Ormonde Jayne Qi Parfum Review + Breath of Life Draw

June 24, 2019June 24, 2019

Ormonde Jayne Qi Parfum and A painting by Qiu Ying of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) womenofchina.cn

Summer looms – lugging considerable humidity in its wake, a feeble sea breeze if one is fortunate enough and abundant warmth (that’s a euphemism). I pity the land-locked, earnestly hoping that they encounter lakes, rivers or creeks in which to soothe their beleaguered corporeal selves and find some refreshment. Whether at labor or leisure, Ormonde Jayne Qi Parfum provides that “breath of life” in a very tangible olfactory sense.

Li Bai chinesepaintings.com

“Gently I stir a white feather fan, with open shirt sitting in a green wood. I take off my cap and hang it on a jutting stone; a wind from the pine trees trickles on my bare head.“~ Li Bai, In the Mountains on a Summer Day, Tang Dynasty

Court ladies playing instruments and drinking tea – Tang dynasty LiveJournal

One of the beauties of fragrance is instantaneous travel: our limbic system transports us wordlessly in a nanosecond without any help whatsoever. Qi’s destination is a meditative one; it’s respite in a flacon. Thanks to perfumer Geza Schoen, in collaboration with Creative Director Linda Pilkington – we’re treated to one of the most wearable citrus tea fragrances in parfum concentration. It’s long-lasting and bestows aromatic reprieve during summer’s sultry months. I adore tea-themed scents, especially in summertime; nothing else manages to fuse limpidity, revitalization, and a sense of profound bien-être quite the way they can. The observation that no one ever seems to dislike them is a big plus, and I’m including a significant variety of cultures, age groupings, socio-economic factors. Since I’m notoriously sneaky about perfuming myself round the clock – including the workplace where discretion is de rigueur – it becomes challenging, to say the least. In Ormonde Jayne Qi Parfum, I’ve uncovered a solution which both pleases me and fosters a tranquil atmosphere.

Lai Bai via wiki

I love the image of romantic (and decadent) 8th C. Chinese poet Li Bai awakening from peaceful slumber: this is how we’d like to imagine ourselves as the climate heats up. A cool cup or glass of tea (my Russian forebears were associated more often with the latter!) awaits us. This tea sings of yerba mate (a native Paraguayan plant with the strength of coffee, a powerful stimulant full of polyphenols) in all its herbal greenery: haylike, woody, balsamic; some absolutes smell of dried fruit, a puff of tobacco. Every mate fragrance I’ve encountered seems tailor-made for citrus accompaniment. In Qi’s case the loveliness of neroli and lemon blossom provide floral and juicy aspects which counterbalance the astringency of tea. Freesia is likely an accord/aromachemical (there are quite a few) which offers an airy floral aspect and in combination with hedione – an undeniable radiance and lift. Violet and rose whisper; it is osmanthus which garners most notice, at once leathery and dripping apricot-scented juice. It’s simply perfect with all the tea nuances. The base of base is tenderly musky with a touch of ink (moss) and the vanillic/cinnamon-tinged tone of benzoin, barely perceptible in the drydown

Notes: green lemon blossom, neroli, freesia, tea notes, osmanthus, violet, hedione, rose, mate, benzoin, musk, moss

Thank you, Europerfumes – for my lovely tester bottle of Ormonde Jayne Qi Parfum It’s delightful. My nose is my own…

~ Ida Meister, Senior Editor and Natural Perfumery Editor, who also is the art director!

Geza Schoen and Linda Pilkington courtesy of Linda Pilkington

The creative and original ideas that form Ormonde Jayne have all developed from Linda Pilkington’s passion for travel. On Friday October 29, 2012 aboard the Orient Express, Linda Pilkington, founder, perfumer and creative director of Ormonde Jayne launched “The Four Corners of the Earth”, a quartet of perfumes which pays homage to the different parts of the world that have inspired her and acknowledge the rich diversity of Linda’s hometown, London (Geza Schoen is the perfumer in collaboration with Linda Pilkington for all four in the series: Qi, Tsarina, Nawab de Oudh and Montabaco)- Michelyn Camen, Editor-in-Chief

Thanks to the generosity of Europerfumes the USA distributor and Ormonde Jayne we have a 120 ml. tester bottle of Ormonde Jayne Qi Parfum for one registered reader in the USA . To be eligible, please leave a comment saying what appeals to you about Ormonde Jayne Qi Parfum based upon Ida’s review. Draw closes 6/27/2019

Available at @bechants in Texas and @luckyscent

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