Lumiere Rose by Grès

It hooks me. It has way more layers than it sounds like at first, with pear, peach, and violet very prominent.

If you like unique perfumes, this is a great choice. It’s super spicy and sweet, with a strong note of pepper and licorice. I bought it blind and absolutely loved it, but I recommend trying it first because it’s not for everyone.

But who decided this was a perfume? This always happens to me with Grès fragrances; so far, I haven’t liked any of the ones I’ve tried from the brand. The bottles, however, are excellent in design. This scent smells like plastic and just doesn’t make me feel good. I hate it and won’t be repurchasing.

It lasts quite a bit on my skin, which is an exception. The first thing I notice is licorice, a caramel with a floral touch. After a while, some bergamot appears, but I don’t sense the rose, I do sense the pink pepper. Maybe I prefer less sweet florals, but I still rate it as a rich and original perfume. I’ll see if it becomes a classic or if I’ll just use up this bottle. Excellent price, gorgeous packaging. Lasts about 5 or 6 hours on the skin; the sillage isn’t very extensive but it’s not invasive either. It’s rich.

I met this fragrance yesterday and I’m happy. It’s a distinct scent, it has great longevity on my skin, and something really fantastic is that I can actually smell it, which doesn’t happen with any of the others I’ve used. To sum up, I’m fascinated.

Lumière Rose is the first piece of the Les Conceptuels line by Grès, inspired by the daily facets of Paris, embodying the mechanics of dawn. On the brand’s website they describe: ‘The sun rises over the Grès Workshop, bathing it in soft pink glows. It illustrates the dawn of the day in Paris, a moment of intense aesthetic emotion.’ The notes are: top of pink pepper, bitter orange blossom, and pear; heart of rose, violet, and peach; base of licorice, sandalwood, and musk. At the first spray, you perceive a thick, ‘syrupy’ emanation of rose and licorice, like a cough syrup (remember the fruity scents of the nineties). Almost immediately, that syrup gives way to a delicate, spicy pink pepper, diluted in pear (I warn you that it’s one of the few that doesn’t corrupt its pear note, which tends to ‘plasticize’). Then, the fresh, juicy fruits are interpreted by sighs of peach with bergamot (violet also emerges, vaguely powdery, as highlighted in previous reviews). As the heart dries down, licorice takes over again with hints of rose and a soft, woody resin, at which point it bears an impressive resemblance to Lolita Lempicka’s Le Premier Parfum (the difference is that the latter uses ivy instead of rose, and it’s much more potent and long-lasting). Lumière Rose has somewhat withdrawn intentions and almost fails. In trying to honor elegance, luxury, and love, it falls short by settling for an embarrassing blush of tenderness and reproachable opulence. It suffers from a lack of passion and intensity, with limited power and moderate longevity. It’s a pleasant fragrance with enormous conceptual potential that was hamstrung by its own sentimental limits; it wouldn’t steal anyone’s sleep. It’s agreeable, comfortable, and nothing challenging, but it could have been better.

I just tried Lumière Rose and it feels very feminine, delicate, and sensual, with a classic rose vibe like old colognes but updated with oriental and sweet blends. It reminds me of Estée Lauder’s Pleasures Delight, Lancôme’s Tresor, and the discontinued Miss Dior Cherie. Since I usually look for less popular perfumes to avoid smelling like everyone else, I loved its originality, and my husband liked it too. It’s romantic, but the longevity is very light. Still, I give Lumière Rose by Grès a solid 10 points.