Peonia Nobile

This was an immediate, head-over-heels love for me, I still remember it clearly. I accompanied a friend to Selfridges in London one day, and that was the first time I had even heard of the house itself. As someone who had always skimped on perfumes before, I bought a bottle then and there without giving any thought to the cost. I found it airy and elegant, just drop-dead gorgeous. I wore it with such pride that I even sprayed a little on my pillows; I wanted to be surrounded by it. What surprised me was how no one ever complimented me on it, including my husband, whose response was an underwhelming “it is nice” when I first showed it to him. I found it strange that no one else seemed as enamoured as I was. But it didn’t change my feelings, as it's rare for a scent to move me so deeply. After I used up my first small bottle, I tried to snatch one from eBay. It turned out to be a deal a little too good to be true, and I’m convinced it wasn’t authentic, as it had none of the power of the original. While I’m now gravitating toward different types of scents, this one still holds a special place in my heart, and I’m fairly certain I’ll return to it someday.

I have owned and loved (still do love) a few Aqua di Parma perfumes. Someone was unloading a new bottle of Peonia Nobile, so I purchased it. As an aside, there are many types and genres of perfumes that I love. I've always loved a nicely blended rose note. And I adored smelling the clusters of fragrant peonies in my garden (in a previous home) when the flowers were in full bloom. Peonies are beautiful and their fragrance is lovely. I go through phases with fragrances. And sometimes, I just crave a non-complicated, straight-up, uber-feminine floral fragrance. I adore blended jasmine. I love certain tuberose perfumes. I love certain gardenia fragrances. What's there to say? Uplifting, bright, slightly spicy, feminine, rosy peony with a gorgeous amber-patchouli backbone. The raspberry makes the opening bright. The geranium keeps things from becoming too sweet. The drydown is heavenly. This perfume is gorgeous. This fragrance is a complete and total love.

You ever look at a set of notes and go, hmmm I wonder... then you get the fragrance and still wonder??? Not this one. This fragrance smells like its notes and it’s gorgeous! I understand the comparisons to Mon Paris Intensement, the raspberry, rose, and patch easily draw similarities. But this is just done so much better. SO much better. This is a natural beauty, but she’s not quiet. She has presence and strength. Unapologetically and relentlessly feminine. This is one of the better presentations of this style of patchouli. No chemical tinge... pure, rich, sweet, and fresh. Perfect. If you are not a floral lover, and I really mean this, steer clear. This is not at all a beginner friendly floral. However... If you love true florals, this scent will be a welcome and captivating assault.

Peony is one of my favourite notes so by name some I figured I would love this, and after waiting patiently for my online blind buy it arrives, and I absolutely love it! It is very peony, light floral, girly, airy, summery without being something that is exclusive to summer only since it does have that clean lightness to it. It’s office safe in small amounts the floral could make it absolutely obnoxious to someone hyper sensitive to fragrances. I was so excited to get this, and I love it so don’t get me wrong, but for the full price (I bought a small travel size for 20 bucks ish) I just don’t think I could justify it because there are many similar perfumes out there at a more affordable price point.

Opens with a very punchy geranium and rose. After ten minutes everything rounds out a bit and the peony takes over. There's tge herbaceous floralcy of a pink garden peony with none of the nose-wrinkling spikey-ness. I was surprised by how much of the drydown echoes Magnolia Nobile - definite "DNA" similarities - though of course this pulls pinker and rosier vs citrus. I think this calls for slightly cooler temps - the sweetness of the raspberry and the heady strength of the stuff reads a little dense for high heat - to me at least. I don't believe in perfume genders, but this is one of the most traditionally feminine scents I own.