For the past three months I have been living in a tunnel. At the end of the tunnel is a decision that I am looking forward to. I know that at some point I will see the end but there is no way of knowing how soon. I live in a constant state of excitement and anxiety. It is unbelievable how anticipation can warp time and make it move in a closed, fast circle, revolving around dreams and expectations. Looking back these past three months have passed excruciatingly slow and frantically paced at the same time. This sounds impossible but when one spends their days constantly preoccupied with little technicalities that seem to take up all of their energy, then at some point they are bound to realise that all this time they have been standing on exactly the same point, just waiting. All this preoccupation has lead me into a slightly anhedonic state, where perfume felt just scented liquid inside a bottle and as such left me completely unaffected. I have been through phases like this in the past and I always wonder whether I cannot feel perfume because I am in this state of psychological anosmia or I have lost my ability to experience pleasure because I have removed perfume from my life. No answer there yet.
The perfume I have reached for more often in these grey days was Eau Dynamisante. I bought my first bottle of Eau Dynamisante in 1995 and I remember it clearly because I was studying in the UK at the time. We met again last year when I found a big splash bottle on sale for 20 euro and of course I jumped at the opportunity. I could remember what a pleasurable experience it had been to wear this. Strong, invigorating opening, moderate presence thereafter allowing me to splash abundantly to get its uplifting effect before I leave home but save me from suffocating people in the street. My original bottle read “Treatment Fragrance” on it but my current is less ambitious, just “Invigorating Fragrance”, and if you have tried it you know it can deliver what it promises. Although I appreciate a good citrus I rarely get swept off my feet by colognes. Eau Dynamisante however opens with crisp, cool lemon and lime take no prisoners. There are enough flowers in there, I get jasmine mostly, to keep this from being astringent or Lifesaver’s-reminiscent. The forceful opening wears off quickly like the effect of burst of cool water from the shower. It is enough to wake you up. The rest of the development is equally fast and soon a mellow, herbal vetiver surfaces to give feet to this flying, sparkling creature.
After all is settled and done, you end up with a smile on your face and a very subtle breath of a “grand parfum”. Eau Dynamisante stands somewhere between Eau Sauvage and Diorella, in a much lighter mood and disposition. Citrus, delicate florals and vetiver create a beautiful composition that feels more gender-bending than genderless. Women often finding it too masculine, too “sauvage”. Men on the other hand can’t help notice the jasmine and carnation. It feels like a sip of cherry cola with a dash of alcohol in it. Innocent but it can be just what the doctor prescribed for those hot, balmy days where nothing seems to please. Is it a Treatment Fragrance? If the treatment is to make you feel clean, happy, light, yes it is. Clarins’s description of its ingredients sounds like the recipe of a gypsy potion: Eleuthero (means “free” in Greek) Ginseng, Aloe, Horsetail (?), Ginseng, Ispaghula. This last one is none other than Psylium, a plant known for its anti-constipation properties. Conventional perfume notes are not listed in the official site. What I love about Eau Dynamisante is its ambiguity. First strong, then subtle. Masculine and feminine at the same time. An eau de cologne with healing promises. It just makes me feel good.
Notes from Parfumo: Coriander, Caraway, Orange, Lemon, Carnation, Cardamom, Rosemary, Patchouli
Notes from my nose: lemon, lime, jasmine, carnation, vetiver
MemoryOfScent by Christos is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
Memory Of Scent 
I’ve enjoyed this scent for many years as well. It often reminds me of Christmas for some reason. Perhaps it is because of all the gift packs that used to come out on department store Clarins counters around that time of year when I was growing up.
Christos, it is currently dark and cold here in the midst of Sydney winter. It sounds like life has been a bit wintery for you this year. I hope life serves you summer soon my friend!
It is all in the state of mind my friend. The same way Eau Dynamisante reminds you of Christmas because of your experiences over the years, grey times are just in my mind right now. Sometimes I find the energy to stop focusing into what I expect and try to live what is happening. It is not always easy…
I bought this by accident as the crimson bottle is the same as the deodorant that I use from the Eau Dynamisante range. Changing the name from Treatment Fragrance to Invigorating is a great idea because I never understood what the treatment was for and have only used this once. I will try it again in the morning. Still curious about one thing; what does firmness mean in the tagline on the bottle? I remember it was all a bit strong, strange and aromotherapyesque. Now that you have said gypsy portion it makes better sense.
It is strong at first but fades very quickly. The sort of fragrance one wears for oneself. So use a lot as an all over splash and you will get gentle whiffs of it throughout the day. Firming probably refers to the skin.
“Mood fixers” like Eau Dynamisante deserve a place in every man’s wardrobe especially nowadays, where moods tend to record extreme ups and downs. For the same reason I use Concentre d’ orange verte. However lately, even this one fails to do the trick for me so I switched to running and cold showers lol.
I hope your tunnel ends (soon) to a sandy greek beach full of multicoloured umbrellas and the smell of sundried thyme and wet straw mats wafting in the salty air (save fougere bengale for winter time) 😉
Yes, either that or the Alps! 🙂
You know, there was always SOMETHING in there, and I am not sure what it is, but much as I loved the opening, something clogged in it, cloyed somehow. I like it enough to buy it, but am wary of that sensation I always get. I can personally wear Diorella more convincingly.
I know what you mean. There is something with this effect in the drydown. Some people say it is hedione. I do not know if ED really contains aromachemicals or just naturals. I also cannot get any of the spices like caraway and cardamom. Or maybe it is just all these strange plant extracts.
Diorella is perfect! The comparison is not literal but I cannot help think of Diorella as ED twists and swirls indecisively around its ingredients.
A beautiful way of putting it!
I have used something like a gallon of this juice during my lifetime. Its powerful aromaticity is the olfactory equivalent of a triple expresso for me. I am glad that you are enjoying it and hope that your situation becomes clarified soon! 😉
My favorite product of this type was Dior Eau Svelte, discontinued quite some time ago. I managed to grab some back-up bottles, but they have all now been drained. I would not trust a reformulation, so if it exists now in a LVMH rendition, I will not seek it out. (As the saying goes: “Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice,…”)
I know you like this Shera… Eau Dynamisante has given me a sort of external clarity that seeped through the skin. Clearly therapeutic!
I had read on a blog that Clarins’ Par Amour Toujours was being discontinued… so I went to my Clarins counter to verify and they said it was true. “But we have Eau Dynamisante!” I was so angry that I just said, “Oh no… that’s not perfume”, even without testing it. I guess I was wrong, once again. That’s for writing this.
As for the greyness… we’ve all been there at least once in our lives. It goes away but hearing your story makes me sad. Let us know what happens.
I read someone saying that they never tried it because the bottle looks like a make-up remover. I guess it is part f its functional dimension. I think you will like this Normand. It is not a perfume 100% but don’t you love splashing a cool citrus cologne without care? And the floral heart is a bonus
It’s the floral heart that intrigues me. I’ve got to give this a try. Thanks again!
Aw, Christos! Here’s wishing you love as you work your way through that tunnel. As Normand noted, we all go through those tunnels at various points of our lives, and sometimes I think the only thing we can take with us and that helps get us to the other side is our friendships. Knowing that other people are waiting at the end of the tunnel. I’m glad you wrote this post, as I’m sure it lets you know how much you are loved here in Perfume Land.
Eau Dynamisante is not a perfume I’ve ever tried, but I remember that our dear Ines loves it, too. I’m not usually a fan of citrus fragrances, but the addition of carnation and jasmine that you mention makes this sound much more to my liking. A nice fizzy hum of carnation would wed beautifully to a strong citrus scent, I believe.
You were spot-on Suzanne. Seeing all the comments here lets me know that friends do care. And this post lets all of you know that I am still hanging on. I will be back 🙂
love it and use it a lot in summer- gets me ” efficient”
hope things will get better for you, soon…
Thank you Irina. Efficient is a very good description for Eau Dynamisante. Maybe I should send some bottles over to where people are making decisions!
Dearest Christos
The Dandy had a period many moons ago of sharing a pad and this perfume with a dear friend for a whole summer. I haven’t touched it since, but have no idea why… perhaps it was too specific a scent in time.
Time to end that absence now though, I feel this mediocre summer may benefit from a little dynamism.
Yours ever
The Perfumed Dandy
Dear Dandy
I am glad I brought back memories. The most beloved scents are the ones that come with a story, And they can usually revive it, at least in our minds.
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May I offer you a very silly tunnel joke to ease your twisting in the wind?
Q: Why are New Yorkers always so depressed?
A: Because the light at the end of the tunnel is New Jersey.
Seriously, though, I always thoroughly enjoy your reviews, as they are highly descriptive and most often relate to the spiritual/experiential side of life, and always remind me of why I love perfume.
p.s. I live in NJ and there is plenty of light over here! 🙂 wishing you lots of it as your journey continues…
Your comment is truly appreciated! Just what the doctor prescribed 🙂
This scent is magic: invigorating, bracing, light, herbal. So refreshing, it could bring me back from comatose exhaustion! I used to wear it the entire summer to the exclusion of nearly everything else as the effect was addictive. The sight of the bottle brings back such fantastic memories for me, I must find another soon 🙂
I agree with you, it does seem to be able to wake you up, like a splash of cool water
I have had a liquid burgundy-colour’d swoon with eu D!for over 20years..it’s that unsynthetic base note that is pure planet.. impossible to be contrived or to be conned, once you are an Eu D-addict…any other perfume with any synthetic notes turns within seconds, on my skin, to a stuffy powdery-ugh but never Clarins..a true Liquid Art!My coffin WILL be doused!!..leaving atrue sensory wake behind!