“According to the inspiration of every day, discoveries and travels, I collect materials, prepare macerations and infusions. I order new extracts. This allows me to make first mixes to define blends to work with. These become the skeleton of a project that I propose to a perfumer. A prolific dialogue then takes place with perfumer Stéphanie Bakouche over several months to develop a extraordinary formula– on based on high quality raw materials that require long maceration periods.
The initial idea was to work around the iris pallida and in particular to start from the roots that I harvested several years ago, which give off a particularly carnal scent. I initially wanted to treat the iris for its earthy aspect of root rather than bring it to a floral blend, an earthy side that will very quickly go to a leathery animality. First mixes were made with ambrette and fenugreek, assembling these three very dry smells could form a coherent block that brings the iris to the animality by going to the smell of nuts and hay. On the other hand, it seemed interesting to me to place this block in an equestrian universe with notes tobacco, castoreum and carrot seed that play well in this sense. Stephanie came to bring something sharper to the roundness of my initial chords. Texas cedar came to bring a certain transparency, and especially complexity to the earthy side of the perfume. Finally Stephanie has added head and freshness to the whole notably with materials like angelica.” – Briac founder of Marlou
