Paris is calling again, and Buly left a voicemail.
It describes… dreams. Dreams outlined with rose gardens. The smell of vanilla and smoky clove in the air. It’s the perfume adorned by love, desire, and antiquity. Imagine walking through the dream adorned in red silk and bathed in gold. Angels dip to drop kisses that leave a lingering taste of mint and coriander. Sip your champagne, enjoy the Seine, fall in love with Paris from the comfort of a dreamscape.
I found out about L'Officine Universelle Buly from an older piece written by Garance Doré and, at the time, decided I was better off dreaming about it. I don’t live anywhere near France, let alone Europe, and I wasn’t about to spend $50 in shipping for something I couldn’t smell or test. What if I didn’t like it. $150+ is a lot of money to not like an internationally shipped item. So, I left it alone.
A few years of saved up cash later, it’s 2019.
And I was on a flight to Frankfurt and soon thereafter on a three-hour train to Paris for the first time in my life. The first place on my Parisian bucket list? Buly’s Rue Bonaparte location across from the busy Seine.
There were a lot of tiny details drawing me to Buly from the get-go. The location, the product lineup, and the hand-calligraphy advertised on their Instagram (which they offer, for free, on their products (including online orders)!) Most of Buly’s products are plastic-free, and all of them originate from Earth’s natural products—unaltered. You can even buy raw materials like hyaluronic acid in its powder form, charcoal, peony powder… the list goes on.
On top of that, seeing as there’s little plastic in sight—you’d be surprised by how hefty some of these items are. A full metal cap on top of a glass container? R.I.P. my economy-class luggage weight limit.
Now, there is something to be said about the ambiance of the Rue Bonaparte store itself: it’s unbelievably welcoming, with a calm, elegant, and poised atmosphere (or am I talking about the people working the shop?). You’ll be helped by an educated staff member on the variety of scents offered in their different products, as well as what might benefit you most.
Well, that old-world feel doesn’t end with store aesthetics. Each product is beautifully crafted, it would be a shame to rid of them. Let’s get started, shall we?
Huile Antique in Mexican Tuberose
A luxurious dry oil I can only describe as heavenly in both texture and scent. The Mexican Tuberose scent is a luxurious concoction of vanilla, cloves, and the beautiful Mexican Tuberose flower. The bloom itself is quoted on Buly’s website to be the “queen of white flowers”, and should no doubt be hailed as one.
Use: Dry oils pair perfectly with freshly cleansed, damp skin to seal in moisture. Pay attention to problem spots, dry and flaky loves a nice helping of dry oil. This product is completely versatile in its uses; however, so don’t be afraid to experiment! Personally, I put a few drops on my forearms or on the tips of my hair as makeshift perfume.
My biggest suggestion, for someone who’s bodily skin leans more toward the sensitive side—please don’t be afraid to do a patch-test. The first week of using this body-oil with a scented moisturizer was my mistake. Anything scented on your skin heightens the chance of breakouts, even if you think your skin is pretty hardy.
After switching over to an unscented moisturizer, I was in the clear. Plus, you don’t need to worry about scent-blasting anyone in a 50-mile radius.
The Mexican Tuberose scent was something I picked up from Paloma Elsesser in a Glossier GRWM video, and I was pleasantly surprised by how amazing the scent was.
The dry oil is probably my number one purchase from Buly, and I’ve already ordered a second one (despite the price of shipping).
Cost: €33,33 / $36.98
Rating: 5/5
Have you ever seen something so interesting and otherworldly that you just had to have it? That is my one and only reasoning behind buying the toothpaste from Buly. I didn’t need it; I have cheaper toothpaste at home! But I saw it and immediately knew I had to have it—bright green, metal cap, and a gorgeous snake printed across the front!
The packaging really sells a lot of the products in this store, but do not be fooled because each one of them has its uses.
Use: This toothpaste is fluoride-free and absolutely delicious. I can say my breath is much fresher, and my frustrating case of ongoing bloody gums has been doing a bit better.
That being said, it is toothpaste. It certainly isn’t life-changing or exceptional to the point of me repurchasing online, but it was a fun and new spur of the moment purchase. The end-result doesn’t justify a repurchase to me, but if you ever wanted to try a new mixture of tastes and have some left-over Euros hanging around—try it out!
Definitely keeping the tube when it’s all finished, though.
Cost: €16,67 / $18.49
Rating: 3/5
My fingertips trail over the dark wood counters of the Rue Bonaparte L’Officine Universelle Buly shop. I glance down at my phone every now and again, rereading the French products I had made a list of—things that I wanted to sniff out and try. Ah! I’ve found it. Rosewater facial toner. Yes, yes; I know you can find it literally anywhere for much cheaper, but I wanted to try it!
A beautiful bottle with a heavy metal top filled with natural rosewater that smells divine, count me in!
Rosewater is a very common element in skincare! Rosewater (by itself, no additives) is a skincare ingredient that I can easily suggest to just about anyone as it helps with calming redness, inflammation, and some go so far as to imply that it’s antibacterial.
The website describes Eau Superfine as a complexion enhancer that helps with dullness and balancing skin.
Use: In all honesty, this product feels like a little rose-scented cooler for my skin (now that I mention it, it’d probably benefit from being momentarily chilled in the fridge for this hot weather). It provides the skin with an almost immediate cooling effect, and I feel my skin is much softer.
Looking through the ingredient list, my eyes are immediately drawn to the fourth additive: benzyl alcohol. My eyes roll back into my head, not something I wanted to see. Benzyl alcohol is recognized as a safe beauty ingredient as it is water soluble, thins products, and allows for other ingredients to more readily penetrate the dermal layer.
BUT! Alcohol, in all forms, is something to avoid in skincare. It can be drying or an irritant to most people’s skin!
I don’t have sensitive skin, not by a long shot. I’m pretty sure I can dump every acid under the sun on this skin and all it’d do is fizzle out of existence—but everyone’s skin is different, so when you read product descriptions on items meant for additional moisture… alcohol is certainly something to avoid.
That being said: I enjoyed using this product and I have full intention of using it to its last drop, despite my continued side-eye toward the ingredient list.
Cost: €31,67 / $35.14
Rating: 3/5 (it’d be a 4/5 if not for the additional benzyl alcohol).
Oh, Buly, to visit you again! I’ll definitely be back to Paris, and I’ll certainly make another stop by my new favorite apothecary. Who knows, I might buy out the whole store—whenever that kind of money drops into my lap.
And so, the dream has to come to an end. You sit up, no longer covered in silk or overwhelmed by gold. As you make your way to the bathroom, gold and red silk await you on the countertop. One might suppose, you’ve taken a little of the dream into this world.
