Ineke- After My Own Heart

The way I like my lilac is firmly planted in my back yard and far away from perfume and grooming products I use. Seriously, I don't even like En Passant. Lilac doesn't work for me and I've come to accept it. But this week I've been craving all things spring and my hand found itself consistently reaching for the mostly neglected sample of Ineke After My Own Heart. All of a sudden the magic has happened and I didn't make the poor floral thing stink to high heaven.

After My Own Heart is romance in a bottle. The lilac is soft, the heliotrope is slightly sweet and the musk is smooth and warm. It makes me think of a sunny May afternoon in the NJ Botanical Gardens at Skylands Manor. There's a section of the garden that's full of lilacs in every size, color and form. When the trees are in bloom you can smell them from afar and it's one of the most romantic places I know. You can bring a blanket and just lounge there in the sun until it all goes up to your head. I've been having a good skin chemistry week, so this perfume, Ineke's first, has been giving me all of its nuances. Slightly powdery, feminine and embracing- After My Own Heart is full of emotion. It's as floral and lilacy as it gets, even if the opening is somewhat green with a hint of orange blossom- soon you're transferred into a room full of lace, French antiques and vases full of freshly cut blooms.

It's utterly not my thing- decidedly floral perfumes, pink and lavender colors and that style of home decor. But I can appreciate it and occasionally even enjoy wearing such a perfume, especially since Ineke has composed After My Own Heart with care, warmth and originality. The musky dry-down is somewhat typical to the line and I like it a lot. I know some take issue with Ineke's base, so I'd advice everyone, including devotees of lilac perfumes to sample first. Thankfully, it's easy to do as Ineke sells full sample sets of all seven of her perfumes both on her own site and through Beauty Habit.

After My Own Heart ($88, 75ml) by Ineke can be found on ineke.com and beautyhabit.com

Art: The Lilac Fairy by Cicely Mary Barker (dated from the 1930s or 40s)

Ineke- Gilded Lily

There are several things worth noting about Ineke Ruhland's newest perfume, Gilded Lily. It's described as a fruity chypre, but just as Elena of Perfume Shrine commented earlier today, Gilded Lily doesn't seem to have much  in common with either the chypres of yore (if you want a true homage to the classics get the divine Mata Hari by Dawn Spencer Hurwitz), or with the modern ones. There's something in the way the perfume develops that might be the ghost of a chypre, but honestly, this label might be doing this lovely creation a disservice.

Then there's the issue of the gilded lily. I'm not the biggest fan of lily perfumes in general because they are just too big and floral and I'm just not the soliflore type. But there's no overwhelming feeling of petals and pollen here, no forced femininity (I actually find Gilded Lily to be perfectly unisex) and absolutely no gilding. Which leads us to my last point- Ineke has shown us here that one can compose a minimalist perfume that is not watery or boring. Gilded Lily doesn't suffer from the unbearable lightness of most minimalist perfumes (yes, I'm giving the stinkeye to Jean-Claude Elena and his followers). It's streamlined and almost stark- even the pale fruity opening doesn't bite or tries to take over- and I admit I'm having a hard time noticing where the pineapple and rhubarb come into play. It's more like a dried and slightly sweetened pink grapefruit rind. Later it becomes all about an abstract floral and pale woods, the cleanest (but not neutered) patchouli base with a tinge of pale green (I guess that's what was left of oakmoss in modern perfumery) and an overall quiet elegance.

If you spray enough, Gilded Lily will remain on skin for about 6-8 hours. You can actually really go to town with this one because it's relatively quiet and doesn't try to intrude on anyone's personal space. I would easily recommend this for what is called "office-wear" and for anyone who wants to be eased into indie perfumes but is having a hard time dealing with more assertive compositions.

I've come to really enjoy Ineke's style and Gilded Lily is no exception. The thing is that wearing it reminds me of sitting on my cherry-red sofa in my somewhat quirkily decorated living room while reading an interior design magazine dedicated to urban minimalism. I love looking at photos of city apartments with windows that take up a wall or two, stark white furniture with dove grey accents, glass, metal and a kitchen that appears to never ever be used for actual cooking. There are usually modern-cut crystal vases with a single lily or orchid in them providing the only splash of color in the room. It's gorgeous, enviable and utterly not me. But sometimes it's fun to pretend.

Gilded Lily by Ineke ($88, 2.5oz) is available from BeautyHabit and ineke.com. The 7 piece sample set ($25) is highly recommended. This review was based on a press sample provided by the company.

Art: Stargazer Lily by Declan McCullagh