Amber Tapestry
Aftelier (2016)

A spiced amber fragrance. Jasmin seems to be a theme of these scents and it is continued here. This one again has those fleshy florals up front, this time supported by oriental spices. This is big and bold, very up-front, and I would say more suited to a female wearer. Although in wearing this I am very much outside my comfort zone, I find it to be executed with some art. As with Cuir de Gardenia, the florals are foregrounded to just the right extent, with the supporting cast adding colour and tones to the extent that it remains artistry rather than naturalism.

JTD says it all.

I much admire Aftel's thoughtful use of Sugars. There is a balance and finesse that allows the rest of the ingredients show their charm. Pear and Cinnamon with a breeze of Ambergris take the breath away. A foundation of Castoreum leads my sense to the Indols of the Jasmine Sambac. The trick of weaving Benzoin, Coumarin adds a Golden Charm.

Mandy Aftel's Amber Tapestry is my second try from her house Aftelier Perfumes, and like Vanilla Smoke that I tried earlier, Amber Tapestry is a powerful and provocative concoction. An amber-dominant experience that blends both creamy and animalic aspects of the accord.

The animalic, spicy base actually doesn't come out for me any more in the dry down than in the opening, its mix of castoreum, coumarin, and ambergris fostering a sense of nuance, though, that pervades the fragrant experience from beginning to end.

Predictably a strong winter-ideal performer in the EDP strength I've tried, I imagine its pure perform concentration to be heavier and more powerful still, and at roughly four times the cost, it's enticing but certainly would expect the perfume to go the extra mile beyond the EDP.

I already own an animalic amber fragrance in Parfum d'Empire Ambre Russe but certainly Amber Tapestry has its own angles, its own points of intrigue that vary from Ambre Russe, yet categorically it might feel a little redundant anyway. Mandy's works is clearly lovely, but admittedly pricey, at $180 for 30ml of the EDP that I tried, and the same price for just 8ml of the perfume that I did not try. Still, this is great work.

8 out of 10

Given its name I was half-expecting this to be a decadent amber oriental but no, Amber Tapestry had none of the heft commonly associated with the genre. It has none of the syrupy/oozy texture, opting instead for an airier, more resinous take. Jasmine adds a floral dimension and pairs well with the central golden amber accord. As far as sweetness go, this rates a 3 or at most a 4 on a 10-point scale. Evolution is pretty rapid for an oriental, the scent dissipating to its base notes within 2 hours. I'm sure there are morsels in there that I have missed but in projection, there is little to sink my teeth into.

Overall, a nice enough oriental but a little too polite for my liking. Amber Jasmine from Abdessalam Attar could easily tug at her ponytails and steal her lunchbox.

This opens as a fruity, slightly waxy jasmine, quickly taking on the texture & sweetness of crunchy demerara sugar, with a hint of cinnamon. There's a definite gourmand feel here, evoking unctuous pastries & other baked goods. Three to four hours in, it dries down to a sweet, warm & fuzzy base, suggestive of an animal's fur, but not animalic in any kind of dirty or fecal way. There's a slight saltiness deep in the drydown, & it all lasts around ten hours before fading out.
I would say that this is not primarily an amber fragrance, in the same way that Ambre Narguile is not. But it is a similar kind of comfort scent, creating a delicious, golden-brown aura that feels wonderfully cosy on a cold, grey day.

Mandy Aftel produced two new perfumes in 2016. Memento Mori, as the name implies, is a contemplation of mortality and consequence. Amber Tapestry is the salve for a wounded spirit. Given the conflict and vitriolic tenor of American politics in 2016, the two perfumes are poignant bookends to the year.

Did Aftel create Memento Mori and Amber Tapestry as commentary on the state of political strife? Doubtful. But do they suit the times? Do they offer an opportunity to make sense of them? For me they do.

Memento mori are images of death. As reminders of impermanence and mortality they are reassuring to some, terrifying to others. Perfumery is a durational art form and transience is inherent. What better form for a memento mori than a perfume?

Aftel creates a memento mori very different from the either the classical skull symbolism of portraiture/still life or the bizarre staged Victorian postmortem photographs. The former is cliché and the latter is gruesome to the modern eye, but both ask the viewer to consider mortality by looking at death. Aftel's perfume focuses on the nature of relationships and the brevity of life by making us think about skin, the shell that contains us, the handle that we use to hold onto each other. Skin is durable and fragile, beautiful yet commonplace. It is an outward sign to others (and to ourselves in the mirror) of the passage of time, aging and death.

Aftel presents skin in its entirety. Memento Mori ranges from the musky sweetness of a baby's softness to the seductive floral quality of mature, knowing flesh. It has acrid flashes---the skin of effort and struggle---but is grounded in the buttery intimacy of commingled bodies. The sense of skin pervades every bit of Memento Mori but it is still a perfume. It has all the attributes and aesthetics of perfumery and doesn't try to create a false authenticity by overemphasizing realism. I struggle for the right word to capture Memento Mori's representation to skin. Depiction? Portrayal? Tribute? I'll stick with adjectives. It is loving and honest.

Fragrance's language is elusive. It has to do with tone, not facts. Even if you can't put words to the qualities you find in a perfume, you can hear what it has to say. Creating a memento mori through fragrance is an ideal use of the olfactory medium and makes such sense that I catch myself nodding yes as I bring my nose to my wrist. Memento Mori has the distillation that I attribute to an artist's thorough understanding of her process.

The last part of daily yoga practice is an extended savasana, or corpse pose. It's an opportunity to think about your eventual death as you compose yourself and conclude your practice. I had a yoga teacher who used to say without a trace of irony, "OK. Now lie down and die." This is how I experience Aftel's perfume. The concept of the perfume is deep, but the experience is accessible. It's a balance that suits the subject perfectly.

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Amber Tapestry is a big, cruisy floriental that fits late 2016 to a T. It satisfies my need for beauty as a rational response to the emotional and cognitive dissonance of the American election year. Tapestry is an apt metaphor for the perfume. A jasmine/resin accord is the weft that holds all the other notes woven through it. The putty-like density of heliotropin matches the hum of cinnamon to create a matte finish that allows the gasoline edges of the jasmine to ignite.

A choreographer I used to work with had a wonderful, looping bit of material that we used to dance because it felt so good. It was juicy and lush, with suspension and release that you could manipulate with all sorts of satisfying dynamics. It was called The Feel-Good Phrase. Amber Tapestry has the same sensibility. Engagement, pleasure and satisfaction. No small things these days.

(from scenthurdle.com)