After Fabienne at Possets died, there was a part of me that wondered if I would be doing much testing of Possets perfumes in the future. However, the company was purchased and the new owners have done a great job of running seasonal retours this year, to allow customers a chance to grab items they were afraid would be lost forever. I was not able to take advantage of previous seasonal offerings, but I did get some Christmas money and I splurged on a few fragrances I have been keeping an eye on.
Today, the perfume I'm focusing on is Virtues, from the Yule 2010 collection. The Possets description is: "Virtues are the force of making things happen. They are placed under the dominions to carry out the plans authority makes for mankind. A dashing fragrance with a decided masculine side to it, but perfectly at home on a lady who knows her mind and will not be cowed. A special chypre containing a very light oakmoss (blond oakmoss), is blended with frankincense and a very faint clove hint, small zest of lemon to keep it from being too heavy. Ethereal and stately."
This one has been on my list since I first realized that any chypre Fabienne made should be something I own. I finally grabbed it during this retour, and (spoiler) tried it on when my mom was here. She liked it so much, I'll feel guilty if I don't give it to her for Christmas.
In the bottle: The chypre is clear, and I also get an ink on paper note. If I hadn't known lemon was in this, I wouldn't be able to pick it out at first sniff, but as I inhale deeply, I get the faint edge of a very dry lemon note (no juice or pith, just wrung out bleached in the sun lemon that makes this feel a bit austere, but also plays very well against the chypre).
On my skin: Mmmm. That oakmoss is glorious. Truly glorious. And there's the lemon (a bit juicier now) to float to the top. This creates a smidge of pencil shaving note on my skin (but not woody, if that makes any sense). In the interest of full disclosure, I am trying this on two locations, and my right wrist brings up a softer lemon with a touch of vanilla that plays and pairs amaaaaazingly with the oakmoss.
As it dries: On my left arm, it's very dry even though that oakmoss dominates. It's almost a little plastic-y (a surprise), but I can tell it's shifting to where it really wants to go. It also reminds me of Old School French Perfume here, with a dash of hmmmmm Avon from the 70's thrown in, maybe? Odd combo in words, but it's nostaligc and warm and classic, but also a little impish. On my right arm, the lemon really blooms and gets more pithy and juicy, almost overwhelming the oakmoss until it dries further. The way it smells on my right arm is how it smelled on my mom, and it's bright and happy but also soothing and amazing the way oakmoss can be.
I really don't get much clove from this, except as a back end (faint faint) supporting role. The frankincense is also low key, but helps to give lift to the oakmoss. The lemon and oakmoss dance around each other beautifully on my right arm, the lemon giving lift and zest and the oakmoss making a warm cozy bed. My left arm would probably be described by some as "old ladyish" but I tend to think of it as more classic in vibe. This would be wearable in almost any situation (except where people complain about perfumes). It's golden and warm and cool and serene all at the same time. In short, it's a chypre worth wearing and adding to your collection if you like chypres. I'm glad I got the bottle and in many ways I'm delighted that it's the one my mom gravitated toward because when I think of Virtues she is definitely on the top of the list.
