What to Buy this Week: Guerlain Aqua Allegoria Lys Soleia

Mon, 16 July 2012 11:39AM

My must-buy of the week actually hit beauty counters last month. However, I was on maternity leave back then (and neck deep in nappies) so have only just started sniffing out the latest batch of fragrances (and boy, what a pleasant change they make from Eau de Huggies).

My pick of the perfumed bunch: the limited-edition Guerlain Aqua Allegoria Lys Soleia, $95, from department stores.

Look, perfume reviews are always tricky because smell is such a subjective thing. What makes me swoon might make your stomach take a little turn. Although I doubt any of you would hate this one.

It’s like summer in a bottle. Or, actually, summer holidays in a bottle. One sniff and you’re instantly transported to an olfactive beach break. That’s because it has that whole fancy sunscreen smell going on. A little like how Estée Lauder makes you feel as though you’re slathering on a glamorous suncream in some parallel world (probably somewhere like Positano or St Tropez) with its fabulous Bronze Goddess, the limited-edition summertime perfume that has become an annual, highly anticipated launch (and fast sell-out) for the company.

So back to Lys Soleia … The name kind of translates as Solar Lily. Now, before you wince at the memory of headaches triggered by lily perfumes you’ve worn in the past, you’ll be glad to know that this is a really sweet take on lily. Literally. Once you move past the fresh and zesty top notes (bergamot, lemon, green palm leaves) you get to a blend of lily and ylang ylang that – to me, at least – comes across as warm honey.

And if that’s not luscious enough, there’s also a gorgeous creaminess to the fragrance, thanks to the infusion of ‘exotic fruit notes’ (I pick up a little papaya) and tuberose, that most luxurious of all the white florals.

Finally, at the base are vanilla and musk. They’re not unusual as base notes, sure. But here they smell like sun-warmed skin. And it’s not just any old sun, of course. More like a Tahitian or Bahamian one, no less.

Speaking of Tahiti, thank goodness that tiare doesn’t pop up in this fragrance. Love it, of course, but it has seriously been over-dosed lately. As has coconut as a perfume note. What Lys Soleia shows is that you don’t need to be so obvious to evoke summer.

Even though Lys Soleia has just been launched to coincide with the Northern Hemisphere’s summer, I think it’s actually better suited to our winter. That’s because it could possibly be too heady and heavy to wear in the heat. In the middle of winter, however, there’s no better mood-lifter.

And at $95, it’s expensive for an eau de toilette … but still cheaper than an actual beach holiday.

 

So, Primpettes, what do you think? Have you tried it and loved it?

What fragrances are you buying and wearing right now?

And anyone got any actual beach holidays planned?

 

Kat x

Posted by: Katrina Lawrence

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Tags: coconut, estee lauder, fragrance, guerlain, lily, perfume, summer, tiare flower, tuberose, ylang ylang