Thursday, August 22, 2013

My Vanilla

Smoke Gets In Your Eyes by Gemma Maree
Smoke Gets In Your Eyes, a photo by Gemma Maree on Flickr.
Anna Zworykina Perfumes' My Vanilla is a juicy bundle of cured vanilla beans whose sweetness is cut by green lentsicus leaves and smouldering incense. Through the thick smoke you can feel an exotic sweetness that is surprisingly floral - not at all gourmand as one would expect from anything containing "vanilla" in its title. It is spicy, exotic, narcotic. While I can see how vanilla migh`t have been a starting point for this fragrance - the result is not vanilla-dominated. Rather, it is a voluptuous oriental, influenced by the bombastic nature of Shalimar: burnt sugar and sweet spices are balanced with intensely smoky and slightly animalic choya nakh (destructive distillation of seashells) smoky-woody cedar to counterpoint the sweetness and pastry association, and perfumed with indolic jasmine and buttery orris and tonka beans. A very interesting addition to my gradually growing list of favourite all-natural perfumes. At first, My Vanilla has a strong, almost heavy presence - yet is utterly enjoyable to wear. The kind of scent that requires a special occasion. But of course like a good oriental, it fades into the softest, sweet whisper of vanilla.

Top notes: Virginia Cedarwood, Black Pepper, Cardamom, Mastic
Heart notes: Jasmine, Champaca, Orange Blossom, Orris Root, Cloves, Nutmeg
Base notes: Vanilla Absolute, Vanilla CO2, Vanilla Extract, Choya Loban, Tonka Bean, Opoponax

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2 Comments:

At August 25, 2013 2:57 AM, Blogger Anna Zworykina said...

Vanilla is one of my favorites spices in the kitchen. But in perfumes it's character move away from gourmand. In my mind vanilla is not about cookies, it's about travels, sea, may be even pirate ride. So, I create this anti-gourmand My vanilla.
For top notes I take galbanum, choya loban, black pepper, juniper berry, frankincense and elemi. For the heart - fleurdorange, jasmin, codistillate of champaca and vetiver, clove, nutmeg, cardamon, cumin (perfect pair for vanilla) orris and Guajac wood. In base - yes, three different vanilla extracts: co2, tincture and absolute, tonka bean, cedar, vetiver, agarwood.

 
At August 26, 2013 1:29 AM, Blogger Ayala Moriel said...

Dear Anna,
How wonderful to have a direct dialogue about your lovely creations here on SmellyBlog!
My Vanilla is mysterious and original. A very refreshing take on Vanilla, and full of contrasts.
I suppose the green burst I smelled at first was not mastic but the combination of galbanum and juniper.
Thank you so much for sharing your creative process, notes and personal impressions of vanilla :-)

 

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