Patchouli

This is a safe patchouli, fuzzy and sweet. No dank earthiness feared by patchouli haters. This is kiddie pool patchouli. If that sounds condescending, I don’t mean it to be. These Les Petits Plaisirs fragrances are French drugstore fragrances aimed at teens, but made by Berdoues, a multigenerational family run perfume house from Grasse. There is an expertise here, where the perfumes are designed by perfumers versus in the US where perfumes, especially for this demographic, are designed by executives aiming for mass appeal and least offense. These French cheapies sparkle. Les Petits Plaisirs Patchouli smells like patchouli incense smoke clinging to hair washed with Strawberry V05 shampoo. If I close my eyes, this will lull me back to a high school memory of my long hair pushed around my face from a baja hood, flipping a Sub Pop cassette, before sticking my nose back into a dog eared copy of On The Road. It’s a vibe. It’s a specific, palatable version of patchouli. The smokiness is comforting and gives it some interest. It’s worlds away from the dank, deep, Reminiscence Patchouli. I have room for both in my collection.