Crown Stephanotis

Another masterpiece from the Barry Gibson 's tenure at the late lamented Crown Perfumery ( we wont talk about the travesty wrought in it's name by Mr Christian - I've gone on about that enough ). I had the good fortune to visit the store in the Burlington Arcade , must be around 1990 (?) I couldn't afford to buy much and I've spent he intervening years trying to make up for that. I'm not sure, I'd have to tally up , but maybe this is around bottle #8 or 9 ( Ess, Esterhazy, Bouquet, Russe, Gold, Malabar, Buckingham...) Stephanotis is what I think of as "mock" jasmine ( looks like it but not actually jasmine., I believe.? ) Popular for wedding bouquets, it's a brighter, fresher less indolic white floral. I only really know it from the Floris fragrance of the same name and this is similar. Bright, sparkling, green and fresh yet slightly spicy like it's funereal counterpart, the white lily. This is stronger than Floris , though, less fresh and green , no citrus or pettigrain but with an almost powdery violet note , there's no profile so impossible to know, if I find one I'll edit and hopefully add a more thorough review after a few wears. It's May Day here in the UK and it perfect for a pagan festival of rebirth and of womanhood. It makes me want to don a white frock and dance around a maypole !!

This perfume has a complex old-school vibe with the sharp and sweet note of stephanotis popped on top. The stephanotis is quite realistic, not sure about the mid and base notes, but the perfume is quite sophisticated. It's discontinued and also very hard to find. I'm happy that I found a bottle in my travels, as I don't own any others featuring stephanotis. Edit. Today, in dry weather, I'm really getting strong heliotrope, powder and vanilla mid notes. What a difference the weather makes to this perfume! It's even more beautiful today than when I wore it in the hot and humid summer. Highly recommended by me.

Elegant and sumptuous spicy white floral. The composition is centered around a luscious stephanotis that is supported by jasmine, orange blossom and heliotrope (subjective, I’m unacquainted with the pyramid), a few drops of Nivea creaminess and slightly retro powder sparkles all over this bouquet. Magnificent, charming and enveloping potion from 1912.