Acqua di Parma- Fico di Amalfi (Blu Mediterraneo)

Last year the Blond and visited the Amalfi Coast in the spring. It was lemon season, with bursts of yellow colors everywhere, limoncello stands and lemon ice sold from vans and those little three wheel sort-of-cars along the winding roads. Here and there, though, I could see something else among the lemon and orange lemon groves: fig trees with tiny green, months away from ripening fruit. Long time readers may remember that figs are my favorite fruit, and the intoxicating smell of fig trees is the one thing I'm really missing here in the Northeast. It reminds me of many places from my past, most of all my Italian honeymoon. So instead of eating figs until  I can no longer move, I collect and wear fig perfumes.

Fico di amalfi from Acqua di Parma's Blu Mediterraneo series is a perfect summer fragrance, especially if you prefer your perfume on the light and citrusy side. The Amalfi connection is obvious from the bright lemon and orange notes, more zesty than juicy, with a touch of floral flutter. This is the Amalfi coast, after all. But I'm here for the fig, which is just a bit leafy, a touch woody, and dries down to a very smooth and light milky musk while still holding to the figginess. It's also quite dry, free of sweetness, and has a brisk cedar note that will make the fragrance just as appealing to men as it is to women.

 Acqua di Parma's Blu Mediterraneo range is incredibly light and unobtrusive. It shimmers in the air when you first spray it, then settle closer to the skin. I spray myself with Fico di Amalfi like it's my job, deeply marinating my skin, hair and clothes in order for it to stick (I should really get the body lotion for added oomph). Eight to ten spritzes that include my scarf and/or summer cardigan actually last all day long, emphasizing the musky woody fig that's in the base of the perfume. The initial application to my wrists and neck disappears within less than four hours, but since I really go to town with it and trap the scent all around me in layers, I get the easy breezy casual and uplifting scent of the gorgeous Amalfi coast to stay with me and make me happy throughout the day.

Notes: bergamot, orange, lemon, grapefruit, mandarin wood, fig, pink pepper, jasmine, musk, cedar, and fig milk.

Acqua di Parma- Fico di Amalfi ($100, 2.5oz) is available from Nordstrom and other select stores. I received a press sample from the brand's PR.

Image: Amalfi by Georges Barbier, 1922, outfit by Worth.