The Scent of a Sylphid ~Debut by DelRae: fragrance review

Like watching the prima ballerina dancing the night away en pointe during La Sylphide there often comes the realisation that behind such delicate artistry and graceful elegance there must be an insurmountable amount of toil and wistful spending of self. Noticing the details of the Marius Petipa choreography I never cease to wonder how the strength of those calves supporting the dancer's weight is so effortlessly flowing into an optical legato of sorts that defies the laws of gravity and strain to give the sense of fluidity, like that of a forest spirit.
Just like a forest sprite, a lily-of-the-valley-centered fragrance is tied to the deceptivy intense work behind nature's spring rites, to reverie and daydreaming among the green foliage, shaded by a passing cloud that tentatively sprinkles the countryside with dew. Début by San Fransico-based niche line Parfums DelRae is one such fragrance: ethereal, sylph-like, effortlessly impressive and with the dewiness of a fine spring morning veering into summer.
Created in 2004, Début is characterised by DelRae as "Youthful yet sophisticated. Charming and utterly beguiling".

Nose Michel Roudnitska had hard work ahead, much like the ballerina aforementioned, if only because his formidable father, the great Edmond Roudnitska, has composed what is assuredly the archetype lily of the valley fragrance, Diorissimo, among his other magnificent Dior creations. He had cultivated lily of the valley attentively and tenderly in his own garden to study the elusive aroma so as to replicate it as closely as possible through synthesis and he managed to infuse it with the merest hint of civet that gives an delicious surprise in the drydown phase of the extrait de parfum.
Michel however avoided the trap of imitating and thus trying to "gild refined gold, to paint the lily". Instead as if seen through the lens of a Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III, lily of the valley takes on a modern sensibility in Début that allows it to be wearable even if one is not wearing a sylph-like gown of white.
Alternating between a soapy element, the cooling greeness, the innocence of linden blossoms and the radiance of white flowers (without the headiness usually associated with them), Début feels as if a scintillating scotoma has been lifted and you can see clearly for the first time. Sweet warmth of what smells like beeswax absolute to me, intermingled with the suaveness of sandalwood, lingers seductively to lull me into a daydream of lying in the fields before donning the urban attire again for a round in the busy metropolis.

Notes: bergamot, lime, green leaves, lily of the valley, ylang ylang, vetiver, sandalwood and musk.



Début used to come in Eau de Toilette and Eau de Parfum concentration. Eau de Toilette was abandoned for Eau de Parfum in 2006, but sometimes bottles of the former can still be found. They're both excellent and equally tenacious.
Parfums DelRae are available at Aedes, Barneys and First in Fragrance. You can also call: Tel 415 441 1627 • 866 906 9901. Or Fax 415-673-9828. Or email: info@parfumsdelrae.com.

Painting The Black Shash by Giovanni Boldini courtesy of art.com. Pic of bottle from parfumsdelrae.
Clip La fille aux cheveux de lin (=the girl with flaxen hair) by Claude Debussy performed by Joshua Bell, originally uploaded by airplanelova 93 on Youtube

Little known facts: fragrance history

I have been keeping these "on ice", so to speak, for some time. They're interesting and fun to know and probably not too practical either, but thought I'd share.



Light Blue: It's the title and colour of attire by which a representative of Cambridge in an athletic tournament goes by, its counterpoint being Dark Blue *for Oxford. It goes back to the boatraces between the two university towns many years ago, specifically the Varsity Match. Something tells me Dolce & Gabanna never thought of that!

"The man who began the Varsity match tradition was Charles Wordsworth of Christ Church college Oxford, who in June 1827 arranged a two-day cricket match against Cambridge at Lords. The first Boat Race between the two universities was in 1829, and was rowed over 2 and a quarter miles between Hambleden Lock and Henley Bridge. The second Boat Race was not until 1836 which was rowed over more than double the distance, from Westminster Bridge upstream to Putney Bridge. It was in this race that one of the Cambridge oarsmen tied a light blue ribbon to the bows of the Cambridge boat (the colours of his school, Eton College). The colour dark blue was then ascribed to Oxford because it is the colour of Christ Church college, and the Oxford crew sported white jerseys with dark blue stripes during the race. These colours have remained over the years and now sportsmen who have represented Oxford in a Varsity match against Cambridge in a Full Blue sport are entitled to wear a dark blue blazer".

~according to Sport.ox.ac.uk



Chamade: Technically thus is called the drumroll that in the Napoleonic wars signalled retreat. Also used by Françoise Sagan in her novel, La Chamade as a sign of erotic surrender ("son coeur bat la chamade"). Interestingly, on top of all that, the name of a quite successful car model by French auto-industry Renault!
Guerlain had chosen a wonderful vehicle for conveying the sweet message of romantic surrender to love.

Listerine: Now known as a deodorising mouthwash and also a series of oral hygiene products, it began its career as a house and hospital general antiseptic in the 1870s! It only re-invented itself as a mouthwash in 1920, through cunning and rather manipulative advertising; even inventing the non-existent medical term halitosis for what is commonly known as bad breath!

Ma Griffe: In French it means both "my signature" (hence a designer's marquee is called one's griffe) and "my talon" (accordingly pictured in advertisements in the 1970s). So basically, Ma Griffe hints at having someone at your clutches: not exactly the prim image we have of it, now, is it?

Eternity: The Calvin Klein scent derives its name from the eternity ring of Mrs.Simpson (which was a gift by the Duke of Windsor) that Calvin bought at an auction for his then wife Kelly Rector. Inside the ring there was a simple inscription: Eternity. Which was the case for the Windsors, but not for the Kleins as they seperated later on.

More fun later on!


*Thanks to Bela for pointing out that the translation for "dark" vs "deep" does denote a difference in shade in this instance.

Pics courtesy of ciao.fr and parfumdepub

Mother's Day suggestions

Many wonderful suggestions out there for the one person in our lives who loves us no matter what: our mother. Perfume Shrine presents you with some of them.

From Beautyhabit:

Beautiful solid fragrances encased in antique gold compacts in the In Fiore line. The scent comes in a base of jojoba oil and honey-scented beeswax. They look wonderful and they come in 6 scents:

Bois d'ete (with begamot, neroli and vetiver)

Fleur Orange (with neroli, jasmine sambac and Oman frankincense)

Fleurs blanches (with tuberose, jasmine, rose and orange blossom)

Fumee d'ambre (with incense, patchouli, vetiver and sweet amber)

Night Queen (with jasmine, bergamot peel, rose, oud and patchouli)

Patchouli Royale (with antique patchouli, oud, sandalwood and exotic balsams)

Rose Noir (with saffron absolute, Assam oud, galbanum and damascena rose)

From Hqhair.co.uk:

The Mama Mio Supermama Kit kit is filled with daily essential skincare for you to enjoy. Starting with Mama Mio Moisturising Shower Cream: it is actually a baby cleanser! Mama Mio felt that every mama can use a little babying sometimes. That explains why it is so gentle – it won’t strip your skin like a harsh soap. And of course it is sodium laureth sulfate free – it’s from Mama Mio.

Next is the important exfoliation stage. The Supersmooth Body Buff will gently and effectively remove the dead skin cells that stop nourishment penetrating your skin. The tiny granules are micro-ground natural pumice blended with Sweet Almond Oil to ensure that the Body Buff slides easily all over and isn’t too harsh.

The Super-rich Body Cream is a must for every mama. It’s rich yet quickly absorbed, nourishing but light, and makes skin feel silky and, very importantly, smell gorgeous. So lavish your skin with this super-nourishing cream and glory at the glow and softness.

Mama Mio Wonder-Full Balm really is. Named Wonder-Full Balm because you will find a million different ways to use it. Nine natural oils in a beeswax base, it is really a solid oil that melts in contact with your skin and provides rich intense moisture. Best lip balm ever, fantastic cuticle cream, adios dry elbows, run away rough heels… You will pull it out of your bag five times daily and you will never travel without it.

Mama Mio Supermama Kit contains: Moisturising Shower Creme, 300mlSuper-rich Body Cream, 200mlBody Buff, 200mlWonder-full Balm, 30ml

From Ayala Moriel:

Pamper your Mom on Mother's Day with an all-natural fragrant gift. Nothing can beat a custom scent, especially designed for her. We particulary encourage mothers and daugthers to come together to the studio for a shared Olfactory Journey - an unforgettable experience of essences from around the world, where the exotic meets the familiar in the most magical way. At the end of a journey, your memories and passions will be bottled in an elegant parfum flacon and a pendant.
In addition, a few specials* just for the occasion: - Perfumed Teas are on special for $20 (instead of $30). These organic and wild crafted teas are TO DIE FOR! - Purse size perfume oils, for only $65 - Perfumed Pendants are on sale now for $125 (instead of $150) - Gift Certificates for $100 or for any amount you'd like can be emailed or printed as well. Email us with the amount and message you'd like on the gift certificate and we'll send you a PayPal payment request. - And of course, if you are looking for something different check out Etsy shop for rare collectibles such as poison rings and vintage pillboxes filled with our delicious crème parfums.

* Offers expire May 30th.

From Origins:

From May 1st through May 6th, there is an offer of 25% off your next purchase. And when shopping online, the code 0508FF gets youstandard free shipping.

After my Own Heart by Ineke: fragrance review

"April is the cruellest month, breeding
lilacs out of the dead land"

says the famous line from the Waste Land.

Lilac has always stood for me as the very emblem of April, "stirring dull roots with spring rain". So inextricably has the month been linked to the bloom's Greek name. Πασχαλια/Paschalia (Pa-scha-leeA) means "Easter blossom" simply because lilacs bloom exactly around the time of Orthodox Easter in April. But like the festivities and the spring rain, alas they last all too briefly. The much needed rain is a brief occurrence in our warmer climate.

The hunt for a realistic soliflore that replicates the lush character of this elusive bloom has occupied me for years, ever since I was a child, buying little oils at herbalist shops with my pocket money after school.
Lilac's odour profile is unique in that it incorporates the clean and the dirty rolled into one and is romantic as well as sexualised. When one buries one's face into the large panicles, the smell of intimacy, like worn musky undergarments by a lover scintillates, mingled with the honeyed pollen and the translucent dewiness of soft petals; conspiring into a spring plot to ensnare you into surrendering all thought and yield to its fragrant message to howl "the eternal yes".

And yet perfumers have never been able to extract a good and abundant enough essence for use in perfumery, therefore the combination of other natural oils and synthetics such as Apo patchone, Lindenol, Nerol 800/900, Terpineol Extra, Dimethyl Benzyl Carbinol to replicate the scent of the living flower are used. Too often the final product turns out to smell like tin foil and unappealing to anyone who has had the good fortune to have had cut branches of the real thing adorning their homes at spring, emitting their heavenly aroma beneath gauzy curtains gushing in the wind.

Syringa (Lilac) is a genus of 20–25 species of flowering plants in the olive family (Oleaceae) which are usually a light purple (commonly referred to as lilac or lilas in French) or less often light pink or white. Native to Europe and Asia, it is said that Syringa Persica has been brought to Europe at the end of the 16th century, from the Ottoman gardens, while Syringa Vulgaris grew in the Balkans. The Holy Roman Emperor's ambassador, Ogier Ghiselin de Busbecq, is credited with supplying lilac slips to Carolus Clusius, in 1562. Botanists of fame, like the herbalist John Gerard, soon had the rarity in their gardens: he notes lilacs growing “in very great plenty” in 1597. In the American colonies lilacs were introduced in the 18th century.
It is also interesting to note that purple lilacs symbolise first love and white lilacs youthful innocence (see Language of flowers).

In Ineke's After my Own Heart, I found a satisfying lilac interpretation that is innocent, yet not without the throes of first love vibrating its delicate heart strings. Described as "the scent of fresh lilacs floating on the early breeze" it fulfils its promise of a fresh perfume with a romantic inclination. The fragrance opens on a lightly powdery burst of greenery with a slightly bitter background of chilliness, like the rush of wind on a cool evening, bringing up goosebumps on warm skin. Almost instantaneously, however, a warm sweetness like that of pollen is surfacing to mollify and caress, with the delicate touch of a dot of marzipan paste on a plate of berries drizzled with a touch of Alsatian Riesling not short of its goût petrol. The composition is modern, with a more or less linear presence on the skin, meaning there is no distinct development, sustaining the impression of flower and dusty air for a good while.
To compare After my Own Heart with another modern approach on a lilac soliflore, F.Malle's En Passant, by nose Olivia Giacobetti, I would venture to say that the latter is pronouncedly more limpid and aqueous, with a slightly sour note, like sniffing fresh yeasty bread dough. Although both go for the fresh approach they divert ways very soon, as Ineke's rendition is a little dustier and sweeter and probably less dependent on particular skin chemistry. They resemble watercolours for which the artist thought of light green tones and white opalescence of a cool, bracing morning (for En Passant) and of the pinky blue skies of afternoon warmth (for After my Own Heart).
Guerlain's Angelique Lilas in the Aqua Allegoria line is another interpretation, this time with the watery theme veering into the bitter terrain of rained upon angelicas, but the pronounced Calone element in it might seem harsher than Ineke's approach.

Contemplating whether my personal lilac-strewn Eldorado has been reached, I find that like the mythical town it is best to dream and find elements of it in the fragrances on offer. Perhaps the search will never end until technology and analytical chemistry sufficiently unravel the thread of Ariadne. Until then, real stems of lilac in a vase along with pleasant fragrances that echo its sweet message such as After my Own Heart will keep me company.

Notes: bergamot, raspberry, green foliage, lilac, sandalwood, heliotrope and musk.

Info on how to obtain the fragrance and samples at Ineke.com
You can read an appreciation of the whole line from A to E clicking this Ineke article.




Les Atelies du Parfum has posted a lovely lilac poem for those of you who read French.

Clip of Erik Satie's Gymnopédie No.1 uploaded by Kyromaster on Youtube.
Pic originally uploaded by princesshaiku.

Many Wishes