L’Artisan Parfumeur- Premier Figuier Extrême

I'm sure this happens to you occasionally: You hear some very familiar music playing in another room, another floor or even from a car passing by. It's too far away for every note to actually reach your ear, but you know the song so well that you "hear" the missing pieces- your mind is stepping up and filling the gaps.

I'm still dealing with a raging head cold and my nose is (maybe) working at 25% capacity . But I can't go through my day without perfume, so I'm turning to the cornerstones of my wardrobe and wear the ones I can smell with my memory just as well as with a functioning schnoz. I start the morning with vintage Chanel No. 5 in eau de cologne, but as the day progresses I turn to something sweeter and softer, but still one I would recognize anywhere- Premier Figuier Extrême by L’Artisan Parfumeur.

Premier Figuier Extrême can be a bit misleading. Yes, it's a sweet milky fig over a creamy sandalwood base. But the reason I love it so much (besides my fig obsession, that is) is the way it juxtaposes the shade of a fig tree that grows beside a cool running stream- it's green and blue, very refreshing after walking a few miles on a hot summer day and reaching that hidden sanctuary. Then you have the smooth warmth of wood and coconut milk like a satisfying and comforting dessert, an inviting rustic kitchen where you sit at a slightly worn down hand-made table and getting a whiff of the fresh figs in the blue and yellow bowl.

Premier Figuier Extrême ($115, 1.7 oz EDP) is available from the L’Artisan Parfumeur boutique at Henri Bendel in NYC and from the company's website, artisanparfumeur.us . I bought my bottles years ago at the (now defunct) free-standing SoHo L'Artisan boutique in NYC.

Art: Fig Leaves by Yvonne Ayoub.