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07/24/2012
jtd
484 Reviews
jtd
Helpful Review
5
dirty lipstick. mmmm.
Mixed white florals are often either a fusion of the flowery elements (eg. Amouage Gold) or an imagined flower (eg Patou’s Joy, Lauder’s Beyond Paradise.) Clearly the above perfumes tell you that either of theses approaches can be successful. Number One’s trick, though, is to give a bouquet where the individual flowers keep their own identities. There’s a citrusy opening and a nuanced musky vanilla at the base, but 90% of Number One is flowers: jasmine, narcissus, tuberose and orange blossom. Each of them and all of them. The standard, antiseptic blending of white-to-white is expected, but what distinguishes Number One is the line connecting the unwashed. Narcissus to jasmine; a watery greenness. Jasmine to orange blossom; indoles. Orange blossom to tuberose, flesh. Pretty is fine, but Number One shows that pretty with a hint of malice is much more interesting.
I can smell the origins of both Odalisque and Le Temps d’une Fete in Number One, yet each of the three perfumes is distinct from the others. They aren’t just serial issues, flankers. Artistry involves the ongoing creative exploration of ideas, and though a family resemblance is an outcome, it is just a starting point for the different directions Patricia de Nicolai’s perfumes take. I have room for all three in my life. In fact, I’m waiting for more.
I can smell the origins of both Odalisque and Le Temps d’une Fete in Number One, yet each of the three perfumes is distinct from the others. They aren’t just serial issues, flankers. Artistry involves the ongoing creative exploration of ideas, and though a family resemblance is an outcome, it is just a starting point for the different directions Patricia de Nicolai’s perfumes take. I have room for all three in my life. In fact, I’m waiting for more.
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