Founded over 45 years ago by Cereria Terenzi Evelino, the Italian haute perfumery of Tiziana Terenzi began with painstakingly crafted, uniquely pure burning candles and are keeping the family tradition of working with fragrance alive by capturing scented memories and presenting them to the public, most recently launching the two latest of their "Extrait de Parfum" collection at London's prestigious department store, Fortnum & Mason. I was thrilled to be invited to meet this brother and sister whose passion and creativity keep the familial flame burning for contemporary consumers to appreciate, and so it was I found myself mingling with the traditional twinset and pearls brigade who frequent these hallowed halls, and the many tourists who come to take pictures of biscuit tins and the various stunning displays around the store
Elbowing my way through the gawping crowds, I ascended the grand staircase to the sumptuously laid out perfume hall on the top floor, and was introduced first to Tiziana. She is the design half of this talented duo, and this was immediately apparent by her colorful clothes and the utterly gorgeous necklace she was wearing. Noticing my goggle-eyed open admiration of the piece she explained that she had made if herself, being a jewellery designer too, and that not only was it a lovely necklace, but functioned as a fragranced locket, the silver intricately pierced in a filigree pattern to allow the central compartment to be soaked in perfume and surround the wearer all day. She took me over to her brother, Paolo, who awkwardly went to shake my hand but kissed me, instead, being hampered by a badly broken hand in a sling. "I keep forgetting!" he winced, and we made our way over to the area where their perfumes are arrayed, sitting on velvet chairs and sipping tea while he described to me what inspired them to begin this journey together.
"The idea was to create something special for the memory of our father. You can see this most clearly represented on the packaging with the 'T E' at the top. In Italian it means 'For You,' but for my sister and myself it also stands for our father as these were the initials of his name—it is a special present for him. With every perfume I wanted to recreate a special moment in my life and memories, to capture all the beautiful moments of my journey in respect for our father, that was the most important thing. It's really exciting for us to see how well the perfumes have been received because we did this as a personal thing but people have really loved them.
"When I design a perfume I first of all fill many notebooks with my scribblings of ideas and all the things I want it to represent and remind me of. Then I go through and work out how the notes would reflect this best. To me it is very similar to how I compose music. Of course this observation has been noted before many times, the similarity of music and perfume, but as a musician myself, I notice this very strongly. The feeling of composing a song or new fragrance feels just the same to me, my mental process is exactly the same."
LILLIPUR:
Top Notes:
Roman Wormwood, Lemon, Oman Frankincense, Star Anise,
Middle Notes:
Galbanum, Sri Lankan Cinnamon, Carnation, Thyme, Cyclamen,
Sichuan Pepper,
Base Notes:
Lebanon Cedar, White Musk, Kashmir Wood, Patchouli, Benzoin,
Tonka Bean, Amber, Birch, Blond Tobacco
Paolo explained to me that Lillipur had been inspired by his trip to Nepal.
"It's a very mystical place with these beautiful hills and a valley speckled with temples. When you go there and visit with the holy men you can feel this mysticism all around you. You can smell these different scents there of the woods and incenses the monks burn while meditating, in a way they are almost Arabian scents, so this is very unusual to smell and not something that many are lucky enough to experience. People go there to improve themselves, to change, to reflect on their lives. I wanted to create a perfume that also changes and improves on the skin, and so the longer you wear it the more you discover the personality of what perhaps seemed a simple fragrance."
This is an outstanding perfume that's a very wearable twist on the many Oud fragrances that have flooded the market of late. The herbs and Nepalese spices are heady with a grounding sense of calm. Warm and inviting, the Cinnamon is particularly beautiful here, a tingling resonance that melds with the Frankincense and Lemon to make you feel at one with the world, a cushioning protection to be worn like a cloak.
Paolo went on to explain the way he works, and how much more he relishes the freedom of creating fragrances for himself, instead of being commissioned by others. Much as he enjoys working for other companies on their fragrant projects, he confessed that there are always restrictions and barriers to creativity, because of course you are always working within the barriers of a time frame and a budget that must not be breached. "I have to follow the rules when I create something for someone else. But now I can work without any compromise of my ideas, or indeed of price. I can hand pick each of the raw materials and do whatever I want, go wherever my heart takes me. I can experiment!"
"For me creating a perfume is very much the same as another passion in my life: music. Perhaps you don't know but I play the guitar and have done for many, many years. The same tension is present in the creation of both these things, to represent a moment in your life, an emotion. I go about creating a song the same way, it's a very similar creative process. For this reason I explain that our fragrances are not 'politically correct' shiny, polished things, because this is not what life is. The most beautiful elements have to be balanced and harmonized with a sadness that comes from experience to be truly rounded.
"Having created fragrances for other people, other clients, now I am creating these for our family business and it gives me free reign to do what I really want, what is in my heart, with no compromises. It's wonderful to have that freedom to experiment, to make mistakes, yes, but to have that ultimate freedom is the best thing for creativity.
"Everything is handmade, this is very important to us. Italian people are incredibly proud of Italy and the beautiful things we make there. Therefore we insist the bottles are hand crafted in Italy too. Even the wood on the front of this bottle is sourced from Italy, all local to where we are." All of these are designed and sourced by his sister, and they explained that even the shape of the bottles reflects the perfume within. The round ones being more feminine, seductive, the square having more of a masculine feel perhaps but an innate elegance, too.
MAREMMA:
Top Notes:
Bitter Bergamot, Ylang-Ylang, Jasmine, Black Currant,
Holm Oak Acorn
Middle Notes:
Angelica, Orris Root, Agarwood, Lotus Wood, Cumin, Honey
Base Notes:
Patchouli, Cocoa Powder, Sandalwood, Cistus Labdanum,
Amber Crystals, Rosewood.
"Maremma is a region in Italy that many tourists do not know, it's not famous like Florence or Tuscany, but very beautiful, quite wild, and here they train these incredible horses, tall and strong, such elegant creatures. This area is the inspiration for the fragrance, with a fruitiness that is tempered with a sense of going back to the earth, a dirtiness to it that was very important to me. You also have a dry sweetness that comes from the leather, but always with a freshness, a sense of being amidst a wild landscape, right in the middle of Nature."
I have to say, Maremma was my absolute favorite of the new fragrances and possibly of the entire Tiziana Terenzi collection. It has an all-enveloping warmth and rustic sensuality that's at once quite homely, yet infused with an exotic "otherness" that makes it incredibly intriguing. I'm a massive fan of Black Currant in fragrances anyway, so it was always likely to appeal; but the way that Paulo has entwined it with the Bitter Bergamot, various precious woods and the really interesting use of Cocoa Powder with Labdanum in the base lifts it to a whole other level of wonderful. The Jasmine and Ylang-Ylang could so easily have been allowed to overwhelm the composition of this fragrant melody, but it is beautifully balanced and somehow comforting, intriguing and wild all at the same time. Much like I imagine wandering the beautiful landscape Paolo spoke of so movingly. I found it to have fantastic staying power on the skin, and having spritzed it into my hair found it lasted right into the next day.
It is fascinating to speak to a perfumer who also composes music, and to discover that the creative emotional process really is the same. A particular blend of notes has been crafted to specifically trigger feelings, to harmonize and lead you on a journey that has been created as a memory or to express an emotion the artist wishes to convey. In this way we are lucky to share such a personal experience with the perfumer or musician, and yet it also becomes inevitably imbued with our own memories, our own private responses that cannot be put into words but in the hands of a skilled artisan may be captured within a bottle or a piece of music, to be released whenever we wish it, and to instantly transport us to our own personal reverie.
Paolo and Tiziana are continuing their family tradition of creating beautiful pieces infused with a passion that can only be borne of a familial pride that literally seems to glow from within, and most of all with a deep sense of respect and love for the memory of their dear father. Such passion cannot be manufactured by advertising agencies and PR people, and this is what truly sets their fragrance collection apart. I was honored to spend the afternoon with such truly lovely, welcoming people, and am really excited to see where their combined creativity takes them next on their fragrant journey as keepers of the family flame.
Tiziana Terenzi fragrances are available exclusively from Fortnum & Mason in London's Piccadilly. 100 ml Extrait de Parfum: £115 the event.
