It’s Figgy Friday! Today’s community project: wear a fig perfume, if you dare. I know some of you won’t dare, so partial credit for other dried fruit notes.
I’m wearing Parfums di Nicolaï Fig Tea. It is really not all that figgy, but I’ve already worn Diptyque Philosykos so much this year that I thought I’d branch out. Anyway, Fig Tea is lovely even if it’s not a fig bomb.
Reminder: next Friday, 3 April, is Chanel TNG…
When I reviewed Lys Soleia back in 2012, I said I have something of a love-hate relationship with the Aqua Allegoria range from Guerlain. Aqua Allegoria started out as a youth-oriented line highlighting natural materials, but it’s evolved, over the years, to something better expressed by the tag line they now use on some of the advertising: “the collection of fresh fragrances”. And as “fresh”, likewise, has evolved over the years to mean synthetic clean notes instead of things that are naturally fresh, like sparkling citrus and light florals, so the Aqua Allegorias have followed suit. My main complaint with Lys Soleia, and Jasminora before it, was how close they came to smelling like scented laundry products.1
In its favor, Limon Verde, the latest Aqua Allegoria, does not smell like laundry products. Its inspirations, expressed as the exhortation to “savour a Caipirinha under the lemon trees along the Amazon River”, fit well with this year’s emphasis on Brazil…
Last month, Kiehl’s launched a new family of products called Aromatic Blends, “Pure Scents from Around the World.” I was initially uninterested in trying them, since I have bad memories of Molton Brown’s similarly travel-themed “Navigations Through Scent” line (harsh compositions, ugly bottles and prices even more ridiculous than their names). However, I do enjoy visiting the Kiehl’s counter once in a while, and once I’d sniffed the Aromatic Blends, I was ready to adjust my original reaction.
The four “blends” in this line are Nashi Blossom & Pink Grapefruit, Orange Flower & Lychee, Fig Leaf & Sage and Vanilla & Cedarwood. I’m not really sure how “naturally derived” or “sustainably sourced” they are, but I do think their simple, landscape-inspired arrangements suit the overall Kiehl’s aesthetic. They’re nicely made (with one possible exception), they’re simply and attractively packaged, and they’re reasonably priced — in other words, they do what they set out to do. Here are a few quick thoughts on each fragrance, from lightest to richest.
Nashi Blossom & Pink Grapefruit: Let’s get this one out of the way first…
Ancient Egyptians believed sycamore trees grew on the border between the land of the living and the realm of the dead. Greek myths tell of humans transformed into trees. In Japan, pine trees represent longevity (even immortality) but cherry trees’ fleeting blossoms are a reminder that life is brief. Where I live, several Northwest Coast Indian tribes carve clan histories into revered cedar wood, creating large totem poles and house posts. I’ve always loved the story of Siddhartha Gautama reaching enlightenment (and becoming the Buddha) while meditating in the shade of the Bodhi Tree at Bodh Gaya in India.
Trees are interesting as cultural and religious symbols, but they’re also beautiful plants whose bark, wood, roots, resins, leaves and fruit make perfumes smell “divine.” Infusion Organique Buddha’s Fig Eau de Parfum was inspired by a particular Bodhi tree — the ancient Sri Maha Bodhi located in Sri Lanka.
Buddha’s Fig contains certified organic fig extract, rose geranium, lemongrass oil, hyacinth, iris, wood, and amber. Buddha’s Fig begins with notes of fig leaf and “green”/barely opened hyacinth flowers…
For those of you unfamiliar with the Aqua Allegoria range from Guerlain, they might be seen as “entry level” Guerlains; they are supposed to “showcase nature”, and they tend to be lighter, younger and simpler in composition than the perfumes in the regular line. For the past few years they've been introducing two new Aqua Allegoria scents a year, and discontinuing those that don't do well. There are a few I really like (Herba Fresca, Anisia Bella, Mandarine Basilic), and despite the fact that some years they're just duds, I always look forward to trying the new editions. The 2008 entries: Figue Iris and Laurier Réglisse.
Aqua Allegoria Figue Iris is attributed to perfumer Jean-Paul Guerlain. I'll start right off with a disclaimer: I love fig and I love iris, but the combination doesn't entirely appeal to me, and I've yet to meet a powdery fig I could love…