We took a sniff at Carner Barcelona D600 not so long ago.
Tardes, the second creation of Sara Carner is the harder of the two Carner perfumes to love, but it is also the more interesting and – in the end – rewarding.
“A tribute to the peace and harmony of a late summer afternoon; a fragrance that is pure, serene and enveloping.
A peaceful stroll through the wheat fields and almond trees as the light of a summer day wanes and the warmth of the air caresses your skin…”
With its notes of almond and heliotrope it brings to mind Serge Lutens Louve, an ill-fated acquaintance of mine, but refrains from going all out cherry on me, thankfully.
Tardes was created by Daniela Andrier (like this old favorite) and includes notes of Egyptian geranium, Bulgarian rose, rosewood, almond, Virginian Cedar Wood, celery, plum, Venezuelan tonka bean, musk and heliotrope.
Tardes opens sweet and softly woody. Almond is prominent, but it is light and airy, like some kind of whipped almond and plum cream dessert (Cooks and pastry chefs, please chime in, whether there is such a thing!) The geranium makes itself felt later on, bringing a slightly green, cool note to this gourmand festival. Musk, tonka bean and heliotrope build the seemingly edible backbone of this perfume that never veers off into total food territory though, thanks to the geranium, which adds a detached, masculine element and cuts into the dessert fantasy in a most pleasing way.
Tardes is a gourmand scent, an evening scent, a perfume that does not go unnoticed and is unusual. There are perfumes that come to mind like Louve, as I said previously, or Etro Heliotrope, even Guerlain Aprés l’Ondée, but I like it better than all of those heliotrope-centered perfumes. (Well, not better than Apres l’Ondée, but that has more going on than the gourmand aspect I’m referring to here.) Strangely, what Tardes shares with the Guerlain is its melancholy facet. I get still and introspective when wearing it.
Tardes evokes a quiet evening in the country side, the sun going down, everything and everyone is winding down and taking a deep breath. Time to think, time to reflect, time to take stock of life, of dreams, maybe even time to say goodbye to certain things. Tardes is a perfect scent to wallow a little in emotions of anguish and self-pity and is an excellent companion when pining away after lost opportunities.
But Tardes never loses sight of the silver lining. The ultimate sense of optimism and the idea that all will end well, is buried deep in the layers of blue. How wonderful to have such complex emotions available bottled when needed.
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You mean that Louve ? – the parfume nobody liked except me ? So I need to try Tardes (strangely enough I’m in Spain right now – no holiday unfortunately).
Maybe you will come across it in Spain. If not, Topsi in Ringstrassengalerien carries the line.
Oh no not another one that sounds like I will love, thank goodness for internet searches. 🙂
It is hard being a Perfumista! 😉
“The ultimate sense of optimism and the idea that all will end well, is buried deep in the layers of blue.” With wonderful lines like that, B, you could convince this heliotrope-phobe to give this one a try!
I second this exactly! I’m not a heliotrope-phobe, but was still a bit reserved about this as I read initially. Those lines were very inspiring though. I do love perfumes that are introspective without being depressed.
I know, N, I wish I could love Apres L’Ondee for the same reason. It sounds so me! Maybe one day …
Me too, a little “feeling blue” is nice sometimes. 🙂
I’m very convincing. 😉
Darn geranium! We just don’t get along. Otherwise this sounds quite lovely.
It does sound like the geranium provides a crisp contrast to the pillowy softness as it “cuts into the dessert fantasy in a most pleasing way.” (great line!)
Hmmmm…now I’m intrigued!
I find the geranium in this combination very appealing, although I’m usually no big fan of the note either. I hope Carner comes into wider distribution, I find both perfumes very lovely. There is a third, Cuir, that I have not tried yet.
This one didn’t work for me, sadly – also as a heliotrope-phobe, and possibly even a heliotrope-amplifier! ; – ) , However, it sounds as though more persistence may be called for. First impressions were of something in MH Geranium Bourbon or Fleur Oriental territory, both of which give me a bit of a headache unfortunately. They are sort of fuzzy and “muggy” for want of a better word. I will have another go, but my non-appreciation of almond notes could remain a stumbling block. Meanwhile, D600 remains a huge love that would be hard to top!
I can imagine this is pretty much a no-go for a heliotrope hater. 😦 But at least D600 is a total success for you (and for me too.)
The Louvre connection frightens me, but this sounds lovely a anyway! 🙂
It is nowhere near Louve, which I can’t tolerate at all. But the connection inevitably comes to mind when you see the notes list.
For whatever reason this one doesn’t sound appealing to me (which is good, I just can’t try everything you write about 🙂 ). I know that I might be wrong: neither notes nor even your beautiful description of any perfume can tell me how exactly I perceive it once I smell/test it. But I’m still happy that this lemming hasn’t been born.
Some perfumes just don’t speak to us.
I’m wearing Tardes right now as my sleep scent, and it is even more gorgeous than I remembered from my last wearing… 😉
La-la-la-la-la, I’m not listening, I’m not listening… 😉
😀
I may be the lone dissenter here: I NEED TO TRY THIS. Not only am I a geranium freak, but I love heliotrope as well. Also, Infusion d’Iris is a huge, huge favorite of mine so I trust any creation of Andrier’s.
When I am paid next I shall have to order a sample of this. Thank you for the review, B! xo
You do! It is lovely and deserves attention.
Good to know we have another perfume remedy out there against the depression ;-).
That is good to know indeed! 🙂
This sounds lovely! Your descriptions are wonderful!
Thank you, Alice! It is a beautiful perfume. 🙂
Hi, Birgit! tardes sounds interesting. Louve was a bit too syrupy on me, but I love Etro Heliotrope. unfortunately I haven’t had the chance to try Apres l’Ondee. The husband is traveling to Spain soon and, as I am going to ask him for some fragrance, I thought it might as well be a Spanish brand. I am trying to decide between Tardes and Cuirs…ho humm…
Well, that would be an easy decision for me. 😉 Although if I have to choose between Tardes and D600 it is a lot harder…
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I’m really tempted to add TARDES to my wish list for the Three Wise Men (here known literally as ‘The 3 Kings’) ! 😉 Believe it!: As I was walking home this morning, I noticed a heavenly halo wafted through the air coming from where of course I supposed … so I went to the box where I put several paper strips disposed properly like a bunch of flowers in a jar. That halo smelled so good, like an outstanding voice among others! and definitely, it was Tardes.
I had non specific wish list this year, and my family are all the time asking what’s up… so maybe I will tell them.
… but I’d like to test on my skin at least once more before deciding… on paper samples, you know… sometimes you can’t judge throughout. I’d be happy if on my skin will smell just more or less the same, but now I don’t remember how it was. Next time I’m in the city, I’ll pay attention to Tardes exclusively.
It is such a beautiful scent, with great sillage and weartime too! I’m glad you like it!
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I’m started playing around with this one and Cuirs today. Maybe I was really influenced by your most recent post, but when I first smelled Tardes, it smelled exactly like those Haribo gummy peaches to me. Now it smells like almonds and leather — which is better!
Cuirs I really liked. It reminded me of these old sandalwood fans my mother has from China, It’s such a shame that it didn’t last on my skin 😦
I smell no Haribo Peaches in Tardes, but now I’d like to eat some… 😉
Carner has nice perfumes, D600 is beauty as well.
Isn’t it funny how suggestible we humans are? When I used to give wine tastings, people always asked me what I smelled. And I would always try to avoid answering because in the end, it didn’t really matter what I smelled! But it did lead to some really frustrating therapist-like conversations (“I don’t know … what do you smell?”).
Very true. Suggestion plays a big part in how we perceive our world. Also who suggests what is very important – see Chandler Burr. 😉
Very true 😉 He certainly didn’t leave much to the imagination!
Hi! I’m a new reader and obviously tardy to the Tardes party, but I found this scent at a small boutique in Seattle a couple weeks ago and was happy to see it reviewed here. I drained my little store sample and ordered two more from Carner. It arrived today so I’m marinating in it tonight 🙂 and although I don’t yet understand why I love it (I’m a relative newbie so I don’t know what heliotrope smells like), I’m seriously contemplating a bottle after the samples run out. Thank you for the spot-on review, Birgit!
Hi Das,
Welcome! I’m glad you found Tardes (and my blog). It is such a lovely perfume. I also can highly recommend D600 and Rima XI from Carner, both delicate and extremely pretty scents.
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As I said to you before, I adored Tardes until I accidentally spilled way too much on my pjs and then it became a forbidden scent in my house 🙂 !! Agreed that it would make a great sleep scent for those who wear perfume to bed!
I can imagine it works great as a sleep scent – in moderation that is. 😉
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