Question:
Originally Posted by aubrgene Serpent-- do you think Gris Clair is an improved version of Encens et Lavande? I mean would you own both? I'm the wrong person to ask. Incense doesn't hold to my skin, so I can't really wear either scent. I would say, smell them both, find which one you love, and choose. But I do think they overlap. I think Gris Clair is sort of the more mass-market, soft focus version of Encens et Lavande. And I think Encens et Lavande is rather simple and austere; there's just not much going on for all that money. Improved? Not necessarily. Just a different take. Moreover, Caron's Pour un Homme, which also sort of treads on the same lavender territory, holds my heart. Encens et Lavande struck me as the bitter, crisp, non-oriental rendition of Pour un Homme. Is Pour un Homme improved? (Or, more accurately, is Encens et Lavande improved on the much-older Pour Homme?) Not necessarily. Just a different take.
If you are a lavender completist - just the biggest lavender fanatic on earth, say - then get both. Otherwise, be satisfied with Gris Clair and save your money. I don't think one needs both Gris Clair and Encens et Lavande. But that's my opinion.

Answer:
I wearing this today and I am MOST impressed....just taking a whiff puts me in a calm relaxed state of mind...I LOVE this stuff...I just had to interject my .02

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Gris Clair is by far my favorite SL fragrance (and one of my favourite perfumes of all time). It's deeply evocative, but that's probably a personal thing. Objectively, I think it's a hauntingly beautiful perfume.
Does anyone know of a place that sells Serge Lutens for cheaper than retail price? So far I haven't been able to find anywhere online that sells them for less than the standard $100(ish).

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Gris Clair is phenomenal. I love it. I have a tiny sample vial and I'm jealously hoarding it with dreams to buy a full bottle.

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I made a very strange observation over the weekend during a too-short stop at The Perfume House in Portland. I was sampling a number of things, one of which was Carven Vetiver (the new formulation, which is not well liked here from what I can see). I detected a lavender note in this that was very reminiscent, specifically, of the Gris Clair take on lavender, so much so that I decided I must have been smelling residual Gris Clair on the shirt I was wearing.
However, I reapplied elsewhere and decided the note was coming from the Carven Vetiver. Has anyone else noticed something similar?
I did buy the Carven fragrance as a result of this observation. I'm not blown away by it, but it seems interesting. Time will tell whether I come to agree with the generally negative reviews.

Answer:
The Carven Vetiver you saw in The Perfume House is in a new-style
bottle. I think it's a reformulation. The much derided version is the
previous one, which I have and which truly has close to zero smell.
I literally have to drench myself in it to smell much of anything.
I've heard that this new Carven Vetiver is a significant improvement over
the previous version.
My recommendation for a lavender scent to try would be Acqua di Parma
Lavanda Tonica.
Regards,
trumpet_guy

Answer:
Originally Posted by trumpet_guy The Carven Vetiver you saw in The Perfume House is in a new-style
bottle. I think it's a reformulation. The much derided version is the
previous one, which I have and which truly has close to zero smell.
I literally have to drench myself in it to smell much of anything.
I've heard that this new Carven Vetiver is a significant improvement over
the previous version.
My recommendation for a lavender scent to try would be Acqua di Parma
Lavanda Tonica.
Regards,
trumpet_guy Ah, interesting (and heartening). So are you saying there was the original version that earned the reputation, a feeble reforumulation that squandered it, and now a new reformulation that is the one I just bought?

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Theres a fair bit of overlap between Gris Clair and Encens et Lavande but I like Encens et Lavander more because its "darker" - smoky incense fuses with cool lavender. No crazy mish mash of the typical lutens oriental ingredients here. Its good stuff and should be in the export line.

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Originally Posted by Tuner_Watson Ah, interesting (and heartening). So are you saying there was the original version that earned the reputation, a feeble reforumulation that squandered it, and now a new reformulation that is the one I just bought? Yeah, that's what I understand. I think Scentemental might have posted on
this recently. I was at The Perfume House a few months ago and I saw
that new Carven Vetiver bottle, but I just passed it by, assuming it was
the same insipid juice I already own, but then I read some post on Basenotes
that said it was a reformulation, already released in Europe and finally
making it's way over here. Supposedly, this re-release is more like the
original. Hopefully.
--------------------------------------
OK, here is Scentemental's post on this:
/showt...carven+vetiver

Answer:
Originally Posted by trumpet_guy Yeah, that's what I understand. I think Scentemental might have posted on
this recently. I was at The Perfume House a few months ago and I saw
that new Carven Vetiver bottle, but I just passed it by, assuming it was
the same insipid juice I already own, but then I read some post on Basenotes
that said it was a reformulation, already released in Europe and finally
making it's way over here. Supposedly, this re-release is more like the
original. Hopefully.
--------------------------------------
OK, here is Scentemental's post on this:
/showt...carven+vetiver Thanks for the link to Scentimental's post--now I remember reading it.