I fell for Francesca Bianchi’s Luxe Calme Volupte at first spritz and I find myself loving it just as much after two years. I wasn’t expecting to enjoy it this much because I don’t always connect with scents that include tropical fruits. However, here the tropical notes are incorporated into a rich amber background in such a vital and fluid way that I was instantly hooked. I discover a new facet every time I wear it, which isn’t surprising considering that the house’s creations vary wildly depending on time of the day, temperature, and state of mind.
Inspired by a verse in Charles Baudelaire’s poem Invitation au Voyage, Luxe Calme Volupte is an ode to peace sought in distant tropical lands, away from worries and troubles. Henri Matisse’s painting, Luxe Calme et Volupté is a visual companion inspiration that is even more personal to Francesca because she wrote her dissertation on Matisse. The painting’s colors are beautifully expressed in her decadent fragrance through an olfactory palette of vivid greens, sunny oranges, gleaming yellows, and different hues of purple and gold (see the painting here).
But colors aren’t the only sensorial experiences embodied here. I also get different layers of textures: sun-warmed and crumbled citrus zest, green mango skin, buttery papaya peel, slightly rough and sap-rich leaves, carnal and oily hyacinth, ashy and impalpable powders, and thick resins. All the different notes, accords, and layers come together as a tactile and complex blend that continuously transforms on the skin.
I instantly smell green, zingy, and bitter notes. The tropical sensation is there from start to finish but I get tropical fruit peel, stalks, and maybe fruit tree bark, but not as much pulp as the scent evolves. The vibrant and biting verdancy of galbanum melds with the green unctuosity of hyacinth and later blooms into a voluptuous floral heart blended with Francesca’s fulsome orris. My skin draws some cocoa-like sweetness, but I can still detect touches of green and mouthwatering tartness interspersed in the dusty and resinous layers during the dry down.
Luxe Calme Volupte is intense and enticing like other fragrances from the house, but its colors and textures make it an especially satisfying fragrance choice for summer nights.
Notes: Bitter orange, green tangerine, galbanum, hyacinth, tropical fruits, ylang ylang, iris, benzoin, sandalwood, vetiver, opoponax.
Luxe Calme Volupte is available as Extrait de Parfum in 30 ml spray bottles on Francesca Bianchi’s website and in select niche perfumeries.
I reviewed the fragrance from my personally purchased bottle.
The photo was taken by me.
Read my other reviews of Francesca Bianchi’s fragrances:
Love scents that reveal different facets with each wearing. Very keen to try.
I love multifaceted scents too, Rich! Francesca Bianchi’s creations are worth exploring for that reason.