Do you have a favorite perfumer?
Someone whose work you follow?
Is there any one perfumer whose style pefectly fits yours?
Who is the one you would commission to make your dream perfume if you could?
My Answer:
It will surprise no one when I say that Jean-Claude Ellena is my favorite perfumer. His work for Hermès (L’Ambre des Merveilles, Rose Ikebana and… well, all of them really), Frédéric Malle (Bigarade Concentrée and L’Eau d’Hiver) and L’Artisan Parfumeur (L’Eau d’Ambre) are firm favorites.
I also always try to smell perfumes made by Vero Kern, Bertrand Duchaufour and Mandy Aftel. Of the new kids on the block, Viktoria Minya really stood out for me last year with her Hedonist, although it is too early to call her a favorite perfumer after only one fragrance, I look eagerly forward to anything she will create in the future.
Whose work speaks to you?
Who is your favorite nose?
Olfactoria's Travels 
Well at least this doesn’t distract me from my muffins and cookies today.
VERO.
xxx
Well, that does not come as a surprise either… 😉
Nathalie Lorson – she keeps surprising me by authoring new perfumes that I love before I find out who the perfumer is. I started with her with Encre Noire in 2006. Then along came 2011 with Autoportrait and then Cuir 28 in 2014. I wonder what she is dreaming up next? Frankly I am keen for a vetiver in outer space. Has anyone tried Encre Noire Sport? I have not but it is also a Lorson.
A vetiver in outer space – how briliant!
I love Ellen Covey’s work. Her scents are some of my favorites. Also, she is very generos and extremely creative. I know if I commissioned her to create my dream perfme she wold make sre it was perfect for me. Please excse the keyboard. A new one is arriving soon.
Olympic Orchid perfumes are indeed beautiful, glad you found your ideal perfumer.
Your keyboard shows us the importance of u. 😉
It is so difficult to pick just one…. I would probably go with Vero or Andy Tauer or maybe Josh Lobb from Slumberhouse to make me a personal scent because they all seem like wonderful down to earth people and they make gorgeous perfume! But, I also really admire the work of Dorothee Piot (Memoir Woman, Fate Woman, Chambre Noir, etc.) and Calice Becker. I could go on and on….
Great choices, dubaiscents!
I’m not sure I have a favourite, but a perfumer I admire is Sophia Grojsman. She said in an interview you can see on YouTube that she likes to imagine a woman who comes home from work, still with an evening’s worth of chores to do, who needs a few dabs of perfume to ‘make her feel like a woman’. I so strongly identify with that need, and I really admire the way that remark of Grojsman’s cuts across all the modern perfume marketing and imagines the lives that women actually live and the needs they actually have.
The voluptuous style of her work is not always to my taste but in the past I have loved White Linen and Paris, and these days I love Calyx. I have a strong fancy for Bvlgari pour Femme and am certainly not above a spritz or two of White Diamonds occasionally! Tresor I cannot go near, I admit.
I can’t say I like her creations very much, but I like her way of thinking. Thanks for bringing upSophia Grojsman, Annemarie.
Hi there Birgit,
I find it hard to pick one. Often I like the work of Olivia Giacobetti, not always but there are some firm faves among her output. Jacques Cavallier has some winners in his stable as does Aurelien Guichard. Pierre Guillaume also hits for me more often than misses and like you JCE is amazing. Bertrand Duchaufour when he is on point can blow my mind too, I think he is the best represented in my collection and Thierry Wasser (and the Guerlains) would run close second.
Portia xx
There are so many great creators, if one has broad tastes, it is really hard to pick a favorite.
I don’t have a favorite perfumer but for the fun of the question I pick Ralf Schwieger. I love Eau des Merveilles (to me it probably is what L’Ambre des Merveilles is for you…), Fils de Dieu, Iris Nazarena, Orange Sanguine and his latest – Cedrat Enivrant – is on top of my summer wishlist (if they’ll offer small sizes!).
And from what I read in interviews he is a very interesting, versatile and friendly person – he would fit perfectly into your “persons in perfumeland”-series!
(I still have to explore Vero Kern and Mandy Aftel.)
I’ll try to get in contact with him, I’d love to have him in the PIP series, as I admire his style very much as well.
What a great post, thanks for sharing.
Thanks for reading!
My taste in perfumes is relatively minimalist, and I particularly enjoy the creations of Olivia Giacobetti and Jean Claude Ellena.
I’m with you! 🙂
This is a tough question. Judging from the number of bottles that I currently have or wish to have I would say: Calice Becker, Thierry Wasser, Christopher Sheldrake and Vero Kern.
Interesting mixture, Sandra.
I suppose my favorite perfumes are all over the map (perfumer-wise), but I have the most by Laurie Erickson, Sonoma Scent Studios.
I like her style too and I love that she stays independent and affordable.
Bertrand is always on my radar. 😉
One whose work I adore is Olivia Giacobetti, if she made it, chances are I will love it.
Closely followed by Christopher Shledrake, Dawn Spencer Hurwitz and Ramon Monegal (a recent addition to the list).
Great list! That reminds me to try Giacobetti’s Hiris old and new asap.
For the last few years I’ve been loving the scents of Mona di Orio. They are rich and unusual and I never tire of them. It was a sad thing when we lost her at such an early age.
Oh yes, the things she could have done…
Vero Kern, Andy Tauer, Ramon Monegal, Bertrand Duchafour…
I love that Monegal is establishing himself quickly among our favorites…
Olivia Giacobetti, I love her perfumes.
Jane x
Me too, Jane. Her light and delicate style is beautiful.
Dominique Ropion, Laurie Erickson, Bertrand Duchaufour, Olivia Giacobetti and the list goes on and on……
It’s hard to pick just a few.
I’m joining the Betrand Duchaufour and Christopher Sheldrake camps, although I always pay attention to an Andy Tauer release x
Those three have many fans.
Daniela Roche-Andrier! Her style of composing truly reflects my body and soul! She’s my guru perfumer!
All her works for Prada (both masculine and feminine) really appeal to me, as well as Tardes for Carner Barcelona she composed.
That is wonderful to find someone who so clearly fits your style.
True that!
I don’t follow any perfumers, I usually follow brands – so I cannot say that I have a favorite perfumer. But judging by my collection Christine Nagel, Christopher Sheldrake, Daniela (Roche) Andrier, Francois Demachy, Alberto Morillas and Bertrand Duchaufour created many perfumes that I like and wear.
Christine Nagel is someone I must pay attention to more intensely in the future, since she is going to take over from JCE eventually…
I think, it would be Christopher Sheldrake – the man who created masterpieces like Bel Respiro, Gris Claire, or Vetiver Oriental. He is sometimes edgy (see Muscs Koublai Khan…) – and then again tender and lovely with Clair de Musc.
If Sheldrake is not available I’d take Geza Schön 😉
Great choice, LJG!
Another Ralf Schwieger fan here, also Jérome Epinette, as I like Mistral Patchouli. Both are doing excellent work. But I must also put in a good word for Patricia de Nicolai, ss three of hers are in regular use in my collection!
Of course! Thanks for mentioning her!
Welli have a few ones, Jean Claude Ellena, Andy Tauer , Vero Kern and my newest finding Marie Candida Gentile im in love wither her finisterre perfume and looking forward to test the other ones.
I’ve heard many good things about MCG.
Dominique Ropion <3. And Christopher Sheldrake. AND Vero Kern. AND Francis Kurkdjian. AND Pierre Guillaume. AND…Nature .
Great choices, particularly that last one. 🙂
Bernard Chant, Ernest Beaux, and Maurice Roucel for Envy.
Wonderful creators of classics!
So hard to choose! It would be a toss-up between Ralf Schwieger and Dominique Ropion! And although her style is a little light for my personal taste, I love Olivia Giacobetti’s quirkiness!
Me too, she is always surprising.
Six months ago, it would have been Jean Claude Ellena in a heartbeat. He is still probably my top choice, but he is now joined by Christopher Sheldrake and Laurie Erickson 🙂
He is in good company! 🙂
Vero Kern and Maria Candida Gentile.
I also love some Duchaufour here, some Maurel there, a bit of Roucel, another bit of Monegal…
xoxo
Caro
More praise for MCG, very interesting…
Christopher Sheldrake, Andy Tauer, Pierre Guillaime and I’m getting very curious about Vero Kern and am awaiting samples to arrive – hopefully this week.
Oh you’ll be in for a fun ride with Vero Profumo! Enjoy and please let me know what you think!
Great question – especially since the answer is likely to vary from year to year. At the moment, the dream team of Jacques Polge and Christopher Sheldrake is v high on my list, for their Exclusifs collection, which has a higher percentage of ‘hits’ than any equivalent line I can think of. Also Calice Becker, who has produced so many of my favourites, from Cuir de L to the wonderful Kilian florals and ouds; and of course the Guerlains down the generations.
The Exclusifs have a very high hit rate for me too. Love your selection of favorites!
I love many of the above – but very special to me are Edmond Roudnistka and Annie Buzantian. I can’t afford Antonia yet, but I’m working toward it gradually, and Therese has such a special place in my heart!
Beautiful perfumes indeed, created by special perfumers.
My favorite perfume ‘nose’ is definitely Jean-Claude Ellena. The man is brilliant. Second is Christine Nagel. For more “in your face” perfumes I like Jacques Cavallier’s work.
We have a lot in common then!
Ooh.. this is tough.. I like a lot of different perfumers’ work so it’s hard to pick. My list would definitely include Olivia Giacobetti, Christopher Sheldrake and Antoine Lie and Antoine Maisondieu. And I can add Nathalie Feisthauer because she did ELdO Putain de Palaces.
Excellent list!