Reem Acra: the most beautiful bottle I’ve ever seen? Definitely. The most beautiful perfume I’ve ever smelt? Quite possibly… It’s not often I try a fragrance that makes me swoon, which is exactly the effect this one has. And we all want people to swoon as we waft by, no - just me?
Lebanese designer, Reem Acra is best known for dressing Hollywood’s biggest names, including Kirsten Stewart in pink tulle couture at this week’s Oscars. Reem Acra Eau de Parfum is the designer’s first fragrance, inspired by childhood memories of collecting amber in the forests of Lebanon.
It is the creation of perfumer, Pierre Negrin of Firmenich; sheer amber balanced with shimmering fruit, voluminous flower petals and sensual musk. The fragrance includes bergamot, peach and orange blossom at the top; ginger, jasmine, lily of the valley and peony in the heart; and amber, cedar, patchouli and warm musk in the base.
Seven of my favourite notes (in bold) in one bottle… it had to be a winner really. The dry down is soft and musky and lasting power isn’t amazing, which is fine - I’ll just take it everywhere with me! (Is it just me that likes to spritz a perfume throughout the day for that initial hit?)
This is a deliciously heady scent - warm, sensual, womanly - initially overwhelming (in a good way), yet not overpowering or heavy. It’s simultaneously light hearted, energetic and elegant, quite an achievement really. It sometimes reminds me of a perfume I wore many years ago, Lancome Poeme, which shares many of the same notes - interestingly the same ones I highlighted above. Reem Acra is without the overt sweetness of Poeme and in my view a much more balanced scent, but I’m amazed that it brought me back to something I literally haven’t sniffed for 15 years… aren’t fragrant memories amazing?
Reem Acra Eau de Parfum* 50ml - £55, 90ml - £72
Does Reem Acra sound like your kind of perfume? What’s your current favourite?
