The scent The artist Try a sample first! Mess makes us. Come into an indie perfumer’s studio. The wood of the shelves, the steaming tea over there, a little puddle of wine in a glass from the night before, the concrete basement walls... The window is open. Greenery and NYC mineral air seeps inside, wafts past the workbench where a new creation is taking shape, next to some vintage books. Please, come in. Smell the green, the floral, the wood, the heat, the cool, the beautiful messiness of life, giving way to some creation, somewhere, we don’t know just what yet... blooming. Notes include bergamot, turkish fig, persian black tea, lavender, amberwood, oakmoss, and palo santo. Kismet Olfactive is a New York City-based independent fragrance studio founded by bohemian-perfumer Shabnam Tavakol. Born and raised in California, Shabnam—Farsi for “morning dew”—is the daughter of Iranian-immigrant parents who escaped the violent 1979 Revolution in Iran, relocating to the U.S. by way of hard-won efforts and a string of good fortune. Recognizing this fortuitous past, Kismet—from the Persian qismat, meaning “fate,” or, “what is meant to be”—translates the serendipitous moments that make up our lives into wearable scents. Prizing process over profit, the journey over destination, Kismet represents custom small batch formulation using hand-selected, ethically sustainable materials in its dedication to artful olfactive storytelling. Find out more about Kismet Olfactive on our BLOG.
