A few weeks ago I was googling around for a good heliotrope perfume and came across a thread on Perfume of Life about L.T. Piver Heliotrope Blanc. I had never heard of L.T. Piver. It turns out, Piver has been around since 1774, and is a well regarded perfume company in Europe, but isn’t well known in the U.S. I found it Heliotrope Blanc at Escentual.com, in the UK. I’ve always enjoyed fragrances with a heliotrope note but never tried a heliotrope soliflore. I ordered Etro Heliotrope from Aedes last month but it’s on backorder and I haven’t received it yet.I’ve been curious about heliotrope for several years now. Usually there’s a quality about heliotrope-heavy fragrances that I adore. For instance, I love People of the Labyrinths Luctor et Emergo but this is a cherry gourmand rendition of heliotrope. Barbara Bui, a recent love of mine, also has a strong heliotrope quality. The classic Guerlain Apres L’Ondee is prominently heliotrope as well as some mimosa fragrances like Parfum de Nicolai Mimosaique and Caron Farnesiana.
This heliotrope curiosity led me to plant it in my garden a few years back. Heliotrope flowers are either white or purple so I planted both. The actual flowers are intoxicating. Heliotrope is one of those unmistakeably sweet aromas, similar in it’s striking uniqueness, but not in smell to honeysuckle, lily of the valley and lilacs. White heliotrope is the more floral of the two heliotrope flowers. The white flowers are baby powder soft and sweet but not almondy or cherry-like. Finding a perfume that resembled the white heliotrope has been on my to-do list for some time.
L.T. Piver Heliotrope Blanc is exactly what I’ve been looking for. I’m head over heels smitten with this stuff. Heliotrope Blanc is delicate, powdery and cozy, but it also has a sexy sweet side that seems much more wearable than the cherry almond variety. Heliotrope Blanc initially makes me think of marshmallows dusted with talcum powder served next to a vase of white heliotrope flowers. It is sheer and transparent so I simply bathe in it. If you apply a lot, it lasts close to the skin for quite some time.
For anyone out there salivating at the idea of Heliotrope Blanc, please leave a comment, and I will draw one lucky person who will win a 5 ml decant of it. The drawing will close on Sunday, September 6th and I’ll announce the winner on Monday, September 7th.
I love heliotrope scents in the fall--including L'Heure Bleue and Bourbon French Heliotrope (it reminds DH of baby powder but I love it anyway). It's a complex, comforting scent to me, with a bit of something edible--funny, I could describe linden that way too.
ReplyDeleteI too love heliotrope, I can go through a bottle of Etro in a couple of months!! I spray with total abandon morning, noon, and night. Lagniappe Oaks which is now Bourbon French, has Lady Evangeline which is also divine. I've wanted to smell this L.T. one for a while but it seemed hard to get...please enter me, I would love a sniff!!
ReplyDeleteI am very curious about heliotrope so please enter me in the draw. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteI would love to try this, it sounds wonderful. Please enter me in the draw, Abigail
ReplyDeleteI'd love to try this. Please enter me in the draw.
ReplyDeleteThis sounds lovely. I'm only just starting to explore heliotrope; soon I will smell Apres l'Ondee for the first time! I'm fond of Kenzo Flower, though. Doesn't that have a heliotrope note? Please enter me in the drawing!
ReplyDeleteI love heliotrope, too. I've been contemplating getting a bottle of Barbara Bui unsniffed ever since your review, so please count me in!
ReplyDeleteI have this idea that I like heliotrope in a scent, but I can't actually imagine what heliotrope itself smells like, so a soliflore is probably something I should try. I'd love to be included in the draw, please and thank you!
ReplyDeleteOh, yes YES! to heliotrope. My skin seems to love it. Ever try Reminiscence Les Notes Gourmandes Do Re? Simple, sweet (overpriced, but hey, what fragrance isn't these days) heliotrope. Gucci EdP I is another nice one, where heliotrope plays nice with other florals.
ReplyDeleteLong story short: I'd love the chance to try this one.
Hi
ReplyDeleteI don't know much about heliotrope...but I have been searching for a mimosa type smell..something intoxicating and soft...which sounds like maybe heliotrope!
Cheryl
Funny, because I am also always on the look out for a lovely heliotrope. Amour Le Parfum has a heavy dose of it, I think. And Etro Heliotrope is gorgeous, but potently sweet.
ReplyDeleteI'd love to be entered into the drawing.
I always have purple heliotrope growing on patio during the summer months. The scent is heavenly. I can't wait to try it in a perfume.
ReplyDeleteHi Abigail,
ReplyDeleteI'd love to be entered as well. Still trying to figure out heliotrope among other notes! Thanks, and have a good Labor Day weekend.
Laura M
I hope the fragrance is as delightful as your writing is! Please enter me into the drawing.
ReplyDeletesalivating? my mouth is practically dripping:)
ReplyDeleteSome of my favorite fragrances turned out to be heliotrope-heavy (Farnesiana, POTL Luctor et Emergo, Apres L'Ondee) so I got a decant of Etro Heliotrope to explore the heliotrope soliflores. It was awful and plasticky. I'd love to be entered for a decant of Heliotrope Blanc -- haven't come across this one yet.
ReplyDeleteI haven't tried a heliotrope scent, but I really enjoy almond scents so I think I could really like heliotrope. I would love to be entered in the draw. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteI'd love to try this, I've loved this element in other scents.
ReplyDeleteAbigail,
ReplyDeleteI received my decant of Heliotrope Blanc today and had to try it right away. I agree 100% with your take on this fragrance -- it is a soft, cozy, powdery scent where all elements are in perfect balance. When I first put it on I found it very almondy + very sweet + very baby powder and I was worried it was heading in the direction of Teint de Neige (which is too much for me). Instead it mellowed out rather quickly and morphed into the perfect heliotrope soliflore. I find the almond in this to be similar to LUSH Snowcake soap and fragrance, if just a touch sweeter. I am so glad to have found this, thank you!
Amy