I was not very enthusiastic last time when Honoré des Près introduced their natural organic but chic perfumes in Paris, created by Olivia Giacobetti. They had not enough tenacity, power and were rather too shy and aquarelle. But this time, with their new line presented first in Milan at Excense and now available at Le Bon Marché, it is a different story. What used to be a sketch or just an idea (une ébauche olfactive) became a true perfume with all the qualities you cannot avoid if you are a true perfumer (power, tenacity and above all a strong idea). The organic fragrances (ECOCERT) are presented in a paper cup packaging and this type of perfumes are reshaping our future. You can read a short excerpt from a recent conference in Paris where I discovered some amazing extracts.
The new perfumes from Honoré des Près tell us emotional stories about an olfactory experience and a precious raw material. The perfumer cuts deep into the skin of the a carrot for I Love les carottes, the juicy petal of an exotic tuberose for Vamp à NY or the raw sensation of a crude coconut for Love Coco. It is not an illusion but a hyper realistic vision. This time the main theme of a perfume is also the dominant ingredient, presented will all its rough sides. The concept "Purs extraits de nature" explains very well how the perfumes work - one important ingredient, then the constellation of the facets and in the end a "natural" feeling (and not at all abstract).
Honoré des Près - I Love les carottes
This perfume is built around a very well known extract with its fruity, edible and spicy facets. But this carrot is pulled out from the soil and its flesh is exposed. The carrot extract with its multifaceted scent and disturbing original notes is the key of the perfume. It smells like the true "ingredient" in the kitchen with the amazing contrast between the brown earth and the vivid orange color of the root. In this oil there is also the powdery earthy facet of the orris but above all, a moist note that reminds patchouli in its very raw nature. The combination of all elements with the carrot overdose might represent the invention of a new genre "the vegetable fougère" where the original accord bergamot-(lavender)-geranium-(coumarine)-patchouli was replaced by a new one close to the original inspiration of roots, soil and leaves. Fougère du jardin!
Honoré des Près - Vamp à NY
"Can you cry in a tuberose field?" says the official presentation. If you smell this perfume yes! It starts with an impressive and exceptional natural tuberose absolute note, one of the most expensive on this planet. It becomes than tropical jasmine-tiaré-frangipanni with that alluring solar and bubble gum note infused with the darkness of a sweet vanilla with facets of rum and wrapped with balsamic benzoin. It ends with a natural frangipani note like Songes from Annick Goutal. The most precious white flower notes are expressed here not through their perfumistic interpretation and the illusionary reconstruction of the scent but with their true soul extracted with modern means. Like a journey across the oceans in the tropical area, the perfumer took the white from petals India to Tahiti and in the storm, this "Vamp à NY" is like a "nectar of gods". What else is the true nature of a vamp than drinking the souls of mortals and exhausting them in the sunset? In this case it is the soul of the most beautiful and alluring white flowers and during the entire evaporation you can see how each "night queen" becomes a different one. The translation between the facets is very smooth and actually the perfume transforms itself. What actually might seem unbalanced is in fact the evolution of flowers from morning to the sunset, all with an amazing solar heat wrapped in the softness of a balm. The flowers are embalmed in sweetness and their soul is preserved. This is not another easy sexy perfume - but the expression of a ritual with beautiful raw materials. Because it is 100% natural we might imagine this is a scent used 1000 years ago in a forgotten temple in the jungle. One facet evokes the new curcuma root extract.
Honoré des Près - Love Coco
Usually coconut perfumes end in a big vanilla sticky note. But with this one the very recognizable scent is expressed in a new way, textured and contrasted. All is again very raw inside. You take the coconut, feel its dark woody skin, open it, touch the white skin, the delicious juice and experience all the sensations where freshness is contrasted with sweetness and smoothness. There are 2 elements that are rather unusual and delicious in this perfume - an anis note that opens the coconut in a fizzy sweet way and then a very light licorice note. The coriander leaf sets the original voice of this delicious perfume. Not a sweet coconut but one that starts to caramelize in the sun when the almond milk becomes thick. The volatile molecules are trapped inside this perfume of delicious contrasts.
Again, in the marketing presentation everything is mixed: organic, haute parfumerie, urban, eco, recycling. Collect all the stereotypes that are chic in a french fashion magazine and voilà! But this time the perfumes from Honoré des Près are good, unlike the first line, and this is great news.
But if you love 100% natural perfumes you should try the North American creations were perfumers have created exceptional examples in a traditional or modern way since many years. Before being a "Sex & the City" fashionista with a coffee cup perfume why not some creations from Mandy Aftel, Ayala Moriel or Anya's Garden?
But if you love 100% natural perfumes you should try the North American creations were perfumers have created exceptional examples in a traditional or modern way since many years. Before being a "Sex & the City" fashionista with a coffee cup perfume why not some creations from Mandy Aftel, Ayala Moriel or Anya's Garden?
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Fragrance is the 8th Art - Octavian Coifan - Le Parfum est le 8ème Art
