Mainstream Monday: Marc Jacobs Mod Noir

As I read the info about Marc Jacobs Mod Noir on the Sephora Web site (it’s an exclusive there) and other places, I wondered if this might be a bit of a flanker to Marc Jacobs’ original scent, the one in the square clear bottle with the slightly curved black spray top and tiny black bow. Which was pretty nice, if you ask me, and not a whole not that he’s put out since has knocked my socks off. (I still wish I had snapped up the solid perfume in the original, housed in a beautifully sleek silver case.)

So on a recent foray into the big city, I decided to check out the new kid on the Marc Jacobs block.

Notes per Fragrantica: clementine, yuzu, gardenia, tuberose, water lily, orange blossom, nectarine and musk.

Mod Noir opens with a wash of soft green, which takes a gently sweet ‘n’ citrus turn, thanks to the clementine and yuzu. It’s got a bit more zesty/fruity vibe than the original, and is perhaps a bit creamier as well. A hazy mix of white florals carries through to the drydown, a soft breeze of said florals tinged with fruit and orange blossom. In comparison, her more elegant big sister keeps her green, slightly watery persona to the finish.

And speaking of ending, Mod Noir certainly did — and quickly — on my skin. Let’s just say that Mod Noir easily could have made our post from a week or two ago on fleeting fragrances. Which makes me wonder about the name: There’s not even the teeniest, tiniest shadow of anything dark here, like woods or even moderate-weight musks that might have anchored this and made it last longer. But that’s not really surprising, I guess, as not all that many scents really live up to or reflect their names these days.

Having said that, Mod Noir is definitely office-friendly; a quite pretty but safe fragrance for someone who wants a scent beyond the sugary-sweet celebuscents, but shies away from fragrant heavy-hitters.

The packaging, in its perky black and white stripes, has a retro vibe and is cute as can be. I also spied the scent in one of those fun rollerballs and originally thought it might be a nice late summer addition for me. But after finding that a spritz barely lasted an hour, I decided to pass. So for now I’ll be content to use up my spray samples as summer wanes.

Have you tried Mod Noir? What’s your favorite Marc Jacobs scent? I confess that I only tried several after the original, and after that, the line mostly fell off my radar, although I remember liking one or two of the limited edition ones with “Splash” in the name.