St.Paul’s Exaltatum Perfumes, photo by Elena Cvjetkovic
There’s something heavenly and carnal about perfume I would say, rational and irrational, inviting us to indulge in its beauty, pushing our inner buttons in a most subversive way, eliciting emotions of joy or sometimes leading to heated arguments and discussions. Perfume speaks to us in its own language of notes and accords, and we listen to it: not only with our noses but with our brains behind our noses. There are fragrances that elevate us in ways sometimes indescribable, fill our hearts with emotions, empower us or give us a sense of importance. Exaltatum!
Eglija Vaitkevice of Exaltatum Perfumes
When Lithuanian-born Egila Vaitkevice founded her indie perfume brand in London in 2016 after a long period of incubation since 2009, she had already named it – Exaltatum. She is a self-taught perfumer, partially a GIP Grasse-trainee with a delicately expressed, elegant and refined classic-French style of expression.
Like a proper multipotentialite with extensive education, she turned to Latin for name inspiration. Exaltatum (a little thrill for grammar-lovers: perfect passive participle in nominative for neuter gender, my son is just learning these declinations by heart so he helped me) means to raise something or someone in importance, to exalt, to describe a sense of feeling elevated by happiness. Just like some perfumes do – exalt us!
St. Paul’s Fragrance and Cathedral, visual by Exaltatum Perfumes
All the fragrances in the Exaltatum Perfumes collection are extraits du parfum or eau de parfum intense, inspired by Eglija’s personal stories, and having a connection with London, England or paintings: the first one released, Osmanthus Noble (2018) is inspired by P. P. Rubens’ Samson and Delilah (currently on display in National Gallery, London), Pergola (2018) is located in Hampstead Heath Park, Ruby Wood (2018) is an ode to woods in North London, Mimosa Gold (2019) is a fragrant story of a happy childhood, and the newest, just released St. Paul’s (2019) is named after the iconic Cathedral because it is one of the few examples of baroque architecture in London.
Exaltatum Perfumes also have another connecting, signature note: cardamon – sometimes well hidden, but it’s always there.
In the fast-moving world of cyber aesthetics, often stripped to be minimalistic while we take not one but two many things off, the era of baroque certainly seems fascinating. If I had to choose one, the most popular and widely known painting belonging to that period, it would be this:
Girl With a Pearl Earring, c. 1665, Johannes Vermeer
There are paintings and works of art that make you feel both: as you have the painting inside you, and that you are inside the painting. Baroque art has always given me that emotionally intense feeling, and there are some fragrances that make you feel the same way – just like St.Paul’s did.
Still Life With Fruit, c. 1603, Michelangelo Merisi da Carravagio
A nature-morte painting by Caravaggio inspired its creation, and you can notice specific elements of early baroque art: dramatic contrasts of light and dark, an unseen indirect source of light, emotionally intense depictions that feel physically and psychologically real, alive, pulsing and decaying at the same time, a still life that isn’t still at all.
St. Paul’s is a finely blended perfume, one of those that you feel intensely as a whole, without a need to analyze its parts. It draws you in to participate in its development from the very opening, lavishly displaying seductive yet sparkly orange flowers, traces of ripe pears and juicy mandarin, and dry fruits with undertones of natural vanilla Bourbon extract, beautifully executed – never too sweet or overly saturating.
As the lighter notes disperse over your skin, deeper tones emerge as a contrast. The volume is added by smoothly flowing strokes of overlapping notes, and I feel sensuous suede leathers, mixing with jasmine, vibrant almost as living flesh. Jasmine is moderately sweet, very narcotic, tainted with specks of vanilla and pieces of dry dates, and it almost feels like it’s shining on the skin – a deep, golden glow coming from within.
Baroque in Lithuania, photo by Eglija Vaitkevice of Exaltatum Perfumes
To contrast exuberance of scents first offered, a layer of darker undertones adds to this a 3D feeling. It’s yet another dimension, with deep and ambery tolu balsam, slightly smoky with a very soft, almost green incense quieting down the whole composition laid upon soft, rounding, oriental and smoothly flowing sandalwood.
Boy With A Basket c.1593, early work of Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, Galleria Borghese, Rome
A baroque, voluminous and captivating vintage-leaning floriental, Exaltum Perfumes St. Paul’s is a deeply seductive and sensual unisex fragrance that left me with a deep sigh and a feeling of a basket full of ripe fruits and flowers clutched against naked, exposed skin.
Notes: bergamot Italy, pear, pink pepper South America, cardamon Guatemala, mandarin Italy, orange flower extract Tunisia, jasmin sambac India, jasmin grandiflorum India, dates, labdanum Spain, tolu balsam, vanilla bourbon Reunion, sandalwood Mysore, vetiver Haiti, patchouli Indonesia, frankincense, amber.
Elena Cvjetkovic, Editor and Author of The Plum Girl
Disclaimer: A mini 15 ml bottle of St. Paul’s was kindly provided by Eglija for my consideration. Opinions and feelings are – as always – of my own.
Exaltum Perfumes Sample Set
Thanks to Eglija Vaitkevice we have draw for a registered ÇaFleureBon reader for the EU + UK, AUSTRALIA, USA and Canada for a sample set of all Exaltatum Perfumes. Tell us where you live and what you found most appealing in this review of St. Paul’s, what your thoughts are and where you live! Draw closes2/26/2020
Photos: Elena Cvjetkovic, Exaltatum Perfumes, Wikipedia Commons
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