03/19/16 08:13:32 (27 comments)
by: Miguel Matos
I am not really into mixing different perfumes and I even think that usually layering is a synonym for disaster. However, there are some combinations that I find successful, even though I rarely repeat them. These have happened mostly by accident. For example, applying one fragrance not remembering that I had already sprayed something before. Or one day I spray something only to find out that it was a wrong choice and so I apply something else over it to cover the mistake. Or even by recommendation or just to experiment. Most of these explorations seem to me as a desecration of a work of art and so I tend not to do it, mostly by respect for the perfumers, but also because the result is very often bad. But there are exceptions, of course, and I decided to share with you the ones that I know for sure to be good pairings, bringing an interesting experience and creating something new that is bigger than the sum of its parts. Welcome to my bulletproof layerings, tried and tested by yours truly:
This is obvious, I admit. A combination of oud and rose is what the Middle Eastern people have been doing for centuries. The oud trend that is now global comes with a flower to sweeten the funky animalic real thing. Dahn Oud Al Shams is the best oud eau de parfum that I have tried so far, but it can be very animalistic and masculine for some. So, if you love oud but want to mix in in a traditional way, enriching the already opulent composition made by Ajmal, try layering it with the classic Tea Rose by Perfumer's Workshop. I actually layer the Tea Rose Parfum instead, but beware: this has a massively bombastic sillage. One spray of each is more than enough.
Starting point: aldehydes. Final agreement: civet. This is the common ground between these two very different fragrances. Chanel Nº5 is the 1921 work of art of abstract perfumery. A blast of waxy aldehydes with a seamless pairing of rose and jasmine from Grasse. Powdery facets and a musky/animalic base. Now, Coriandre from 1973 is a different creature with the aldehydes in the opening too, which makes the two have a harmonious opening when juxtaposed. But the real magic happens when, surprisingly, the florals from Chanel mix with the green spicy Coriander. Well, Coriander also has jasmine and rose, so there is another link here. The base of both fragrances is animalic which is another coincidence that works. So if you want a really fizzy fragrance full of nuances and no rough edges, try this pair.
The Coudray fragrance Ambre et Vanille is a very sweet and powdery composition where the stars are the ones that are featured in the name. A very feminine, dense and enveloping comfort scent. The kind of perfume that brings you an aura of sensuality with a touch of vintage makeup powder. Amber of the thick golden kind that brings you to a confectionary realm. Now, if to this you add the coconut and lemon juice from Still Life in Rio, you make it tropical and yummy. It turns into an extremely rich suntan lotion but it also refreshed Ambre et Vanille in the top notes. The woody base the two of them have in common helps them to befriend each other nicely.
I have to admit that this happened by accident. One of these days I was wearingLagerfeld Classic and this is not something I wear often since I have trouble with the estragon note in it. But it felt right that morning. Now, after some hours, I stopped smelling it and I felt like changing my fragrance. So I chose to spray vintage Opium Secret de Parfum. Wonderful, opulent, rich. Oriental just like Lagerfeld but with a different character, less smoky. The first hour I could only smell Opium, but to my surprise after that the estragon and smoke of Lagerfeld Classic emerged again from the ashes! And it contrasted well with Opium while still blending most of the notes peacefully. At the end of the day I could smell both in different whiffs. Sometimes Opium, sometimes Lagerfeld. Well, I didn't see that coming but I was happy for that.
There is a clear solar accord in L'Air du Temps that comes from the strong dose of benzyl salycilate (a molecule responsible for the famous and characteristic suntan lotion smell). The aldehydes make the carnation fizzy and fresh. The overall blend is for me very similar to the smell of hot skin with moisturizer. It is airy and fresh, but transparently spicy. But there is something that seems too faded and oldfashioned in it for me. So last week I was looking at the Little Marcel bottle, which is a great and realistic depiction of the tiaré/frangipani scent. Well this is another beachy smell. So why not pair the two? I did it and in fact, the first couple of minutes they are not perfectly matching. But give it a moment and you cannot see where one end and the other begins. The tiaré marries the benzyl salycilate. The aldehydes infuse fresh air in it. The animalic base of Nina Ricci warms it up in the end, the carnation gets tropical and you feel happy.
Lately I have been binging on florals for the first time. I was never a floral perfume kind of guy but I always loved Lace Garden since it came out a year ago. Being a fanatic of animalic perfumes, and being now in constant craving of sultry flowers, I am still exploring to find out some more floral scents for my collection. What if I mixed these two loves: well the floral animalics are a vintage classic. And I do love many of them like My Sin, for example. So I decided to try the extremely dirty vintage Kouroswith the spicy sweet and green Lace Garden full of gardenia, tuberose and magnolia. The result is in the family of recent floral animalics like Bogue Maai, Eris Parfums Ma Bête or Anatole Lebreton L'Eau Scandaleuse. An erotic, dirty, animalic garden. The lace is soiled and the garden has secluded bushes where couples meet for anonymous sex. I shall tell you no more for the drydown is capable of making you blush.
So these are all my successul pairings. I am not much interested in exploring further for I still prefer to admire the creations in pure form without my heretic intervention. But these I will repeat many times for a touch of the unexpected. Do you layer fragrances? Have you tried these? Can you suggest some good combinations?
Nenhum comentário:
Postar um comentário
COMENTE O QUE VOCÊ ACHOU DA NOSSA MATÉRIA!