Dedicated to Paola Marsi, because every time she smiles everything simply turns into more than this!
VIOLETTE FUMÉE EDP
House: Mona di Orio
Year: 2013
Gender: Unisex
Olfactive Notes: Mediterranean Lavender, Bergamot from Calabria, Oakmoss from the Balkans, Violet flowers and leafs from Egypt, Turkish Rose, Saffron, Bois de Guaiac, Vetiver Haiti, Clary sage, Opoponax and Myrrh from Somalia, Cashmeran, suede.
"The shy violet and iconic rose develop into a powdery and gourmand fume and then ramp up as spicy and savory notes of aphrodisiac saffron and smoky bois de gaiac communicate with the florals and begin to ignite..."
JEROEN OUDE SOGTOEN
photocredit: Mona di Orio Parfums
Following the collection Les Nombres d'Or, Mona di Orio launched the collection Les Nombres d'Or Exclusive, featuring high-priced raw materials such as resins like oudh or very sophisticated notes like violets from Egypt.
Violette Fumée EDP is the second fragrance - an oriental balsamic floral that originally was custom made for Jeroen and inspired by his childhood memories, his taste for fashion, arts and music and composed with olfactive notes that he loves. The entire process took two years to be completed and the result was a fragrance so special that Jeroen decided to share with the public after Mona passed away. Their affinity, their connection, their perceptions are forever in his heart, but he misses her everyday, and IMO sharing the ONLY fragrance that she made especially for him and that till this day he was wearing only in special occasions is his way of coping with this great personal loss. Sharing HIS personal fragrance means that he want all of us to have a bit of their friendship; he wants to form a different, but somehow a bond with all of us.
Once you heard the song you are half way to understand the fragrance.
Brian Ferry is an impeccable vocal genius whose ability to mix different styles such as French Chanson, classic crooner and hard edge rock made him a legend. Always dressed in well cut suits or even tuxedos, that man involved us with his voice, his charms and most of all, with his tendency for romantic melodramas. Till today he presents himself as an urban romantic sophisticated, but rather mysterious man. Over the years his work always described love, loneliness, luxury and isolation. Perfectly defined in his own website "he is the great anatomist of glamour - always modern and instantly classic".
All that said about Brian Ferry, you are now able to capture the vibe of this signature perfume because Jeroen wanted him in his perfume. He wanted to capture a bit of his persona. He also wanted a bit of Catherine Deneuve character in Indochine...maybe this is the female - male references he has...who knows? IMO it is his notion of being chic as a woman and being chic as a man...(I have to ask him again...he told me something about them but right now it became kinda foggy to me...).
"fallen leaves in the night, who can say where they are blowing...like a dream in the night, who can say where we are going..."
Mona and Jeroen brought to life a fragrance with classic notion of textures, proportions and blends but with with a touch of romanticism - So how can classic and romantic coexist if Romanticism was fighting classic notions? That is easy to explain. Les Nombres d'Or followed a classic way of composing fragrances. Mona was seeking the perfect proportion of raw materials, but not in emotions. This perfume has a game of light and shadow, passion and sparkling creativity, but it also contains a large dose of sensitiveness, intimacy and most of all, a touch of melancholy... a touch of Brian Ferry gloominess perhaps... It does have a notion of being in a dream...walking during the night through a haze of powdery luxury...
If you like NIRMAL by Laborattorio Olfativo, comforting fragrances, or furry, cozy leathery perfumes you will love VIOLETTE FUMÉE EDP...when powdery is sophisticated by violets, coziness is brought by a touch of suede and Cashmeran (the introspective almost lonely side of Jeroen); and a revealing side - his sexiness, his wittiness - brought by a combination of saffron, vetiver and opoponax and myrrh.
VIolette Fumée EDP is not only a fragrance. It is a way of getting to know Jeroen O. Sogtoen. And I promise you, it is an endless JOY!
Photo credit: Mona di Orio Parfums
You will find VIOLETTE FUMÉE EDP in the online shop of the brand.
One little secret I shared with Jeroen in our long chat about this fragrance: Although I love "More Than This", the song that I love the most to hear is BF's version of "JEALOUS GUY" by John Lennon. I also loove "More Than This" sang by Bill Murray in Lost in Translation. It is iconic!
By the way, this post is dedicated to my friend Paola because I remembered one day sitting in Marietta's TV room with Paola, Marietta and Manuela listening to Roxy Music, Human league, Bowie...we were 16-17 yrs old...and Paola is to me like Mona is to Jeroen!