When I first heard about the Natural Perfumers Guild Outlaw project my mind immediately went to oakmoss absolute. I knew this was one of the sensitizers and I really love using it. It is a wonderful natural and I would miss it dearly if it were gone from my “palette”.
It seemed to take a long time this year for Hermes to announce that there would be a new addition to the Hermessence collection of fragrances. As the summer wore on without an announcement it seemed like 2010 would leave us without one of Jean-Claude Ellena’s minimalist studies. Then right after Labor Day I received the press release announcing the ninth Hermessence, Iris Ukiyoe. Based on the name I expected a Japanese take on Iris. In many ways it seems the Japanese aesthetic and M. Ellena’s are so similar that it seems like a logical intersection of creativity.
Belle Starr the person was a mixture of gritty legend and more polished reality. Belle Starr the fragrance, created by Lisa Fong of Artemisia Perfumes for the Outlaw Perfumes project, reflects that duality in depiction of her namesake from the gritty “outlaw” jasmine to the polished “legal” rooibos Belle Starr shows off both faces in memorable fashion.
Sometimes the more I like a perfume the harder it is to write about. It’s because I want to do it justice- to the perfumer, to the creative process, and to the creation itself. During this Natural Perfumer’s Guild Outlaw Perfume Project I have felt a little intimidated by 2 perfumes, firstly Mata Hari by Dawn Spencer Hurwitz, and secondly by Rose of Cimarron by Bellyflowers Perfumes. I enjoy Rose of Cimarron for the lovely scent creation that it is, and for the historical link, again to a famous outlaw.
I felt as if I was taking this dress from a trunk or a closet and smelling the antique lace, the silk of the garment, and slipping myself into it. Wearing another woman’s dress, a famous woman, a sexy, courageous, Femme Fatale from the 1900’s…a woman who dared to live every cell of her being… is quite an experience
If the pungent scent of a freshly rolled joint lights your fire then you will be tickled by Dupetit’s Cannabis Eau de Toilette that sports real cannabis absolue. Yes, it smells like the real thing because it IS the real thing. And we have a draw..
