Pierre Guillaume
A unique visual signature based on accords, character, and seasonality
The saffron arrives first, warm and golden with its peculiar metallic-sweet character, immediately tempered by vanilla that's been rendered almost abstract—more the idea of vanilla than its full-throated reality. Within moments, the iris begins its powdery conquest, coating everything in that signature lipstick-violet haze.
The hay absolute emerges fully now, bringing dried herbal warmth and a subtle tobacco-leaf earthiness that grounds the sweeter elements. The iris and vanilla have merged into something almost talc-like, whilst the saffron's spiciness softens into honeyed leather undertones. This is the fragrance at its most complex, balancing between gourmand comfort and austere elegance.
What remains is a close-to-skin whisper of amber-warmed vanilla powder with woody shadows. The iris's dryness persists as a subtle rootiness beneath the sweetness, whilst traces of hay add textural interest. It's intimate and cocooning, the olfactory equivalent of cashmere against bare skin, somehow both comforting and refined.
Felanilla is Pierre Guillaume's meditation on vanilla as a powdered textile rather than a gourmand confection. The saffron here isn't the metallic, medicinal variety but something sun-warmed and subtly leathered, its honeyed facets weaving through vanilla that's been stripped of its caramel sweetness and dusted with orris butter until it whispers rather than shouts. This is vanilla seen through the gauzy filter of Florentine iris—all violet-grey softness and cosmetic elegance, with that characteristic rooty dryness that keeps the composition tethered to earth rather than drifting into dessert territory.
The hay absolute is the unexpected genius here, lending a tobacco-adjacent warmth that bridges the oriental sweetness with something almost austere, like sun-bleached linen stored in an old wooden chest with sachets of dried flowers. There's a woody backbone that prevents this from becoming saccharine, whilst the amber provides a skin-like warmth rather than heavy resinousness. The overall effect is intensely powdery—imagine vintage face powder tins, rice powder puffs, the inside of a well-loved handbag containing lipstick and pressed compacts.
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3.7/5 (171)