There is that moment when a perfumer hits an inflection point and their creativity takes an exponential jump upward. In 2011, one perfumer I believe found herself on that upward trajectory is Charna Ethier of Providence Perfume Company. Thankfully she didn’t keep me waiting long as her first release of 2012, Hindu Honeysuckle, has been my companion for the last two days.
Acclaimed writer Michelle Krell Kydd, who has a dear friend losing her sense of smell due to illness, requested that a scent be created that could be experienced by anosmics. Perfumer Kedra Hart of Opus Oils responded, out of love for her anosmic mother, with Eau Pear Tingle.
Calice Becker has been exploring oud through the Arabian Nights Collection for Kilian Henessy’s By Kilian perfume line. She has taken us from Pure Oud which is exactly as advertised, to Rose Oud which sets off the oud with a dewy rose, to last year’s oud accord or “oud without any oud” in Incense Oud. For the fourth exploration of oud Mme Becker has chosen amber as the dancing partner in Amber Oud.
I got the chance to try two of the new London Blooms collection, Peony & Moss and White Lilac & Rhubarb. Both of these are very different intersections as Peony & Moss is a green synergy and White Lilac & Rhubarb is a crossroads of floral and vegetal.
She reached into her purse and brought out a lab sample and asked me if this was what I was talking about. From the moment she placed a dab on my skin, I kept sniffing it; and realized this was exactly what I meant. Cologne architecture using bold heady notes. That day back in April this fragrance didn’t have a name. Today it is the brand-new seventh Atelier Cologne release Ambre Nue by perfumer Ralf Schweiger.
Many natural perfumers make only EDP and perfume oil concentrations. Adam Gottschalk of Lord’s Jester has taken his scents and retooled many of them into varying strengths. These range from EDC to EDT and EDP, and also perfumed solids.Now, much to my delight, he has gone one step further and rendered two of his mythical perfumes, Daphen and Anthea, into Extrait strength.
