It was quite a delight this morning to find an email from Aedes in my inbox, announcing the new conceptual Play Series from Comme des Garçons. I clicked on the winsome bottles – all googly eyes and hearts – and was instantly whisked to the page where I could read a brief overview of the trio, learn all of their scent notes, and discover the identity of the perfumer – Antoine Maisondieu – who has been a favorite since we met him at the Givaudan labs during our Sniffapalooza trip to Paris several summers ago.
Those who truly appreciate perfume often want to learn as much as they can – from the thoughts and stories behind their favorite fragrances, to the materials used to create them, to the design of the bottles and packaging. We regard the perfumer as an artist, blending scent notes in various proportions to create a fragrance that wordlessly speaks to us.
Like authors, painters, and composers, we get to know our favorite perfumers through their past creations and learn to recognize the subtle signature common to many of their fragrances. For instance, Bertrand Duchaufour often includes a touch of cumin in his spicy creations. And Olivia Giacobetti’s work is soft and ethereal, often with a sweet, musky drydown.
It’s exciting to see that perfumers are finally getting the recognition they deserve, whether it be on commercial websites such as Aedes, Luckyscent, and Frederic Malle, or more informational websites, such as Now Smell This, Fragrantica and osMoz. The New York Times recently recognized Francis Kurkdjian as a celebrity perfumer, and Forbes Magazine profiled Yann Vasnier. But we knew all about them already, didn’t we? 😉
Do you have a favorite perfumer? Please leave a comment below, then add your favorites to our Pinterest board!