For those who have moved to another state, another region or a different country do you sometimes have nostalgic moments when you remember so fondly an aspect of your former location? I’m originally from the northeast, from New England and now that I’m in the southwest I have been missing the gorgeous unfolding of a northeastern spring. I also miss the spectacular foliage during autumn in Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont, but there is an equivalent yet different beauty watching the Aspen trees in the mountains of New Mexico turn into a blanket of pure gold. The spring, however, is not true spring in the southwest, or at least not my definition of spring. I have been craving the smell of spring on the east coast immensely. So much so that I’ve actually learned to adore a fragrance that I once didn’t like at all; L’Artisan Fleur de Narcisse. When I first smelled Fleur de Narcisse, many years ago, my no holds-barred reaction was “yuck.” Suddenly, after nearly 4 years, I get it. Fleur de Narcisse smells of my childhood growing up next to a horse farm in Massachusetts. I smell hay, mulch, moss and wet, damp earth. There’s a sliver of leather in Fleur de Narcisse which makes me think of the horse saddles and the smell inside the barn. It is a similar experience yet no similarity in scent to CB I Hate Perfume Black March. Black March isn’t something I would ever wear, but it’s a fragrance so evocative of spring it nearly slaps you in the face with memories of being outside in the garden. Years ago when I first experienced L’Artisan Fleur de Narcisse I was expecting something, well, floral. I wanted to smell narcissus blooms. It doesn’t smell floral and certainly not of narcissus (daffodil) blooms so I felt cheated, tricked and hated the stuff. Now, many years later, I find myself in the desert desperately craving the smells of a damp east coast spring. I don’t know what possessed me but I sprayed on Fleur de Narcisse the other day. It was a revelation. In Fleur de Narcisse I smelled everything I have been missing. It almost brought tears to my eyes.
This post is as much about Fleur de Narcisse as it’s about nostalgia; about missing places you’ve lived and experiences you’ve had. Wherever you go in life you will always bring those people and places with you and sometimes memories float to the surface at odd moments. I’ve been wearing Fleur de Narcisse for several days now and loving every moment of it. Had you told me this would happen four years ago when I first smelled it and disliked it I would have never believed you. So maybe someday I will get Frederic Malle Une Fleur de Cassie, because I still don’t like that one, but after this experience with Fleur de Naricsse, I’m a believer in the never say never approach.
