Advertising art for Iris Gris de Fath

A couple of weeks ago I had the pleasure of smelling some Iris Gris de Jaques Fath at the home of a friend with many samples and bottles of vintage fragrances. We had a lot to smell that evening, but I do remember how modern it seemed, but rich and full-bodied. I had asked if he had this scent because I knew I was going to be reviewing the new fragrance from Dawn Spencer Hurwitz, Scent of Hope, which is a loving recreation of Iris Gris.

Dawn Spencer Hurwitz

Scent of Hope came about when one of Dawn’s clients, who was ill with cancer, asked her to recreate her beloved Iris Gris. Dawn has gone through the process of reverse-engineering vintage perfumes in the past but  this fragrance is especially meaningful and special. She had a bit of extrait in her scent museum, so she had enough to work with. Iris Gris, released in 1947, is an iris-centered perfume that has been softened with a peach note to keep the scent from being chilly. Part of the process was finding ingredients that could replace the animalic musk and civet properly, since most perfumes of that era used real animal extracts. Working carefully, and skin-testing early stages to see how the composition was working on her client’s skin, Dawn gradually added the more subtle floral notes that makes Iris Gris so captivating.  Realizing that she had something special, she asked her client about a wider release, which was granted.

"Girl With Peaches" by Lashkevich Alexey

Scent of Hope begins with a gorgeous ripe peach note that is kept from being overly sweet and juicy by the smooth, cool orris and light doses of bergamot and lemon. There is a touch of violet hovering in the air. Beautiful and tender, this perfume brings to mind softly rustling silk and the kind of style that is refined yet casual. I like it because although it brings easy elegance to mind, it still wore perfectly with a tunic and capris and added a bit of glide to my step. Dawn carefully blended notes of muguet, heliotrope, lilac, jasmine and carnation to provide a bouquet that would not overwhelm the peach and orris notes, but support them.

"Iris Reflections" by Lena Karpinsky

Although this is based on a vintage fragrance, and my brief whiff of Iris Gris can attest that this is a lovely reproduction; it still smells quite modern, like Iris Gris did. There is definitely that “vintage vibe” so sought after these days, but Scent of Hope has no aldehydic blast up top that many perfumers use to replicate the aura of perfumes from yesteryear. This is just downright lovely, and all iris fans need to try it.

30% of the sales of Scent of Hope will go to 'Sense of Security', a support center for those undergoing breast cancer treatment in the Denver area. If you want to read more about Dawn’s creative process for Scent of Hope you can read Part 1 and Part 2 from her newsletter.  Scent of Hope is available to pre-order until its release on July 10. It is a limited edition, available in extrait/perfume format only in the 1 ml sample size ($23), 5 ml ($88) and 15 ml presentation bottles ($227). To preorder, you can email Dawn at dsh@dshperfumes.com. Also, there is currently a discount code, solstice14, good for 15% off sitewide through July 7, in case you were hankering after one of Dawn’s fragrances.

My sample was provided by DSH Perfumes.

Tama Blough, Managing Editor

Thanks to Dawn and DSH Perfumes, we are giving away two1-ml samples; one for US readers and one for International readers. Please let us know what appeals to you about this fragrance, if you ever smelled Jaques Fath Iris Gris (1946), and where you live. Draw closes July 5, 2014

We announce the winners only on site and on our Facebook page, so Like Cafleurebon and use our RSS option…or your dream prize will be just spilled perfume