Bois Lumière
Anatole Lebreton (2014)

When I think of a fragrance that is truly and indisputably niche, I think of Bois Lumiere. I am head over heels in love with this, but I cannot imagine this one setting the world ablaze, as it is raw. The honey is raw, the beeswax is abundant, the propolis redolent of pollen and tree resins. Luminescent as its name suggests, it's warm and primeval, something that brings to mind ritual and sacrament rather than flashy vanity and haute opulence. Its feral facets may make many wince, but there are those of you out there that live for this, and would lavish yourself in its peerless, unapologetic beauty.

Everlasting flowers and Sweet Williams in a vase, the rinds of eaten mandarins, beeswax candles on an old cedar table, the sound of a recorder playing a wistful tune. through the window I see the boughs of the firs and hemlocks sway in the wind. There's an afternoon glow, and I sit, and observe. I meditate on the distraction of lust, the objects of desire, and the struggle for pleasure. Bois Lumiere smells almost too real and vivid yet I am transfixed with how suggestive it really is. It makes me realize I may will myself into enjoying some perfumes, but here, it's automatic, a visceral limbic response.

Its radiance persists for hours, growing woodier (!) and more resinous over time. It's a sexy poet and thinker with dirty thoughts but a good heart. The kind that makes one weak in the (bee's?) knees, whispering sweet buzzes in one's willing ear, with a wandering hand and soothing voice. It's time to snuff out the candles...

very good beeswax/honey/smoke/skank fragrance, along the lines of mfk absolue pour le soir, but better because not so bland and sweet in the end.

This just did not smell good on me. I got urinal cake and singed animalic for a horrid overall presence that was an immediate scrubber. I'm sure my initial impression isn't completely fair, and I'll try spending a little more time with it when I'm at home to see if I can find some better impressions, but I was at the office when I dabbed it on, and it instantly caused a negative reaction.