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Urban Lily


Day 374: Lily of the Valley, originally uploaded by amanky.

Many great perfumers have attempted to re-create the scent of Lily of the Valley, a modest looking white flower that in fact does not belong to the lily family at all. Unlike the showy flowers of the true lily, Lily of the Valley bows to her own green leaves with its little bells of white, as if to conceal itself from sight even further.

For those looking for a Lily of the Valley perfume, I will share that my search came to end an before it even began – one of the first perfumes I’ve ever worn is Diorissimo by Edmond Roudnitska. I did not know what lily of the valley is or how it smells, but this perfume captured my heart on first sniff. In my mind, there is yet a lily of the valley perfume that comes even close to it’s precise and haunting beauty. Like the gowns from the couturier it was created for, its strict structure creates an illusion of freedom and eternity.

But just because I have already found a Lily of the Valley to my heart’s desire does not stop me from curiously trying other attempts, the latest one being Urban Lily by Strange Invisible perfumes. The perfumer here had the added challenge of not being able to use any of the essential molecules for replicating this unique scent for replicating this unique scent. Instead, perfumer Alexandra Balahoutis uses the sharp greenness of galbanum and the raw-earthy carrot-seed & iris notes to create that crystal-clear charm of the lily bells, and underlines it with sultry notes of narcissus, jasmine and vegetal musk. I think I'm also noticing a touch of lotus... It is neither as accurate nor as clean as most lily of the valley fragrances tend to be, but I find it intriguing, nevertheless. And I like it's abstract and less than straightforward botanical feel.

Hanami Exhibition @ Blunda - More Photos

These are photos by Andre' Schnyder, an artist and photographer and Persephenie's partner:

Me and the perfume display.

Guests at the Blunda Perfume Lounge. Everything here is comfortable and smells good, naturally.


Persephenie's perfume organ can be seen on the wall, and on the counter below there is the whole spread of the afternoon tea treats we made. From left to right:
- my 3 perfumed teas (Charisma, Immortelle l'Amour, Roses et Chocolat)
- tea sandwiches (cucumber & watercress, carrot & ginger and minted radishes) - recipes to follow
- Sakuramochi (from the Japanese market) - the special pastry for Girl's day and the Hanami aka flower viewing festival)
- White Potion & Guilt chocolate truffles that Persephenie, Maribel and I rolled the day before.
And there were even sakura branches from the nearby flowershop to decorate the table!

Getting ready for the presentation...

I'm sniffing the Hanami scent-strip fan (my demo included a breakdown of the notes for hanami, divided into accords - i.e. metallic wood accord, Sakura accord, etc. - and the perfume's structure - i.e. base, heart & top.


The Hanami banner is so big. Or maybe I'm just really tiny... It's all relative.


Some favourite shots of Persephenie & me:




And last but not least - with back-lit cherry blossom branches:



Hanami Perfume Launch @ Blunda Natural Botanical Perfume Exhibition #2

The exhibition at Blunda was great, meeting lots of passionate perfume people. The following posts are mostly photos as I'm too tired to write and need to do a lot tomorrow before flying back to Vancouver. I have a feeling this is not going to be my last time in California though - this place rocks! The people, the food, the sun, the perfumes - it really feels like the centre of it all. I hope the rest of the series will be very successful for Blunda and the other perfumers.

THE PRESENTATION


Hanami Perfume Launch @ Blunda Natural Botanical Perfume Exhibition #2, originally uploaded by Ayala Moriel.

In the presentation, I spoke about the creative as well as technical process of creating Hanami.
Selecting the notes - wet woody notes for the base, and the sakura accord for the heart. Using scent strips, I demonstrated how each notes stands out on its own with its unique characteristics. And than showed how they combined together to create Hanami.
I also talked about the inspiration, and how I finally arrived at selecting the name.

THE FOOD

Sakura Mochi, originally uploaded by Ayala Moriel.

Hanami Flower Arrangements, originally uploaded by Ayala Moriel.

We served all three perfume teas (Charisma, Roses et Chocolat & Immortelle l'Amour) and afternoon tea treats, including Sakura Mochi, perfumed chocolate truffles and fresh tea sandwiches the Maribel & I made that morning - cucumber & watercress, minted radishes and carrot-ginger (all with cream cheese).


The Truffles!, originally uploaded by Ayala Moriel.

We made 2 perfumed chocolate truffles - White Potion and Guilt. White Potion really complements the sakura accord in Hanami as it was made with both magnolia and tuberose. The almond essence kind of mimics the coumarin notes of tonka (which is really not good for consumption use).


THE PEOPLE
Andre', Persephenie's husband and business parter, who took photos of the event (I'm sure his turned better than mine - look at that camera!).

Andre', originally uploaded by Ayala Moriel.

Persephenie talking to a guest at the exhibition. In the background is her incredible collection of natural essences - a perfumer's organ arranged on the shelves.

Persephenie & Janet, originally uploaded by Ayala Moriel.

Maribel, Persephenie's assistant who was more helpful than I can even begin to tell. And very sweet too!

Maribel, originally uploaded by Ayala Moriel.

Maribel helping Janna at the perfume lounge area in the store front.

Janna & Maribel, originally uploaded by Ayala Moriel.

Andre' and a friend in front of Blunda

Outside Blunda - Andre' & Friend, originally uploaded by Ayala Moriel.

One of the guest sniffing away after everyone else is gone...

Sniffing away..., originally uploaded by Ayala Moriel.

Hanami: New Perfume from Ayala Moriel

Hanami Brings Together Poetry, Photography & Perfume at Blunda’s Natural Botanical Perfume Exhibition No. 2, April 18th 2009

April 14th, Los Angeles, CA & Vancouver, BC. In a unique exhibition of perfumery, poetry and photography, Ayala Moriel Parfums releases her newest perfume Hanami. Inspired by a poem by Ezra Pound, Hanami is a sophisticated interpretation of flower viewing in an urban landscape.

It all started with a poem: In March 2008, perfumer Ayala Sender was invited along with 14 other leading perfumers in the niche perfume industry to interpret a haiku-like poem by Ezra Pound, “In A Station of the Metro” for a project titled “Perfume In A Poem” Memory & Desire blog. One year later, Ayala Moriel releases the perfume at Bluda Aromatics in Los Angeles, in the 2nd of their 8-part Natural Botanical Perfume Exhibitions.

“As I was reading the poem, I envisioned a perfume that is subtle and urbane: flowers and dusty dirt”, says Ayala. She drew on her olfactory experiences in the metro stations in New York and Montreal, and the cherry blossom boulevard in Burrard SkyTrain station, which is the heart of the Cherry Blossom Festival (Hanami) in Vancouver.

“The challenge was to create the feel of concrete, asphalt and metallic surroundings using natural aromatics only”, says Ms. Sender, who used Haitian vetiver, cabreuva oil, French Cassie and Oleander to create the feel of metal, wet wood and concrete. These serve as a backdrop for the cheerful lightweight floral notes of sakura, mimosa and magnolia, creating a perfume that is ever changing, ranging from “sweet floral notes in the sunshine to cool dampness of concrete and steel”.


The exhibition at Blunda allows guests to experience Hanami with all their senses: you will experience the perfume, enjoy perfumed tea and chocolate truffles made by the perfumer; and view original photography of cherry blossoms that inspired the perfume. At 2pm, the perfumer will present the different notes of Hanami and demonstrate how the perfume was conceived and constructed. The presentation will be followed by Q & A.

Persephenie Snyder, the curator of the exhibitions and founder of Blunda Aromatics in Los Angeles wanted to present natural perfumery as an art form. “Perfumery, like painting, gives you freedom to go in many different directions”, says Persephenie. “the natural botanical perfumers’ scented organ offers materials with diverse qualities (…) and a supreme authenticity and richness which needs to be understood in order to appropriately work with the materials”.. Persephenie will be hosting 7 other perfumers in the Blunda Natural Botanical Exhibitions. Each exhibition focuses on one perfume artist and their body of work, and allows for interaction with the perfumer and their aromatic creations in various mediums.

What:
Natural Botanical Perfumery Exhibition #2: Hanami by Ayala Moriel

When:
Saturday, April 18th, 1-5pm
Ayala Sender will speak at 2pm

Where:
Blunda Los Angeles
304 South Edinburgh Ave.
Los Angeles, CA, 90048
RSVP: (323) 658-7507 or email: rsvp@blundaaromatics.com

Following the exhibition, Hanami perfume will be available exclusively through Blunda and Ayala Moriel’s studio @ #314-1230 Haro Street in Vancouver, and the online boutique www.ayalamoriel.com

For media inquiries contact:
Ayala Sender
(778) 863-0806
ayala@ayalamoriel.com


ABOUT THE PERFUMER
Ayala Sender, the Nose behind Ayala Moriel Parfums creates perfumes that are inspired by her deepest emotions and memories from her childhood landscapes of the Mediterranean. “My art stems from my love and longing for the Mediterranean natural and cultural landscape”, Ayala says, “It is strongly rooted in those ancient and colourful aromatic traditions”.

Born in Montreal and raised in Israel, Ms. Sender’s work is influenced by her eclectic background in fine art, music, philosophy, psychology and education. “Perfumery is my means for self expression, and where all my interest integrate into a beautiful whole” says Ayala. “My perfumes tell a story. They capture a moment in time, an emotion, a memory, and entice you into their world”. Combined with an intuitive understanding of each individual’s need for self expression through personalized fragrance, Ayala creates customized Signature Perfumes as well as ready-to-wear perfumes. “My perfumes have their own personality and evolve with time almost like real living people” tells Ayala. “When I make a perfume for a person, I help them to translate who they are into a beautiful perfume that is as complex and multi-faceted as they are”.

ABOUT BLUNDA
Blunda means “ to close one’s eyes“ in Swedish. Blunda Aromatics specializes in a wide range of Natural Botanical Perfumes, Essential Oil Pharmacopeia, Exotic Perfume Materials, Education, and Collectible Treasures. Blunda’s founder, Persephenie Synder, is a certified aromatherapist, perfumer and a visual artist. The studio offers classes and workshops in natural perfumery, aromatherapy, candle and incense making and more. The studio store offers select lines of renowned natural perfumers and rare essences from around the world.

The Lovely Collection

I just caught a sniff of Sarah Jessica Parker's new fragrance trio, that has just arrived to Shoppers Drug Mart in Canada.
The three fragrances are called Dawn, Twilight and Endless - and each is said to be inspired by lovely moments in SJP's life.

After the disappointment of Covet (original, but not something I would want to wear) and Covet Pure Bloom (which smells too much like others) I have to say I was surprisingly impressed with this collection, and with Twilight in particular.

My very initial reactions, based only on a paper application are:
Dawn smells like freshly cleaned and dried laundry. I still am not sure if it smells like the laundry detergent or dryer sheets or both.
Twilight is a sheer amber, and very similar to Ambre Fetiche (Annick Goutal) and in a way is what one might have hoped to get out of the solid perfume of Stella in 2 Amber.
Endless was a nice and a fruity floral on the more interesting side. It was crips rather than sweet.

All three deserve a skin test, and I am hoping to do this very soon and post more thorough impression of their evolution on my skin.
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