May 2014: Awake

Last month's selections were united by warmth. That's because April can be a tricky thing (she loves me, she loves me not). But May doesn't mess around. In May, the world is finally fully awake. If you live in one of those areas where the weather didn't try your patience all winter, just know that the rest of the country is only now seeing pops of color transform the landscape that was so gray for so long.

So for May—the month when we buy fresh flowers for moms, the month when we start spotting happy brides on Saturday afternoons—we have chosen three scents to complement the season.

 

Eau Eternelle by S Poncet—You adored her Pleasant Promenade, and now Sabine Poncet Hernandez is back with a springtime floral that captures Claude Monet's Japanese garden in a crystal bottle. It's all here: the pond, the floating water lilies, the soft fragrance of flowers on the warm air. As always, Sabine has created an elegant scent and presented it equally elegantly, with a handmade box that features custom artwork. 

Figue Fruitée by Au Pays de la Fleur d'Oranger—Long-time fans of niche perfume know something that other people haven't yet discovered: There's nothing like a gorgeous fig scent. In Figue Fruitée, French niche house Au Pays de la Fleur d'Oranger gives us a fig in perfect balance: slightly sweet with a hint of salty air, green and woodsy, and with a touch of creaminess against the fruity flesh of the fig. (And this niche line has a wonderful story rooted deep in the heart of Grasse and reaching back generations. More on that in our upcoming Q&A with creators Antoine and Virginie Roux.) 

Pamplemousse by DSH Perfumes—It's the citrus time of year, and we're happy to spend it doused in Dawn Spencer Hurwitz's Pamplemousse. This excellent spring/summer scent is another cult favorite, as are so many of Dawn's creations, and it caught special attention from former New York Times scent critic Chandler Burr, who described it as "crisp, luscious, edible, tangy grapefruit, becoming slightly darker as it evolves." Exactly.

 

 

We hope you love them as much as we do.