WhatScent

OliveEyes@oliveeyes94

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I tried a few Frederic Malles earlier today

Synthetic Nature by Frederic MalleFrederic MalleSynthetic Nature3.428 ratings

They were all tested on skin, and given a good 7 hours before finalising my thoughts.

Synthetic Nature: Gosh, this opens sharp - not in a citrusy way, but with angular, jagged greenery. Almost immediately, the florals enter. I smell shades of white, green and yellow, with a fresh, almost zesty lily jumping out the most. It reminds me of my ‘Spring Meadow’ kitchen surface cleaner, but it softens. The subtly vintage, mossy chypre base isn't to my taste, but the smell of bright, green lilies is rather nice. 6.75/10

Dans Tes Bras: Parma violets and a generous dose of musks. It doesn’t smell raunchy or animalic, but there’s a vintage, soapy twang to the violets that comes across a bit sour and dated. The cashmeran is strong too, draping everything in a metallic airiness that brings to mind a freshly pressed, pale lilac woolly jumper. Feminine to begin, moving towards unisex, but pretty retro throughout. It flutters between sour and powdery, but unfortunately ends up reminding me of a urinal cake. 3/10

Uncut Gem: Gingery citrus, dry spice and undeniably manly. It doesn’t smell particularly fresh, but dusty and timeworn, as if an old wooden chest has been unearthed from rooty foliage, its lid lifted to reveal unlit incense, worn leather and dirty musks. I really don't like this - it feels like a hodge-podge of troped masculinity that finishes sharp and abrasive, making me imagine an elderly man in a grubby tweed jacket. 2/10

L’Eau d’Hiver: This one is lovely. Fresh, powdery, honey-glazed purple florals. It doesn’t smell overly sweet and sugary, but smooth and velvety. The almond-scented face of heliotrope is my favourite way to experience nutty notes, and it comes through gorgeously here. Such a warm and inviting, yet grown and sexy scent. A tad feminine, perhaps, and a little too powdery for me to wear, but I really like it. 8.25/10

L'Eau joins the ranks of POAL, Musc Ravageur, Acne, Promise, The Moon, French Lover & Magnolia as my favourite FMs.

How about yours?

Wore it on September 25, 2026

  • Afternoon
  • Rainy
  • Hot
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Comments21

  1. JustBrash@justbrash

    · Edited

    I love how a huge bottle looks in your hand

  2. John Q@uneombre

    If only Synthetic Nature were as good as it is about 3 minutes in! I wear French Lover and Monsieur and have been painstakingly doling out tiny spritzes of POAL from a GWP travel size I got 3 years ago. Eau de Magnolia is another treasure that only wear a few times in the summer. It is the most realistic sprawling Southern magnolia! Reminds me of summers in the Mississippi Delta.

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    1. Curlyhen@curlyhen

      Eau de Magnolia is gorgeous!

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    2. OliveEyes@oliveeyes94

      I really liked Eau de Magnolia, too, and as for POAL, she's comfortably my favourite, especially after around 3 hours - it goes so incensey on my skin - the ethereal, glassy, crystalline kind, so beautiful!

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  3. Curlyhen@curlyhen

    · Edited

    I enjoyed Uncut Gem. It leans quite male grooming product but I think it’s because it reminded me of something but I couldn’t put my finger on, but made me feel happy when I whiffed it and that I would enjoy the scent on a man. I think my absolute favourite FM would be Carnal Flower… interestingly the other half hates it lol.

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    1. OliveEyes@oliveeyes94

      I can imagine Uncut Gem giving people that “stable father figure” sort of comforting feeling - the scent of a man who can be trusted, even if it didn’t really work for me. Carnal Flower is one I think I need to smell on a woman’s skin, but so far, I’m with your husband. Why did it remind me of roast lamb and mint sauce?? 😅

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    2. Curlyhen@curlyhen

      Replying to @oliveeyes94

      🤣🤣🤣 I’m roaring at this 🤣🤣😭😭 I will endeavour to research this Sunday Roast phenomenon the next time I wear it. That perfectly sums it up about Uncut Gem, it was a very comforting aftershave scent.

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    3. OliveEyes@oliveeyes94

      Replying to @curlyhen

      😆😆 I couldn't believe it either! I detected something suspiciously savoury lurking beneath the tuberose right from the first sniff, but it was only a couple of hours later that my mind took me to Sunday dinners at grandma's house when she has a herby leg of lamb in the oven 😅🤣

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  4. Cale_Dooper@dyjmerr

    I’ve only tried POAL, French Lover, and Musc Ravageur. French Lover is my favorite so far.

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    1. OliveEyes@oliveeyes94

      French Lover is sublime, and that's coming from someone who doesn't usually go for green, aromatic, herbal sorts of fragrances. If it performed even moderately well, I'd want at least 5ml, but it say painfully light on my skin. Based on smell alone, I'd be hovering around a 9.

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    2. Cale_Dooper@dyjmerr

      Replying to @oliveeyes94

      A 9 sounds right to me as well. Except I actually got really really good performance out of it. My coworker used to sell decants so I got to sample a lot from them and they gave me like a 1ml’s worth. I got like 10+ hours. If I didn’t have some similar fragrances I would absolutely get a bottle. It’s one of the few I still regularly lust for and occasionally add to my cart and then take back out lol

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    3. OliveEyes@oliveeyes94

      Replying to @dyjmerr

      Wowzers, I wonder what year that sample was from. I remember it lasting a decent enough time, but was a true skin-scent near enough immediately.

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  5. cmewiththemhandz@guerlinaughty

    I am fond of synthetic jungle! Never worn it out yet…

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    1. OliveEyes@oliveeyes94

      Tis the season! Feels quite transitional to me. A springy appetiser followed by an autumnal digestif.

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