Dusita Pelagos, A Journey To The Greek Isles

 

Once a year there is the excitement of a new fragrance introduction from Dusita Paris, a fragrance house created by Thai perfumer Pissara Umivijani, now based in Paris on a quiet side-street just a short stroll from the big designer houses in the first arrondissement. Ms.Umivijani has proven herself to be very diverse in her scent creations. Her first three scents included a classic floral gardenia, an evocative and aromatic fougere, and an Oudh that meant serious business and took no prisoners!

With each new fragrance introduction, Ms. Umivijani adds a new facet to the collection, but one type of scent missing in the lineup was a beach or sea scent. I heard back in the spring that Ms. Umivijani was releasing a scent based on the ocean, specifically the Greek Isles and the Aegean Ocean surrounding them. Pelagos is the Greek word for seas and open water, and more expressly, it indicates a deep sea. 

View of the Aegean Sea In Oia, Santorini.

I was so excited when I heard the inspiration for the scent was the Greek Islands. It has been a life-long dream of mine to visit Greece, and even though I've traveled quite a lot, I never made it there. I'm getting older, and I finally had booked a trip for this summer. It seemed totally serendipitous that I would be able to test the bottle of Pelagos in the actual place of its inspirational conception! We were going to Santorini and Paros, and on Paros I had just so happened to book a quaint little guest hotel called, wait for it, Pelagos Studios! Everything just seemed to align!

Perissa Beach in Santorini.

If you're like me, when you think of beach or marine scents, you think either ocean freshies, suntan lotion skin scents, or bright citrus colognes. Pelagos is none of these. Remember how I said that the word Pelagos can translate to deep water? Well, that became very instrumental to me in understanding this perfume. Just like the bottomless deep blue water that surrounded us on the island of Santorini, Pelagos hints at depth and mystery.

Ms. Umivijani wanted Pelagos to represent some of the natural aspects she found beautiful in Greece, so this included the land and landscape as well as the ocean. Pelagos takes a while to settle on my skin. The opening doesn't really remind me of the sea. It features bergamot, litsea cubeba, and sea breeze accord in the opening, but I don't smell any of these lighter notes. On me it is woody. Back in May  Dusita created a Zoom call to introduce Pelagos, and it seemed that people were getting a lot of different reactions on their skin. Some got brighter notes, for some the scent opened with florals, and some, like me, smelled more salty wood.

Port in Naoussa, Paros.

After about ten minutes Pelagos becomes like a compilation of all the elements surrounding me as I gaze out on the Greek shoreline. The rugged landscape of rock and stone, and depending which island you're on, perhaps some marble columns from 100 B.C.  Heart notes of orris butter, white thyme, and tonka bean soften the wood notes I'm getting, and it becomes more of a meditative skin scent, redolent of the scrubby bushes and herbal vegetation, the tang of the ocean breeze, and the salt left on the skin as the water evaporates in the breeze. 

The base notes are leather, sandalwood, and patchouli, and again, Pelagos was somewhat muted and quiet when it reached this point I found Pelagos to be a softer scent than the others in the Dusita line, and it's the first that I would call a skin scent. However, a skin scent seems fitting for a fragrance that is meant to represent the basic natural elements of a Greek isle. We visit these islands to be immersed in the beauty, to walk the arid shorelines with their sparse vegetation and on the warm pebble beaches, diving into the dark waters and rising up with the salty water droplets glistening on our skin like a thousand tiny diamonds, stripped to our elemental self!

Pelagos Studio on the island of Paros.

Pelagos was both a shape shifter and a crowd pleaser. My husband and I were vacationing with my daughter and son-in-law. Everyone tested it and everyone enjoyed wearing it, but we all smelled something slightly different. My son-in-law smelled florals at the start, which I didn't get at all. My daughter and I noticed more of the woodiness of the scent. I especially enjoyed the later life of the scent, with its subtle aura indicative of the moody dark blue waters of the Aegean Sea.  I have to be honest and say that when wearing this on a Greek beach it really bloomed into something totally beautiful, and I've never quite captured that same feeling when I spray it back home and hop in the car to run to the grocery. It is as if Ms. Umivijani painted a beautiful scene of the Greek Isles, but in scent. It seemed to know when it was at home, and put on a spectacular performance! I have the 15 ml. bottle which is just so perfect for traveling. I enjoy the quiet stillness that is Pelagos on my skin, and it makes me long for those few glorious days in Greece. I may just have to go back there to experience Pelagos it in its full glory!

Pissara Umivijani is a talented painter and she did this watercolor to try to capture some of the inspiration she found in the beauty of Greece. 

Ms. Umivijani always includes a line from one of the father's poem. Her father, Montri Umivijani was an esteemed Thai poet, and with her perfumes she seeks to honor her father's legacy by putting  scent to his inspiring words.

"Tell me where my limit lies, so I may go up to it and knock just so gently to show I am human."

The photos are all my own. The sample of Pelagos was provided by Parfums Dusita.

Parfums Dusita Rosarine & A Journey To Flåm, Norway

Parfums Dusita launched Rosarine, their newest scent, this past May. I was very kindly sent a mini bottle and invited to the online launch. The scent was newly poured, and my memory was it being a pretty rose, rather innocent and fresh. After the launch, I proceeded into a very busy travel period and tucked the bottle into my baggage. When I eventually smelled Rosarine again, I was in for a surprise!

Dusita perfumes are released -- one per year -- and they are always an event! I decided that Rosarine would be my focus on a special part of our trip to Norway. We flew to Bergen, and from there took a train to the town of Gudvangen. It's a tiny town at the foot of the UNESCO listed Nærøyfjord, one of the most scenic fjords in Norway. From there it is a two hour cruise around the horseshoe-shaped fjord to the tiny town of Flåm. 

You have to plan ahead when going to Flåm, there are only about three hotels, not enough to house all the people who may come for the day on the ferries. When we got to Flåm we were greeted with the sight of a large cruise ship. Groan. So much for our idyllic hidden village! 

 

Happily, they loaded up their passengers and sailed away before five, and suddenly it seemed we were the only people in town!

Our hotel choice was born of necessity, it was the only room in Flåm we could find. But the Fretheim Hotel turned out to be a very fortuitous choice, considering I was doing a story on Rosarine, a rose-based perfume. It just so happened that the hotel had a gorgeous rose garden in the front lawn. Photo opportunities abounded!

 So now it was time to smell Rosarine again. Like a fine wine, Rosarine had aged in the couple of months since I last smelled it, and morphed into a lush, brilliant rose scent!

These deep red roses well represent the lushness of Rosarine. I get a very wine-like scent from the perfume. In my mind I picture harvesters stomping grapes for wine, but instead of grapes, they are stomping rose petals, and it is turning into the most rich, indulgent rose scent!

The opening of Rosarine contain a succulent raspberry note, a slightly tart lychee note, and a little bergamot. As the richness increases, the rose is joined by orris butter, jasmine sambac, wood, incense, and ambrette. The heart of the perfume is intoxicating!

After many hours Rosarine will settle into a gourmand base. Notes listed are patchouli, vetiver, cocoa, vanilla, sandalwood, and benzoin. What is amazing to me about this scent, at least on my skin, is how long the sumptuous richness of the rose permeates.

Even the next morning when I wake up, my wrist is near my nose, and the first thing I smell is the whisper of Rosarine. It's a beautiful way to wake up!

Anyone familiar with Parfums Dusita knows that Pissara Umivijani always selects one of her father's poems to represent and introduce her scents. Her father, Montri Umivijani, was an esteemed poet in Thailand. As corny as it sounds, when I first smelled the luxuriant, opulent roses in Rosarine, I thought, "this smells like a poem". Her are the words from her father that Pissara chose:

On my lips, "leaving" is love, A thousandfold from the outworn heart.

If you are a lover of roses, Rosarine is a must try. I find when I wear it, I experience the uplifting feelings of joy and optimism that rose scents can impart. 

Thank you so much to Pissara and the Dusita team for allowing me to experience this beautiful perfume! And I loved it so much, I took the opportunity to order it during Dusita's Christmas box special, and got all these extra goodies with it! And I just saw today that Dusita is having a similar generous special for Valentine's. Go to their website and have a look!

Thank you to Parfums Dusita for the sample of Rosarine. All opinions are my own. All photos are my own.
 

 

Parfums Dusita's La Rhapsodie Noire, A Love Letter to Paris

 

As anyone who has ever visited Paris knows, wandering through the streets at night only to unexpectedly come across a lit-up cafe, buzzing with energy and the music of laughter, conversation, and tinkling glasses; it's one of the great joys of discovering the city. The visitor can feel they have discovered the cafe, the hidden place that the mob doesn't know and be drawn into its welcoming warmth and light. It was once such moonlit night when Parfums Dusita founder Pissara Umivijani was inspired to create her newest perfume, La Rhapsodie Noire, a love letter to Paris.

Let me set the scene, in Pissara's own words. 

One night I was crossing the Pont-Neuf., listening to "Rhapsody In Blue". Suddenly my imagination was fueled by images and sensations of The City of Light in the 1920s. I decided to create a nocturnal, vibrant fragrance dedicated to Paris of Les Annees Folles.

I was present in November when Pissara debuted La Rhapsodie Noire in a Zoom meeting. She reiterated how the Gershwin song, Rhapsody In Blue, served as an inspirational launching point as she strolled past the cafes and heard the song. She smelled the dark expresso coffees as well as drinks of cognac, rum, or whiskey. Mingled in was the smoke of a Havana cigar. The elegant crowds were wearing scent, and she smelled the classic fougère colognes of the men, as well as more floral and feminine scents on the women. All of this went into the inspiration for creating the new perfume. 

Pissara Umivijani, as many of you know, is a perfumer who grew up in Thailand, but now makes her home in Paris. Years ago she retraced the footsteps of her father, a poet laureate in Thailand, who left his native home and moved to Paris. I've lived half of my adult life in Asia, and I can smell the influence of Pissara's Thailand roots in her fragrances, admittedly some (La Douceur De Siam) more than others (Issara, Amancara). Some of that influence is subtle. For example in Splendiris, not in any way an Asian scent, there are still hints of the gentleness and quiet beauty of her country's cultural heritage. But with La Rhapsodie Noire, Ms. Umivijani has created a fragrance that is one hundred percent French and is a tribute to her adopted home of Paris. 

La Rhapsodie Noire is such a delicious scent, it's impossible to keep your wrist away from your nose for a quick inhale. It is a gourmand scent, but this is a Dusita, so it's well done and subtle.  A lot of gourmand fragrances go for the easy win, with a big rush of sugar and ultra sweet gourmand notes. La Rhapsodie Noire is infinitely more refined than this. Picture a delicate macaroon with its crisp and air-like sugar crust next to an America chocolate chip cookie. They are both delicious, but the French dessert appears delicate, light, and refined next to its American counterpart, and so it is with the gourmand aspects of La Rhapsodie Noire.

Pissara wants to set a scene of 1920s Paris, when the city was the center of art and cultural creativity. Picture the movie Midnight In Paris, with scenes of Ernest Hemingway smoking a cigar in the bar while chatting with Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald. and jazz music playing in the background. The perfume creates this world from its opening notes of coffee and rum, and the faint wisp of cigar smoke in the background. It smells  like coffee but also boozy. 

Pissara's idea was to create the scent in the fougère style. Traditionally this meant a citrus top note and then a sharp and aromatic heart, usually with lavender or geranium notes. Pissara upended this tradition by making a gourmand fougère perfume, with a sweet coffee opening, which then transitions smoothly to aromatic mid notes of clary sage and lavender. These notes come across a fresh and I get tinges of hay or wheat, so that it feels like there is a croissant or baked dessert accompanying the evening coffee. Notes of mimosa, broom, and jasmin sambac hover in the background, blended into a soft floral melange. Base notes of patchouli, vetiver, and oakmoss support the fougère structure. Then base notes of sandalwood, tonka bean, and vanilla support the more gourmand legs of the fragrance. 

Although I love the coffee and rum opening, I actually have a couple of other favorite times in the development of the perfume. I sometimes drink an Earl Grey tea with lavender, and there are moments as we move from the top to the heart of the fragrance that I get a beautiful blending of the coffee and lavender notes, and it reminds me slightly of my tea, although this is much more yummy and luxurious combination. I also love the dry down which smells like polished, burnished wood, but still infused with the gourmand scent of the coffee. This is a warm and beautiful perfume and could fulfill anyone's coffee perfume fantasy.

I took part in the launch of La Rhapsodie Noire way back in November, but diversions such as my daughter's wedding, Christmas, then a trip to Australia intervened. This was a perfume I wanted to live in for a while before I wrote a review, so here we are four months later. Although this makes a warm and cozy scent for winter, I think it will also bloom beautifully in warmer weather, which will emphasize the fresher middle notes and the warm woods in the base. 

Pissara is always inspired by her father's poetry. Here is a line from the poem she chose for La Rhapsodie Noire.

I am dancing to love in the subconscious of

every human being.  Montri Umivijani

Pissara Umivijani and Parfums Dusita have once again given perfume lovers a beautiful fragrance to contemplate!

If you are curious about the music that inspired Pissara, here it a link.

Top photo from Google image. Coffee image my own. Other images from Dusita website. Perfume was provided by Parfums Dusita. Opinions are my own.

Parfums Dusita Montri: A Loving Tribute To A Father

                                

Pissara Umivijani of Parfums Dusita introduced her thirteenth perfume in June, Montri, created to honor the memory of her father Montri Umivijani, who is considered one of Thailand's leading modern poets. Father's Day here in America seemed the perfect opportunity to talk about this perfume which is literally an olfactory encapsulation of Pissara's memories of her father, bottled into a scent. Montri is a stunningly gorgeous tribute to the man himself.

I was lucky enough to connect with Pissara Umivijani at the very beginning of her journey as a perfumer when she launched her company with three scents: Issara, Melodie de L'Amour, and Oudh Infini. One of the first things I learned when speaking to Pissara was that while creating beautiful fragrances was her passion, introducing the world to her father's poetry and keeping his words alive was just as important of a goal. Finding the perfect phrases from her father's work to illustrate a scent or being inspired by his poetry to create a perfume: it was the ultimate creative process and homage. Through her perfumes, with lines of poetry printed on each box, she keeps his legacy alive and introduces the work to a new audience. 

So central was the poetry to Parfums Dusita's raison d'être, I somehow always thought it was inevitable that Pissara would create a perfume in memory of her father. I didn't expect that it would bear his name, but I love the elegant simplicity and directness of it: Montri.

Montri Umivijani was a poet, a lover of literature, an explorer, a world wanderer. He was a lover of nature and his surroundings. Pissara says he appreciated nostalgia more than the modern world. She lovingly drew from these aspects of his life to create a perfume. He always carried a notebook to record his impressions or write poetic phrases that might strike at an moment: leather, paper, ink. Bangkok has extensive spice markets that Montri enjoyed visiting: nutmeg, saffron, coriander, cinnamon, oregano, and a dried fruit accord. Montri's family home in Bangkok was built of wood in the original style, before modern expansion destroyed so much of the city's traditional dwellings: sandalwood, cedarwood, vetiver, and oakwood. Notes of rose de mai, jasmine, and his favortie, orris butter, lend a gentle beauty to accompany the more masculine notes.

Pissara says that Montri was the first time she utilized spices to such an extent in a perfume. For Pissara, the spice notes also represent her father's love of travel to other countries and joy at making new friends in new places. 

Pissara used oud palao in Montri. In a Zoom call where Montri was introduced, Pissara said, "When people think of oud with Parfums Dusita, they always think of Oudh Infini, one of my first three creations. Oud has so many beutiful facets. Oudh Infini is just one of the dynamics. It doesn't have to be like that. Oud can be elegant, tame, and proper as well."

When describing why oud was an important component in Montri, Pissara explained, "For me this is the core of my father, gentle, elegant, kind, very rooted to nature, and sensitive to his environment. I used real oud because it comes from Southeast Asia. It is our heritage." 

Some perfumes are monotone. They always smell like they smell. And if you like it, then that's fine. What I find so interesting about Parfums Dusita's fragrances is that many of them perform as a living, morphing being on my skin. For example, the first time I tried Montri it was all about the oud. I am not a fan of the more feral ouds, but this is a finely polished thing of elegance and perfection. The next time I got leather, wrapped in florals. A leather pouch holding rose, jasmine, and a suede-like iris butter. Today it is all saffron, roses, and oud, reminding me of trips to India and women in colorful saris with kohl lined eyes and braided hair laced with roses. I chose this as the perfume my husband would wear to our daughter's wedding last week. He was handsome in a tuxedo, crisp white shirt, and black bow tie. Montri was the final polished accessory to complete his attire.

The finest perfumes are about emotions. They can bring on memories, or they can cement and solidify a memory that is in the making. The fragrance can dance on your skin and smell this way or that, according to some inner magic the body transmits. Montri is a gorgeous scent that to me seemingly transmits traits of elegance, quiet certainty, intelligence, curiosity, kindness, and immpecable manners. And there is one other emotion that stirs in me when I wear Montri, and it is longing.

The pen is me

And I am the pen:

in writing

The pen gets lost

To become part of the thing

I cannot recall --  Montri Umivijani

Montri Umivijani's lifelong passion was to write poetry. His daughter's passion is to create perfumes that portray in an olfactory manner a moment of his poetry.  Pissara puts the same energy and passion into creating a fragrance that her father put into creating words that would survive him beyond death. With Montri, Pissara adds another totally new and wholly distinctive scent to the Parfums Dusita lineup.

Photos from Parfums Dusita website. Perfume was a press sample from Parfums Dusita. Opinions are my own.

The Scent of Friendship: Dusita Anamcara

Many years ago when I lived in Singapore I took painting classes from a South African woman who lived in one of the grand old Black and White historical houses, distinguished residences surrounded by the ever intruding jungle. Although I found out I didn't have much artistic talent, that didn't lessen my enjoyment of these weekly visits. The instructor had huge wall size replicas of  several impressionist artworks, painted (and copied) in Vietnam. The painting above, Luncheon of the Boating Party, covered a whole wall near where we worked. It was painted by Pierre Auguste Renoir and he included many friends as well as his future wife in the congenial gathered group. I loved the way they all looked so happy in each other's company and the joie de vivre evident in the scene, and this illustrated the idea of friendships I wanted to achieve.

Friends became an even more important touchstone last year, when the pandemic kept many separated from loved ones. The Facebook online group, Eau My Soul, led by Christi Long, helped keep loneliness at bay those long months by bringing like-minded people together for perfume discussions. Ms. Long launched a project with input provided by the "Soulies", as they call themselves, to create a perfume that captures the scent of friendship. This was not the first time the group had launched a perfume, but this project seemed to grab the feeling of the moment and finding the perfect perfumer was imperative. Enter Pissara Umivijani of Parfums Dusita Paris. Anyone who has had dealings with Pissara has felt the warmth of her friendship and her kindness. In addition to creating stunning perfumes, she interacts very regularly with her customers on fragrance forums, always chiming in when someone asks a question about or compliments a Dusita fragrance. Customer service seems too cold a term for the interest and enjoyment she takes in knowing her customers, so she was the perfect choice. The forum members suggested notes and image ideas for the fragrance, and eventually all the ideas were turned over to Pissara who had the task of bottling friendship!

In time the perfume was created, and sample vials were sent to Soulies to inspire suggestions in naming the new creation. Anamcara was the name picked by Pissara and her team from hundereds of entries from Eau My Soul members. Anamcara is an old Gaelic term that translates to soul friend, and it speaks of a friendship between two people that is deep and without limits, and where each can show their true self. Three members came up with this name, and really hit upon the perfect descriptor for the new scent.

Pissara said there are many delays in bringing out a new fragrance, and although she knew Eau My Soul members were anxious, the perfume had to be perfect. Many months later I was lucky enough to virtually attend the September 11th introduction of Anamcara in an online presentation. Attendees were sent a box with a small bottle of Anamcara, as well as three accords which make up part of the fragrance. Pissara had asked us not to smell the accords until the Zoom call online. I happened to be in Krakow at the time Pissara presented, so in the same time zone as Paris. It was dusk where we were, but there were participants from all around the world in many different time zones.

Pissara shared with us her vision of Anamcara, the story of its creation, and most interestingly to me, she shared with us some of the famous accords she is known for that grace her scents. The first was a Tea accord, and it is has a strong fruity and juicy feeling. To me this is not a polite cup of green tea, spare and lean. It is a honeyed and warm, and I can see the reflection of the opening of Anamcara in this accord. For me, this is where the magic lies.

The second accord Pissara called Bouquet, and it is predominantly tuberose, but the softest, creamiest tuberose. All the rough edges of the flower have been smoothed out. This is like tuberose milk, if you will, and many of us agreed this would make a lovely perfume on its own. Notes of jasmine peek through and add to the sweet depth.

Last was the Rainforest accord, and it is just as special as the name sounds. Earthy, woody, grassy, with spicy nutmeg kernels, it thrums on the skin with the life of a rainforest. Pissara said she wanted to bring in the fact that animals can be a part of friendship too, and a rainforest teams with life. This is the lady who has five dogs, so she knows where of she speaks!

Pissara Umivijani and Bambi. 

 I think it is this last accord they gave me memories of her scent, Moonlight In Chiangmai. There is a moment in Moonlight that shimmers with magic and I can see a thousand lanterns lit by candles lift  into the night sky. That same magic is here, although not an exact replica of the scent note. There is just an olfactory memory in Anamcara that remind me of Moonlight In Chaiangmai. Pissara told us that there were elements of her teakwood accord that made Moonlight so special in Anamcara, and the same jasmine is used.

It was interesting as the group tried the accords and scent together, how many different experiences we had. Several mentioned strong tuberose scent on their skin, but for me the first thing I smell is honey! 

At the first spray of Anamcara on my skin there is a rush of lush honeyed orange blossom. For those who crave honey in a scent, this smells like the sappy, lush stuff that would send a bee into delirium as it buzzes around the flowers. The honey gathered from this hive would be the most eye rolling delicious orange blossom honey ever spread on a scone or toast. Honey notes can sometimes translate to a most unfortunate urine smell in perfume, but here it is honey in its natural state, as pollen dust and the sweetness from the flowers. This first rush of smell for me is almost delirious, a rich and honeyed orange blossom ambrosial in its wine-like deepness. Blood orange, which I have always found to be a "happy" note, adds to the succulence. Official notes in the opening are: blood orange, orange flower, and a freesia accord, so there actually is no honey. It is just the combination of the blood orange and orange blossom that give that effect.

Once the sweet lushness begins to lift I can smell the fruity tea, with florals dancing beneath. Pissara said she wanted to evoke the feeling of friends meeting over a cup of tea ... tea and sympathy, if you will. The ripeness of the fruity notes are now not quite as bright, but it is still an uplifting, optimistic scent which seems to give feelings of joy and happiness. The other feeling the scent evokes is comfort, and Anamcara reminds one of the feelings of comfort friendship can provide.

When I smelled this several times there was one image that kept coming to me.

Piglet recognized the value of a good cup of tea and honey when comforting his friend Pooh! Who couldn't use a friendship like these two? This is my favorite stage of the scent, but what comes next is also beautiful. Next I smell light florals on my skin and it amazing the way the perfumer is able to subdue tuberose, a flower I love but that can take over a scent fairly easily, and draw out its sweetness and softer floral side. The official notes are the tea accord with notes of peach and apricot, vanilla, rose de mai, tuberose and jasmine. At this point I do not smell one flower in particular, but rather a melange.

Finally the perfume fades to a softer scent of subtle woods -- sandalwood and cedar, as well as patchouli and vetiver. At this point the fragrance is much quieter on my skin and slightly smoky. After such an explosive start, it fades away to a whisper of fragrance in the end. 

Pissara Umivijani and the members of Eau My Soul have created a warm tribute to friendship and I have found myself craving its fragrant hug that seems to wrap you in its embrace.

Top photo Google image. Anamcara photo from Parfums Dusita website. Pooh images from Google. My own photo of Pissara Umivijani. Thank you to Parfums Dusita for the sample of Anamcara. Opinions are my own.

Parfums Dusita Cavatina: An Ode To Springtime!

  

Happy May Day! I have a confession. I have never smelled an actual fresh picked lily-of-the-valley. Like lilacs, they just don't thrive in hot Texas summers. I love lily-of-the-valley, or muguet, scent but my point of reference is the grande dame Diorissimo, and prior to that when I was too young to frequent Dior counters, a coveted bottle of Coty Muguet des Bois. 

Pissara Umivijani, founder of Parfums Dusita, just this past week introduced Cavatina, a perfume she has been working on for two years. It is in part based on the memory of someone dear to her who wore Diorissimo, but she has put her own unique and modern spin on the fragrance. Others who know a lot more about lily-of-the-valley than I do have written excellent pieces on this new creation. The only thing I can add to the conversation is my impression of Cavatina and the feelings and emotions it stirs in me.  The initial burst of scent brings a feeling of happiness and light-hearted energy.  Cavatina transports me to the joyfulness of childhood summers, and the innocence and happiness these memories evoke.

I love spring in Texas. Right now we are getting rain, some cool days mixed with the warm, and the first flush of nature's beauty, before everything starts baking in the sun and the only flowers that can survive are periwinkles and geraniums. The photo I took up top are flowers that spring up around my house and that will disappear once the days get hotter. There are roses, a wild honeysuckle that blooms in the woods behind my fence and dips over into my yard, a white spikey flower that popped up this year like a weed but smells divine. These notes are not all necessarily in Cavatina, but they replicate the feeling I get when I wear this perfume. It smells like this short time of year when my yard is delicately scented with sweet white flowers and honeyed florals. Just like La Douceur de Siam evoked memories of the many years I lived in Asia, Cavatina makes me feel footloose and fancy free. We've had rain most of the time I've been testing this, but I can't wait to wear it on a warm day for I feel it will really bloom. 

Artwork by Pissara Umivijani from her website.

Pissara spent two years blending her own lily-of-the-valley accord, and just as I found magic in her teakwood home-brewed base used in Moonlight In Chiangmai, I find that same magic here. My memories of wearing Diorissimo, which I do like but don't currently own, are that it features the beautiful lily-of-the-valley  note, which sings like a soprano  holding a high note but inevitably it eventually gently fades away. I remember it as almost a soliflore perfume, albeit a beautiful one. But from the first moment I spray Cavatina on my skin I can feel it shape shifting, whirling about like a live thing. I do smell what I understand to be the scent of lily-of-the-valley, but there is so much more.

If I was an artist, like Pissara, I would illustrate this review by first drawing myself applying the perfume. Wavy lines rising upward would indicate the perfume drifting around me, then thought bubbles would pop up of the memories and emotions the smell invoked. Chasing golden fireflies in the dusk; sweetening our tea with honeysuckle stamens; playing hide and seek, concealed under the gracefully draping branches of a delicately scented abelia bush; churning homemade ice cream and the fragrance of the vanilla when the top finally came off. All these little remembrances lay a patchwork of memories imprinted with the fragrances and golden moments that color our past. 

Pissara always uses a poem from the work of her poet father, Montri Umivijani, on each new perfume as both an inspiration as well as a tribute to her father. I can identify with this poem chosen for Cavatina maybe more than any that she has selected thus far, as it truly does describe the feeling wearing this perfume imparts. 

They sweeten by the warmth of the sun,like the human heart by loving kindness. -- Montri Umivijani

Pissara draws a lot of inspiration from vintage perfumes but always manages to put her own unique imprint on the scent. Cavatina is no exception. It seems this project is close to her heart, and if you go here to her website there is a video that explains the creative process. I really like the way she describes the notes that make up Cavatina, but for those who like lists, here they are.

Top Notes: Calabrian bergamot, Litsea Cubeba, Paraguayan Petitgrain, Exclusive Muguet Accord

Heart Notes:  Ylang-Ylang, Tuberose, Jasmine Grandiflorum, Tea Rose Accord

Base Notes: Heliotrope, Siamese Wood, Madagascar Vanilla

On my skin the perfume opens up like a ray of sunlight, a burst of happiness, uncontained and bright! If you love white flowers this will be heaven for you. The brightness of the citrus notes and  the muguet accord last for some time. After many hours wear I still smell the white flowers, but now they are quiet and laying on a bed of soft vanilla woods. Cavatina is the eleventh scent in the Dusita collection and adds a beautiful floral to the mix.

Here are two more reviews of Cavatina: 

Despina Veneti gives the definitive review of muguet scents and Cavatina here.

The Black Narcissus, otherwise known as Neil Chapman, always finds the perfect words to define any scent. Read it here. 

Top photo is my own. The other photo is from the Parfums Dusita website. I was provided with a sample by the perfumer. All opinions are my own.

 

Parfums Dusita Moonlight In Chiangmai: A Little Night Magic

 

"How do you hold a moonbeam in your hand?"

lyric from Sound of Music, Rodgers and Hammerstein

Parfums Dusita's newest release, Moonlight In Chiangmai, is an olfactory impression of standing on a hill in Northern Thailand, overlooking the city of Chiang Mai, the velvet darkness of the night partially illuminated by a luminous moon, and the sky dotted with floating golden lanterns floating toward the heavens. This was the scene envisioned by Parfums Dusita founder Pissara Umivijani when she began to create Moonlight In Chiangmai. Once a year during Yee Peng festival, rice paper lanterns are released in mass, with the hope of sending away bad fortune and ushering in good luck. There couldn't be a more fitting year to have such a ceremony, making Moonlight In Chiangmai a felicitous choice for the closing days of 2020.

Pissara Umivijani always chooses a poem of her late father, Montri Umivijani, to both inspire and illustrate her perfumed creations. The poem she choose to represent Moonlight In Chiangmai also seems very fitting for the year we have experienced, worldwide.

From the ParfumsDusita.com website.

I have worn Moonlight In Chiangmai several times and it behaves differently on my skin according to the time of day; sometimes following the scent pyramid with a bitter and tart yuzu opening, and other times rushing straight to the base, a gorgeous teakwood elixir that Pissara brewed in her studio and which is the backbone of the scent. In all honesty I found this a difficult review to write, because the perfume was like a living thing on my skin, emphasizing various aspects and different notes each time I wore it. 

When I experienced the yuzu opening (which for some strange reason happened when I applied the perfume at night), the use of yuzu gives a different aura to the fragrance than the more traditional citrus notes. When bergamot or neroli are utilized as citrus notes in a perfume it can make one picture Mediterranean seashores; this citrus, yuzu, feels more exotic and rare. I am reminded of hotel breakfast buffets in Asia with their platters of colorful and unusual fruits whose flavors veered more toward tangy and pungent, rather than sweet and familiar.

The yuzu, to me, is a more solemn citrus, less bright than orange or bergamot, and rendering the pucker of grapefruit. In addition to yuzu there is jasmine in the opening and again, I get various reactions on my skin. The first time I tried Moonlight In Chiangmai, the notes unfolded rather dramatically, and I caught a whiff of a fresh green jasmine emitting from my skin, as if lightly carried on the breeze. It was not hard to visualize golden lantern gliding silently into the dark night sky, just as delicately as the jasmine lifted off my skin. On other occasions when the scent opened with the teakwood elixir, the jasmine was more subtle in its entry, but even more highly illustrative of the idea of a brilliant lantern burning bright in a midnight sky.

www.TravelDen.co.UK

The base notes of the fragrance (which I sometimes smell right from the first spray) are Somalian Myrrh, Patchouli, Haitian Vetiver, and the special Teakwood base. Moonlight In Chiangmai has elements of a traditional men's scent in the vintage style, but for me it illuminates Pissara's special ability to imbue  a Thai or Asian strand of cohesion throughout her scents, a personal fingerprint. I particularly appreciate the vetiver in the teakwood base. It amps up the dryness of the woods, and adds a touch of both smoke and leather to the scent.

I spent the majority of my adult life in Asia, more Singapore than Thailand, but I was lucky enough to be there in the early 1990s before mass development fully took hold. There were many little Mom and Pop shops selling various paraphernalia geared towards tourists. Eventually the real estate became too valuable and two story shop houses made way for high rise skyscrapers. However the teakwood accord took me again to the back streets of Singapore in 1990, coming across a shop filled with beautifully ornate wooden cabinets featuring intricate carving and metal butterfly shaped clasps. I remember opening one of the cabinets and a scent of dry wood, smoky leather, and spice filling my senses, almost as if I had opened the door to Narnia. I didn't know at the time, but this scent was imprinted on my memory and will forever take me back to that moment, that shop, that time in Singapore.

www.parfumsdusita.com

This Asian sensibility is what I perceive in Pissara's Teakwood accord. I also got a strong sense of tobacco when I first sprayed the scent, and I sent Pissara a message: "I love Moonlight In Chiangmai, it's so beautiful. I have one question. I smell a gentle sweet tobacco scent, but tobacco is not listed. Can you tell me where I'm getting this note?"

She answered, "I don't have any tobacco in it. I have a teak wood accord and that can be interpreted in different ways. I blend patchouli from Indonesia, sandalwood, cedarwood, and vetiver. Vetiver can be interpreted to be like tobacco leaf. I also have a little bit of benzoin from Siam, a little bit of labdanum, so you see the kind of ambery woody ingredient with a hint of smoky wood."

I get a strong sense of leathery tobacco leaf, and I was reminded of  cherry tobacco from a pipe. This could be from the myrrh, as it can throw fruity aspects, usually plum or fig. Fig or other subtle dried fruit were other possible interpretations I thought of, along with the cherry tobacco impression. I believe it may be the myrrh which gives that certain fragrance that I interpret as "Asian woods", an oily, slightly medicinal tinge as well as a dryness and slight spiciness. 

Now back to the words with which I started this review. I sprayed the sample Pissara generously sent me (after the first package she sent disappeared--there is a package thief somewhere out there that smells very good ). That first time it was wood note forward, so I had this beautiful teakwood elixir with elements that so strongly reminded me of Asia, but also tobacco, leather, light resins, and then came this shaft of light (yuzu) and a gossamer trail of the lightest most delicate jasmine. The whole thing was magic, and that is when the words to the old song from the movie The Sound of Music popped into my head -- "How do you hold a moonbeam in your hand?". With Moonlight In Chiangmai, Pissara harnesses a bit of the magic that takes place over the inky black skies over Chiangmai once every year during Yee Peng, when thousands of lanterns silently illuminate the skies.

I recommend you go to this link and see the wonderful presentation and short (24 second) film that team Dusita has prepared for the launch of Moonlight In Chiangmai. It shows a little of the beauty of this city that inspired Pissara to create the scent and it is illustrated with some of her lovely hand drawn images. I am a big believer in intention and purpose. There are some perfumers who use crystals to infuse their scents with positivity and certain power. Pissara is such a lovely and positive person, and I truly feel she is able to blend that serene quality and beauty into the fragrances she creates.

Moonlight In Chiangmai was made with the intention of having another scent in the Parfums Dusita lineup geared for the male buyer, but it is truly unisex and can be happily worn by anyone. Pissara told me to be sure and try the scent on male skin, but my husband is away and not here for two more days. If I notice many differences when he tries it I will update here later.  

THANKS TO THE GENEROSITY OF PARFUMS DUSITA, I HAVE TWO SAMPLES TO GIVE AWAY TO USA-BASED READERS. Apologies that I can't afford to send internationally but if you are a USA reader either leave a comment in the comment section here (it won't immediately show up as I have to allow comments) or comment on The Fragrant Journey facebook page. If you comment here could you check back to see if you are a winner or message me your Facebook profile link or email so I can reach out? I WILL SELECT WINNERS ON SUNDAY NOVEMBER 29, A WEEK FROM TODAY.

The top photo is from the Chiang Rai Times, and is actually a picture of Chiang Rai, not Chiang Mai, used for artistic purposes! Thank you to Parfums Dusita for the sample of  Moonlight In Chiang Mai. 

Serenity Now: Parfums Dusita Le Pavillon D'Or

If you've read my most recent posts, I mentioned that 2019 was not the easiest year. My hope for 2020 is a year of serenity and spending time with those things that give me happiness and optimism. There is no better perfumer than Pissara Umavijani to reflect these qualities, and no better perfume with which to christen the new year than her newest, Le Pavillon d'Or.

Ms. Umavijani goes to a contemplative and serene place with this newest introduction. She again uses one of the poems of her father, Montri Umavijani, who was a lauded poet in Thailand, as an inspirational springboard to interpret into scent. She states that Le Pavillon d'Or was "inspired by a very human quest for happiness and inner peace," and "to evoke the sheer joy of serene self-confidence and peace of mind." 

When a perfumer chooses to illustrate a color, in this case gold, it is always interesting to see their interpretation. Previous incarnations of perfumes with the name gold have often chosen the path of glitz and glitter, big and bold for a wow effect. Ms. Umavijani takes Le Pavillon d'Or in the opposite direction, choosing to illustrate gold as a more precious thing, softly glowing and fine.  I have read that Ms. Umavijani was inspired by three lakes and the feeling of contentment they gave her. Here, gold is not measured in dollars and cents, but as the highest quality of  tranquility one can achieve when finding happiness in non tangibles and inner contentment. Ms. Umavijani has chosen to make a perfume to represent happiness and inner-peace, or as expressed in one of her father's poems:

To be able to live more happily in just any confinement." Montri Umavijani

When I first read in other reviews that Le Pavillon d'Or opened with notes of mint and honeysuckle, I admit I was a bit confounded. Mint didn't fit into my mental image of what gold should "smell" like. But this is not the mint that I pluck from my garden to flavor my ice tea. This is actually wild menthe citrata, of which I knew absolutely nothing. Just as when I wrote a review on Erawan I had to research one of the ingredients, liatris, it was the same here. Menthe citrata is a hybrid of mentha aquatica, which is found in waterways. Did Ms Umavijani smell this plant as she sat beside the lake or did she pick it specifically for its properties?

In any case, it seems she found the perfect note to cast this spell of well-being. Wild menthe citrata, also called bergamot mint, is described as a complex and uplifting fragrance. The Philbee Aromatics website describes the process of collecting the mint to make a distillation as "a completely uplifting experience", and Hermitage Oils website gives this effusive recommendation of the oil: "The aroma is simply divine,...this material is bright, cheerful, uplifting, inspiring, clean and refreshing." I go on about this note only because it was not the scent I expected from something in the mint family. It's not the mint of chewing gum but appears as a wet green scent throwing herbal aspects, intertwined with a slight mint aroma for lift.

The mint and a honeysuckle extrait combine for an altogether sweetly seductive opening, a smell that demands the release of tensions and is calming to the mind. But I would be remiss if I didn't mention what to me is the bedrock of the fragrance, notes of orris root, fig leaf, and a slightly powdery note that feels green or yellow, but never like white powder. These notes hum quietly in the background, and the featured notes dance in and out, adding interesting facets. The orris note is not as evident to me, it gives an austere woody note which is subdued on my skin. The fig leaf is more evident with a sweet green scent, supporting the herbal notes. The powdery note was the most interesting to me, because it made me picture floaty yellow mimosa blossoms; this is not a face powder scent. To my knowledge there is no mimosa in this perfume, so this powdery note must be influenced by all the green notes in Le Pavillon d'Or. 

Pinterest Image

Then we get to the heart notes. Baronia, a rare and expensive absolute in perfumery, adds rich fruity floral notes. What I find most intriguing is the addition of Frankincense Green Sacra. Again, I had to research how this differed from the frankincense I was accustomed to smelling in perfumes, and again I found effusive prose as to the positive mind bending aura cast by this ingredient. Nature's Gift, a supplier of oils, describes frankincense green sacra in this way: "Green sacara is a lighthearted delight, full of sunlight and sky. It is the happiest of our frankincense oils." The scent of this oil is described as having aspects of resinous honey, candied lemons, and sweet amber infused with wood and floral notes."

Again, Ms. Umavijani has utilized a note prized for its rich and uplifting smell as well as its mood boosting effects. White thyme oil adds delicate herbal nuance to the scent and is also prized for it's calming nature. Eventually, hours later, the scent drifts into soft notes of rum-spiked vanilla and sandalwood, like sinking into a plush feather bed.

Out of all the scents Ms. Umavijani has created, this is the one that most reminds me of her outer persona. Since she came on the fragrance scene in 2016, Ms. Umavijani has reached out to her customers and even small bloggers like me. In all her dealings she shows herself to be kind and thoughtul, and as beautiful on the inside as out. To me Le Pavillon d'Or portrays in scented form this  grace and beauty. It seems that 2020 has debuted with a lot of outward clamour. With Le Pavillon d'Or you can for a time drift in a world as soft and muted as one of the tender watercolors Ms. Umavijani paints to illustrate her various perfumes.

I find that as time goes on Ms. Umavijani's perfumes are becoming more nuanced, more layered, more surprising. I eagerly await the next. And I think that in 2020 there are going to be more than a few days that I will anoint myself in this veil of calm to breathe in its beauty and remember— it is the precious moments in life that are truly gold.

The whole time I was trying to describe the perfume in words, this song which is one of my favorites, kept drifting into my mind. It's more than the lyrics of "fields of gold", it's the tender, beautiful mood the song sets that remind me of Le Pavillon d'Or. Enjoy!



Photos from www.ParfumsDusita.com, you tube, pinterest. Thank you to Pissara Umavijani for my perfume sample.

Parfums Dusita Erawan

January is for many a month to press reset, a time to define goals, detox the body, simplify or declutter living spaces. In other words it is a time to start afresh after what may have been a holiday season of excess. Erawan by Parfums Dusita strikes me as the perfect perfume to accompany you on these tasks.

Erawan is Pissara Umavijani's scented tribute to Erawan the elephant god of historic Thai myths, as well as Erawan National Park, home to beautiful cascading waterfalls. The Erawan of Hindu mythology is the mount of the god Indra. Together they ride across the heavens and bring rain clouds and lightening which results in life-giving rain. An area northwest of Bangkok in Kanchanaburi Province is the location of Erawan National Park and Erawan Falls with its seven tiers of falls and pools. It is located in a lush green area surrounded by rainforests. Erawan the perfume captures these colors and sensations: the green of the forest, the freshness of the pooling waters, and the sense of calm that a day communing with nature imparts.

Just before the close of 2018 I read an announcement that Erawan won "The Breakthrough of the Year" Prize at FIFI Russia. This was a gentle reminder that I have been meaning to write about this perfume ever since I sprayed it all over myself when visiting Pissara Umavijani at Parfums Dusita in Paris back in July, and consequently spent the rest of the day in a perfumed cloud of blissfulness.

It is a good thing no one asked me to name the perfume for I would have called it Serenity, a truly descriptive depiction of the scent but not nearly as evocative of a name as Erawan. For me wearing  Erawan is like a visit to a day spa, cocooned in a robe and turban, soothing music, mellow lighting and a therapeutic head massage. The day in Paris when I doused myself in Erawan, I walked in a happy cloud of calm, and neither getting lost five times or long ticket lines were able to shake that cool equilibrium.

How is this achieved? First there is a distinctive note of hay and tobacco. It is strong and very identifiable, but very quickly green notes enter and soften the scent. Clary sage gives a herbal/green scent and as other notes start to emerge I find this scent is very distinctive with notes that aren't easily identified. Petitgrain Paraguay adds a herbaceous and floral touch. Soft lily of the valley gives the impression of clear pools of spring water. This is a whisper of floral, a very soft and subtle interpretation of the muguet note. Gradually notes of vanilla lend a creamy texture to Erawan, and notes of oakmoss and vetiver give it a slightly smokey, earthy vibe which gives it a masculine touch.

Liatris, or deers tounge, was the mystery ingredient for me. I looked it up and courmain liatris as is used in Erawan gives off a herbaceous and sometimes balsamic note and can resemble tonka. It also enhances the smell of green hay and forest notes and is used in fougeres, chypres and oriental perfumes. There was something in the green creaminess that slightly reminded me of another perfume in my collection and I finally realized it is DSH Perfumes Celadon. Although they smell differently overall, they both share this creamy green aspect and sure enough latrix (or latris) is listed as an ingredient in both, leading me to conclude that this dusty vanilla/tonka aura may come from the latris/latrix note.

When I visited Parfums Dusita in Paris this last summer I talked with Pissara about the creation of Erawan. I asked if she started out wanting to make a perfume about the legend of Erawan, the Thai name for the elephant god, or did the notes come together first.

"For Erawan, it came from the idea that I wanted to express the natural forest with a masculine touch," said Pissara. "At the same moment I listened to the material and I realized that there is a petit grain that really had this masculine but soft presence; there is an aspect that is a fougere structure. The clary sage is similar to that I use for Issara. I did many formulations. I gave myself this charter, to make it softly masculine, but I tried different styles. I did one extremely smokey formula, then I went to this formulation and realized it is something that I like. After that I thought, this perfume should be like Erawan, because of the Erawan waterfall in Thailand. It's always a name I personally relate to because I lived near the Erawan shrine in Bangkok. After that I chose the poetry from my father."

I did not know how I got there,
I walked through an autumn wood,
It was wonderful how I 
Journeyed into the light. 
- Montri Umavijani

"My father talked about walking the transition of life. After I chose the poetry I imagined that this poetry can relate to the elephant Erawan, and the forest."

When Pissara introduced Erawan last year she wrote, "The perfume Erawan, will I feel appeal to both women and men, with its sunny, slightly earthy and woody fragrance, similar to a fougere style. What is sure is that a large percentage of the men to whom I have presented it have loved it."

What I find most appealing about Erawan is the calming green hay notes that persist through the life of the perfume on my skin. It is a calming scent that hearkens to the comforting grains that have nostalgic memories of cereals and comfort food. This is combined with a very mellow green that feels like you are breathing in nature's scents. Like Issara, it brings images of a walk through a woods, but for me Issara is a trek through piney woods and Erawan is a natural rainforest with pools of clear water nearby. Both are soothing and offer the comfort of a return to nature that I think is wired into our DNA. With the introduction of Erawan, Parfums Dusita has added another totally distinctive fragrance to the brand.

Photos of waterfalls and elephants show Erawan National Park and are from www.ThaiNationalParks.com. The perfume sample was generously provided by Parfums Dusita. The opinions are my own. 

Travels In France, Part Six: A Visit With Parfums Dusita's Pissara Umivijani and Fleur de Lalita Review

Searching out Pissara Umivijani's new shop in Paris, one strolls through some of the finest real estate in the world. The shop is in the coveted First Arrondissement 75001 which is less than three quarters of a square mile in area, but when viewed on a map of Paris looks like the beating heart in the center of the city. The Louvre Museum and the Tuileries Gardens take up the majority of the land but Rue de Rivoli and Place Vendome are dotted with designer boutiques, opulent hotels, and trendy restaurants. There is a lot of hustle and bustle in this area thronging with tourists, but just a few steps away is a little side street called Rue de la Sourdiere. When you enter it you are immersed in quiet and calm as if the thrumming vibe of the city doesn't exist. About halfway down the street you will come to the welcoming site of the  Parfums Dusita boutique.

I arrived before Pissara for our appointment and spent some time chatting with one of her friendly interns who is in Paris to attend perfume school himself. I have chatted online with Pissara a few times and watched some of her live videos, so when she swept through the door way, clutching beloved Bambi against her chest and offering apologies for my wait, it seemed more like greeting a friend rather than a first time meeting.

A great place for a sack lunch, a short stroll from Parfums Dusita is Jardin des Tuileries.

Q:  Tell me what led you to want to open a shop. Was that desire always there?
A:  Actually, it's always a dream for me since the beginning, but I haven't talked about it because it was kind of ambitious.  It is a dream, I believe, of any brand to have its own place to welcome people. I always looked to be where clients can read the poetry of my father and really see the world of Dusita.

Q:  You are in the neighborhood. Was it hard to get here because this is probably for a perfumer to arrive in Arrondissement 1, the dream. 
A:  I always dream of this area. Actually we were looking at different places like Le Marais and a bit further down from here but we have to think of our budget. Actually this place was a bit of luck. I wanted this place but there was already a contract. At the last minute it became available and the agent called me and I said I would like to take it immediately. I had no doubt whether I should do it or not. That street (Pissara points to the intersection down the street) is extremely expensive but because this street is quiet it is a little affordable.

Q:  In addition to selling your perfumes here do you have any ideas of how you want to use the space?
A:  Yes, I want to make the atelier. I want to have workshops where people can join me in perfume creation or just the studying of materials. We are setting up workshops and courses for people who just want to enjoy two or three hours, and  then master classes.
***As I write this, it looks like Parfums Dusita has just hosted their first class for Perfumery Club Russia, according to the Facebook page. 

***Here on my recording there is a ten minute session where I talk about my dog, Buffy, who I've left back in the States, and Pissara tells me the story of Bambi and how she comes to the shop everyday!***

Bambi, in Paris.

Buffy, not in Paris

Q:  I love the cards with your drawings for each perfume. Did you study art?
A:  No! When I started the brand at first I asked my friend to do illustrations but eventually I realized the difficulty of interpreting the perfume; the color, the shade, and what kind of media. Then I did it myself. It's very fun for me to interpret. 

Pissara's artwork for Fleur de Lalita.

Q: You have two newish perfumes, Fleur de Lalita and Erawan. Were you working on them at the same time.
A:  Yes, around the same period. I had Le Douceur de Siam. This one is the traditional refined two-hundred years ago Thai woman. Fleur de Lalita has a very different kind of feeling. She is dynamic, creative, modern type of girl. The energy of the florals is different. This one (FDL) is a young girl. This is the most youthful perfume in the collection. Le Douceur is more elegant, refined. 

Q:  To me, maybe because of your father's poetry, most of your perfumes have in some way tied back to your Thai roots. Will this trend continue?
A:  I think so. The perfumes are linked to the poetic world of my father and his voyage. He traveled but he doesn't forget his roots. The second thing is my love for vintage perfumes, like L'Heure Bleue by Guerlain. 

Pissara Umivijani in her shop.

Q:  Are you thinking of adding a new perfume to your line?

A:  You see in the past I release two perfumes at a time. From now on I will release only one per year, as I have a lot already. Right now I am thinking about my childhood memory that relates to my father. It is Bangkok many years ago, let's say in the 70's, when I found Bangkok a very charming place to be. It has changed so much. In the old days it was a really charming time. 

Q:  Do you consider yourself a Parisian now that you have a shop here?
A:  I think I will be settled here long term because of my shop. I feel very at home here but connected to my Thai roots. 

Q:  I first talked with you when you were just starting out. I think the general consensus was that you were such a talented marketeer, creating such a buzz for your new brand. You just came out of nowhere and then were being talked about everywhere. Of course that wouldn't have happened had the perfumes not been good.
A:  I was lucky. The thing nobody knew was that the first year, my samples that I sent out, ninety percent of them the bottles leaked. I had 3000 of them and I had to replace and resend many. We learned from many mistakes! I'm happy to tell you that I looked forward to meeting you because from the beginning I knew you and thank you so much. 

Q:  Thank you! I can remember that you wrote on Facebook Fragrance Friends about Issara, and I wrote to you that this perfume reminded me of scents of a trip I had recently taken to Turkey. You then sent me your first three perfumes, which I wrote about.
A:  Yes, I remember. I think you were the first person who interviewed me.

Q:  Was I?
A:  Yes, you sent me questions in the email and I was really happy. This time seems like yesterday to me but since then so many things have happened. It's only two years ago.

In two short years Pissara Umavijani has founded her perfume line and now opened an atelier in the most fashionable area of Paris. Talk about achieving your goals! I can't wait to see what is yet to come for Parfums Dusita.

 Fleur de Lalita 

Pinterest Image

Fleur De Lalita was released in 2017 and was another beautiful addition to the pure florals in the Parfums Dusita line, which includes La Douceur de Siam and Melodie de L'Amour. The Dusita website describes the opening as a "breath-taking floral profusion" comprised of Rose de Mai from Grasse, Magnolia Absolute, Jasmine Graniflora, and Lilium Candidum Absolute, which I know as the Madonna Lily. I am pleased that on my skin the first note I get the most strongly is magnolia. I find this is a white flower that I less frequently come across in perfume. It reminds me a little of the gardenia, with its creaminess and slight hint of lemon but it is less voluptuous than its sister flower. Gardenia is all about showiness and look at me in all my gorgeousness. Magnolia breathes with a quiet innocence. The potential for the white-flower seductiveness is there, but is not yet fully recognized. The opening was a wet languidness that speaks of Thailand or Asian climate, but as a Southerner in the States, it brought to my mind images of girls in white dresses in front of southern mansions on grounds with majestic old oaks draped in moss, the salinity and humidity from the nearby bayou making its presence felt. Here is one of the most memorialized Southern Belles of all time, Scarlett O'Hara in Gone With the Wind. 

Google Image

But just as the Scarlett character was more complex than the sweet young thing she was supposed to present herself as to land a husband, Fleur de Lalita has more to come. Notes of jasmine with her flirty touch of indolics prick the prim perfection of the magnolia. Very fleeting hints of lily add a certain sweetness while ramping up the profusion of white flowers. I don't actually get much rose, and I picture it as more of a white rose, without the richness and strong rose scent that I identify with red roses. The feeling of moisture and humid florals persists, lending a languorous haziness.

www.BurnettsBoards.com

The opening is full of white flowers but it also features galbanum. Pissara has used galbanum in some of her other perfumes and it is a note I think of as being more present in vintage perfumes, and perhaps this is part of her attachment to it. In green-type perfumes galbanum can take over and steer the perfume's course but here is is used for a light uplifting note as well as adding a little earthiness. Other reviewers have mentioned a smokiness to the galbanum but to me it reinforces my imagining a white columned mansion surrounded by oaks draped in moss, the green and the moss adding a very subtle funk and verdant air.

www.eatsleepplayBeaufort.com

There is a heart note of ambrette seed that adds a musky animalic aura to Fleur de Lalita. I also get flicks of nutty sweetness and balsamic references which I'm going to credit to the ambrette seed. Later the white floral notes fade. The galbanum is present but also fading. The scent becomes a fuzzy musky base with notes of vanilla, tonka bean, and ambergris. The vanilla and tonka bean are very muddled and muted on my skin; it is the ambergris which I smell the most with its musky, earthy aroma. With Fleur de Lalita Parfums Dusita once again gives us a memorable and beautiful perfume to savor with its refined French style but a nod to Pissara Umivijani's Thailand roots.

To read more about Pissara and her perfumes on The Fragrant Journey go here, here, and here.

To see Pissara and catch a glimpse of her charming personality go here for an interview at Pitti 2018 featured on the blog Cafleurebon. (Scroll to the bottom and watch the YouTube interview, she's first).

To read more about my perfumed travels in France, start here.

A very big thank you to Pissara Umivijani of Parfums Dusita for hosting me in her shop and for the opportunity to try her new perfums!

All photos not credited are my own.