ATELIER DES ORS
Villa Primerose
2024
PERFUMER
Marie Salamagne
cardamom
pear
Pink pepper
rose centifolia
ambrette
iris
leather
Amber woods
musk
‘A TRIBUTE TO ELEGANCE AS AN ART OF LIVING & THE ORIGINS OF PERFUMERY.
I made this crazy promise to look after you and to make sure that you experience moments of sharing, emotion and creation. You are now at the heart of our quest for aesthetics and uncompromised approach. A place to live, to experience but also a place of culture, you have had the privileged to witness the rise of Grasse perfumery since 1886. You are between past, present and future. Your eponymous fragrance, Villa Primerose, contrasts power with softness and homage with modernity. It has the elegance of the magnificent gesture of a leather glove being slipped on. This fragrance, like the elegant women you received and ushered in for over a century, enveloping them in the charm of convention and savoir vivre, celebrates the art of living that is now reborn within your walls.’ – Atelier des Ors
Villa Primerose was released alongside Blue Madeleine; I went in expecting Villa Primerose to be more generic/familiar of a scent profile, and while it indeed is, it’s still easily my preferred pick between the two.
Villa Primerose is a bright rose with a heftier base, and I find all the elements well-balanced and smelling pretty high quality. The rose is lightly spiced, but quite vibrant. As mentioned, a bit bright, sharp and acidic for a rose. A lot of people I’ve seen speak on Villa Primerose remarked on the iris; I think it may give some lightness to the scent, but my mind didn’t go to iris on first impression; especially because I don’t find this powdery in texture.
The rose with the darker, slightly leathery base reminded me of a some of the Louis Vuitton roses, like Matiere Noire, but definitely lighter in the Atelier des Ors. The overall experience also reminded me a little bit of Tom Ford Cafe Rose.
Either way, this smells familiar; I’ve probably smelled several fragrances that come very close to it, but it smells good and wears nicely. It feels invigorating, but classy and luxurious at the same with, with that suede-like hint. On first wearing, I didn’t get much of a transformation during the wear, but more importantly, it held up well into the drydown. I feel that a lot of the bigger releases I’ve tried in months prior to this go cloyingly sweet or fall completely apart as it dries down; Villa Primerose feels a notch above.
Performance was clearly more present with Villa Primerose in my testing versus Blue Madeleine, which I wore at the same time. I’d say both are perfectly unisex for those wondering.