Blanche
Byredo (2009)

I do get some aldehydes, but for me they're drowned out by a huge, synthetic, white laundry musk accord. It's actually headache-inducing and makes me feel ill. I've noticed that many Byredo fragrances seem to dry down to this same 'white laundry musk' base. Blanche might be the best example. I don't care for this accord, or for the large amount of woody aromachemicals that were likely required to create it, especially in a perfume with this kind of price tag - this makes Blanche and many other Byredos a hard pass for me.

Seriously - if you like this kind of thing, just pick up a bottle of White Linen at a fraction of the price.

Thumbs down.

The opening very clearly expresses an aldehyde blast - bright, fresh, with a slightly slightly spicy undertone of white peppers mixed with white musks.

The drydown adds a floral tint, mainly a light violet, without changing the overall character significantly. The white musks grow stronger and remain present well into the later stages.

The base adds a few nonspecific ingredients, mainly a woody note and some cashmeran, but on my skin the white musks and the aldehydes eventually win the day.

I get soft sillage, limited projection and seven hours of longevity on my skin.

An agreeable bright summery scent based on aldehydes and musks that is not the refreshing type of fragrance for hot days but more on the tempered side. Overall is is a bit too thin and generic, especially when compared with other similar compositions that show what can be achieved with white musks: products like Acca Kappa Muschio Bianco, or Jovan's White Musk, Etro Musk and, of course, Tom Ford's White Musks series - think of Urban Musk or Moss Breches in particular. 2.5/5.

Blanche is a perfume by a well known - as much as a niche brand can be - house Byredo. Founded by Ben Gorham, House of Byredo is trying through its ideology of minimalism to allow people to clear their scent wardrobe and gain a new scent perspective through simple and elemental, high-quality formulas.

Perfume creator said he tried to describe whiteness with this scent, being inspired by his wife Natasha that gave birth to their daughter. Skilfully using aldehyde and musk notes he wanted to show her pure and untainted nature. And I think he succeeded in it. He succeeded in something else too, something he may not have hoped for – and those are carelessness and innocence. Moments of tranquillity and serenity on one's own.

Softly falling asleep smells like Blanche. A child's laughter smells like Blanche. If I could reach out to the clouds, I am sure they would also smell like Blanche.

Fragrance notes are the least important in this perfume. It is the effect that matters. Its acting is directed towards our attention that turns inside. When we apply this perfume, we get away from the outside world and look deep inside ourselves, at the place which has been long forgotten and frequently dreamed of. That is the world of safety ruled by laughter and joy. We no longer seek them somewhere outside – we find them inside. In my opinion, that is the greatness of Blanche – it takes us like a sledge all the way down a snow-covered slope to our very selves. Scents have an amazing power which is completely incomprehensible at times but always magical. And Blanche is one of the most magical ones…

For me, Blanche is one of the most beautiful aldehydic perfumes. There are many aldehyde myths and disinformation in the perfume world. Many consider them an elixir of the perfume industry, an ingredient that gives champagne-like bubbles and freshness to the perfume and makes it lift up from the skin like the bubbles in the sprinkled water. First to ever use aldehyde is said to be Chanel no 5 (it was actually another perfume, a few years older). That is what gave Number 5 a scent of freshly washed linens compared to the warm, sensual, opulent floral and base notes.

There is more than one type of aldehyde. But when used in the perfume industry, it is generally the aldehydes with the large molecular mass that smell pleasant compared to those that smell very unpleasant (acetaldehyde). Chanel no5 is known for its bouquet of aldehydes C10, C11 and C12 while modern perfume compositions use also aldehydes C14 that smell like the peaches and C18 that smells like coconut. Perfumes that are great examples of aldehyde perfumes besides No5 and Blanche are: White Linen by Estee Lauder, Sicily by Dolce & Gabbana, L'Interdit by Givenchy, Madame Rochas by Rochas and many others.

Byredo Blanche is mainly a musky floral with a heavy dose of rose from its onset, in contrast to more yellow floral La Tulipe. Blanche, like La Tulipe, is fresh, traditionally feminine-leaning, and somewhat fleeting, but is agreeable in its composition.

Other supporting notes include pink pepper, sandalwood, and other florals like peony, and these foster subtle nuances, making it more interesting than boring but ultimately a little unconvincing for its retail or even discounted Byredo pricing. I might be interested in a bottle for $25 but not for 5-10 times that. Still, a pleasant scent that's worthy of trying. This is one of the more balanced florals I've tried previously.

7 out of 10

As much as Id love to buy and wear Blanche, I ultimately decided against it. Its not that I dont like it - it took me two whole days to decide whether or not Blanche is for me, but the more I wear Blanche, the more I find its similarity to fabric softeners.

There is a sheer transparency with Blanche as evident in my first impression of it. Blanche will join the ranks of Chanel no. 5, Rouge d'Hermes, and Jour d'Hermes in a category that I call "relaxers" that help me fall sleep. Very, very relaxing and calming.

Id still give Blanche a Two Thumbs up or a 8/10 rating. The search for a clean scent for me still continues on. I believe in a genderless fragrance (Blanche is skewed more to the feminine) but I cant seem to bring myself to decide that Blanche is the clean fragrance for me. I believe that a lot of people will settle for this as their clean scent but not me. Here is hoping Monsieur Ellena comes out of retirement and create one.

This closely resembles Artisan by Jon Varvatos and I would consider Blanche as Artisan's feminine counterpart. What's stopping me to consider Artisan as my clean fragrance is the criminally short longevity of the scent.

I'm reluctant to admit I blindly bought this for the name and the bottle thinking it had to be good. Alas, I was mistaken. Synthetic and gives me a headache. Agree with previous reviews that is smells of laundry detergent. Oh well...looks nice on my vanity.