Friday, September 10, 2010

Natori Eau de Parfum


Over the course of the last year, only a few fragrances have caught my eye and my nose. Shall we say I have been a little distracted? Traumatized? In love? On cloud 9? All of the above apply. The attempted hijacking of my family's stability and the birth of my second child converged in the year 2010. The intensity of these experiences cannot be underestimated and yet ... in the midst of the emotion ... Natori caught my interest. Is this the best fragrance of 2010? I highly doubt it. Were there other fragrances that could have captured my attention had I been aware of them? Most definitely.

However, Natori stood out for a reason. I find it utterly mysterious - a rose and plum based chypre full of blurred lines. I am not certain if it is my unexercised nose to blame, but I have a very difficult time deciphering the various notes. I do smell rose petals at first, with some amber and some jasmine second. Purple peony? No. Patchouli? Not so much, thank goodness. Patchouli would ruin its loveliness. Instead, I notice the skin musk note which grows stronger as the fragrance evolves on my skin. Of course, the ylang-ylang piques my interest since I have yet to meet a fragrance with ylang-ylang that I cannot wear.

Ultimately, there is no use trying to pin these notes down. They merge and gather beautifully into a fragrance I find pretty, feminine, and stately, like a determined, focused and characteristically beautiful woman whose inner strength is subtle yet powerful. A woman I aspire to be. She is not giddy and lighthearted and cares not to hang out with the frivolous. She has depth and wisdom. Her Achilles heel? She tends to be a bit somber.

Now I understand its appeal to the woman I have been. Natori was meant for me this year.