Photo Collage by Antonio Mora
I love dry scents. When done right, they can create such compelling and yet severe landscapes for the wearer. There is a minimalism that the perfumer employs in a properly bone-dry fragrance to lay bare the senses, and the minds ability to parse them. It takes a truly focused vision to pare down the essentials and demand that we approach a perfume on its own terms.
Photo Collage Antonio Mora
Such it is with Sombres Dessins (“Dark Intentions”), a new release from Jovoy Paris. Sombres Dessins is a hot desert of a scent that blows through your senses like sundown in the Nambian Desert, or a silent, shifting dunescape. This is a strange serenity in a bottle, a limitless horizon, the feel of a sirocco in between the layers of your linen clothes. Or, as Francois Henin, owner of Jovoy Paris, puts it “a hot and sweet cocoon.”
Esxence 2015 Francois Henin of Jovoy with the new Extraits Sans un Mot, Sombre Dessins, Jus Interdites andhis new brand Jeroboam Photo: Michelyn
Francois Henin, rescued the original house of Jovoy in 2006 from turn of the century oblivion. The original house began in 1923 by Blanche Arvoy (the name Jovoy is a combination of her nickname “Jo”, and the last name of her husband, Esteban Arvoy.) But as with many other lines, the original Jovoy Paris suffered after the Great Depression and disappeared from view. Jovoy Paris has defined niche fragrance; it is the most luxurious perfume store in Paris and an extensive collection of well-crafted fragrances by many renowned perfumers (Cecile Zarokian created Private Label one of my favorite Orientals).
Photo Collage Antonio Mora
The start of Sombres Dessins immediately sets the theme. A rigid and tangy pink peppercorn note is only slightly rounded down by brightly acidic Italian bergamot. This opening gives way to a heart that is equal parts saffron and patchouli softened by osmanthus and rose. What develops in Sombres Dessins over time is a pattern of overt throat-parching dryness tempered and bordered by highlight notes that are bright in the opening, floral in the heart and then become rich and mysterious in the drydown phase
.
Photo Collage Antonio Mora
This perfume wears like a day spent travelling underneath the desert sun in all of its phases: the golden rush of dawn (bergamot plus pink peppercorn), the searing heat and sweat of noon (saffron and patchouli blended with floral notes), and then the purple hues of evening (rum and frankincense combined with sandalwood.)
Cheetah Antonio Mora
The wearer is on safari all throughout Sombres Dessins development, and you are in search of prey that is never truly glimpsed. A flash here, a new current in the heat shimmer, and every time you sample your skin the piquant dryness of the perfume taunts and tempts you along.
Photo Collage Antonio Mora
But there! Wait! You raise your binoculars only to discover your prey has sidled up to the side of your Jeep and is about to pounce. It is the sandalwood accord in this fragrance that actually has been stalking you out in the desert sun. Cleverly hidden by the opening pink peppercorn note and the sweat of the saffron note masked its trail in the heart. Then, as the drydown commences, you realize how vulnerable you are. The sandalwood accord, pivotal to its composition, in the base of this fragrance comes out into the open, emboldened by a rich rum and labdanum mix and squares off with you face-to-face.
Hands Up Antonio Mora
Sombres Dessins and its heat-seared glory only lasts for about five hours on my skin with moderate sillage which wear closes to the skin as is expected of an extrait. I wanted the experience to last longer because Sombres Dessins is maddeningly memorable in its minimalism. It is masculine in tone, but a woman wearing it would add a fantastic element to its story. Think Katharine Hepburn sailing on the African Queen and you’re spot on.
Shaman Antonio Mora
Sombres Dessins is a scent born under the dry searing heat of the desert, birthed in sand and scorched air, in a region where one must travel awhile to discover the beauty of the land. But once you arrive, just lie still, then wait for the great beast to show itself and dwell in awe at its passing.
Notes: Italian Bergamot, Pink Pepper, Modern Rose, Osmanthus, Patchouli, Saffron, Sandalwood Album, Labdanum, Frankincense, Rum
Pam Barr, Senior Contributor
Michelyn Camen Art Direction I chose the work of Spanish Artist Antonio Mora throughout. His art fuses landscapes and human portraits into hybrid collages that are shifting dreamscapes
Thanks to Amerikas, the US Distributor for Jovoy Paris, we have a draw for our USA ONLY registered readers (you must do this or else your entry is invalid) for 50ml of Sombres Dessins. To be eligible, please leave a comment below with what you liked about Pam’s review, why you would like to win Sombres Dessins and your favorite Jovoy Paris perfume. Draw closes 11/17/15.
We announce the winners on our site and on our Facebook page, so Like Cafleurebon and use our RSS option…or your dream prize wil be just spilled perfume