Narcis

Narcis is an incredible, top-tier, chypre. I don't know if this makes sense, but I find Narcis to be a wonderfully textural fragrance. When I wear it I am struck by how buttery and suede-like the smell is, at the same time there is perfectly placed note that is mildly pissy/musky, providing a delightful counterpoint to the overall smoothness. The drydown is hours and hours of inhalable texture, smelling Narcis is synesthetic experience that should not be dismissed, and I usually don't appreciate chypres! One more thing to mention, a little goes a long way with Narcis.

Narcis is my favorite perfume from Hendley, followed closely by Myst, and there is a good amount of Myst that I recall in it. Mainly, the tuberose and orris pairing. However, Narcis is all about the Narcissus, although I wouldn't call it a floral perfume. An agrestic-floral, even a pseudo-chypre. Hans explores the honeyed and the hay-like facets of Narcissus in this composition. The use of beeswax here is superb. Hence you get that honeyed quality Narcissus has, yet amplified. The orris and tuberose pairing provides a buttery texture, as it does in Myst, while there is a nice animalic touch from the beeswax as well as a waxy feel. The sweetness is offset by a chypre accord that feels bitter, grassy, and earthy. I perceive what seems like hay, which is not listed, so perhaps it is just a phantom accord. The composition is very well thought out and put together, round, and without weaknesses. In the end, it feels like an agrestic perfume more than a chypre or a floral one. A grassy, honeyed narcissus with a prominent waxy/buttery texture. IG:@memory.of.scents

Hendley Perfumes Narcis was originally released in 2019 and is a fittingly floral-heavy chypre from the line, one of the most floral-forward fragrances released by Hans Hendley that I can recall. It has a powdery white floral character, featuring a fairly smooth blend jonquil and iris, with a dry down of beeswax and guaiac, making for an experience that starts out bright and dries down to a calming, harmonious mix. It feels very well blended and is very easy to like, even for those that may not generally like floral, especially brightly floral, fragrances. It has great longevity while not being too loud on projection after the opening minutes, but has a rich quality to it while being decently dense. Overall, I think it’s a very nice fragrance! Narcis is priced at $250/160/85 for 50/30/15ml, with 1.5ml spray samples available and is only sold through the house website, seemingly, though other Hendley offerings are sold via Indiescents. 8 out of 10

A jaw-dropping yellow floral (who knew this was a thing?!) with a solid backing of wax and orris -- it works on many levels and is expertly put together. The tuberose adds top and middle to this, which adds to it's structure, but for me, what I don't like about it it's ingredient make-up. It's clear that this scent is levelled, layered and tempered to within a millimetres of its life, and it's EXPERTLY put together, but I'm just not much of a fan of Narcissus in any way, shape or form, or, I'm yet to be moved by a scent which features this. Regardless, I'm just not a fan of the flower, and as such, I don't really like this scent all that much, but I can seriously respect how well put-together this is, and I can also see why others enjoy it. It's great and really truly works, but it's just not for me...

#sotd Narcis by Hendley Perfumes Sunshine in a bottle, it literally strikes you like first sunshine in the morning. It's an interesting fragrance, with some high quality ingredients used for sure. I can literally smell tuberose, the best till date mixed with honey, like real honey which made it so heavenly that I literally want to have some sprays in my mouth 😂 It's one of the fragrance that I received today and I instantly knew that I need a backup. It's a 10/10 for a kind of perfume Narcis is, and lasts almost 7-8 hours on skin but don't bounce off too much which doesn't bother me as it's so calming to my mind. I need a 50ml 🥲