Aftelier Perfumes Cuir de Gardenia Perfume: A Sublime and Covet-Worthy Aroma to Behold

Press Samples (Unaffiliated Links)

When the Makeup Wars! team decided to feature signature, or favorite, perfumes– I immediately knew that I wanted to sing the praises of Aftelier Perfumes Cuir de Gardenia Perfume, which I reviewed several years ago (#repost). This is such a special perfume that you really must smell and wear it to allow its complexity to unfurl. Replete with the intoxicating aroma of gardenia, this sophisticated floral merges with leather in what can only be described as an unachievable ethereal wonderment for anyone other than Mandy Aftel. 

Aftelier Perfumes is an extraordinary atelier perfumer, and everything created by Mandy Aftel is magical. Her deftly created masterpieces often feature unexpected combinations, and surprising juxtapositions of scents that are so wondrous and sublime that love quickly gives way to unmitigated obsession. Her scents are utterly captivating, and these creations are at once evocative and penetratingly visceral. When one slowly and deeply inhales her perfumes and elixirs one is quickly enveloped and enraptured by their complexity. Each of the individual elements slowly unfurls as they undergo metamorphosis against warm skin. The inevitable result, with Mandy's creations, is a perfectly balanced intoxicating scent that is far more than the sum of its parts. As any fan of Aftelier Perfumes will surely attest, everything that Mandy creates has an ethereal quality that inspires profound wonderment. Her creations are so masterfully articulated that they are truly works of art.

Aftelier Cuir de Gardenia, which is available in solid and liquid forms, features the beautiful, and albeit unexpected, combination of the most intoxicating exotic gardenia accentuated by the warmth, depth and richness of leather. There is an undeniable sensual earthiness that is offset by the rich floral, and the intersection of these commingled scents is otherworldly. The leather modifies and softens the edges of the gardenia, and the gardenia itself is modified by the presence of the jasmine grandiflorum absolute. This combination is inexplicably rich, warm and complex. At times, one detects the emergence of what can only be likened to a rich and creamy ylang-ylang that immediately soothes the senses and quiets the mind. This is no ordinary or predictable gardenia, but instead a very sensual and rich permutation brought to life by Mandy's visionary approach to perfume-making. This is at once an intensely elegant, uncompromisingly decadent fragrance, and it is unequivocally the most strikingly sexy scent imagined. Cuir de Gardenia is one of those rare scents that I could wear everyday for the rest of my life and never tire of its aroma. Cuir de Gardenia is a true artistic masterpiece, and most assuredly the most decadent and sensual gardenia conceived.

According to Aftelier Perfumes,

Cuir de Gardenia retains the unique beauty of the tiare flower, not allowing it to morph into the hundreds of petals of a floral bouquet. I had been incredibly fortunate to find an artisanal grower and distiller of the ultra-rare, costly, precious gardenia. In Cuir de Gardenia, I wanted to retain the pure loveliness of the creamy sweet and singular gardenia fragrance, and knew that the rounded warmth of an oil-based perfume (solid and extrait) would be the perfect format.

Cuir de Gardenia is unusual in that it has no top notes; I created it in such a way that the gardenia appears immediately, unimpeded from the opening of the perfume onward, merging seamlessly with the leather. The natural isolates ethyl phenyl acetate (reminiscent of a bunch of sweet peas) and the candy-like maltol contribute sweet and floral notes to the animalic base of the perfume.

Scent Family: Floral
Featured Notes:
Middle: tiare (gardenia) absolute, jasmine grandiflorum absolute, benzyl acetate.
Base: castoreum, ethyl phenyl acetate, maltol.

Liquid 0.25 ml $7.00

2 ml. $50.00
8 ml. $185.00

Available from Aftelier Perfumes 

Solid 0.25 ml $7.00

1/4 oz. $240.00

Available from Aftelier Perfumes

According to Aftelier Perfumes, 

Our compact, designed by Mandy Aftel, is handmade from one ounce of sterling silver and is presented in your choice of an orange or purple silk pouch.

Overall Assessment: If I had to choose but one scent to wear from here until the end of time, it would be the infinitely mesmerizing Cuir de Gardenia. Cuir de Gardenia is a hauntingly beautiful and bewitching scent, and if you buy one perfume this year– this should be the one! It is truly sublime.

Please click on the badges below o see which fragrances were selected by the other Makeup Wars! eam members.

Press Sample. All views expressed are categorically my own. Stock images courtesy of Aftelier Perfumes. (Unaffiliated Links).

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