Creative Director Luc Gabriel of The Different Company and Alexandra Monet of Drom
2015 marks the 15th Anniversary of The Different Company. Creative Director Luc Gabriel in collaboration with Perfumer Alexandra Monet of Drom (the young perfumer who created the Company’s candle line and Paris: She Met Him In Secret for Anthropologie) recently released Le 15 Extrait de Parfum as a limited edition of 1500 bottles.
Bertrand Duchaufour at The Different Company booth Esxence 2015 (photo Michelyn)
As a side note, while at Esxence in March of 2015, I fell hard for I Miss Violet composed by Bertrand Duchaufour. I absolutely adored this sumptuous leather made beautiful with a gleaming apricot hued osmanthus and violet. It is a stunning perfume and was the first fragrance I had tried from The Different Company, so with Le 15, I expected great things and was not disappointed.
M. Gabriel’s wrote: “For a long time, creating an essential fragrance seemed indispensable for me. What matters more than speaking to the Gods, sending a sacred sillage to a mythical beyond or show our pleasure to wear a unique perfume? Incense and Myrrh facets on a sacred wood structure, the Palo Santo, a mystical composition that captivates just like the shaman’s poem, an ode to the Eternal rooted in a sensual and powerful scent”, he explains. Alexandra Monet chose palo santo, a wood indigenous to South America, where it known as “sacred wood”, still used by shamans and burnt as incense offerings to the gods for millennia “Per Fumare”.
Le 15 opens with bergamot and petit grain and it’s a sparkling, crystalline beginning. A spicy, playful nutmeg rounds out the opening stage. The Palo Santo accord introduces a hint of smoke and its meditative character is brought to life. Cedar is also introduced to the mix and works well with the Palo Santo. It’s not overpowering, it’s very delicate and smoothly blended.
L'officiel Magazine fashion editorial 2010
For a time, there’s a moment in the perfume’s development that is astringent and as arid as desert, as if Bedouins were caught in a sand storm. Searching for refuge they find a safe haven, wafting soft incense and myrrh with a gentle musk emanating from their skin.
Sophie Srej by Azim Haidaryan Nel Desert In Grande Stile Velvet March 2011
Since it seems that Palo Alto wood is having a "moment", (compared to Carner Barcelona’s Palo Alto) Le 15 is a softer, drier scent without any gourmand intonations. An air of refinement carries Le 15 from the earthly realm into the realm of bliss. Its quiet whispers are the hum of the ancients voices praying in unison. Their songs begin with the brightness of flickering flames and then take on an otherworldliness of spiritual calm.
1972 Richard Avedon Model Verushka being taught meditiation and yoga by Swami Satchidananda
I experience a grounding sensation, and the day’s drama slips away as I escape from my everyday life. If you are looking for a perfume that provides solace in times of frustration, anger and lack of clarity, Le 15 is a worthy accompaniment to that highly sought sense of tranquility. With all day longevity and close to the body sillage, Le 15 is the fragrance you wear for yourself and those you love. Meditation in a bottle.
Notes: Bergamot, Petit Grain, Nutmeg, Atlas Cedar, Gaïac wood, Vétiver, Incense, Myrrh, Musks and Cistus
Disclosure: Sample provided by The Different Company. Opinions my own.
Megan Paki, Editor and Editor Megan In Sainte Maxime
Art Direction: Michelyn Camen, EIC
Thanks to the generosity of Luc and Sophie Gabriel of the Different Company we have a 10 ml bottle of Le 15 extrait de parfum for a registered reader anywhere in the world. To be eligible, please leave a comment with what appealed to you about Megan’s review, where you live and if you have a favorite The Different Company perfume. Draw closes 9/6/2015
We announce the winners on our site and on our Facebook page, so Like Cafleurebon and use our RSS option…or your dream prize will be just spilled perfume