Mousse Illuminee

As a lover of green scents, this is uniquely complex. While in the barbershop genre, it's elevated and singular. Energy of menthol, but instead of mint; bracing green leaf/moss. Bold mid note of green botanic that's more complex ivy than herbaceous. Body is heady and humid. Wood adds weight like a cedar bench in a damp British garden. Musk isn't too dry and fortifies the wood harmoniously. The genre of "warm spice" is common and beloved, while this is "green spice." Nature without being floral. Impressively strong with tons of complexity. Fabric brings out a musky spearmint to the menthol, but warm skin helps the wood restrain it. Not only is it singularly impressive, but has presence. Rare to be appealing, unique, strong, and high quality. Def signature scent worthy and a safe buy, but barbershop is just not me. Still appreciate its mastery.

Bought a sample of this. Euugh.... the opening is so off-putting to me. This is super minty + the texture of hairspray (in terms of the tingle/vibration). wtf is going on? doesn't evoke anything particularly natural to my nose - feels kinda synthetic. i find it very difficult to imagine this is "retro" and anyone in the distant past smelled anything remotely like this. The smell by itself is not revolting, it's the context that's wrong. Like burgers smell good but you wouldn't want to smell like one. I feel like i sprayed hairspray or mouthwash on my wrist. This is unsweet, but not too bitter. Must be the artemesia, i guess? Cause oakmoss usually smells wonderful to me (Chypre Du Nord, Etruscan Waters). Looking at the description - it clearly says TREEMOSS, which is apparently something else entirely. so everyone here is gushing over a wrong note...? in the drydown, calms down to something more tolerable and green/herbal but without the intense hair-product feel. in what F***** world is this like polo green??? polo green is like 65% tobacco. this smells nothing like it. even if there's some sophisticated concept here i'm not getting, intuitively, this is still not fun. maybe i just don't like mentholic stuff *shrug*. this is more offensive than Amouage Enclave. #### UPDATE: gave it another try. even after the harsh opening, as it subsides, this is still just too soapy. i intellectually understand (through reading) that this is supposed to imitate the fashion of past decades, but i'd much rather wear something like Fougere Royale than something like this. this is too medicinal and sterile. doesn't me think of nature or moss but of harsh doctor-prescribed medicinal body ointment or like mentos mouth freshners.

Green artemisia filled opening followed a rock solid resinous yet fresh dry down. Impeccable, almost 3D depth. After the first hour the sillage becomes intimate to me, yet others around can still detect it. The longevity is not as massive to me as others say, but I don’t care. This easily gets a spot in my all time top 5.

Fresh, moss, retro, precious and dignified. Lately I've been starting my perfume descriptions with tiny tags that capture the perfume best, and this one was no exception. At the very center of the scent sits moss, and this note inevitably takes you back in time, and here too I was dragged backward through the years... all the way to my father. Lovely memories, old belongings... the 90s... But evaluating it apart from the memories, it's a forest scent, piney, minty, aromatic, fresh, vivid, wandering in a fougère vibe. Its finish is a bit smoky and a super soft woodiness. I liked it a lot. There was a tiny sweetness at the opening, and that sweetness thinned out more and more, giving way to aromatic greens. I pick out the bay leaf note a lot. If it were a bit more herbal it would have suited our witch doctor, but the herbal feel is completely balanced and restrained, and if it were less fresh I'd have matched it to our forest witch this time, but it's not dark. It's the scent of a thin-mustached film character with an elegant lodge in the forest, reading a book out in the open on his balcony... Tag(s): mossy, fresh, aromatic, fougère, woody, retro, green, piney, minty, herbal, medicinal

Rogue Perfumery's Mousse Illuminee is my most disappointing blind-buy to date. Actually, disappointing doesn't even begin to cover it. There's absolutely NOTHING dreamlike or lovely about it - unless your idea of dreamlike involves putrid, decaying roadkill baking on hot asphalt during a steamy, humid summer day. I couldn't scrub this one off fast enough, and I hope to God the memory of this disaster swiftly vacates my senses 🤢🤮. For a split second I considered selling it, but I can't, in good conscience, inflict this nightmare on another human being.

2/10 First of all: you can tell that the ingredients used are good quality, that has to be said. When you first spray this it jumps at you, just a burst of oakmoss and artemisia. It's so incredibly minty, not a mouthwash style mint but a green natural mint. I wouldn't say that this smells old fashioned because my experience with vintage style designers is that they don't smell nearly as natural as this. This is completely indistinguishable from a fragrance from the 80s that's been perpetually reformulated because this smells so incredibly high quality. For me, it's just too minty, the artemisia is cloying and too icy fresh, I had to wash it off, but if you're into mint you'll like this.

The undercurrent of grape cough medicine ruins it all. That smell, as if not nauseating enough, subsequently mixes with the smell of cigarettes to make it truly unbearable.

Moss bomb but lots of interesting things going on. Oakmoss - menthol - amber. Beautiful florals with a touch of sweetness, minty magic from artemisia and bay leaf!! I could live without that incense accord though :/ Partly vintage, partly modern. Reminds me of something from the 90s. P.S. That something is something like Ted Lapidus Pour Homme. You're welcome.

Okay, hear me out. This smells like 7-11 in 1989. They have a couple of dusty red glass embossed candles that used to be everywhere in restaurants for sale next to the school supplies section. It smells like unleaded octane, generic floor cleaner, and cola slurpee. Maybe a puff of a mentholated cigarette from outside. Slant rhyme for Paris-Edimbourg, clunkier and stranger.

This is how I imagine Dorian Gray smelling. Masculine, vintage, and a touch mysterious

attempt at woody and green naturalism, however still very department store-y after the drydown. skip

The combination of oakmoss and artemisia comes off almost fruity at first like some kind of pineapple and fake grape. Drys to something more mossy herbal and reminiscent of tobacco and tea leaves and the suggestion of leather. Definitely fashioned in the classic masculine mossy style, but doesn’t smell dated. Turns out I like Rogue’s style and real oakmoss because this and Chypre Siam are addictive to my nose. I can see how the synthetics approximate real oakmoss, but there is something richer and warm about the real thing. In a market full of sweet generic scents designed to appeal to as many people as possible this style is refreshing.

Very soapy , sharp, metallic, and intense opening. The dry down softens to something more sweet, mossy, and tolerable. If you enjoy barbershop oakmoss heavy frags, this is definitely one worthy of sampling. I've worn Polo by Ralph Lauren for years - which is very similar but Mousse is less mass appealing and more abrasive to me. This is extremely masculine to me as well, guys who have a more mature demeanor would pull this off best. I do not find this to be impressive or interesting enough to warrant more than a decant to dent through if i feel like it. Kind of wish I sampled the Grand Cru instead of this as I've been more in search of a darker green fragrance.

This is amazing. It's sparkly and vintage. Extremely wearable. I'd have a tough time deciding to wear this or fougere royale from Houbigant they both solve similar wishes 9/10. Definitely getting a full bottle.

I just sampled the new Grand Cru version….. wow. To the hot hunk who I lowballed on m****** I’m so sorry I know ur a fragrantica user I’ve seen ur icon before on here just know I played myself bc if I knew it was this good I’d have bought it for what you asked for. I gasped after spraying it. I wore the original today knowing my sample would come in later so I could properly compare and the original is really nice. I understand why it is beloved though maybe a bit overhyped. It’s good at what it does and I’d get it if I were a finance bro. It’s like for someone who grew up in a family of witches but chose to work on wallstreet and blends in with everyone else there but has this cultural background that surprises people who get to know him deeper. Clean cool bitter silvery chartreuse green showcase of artemisia in a palace of oakmoss. Subtle nuances from the other notes make it interesting but it did feel like something was missing to really make it something I’d grab over a Bohea Boheme or chypre mousse. I wouldn’t say it’s incomplete I have scents that are simpler (mal aime) but those reflect an attitude closer to my own. The grand cru version is kinda the inverse of that personality. This is the same person but he grew up in a wealthy business owning family who expected him to follow the same road but something inside lead him off course and into the dark and deep sea of self discovery. It smells very similar to Prin’s Haxan. Which was an ode to the dark arts of witchcraft. On my skin the resins and Champaca and wormwood are on equal footing with the oakmoss. It’s darker heavier androgynous slightly humid and tropical and almost sexy without trying to be u just can’t help but be aroused. It feels 3D in comparison. I see deep emerald green amulets and brown and maroon silks and taupe suede boots with accents of that same silvery green chartreuse hue of the original decorating the aura around me. I’m surprised it’s not priced higher

I purchased the newest version of this fragrance, Mousse Illuminee Grand Cru, as a blind buy from Lucky Scent. Unfortunately, it is a 'hard no' from my wife so I don't expect it will get much use. If anyone is keen to purchase this fragrance at a discount, please let me know. Only two sprays have been dispensed. Respectfully, US only given international shipping charges can quickly complicate things. roger

If you get a little bored and tired of the mainstream fragrances I urge you to consider this product. I enjoy most genres of fragrance from general designer offerings right through to arty/niche creations. This is something different to both of the aforementioned. It's a throwback! It's an interpretation of times gone by but manages to feel a little edgy in the blah blah modern age we live in. If you enjoy classic barbershop/fougere scents this should hit the spot. If you enjoy something that feels special, this'll do the trick. Because of the quality of ingredients and masterful blending this offers something that'll powerfully standout amongst the ocean of gourmand, sweet and myriad of available fragrances on the high street/mall. It's clean, masculine and authoritative. This is for the man who is put together and knows what he likes. A guy who values and considers the opinions of others but will fulfill his objectives anyway and you'll thank him for it! 😆 Performance is good. Very noticeable for anyone within speaking distance for several hours.....and trust me, people will notice the individuality when you opt for this. It'll continue to waft about noticeably for another several after too, just a little more intimate by then. It's sillage will drift behind you gradually weakening over a full day but never disappearing until you shower. It's a stunning fragrance for men above the ages of 35 and of a mature mindset. Of course, who am I to say a Woman couldn't wear it! It's distinctive and something that any strong character could carry should they so desire. It'll work any season but I feel it's so distinctive and fresh that it works best for the daytime. I usually want something a little more serene of an evening to help me wind down, not energising me. But it'll definitely carry itself fine for a night out comfortably. I won't break down the scent as the info is here in abundance already. But I will say that the overall scent is reasonably linear which is a good thing for this potion. It's unique which in conjunction with real quality ingredients make this scent pungent and very noticeable. 4-5 sprays is probably enough for any sane person! What I can tell you for sure, this will be a regular for me from now on.👌 Listen, if you want something that will leave an impression, feel special, that offers something unique then this is a bullseye 🎯.

I’m not sure why so many people who like things like Antaeus, Kouros, Polo Green, etc rant and rave over this. It smells like you submerged steel wool into really old homemade grape soda and removed it after a few years. So, crusty grape-flavored corn starch with rust. It doesn’t smell terrible, but it also does not smell appealing or even daring or brash in a good way. It’s the olfactory equivalent of a big stale purple blob of something that would be found in a Jello factory. But it’s not the product that makes it to the shelves, it’s the sludge that is left over in some metal barrel that gets discarded. I also smells like a grape popsicle that has a disgusting level of freezer burn. You put it to your tongue and it almost has a battery-like effect on your tongue. My parents had a refrigerator in our basement that we rarely used but kept running. One day we realize that Fanta had leaked somehow all over the inside of this fridge, and it had happened a very very long time before we have discovered it. That smell was something very close to Mousse Illuminee. I have never been to a barbershop that smells like this, but if I did I would probably leave assuming they have a mold problem

Leans more chypre and less "barbershop", in my opinion. The opening can smell a bit harsh/fuel like, but quickly shifts into a sweeter less intense Polo Green type scent. Oakmoss and musk is the most prominent to my unskilled nose. I find the scent comforting and long lasting. This review is based on a sample stray that convinced me to add this one to my list of future purchases.

If you can imagine an 80s powerhouse feminine white floral perfume yet done for men with an equally loud helping of oakmoss, then you are on your way to understanding what Mousse Illuminee is like to wear. There is no such thing as conservatively wearing this perfume. It is big, bold, and tenacious but yet despite the obvious retro-lean, the heroic creative brief, and its gargantuan nature, it doesn’t collapse under its own gravitas. Cool herbal and woody bay leaves and artemisia open Moussse but immediately give way to carnations and jasmine that are taken to the max. It is plenty musky - there is another reason for this that we’ll get to in a second - dry and indolic, peppery, a touch citrusy and green, and very obviously white floral. There is a natural and very sound link to the green facet of the jasmine and the outsized oakmoss accord that burgeons around the florals. Mousse is seriously mossy. The damp, green, earthy, and woody moss is pitch-perfect and volume-equal to the florals, as if you are smelling a massive bouquet of moss, carnations, and jasmine, and it’s one of the best moss materials I’ve smelled in many years. Underneath this planetary sized heart is a bed of white soap musks of notable quality. They are certainly pushing the musky qualities of the heart forward with their own character while smelling slick, clean and floral soapy. Turning the musks from bright white to a more calming and elegant beige color are gentle tendrils of frankincense that provide breadth while naturally linking to the green and woody facets of the other accords. This is probably the first time a floral-leaning fougere has ever smelled operatic to my nose. Most fougeres are calm, soothing, clean, and restrained affairs for the dapper gentleman not wanting to announce himself too much, but Mousse is no choir boy, it’s Carreras or Pavarotti making sure the orchestra behind him is giving it their all lest he drown them out. Wear this one sparingly, it won’t take much - not unless you want Pavarotti right next to your head making your eardrums bleed. This is a stunner, literally and figuratively. If you are looking for a classic masculine fougere that leans floral, and it’s just “more” in every way, I don’t think there is anything out there that will scratch that itch like Mousse Illuminee.

When I first bought this from Rogue it had a delightfully dominating grape soda note that contrasted beautifully with the smoky moss and bitter herbal artemesia. It was an interesting nuance that made this a unique, standout fragrance. A year later that note has disappeared from my bottle. Maybe this has happened to others, which may explain why some people report it and some don’t. Some chemical reaction that occurs with top notes over time, I suppose. It’s a shame, but that’s perfumery for you. It can be volatile and the absence of that special note now makes this feel a little less unique. Regardless, grape soda or no, Mousse Illuminee remains one of my favorites. In the same family as Polo Green, but distinct on its own. Masculine, classic, with an intriguing bitter green bite and deep dark mossiness.

Illuminated Moss? ...maybe Lit Moss? The opening is visionary! More particularly, it is a vision of a some kind of New Age athlete wearing liniment (artemisia) in the sweat lodge (frankincense) while eating gorgonzola on toast (real oud?) Yes I know, there is no oud listed, and surely it would be if it were there. I guess I'll have to chalk that one up as a serendipitous phantom. ...and then the drydown, ...my gawd. Oakmoss, conifers, spices, still smoky, and a delicately constructed little flower, difficult to decipher, but partly made from tuberose. Now, I'm just inhaling my hand, and remembering sides of life too often forgot. When the Encre Noire cult discovers they could be smelling this instead a holy war might break out.

This stuff is magic.

Absolute oakmoss explosion. Really vintage style and very reminiscent of some of those 80’s/90’s barbershop style fougeres with a modern twist. Bombastic ultra green soapy opening then after about 6 hours(!) it drys down to a fantastic and addictive herbal gem. Can still easily smell this on my wrist even after showering. Savagely brutal performance (from an EDT!). Not blind buy safe and not one for the ‘thrusters’. Proper perfumery. Hats off to Mr Cross for not holding back with this one🤯

soapy, bright, very vintage. Bottle fits the scent. Definitely not my taste though, tried this in a sample spray.

This is a nice light, green shaving cream fragrance. It sits pretty close to the skin and doesn't project much. It puts me in a scent bubble though for a couple hours. The blend is fantastic! I perfer louder fougeres, but I will still enjoy wearing this decant every once and awhile. I like the smell of Bon Monsieur more, but its performance is terrible. I still need to try Fougere L'aube and I will probably get the special release of this this spring. I hope that it performs better! Looks like they jacked the price up $30 for a bottle too for the New Year. 8/10

Smells similar to Amouage Beach Hut Man to me. Beach Hut is a lot richer and complex in my opinion yet they are very similar to my nose.

Smells like nail polish to me, pen ink, mossy, iris, similar to Polo Green, vintage smelling. Not my thing but some might enjoy it.

For those wondering about compliance, this is from the website. Do you follow IFRA guidelines? Mostly. EU regulations are far more strict and overreaching than IFRA recommendations. Since EU regulations do not apply to us here in the U.S., we do not aim to conform to them. That said, we also don’t haphazardly construct fragrances without regard for safety. We keep IFRA recommendations in mind during the creative process and refrain from using any known carcinogens or known endocrine disruptors. Do you make different versions for your EU retailers? No. Our EU retailers sell the exact same products we offer in the U.S. We do not create separate formulations to comply with EU regulations. They choose to stock our fragrances at their own risk.

High quality scent. Smells like Polo and Tilia mixed. 10/10.