LouLou
Cacharel (1987)

Smelling aromachemicals on their own is a sort of devilish delight, complete with the challenging question: do I want to know?!

Luca Turin touches upon a "mysteriously raspy note," that makes LouLou more palatable. This is indeed my experience with LouLou, deconstructed: from the methyl salicylate up top (jasmine-tuberosy smoke and mirrors, or is it just pure wintergreen rub?) to the cashmeran drydown, it seems there's always something dissonant, keeping all the sweetness compact, a little bullying-making-fun for the sake of keeping things interesting and the conversation flowing - very cold-wheater, so Christmassy! Like the 'mushroom' in gardenia, the cashmeran in LouLou is a detail you never forget, even when resmelling Mugler's Alien, after having considered it an innovative masterpiece, and eventually realizing it's (just) LouLou light (on the sugar).

A favorite perfume, a shielding, warm, invisible blanket, from the favorite Jean Guichard!

I've been interested in this scent for a while - because of its quirky 70s style plastic bottle that reminds me of some furniture in my grandparents' house, and therefore my childhood. And this scent is just a little bit older than me - we're pretty much peers.

So I was super glad when I was gifted an old mini (with a blue diamond shaped bottle and pointy red hat, it looks both like child's toy and a psychedelic creation at the same time) and started digging into it.

What surprised me is that although I kept wearing it, I couldn't really grasp it - and after a few months I cannot really do it yet - but I wanted to write out my impressions nevertheless.

It's a punch to my nose at the start, very big, very oldschool, very heavy. It kind of scares me at first. Starts off slightly dusty, then the sweetness begins to creep in, and so it sweetens gradually. It's never a truly sweet scent, more like slightly sweetened and slightly dusty woods. And in the end, when it's softened and mellowed, when the dust settles, it's sweetly woody, then and only then I really enjoy it. In this stage it sheds off the oldschool vibe and smells neither "young" nor "old" - just timeless.

Jasmine, iris, mimosa, tiare, sweet vanilla. I get it all and I love it. It also has a nice vintage feel. So good.

A perfume in the same line as Anaïs Anaïs - looks innocent but not. Very sweet to the point of causing diabetes - but not tacky. Praline reigns supreme. This is a perfume for young women, unlike the former, that was supposed to be a "teenager perfume" but is suitable for women of all ages.

I've ignored this perfume since its creation. Was always attracted to its pretty, blue bottle. I passed on it because of its name. Never really liked its name, LouLou. One day I found a bottle for a decent price. Decided to give it a try. One sniff - I was hooked.

She is a monster. Slapped me right in the face with no apologies. A floriental opium den of liquid sin. A hand grenade filled with jasmine and incense. It screams, "I'm here!" and you'd better listen.

Not for timid ladies.

Dr. Pepper and Cherry Vanilla Soda had a baby. She's at once fizzy, loud and demanding, scaring a lot of babysitters off. But the lucky girl who sticks around for a while soon finds that with a soft hand and a little patience, LouLou not only settles down ... she transforms ... into luscious, fluffy clouds of cherry vanilla goodness. Delicious.