Lumiere Noire by Grès
Women 2013
Description
Lumiere Noire by Grès is a floral chypre fragrance for women. Launched in 2013, this composition features top notes of bergamot; heart notes of patchouli and rose; and base notes of amber and musk.
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The olfactory pyramid
A guide to the opening, heart and lasting trail of the fragrance.
The community speaks
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In the collection
Leading answer I want it
767 votes
What do you think?
Leading answer Like it
256 votes
Season
Choose severalLeading answer Autumn
271 votes
Time of day
Choose severalLeading answer Day
167 votes
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How it wears
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Longevity
Leading answer Moderate
144 votes
Sillage
Leading answer Moderate
202 votes
Character
Leading answer Traditionally feminine
49 votes
Value perception
Leading answer Good value
44 votes
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Community reviews
6 reviews
Share what you noticed: opening, drydown, sillage and the moments when it works for you.
So lucky I caught this one! It’s a chypre, my favorite olfactive family. A precious, elegant, and distinguished fragrance, especially today when everything smells cheap and overly sweet. The longevity and sillage are moderate.
I bought it based on the references, but unfortunately, I didn’t like it. It smelled like perfume for very old ladies. Just my personal opinion.
It starts quite citrusy with a sweet orange blossom touch, but quickly a patchouli and amber with rose emerge. It’s not an acidic citrus; it’s sweet. Later, vanilla appears on the skin. It smells like night, like Paris nights—sweet and sensual for going out. I don’t see it for daytime or work; I enjoy it more at night, under the dew, because the sweetness doesn’t provide energy like Coco Mademoiselle, which I don’t see as similar. It’s a rich perfume I really enjoy. The website says: ‘The last light of the day is devoured by the horizon… the city of light appears dressed in luxury… a tribute to the tender Parisian nights.’ It describes it well. I recommend it if you’re looking for something good, beautiful, and affordable, although it’s pricey in Argentina due to importation, today it’s half the price of a Chanel one. Edit: the notes need updating; the official site lists vanilla as a base, grapefruit and orange blossom in the opening, and cyclamen or Persian violet in the heart.
I bought it blind a while ago. First, the official website notes: top bergamot, grapefruit, and orange blossom; heart patchouli, rose, and cyclamen; base amber, musk, and vanilla. Upon opening, it smells extremely citrusy, with softened peels by the orange blossom. Then the rose comes out, I suppose with the cyclamen (which I don’t know) slightly sweet, very creamy vanilla, patchouli, and a slight citrus freshness. After hours, what I feel most is the vanilla. The sillage is about half a meter for the first two hours, then drops to 15cm. By the fourth or fifth hour, it’s skin-scent only; not great longevity, but it doesn’t hurt to spend it because it’s economical. The atomizer is a bit of a pain, with super-short range. In my bottle, it sprays like a kids’ water gun, lol. That doesn’t take away from the fact that the scent is a delight.
What a wonderful perfume, Yadorán couldn’t have described it better! To me, it seems excessively similar to Coco Mademoiselle. The only notable difference is the opening: in CM, the citrus lasts several minutes, while in LM, the bergamot is noticeable for just a minute before patchouli and rose take over, blending with the amber and musk. To be completely honest, I enjoy Lumière Noire more than the Coco; it works better on my skin and has more sillage and longevity. It’s elegant, classy, sparkling, sensual, and perfect for formal occasions. If you like the Coco, you’ll certainly love this, and it’s very affordable. Rating 10/10.
Lumière Noire is from the Les Conceptuels line, inspired by Paris, paying tribute to facets of the daily cycle (Gres coins its cradle of inspiration). ‘Solitude is a spiritual food for me’ introduces the line. Lumière Noire represents the nocturnal dynamo of Paris (Lumiere Rose is dawn and Lumiere Blanche is afternoon). ‘While the night submerges Paris in shadows… the city of light dresses in its party gowns… an olfactory homage to the intoxicating Parisian nights.’ Notes: top bergamot, grapefruit, and orange; heart rose, cyclamen, and patchouli; base vanilla, amber, and musk. It’s compared to Chanel’s Coco Mademoiselle, but I think it’s closer to the old Miss Dior Cherie and the accessible Miss Dior (New), being more interesting, economical, and better executed. The first spray explodes with creamy, milky orange blossom, with minimal bergamot freshness and a vague citrus edge. Then it monopolizes a creamy, balsamic patchouli with sweet, docile rose (the cyclamen doesn’t appear in my experience). Finally, dominated by a vanilla-amber and lactonic accord, with a gourmand influence (similar to L’Ambre des Merveilles by Hermes) and a subtle musk. It’s similar to the ones mentioned, avoiding the inconsistent ‘sorbet’ of Miss Dior (New) and the sober freshness of the Coco, as all fit into neo-chypres with a creamy/fruity/gourmand patchouli nuance, but Lumière Noire has a singular identity; it’s the most romantic and magnetic, without falling into cliché. It’s not dark; it’s comforting and luminous; not weak (power like pre-reformulation Coco) nor coarse or overwhelmingly mature. If you like the mentioned fragrances, try Lumière Noire (so economical it’s embarrassing). If you’re looking for riskier neo-chypres, try Believe by Britney Spears. Sillage and longevity are stable, not disappointing but not overwhelming either.