Happy spring to all of you folks who dwell in the Northern Hemisphere! Hope it’s feeling at least a little spring-like wherever you are. Ironically, after more than a week of spring-ish (even summer) temps here, today it’s far, far cooler — although normal for March. Ah, well … that’s Mother Nature for you. But let’s get to the scented portion of our program, shall we? On my foray to the big city today, I popped into Sephora and sniffed something that hit my sniffer as “spring”: Atelier Cologne’s Bergamote Soleil.
Now I’ve always liked this line, not only for its enjoyable fragrances, but also for its range of sizes (from a purse spray to a honkin’ big 6.7 ounce bottle), which makes it both affordable and splurge-worthy. But it seems that recently I’ve been doing a lot less sniffing and they’ve been producing more, so there are numerous scents of theirs that I’ve not been able to try. An acquaintance of mine at the local library chatted with me recently about bergamot, and it was on my mind, so when I saw Bergamote Soleil at Sephora, I snagged a spritz.
Bergamot is a wonderful perfume ingredient, and quite lovely, but it can tend to fall into the “simply pretty” camp when on its own, and that’s fine. But Bergamote Soleil pairs it with jasmine, cardamom, ambrette, among other notes. That mix boosts the scent’s complexity as well as the sophistication level, anchoring and deepening it, and making it a more interesting ride than simple bergamot. After four hours of wear, I was left with a a most pleasant mossy-green finish.
Notes: Calabrian bergamot, bigarade, ambrette, jasmine, lavender, cardamom, vetiver, oak moss and white amber.
Oh, and another thing I like about this line is its accessibility. It’s available at a fairly wide range of doors: in-store and online at Sephora, and also at Neiman Marcus, Aedes de Venustas and Luckyscent. Another plus: Their fragrances’ higher concentration gives even the lighter of their scents decent lasting power.
Have you tried Atelier Cologne’s Bergamote Soleil? What scents of theirs do you enjoy the most? And if you’re celebrating spring where you are, what fragrance are you wearing?
Kismet, so glad you like it, too! I’m thinking I may be going through my Sephora sample pretty quickly and may need more as well. Could a (little) bottle be in our futures? 🙂
Maya, you are one of several Patchouli fans here today. I remember liking it but need to revisit to refresh my memory. And yes, there are a lot of them now — I can’t keep up!
I generally love AC and got a decant of Bergamote Soleil in a split. Really like it–bright as sunshine with great lasting power. Hmmmm may need more…..
I have liked a bunch of the line. I really enjoy Mistral Patchouli. It’s refreshing in warmer weather. Now Atelier is coming out with too many fragrances, too often. I’ve lost interest.
Sorry, I tried and tried to reply here but it kept coming up down below.
I might of had a small decant a few years ago and probably for got to mention it on my blog. But I have never delved into Atelier.
Hi, lady! If you’re ever browsing in Sephora, do give them a sniff. You never know — you might love one.
I like Atelier Cologne. They are very prolific and their fragrances are very versatile.
I agree — it’s a nice line that they have really expanded lately!
Hiya, Dina — wouldn’t that be a hoot? I’ve often thought we perfume folks needed some way to recognize each other (perhaps a bubble over our heads proclaiming our screen names?). You never know who you might be bumping elbows with, ha! I think the cardamom (and ambrette and oak moss) are what are making me love this even more than usual, too.
If we lived in the same town, Ann, I might have bumped into you over the Bergamote Soleil tester at Sephora! I also was there just this weekend getting a sample. A MUA friend recommended it, and I was pleased with my first impression. I agree on that citrusy blast in the opening — it’s very bright snd refreshing. I smell the cardamom right away; that’s a note I like. It reminds me a bit of Cartier Declaration. I can see this one working really well on hot, humid summer days.
I’ve got a small bottle of Patchouli Mistral and I’m not a Patchouli lover normally. They are good quality and they do both a 30ml bottle option and packs of very reasonably priced samples.
Hi! I didn’t realize they did sample packs — very nice! And those 30 ml bottles are so perfect. I liked the patchoui one as well. Need to get my sample out and wear it this week. Thanks!
Oh, this sounds delicious! And what a pretty bottle for spring. Spring, oy, I wish it would get here and STAY! After a couple of lovely spring-like interludes we had rain and fat wet flakes of snow on and off all weekend. My guess is you did too!
Howdy, sweetie! That’s right, you got the S-word again, didn’t you? 🙂 Sigh … so sorry. None for us, just chilly temps, but that’s OK. I really wasn’t ready to turn on the A/C in March and at one point last week it was feeling that way. Do give this one a try when you can — it’s citrusy and refreshing but also has some depth and complexity, and I loved the mossy finish.
I haven’t tried Bergamote Soleil so far but I like their Orange Sanguine too. I consider buying a bottle for the summer holiday. All AC scents I know are lovely and very wearable but I prefer the exclusive collection, especially Rendez-Vous and Sous le toit de Paris. They are less citrusy and have a better lasting power.
My favourite fragrance to honor spring is Wrappings by Clinique, but the latest reformulation is completely wrong so I’ll have to go on a vintage hunt again.
Hi, Neva! I need to try the Rendez-Vous soon; I did sample the Sous and their gold and silver thingies, but they weren’t my cup of tea. As for the Wrappings love, I’m right there with you — but you say it’s been reformulated and wrecked? Oh, no! I wish there was some way to tell on the box which year it was made so we could buy some made prior to the screw-up. BTW, I think Surrender to Chance has samples of it.
Hi Ann, I always ask the seller on ebay to send me the code that is written/stamped into the bottom of the bottle. You can check on checkfresh.com when it was manufacured. The last bottle I’ve bought some 7-8 years ago and it was still great, but the new one (from 2015) is pretty unrecognizable :-/
Neva, that is so good to know — thanks for sharing, dear!
Hey there Ann,
It’s strange, I’ve tried a few from the line and all of them have been nice, especially Rose Anonym and the Patchouli one, yet I’ve never bought a full bottle.
This one sounds good,
Portia xx
Howdy, Portia! I liked the rose and patchouli ones as well, and was glad to see them as I thought there was getting to be almost too much citrus in the line and more variety was needed. If you haven’t bought a bottle of AC, you know I haven’t — ha!! (My FB commitment issues are well-documented 🙂 ). But those small sprays ARE tempting.
So far I’ve just sniffed it on a tester, but the overall effect was a STRONG citrus blast, but a good quality one. Reminds me of peeling some cross between a bergamot and a lemon. I want to try it on my skin soon!
Peppermoon, it is, as you mentioned, very citrusy, especially at first, but it mellows down nicely. Do give it a go when you get a chance.
Sounds lovely! I’ve only tried Orange Sanguine, which is also yummy and summery.
Hi, Heidi! I love Orange Sanguine, too. This is a nice line and calls for much more exploring.