I've just added
Hermes's new fourth fragrance from the collection of garden-inspired fragrances
Un Jardin, named
Un Jardin Sur Le Toit (a very charming, very Hermes name "A Garden on the Roof") to my perfume closet.
The inspiration: The garden on the roof of the Hermès flagship at 24
Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré in
Paris. The new unisex fragrance is the fourth in the garden series that already includes
Un Jardin en Méditerranée (2003),
Un Jardin Sur Le Nil (2005) and
Un Jardin Après La Mousson (2008).
Like the others in the series, Jardin Sur Le Toit was developed by Hermès house perfumer
Jean-Claude Ellena, and is sold as a fruity floral. The notes feature apple, pear, rose, green grass, basil, magnolia and ...compost.
Review by
Bois de Jasmin: "There is something joyful and vivacious about this fragrance. The essentially reads as a crisp, sheer rose on the skin. The first few minutes are all about the effervescence of green and aromatic notes. Then the initial sparkling freshness of basil leaves and grass slowly turns into the juicy impression of a green apple and pear. The fruity accord is rendered as an abstract idea, rather than as the photorealistic fruit salad. I find that its fruity-floral orchestration oscillates between sheer petals and tart fruit flesh--jasmine becomes a green apricot, rose turns into a lychee and violet suggests raspberries. I find it unexciting to wear and lacking the comparatively strong character of the previous Les Jardins. Moreover, as time goes on, Un Jardin sur le Toit loses its charm. While the fragrance gives its wearer a pleasant aura, it is quite ephemeral. After a couple of hours, I cannot detect much on the skin other than a whisper of musk, moss, vetiver and tart fruit. Die-hard fans of Jean-Claude Ellena’s crystalline style will find it lovely."
Review by
Now Smell This: "Jardin Sur Le Toit starts out grapefruity-citrusy and sharp — it almost recalls Jardin Sur Le Nil — but only briefly so, then it’s crisp apple and pear with plenty of green. It’s bright and tart, and the green notes add a decent bite. It’s young and spring-like and fresh. The fruit gives way to the flowers: a rosewater and magnolia blend that vaguely recalls
Kelly Calèche. The base is a pale gentle musk, more vegetal than animalic, with just the slightest suggestion of warm soil.
In keeping with the rest of the series, it’s a transparent fragrance that lends itself to liberal application, and it’s probably better suited to warm rather than cool weather. I found the lasting power to be just so-so. Do I love it? I do not. I found it quite easy to wear, and there is something cheering about it; it made me smile, but it does not captivate me."
Review by
1000 Fragrances: "Like a poem written on the lightness of clouds, where the fresh colours of an aquarelle are mixed by the wind, Un Jardin sur le Toit speaks about the tender quality of fresh green fruits. The perfume opens with an explosion of green notes where apple and pear are mixed with the odor of grass, lemon and grapefruit. Jean Claude Ellena seized the ephemeral scent of the early spring magnolia flowers with their strange note of decomposing fruits, watery herbs and macerating tea. The sparkling quality of the perfume, after the short transition of the obvious fresh fruits, suggests the quality of champagne and white wine. A delicate litchi note, a bubbling butyric aspect suggesting "lie de vin", the acidic freshness of the pomegranate and delicate rose-violet notes, like those found inside the elder flower, contribute to the unusual effect. I appreciate the early moments of the scent but I would like also that it had more character, and more tenacity on the skin. After less than 2 hours, a generous splash on my skin becomes a very faint odour that could be any
Roger & Gallet cologne.
"Nothing has changed in the royal household since the time of Queen Victoria, and it remains a very old-fashioned house," Burrell warns, in a new interview. Be careful, Kate. Try to draw on the experiences of your late mother-in-law and understand that not everyone in the royal household has your best interests at heart." - Paul Burrell
This long weekend, I'm mostly pottering about and fussing with my plants (they are not looking all that well due to the wilting heat) and reading books inspired by the royal (to-do) wedding of William and Kate. Yes, that wedding. I remember immensely enjoying the vivid gossip provided by Princess Diana's controversial ex butler. Paul Burrell is a former member of the British Royal Household, and was a footman for Queen Elizabeth II when he begain service at the age of 18. I think I must have been one of the first to dash down to Kinokuniya in 2003, to buy Mr Burrell's just-released autobiographical book, A Royal Duty, which revealed frank details about life as a member of the Royal Family staff. 
It was fascinating, voyeuristic, behind-the-scenes tattle about the Queen, the Prince and Princess of Wales at home in Highgrove and at Kensington Palace. It was no wonder that the book was an international bestseller because it was a complete tell-all, masquerading as a defense of Diana's morals and an apology for her behaviour. I'm a rabid anglophile and true royalty fanatic so you can imagine how I lapped it all up. This was followed by his 2006 The Way We Were. It became apparent that he was milking his connection with the late Princess for all it was worth: We learn of her tawdry Hollywood affairs, her happiness with Hasnat 'The One' Khan; The stable lad, etc. There was also that bizarre episode that involved the interment of the Princess's best friend's baby in the garden; Her ambiguous rivalry with Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of Pork; And the seedy and tragic story of the affair with Dodi Al Fayed.
I made another mad dash down to the shops for Tina Brown's 2007 The Diana Chronicles. It goes through much the same high/low ground as the Burrell books, but with less inane slobbering and much better subtext. It certainly was less sympathetic to Princess Diana (in fact, it was unsympathetic to almost all concerned, and no one, royal or otherwise comes off looking very well). And as ex editor of Tatler, Vanity Fair, Talk and The New Yorker, Ms Brown certainly has more credibility, if less access, than Burrell the Besotted Butler. Ms Brown's book also has more bite: She described Dodi Al Fayed vividly as "an Egyptian lounge lizard". You like? I couldn't put it down - even today.
"Don't be afraid of the Queen. Her Majesty is one of the friendliest, most approachable ladies. The way to her heart is through her corgis, so accompny her on walks often. Make friends with the palace's downstairs. Make friends in low places, because it is the downstairs that makes the upstairs work. It's not the royal family who are the snobs at Buckingham Palace. The real snobs are the people who work on behalf of them." - Paul Burrell
