Flore by Carolina Herrera

Flore is a vintage pride, a fresh and enormous bouquet. Perhaps younger generations don’t appreciate it as much, but my goodness, flowers are always beautiful. After her first success, Carolina Herrera wanted something quieter and more feminine, perceptible without being strident, and she achieved it perfectly. It’s a bouquet with stems, leaves, and dew, with soapy and powdery touches. On my skin, the lilacs, jasmine, and lily of the valley stand out among green notes, over a base of musk and clean woods. There are other fragrances from that era with that vibe, but that soapy and woody touch makes it unique, like a sunflower among thousands of jasmines. It’s a living perfume, spring in a bottle. The last reformulation lasts about 6 or 7 hours with moderate sillage.

Its dry-down on my nose is very similar to Swiss Army for Her. For anyone wanting a modern option of this exquisite perfume, they could try the Swiss, which is affordable and still on the market.

Back in the day when Puig created great fragrances of excellence. The 100ml bottle is enormous, with thick glass and a fabulous cap. The most striking thing is that Carolina Herrera abandoned the narcotic animal nard of her first perfume to explore the more romantic and timid side of a floral bouquet. It’s not showy nor too fresh. Upon application, green notes and lily of the valley remind you of Diorissimo, but the fruits and aldehydes give it sweetness and sparkle. Flore has its own personality, updating the vibe of the 40s, 50s, and 70s with a touch of the 90s. There’s no civet, moss, or iris root, just soft musk and subtle woods. Lilac is present and iris shines from the depths. It’s floral, sweet, and romantic, soft but with character.

Marvelous, from when Carolina Herrera perfumes had quality, throne, and power. The first CH feminine was a bomb of white and yellow flowers, a nuclear creamy nard, a sensory explosion. For the second, they decided not to repeat that yellow cocktail and revisit classic aldehydic and green florals. Was Flore necessary? Yes, because many of those crunchy titans would have become outdated. Flore updated them for the 90s, an aldehydic floral that didn’t feel out of fashion, giving you the urge to bathe in it. It’s a green and crisp bouquet preserved in a futuristic laboratory, vegetable milk and aldehydes that recall the crunch of a grape leaf, all in jasmine, lily of the valley, lilacs, and that 80s green accord. It’s a green floral with bits of laboratory, futuristic and retro at the same time. Smelling it was like floating in a cloud of expensive vapours. It had an aesthetic commitment to the house: sobriety, cleanliness, and tidiness, polishing the Latin essence until leaving its core. Both this and Aquaflore, or the first Herrera, were synonymous with things well made. A small and precise catalogue, with brutal honesty. In the 2000s the brand became a hydra birthing irrelevant perfumes, and today, after five hundred launches, only Good Girl remains good, though it loses points for its bottle. They don’t make them like that anymore, and it’s true. Flore was simply precious, essential for lovers of cold metallic flowers. A modernised Diorissimo, a gem.

I just saw a battered one in a perfumery. Would you recommend it?

I’m sorry they discontinued such a gem. It was among the best from the brand. If they could, I’d ask them to bring it back. I’d love to have it again. It was one of my first fragrances and I adored it. It makes me very sad not to find it anywhere.

THE POWER OF FLOWERS: Flore was a very fragrant bouquet with leaves and stems, hard to distinguish individual notes due to the intensity. I dare to say that lily of the valley with herbal touches led the way. The aldehydes, the iris, and the unmistakably soapy and talcum touch defined it. It was floral, intense, green, and soapy, evoking femininity from another angle: the perspective of a strong woman, of great spirit and overwhelming personality who doesn’t handle grey tones; with her, things are either white or black. A great proposal by CH, what a pity they discontinued it.

I agree with Yorleny: this is for those who love fragrances and enjoy complex floral blends. It’s not for everyday wear, but it’s very special and lasts forever. I’m Venezuelan, and over there, with the humidity and heat, it’s noticeable even with sweat. I’d buy it again if I could find it.