Perfume In A Poem, March 2008: 15 perfumers were invited by Memory & Desire blog editor Heather Ettlinger to interpret one poem. Hanami is my contribution to the project. And although it refers to the Japanese tradition of flower viewing, it is really about the contrast of the botanical and the urbane; between real life and still-life.

Some of out most accurate feelings can be defined by tactile everyday details: Hot pavement in humid New York City; The liberating sense of anonymity in Montreal’s dusty Metro; The surprising blooming cherry boulevard above Burrard SkyTrain station, washed out by the Vancouver rain; Almond blossoms wasted in the dusty desert wind like wilted butterfly wings.

I wanted this perfume to be subtle and urban, floral but also dusty-dirty. The kind of dirt you wash from your hair after commuting back from work in the Metro, your clothes and skin contaminated with the lives of strangers and passers by. And for a moment you give away a part of yourself just so that you can return back home…

I want this perfume to randomly create an ever-changing, estranged impression on the beings that weave in and out of its presence… And the notes I chose to spell this emotional haiku are:

Top notes: Cabreuva, Frangipani, Mimosa, Rosewood

Heart notes: Pink Lotus, Magnolia, Tuberose, Violet Leaf, Oleander

Base notes: Haitian Vetiver, Tonka Bean, Cassie, Siamwood, Vanilla CO2, Copaiba Balsam, Bakul Attar

Hanami is now available online, just in time for the Hanami season which spans from end of March to beginning of April (varying with location and weather). Cherry blossom are hesitatingly opening up to the doubtful spring air in Vancouver, while in Japan they are at the peak.