{"id":1234909,"date":"2025-12-24T07:38:50","date_gmt":"2025-12-24T04:38:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1234909"},"modified":"2025-12-24T07:38:50","modified_gmt":"2025-12-24T04:38:50","slug":"merits-first-ever-fragrance-feels-like-your-favorite-pair-of-jeans","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1234909","title":{"rendered":"Merit\u2019s First-Ever Fragrance Feels Like Your Favorite Pair of Jeans"},"content":{"rendered":"
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If you click on links we provide, we may receive compensation.\n<\/p>\n

Merit\u2019s First-Ever Fragrance Feels Like Your Favorite Pair of Jeans
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Meet Retrospect.<\/p>\n

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By<\/span><\/p>\n
Kara Nesvig<\/p>\n
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\"Kara\"Kara<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\nKara Nesvig\n<\/div>\n
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    \nKara is a news writer for Byrdie. She got her start at the (dearly departed) xoVain as one of the site’s core contributors.and currently contributes to Teen Vogue, Brides, Allure, Apartment Therapy and PEOPLE.\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
    \nByrdie’s Editorial Guidelines\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
    Published on October 08, 2024 05:04PM<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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    \"Merit\"Merit<\/div>\n<\/div>
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    Merit<\/p>\n

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    Think about the pieces in your wardrobe you wear the most: faded vintage Levi\u2019s that fit you perfectly, a soft cotton sweatshirt from the thrift store, a heavy silk slip dress, a cashmere sweater you swiped from your mom\u2019s closet. These are the pieces you reach for multiple times a week, items that always feel right<\/em>, no matter the season. You put them on and your day just feels easier.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n

    That\u2019s the ethos of Merit\u2019s new fragrance, Retrospect\u2014and the brand itself. Merit was built upon the idea of \u201cslow beauty\u201d and creating simple, versatile products that make you feel like yourself, just turned up a notch. Now, Merit has officially expanded into the scent space and brought that same perspective to the fragrance world with Retrospect. Ahead, everything you need to know about the brand’s first-ever fragrance, plus my honest review.\n<\/p>\n

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    Merit<\/p>\n

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    The Fragrance <\/span><\/h2>\n

    The brand describes Retrospect as a \u201cmodern fragrance, shaped by the past,\u201d hence its nostalgic name juxtaposed with the modernist bottle; the scent is packaged in a unique gray orb with a shining gold cap, making it look more like a precious bauble than a classic perfume bottle.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n

    Retrospect was developed by perfumer Fanny Bal and was inspired by traditional, classical perfume techniques with a modern spin, much like Merit\u2019s entire beauty philosophy in itself. The scent is an extrait de parfum, so it\u2019s more concentrated than an eau de toilette or eau de parfum and meant to linger and evolve throughout the course of your day.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n

    “Merit wanted to create something mature and elegant that balanced nostalgic notes with a more modern scent profile… something classic, long-lasting, and distinctly adult,” Bal tells Byrdie. “To achieve this, we mixed more vintage ingredients like aldehydes and white florals like rose and jasmine with the modernity of pear and musk.” According to the. perfumer, it took more than 200 rounds to perfect. “The result is something timeless yet unique. People always ask me what it is when I wear it, which is always the highest compliment I can get for one of my scents.”\n<\/p>\n

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    \"Merit\"Merit<\/div>\n<\/div>
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    Merit<\/p>\n

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    $92 at Meritbeauty.com<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

    My Review <\/span><\/h2>\n

    I have more than 50 perfumes\u2014a literal lifelong passion that began when I was four, not to mention a perk of the job\u2014but those I wear most often aren\u2019t the challenging and complex niche scents or glamorous \u201cgoing out\u201d fragrances. They\u2019re easy everyday perfumes that work for my slightly-less-than-glamorous daily life: daycare pickups, trips to Target, grabbing dinner with a friend, browsing at the bookstore. In the cooler months, I typically gravitate toward aldehydic florals like Chanel No. 5, modern chypres like Chloe Nomade and Ex Nihilo French Affair, or chic woody roses like Chanel\u2019s Paris Paris. Thus, I knew Retrospect would be in my wheelhouse and shine for daily wear\u2014just like those beloved sweatshirts and slip dresses.\n<\/p>\n

    And guess what? I was totally right. The nose knows, after all. Retrospect is simply lovely: pretty but practical, timeless but not tired, elegant but not uptight. It opens with a crisp, sweet blend of warm juicy pear, comforting ambrette, and aldehydes for lift and sparkle, with the pear shining through right at the top before fading into an embrace of ambrette and bergamot.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n

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    Merit<\/p>\n

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    As Retrospect dries down, it relaxes effortlessly. It feels like letting your hair down from a fancy French hairpin, blotting your lipstick, and hanging out with a glass of red wine watching passersby with no to-do list, no hurries, no rush.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n

    The heart notes of rose and orris were most present on me, with the soapiness of the aldehydes eventually fading into a warm musk. Though vanilla is listed as a base note, this is not a sweet gourmand scent in the slightest; vanilla plays a secondary role to the musk-and-moss combo and further smoothes out the edges of the scent, like wrapping a cozy cashmere throw around your shoulders. Though the scent was inspired by vintage perfumes and traditional techniques, it doesn\u2019t feel like a \u201cvintage\u201d perfume, but rather something that could have existed in 1984, 1994, 2004, or today.\n<\/p>\n

    Retrospect is definitely not a \u201cskin scent\u201d in the traditional sense of the world; as with all fragrances, the notes will smell different depending on your personal body chemistry, especially the musk and ambrette notes. If you\u2019re looking for a fragrance that makes itself known and leaves a trail wherever you go (aka sillage), this isn\u2019t it; Retrospect is content to stay close to the skin. While the extrait formulation promises longer wear, I found Retrospect faded pretty significantly around the 8-hour mark. That said, the scent will definitely linger on scarves, sweaters, and shirt collars to remind you of those moments gone by.\n<\/p>\n

    Retrospect will be available on October 22 for $92 on meritbeauty.com<\/em>and sephora.com.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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    Read more:<\/div>\n
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    • Fragrance<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n

      Source URL: https:\/\/www.byrdie.com\/merit-retrospect-fragrance-launch-8725214<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

      If you click on links we provide, we may receive compensation. Merit\u2019s First-Ever Fragrance Feels Like Your Favorite Pair of Jeans Meet Retrospect. By Kara Nesvig Kara Nesvig Kara is a news writer for Byrdie. She got her start at the (dearly departed) xoVain as one of the site’s core contributors.and currently contributes to Teen […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[83],"class_list":["post-1234909","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-politics","tag-byrdie-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1234909","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1234909"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1234909\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1234909"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1234909"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1234909"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}