Khalil Gibran painting from The Prophet On Love via Tutt’Art

“With Two Souls Touching I wanted to create a soft, loving scent with good longevity that was a positive response to the alienation many of us experience as a result of the global pandemic. I love hugging my friends and family and not being able to do so goes against my instincts. I’m sure everyone feels this as well. But the virus cannot touch our souls, nor can it prevent our souls from touching –  so communicating on that level has never been more important.” ~ Neil Morris’ letter, 11/1/20

 

 Ferdinand among the flowers (illustration by Robert Lawson) via Fuse 8 ‘n’ Kate

I sat down at the Stenstorp this morning in my sunny kitchen with a pot of herbal tea,  Neil Morris Fragrances Two Souls Touching and my elderly laptop jacked up upon an equally aged Oxford Classical Dictionary. When I sprayed a generous quantity of the perfume on my arm there was an immediate Eureka moment: the image of our gentle giant Neil as Ferdinand the Bull, who sat under his cork tree content to smell the flowers (the original Robert Lawson illustrations, to be precise – not Disney). Why this apparition hadn’t appeared years earlier is surely a mystery to me. It fits. Before I received his listing of notes, certain key elements made their presence known. They felt very Neil to me: zesty bergamot, his love of green tea and winsome sweet pea, jasmine, rose, myrrh and castoreum. Two Souls Touching is the tenderest thing – wistful, hopeful and gentle as the rustling of angel’s wings upon your cheek which augurs a restful slumber.

Helene Schjerfbeck painting of mother and child via Wikimedia Commons

 

Two Souls Touching smells like this:

Lullaby, baby! Lullaby baby! Thy nurse shall tend thee as duly as may be. Lullaby, baby!

Be still, my sweet sweeting, no longer do cry; sing lullaby baby, lullaby baby. Let dolours be fleeting, I fancy thee; I… To rock and to lull thee I will not delay me. Lullaby baby, lullaby, laby, laby baby. Thy nurse will tend thee as duly as may be; lullabylabylaby baby!

The gods be thy shield and comfort in need! The gods be thy shield and comfort in need!

Sing lullaby baby, lullabylaby baby!

They give thee good fortune and well for to speed, and this to desire I will not delay me.

This to desire I will not delay me.

Lullaby lullaby, lullaby, lullaby baby. Thy nurse will tend thee as duly as maybe.

Lullabylabylaby baby! ~ The Nurse’s Song, poem by John Phillip 1559, from Benjamin Britten’s A Charm of Lullabies

Arthur Wardle, A Fairy Tale via Wikimedia Commons

Neil’s perfume is murmuringly passionate in a protective, talismanic tone, like the nurse’s narrative in Benjamin Britten’s Charm of Lullabies as she soothes a weary infant in her arms to sleep. Her only – and fervent –  desire is that the babe in her charge be well, whole, and thrive. This intention is mirrored in Two Souls Touching: you are bedded down, swaddled even – in a duvet of softest florals embroidered with wisps of myrrh and green tea, the poignant whisper of flesh evoked by ambergris and castoreum which never intrude in an invasive manner. They exist to conjure the sensation of physical proximity and intimacy, not to flood your consciousness with carnal longings. I can smell lavender quite clearly in the jus itself, but my skin pulls more of the plumeria/frangipani note: sugary floral with tropical fruit tones, coconut, butter. Other materials lie in more the realm of fantasy and imagination than in real life; it feels as if a black rose would infer deep and dark, bamboo flower a soft verdant juiciness, etc. There exist many art essences which represent a concept rather than a reality, which is part of their charm when one knows how to employ them – and Neil Morris is adept at such olfactory sleight-of-hand.

Neil and Ida-Hugging 

Neil Morris Fragrances Two Souls Touching grows on one. When we first met, I found it beautiful, balanced and delicate – but over subsequent wearings I grew increasingly fond and now I wear it often, as I appreciate some of the subtler nuances of which I initially was unaware. Anyone who has been in the perfumer’s actual company is aware that he’s a “two-spritz” sort of man –  and I tend to be a dabber. In this case, two-spritz is definitely the way to go. Not only does it prolong the pleasure and performance, but it enables you to perceive intricacies you might have missed otherwise. In these troubled times one might not have the actual opportunity to hug Neil Morris as we once had – but he lovingly offers us an affection-infused aromatic benediction in lieu of physical contact, infused with soulful intimate intention.

Notes: bergamot, pink grapefruit, lavender, green tea, jasmine, sweet pea, plumeria, black rose, bamboo flower, wood notes, myrrh, ambergris, castoreum

 

My flacon lovingly supplied by the perfumer – I treasure it, Neil!  My nose is my own…

 

~ Ida Meister, Senior Editor and Natural Perfumery Editor

Neil Morris Fragrances Two Souls Touching digital collage by Nicoleta: credit Marco Chilese unsplash and Neil Morris

Thanks to the generosity of perfumer Neil Morris we are offering one 30 ml bottle for one registered reader worldwide (be sure to register or your comment will not count). To be eligible, tell us what appeals to you about Ida’s review of Neil Morris Fragrances Two Souls Touching, where you live and if you have a favorite Neil Morris fragrance. 11/14/2020

You can purchase Two Souls Touching Online at NeilMorrisfragrances.com,  contact (neil@neilmorrisfragrances.com).  The price is $70. Please support our artisan perfumers

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