FRAGRANCE REVIEW: Strange Invisible Perfumes Dimanche + Sunday Lunch in Paris Draw

Edouard Manet. Le Dejeuner sur l'Herbe

Alexandra Balahoutis is one of the most talented natural perfumers because she is uncompromising in using natural ingredients to realize her vision. Early in 2100, Ms. Balahoutis released a very limited edition named Dimanche. Dimanche is Sunday in French and Ms. Balahoutis went for a bright floral slightly gourmand natural fragrance which evokes a sunny day in the garden.

The opening of Dimanche is a fresh fanfare of iris. If you don’t like iris the first few minutes of Dimanche will be difficult. If you like iris Ms. Balahoutis uses a very intense source and it is really enjoyable in its intensity. Rose is the other floral note chosen to go with this iris. The rose is a deep slightly spicy version of this classic note and it adds a nice complementary character to the iris. This very floral opening becomes warmer and sweeter as Ms. Balahoutis drizzles honey over her floral notes. The sticky sweet quality of the honey note is the perfect intro to a dry cocoa note. This is cocoa powder arid and dusty, not a powerhouse, and the subtlety is a perfect choice to go with the honey and floral notes. Amber is the last note to arrive and its spiciness is the right contrasting finisher for all the sweet food notes and the flowers.

 

Dimanche is available as a limited edition in both Parfum and EDP concentrations. I found both concentrations to display any significant difference on my skin. The longevity was equivalent and the sillage average and the parfum slightly less prominent than the EDP.

Ms. Balahoutis is one of my most reliably interesting perfumers and despite Dimanche feeling like a sunny stroll on the Seine it is easily worn in the colder weather, too.

Disclosure: This review was based on a sample purchased from The Perfumed Court.

–Mark Behnke, Managing Editor

Editor’s Note: Dimanche is one of the nominees for the first Fragrance Foundation Best Indie of 2011 FiFi Award.

We have an extra Eau de parfum sample to giveaway thanks to Strange Invisible Perfumes. Please leave a comment on your favorite Fragrance from www.siperfumes.com or your favorite Sunday lunch.Draw ends December 25th 2011

We announce draw winners only on site and on our Facebook page, so Like Cafleurebon and use our RSS option…or your dream prize will be just spilt perfume

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26 comments

  • lynnsylvaine says:

    I would love to try this ! My favorite Strange Invisible Perfume is Magazine Street. My favorite sunday lunch is really a brunch…and French…eggs benedict.

  • Cynthia says:

    I have wanted to try Dimanche since I first read about it. I have only tried Musc Botanique from the SI line, which I liked. I love a fresh capressi salad on a sunny Sunday.

  • Ellen Covey says:

    My favorite SIP perfume is Musc Botanique, with Magazine Street coming in second. I would like to win a sample of Dimanche since the price (at TPC it’s $20 for 0.25 ml!) is beyond my modest budget for samples. At $80/ml, I very much doubt that I would ever try it if I had to buy it.

  • Cheesegan says:

    Haven’t tried any from this house but Black Rosette sound great, Roses, black tea, leather & spearmint-yum!
    Favorite Sunday lunch would be a grilled portobello and eggplant sandwich with a pint of cider.

  • zee says:

    I’m in love with Atlantic but have a few others on my wishlist… so damn expensive but worth every penny.

  • TaffyJ says:

    My favorite SIP fragrance of the ones I’ve tried is “Fire and Cream”. It is definitely a fragrance suited for redheads. Unusual at first, but its warmth really won me over.

  • Brooke says:

    It appears that Musc Botanique has a strong following, including me. This sounds delightful. Another addition to add to my “must sniff this” list.

  • chrisb says:

    I have not tried any SIP fragrances but I am always interested in perfumes with a lilac note and Persica sounds lovely. My favourite Sunday lunch would be a lazy picnic in the warm sunshine. (if only)

  • Isa says:

    My favorite Sunday lunch is russian salad with an anchovy over it. And all this over toasted bread.

    I haven’t tried SIP yet, but I’m looking forward to it.

  • Holly F. says:

    I loved the notes for Fire and Cream above all, but the sound of Dimanche is winning me over! My favorite Sunday lunch is Eggs Benedict. Thanks for the draw.

  • Sujaan says:

    I love eggs florentine for a Sunday brunch.
    I used to live in Venice, Ca. when it was all hippies, not the tres chic Venice it has become. Being a Pisces with a Virgo rising, I do plan to sample the astro scents soon. Thanks for the draw, Dimanche sounds lovely!

  • MariaA says:

    My favorite Sunday lunch is roasted chicken with herbs and potatoes. My favorite SIP is Epic Gardenia

  • OperaFan says:

    The only SIP I’ve tried is Epic Gardenia and I think it’s just beautiful. Would love to try Dimanche.
    Favorite Sunday lunch? A chicken salad avocado club sandwich with sweet potato fries on the side at the Chat ‘n Nibble luncheonette in Asbury Park, NJ.
    a:)

  • Anna in Edinburgh says:

    Favourite Sunday lunch would be any lunch that I didn’t have to make:-) Luxury!

    cheerio, and Merry Christmas

  • Feliciag says:

    Wow I have to agree with Anna above I favor any foods that I had not cooked, served and had to clean up afterwards. And I love them on Sundays most of all becasue thats is usually my husbands day off.
    I have not yet sampled any of the SIP scents however, I can say that the Epic Gardenia sounds awesome. And Fire and Cream as suggested by another reader sounds excellent also and I have a red head;)
    Thanks Cafleurbon and SIP and Merry Christmas and best health and all the happiness in the new year.

  • einsof says:

    lunch? my lunch is another spritz of Aquarian Roses from SIP! Sip is one of my favorite perfume houses!

    but if i’m going to eat… hummus and pomegranet juice sounds nice. and then more Aquarian Roses… or maybe Prima Ballerina. OH! or we can do indian and spritz Aurinma for dessert.

    point being, Ms. Balahoutis is an amazing artist!

  • Amy H. says:

    I’ve wanted to try Dimanche since I first read about it. Without a doubt, my favorite SIP perfume is the sadly discontinued Vine. It is a fleshy, juicy, sensual osmanthus, which is a completely different aspect than the reserved side you normally see. I cherish my bottle.

  • angiefunk says:

    Favorite sunday brunch item is eggs benedict with a spinkle of paprika. Favorite SIP’s are Epic Gardenia, Fair Verona and Prima Ballerina.

  • mim says:

    I’d love to try Diamanche! This review, and others, make it sound so lovely and so ‘me.’ Doubtless it is so a lot of other people as well.

    Don’t have a favorite yet as I’ve never sampled from this line–I don’t go looking to fall in love with ‘fumes so out of my price range. But, I do enjoy wearing my collection of samples, sparingly, and savoring the experience. It’s like having a palette of little dabs of many vibrant colors….

    Fire and Cream sounds pretty awesome, and Magazine Street sounds amazing.
    And their samples are actually kind of affordable, if tiny. Sigh….
    making a wishlist as I peruse the site.

    Lunch favorites for Sunday: fried chicken and okra (not goopy, dry-fried with grits)
    or broiled salmon and salad.

    Merry Christmas, and Happy Chanukah, Holidays, festivus, etc to all!

  • Tatiana says:

    For me, you can’t beat a Sunday roast- juicy roast chicken, fluffy, flavourful spuds, some lightly cooked vegetables on the side, stuffing or bubble and squeak and a LOT of Yorkshire puds drowned in gravy. Yum!