Behind a Mask I Will Wait For You: ‘L’Attesa’ by Masque Milano

‘Nous portons tous un masque, c'est bien connu; et vient un moment où nous ne pouvons l'enlever sans nous arracher la peau.’ André Berthiaume

(‘We all wear masks, this goes without saying but there comes a time when we can’t remove the mask with tearing the skin beneath’)

During copious amounts of nocturnal reading in preparation for this piece on Masque Milano’s startling new iris perfume L’Attesa, I came across a description of orris root as Love Drawing Powder. How wondrous is this strange definition of one of perfumery’s most incomparable and sensitive materials. The idea that you lay a subtle olfactive trail of orris dust and the object of your desire will simply come to you, drawn by the beauty and overwhelming puissance of a rhizome. It is in so many ways a perfect metaphor for this new enigmatic portrait of iris by Italian perfumer Luca Maffei.

Ghost Trees & Shadowed Line – ‘Sombres Dessins’ by Jovoy

'“Everything is worse...if you think something is looking at you.” Shirley Jackson

This is a ghost wood, a scent of phantom capture, a fragrance that sets out to define a certain essence and emotion of true sandalwood and yet somehow leaves us with a shimmering graphite obliqueness amid a forest of ephemeral trees that seems to recede the closer you are to them. The sandalwood effect is divine, creamy and atmospheric, conjured up by the immensely talented (..and very busy) Amélie Bourgeois inspired in part by the intense memories of Jovoy’s Creative Director François Hénin. In a former life he worked in Asia sourcing essential oils and raw materials for the industry. His encounters with the harvesting and distillation of Mysore sandalwood made a powerful impression on him. Literally; the potent scent of the aromatic oil embedding in skin and hair.  

Sandalwood carving

So the memory of sandalwood has a near mythical status for Monsieur Hénin and now the harvesting and use of these precious Santalum album forests is strictly controlled to the point of near prohibition. This means that very few people will ever really be able to experience the burnished comfort and power of true Mysore sandalwood.