Opulence (Parfum)

While not exactly onomatopoeic, the word opulence instantly conjures up a particular mood, one of excess, ostentation and indulgence, usually rich-hued, plush and luxurious to the point of hedonism. There are no hard edges with Opulence, it is a rich atmosphere that one sinks into, satiated and blissful.

Opulence is a huge rush of perfume, a profusion of metallic skin, sweat and pungent saffron and cardamom exploding out of the bottle, momentarily genuinely shocking. Akin to a darkened room fiercely illuminated, one’s retinas registering halos of aftershock until they fade. 

Opulence is unapologetically immense. Not a wallflower or pacifist, the notes collide and fuse with dazzling effect. The plum and inky smoked cypriol are two key notes that glorify the sumptuous structure of this unabashed prestige experience. The plum is ripe, sweet and oozing juice from sanguineous flesh. Cypriol, or nagarmotha as it sometimes known, is a bitter herbaceous smoky material, dark as night, smelling of leather and charred wood. It imparts huge complexity to perfumes and is a tenacious ingredient, lingering on skin like bonfire fumes. 

The plum and cypriol could have been overwhelming, but vanilla, amber and glassy musks temper any excess with a dose of mossy woods and incense to enhance the hazy richesse and abundance of the name. Boadicea the Victorious desires empowerment, their perfumes like scented armour that we carry into our everyday life. We cannot all be warriors, Queens, Kings and Monarchs, but wearing extraordinary perfumes like Opulence allows us for a while to feel the thrill and iconography of power.