The smell of a strong, independent person: House of Creed's Wind Flowers
It's not often an image appears in my mind when I sniff a perfume – because it's really more about the feelings you get from the perfume than any specific mixture of ingredients, herbs, flowers and more. That's why in perfume reviews, you'd usually get descriptive terms such as 'luxurious', 'feminine', 'manly', 'delicious', 'sexy' and the ingredients of the perfumes – all words that describe a perfume, but never exactly how it smells.
For House of Creed's newest launch, Wind Flowers, I got a very, very specific image, and it's not the one that the House was pushing.
From a ballet dancer mimicking wind with the flowy garment she has on, to the name itself, you would think that the House of Creed's newest creation is light and feminine and perhaps slightly smoky. The official description is as follows: Floral and fresh, this fragrance opens with sweet jasmine, wrapped around the zesty scent of Tunisian orange blossom and a fruity peach note. A flurry of warm sandalwood is twisted around the floral heart of a delicate jasmine flower, tuberose petals and a sweet rose extract which adds depth and texture to this fragrance. A haze of iris and musk deepen the base, as a fragrant note of orange blossom and creamy praline offsets the dusky floral scent.
The perfume was four years in the making, involving a story of recall (after it was distributed) for the sole reason of making it even better. That's the sort of dedication the perfume house imparts to its fragrances.
Now back to the image in my head. Oddly specifically, Luisa Madrigal (yes, the one from Disney's Encanto), popped into my mind. Specifically, if Isabela Madrigal decided to concoct a perfume for Luisa, this is exactly how I envisioned it'd smell. For those who are new to Encanto, Luisa Madrigal is a 19-year-old with superhuman strength, while her oldest sister Isabela Madrigal can make flowers bloom anywhere. For legal reasons, I cannot put their images here, but you can read a quick review of the show here.
Undoubtedly for me, the strong, musky scent of the Wind Flowers stood out the most, and also lingers the longest. The first spritz, the top notes, does a wonderful job of ushering in a unique flowery scent I hoped would stay. The praline comes through light on its base note. However, the longer it stayed on the skin, the more wafts of musk versus florals I got. I felt more strong than feminine when I wore the scent, and found that it carried well into meetings when I needed to be more assertive. It's almost like magic, how a perfume can change the mood.
For ladies looking for a fragrance to take into power meetings, or for gentlemen looking for that touch of feminity, The House of Creed Wind Flower does a good job of being unisex despite its female-oriented marketing.
Classification: Floral, Amber, Fresh
Head: Jasmin (India), Orange Blossom Tunisia, Peach
Heart: Jasmine Sambac, Tuberose Absolute, Rose Centifolia
Base: Iris, Orange Blossom Tunisia, Musk Notes, Sandalwood (India), Praline
Creed Wind Flowers is priced at S$450 and sold at Creed Flagship Boutique in Raffles City, Escentials at Tangs Plaza and Paragon Shopping Centre. You can also find it online and deliver it to Singapore via the official website or on Selfridges.
