Description
“The smell of an old chapel of Cistercian abbey. Cold stone walls covered with damp moss. Waxed wood of altar and old pews ornate with carvings. Linseed oil in lamps. Incense and myrrh discernible in the air. But how fresh and spicy the smell of white royal lilies on this background! Subtle floral scent with green accents of leaves and powdery touches of yellow pollen. The beam of light breaks through the stained glass and illuminates this olfactory tumult of feelings varying from exaltation to humility and back. The silence which creates a sense of the divine call” – a note from the brand.
Relique D’Amour by Oriza L. Legrand is a Chypre fragrance for women. Relique D’Amour was launched in 2012. The nose behind this fragrance is Hugo Lambert. Top notes are fresh herbs, pine; middle notes: powdery notes, white lily, pepper, oak, incense, myrrh, elemi; base notes: musk, moss, waxed wood, woody notes, pepper.
war1k_ced1 – :
Calming and cooling – I crave it in the hot weather, or during times of stress. A bit of awakening pine at the open quickly gives way to a spacious expanse of cool stone, well-worn wood, incense smoke and lily. Less a perfume and more a close cloud inspiring quiet contemplation (the undercurrent of elemi) and refuge – just the thing to put on after a long, hot day. I really wish it lasted longer on the skin.
91178 – :
In my sick mind this is the evocative kind …:
this is like being in the corridor, between the bathroom and the bedroom and open the shoe rack to extract the Sunday shoes from the original cardboard. In the meantime your grandmother is in the bathroom filled with hairspray and hairpins and waiting for you to bless her shoes to go to church.
One of the most vintage perfumes I’ve smelled.
The sillage fortunately is bad and on my wrists it evaporated in two minutes.
the bottle is in theme and the name is spot on.
I see it well on a catholic woman, better if she is a widow and has gone beyond seventy.
step and close.
bbanjxci – :
Beautiful.
Special Winter scent for me, snow laden pine trees when I stumble upon a hidden secret garden where pine and lilies live harmoniously with powder and church incense linger in the walls of this old stone building.
Simply put this is Christmas magic in a bottle and I am in love with this magical potion…every time I wear this I am transported to a special place in the forest, like a hidden shrine and this perfume has a calming effect like your surrounded by some otherworldly thing…
Hauntingly beautiful…
kaiser.s – :
A unisex chypre that evokes the vision of ancient ruins and cemeteries, this is a quiet and unassuming gem with incense, florals and pine. Perfect to wear when you are a bit moody or solemn, it has a calming meditative resonance and is a mysterious and mystical experience.
rover21 – :
Anyone know if this has been reformulated lately? Bought a sample recently and it doesn’t smell at all like I remember.
AmatoR19 – :
By all accounts, I should like this. I love Oriza L. Legrand’s Chypre Mousse, and I’m all about incense, pine, and mossy notes. But on my skin, it was top notes of cilantro and carrots (as other reviewers have mentioned) that eventually give way to whiteflower (lily/honeysuckle) and a touch of church candle wax. No incense, no pine, no moss for me. Interesting, but not as good as I’d hoped–will not be purchasing a full bottle.
JaibraAroub – :
More than a scent this is an experience; truly it embodies and conveys the idea of entering an abbey or better a countryside abandoned little church.
Relique d’Amour opens with a cold, musty feeling, it’s the pine and some resins I think that give you the impression of cold stone, of a place whose wood structures have gained a certain humidity during the centuries and are now releasing their particular aroma.
It’s a fleeting impression though, it soon leaves space to the scent of lilies embraced by incense and resins.
It becomes softer and softer as minutes pass, that gothic opening vanishes but a shadow of it lingers in the background, not to play the leading role, which now is kept by lilies and incense, but to set the tone.
It’s a beautiful scent, much different from many others I have known in many years. It’s not an easy one as its top notes create so strange an opening; it’s a scent to be enjoyed little by little, like a meditation wine or a very old cognac you taste slowly to appreciate each and every hue.
Relique d’Amour is the same, a scent to be savoured with no haste, but it is also a scent that you can wear confidently as it becomes a close mate of your skin, it turns soft and embracing.
Sillage is moderate and longevity is about 6 hours on my skin.
It’s sold in a splash bottle to whose neck you can apply the spray enclosed in its box, so you can wear it either as a splash or in spritzes. A bonus indeed.
WONDERFUL SCENT
desislav – :
I agree 100% with SumoTigerCat’s and Rschmidt’s wonderful reviews. On me, Relique d’Amour is a cool, crisp, watery lemon, lily and incense with a hint of pepper. The pepper almost smells like pencil shavings, woody and smooth, not tingle-y. In that sense, this doesn’t seem like a spicy perfume at all. I definitely sense the cold stones inside an Italian cathedral. There is a slight mineralic, maybe slightly metalic, scent in the beginning, but the drydown is like soft frankincense from a mass that took place many hours earlier. I love the cold feel of this perfume.
The scene that keeps going through my head is of a woman in trouble, seeking solace in the cathedral. She gets there, it’s dark, nobody is there, you could hear a pin drop, so she sits down on some steps and realizes they are ice cold. She feels no comfort at all and thinks it best to return home. Not to be depressing or even menlancholy, but that is what comes to mind.
Sillage is a skin scent, but longevity is pretty good at around 6 hours. This was a sample, and I tend to get much better sillage when sprayed from a bottle, and I bet that would be the case with this perfume.
psjsEvavollaatrox – :
Fresh pine, and mossy wet rock on a cold day when you can see your breath. Fresh picked lily, with a fresh spicy bloom and the green fresh cut stems. Wild carrots. Bright, clean snappy pepper. Somehow this smells sad, or solitary. I imagine walking alone in pine forest, accutely aware of the presence of the scents and nature that surrounds me. I come upon an ancient stone building and decide to explore its secrets. I find myself in the cellar getting lost among old artifacts that give clues to its previous existence. I can nearly feel the presence of old souls that once frequented this place. This scent tells a story of another world, yet feels very introspective. It does not not inspire happiness or excitement, yet I am very drawn to it. It feels calm and purifying. Its very unique.
chester1988 – :
This one has many different aspects so I’ve had to wear it a few times before I could get a handle on it.
The opening smells like sitting in a mossy church graveyard where the incensey exhalations of the old cathedral nearby mingle with the sharp smell of lilies on a nearby grave. Definitely there is something creepy about it and I kind of love it for it’s weirdness and I’m frankly a bit repelled. Fortunately, or unfortunately, this part of the fragrance doesn’t last very long and the heart is this long beautiful tender green note like a garden’s breath.
I think I want to try more from this house before I commit to loving this one. I have the sense that they might have another one that would suit me better.
Edit; I’ve tried the rest of the house now and this is the one I keep coming back to.
plaxotnyvova – :
If you are looking for an unusual, elegant fragrance, this is for you. Cool and ethereal, like lilies in a stone cathedral early on a morning of a High Holy Day many years ago.
Every note listed is evident to me. The Pine is not overwhelming, which can often happen in fragrances that have it as a note. It’s used just right in Relique d’Amour. Beautifully blended, there is a slight sweetness, a gentle smoke, realistic Lily, and that ancient stone smell that is marvelous.
Although it is inspiring and contemplative… actually cold in feel, I find it to be appropriate in many situations. Perhaps not for those who do not like the Lily note.
Different, and lovely.
samat0410 – :
I love this fragrance so much. The first time I tried it, it took me back to being 8 years old in my aunts house with the spiral wooden staircase that wound up 3 floors. It must be the sweet woodsy smell that is reminiscent of her home’s wooden interior. The perfume is pure nostalgia, musty books & sweet woods, the sweetness probably coming from the lilies. I never went to church so I can’t speak for how close it smells to those. I don’t smell smoke, or a lot of the other notes for that matter. I think my brain just smells what it wants, and that is the good memories of being a child. Unfortunately I find that this fragrance does not last on me, fading after 1-2 hours.
71holdem71 – :
This is a UNISEX perfume according to Oriza L. Legrand. Too many fragrances wrongly categorized here on Fragrantica.
Bosk – :
Its a pleasant fragrance. There is plenty of incense and a generous helping of lily and pine. Its woody aromatic indeed but its a bit too harsh for me. I keep sneezing! Thanks pepper. I admit I dont like the elemi note anyway. I first thought it was for men but I am puzzled why it is not for both. Men could very comfortably wear this peppery number. Soft sillage and moderate longevity.
корефан73 – :
This was a blind buy based on my pleasure with Chypre Mousse. Don’t know why it’s taken me this long to review it. I love this one and I love the name. It’s a cool, dusty, musty scent and truly reminds me of the many old churches I have sung in. The candles, wood, wax, smoke, dust, incense, and the austere beauty of the lilies. I find it very evocative and soothing, even though I am not terrible pious. Longevity is about 6 hrs on me. Definitely worth sampling.
yuts – :
I didn’t like this the first time I tried it but after a couple of goes it really is a beauty but NOT your normal floral. If you like the unusual done in a very high class and balanced way then look to this…..it reminds me of funeral lillies but death comes to us all and this amplifies the beauty of the florals in a wreath or a wedding bouquet….not a lot of difference really (British dry sense of humour coming out!) On my skin it’s very orange blossom with a good dash of heady white waxy lillies….Glorious!!!
Unlike other’s on this blog it lasts ages on my skin and like another reviewer it lasts hours in my hair!! So a great way to wear it.
It does have a slightly musty edge to it but I rather like that…..I’m a lover of the unusual….. In more ways than most people.
nionit – :
My skin chemistry does not like this one. The description, reviews, and notes sound amazing, but this is just a mess on me.
Immediately wet upon the skin I smell dusty carrots. Fifteen minutes later, it’s buttered-popcorn-esque white florals. Now after an hour, it’s just pollenated lily with a slight twinge of sweet, foot-like odor on a base of generic synthetic woods.
Where are the church walls, the incense, and the pine? With everyone else it seems, but not with me. So disappointed!
monello – :
This didn’t work on my skin, but makes a fantastic room spray.
gubqymtn – :
Really nice, a true story but ephemeral.
deloa – :
The first time I smelt something like this was in church. I was alone searching for the origins of something notoriously fragrant. Eventually I wafted into some giant white Easter Lillies. Their smell was volatile and the central stamens were oozing nectar. At that time, it seemed almost vulgar. I’d almost forgotten the experience.
maris222 – :
I received a small sample of this one and without knowing anything about it, I tried it on. My first thought was: something very green, almost a bit acrid. Is it some kind of leaves? Vine leaves? Bitter grapes? My god, what is this?
Then I read it was pine. Of course. A green woody smell I’m well familiar with. In Sweden we have a lot of different pine trees and they smell wonderful and fresh.
The fresh, brisk green notes then after a few minutes (on my skin) turns into a more smooth, flowery scent. I thought a lot about jasmine but it isn’t there, according to the note list. It’s lily. It is a beautiful, flowery scent however, without being anonymous. The deeper, woody notes are all there waiting in the background- comforting, mossy and dark.
This is indeed a special fragrance but very interesting and attracting.
Berserk-warrior – :
This is the most heart-breakingly gorgeous woody scent ever. It brings to the imagination a moment: you have been walking through a snowy pine forest, but then you see a small chapel. This fragrance is the moment when you walk through the doors of the chapel, trailing snow and pine, you are gently embraced with warmth, woods, candles, and lilies.
I just wish it were stronger and lasted longer. I want to stay in that moment!
andrus999rus – :
Carrots! Then carrots and sadness (after about 1 minute), then carrots, sadness, and musty books (after about 5 minutes). As it dries down, it gets “warmer,” and I start to detect faint woody and resinous notes. The sillage, on me, is very close to the skin, and the fragrance all but disappears within an hour, sadly. This is so awesome, weird, and interesting, though, that during its fleeting life on my skin, I can’t stop sniffing! It smells like a haunted house, but not in a frightening way – it’s more like a haunted house inhabited by Casper the Friendly Ghost. Perfect for Halloween!
Sq – :
Smells sort of medicinal, sort of lonely.
If you didn’t know what you were smelling, you could say it smells like grape candy with a bubblegum tinge in the beginning, but it’s not unpleasant. I know none of the notes are grape, but it accurately mimics various grape candies as a kid. It’s not natural grape, but it’s also not syrupy or overly sweet like a lollipop, just a few kinds of sweets which are subtle.…. that kind of scent with twinges of lilies and pine. Like the scent of lily wafting through the front yard during spring.
Smells a lot like my childhood when I was at the pool and we stayed there all day and the ice-cream truck would come and everyone bought candy, ice-cream, and hawaiian punch and during the break we would sit in front of the pool table on the concrete and eat those artificial grape nerds candies, which is what this smells like.
But yet, it does smell like incense, but I didn’t make that connection until I thought about it carefully while actually lighting a stick in the family room.
What this fragrance smells like to you is mostly what you cognitively connect it to.
I’m connecting it to candy-grapes, lilies and the park outside, but others can’t help but thinking of churches and indian temples.
Longevity is moderate and the silage is soft- moderate.
5/10
twister_5k – :
smells like pollen and sadly does not last longer than an hour. I’ll pass.
kastet29 – :
I don’t usually read the marketing blurb before trying a scent, it’s usually the notes that sway me. However this story matches its scent. I can picture the cold quiet morning like other reviewers, the freshly cut lilies arranged in a quiet elegance on the altar, the cold air from the outside bringing in a drift of the freshness of pine trees laden with powdered snow. The pine note reminds me more of Nuit Etoilee than Chypre Rouge. This scent is as refreshingly sweet and pleasing like Nuit Etoilee too. I smell the elemi resin that I first came across in C’est la Fete Patchouli. The incense is not heavy in this scent, it is more fresh than a smouldering oriental featuring incense. It would be like sitting in the back pews of a crowded church and catching the wift of incense drifting back towards you. I agree this is quite sublime and another to go on my want list. I very much enjoy the creations of this house so far, although the sillage and longevity I could wish for better. For Relique D’Amour, the sillage is quiet and the longevity moderate, it stays longer on clothes but not apparent unless close up.
brooveLof – :
Surprisingly lovely. Orange blossom and rose water. Reminds me of a Lebanese lemonade. Beautiful.
rrreeet – :
This opens with a absolutely gorgeous and haunting lily note like you are smelling the flower up close. This is mixed in with incense and pine giving the scent real depth.
This scent is very evocative of a Church and it must be the incense as I keep thinking about the last time I was in a old Abbey on holiday.
This has wowed me in that I have never smelled anything before that captures the smell of been in a old church as well as this. The lily and incense with the pine and other notes just really evoke that church smell. Amazing!
Varalex – :
What a splendid idea for a perfume! I was primed with images of an ancient stone cathedral, stained glass windows and a lone candle flickering at the altar, with white lilies perfuming the space, placed there as a thank you to the Blessed Mother. Quiet, reflective, serene. I have to say that wearing it is bringing up these images for me. This was my first encounter with the pine note and upon applying I found this to be very refreshing. It seems to be a very realistic pine to me (it is not a Christmas tree pine or a cleaning detergent kind of pine, thank goodness!) and I’m very impressed by that. The lilies came out on my skin very soon after, and they are soft white lilies with just a hint of spice. I also detect a wee bit of mustiness, like the presence of the wood pews. When I turn my head I can occasionally get a whiff of the pine, but it is delicately laced in with the lilies. Those are the main notes that appear on my skin, and almost two hours into wearing this, this is what I can detect, at least for now. This is a quiet fragrance, and I can more readily “sense” it on me, than actually be able to smell. It isn’t loud and wears close to me. I’m having a hard time smelling it but yet I know it is present. Perhaps that is its intention. This is brilliantly crafted. Pairing a lily with pine? I love it! One thing I did to help prolong its presence on me was to take a small drop and run it through my hair, and that seems to help. So now it is about two hours after I put it on and there is a soft white lily, pine, a bit of woody mustiness and now I sense something almost like a peep of cinnamon, and all of these notes are mingling together so beautifully. I can smell it but I can’t smell it (but I know it is there), for lack of a better description. This is what I wanted Serge Lutens’ La Vierge de Fer to do for me, but it didn’t. Relique D’Amour accomplished this. I have samples of the others and am looking forward to trying them throughout the week. In the meantime, Relique is going onto my wish list!
veu339elipseskism – :
I have tried again and again to like this and see the magic in it, but alas, I can not. Each time I wear it, it smells of sweetened lemon water and a bit of woods. It is gone from my skin within 2 hours, so completely gone that there was no trace of it and I put another perfume on without needing to wash first. I did not get any pine or anything else, no incense effect whatsoever. In fact, the only thing it reminds me of is Chanels Eau de Cologne from the Les Exclusifs line. Sad as I had hoped for something as wonderful as others described.
arif84 – :
The very first sniff is green, a freshly cut evergreen, not piney, not at all pine disinfectant-esque, second scent is a dusty old book,bookmarked with a love letter, left in an old church, it’s beautiful, incredibly atmospheric. You can see the daylight filtering through dust motes onto pews. It’s maybe not something you would wear on a first date, it is not the type of fragrance just anyone will understand. If you appreciate fragrance as an art form and not something you just splash on day after day, just because, then you may love to smell this for the pictures you will get from it.
The lilies come into the forefront soon after, enhancing the very church-y feel, but not sharp, as lilies can be, these are dominant but soft.
ETA, I reviewed before reading the description above, deliberately. I realise now after reading it looks like I just copied it! It is incredibly evocative and clearly does what the perfumer intended!
olegdu – :
Bravo! C’est la première fois avec un parfum que je me sens transportée dans un autre lieu, une église petite et romane, je sens la pierre froide, l’encens qui a brûlé avant que je n’y entre, hier peut-être, et là, au fond, quelques fleures blanches oubliées. Je ne sais pas si Relique d’amour est un parfum pour porter, mais pour rester seul à la maison, en lisant un beau livre ou simplement pour se faire plaisir, c’est une émotion pour soi.
RammiZem – :
Mystique, sensuel, complexe, d’une élégance rare, une merveille d’Oriza Legrand, tout comme Rêve d’Ossian et Déjà le printemps.
Bravo!
Kul – :
un parfum divin, des le 1er pshitt, je suis teleportée dans un autre temps, un autre monde, ce jus hors du temps est vraiment original et seduisant, je n ai jamais senti une telle odeur, il ne s explique pas il se vit.
le bonus, cest quil se trouve ds l adorable petite boutique “Marie Antoinette”, dans le beau quartier du marais,Antonio se fera une joie de vous guider et partager son amour des parfums de niche, top
Verner – :
j’ ai adoré le départ: térébenthine, huil de lin, c’est un premier pied dans l’Art (ceux qui pratique la peinture à l’huile ou tout simplement ceux qui entre régulièrement dans des églises, abbayes, cathédrales comprendront), un pied dans un atelier d’artiste ou bien dans une église: des lieux sacrés, ceux qui vient ensuite c’est un arome fleuri et bien poudré, presque poivré, une fleur blanche, le lys, la transition est lente et plein de profondeur, je suis littéralement passé de la pénombre à la lumière, un ptit peu piquante (trop feminin?) la senteur tient quelques heures sur ma peau, on retrouve l’encens et la myrre à la fin, déjà consumé.
j’ai essayé de comprendre le nom du parfum par rapport à mon ressenti, c’est vrai que l’odeur des églises m’a toujours impressionné, piquant ma curiosité, et puis le souvenir fugace d’un visage, contemplé si peu de temps qu’il en devient incertain, une relique en somme.
diman211 – :
Un parfum sublime!!