Lancome Magnifique

From LoveToKnow Makeup

Rarely do I find myself attracted enough to a perfume to actually test it out for more than a few days, but Lancôme Magnifique drew me right in. Color me surprised: Though I had my doubts, I'm now more convinced than ever that there's something truly magnificent about this aptly named scent!

Lancôme's Scent Range

Lancôme cosmetics is recognized as one of the world's most beloved beauty brands. The company specializes in everything from color cosmetics and skin care products to fragrances and sunscreens.

With such a vast array of classics to choose from, it almost seems improbable that there would be anything left to add to the mix. Not unlike fashion labels that release new goodies each season, though, beauty companies follow suit, releasing collections of colors to reflect the trends of the moment.

It's not just colors that define specific periods of the year, though. It's also fragrances – heady, luxurious, decadent scents are easily applied to specific seasons. For example, light and fresh notes are associated with the warmest times of the year, while sweet, spicy scents take precedence when temperatures drop. So it makes sense that Lancôme would release a new fragrance every now and again. The latest offering is the women's perfume Magnifique, which I was delighted to test out for a couple of weeks.

About Lancôme Magnifique

It doesn't take long to determine whether or not a scent works with one's chemistry; within just a few minutes it's apparent that something either smells great, decent or awful. If it's great, well, you're in luck, and if it's decent it has potential to develop into something better over the next couple of hours. Fortunately, my first spritz of Magnifique offered great potential right from the start.

The notes in Magnifique are as follows:

Absolute of Rose Mai de Grasse (an unusual, slightly honey-touched rose with a peppery finish)
Australian sandalwood essence
Bulgarian rose essence
Cinnamon
Cumin
Indian Nagarmotha (a rich, woody scent with a hint of cedarwood)
Jasmine
Mandarin
Saffron essence
Vetiver

This is clearly a collection of notes thoughtfully composed with the wintery scent lover in mind. The blend is spicy, earthy and woody and undoubtedly geared toward a mature age group. Despite containing an abundance of very particular notes, each so unique and profound in its own right, I was struck by the strongest presence of sweet rose. The note is not quite the straight rose aroma one might find in, for example, Tea Rose by Perfumer's Workshop or even Stella by Stella McCartney, but it is certainly pronounced.

I enjoyed the initial stages of the scent for a while before the spicy notes began to come out. Though cinnamon and cumin were not particularly discernable, I detected the sharpness of vetiver quite strongly, but it quickly mellowed out thanks to the jasmine's softness. I was disappointed that Nagarmotha and saffron did not present themselves more strongly; these are such special notes in a blend of otherwise common elements that it seems a shame they didn't stand out more.

After about an hour or so, the scent seemed to reach its final stage on my skin, drying down to a strong, long lasting vanilla. After repeated sniffs on my wrist, I was able to detect just a touch of the initial rose scent, but it just barely lingered – a surprising thing, considering how prominently used that note is. I've heard others state that Magnifique is easily the strongest rose scent they've used, but I'm more inclined to categorize this as a warm, rich vanilla when all is said and done.

The Verdict

As it happens, I love vanilla fragrances, so I was very pleased with this product's dry down and how it ultimately worked with my skin's chemistry. Though it's more of an evening fragrance, I didn't hesitate to use it very sparingly during the day (on my wrist only, which was more than enough to last several hours). It elicited its fair share of complements, which is always fantastic, and I found myself using it frequently over the course of several days. Considering I'm not one to remain true to a scent for very long, this was pretty remarkable. By the end of the two week testing period I'd given myself, I was ready to purchase a full size bottle.