Black Label by Yardley

Black Label by Yardley is the image of my father in the mornings, shaving and finishing with this aftershave; it has always been a deep, intense memory for me… I remember (my father) after the ritual, entering the bedroom to say goodbye to my brother and me before heading off to work… we didn’t take long to peek out the window to say our goodbyes and watch him leave in his red Opel Rekord… with a certain sadness, my brother and I were content with the memory of his presence thanks to the scent of this aftershave, which we often used to play with and splash on our action figures after a proper shave… the kind that left handsome soldiers without noses… Over time, and without meaning to, this ritual led me to love fragrances and seek out the scents that accompanied my childhood and adolescence… That is the case with Signoricci, Eau Savage and Aramis Devin, all of them the olfactory image and representation of my father. It is curious, as sometimes when I dream of him, I perfectly perceive the aroma of these perfumes in my dreams. Many years passed before I became a fragrance collector, and when this happened, I told this story to an antique dealer friend; One day he said to me: I think this is for you– an old, well-used set of Yardley containing an intact bottle of this aftershave and a beautiful stainless steel towel warmer… It is difficult for me to say what I feel every time I uncork this bottle and perceive the sweet, citrusy lavender scent with notes of oakmoss and sandalwood… a feeling of unconditional love, like the one my old man expressed to all his children until the very end… for moments I feel great happiness and somehow feel that my father is by my side. Today, the Yardley bottle occupies a very special place alongside my bottles of Signoricci and Devin, all these sections of my collection in a display cabinet dedicated mainly to perfumes… a cult that is my philosophical root, loving the scents that have kept for all of us the most beloved and profound memories of our lives…