New perfume announcement: Parma Violets.

The most fragrant of the Viola species, the Parma violet descends from two lines of Viola alba (white violet). It dates back at least to Italy in the 1500s and is less cold hardy than Viola odorata, the more commonly seen high fragrance violet. Parma violets bear cyclic whorled "double" flowers that resemble partially formed but conjoined moon snails; multiple flutes pinwheel out from a central corolla. Like curved fins, the tufts vary in color from white to pastel pink and lavender, often with gradient tones displayed within each petal. They prefer the shade. You might miss their blossoming if you don't look for their ruffled heads blooming beneath the thick cover of their leaves, close to the ground. Parma violets have a warmer scent than Viola odorata, their cooler cousin. It is less inky but heavy with powder and frosting. These violets are a gourmand flower but their strong ambergris low note makes them unique among violets. Like others in their genus, Parma violets have practically no top notes. Their confectionary heart and base notes of fondant, pastry cream, ambergris pudding, and valentine's ink, take you out of the shady woodlands and inside a European bakery. Outside the frosted windows, whaling ships dock in the harbors, loaded with the horrors of treasure. My Parma Violets perfume features organic Viola alba enfleurage from the Wild Veil Perfume gardens amplified by the supporting notes described above.

Parma violet enfleurage is a solid perfume made by the simple but labor intensive process of cold enfleurage. The only ingredients are freshly picked Viola alba flowers from my Vermont garden, avocado butter, and very raw beeswax. It is organic, handmade, with a scent that is subtle but true to the iconic enchantment of Parma violets.

 

Whether called sweet violets or fragrant violets, enfleurage is the only natural process that can capture this woodland flower's aroma. This "pommade" (highly scented solid perfume-- not to be confused with pomade for hair!) consists of hundreds of individual organic Viola alba flowers that I gathered from my perfume gardens, laid onto an emulsion of organic avocado butter and raw beeswax. I repeat this process daily to reach over 100 charges and a degree of fragrance saturation. In my enfleurage, the violet flower scent is powdery, black-inky, with a pastille candy back note. To fully enjoy the perfume you will need to apply it rather than smell it from the vessel. Apply to well hydrated skin without rubbing in. It is very much the opposite of the shrill, overpowering version of the synthetic floral you find at the fragrance counter. Only you and those closest to you will be able to smell it.