Archive Iris
Heart note · Floral
Iris.
Cool powder and damp earth. Suede rather than flower.
Our read on the material, not a measurement.
What it smells like.
Iris does not smell like a flower. It smells powdery and cool, with a rooty, faintly earthy quality and something close to suede or fresh plaster. It is quiet, dry and a little austere, and it is the note perfumers reach for when they want a fragrance to feel considered.
In a blend it adds texture more than scent. It gives sweetness a matte finish, it makes violet and rose read as expensive rather than pretty, and it stops a formula feeling loud. If you want warmth or impact, iris is the wrong choice: it works by holding things back.
Iris scent lives in the root, not the flower. The rhizomes, called orris, are dried and aged for years before extraction, and the wait is what develops the powdery, suede-like character. All that time makes orris butter one of the most expensive materials a perfumer can buy.
Further reading: Orris root, Wikipedia
In a blend.
The most sophisticated note on the bench and the least obvious. Iris adds texture and restraint. Nobody will call it fun.
Floral. Soft to expressive florals with elegance at their core. Shop the floral scents.
Pairs beautifully with.
The 4 scents built with it.
Questions about iris.
What does iris smell like?
Cool powder and damp earth. Suede rather than flower. Iris does not smell like a flower. It smells powdery and cool, with a rooty, faintly earthy quality and something close to suede or fresh plaster. It is quiet, dry and a little austere, and it is the note perfumers reach for when they want a fragrance to feel considered.
Is iris a top, heart or base note?
It sits in the heart, which is the part of a fragrance you notice once the opening has settled. The most sophisticated note on the bench and the least obvious. Iris adds texture and restraint. Nobody will call it fun.
What does iris pair well with?
The studio would start with violet, sandlewood, white amber and vetiver. In a blend it adds texture more than scent. It gives sweetness a matte finish, it makes violet and rose read as expensive rather than pretty, and it stops a formula feeling loud. If you want warmth or impact, iris is the wrong choice: it works by holding things back.
What fragrance family is iris in?
Floral. Soft to expressive florals with elegance at their core.
Which Next Fragrance scents contain iris?
4, including Next Beige - Eau De Parfum, Next Beige - Perfume Oil and Next Bloom - Essential Oil. Every note listed on a product page is the real pyramid for that fragrance.
Can I use iris in a custom blend?
Yes. It is one of the 42 notes you can choose at the Bench, where you build across the three tiers and we blend it by hand in Adelaide.
Blend with iris.
Pick it at the bench, choose up to four notes per tier, and we blend it by hand in Adelaide.
Open the bench
