Legacy

One may think, why create a perfume? 

While perfumery is seemingly frivolous, it actually provides an insightful perspective on the complex relationship between the east and west.

    While there are underlying narratives of creating a perfume inspired by Chinese ingredients (i.e. spices, silk trade,  migration patterns etc.), my inspiration can actually be found in the nostalgic aroma that ruminated in Pau Pau’s apartment.

   It may be hard to believe, but scent has been the root of conflict and violence for centuries, even dating back to wars that were fought over the trade of precious aromatics. These days, scent has proven to be rooted in more interpersonal conflict. It’s the upturning of the nose when you open your lunch box or the snide remarks about why a certain group smells “that way” –– whether sources may be the food that we eat or the products that we put on our bodies,  ethnic peoples have always been told how they should and should not smell.

“Filbert Street” is the nostalgia of stepping into my Pau Pau’s home during lunar new year; acrid smoke from incense, the zest from peeled mandarins at the alter, and the fragrant spices emanating from traditional dishes.
I was inspired create a perfume that captured the memories that I hold so dear, and in turn reclaim my relationship with the scent of traditional Chinese ingredients.

mandarin, lychee, bergamot

blood orange, sichuan peppercorn, clove

agarwood, sandalwood, benzoin

Bottle Design
    The bottle is designed to imitate a traditional Chinese “chop” which is used to imprint a family ensignia on official documents.

    Inspired by traditional Chinese perfume bottles, the outer casing is made entirely of carved jade. The jade exterior houses a perfume bottle which can be replenished. I wanted to create a bottle that was a collector’s item in itself, an object of heritage that could become a family heirloom.