Fleurs de Citronnier – floral and fresh and mood lifting

Photo: perfumeniche

It happens all the time. I’m looking for something online and find something else that’s way more interesting. The other day, I was looking for a recipe when I saw a study on 'The Role of Odor-Evoked Memory in Psychological and Physiological Health.' It said, '…when odors are capable of eliciting emotional and physical changes it is due to the emotions, memories and associations that have been linked to an odor through past personal experiences, which are then elicited when the odor is encountered, and the psychological and physiological responses connected to the odor are recapitulated'.

This explains why lemon-based fragrances lift my mood, energize me, and brighten my day. Lemons unlock all my favourite childhood summer memories. Lemons, the colour of the sun, are forever linked to memories of hot, school-free days spent playing outside with my best friends until I got hungry and went home for dinner. To this day, the tart, sour fragrance of lemon pulls me back to the first time I held a glass of lemonade all by myself. Was I three years old? Older? Younger? My mother coached me: 'OK, sweetheart, the glass is wet and slippery, so hold it with both hands….' The slipperiness and the weight caught me by surprise, and I faltered for a moment, but I didn't drop the glass. Writing about it here, I can taste that lemonade now – cold, tart, sweet, delicious, and reviving. I thought I had drunk a magic potion. Lemons make me happy in any form: food, drink and especially fragrances, like Fleurs de Citronnier.

'Fleurs de Citronnier' translates into 'lemon blossoms,' and they are the main attraction in this fragrance, which opens a note of bitter, citrusy, green citronnier petitgrain – the kind made from the leaves of lemon trees. As it settles, the lemon blossom appears; its delicate beauty is transparent but tenacious, and it stays right through to the drydown. Citrusy neroli gives the lemon blossom another citrus dimension with green and orange facets. Soon they are joined by a lush, indolic note of tuberose; its sensuality countering the purity of the lemon blossoms. A note of honey keeps the tuberose in check while iris rounds out the flowers. Around this time, the fragrance smells clean. On me, it's not soapy-smelling clean as much as it is fresh-smelling. This is when I realize how simple and uncluttered with heady, heavy notes Fleurs de Citronnier is. There is a touch of warmth from nutmeg at the base, while styrax gives it a dry, subtle woodiness as musks smooth it out.

The drydown is delicate, floral and fresh. But its beauty lies in its simplicity and transparency. It's structured to allow every note to shine without any of them outshining the lemon blossom. It's the smell of a neighbour's summer garden caught in a breeze drifting over into your backyard.

Fleurs de Citronnier brightens my day every time I wear it.

Check out Fleurs de Citronnier in our Shop.