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byredo

 bal d’afrique

A warm vetiver fragrance that’s rife with Jazz Age glamour.

Written By JAYME CYK

THE STORY OF A SCENT

When creating his warm, vetiver-based Bal D’Afrique fragrance, Byredo founder Ben Gorham found inspiration in African art, music, and dance—specifically as seen through the lens of 1920s Paris. The painter-turned-perfumer (a chance meeting with a fragrance connoisseur convinced Gorham to change careers) worked with leading nose Jerome Epinette to evoke romantic notes of neroli, African marigold, and Moroccan cedarwood. A celebration of the city’s avant garde scene, the meeting of cultures, and the excesses of the Jazz Age, the scent is meant to transport all who sniff it to a moment we missed. (Think: Woody Allen’s Midnight in Paris for the olfactory sense, if you will.) 

THE PERFUME PROFILE

OLFACTIVE GROUP: Wood

TOP NOTES: African marigold, bergamot, bucchu, lemon, and neroli

HEART NOTES: Cyclamen, jasmine petals, and violet

BASE NOTES: Black amberwood, Moroccan cedarwood, musk, and vetiver

WHERE TO WEAR

Nibbling on pastries at Chambelland in the 11th arrondissement; shopping for this season’s wardrobe on Rue Saint-Honoré.

APPROVED & FILED

June 13, 2016

approved
by the
violet code

The VIOLET CODE is a process and set of standards by which VIOLET GREY’s committee of beauty industry experts and influencers separate hero products from the tens of thousands of options available to you on the market. The result is a curation that is truly the best in beauty from those who know best.