A celebration of Jasmine

One thing that completely escaped my mind and only came to me when I reread my last post is that my middle Japanese name was Marika (茉莉花), which means jasmine, for a day or so after I was born, until my parents decided that Kaori would be a better name for me.

So it is fitting that about a week ago, I bought myself a bottle of Guerlain's Jasminora, part of its limited edition Aqua Allegoria range. It is very much a celebration of jasmine. The first spritz is a little sharp, almost citrus rind like but it then smothers me with the jasmine scent, complete with the polleny edge. I think there might be some other flowers in the mix but those are subtle and jasmine really takes centre stage. I'm missing a bit the buttery creaminess I remember from the jasmine on my lapel but it's still a wonderful scent. I'm happy I'll be able to enjoy this fragrance this summer.

Today I received some samples of Jasmin Noir and also Mon Jasmin Noir from Bvlgari. These are more interpretations of jasmine compared to the Guerlain perfume. I have only sniffed it on a piece of paper so far but I love the milkiness of Jasmin Noir once it settles. Apparently there is also a liquorice note to it, which I'm excited to experience. Mon Jasmin Noir is a little too fruity and predictable for me but I might think differently once I actually try it on my skin.

The beginning of the fragrance weaver

I often think that appreciating perfume is like appreciating wine. It is a taste that is acquired and slowly honed with practice. It is only recently that I have renewed interest in fragrances, but it has always been part of my life. My Japanese name, for example, is Kaori (香). This particular spelling of my name simply means "scent" but it is often spelt as 香織 which would literally translate as the "weaver of scents". This is where I came up with the name for this blog.

I have always been drawn to all things sensual. My first memories are my love of soft materials - I had a favourite soft piece of old cotton which I used to cuddle up with when going to sleep. Now I find that rich materials such as silks, velvets and cashmere almost make me purr. Music has been an important part of my life too and one of my favourite things is to immerse myself into sublime music with my eyes closed while I savour the landscape of notes and chords. Taste is another sensual indulgence which I cannot resist and is closely related to that of scent. Food without scent is meaningless, as we all probably have experienced by trying to eat something with a blocked nose - terribly frustrating. In fact, my most vivid childhood memories involving my maternal grandmother has to do with the smell of freshly baked bread.

(photo from: http://www.freefoto.com)

I was inhaling the fantastic fragrance of flour, yeast and homely warmness so intently that my grandmother jokingly told me "careful or the fragrance will disappear!" which in Japanese sounded like "careful or Kaori will disappear!". I distinctly remember how horrified I was that I might disappear! Of course I now think back on this incident with a smile. How funny we are as children.

At the moment, I have a single flower of jasmine which I picked off a plant in my parents' garden in my lapel. The scent from just one flower is overwhelming and seems to surround me completely. It is creamy and yet has a sharp polleny edge to it. It's a fantastic fragrance and is fitting that I am enjoying it while I'm starting this blog. I haven't quite decided how I will develop this blog but hopefully it will be about me discovering and learning to appreciate various perfumes. I hope that through this journey I set out on, I will develop my nose and my vocabulary to describe what I experience.