Helicriss

When I was about 10, my future sister-in-law from Japan stayed with our family and made us Japanese curry. It is not a fancy dish, the mix is only a few bucks, but the taste is aromatic, hearty, and delicious in a down-to-earth sort of way. A few years later I was pulling an overgrown White Licorice bush out of my mother’s garden. I was up to my elbows in the smell, I enjoyed it, but the memory of the smell kept knocking against me. Finally I exclaimed, “this smells like Japanese curry!” Indeed, White Licorice and the curry bush are related. So on first spray of Helicriss I get full-on Indian restaurant, curry buffet for lunch (I also lived in India, I am very familiar with curry). It’s spicy, it’s foody, it does have a hot cooking oil feel to it, and there is nothing perfumy about Helicriss. Why would I want to smell like hot, dirty, bustling India at lunch time? But then this perfume dies down to something lovely. Helicriss becomes the White Licorice bush I pulled out of my mother’s garden. It’s green, it’s pungent, there is a slight bite, but that bite is rounded by a musky/powdery edge. This is so unique and I’m in love. I read a few reviews wondering what the curry smell in this perfume is (as if a mixture of cardamom and turmeric combined will create this smell—no, this smell is not the combination of familiar spices). This smell is Helichrysum. They call Helichrysum “Imortelle” in the ingredients list. Go smell the real thing and you will understand this perfume.

After thoroughly testing the entire SD Musc collection and ordering some travel-size bottles first, just to be sure, I finally purchased a 100ml bottle of Helicriss. It took me some time to discover all facets of Helicriss, because it is so original, but now I can proudly declare that it is magnificent and works wonders on my skin. As my initial review below testifies, when I first started wearing it, the strongest notes were curry powder and musk. Now, in addition to those two, I can definitely identify different layers. The first one is fresh spicy and aromatic, with lemon, bergamot, rosemary, cumin and salt. After 20 minutes or so it begins to warm up with the arrival of warm-spicy, balsamic and herbal notes - namely immortelle, patchouli and benzoin; at the same time the musky cloud becomes more prominent, but never overbearing. Helicriss lasts at least six hours on my skin and projects magnificently for the first 3-4 hours. I’ve received tons of compliments since putting it in regular rotation. It’s everything that I look for in a fragrance: high-end yet reasonably priced, original, striking, uplifting, memorable, totally pleasant and wearable on any occasion. Kudos to Ms. Delacourt for proving that in 2017-18 one can still create original unisex scents, instead of following the same bland and boring trends. I’m now eager to test her vanilla collection.

This is one gorgeous scent. Bright lemon, grapefruit and bitter orange provide a tart, tangy liftoff, infused with a dry/nonsweet cinnamon bestowing a "dried herbal" quality; then down into that magnificent immortelle accord: slightly sweetish, though never "maple syrupy" (as it might appear in other scents). Infused with an aromatic/medicinal rosemary quality, the perfume smells nutty, cereal-like or grain-like, dry and agrestic, but always with the tart citrus modulating any sweetness. It's kitchen-y, but in the very best savory way. Perfectly unisex. Puts your head into the most beautiful, autumnal, almost melancholy sense of beauty. In far drydown you get the gentle skin-musk quality... This perfume feels like a good, honest friend. It smells eminently natural and wholesome throughout-- no trendy, bogus aromachemicals here. Very highly recommended. A reviewer below spots a kinship with the discontinued Guerlain CORIOLAN: Bingo.

I absolutely love this line, and really appreciate the generous and affordable sampling service of Mme. Delacourte. This is very much a "fresh from the herb garden" musk, with flavors of citrus and all natural woods wafting from a good friend's hug. This is a lot more aromatherapeutic than perfumey to me, but it's still polished and doesnt smell basic. I am still really unsure which of her creations I would buy, but every one is wearable. As this dries down, I distinguish a little too much patchouli for me, but it is cosy and smells like a great masculine scent as well. Update: several hours later I still detect the perfume on my skin, and it is a very delicate woody musk. The immortelle is detectable, and there is a slight sweetness. I don't smell patchouli anymore. Lovely!

Mmmmmm, yummy! Helicriss is almost edible, at least for lovers of spicy South Asian cuisine! It smells like curry powder, mixed with fresh herbs, lemon and tea leaves. I lived in Manchester for several years, and this fragrance immediately reminded me of all those Asian restaurants in Rusholme... Suddenly it's like I'm walking down Oxford Road, crossing Moss Lane East, and voila - I'm in Rusholme, ready for another curry overdose! Unlike Dovana, Helicriss is really unisex, perhaps a tad more masculine, although all ladies who enjoy aromatic-spicy fragrances will appreciate this. Do not worry that you'll smell like you cooked curry for 12 guests and forgot to wash your hair, because its silage is soft and the overall vibe very pleasant and uncomplicated.