Salmonberry Origins - Frost

still on advent scent-lendar backlog, my next gift to myself was also winter-themed, a very special perfume from Alaskan Inuit indie creator Nasuġraq of Salmonberry Origins. 

one unique trait about this store is how the perfumes are crafted to share an insight into Inupiaq life, by capturing the 'scent memories' of its creator, from the flora and fauna in the Alaskan arctic tundra to the everyday activities that form part of their way of life.

it is a phenomenally special feeling, to be able to experience a whole new culture through the scent memories of someone who loves her culture and wanted to share this love with others in her craft. it's even more impressive that these products are all created from Alaskan native materials, and gathered with as much environmental awareness and respect to traditional Inupiaq values as possible (to the extent that if she ran out of a herb or product, it would be out of stock and she would have to wait until the next year to collect another batch of herbs according to nature's timeline).

i was glad to have managed to pick up some samples and a couple of full-sizes before they closed in november last year, and decided that now was as good a time as any to enjoy these wonderful scent memories of Inupiaq culture.

the description of this is beautiful, a sharing of experiences and heritage distilled into this little bottle:

"Winter in the arctic never sneaks up on you. One morning you wake up and the world is covered in frost, crisp and cold and glittering in the morning half light. We fight off the chill with sweetened oatmeal and hot coffee, and watch as the rising sun melts the frost into glistening drops on shivering plants.

In our language we call Frost: Kaniq.

If you enjoy the combination of subtle mint, foliage and emerging sweet warm notes then you may enjoy Frost. This scent memory leans toward the sweet feminine side."

Frost is, true to its notes, a very sweet soft mint amidst a bed of fresh greenery and inviting warmth. from the bottle, the cool mint is the star of the show with a subtle freshness that overflows with nature at its finest; a very wearable representation of the first morning frost in its transient beauty.

on my skin, this is a light and sweet, almost-candy mint that gradually dries down into a more mature freshness that could serve well as a scent for any occasion. Frost begins by taking you outside in the pre-dawn light to experience the quiet chill of winter, and then with the drydown it begins to shift slowly and subtly, drawing back from the slightly-sharp coldness into a more cosy and comfortable sweet mint, a perfect capture of a sunrise and its effect on the first snow. unlike in the description though, i don't actually get coffee or oatmeal even on the drydown, mainly a kaleidoscope of perspectives on the sweet and fresh mint that defines this perfume.

Frost was relatively stable on my skin, with a relatively personal throw of less than a foot. for the three hours or so that i wore this, i felt like frost personified, not in the sense of a distant ice queen but a fun-loving faerie of winter, reveling in the beauty of the cold. a great versatile scent to ease the discomfort of the hot and humid days of summer, or to just delight in the lower temperatures of the more wet and rainy Singapore 'winter' at year's end. 8/10.

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this review is of a product that i had purchased secondhand with my own money. i wasn’t asked to review this scent as a condition of receipt and didn’t receive any incentives for writing this. i’m not affiliated with Salmonberry Origins and as always, all opinions remain my own.

Salmonberry Origins has closed in november 2019 and unfortunately their scents are no longer available.

all information correct at time of publishing.