A fragrance for every dirty pretty thing: Eric Buterbaugh Florals

by: Elena Vosnaki

Are you the type to get into the florist's and swoon from the extravagant sensory stimuli of the opulent blossoms surrounding you? It happens to me too. So imagine how I felt when I learned that famed Los Angeles based florist Eric Buterbaugh has just launched a unisex fragrance collection inspired by his favorite flowers their intoxicating scent. 

Fashioning fragrances after the florist's is a time-honed tradition. From Antonia's Flowers by Antonia Bellanca-Mahoney, composed for her by Bernand Chant in 1984, and Robert Isabell who employed Givaudan-Roure perfumer Roman Keiser to introduce his "living flowers" collection in 1996 to  L'Eau du Fleuriste, composed by Olivia Giacobetti for L'Artisan Parfumeur one year later. Lately we've been witnessing a resurgence of the purity of florist fragrances. Enter Eric Buterbaugh.

Eric is a is a phenomenal florist with A list clientele (Naomi Campbell, Tom Ford and Demi Moore to name a few, and he also does Chanel dinners and Oscar parties) which naturally brought him to developing fragrances with leading perfumer Firmenich and former Lancôme executive, Fabrice Croisé.

The result is a collection of 7 pure scents, including a violet with balanced leaf and petal notes; a rose with subtle notes of pepper and licorice; an intense tuberose recalling a rainforest; and a lily of the valley with a tinge of citrus. There's also Hyacinth, Jasmine and Lavender. And 4 candles as well as a 7 Scents kit of 7 x 10ml (1/3oz) for a quite luxurious "living with the scents" before investing in a full bottle. 

The fragrances are bottled in crystal flacons, modeled after liquor decanters and available on www.ebflorals.com and at the flagship boutique in Los Angeles.

Eric clearly knows a thing or two about luxury. That's what inspired him to do the weighty carafe-style bottles for his fragrances inspired by vintage decanters, as you can see for yourself in the photographs. They're the centerpiece for his flagship-cum-gallery in West Hollywood.

With all that in mind, I decided to interview Eric Buterbaugh and his perfumerFabrice Croisé.

Elena Vosnaki: How does it feel branching out from florist to perfume brand? I know that there are some previous attempts, like with Antonia's Flowers for instance, but what made you take the decision to progress to fragrance?

Eric: "For me, creating fragrances was a life-long dream. I have always been drawn to not only florals, but beautiful scents. The evolution of the art of perfumery is something I have always been following closely. I was approached numerous times by companies big and small to create a line of perfumes, but it never really came to fruition until I met Fabrice. Within minutes of meeting each other, we came up with the idea of a brand that would focus on floral scents, both as a homage to the great perfumes of the past and a way to re-invent modern perfumery. We never looked back."

Elena:  Being a celebrity florist comes with its own package of fans' expectations of perfume smelling as good as the flowers themselves. Seeing some of them do not yield sufficient or satisfying essences how did you direct the perfumer responsible for creating the scents: maximum approximation for a photorealist approach or creative translation of words like "violet", for instance?

Eric: "Unfortunately, such expectations have become, for the most part, unrealistic. Most flowers today are grown too fast in hot-houses around the world and the emphasis is on size, shape and color, in that order. Scents have somewhat been bred out of them".

Fabrice: "Our briefs to the perfumers were not directive in terms of choosing between a photorealist creation or a creative interpretation. Our Virgin Lily of the Valley, for instance, clearly falls in the former approach whereas our Apollo Hyacinth falls more in the latter. We wanted our briefs to be liberating, not castrating. We told the perfumers: here is what Eric does with this flower, and here is why he loves it. We gave them a list of the flowers he loves as well as those he prefers not to use in his creations. We promised that we would respect their creations, launching them the way they had created them. However, we were not going to suggest changes to what we saw as a work of art. Lastly, the perfumer was able to utilize an array of ingredients as there were no limitations.

Elena: Judging by the names the fragrances look like soliflores, perfume lingo for fragrance replicating a single flower's scent, yet by the press release this transpires not to be so. How were the blends decided upon?

Fabrice: "Well, the names are two-sided: they are made of a floral, descriptive word and an evocative, more poetic one. As to the blends, it was entirely the decision of the perfumers.

Elena: How was the creative process between Eric Buterbaugh Florals and famed perfumery Firmenich?

Eric: "It was like a dream. We felt so much intrigue and love from everyone at Firmenich. It was wonderful. Some of our scents had been in the secret drawers of the perfumers for a long time, they just were waiting for the right brand. We felt so honored to be showered with so much creative splendor by Honorine, Alberto, Ilias, Pierre and Harry." 

Elena: One significant detail that strikes me upon seeing the line is the beautiful bottles, like liqueur decanters. Is there a story behind the inspiration for those?

Fabrice: "We did start from a decanter, actually. A beautiful cognac decanter we came upon one day. We love the idea of bottling our fragrances in decanters because it represents a time before internet and shipping, when perfumes did not travel very far from where they were purchased. We are particularly proud of our 250ml crystal bottles. They are hand-blown at Nouvel Studio in Mexico City and look sumptuous". 

Elena: Who is the customer that Eric Buterbaugh Florals aims at?

Eric: "Fragrance lovers and luxury shoppers alike. Both groups seem very happy with our brand when they come to visit our space."

Elena:  Tell us a bit more about availability and price points. 

Fabrice: "This first collection of scents is available at our perfumery (8271 Beverly Blvd in Los Angeles) and on our website (www.ebflorals.com)”

Elena: Is there a plan for expanding the line with more floral fragrances? Personally I'd love to see a good purple lilac for starters! 

Eric: "We have a lilac ready. Honorine Blanc created it and it is gorgeous. It will launch in Spring of 2016. Prior to that, we will launch a new rose in November. So much to look forward to!"