Athenaeum

This scent is so nostalgic, so nuanced, so pleasant, and so playfully elegant I knew it was my daily scent right away.

Warm hay, dried lavender, and Burt’s Bees chapstick, with an intriguing undernote of old paper and very specifically, blue ballpoint Bic pen ink. It’s like curling up under a tree with a library book and writing bad poetry in a spiral notebook.

At first application, Athenaeum is complex, sweet and floral. It rapidly moves to the tropical scent of plumeria flowers (frangipani) and stays there. If you have ever been to Hawai'i, you will know this smell from the ubiquitous leis and bushes in bloom around the islands. I find Athenaeum pleasant to wear but I tend to favor more earthy scents.

I love how different this is- like nothing else I’ve ever smelled. It’s an experience and I read that the company is out of the Scottish highlands… pretty cool.

When I first sprayed this I accidentally put on a little more than I normally would but it ended up being perfect and lasted all day. The beeswax note really bloomed on my skin and the hours going by where it lingered and deepened created this aura around me that was intoxicating, complex, and meditative. I felt like I was in humid ancient ruins with ivy and vines reclaiming the sacred space. Very beautiful

Though the components seem very different on paper, the fresh, verdant florals, hay, and the signature pen ink accord, are held together with a mossy bottom, making for a surprisingly coherent overall experience. Extremely evocative and original, one of my favourites from this house. I need a bottle now.