A Bangladeshi man holding in his hand the new Isabelle Larignon Bangla Yãsaman was inspired by the jasmine garlands street sellers you can come across in Paris – Picture made via AI © Midjourney / Emmanuelle Varron, bottle ©Isabelle Larignon.
Knowing a perfumer personally is a blessing. Isabelle Larignon and I are both passionate about fragrance and shares with me her vision, and her understanding of raw materials, as well as her enthusiasm as an artis. Along with that her doubts, and frustrations when she is in the creative period, as a new perfume is ready to launch. If you have followed our reviews, you know that she studied at Cinquieme Sens and Bertrand Duchaufour was her mentor so she sets very high standards, but she’s in n one’s shadow. I’ve followed her from the beginning and learned a lot about the ups and downs she has as an entrepreneur and the challenges of being an independent perfumer. I see how Isabelle must do everything from sourcing and ordering bottles and packaging (currently in short supply), deal with rising materials costs, delays in production. And as an independent perfumer she has no marketing budget, so she is charge of visibility to retailers, perfume lovers and journalists.
Isabelle has wanted to work on a jasmine perfume for a long time and with Isabelle Larignon Bangla Yãsaman she has created a genderless jasmine fragrance, removing its feminine connotation in the western world. In my reviews, I share the point of view of the brand, the perfumer, but I allow myself the freedom to reinterpret the fragrance according to my feelings and my own story. For Isabelle Larignon Bangla Yãsaman, her storytelling is linked to my own experience. Isabelle reveals the story of a man from Bangladesh who, in order to survive, sells jasmine necklaces to the lovers he meets strolling the streets of Paris or in cafes, especially in the evening. Often ignored, even mocked, he continues day after day to earn his living in this way, in general indifference.
Isabelle Larignon Bangla Yasaman comes with a pattern inspired by a hand offering jasmine – Picture ©Studio Artichaut and pattern ©Marie-Claire Redon.
This (true) story took me back to my teenage years, when I joined my mother every other weekend (a familiar rhythm for children of divorcees). She was then living with my stepfather Jean in the very chic district of Saint-Germain-des-Prés. And one of their rites was to regularly have a drink at aperitif time in the legendary Les Deux-Magots café, where Jean had his habits for thirty years. I was of course invited when I was with them and I then discovered all of Paris celebrities that I saw on television, including a good number of actors and writers. Whether indoors or on the terrace, the atmosphere was very bourgeois, in the most exquisite style, with a few tourists cherry-picked by the waiters. And regularly, a charming Bangladeshi gentleman in his fifties would come into the café with his arms full of jasmine garlands and very dry sprigs in his hand to shout out “Jasmine, jasmine!”. The smell fascinated me, as intoxicating as his outfit was all-purpose. Of course, I was dying to bring one of these garlands at home, but my stepfather had quickly quenched my enthusiasm by telling me that this scent was coming off intensely because our friendly salesman sprinkled it on the strands and flowers he carried with him. Nothing natural! Thus, each time I saw him, I was torn between a feeling of frustration at having been cheated on the goods and a feeling of pity for this gentleman, always humble, smiling, who broke my heart when I saw him leaving without having sold anything, often to general indifference.
Les Deux Magots, Saint-Germain des Prés’s mythico café – ©Emmanuelle Varron.
Isabelle Larignon Bangla Yãsaman (Yãsaman mean jasmine in Persian) does not leave anyone indifferent. And it is no doubt to do justice to these street sellers, and especially to the one she regularly met in her neighborhood, that she dedicates her third creation to these “flower men”. A fragrance with a bewitching trail, which evolves over the hours, living intensely on the skin. This jasmine, however, was created from scratch. There is no trace of jasmine in the formula. Like a symbol, Isabelle Larignon drew on her knowledge of raw materials to compose a multi-faceted accord, a dream jasmine that has used neither earth nor water to grow and which would be present from the first minute to the last moments of the perfume on oneself.
photo by Emmanuelle©
From the very first seconds, Isabelle Larignon Bangla Yãsaman you inhale green and spicy notes thanks to two raw materials that the perfumer particularly appreciates: buchu and cardamom, the latter dosed in an XL proportion, as in her two previous creations. A jasmine as one would smell it in the morning, dapper and luminous thanks to bergamot, even a bit naughty, as if the flower had spent a sleepless night. I then perceive a familiar note, but which I cannot identify at first glance on the skin: a little salty, spicy but blending harmoniously with my skin… It is the essence of celery, which creates a contrast quite destabilizing, but on which I quickly become addicted to. Accompanied by saffron and curcuma, I am transported to these stalls you can find in the Indian district of Paris, where flowers, spices, fresh food and jewelry mingle.
Over the minutes, Isabelle Larignon Bangla Yãsaman becomes more animalic. First of all, by developing a leathery facet brought by the osmanthus, and a sensuality delivered by the indole, always intoxicating. The sensual and mysterious aspect is very present, brought by Peru balm, tobacco and a green vanilla with woody accents lightened from its usual sweetness. Then, each skin will make it evolve in its own way. On me, jasmine is extremely indolent, omnipresent, which is rare as usually it is a raw material that does not hold on to me. I also keep the green and spicy notes, a blessing with the weather we are currently experiencing in Paris, as an intense heat has been present for several days here, almost suffocating. The diverse scents of Isabelle Larignon Bangla Yãsaman are perceptible when I walk, when I get on the metro or the bus, and remain on my skin until bedtime, like an indelible olfactory tattoo.
Upon the release of her first fragrance Le Flocon de Johann K, Isabelle Larignon did not think she was creating a brand, rather giving an olfactory voice to her desires of the moment. With Milky Dragon and now Bangla Yãsaman, she no longer has to dream of making perfumery her job. Just five years after deciding to follow her own path here she is with three fragrances bearing her name, and an identifiable signature: that of a perfumer with an impressively precise nose, telling scented stories in her own language, without fuss or coquetry/
Notes: bergamot, buchu, cardamom, lemon, curcuma, petitgrain Bigaradier, jasmine accord, celery, osmanthus, saffron, clary sage, fir balsam, indole, Peru balm, tobacco, green vanilla.
Disclaimer: A huge merci to Isabelle Larignon for the pre-launch Bangla Yãsaman sample provided for this review. The opinions expressed are my own.
Emmanuelle Varron, Senior Editor and Paris Brand Ambassador
Thanks to Isabelle Larignon, we have a 50 ml bottle of Bangla Yãsaman for one registered reader in USA, UK and EU. To be eligible, please tell how you feel about Emmanuelle’s review, what interests you and where you live. Draw closes 06/15/2023.
Isabelle Larignon Bangla Yãsaman can be pre-ordered on the brand’s website. It will officially be launched on June 20th and will also be available on Sainte-Cellier website.
Isabelle Larignon Milky Dragon was a Top Ten Perfume of 2022 for both Michelyn and Emmanuelle
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