Muse Tester

Today I'm exploring Muse by Yves Saint Laurent, a fragrance whose most unusual note immediately gives me something to be curious about: ink. Launched in 2025 and composed by Marie Salamagne for the house's Le Vestiaire des Parfums collection, Muse presents an interesting proposition before it ever touches the skin. Lavender, iris, and vanilla are all recognizable ideas in perfumery, but introducing ink into that combination raises questions about the character of the composition. I also have a recent reference point for that particular note. When I reviewed Rose Incense by Amouage, its ink accord had a cold, mineralic, and surprisingly realistic quality that I found unusual but not entirely unenjoyable. It wasn't necessarily an impression I would have expected to want in a fragrance, yet it gave me something interesting to consider beyond the more familiar notes surrounding it. That experience makes me particularly curious about Muse. Will the ink here have a similarly cool, mineralic character, or will the iris and vanilla give it a softer, warmer presentation? The inspiration connects the fragrance to Yves Saint Laurent's muses and the ink used to sketch their silhouettes, giving the central accord a meaningful relationship to the name. What interests me most, however, is how that idea translates into something wearable. Before getting into the wearing, I also checked the note breakdown here on Fragrantica against YSL's official information. In this case, the two agree in substance, with the differences largely coming down to the house's more specific material names. The opening lists lavender, incense, and clary sage, followed by orris, Bourbon vanilla, and ambrette in the heart, with ink and an ambery woods accord underneath. What Fragrantica labels amberwood is described by YSL as an accord, but there are no additional or missing notes between the two breakdowns. Looking at that structure, there are several relationships I'm interested to explore. Lavender and clary sage suggest an aromatic introduction, while incense could provide a drier contrast to the softer heart. Orris and vanilla introduce the possibility of powderiness, richness, and sweetness, with ambrette potentially adding a gentle musky texture underneath. Against those elements, the ink could become a particularly interesting counterpoint. A cold, mineralic impression like the one I experienced in Rose Incense might create a noticeable contrast with that softness, although I don't want to assume the two fragrances will interpret the note in the same way. I'm also curious about how easily I will be able to distinguish the ink from the incense and woods, especially if their darker facets overlap. With aromatic and iris accords sitting prominently in the Fragrantica profile, there is every possibility that Muse will feel quite different from what its ink-centered concept initially suggests. What I want to discover is whether that unusual accord becomes the defining feature of the wearing or works more quietly to give familiar notes an unfamiliar edge. Rose Incense showed me that realistic ink could be unusual without being entirely off-putting. Muse now gives me an opportunity to explore that idea in a different setting, and to see whether it becomes something I do more than cautiously appreciate. Let's find out.

Had a project that I worked on single handedly for close to a year while doing too many other projects way above my pay grade. I had to prove to myself I could do it(I'm a glutton for punishment lol), and today was the day that I found out it was 100% compliant with policy. This was such an achievement for me and I wore YSL Muse as my scent of the day. I was a badass bookworm with a hint of flirty mystique. I could smell the ink, incense, lavender, Orris and vanilla. I could pick out all these notes and they worked so well together. I got many compliments and with skincare(oil and moisturizer too) lasted well over 8 hours. This scent is so frigging good! This fragrance mellowed my anxiety and gave me comfort. I will definitely be repurchasing this when it comes time.

Opens strong on the ink. But then it settles but I can smell the slight inkyness throughout the whole time. I also get the better blanche comparisons in a way. This one has this la tonic feel about it. The iris/ orris is there the whole time. I also get vanilla but also woods. There’s definetely woods in the base. Creamy lactonic vanilla, woods, inkyness, powderyness and very slight insence somewhere in the background. It also has this designer ambery sweetness somewhere deep under all that (which I don’t actually like). Wish it was colder in a way. Wish the sweetness were less and the iris were more but that’s because iris is my favorite note. Also I wish the ink stayed a tad bit stronger and more prominent.

This mostly smells like palo santo on my skin, but my skin emphasizes wood notes. I get wood more than ink. It is soft, powdery, and slightly sweet. Because of the strong wood note, this has masculine aspects to it. I also get an herbal undertone from the clary sage. If lavender is present, it's either very faint or very well-blended. There are feminine aspects to it as well. I definitely get a lot of powdery orris. It's not overly sweet. I do detect a little vanilla, but I wish it had more. That's why it reminds me of palo santo: it's sweet wood. I do get the Black Tie connection, but it's different enough to own both. Black Tie is sweeter and more feminine.

This is special. The initial spray is harsh, the ink is a bit stinky and acrid, but after 20 minutes this settled into something luxurious. The combination of vanilla and orris is creamy an delicious, coconutty, and it is very well balanced by the ink, that keeps it from getting too sweet. It's also a bit powdery, very lightly powdery. It is two perfumes in one: creamy and dark at the same time, delicious and somber, very serious. This is an angel/ demon combination. It smells dark violet/ grey. The ambrette makes this a bit musky in the dry down, but I don't get any aromatic notes. It is so well blended. Perfectly unisex.