Launched in 2010 by fashion house Balenciaga, Balenciaga Paris is the line’s first major fragrance launch since 1998. Created by Olivier Polge, this violet-based EDP is a beautiful interpretation of springtime in Paris, where violets seem to bloom everywhere. On me, it opens with a bright, sparkling note of bergamot gently warmed with the spiciness of pepper. There is also a green note from violet leaves, which gives it a slight metallic tang, that I experience as excitement. As it blooms, a soft, creamy violet opens up and plays hide-and-seek with a carnation that’s spicy, floral, and powdery. Cedarwood is creamy and woody. It also has a freshness that prevents the flowers freshness and prevents them from becoming sweet or cloying. A note of oakmoss with its damp, forest-floor scent that evokes the smell of a garden after the rain. At the base, Haitian vetiver is green, clean and fresh. It’s joined by a note of patchouli that extends the sense of damp earth and adds sensuality to the composition. Labdanum, warm and sweet, finishes the fragrance. Balenciaga Paris dries down to a powdery, fresh, romantic scent that settles into a beautiful skin scent. Balenciaga Paris is refined Parisienne chic. Quietly elegant and refined with no hard edges. It’s not a literal expression of the smells of the city in springtime. There's no hint of tobacco, cars, cheese or dogs. This is the remembrance of the flowers, damp earth, green leaves and romance of Paris in the spring. Notes: Bergamot, pepper, violet leaf, violet, carnation, oakmoss, cedar, vetiver, patchouli and labdanum.
