Puredistance PAPILIO, official picture

“Just living is not enough,” said the butterfly, “one must have sunshine, freedom, and a little flower.” ― Hans Christian Anderson, The Complete Fairy Tales

In the ever-expanding sea of modern niche perfume brands, few houses have managed to keep a unitary vision for as many years as Puredistance. The creative force behind the house that has become synonymous with understated elegance and timeless beauty is Jan Ewoud Vos, the brand’s Creative Director, who is responsible for the entire visual and conceptual narratives of Puredistance. Every essence, every bottle, every design, and every visual—down to the very packaging—is the fruition of Jan Ewoud Vos’ singular vision. The brand philosophy is simple, yet profound. It is a commitment to long-term thinking, ensuring that the house’s aesthetic remains consistent, nurturing its reputation as a purveyor of elegance and harmony. From his background in design and photography, he crafts a narrative that dives deep into the Puredistance DNA—offering us masterpieces rooted in timeless beauty and elegance – intimate glimpses into his world, where art deco inspirations blend seamlessly with modern flair.

 Jan Ewoud Vos

With Puredistance PAPILIO we are once again invited into Jan Ewoud Vos’ world—a world that reveres purity, long-term vision, and the kind of eternal beauty that lights up life.  A new olfactory journey that, true to Puredistance’s heritage, promises to transcend the temporal boundaries of fashion and trends. “Embrace your true nature” is the essential message of Papilio:

“In today’s world, many people don’t dare to live their own life. They allow others to dictate their sexuality, study, profession, clothes, looks, etc. and in the end how they feel about themselves. To try to be someone you are not can be very costly. It deprives you of energy, money, self-esteem, and inner happiness. In the summer of 2020, I was sitting in my house at Ameland, surrounded by nature, looking at butterflies dancing in the air. Butterflies are not born as ‘beauties. They develop through complete metamorphosis. From egg to caterpillar to chrysalis to butterfly. And they accept and embrace their true selves after every transformation. Butterflies don’t suffer from ‘good’ advice from parents, friends, influencers, cosmetic surgeons, etc. and simply accept themselves as they are in each phase of their life. They show who they are and if you don’t like it and come to close, they will fly away. I felt PAPILIO (Latin for butterfly) could be a new Puredistance perfume with a beautiful message and started to work on the concept. One year later, when we celebrated the launch of Puredistance No.12 on the roof terrace of Nathalie Feisthauer in Paris, I explained to her the idea behind PAPILIO. When I was finished, she had tears in her eyes. The concept of PAPILIO touched her deeply. In the year that followed, she created a beautiful perfume that does full justice to the beauty of the butterfly and lures you into their magic world of 1001 colors. Now, again one year later – December 2022 – I am sitting in Belleville in Paris writing a poem that tells the story of PAPILIO. This poem, along with this introduction to the poem, is all I will tell about this new perfume. The rest of the story is yours.” Jan Ewoud Vos, Paris – December 11, 2022

Puredistance PAPILIO, official image

From the day I received the email in which I learned  that I would receive the press kit from Puredistance, I was filled with excitement. First, because my Puredistance bottles are staples in my fragrance wardrobe, as I’ve developed a very particular, and deeply personal relationship with their fragrances. My first love was Opardu, a lilac timeless scent that I can not imagine spending one spring without. The second was Warszawa, the most elegant, old-world deep green veil that acts as a time travel machine, so in tune with a special kind of Eastern European type of nostalgia that I resonate with deeply, on so many levels. And my feral love, my Sheiduna, the cinematic whirlwind of spices and exotic landscapes, a fragrance that I often wear on my wrists, going to sleep, as it acts as the catalyst for the most vivid and beautiful dreams of long forgotten realms, of golden sand dunes in the desert, at dusk.

Nathalie Feisthauer, via the perfumer

The second reason for my excitement is the fact that the perfumer who brought the concept to life is the amazing Nathalie Feisthauer who is responsible for some of my recent perfume crushes, like Der Duft Privilege,  Zoologist Cow, and the Lor line but also is the one who made Versace’s Blonde – the perfume that was a huge part of my fragrance awakening. Watching the interview here and hearing Nathalie talk about how Opium made her fall in love with perfumes made me choked up with emotions, as I vividly remembered my precious blue oval bottle of Blonde and what portals of new emotions that fragrance opened up in my soul. The butterfly effect is real, and I’m holding one of its manifestations in my palm, feeling the threads of possibilities tie up into a knot in time, so aware of the journey and so thankful for the destination.

Puredistance PAPILIO, official image 

I can’t think of a better name than Papilio for this fragrance: the delicate filigree of intricate patterns, the gentle flutter that makes the air vibrate, its spectrum of pastel hues – everything about it exudes brightness, lightness, and joie du vivre.

All throughout my testings of the fragrance, I had the image of a canvas -that was not fixated on a frame – made out of a sheer, soft white fabric, that slowly filled up with colors as it fluttered in the air. At first – a splash of light green, with the bright zing of bergamot. Feels tart, crisp sparkling with effervescence in a spiral of light that explodes into a bouquet of bright petals. Now it feels like silk, swirling around the skin with neroli, magnolias, and the angelic lightness of the lily of the valley. The sweetness of a peach fuzz plays hide and seek amongst the florals that are now infused into a pink hue, with Hedione tracing a contour made out of light along the citrus and floral nuances. Along the borders, in the south of the olfactive landscape Nathalie so masterfully paints, we have the powdery touches of orris and carrot oil, rooting the fragrance into a nostalgic deeper shade of blue, that is melancholic yet filled with optimism and strength.

Puredistance PAPILIO inspired AI generated image, by Nicoleta

Diving deeper, as hours passed, each time I wore it, I caught glimpses of different moods and worlds that opened on the skin – sometimes the woody base, soft, creamy, and deep wins and paints the experience in a deep green shade, filled with confident energy. Other times, the fragrance opens up, inviting and cozy, making me feel like I enter a cocoon weaved out of tactile, soft suede where all worries melt away into a deep purple embrace, and time stands still.

Puredistance PAPILIO is a fragrance greater than the sum of all its parts – it feels alive, with different flavors, different facets, and different colors merging and melting one into the other, like a river that will never stand still. In the presence of such strong cardinal points: the citrus, the florals, the woods, and the leather the point of reference will always shift – so this is the kind of fragrance that has to be worn on the skin, not just tested on paper blotters in order to fully experience the (emotional) ride it takes you on. Both elegant and carefree, multifaceted but oh-so-easy to love, and joyful but filled with personality, PAPILIO is a scent that will be your constant reminder to embrace your true nature.

Top notes are: Bergamot Oil; Middle notes are: Magnolia Oil, Neroli Oil, Carrot oil, Orris, Lily of the valley, Hedione HC, Heliotrope ;Base notes are: Cedarwood, Vetyver Oil, Amyris Oil, Intense woods, Ambroxan, Opoponax resinoid, Benzoin, Vanilla, Touch of Peach, Leather Ambrette, Cashmere, Muscenone

Editor’s note: PAPILIO will replace Antonia in the Puredistance Magnificent XII Collection, with Antonia being still available in the “Private Collection”.

Also read the reviews for Puredistance MV2Q; NR 12;Rubikona; Sheiduna; Gold; Warszawa  

Jan Ewoud Vos Creative Director’s article written for CaFleureBon: The DNA of Pure Vision

Nathalie Feisthauer was Michelyn’s Top Perfumer of 2022 and 2021

Nicoleta Tomsa, Senior Editor

Disclosure:  Press kit with a 5ml sample of Papilio provided by the brand, opinions are my own

Thanks to the generosity of a team member we have a 5 ml sample for one registered reader in the EU  or USA.  You must register or your entry will not count. To be eligible, please leave a comment saying what sparks your interest based on Nicoleta’s review and where you live. Draw closes 9/19/2023

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