La Valse was intended to be the waltz to end all waltzes. La Valse seems to be a rose fragrance to end all rose fragrances. Whitney Swales, ballroom dancer and natural perfumer for Wit & West, describes the story behind La Valse as a dance of grace and elegance transporting you to a different time.
...Wit & West's The Violetear opens with a mystical flittering of bergamot flanked by the other delightful waftings from a stunning garden cared for with loving, grateful hands. It is then mixed with the components of the earth to create a beautiful Fougere that dances on your skin. It is not an overpowering fragrance but has an astonishing, lasting presence...
...Whitney Swales shatters the myth that iris flowers are mute and produce no scent. In The Violetear, the opulence of the reserve iris enfleurage rises in a rainbow of amethyst, mauves, periwinkle, and plum. This gorgeous fragrance expands our knowledge of what is possible in perfumery...
Wit & West Fleur du Riad opens with a seductive veil of animalic honey. This perceived note is surely the product of Moroccan Neroli with its powerful combination of effervescent citrus, verdant vegetation, sweet white florals, and indole. Green mandarin adds a juicy fruitiness and light silky texture, like saturated air on a hot summer night.
Wit & West Streetcar Magnolia is more Lucinda Williams than House of the Rising Sun, sidestepping associations with Tennessee William’s doomed heroine with a modern, upbeat floral that leans, surprisingly, into herbs and incense.
...Changing our environment through scent can be a powerful tool for health. Wit & West’s Jasmine Pet Noi Eau de Parfum takes us to a garden in full bloom. Pink peppercorn and bitter orange sparkle through thick evening air...
The Violetear is new addition to Wit and West Perfumes line of limited release 100% all-natural scents in an Eau de Parfum concentration. Reserve Collection perfumes include rare ingredients as well as handmade tinctures and enfleurage extraits extracted from flowers from the Wit & West garden.
Time here is moss-grown and damp. Abundant waterfalls create wide moving waves of mist. Fog sits on its silent haunches while treetops of bigleaf maples, Douglas fir, and western hemlock commune in vaporous gestures.
Wit and West Honeysuckle Halcyon evokes a lazy, long August night on a 20’s Chicago Street where the weather is torpid, but the jazz is cool. Sappy, sensual, full-bodied, Honeysuckle Halcyon is a Clara Bow starlet, equal parts wide-eyed innocence and provocative sensuality.
Nearly eleven years ago to the day I began our CaFleureBon Profiles In American Perfumery and on the eve of Independence Day. Video Content producer, Steven Gavrielatos, and I wanted to highlight three American indie perfume brands we think should get more attention. We chose these three American indie perfume brands; Gallagher Fragrances, Rogue Perfumery and Wit & West because each has their own aesthetic, are artisans, and began in other industries or were doing something else when they decided to become a perfumer.
Whitney Swales of Wit & West Perfumes. From as early as I can remember I have had a passion for scent and the world of perfume. Growing up, perfume and everything scented including body oils and perfumed body powders, soaps and candles were a staple in my life. My mom wore Chanel No. 5, Youth Dew and Private Collection by Estee Lauder and my dad wore Polo by Ralph Lauren and Lagerfeld by Karl Lagerfeld.
