Maison Margiela
A unique visual signature based on accords, character, and seasonality
The spice trio announces itself immediately—cardamom's camphorous coolness dominates, sharpened by pink pepper's metallic tingle and coriander's soapy-green facets. It's bright but not cheerful, aromatic rather than gourmand, with an almost medicinal quality that catches you off guard. Within minutes, frankincense begins its resinous whisper, hinting at what's to come.
The carrot seed reveals itself properly now, earthy and slightly bitter, almost parsnip-like in its root vegetable honesty. Nutmeg warms the composition without sweetening it, whilst the frankincense fully blooms—smoky, slightly lemonic, cathedral-like. The woods start their slow ascent, with fir balsam bringing its characteristic green-resinous stickiness that clings to the spices like pine needles caught in wool.
Cedar and labdanum settle into a skin-close, ambered woodiness with persistent mossy undertones. The spices have mostly retreated, leaving ghostly traces of warmth, whilst the resinous quality remains—tacky, slightly animalic, determinedly earthy. It's the scent of a forest path on your clothes hours after the walk has ended.
Autumn Vibes is Fanny Bal's meditation on the forest floor after rain—not the sugared, apple-pie version of autumn, but the earthier reality of decomposing leaves and damp bark. The opening is a prickle of spices: cardamom's eucalyptus-green bite meets pink pepper's fizzy heat whilst coriander adds a curious, almost metallic herbal edge. This isn't a cosy jumper scent; it's the smell of pushing through dense undergrowth, where frankincense smoke seems to curl through moss-covered branches. The carrot seed note is particularly clever here, bringing a rooty, soil-tinged character that grounds the spices before they veer too culinary. Nutmeg appears as a supporting player, its slightly musty warmth bridging the aromatic top and the resinous heart.
What makes this genuinely interesting is how the fir balsam absolute and labdanum create an almost sticky, ambered woodiness—less Christmas tree, more sap seeping from wounded bark. The cedar provides structure without going full pencil shavings, whilst moss (likely a synthetic interpretation given modern restrictions) adds a damp, shadowy quality. It's unabashedly woody without being masculine, and whilst "unisex" often means inoffensive, this has bite. The wearer is likely someone who finds Tam Dao too serene and Terre d'Hermès too citric—they want their woods with a bit of earth under the fingernails. Best worn when the temperature drops and wool comes out of storage, though perhaps not for those seeking compliments from strangers.
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3.8/5 (139)