• About
  • Login to comment
    • Facebook
    • RSS
    • Twitter

Now Smell This

a blog about perfume

Menu ▼
  • Perfume Reviews
  • New Perfumes
  • Perfumers
  • Perfume Houses
  • Shop for perfume
  • Resources

Edward Bess La Femme Boheme ~ fragrance review

Posted by Jessica on 16 February 2017 42 Comments

Mrs. Rita de Alba de Acosta Lydig 1913

Has there ever been a fragrance that you've just had to smell because of its name? For me, any perfume named La Femme Bohème would have been tempting. The fact that this fragrance is also one of three developed by perfumer Carlos Benaïm for Edward Bess made it irresistible, so off I went to sample it.

Aficionados of luxury cosmetics who happened to be in New York City in 2007 were caught off-guard by Edward Bess's initial appearance at Bergdorf Goodman. He seemed impossibly young as the founder of a cosmetics line, but there he was, debuting his first collection: a range of high-quality lipsticks that looked like "instant classics," performed beautifully, and steered clear of trends. Disclaimer here: I've been a customer at an Edward Bess cosmetics counter on and off for the past decade, so I'm acquainted with Edward in that context.

I actually remember asking Edward about his favorite fragrances back in 2009, and when he mentioned Olivia Giacobetti's IUNX line, I knew he was a serious fragrance-lover. His first perfume, a white floral named Eau La La (2012), didn't make much of an impression on me (gardenia just isn't my thing), but the descriptions for this new trio caught my eye. For the past week I've been wearing La Femme Bohème, an oriental with notes of honey, jasmine and amber and a descriptive narrative about a free-spirited woman who goes wherever the day (or night) takes her. Her story also includes mentions of cigarette smoke, wine and waking up "on a bed of hay." Wild nights, apparently!

I haven't done anything particularly daring or unconventional while wearing La Femme Bohème, but this fragrance does make me feel as though I could wander beyond my daily routine, if adventure called. It's the olfactory equivalent of a well-applied "cat eye" in black liner — a little edgy, a little timeless. It opens with plenty of broom flower, with its facets of grass and almond and tobacco leaf. This must be the "hay" of our heroine's night under the stars. The tobacco theme intensifies in the heart of La Femme Bohème and becomes more incense-y. (Incense is the motif shared by all three scents in this collection — I'll be reviewing Spanish Veil next week, so stay tuned.)

I don't usually wear fragrances with "cigarette smoke" notes —for example, Etat Libre d'Orange Jasmin et Cigarette is too literal for me, and Molinard Habanita is just too intense and musty for me to pull off. La Femme Bohème, however, lures me in with its hay note and its honeyed floral heart, and the smoke is so well-blended into the rest of this composition that I end up loving it. (And I've never even been a smoker!) The jasmine is a touch indolic, but it's mixed so deeply into the honey and incense-y smoke that it doesn't read as a discrete floral note; you don't have to be a jasmine-lover to wear this fragrance.

La Femme Bohème has moderate sillage and excellent persistence, leaving smoky-sweet traces on my skin throughout a long workday. I've been wearing it to the office in small amounts and applying more for evening. It smells particularly good on a scarf or cuffs the day afterwards. If La Femme Bohème were available in a smaller bottle, I probably would have purchased one by now. In the meantime, I'm feeling slightly addicted to my sample. It's not quite my usual fare, but it appeals to my hidden bohemian side.

Edward Bess La Femme Bohème is available in 100 ml Eau de Parfum ($175) at Aedes de Venustas or Neiman Marcus. You can find it in France at Colette.

Note: top image is Mrs. Rita de Alba de Acosta Lydig 1913 by Adolf de Meyer via Wikimedia Commons, public domain.

Possibly of interest

Edward Bess Kiss The Sky ~ new fragrance
Edward Bess Last Night ~ new fragrance
Edward Bess Spanish Veil ~ fragrance review

Filed Under: perfume talk
Tagged With: carlos benaim, edward bess, oriental

Advertisement


42 Comments

Leave a comment, or read more about commenting at Now Smell This. Here's our privacy policy, and a handy emoticon chart.

  1. Scentalicious says:
    16 February 2017 at 3:43 pm

    Oh what a lovely review. This sounds like it could have been made for me! I will have to hunt it down somewhere, which might be a deal breaker, since I may never find it. Is Mr. Bess’s hair as fabulous in person as it is in photos? :)

    (And as an aside, I don’t think the cigarette note in JeC smells like smoke, I think it smells like a broken cigarette at the bottom of someone’s purse; there’s even a touch of spearmint, as if a loose stick of gum was down there, too. )

    Log in to Reply
    • Jessica says:
      16 February 2017 at 3:46 pm

      Hello! Maybe these fragrances will appear in other locations as well…? Keep an eye out!

      And yes, E. Bess’s hair is just as beautiful in person as it is in photos. He was still wearing it short when he got his start at Bergdorf, but now (as you can see) it’s free-flowing in a Pre-Raphaelite way, and very healthy-looking to boot. :)

      Log in to Reply
      • sweetgrass says:
        16 February 2017 at 4:49 pm

        I didn’t know what he looked like, so I had to look him up. I can see why you’d say “Pre-Raphaelite”. He looks like he could’ve stepped right out of a Dante Rosetti painting.

        Log in to Reply
      • Isabella says:
        16 February 2017 at 11:28 pm

        Okay, I just had to Google his hair, and it sort of made my day. :)

        Log in to Reply
    • solanace says:
      17 February 2017 at 2:55 am

      Your description of a smoker’s purse is spot on! LOL! (The tiny bits of tobacco in all my lipsticks and chapsticks gave me the strength to quit.)

      Log in to Reply
  2. MrsDalloway says:
    16 February 2017 at 4:11 pm

    Oh, broom is gorgeous. I really want to try this too.

    Log in to Reply
    • Jessica says:
      16 February 2017 at 10:05 pm

      I didn’t know about broom until I first got acquainted with the Santa Maria Novella collection…they have a broom fragrance!

      Log in to Reply
      • mayfly says:
        17 February 2017 at 4:41 am

        Didn’t know this, love SMN will have to try the broom one!

        Log in to Reply
  3. Holly says:
    16 February 2017 at 4:37 pm

    Oh my goodness, thank you for such an enticing review! This sounds right up my alley.

    Log in to Reply
    • Jessica says:
      16 February 2017 at 10:06 pm

      Holly, I hope you’ll have a chance to try it out, then!!

      Log in to Reply
  4. meredifay says:
    16 February 2017 at 5:06 pm

    My oh my, he is a pretty specimen, isn’t he? I do miss the long hair on men aspect of the late 60s/early 70s era. I am more interested in Spanish Veil that in La Femme Boheme, the smoke note scares me. Has anyone sampled that one?

    Log in to Reply
    • Jessica says:
      16 February 2017 at 10:06 pm

      I really like long hair on the right men, too… my husband had long hair when we first met. ;)

      Stay tuned for Spanish Veil!

      Log in to Reply
  5. Deva says:
    16 February 2017 at 5:16 pm

    Oh, another to add to the never ending To Try list! Thank you for the review????

    Log in to Reply
    • Jessica says:
      16 February 2017 at 10:07 pm

      This one is worth adding to that list! :)

      Log in to Reply
  6. littlecooling says:
    16 February 2017 at 5:18 pm

    Beautiful review, Jessica..what you write is my thoughts entirely about this fragrance and I feel very tempted to by it ;)
    Also I love the 70’s retro feel the bottles have :)

    Log in to Reply
    • Jessica says:
      16 February 2017 at 10:10 pm

      Thank you! That is so nice to hear. :)

      I like the bottles, too! and they have the same typeface/logo as his makeup — very classic yet modern.

      Log in to Reply
  7. nozknoz says:
    16 February 2017 at 6:35 pm

    Virginia Woolf’s Orlando is one of my favorite books, and Edward Bess is exactly how I imagined Orlando would look.

    I’m looking forward to your review of Spanish Veil, too.

    Log in to Reply
    • Jessica says:
      16 February 2017 at 10:11 pm

      I need to reread Orlando…it’s been ages. I’ve seen the movie several times, though. (SWINTON!)

      Log in to Reply
      • mayfly says:
        17 February 2017 at 4:46 am

        Such a fantast film, Swinton is DA BOMB!

        Log in to Reply
        • Jessica says:
          17 February 2017 at 11:46 am

          Really one of my favorite actors (and style icons). She seems like a smart and lovely person as well as a compelling performer.

          Log in to Reply
    • Jenkr says:
      17 February 2017 at 9:37 am

      Yes! I thought the same thing! He’s definitely got Orlando written all over him.

      This fragrance sounds amazing and I’m looking forward to hearing about Spanish Veil as well.

      Log in to Reply
      • Jessica says:
        17 February 2017 at 11:46 am

        :)

        Log in to Reply
  8. AnnE says:
    16 February 2017 at 11:07 pm

    Thanks for the review, Jessica. This sounds definitely worth a sniff, and I have been a fan of his lipsticks.

    Your smoke comment got me thinking of Fifi Chachnil, which I wonder if you like. Do you know it (or remember it)?

    Log in to Reply
    • AnnE says:
      16 February 2017 at 11:07 pm

      Although this one is more tobacco.

      Log in to Reply
      • Jessica says:
        17 February 2017 at 11:47 am

        I do remember Fifi! I don’t have any samples to “revisit,” alas…

        Log in to Reply
        • AnnE says:
          18 February 2017 at 12:58 am

          And as soon as I commented, I checked Beautyhabit,and they no longer have it on their website. :-(

          Log in to Reply
    • meredifay says:
      17 February 2017 at 11:35 am

      Hi, Anne which of his lipsticks have you tried? I am always looking for one’s that won’the dry my lips our…

      Log in to Reply
      • AnnE says:
        18 February 2017 at 1:06 am

        I have Tender Love from the Ultra Slick ones, plus another that’s been dc’d. I find them very creamy and moisturizing. They used to be cheaper than $35. Ack, the price of lippies is getting out of hand!

        Log in to Reply
        • meredifay says:
          18 February 2017 at 8:16 am

          Thanks!

          Log in to Reply
  9. Isabella says:
    16 February 2017 at 11:31 pm

    Thank you for this review, Jessica! La Femme Boheme sounds *beautiful*, and I love the smell of broom (in spite of the fact that the plant is an absolute scourge on the west coast, and in spite of the fact that every time I stick my nose in its flowers I find myself nose-to-nose with a spider).

    Log in to Reply
    • Jessica says:
      17 February 2017 at 11:47 am

      Oh no! Well, there does not seem to be any “intrusive spider” note here, for what that’s worth. ;)

      Log in to Reply
  10. kevtronic says:
    17 February 2017 at 1:55 am

    The couch that Rita is sitting on looks Art Deco.

    Log in to Reply
    • mayfly says:
      17 February 2017 at 5:04 am

      The photo is from the end of the Belle Époque, a few years too soon for Art Deco I think.

      Log in to Reply
      • Jessica says:
        17 February 2017 at 11:48 am

        Agree!

        Log in to Reply
  11. Connie says:
    17 February 2017 at 7:05 am

    If you’re not a fan of gardenia or cigarette smoke, you definitely shouldn’t try Serge’s Une Voix Noire. Or maybe that would be the one to convert you ;)

    Log in to Reply
    • Jessica says:
      17 February 2017 at 11:48 am

      hah! I love the concept of Une Voix Noire…but as I remember, it was too White Floral for me!

      Log in to Reply
  12. AngelaB says:
    17 February 2017 at 8:48 am

    I MUST try this one, what a terrific review. It may be THE one for me!!

    Log in to Reply
    • Jessica says:
      17 February 2017 at 11:48 am

      I hope you’ll love it!!

      Log in to Reply
  13. missyl says:
    17 February 2017 at 10:39 am

    Great review Jessica. I googled Edward Bess to see who we were talking about. Wow! Our 20 something son has the most gorgeous hair too. He grew it out to his shoulders during college and His locks were far more Lux than anything we gals were growing. And then he cut it off for law school! Seems a little unfair hmm? ????
    I’ll be on the look out for this.

    Log in to Reply
    • Jessica says:
      17 February 2017 at 11:49 am

      Some people get all the luck, hah!

      Log in to Reply
  14. schaf says:
    17 February 2017 at 2:59 pm

    Just because of his comment about Iunx, I will have to try his fragrances!

    Log in to Reply
    • Jessica says:
      19 February 2017 at 1:08 pm

      When I asked him that question, years ago, I was really impressed by his answer. Apparently he’d been spending time in Paris on business, so he’d experienced IUNX there. I’m always curious to know people’s fragrance tastes, but this was such an obscurely cool choice!!

      Log in to Reply

Leave a reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Advertisement

Search

From NST at Twitter

  • "D.S. & Durga founders on building their business: ‘There are no rules’" (glossy) https://t.co/sS437k795O, 5 hours ago
  • "You're Probably Making At Least One Of These Perfume Mistakes" (and it probably doesn't matter. instyle) https://t.co/otEVzNVKyh, 5 hours ago
  • Updated info on Regime des Fleurs Tears https://t.co/bNPNPDGRVJ, 5 hours ago
  • "Luxury perfume pioneer Frédéric Malle on hot China market, wannabe niche fragrances and buying perfume online" (so… https://t.co/ZlIJKQDKBV,
  • "Corpse flower on WSU Vancouver campus about to bloom again" (fox12oregon) https://t.co/OWe1pYenwr,

Browse by…

Topic

Perfume talk New fragrances
Shopping Books :: News
Body products Home fragrance
Polls Another subject

Date

July 2022
June 2022
May 2022
April 2022
March 2022
February 2022
Prior months

Author

Robin Jessica
Angela Kevin
Erin Guest Author

Tag

Celebrity perfumes
Cheap thrills
Collector bottles
Perfumista tip series
Video
The complete tag index

Recent reviews

Atelier Cologne Love Osmanthus
Moschino Toy Boy
Arquiste Misfit
Diptyque Eau Capitale
Zoologist Bee
Parfum d’Empire Immortelle Corse
Comme des Garcons Series 10 Clash
Frédéric Malle Rose & Cuir
L’Artisan Parfumeur Le Chant de Camargue
Yves Saint Laurent Grain de Poudre
Régime des Fleurs Chloë Sevigny Little Flower
Chanel 1957
Gallivant Los Angeles
Amouage Portrayal Woman

Blogroll

Bois de Jasmin
Grain de Musc
Perfume Posse
The Non-Blonde
More blogs...

Perfumista lists

100 fragrances every perfumista should try
And 25 more fragrances every perfumista should smell
50 masculine fragrances every perfumista should try
26 vintage fragrances every perfumista should try
25 rose fragrances every perfumista should try
11 Cheap Perfumes Beauty Outsiders Love

Favorite posts

The Great Perfume Reduction Plan
Why I Love Old School Chypres
New to perfume and want to learn more?
How to make fragrance last through the day
Fragrance concentrations: sorting it all out
On reformulations, or why your favorite perfume doesn’t smell like it used to
How to get fragrance samples
Perfume for Life: How Long Will Your Fragrance Collection Last?

Upcoming

TBA September ~ fall swapmeet

TBA October ~ fall splitmeet

List of upcoming Friday projects

Back to Top

Home
About Now Smell This :: Privacy Policy

Shop for Perfume Online
Perfume Shopping in New York
Perfume Shopping in London
Perfume Reviews
New Perfumes
General Perfume Articles
The Monday Mail

Glossary of Perfume Terms
Perfume FAQ
Perfume Links
Perfume Books
Fragrance Awards

Noses ~ Perfumers A-E :: F-K :: L-S :: T-Z

Perfume Houses A-B :: C :: D-E :: F-G
H-J :: K-L :: M :: N-O :: P :: Q-R :: S
T :: U-Z

Copyright © 2005-2022 Now Smell This. All rights reserved.