Posted by Kevin
on
3 March 2010
Bring on the stems, leaves, grasses — I’m always in the mood for ‘green’ fragrances. Green-tinged perfumes are refreshing and often “cool” in tone; they convey the idea of “growth,” especially new growth of plants. Spring is the perfect time for a green cologne to debut, and I’ve been looking forward to smelling Parfumerie Generale Papyrus de Ciane (No. 24).
Perfumer Pierre Guillaume has gotten a lot of online media coverage for Papyrus de Ciane and much of it references his use of a legendary component of early 20th century fragrances: Mousse de Saxe. I’ll let others discuss the chemical composition of Mousse de Saxe and its reconfiguration for Papyrus de Ciane; my only “concern” is: How does Papyrus de Ciane smell on me?
Papyrus de Ciane’s “published” list of notes is varied (online at Parfumerie Generale only five components are mentioned: galbanum, broom, mild plant note, Mousse de Saxe, Silvanone® Supra (musk); in interviews, Guillaume has also mentioned bergamot, neroli, mugwort, cistus labdanum, lavender, clove, vetiver, incense and hedione.
Papyrus de Ciane begins with a mix of citrus, “white flowers” and delicious and strong galbanum (the galbanum crystallizes and turns soft and powdery fast); Papyrus de Ciane’s green notes are not wild and sharp…
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Posted by Robin
on
9 November 2009
Parfumerie Generale will launch their latest fragrance, No. 24 Papyrus de Ciane, in February:
Woody, green, build on a contemporary interpretation of “Mousse de Saxe”…
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Posted by Robin
on
17 December 2008
My “to review” list is now so alarmingly long that I try not to look at it at all for more than a few seconds at a time. Yesterday, in despair, I decided to cross out all of the niche fragrances I wasn't even interested in smelling again and could barely remember from the first try (scents that “fill my head with a deep, profound, Zen-like nothingness”, to quote March at Perfume Posse). All of those samples were thrown into the purgatory basket, where they may end up living out the rest of their days unless either a) I get more productive or b) the fragrance industry gets less productive.
Felanilla — and let's not even talk about the name, 'kay? — is one of the latest fragrances from Parfumerie Generale, and it did make an immediate impression. My testing notes from the first trial say simply “Shalimar“, not because it's a dupe, mind you, but because it struck me as something like a modern niche meditation on the Shalimar theme…
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Posted by Robin
on
11 October 2008
Parfumerie Generale has launched two new fragrances, Felanilla and Drama Nuuï:
No. 21, Felanilla: (shown) ~ a soft, spicy oriental; “Ferociously luxurious. A feline Vanilla on the coat of Iris and Saffron”. With notes of vanilla, saffron, iris, banana wood, hay and amber…
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Posted by Angela
on
23 October 2007
When people talk about big, knock-‘em-out scents, they often mean white florals like Robert Piguet Fracas or Annick Goutal Passion or heady 1980s orientals like Yves Saint Laurent Opium and Chanel Coco. I’d like to add another category of perfume to this list: the fierce green chypre. I’m not talking about a moody green chypre like Jacomo Silences or a modulated green chypre like Estée Lauder Private Collection. I mean a no-apologies, cuts-like-a-knife, love-it-or-loathe-it green chypre. At the top of the list of fierce green chypres are Sisley Eau du Soir, Parfumerie Générale Corps et Ames, and Niki de Saint Phalle.
A fierce green chypre isn’t easy to wear. It’s a diva, and it will be bigger than you are if you give it an inch. Before you spray on a fierce green chypre, you’d better be ready to be fabulous. Make sure you have the energy for snappy comebacks, unleashed hilarity, or wanton passion — whatever the occasion calls for…
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