Something truly remarkable happens when you don’t expect anything and just go with the flow.. Once again I was proven right on the last day of my trip in Paris. 🙂

Since I probably don’t have a mind of a reporter, the day when Louvre was on fire the last thing I could think of was the museum. 🙂 As we were walking along Rue de Richelieu, having visited a beautiful garden at Palais Royal, Mr.G. noticed a huge cloud of black smoke coming from the end of the street… Is that Louvre?! Is it on fire!? He was bouncing eagerly, ready to sprint.. 😀 Funnily enough, I happened to see a perfume store, right where we were standing.. it read ‘NICOLAI Parfumeur Createur‘ … Fire? Who cares about the museum when right at my fingertips there’s a fragrance store I’ve never heard of! 😀 I knew I had no time to spare, so I just went in….

I was very pleasantly introduced to the brand and collected a few samples 🙂 There was a huge selection of perfumes along with home fragrances and bath products.. Because I was short of time, it was even more delightful to find that their online store offers world-wide delivery. 🙂

Then, as soon as I got back to the hotel room that night, I was testing my first Nicolai and fell in love immediately… Oh, Sacrebleu Intense! I have never tasted cinnamon in a perfume before… And this is not that strong heady note you could get from e.g. Youth Dew Amber Nude. This is a sweet cinnamon on a bed of jasmine and tuberose, beautifully enveloped in vanilla and benzoin resin…. A match made in heaven!

I must say, that was just the beginning of my relationship with Parfums de Nicolai.. And with every step of this journey I am still surprised, amazed, spellbound… It appears that the lady which is the nose behind all the fragrances, Patricia de Nicolai, has received an International Perfumer Creator Award from the French Society of Perfumers in 1988 for her debut fragrance;  Number One was launched in 1989 (I have not got a chance to try this classic yet but it is definitely on my shopping list 🙂 ). This must have been a massive boost in her career, and now she is one of the leading female perfumers of her generation.

Patricia de Nicolai started her company along with her husband in 1989, with a concept to emphasize the role of the perfumer,

A perfumer free in his creative choices and free to use the best quality ingredients available.

And here you can recognize the personal style, individuality, signature, quality…

Patricia de Nicolaï’s creations are identifiable, original and elegant reflecting the high Parisian ‘parfumerie’ and ‘Le luxe à la française.’

I was also pleasantly surprised to find a page dedicated to Parfums de Nicolai in the first Lithuanian book about perfumes ‘Kvepalai‘ by Aistis Mickevicius, 2016.

By the way, did you known that apart from being a very creative and succesful perfumer for over a quarter of a century now, Patricia de Nicolai is a descendant of the Guerlain family?.. And the president of the Osmotheque – the first perfume archive, located in Versailles?… 🙂

There are so many beautiful touches in the history of Parfums de Nicolai, but let’s get a little deeper into the perfumes themselves…. 😉

My second discovery – Eau d’Ete from Eau Fraiche collection – melted on my skin just recently, during the very last blast of summer heat we had here in Ireland. And what a divine drop of freshness that was – a blend of sweet lime, grapefruit and jasmine 🙂

Some of the perfumes feel quite masculine on my skin, e.g. Patchouli Intense, New York. Since I’m not that experienced on this side of the bench 😉 (and according to my own gut feeling, they would suit Mr.G more), I’ve checked a few books at home to back my opinion about these beauties. It came to no surprise that New York is rated a 5* masculine perfume for both men and women by Luca Turin and Tania Sanchez in ‘Perfumes The A-Z Guide’. Launched in 1989, it is a real masterpiece indeed.. I still find Patchouli Intense a little too punchy at the moment, so I might wait for October … 😉

However, Ambre Cashmere Intense is quite gentle… It’s like.. If you ever walked on a bed of clouds and felt the warmth of the Sun on your skin..Yet at the same time there was that attraction, alluring spiciness, which later on quieted down to a soft base of vanilla, tonka bean, sandalwood, and amber… Whenever I feel like coming back to this feeling, especially on a chilly summer morning, I reach for Ambre Cashmere Intense. That is the power of a real gemstone.. Parfums de Nicolai describe it as:

A rich and elegant creation from which the long trail, the tenacity and the sensuality can only be irresistible.

…and I could not agree more 🙂

I will never regret having made that choice to walk into the store, for only by chance I discovered my true gemstone of Paris…

Jess

P.S. you may find the first part of this blog post here. 🙂