Serge Lutens Bois de Violette by Serge Lutens Perfume for Women

Part of the initial quartet (Bois et Fruits, Bois et Musc, Bois de Violette and Bois Oriental) which varied the formidable concept of Shiseido's Morocco-inspired Feminite du Bois into four different directions for the occasion of the opening of the Palais Royal perfumery wing by Serge Lutens in 1992: fruity, musky, leathery violet and oriental vanillic. Bois de Violette enjoys something of a cult status among them, the fragrance reprises the honeyed plummy nuance of dried fruits and cedar goodness of the original Christopher Sheldrake composition for Shiseido but hides them under the purple shade of violets and the crepuscular tones of an autumnal forest floor. This is not edible violet candies, but rather a woody composition (lots of cedar) with a pungently sweet note of violets held inside a leather glove. Introspective, somber yet sensual in a turn-in-the-head way, this feminine fragrance can be worn by women (and men) who don't need to impress but yearn to feel like the dark, tortured heroes of a Borghes novel. Formely a Parisian exclusive, it became a limited edition export for the US market fairly recently.

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