol per se. The smell is simultaneously a little bit metallic in its nuances, artificial, synthetic, misty, and faintly powdery.  Front and center, however, is iris’ most frequent characteristic: the scent of boiled carrots. The note has a strong undertone that is both watery and sweet at the same time. At times, it almost seems accompanied by the aroma of rooty turnips, as well. The accord is ensconced and cocooned by the earthy, green nuances of the galbanum. Frequently, galbanum can be sharply pungent, almost bitter, and abrasively green. Here, however, it merely feels like very damp, dark, loamy soil that is infused with a soft, watery, floral sweetness. It’s delicate, and very lovely. The whole combination is lightly dusted by powder which adds to the silvery whiteness of the visuals."

from thenonblonde - "The first time I smelled Iris Silver Mist, Maurice Roucel's 1994 creation for Serge Lutens, I understood why some people found it questionable as a personal scent. The opening smells like fresh carrots that were just pulled out of damp soil. It's weird, alright. But then the whole picture is revealed- there's a cold an almost metallic note, but also a sort-of-sweet- but-not-quite powdery iris, some bitterness and a gorgeous soft floral accord.

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