The Gold Queen

Happy 15th Anniversary, CaFleureBon! It is with an ebullient heart that I announce the latest Queen in honor of ÇaFleureBon’s achievement. This is my fifth invitation to collaborate with Editor-In-Chief, Michelyn Camen to create a uniquely envisioned Queen; La Reine D’Or (The Gold Queen) is, again, unlike any of my previous “Queen Collaborations” with Michelyn. Michelyn wanted to create something otherworldly and truly unique (while still working in my signature ‘complex’ style). In conversation, we discussed some initial notes to inspire the fragrance that would speak to the concept of gold: golden fruits (with a specific reference to golden raisin), shimmering metal leaf, and deep golden resins. My use of opoponax, references he era Judith lived (6th century BCE). We knew immediately that the artistic / visual inspiration had to be the Fin de Siècle artist Gustav Klimt and his lush, evocative style. The result is The Gold Queen… a fragrance that fuses modern perfumery with ancient sensibilities. As I began creating The Gold Queen, a specific painting emerged from Klimt’s repertoire that kept speaking to us artistically: Judith and the Head of Holofernes. Its biblical referencing of a strong and seductive heroine who saves her city by seducing then beheading a besieging army commander, as well as the imagery itself (with the gilded silhouette of fruit trees), was to our minds a perfect fit to express the energy of The Gold Queen. She is beautiful, luscious, and powerful.