Nostalgia (A Sonnet for Grasse)
- Description
- Feelings
- Key Ingredients
Nostalgia is a love song to the French-Alps village of Grasse, where Kismet-founder Shabnam Tavakol studied perfumery. Structured on poetry’s 14-line sonnet form, the fragrance is composed of 14 raw materials.
Nostalgia’s first stanza is based on seductive suede, saffron, and leather accords, evoking Grasse’s roots as an epicenter of tanning in the Middle Ages. Heart notes include Rose de mai and nagarmotha as a nod to Grasse’s rise as the world’s perfume capital in the 18th century—home to hillside flower fields that meet the Mediterranean Sea. At its volta, Nostalgia turns upwards towards anisic top notes inspired by Pastis—the complex, herbal aperitif with which Shabnam developed an intimate relationship during after-school hours at Grasse’s sole watering hole, Le Crystal.
At once leathery, musky, floral, herbal, smoky, and spicy, Nostalgia is a unisex scent intoxicating to men, women, and everyone in between.
Note: Our fragrances are made by hand in small batches, are unfiltered, and contain a high concentration of natural raw materials—therefore, some cloudiness or sediment may occur.
Rainer Maria Rilke
This is such a unique scent - it has that anise/pastis top, but then there’s a creamy, leathery suede, and something else that I cannot quite place - but it’s intriguing and beautiful. Love this.
One of the few fragrances I own that consistently gets me compliments from others; I've had people wave me down on busy sidewalks to ask what I'm wearing. I don't like obvious, on-the-nose leather fragrances that smell like handbags or shoes, but Nostalgia is NOT that. It's blended so well and smells musky, spicy, gently sweet, a little earthy. Longevity is outstanding- I often smell this on me the next day when I wake up. I wore Nostalgia during a fall trip to Amsterdam and now associate it with cozy drizzly weather, vibrant falling leaves, and espresso martinis sipped canal-side, but it's absolutely a year-round wear. Totally unisex. Of all the fragrances I have, this feels the most "me". I always want to own a bottle.
I tried the full sample set, and the whole collection is lovely, but Nostalgia was the first sample I used up and I ended up purchasing a full bottle pretty soon after. There's something incredibly special to me about this one. It's spicy, sweet, warm, and inviting. It also lingers. I can smell it on my skin after several hours of wear and it will last on clothes until you wash it out.
My favorite perfume in the world! It smells absolutely divine.
After quickly running out of my sample, I knew I had to upgrade to a bigger bottle of Nostalgia ASAP. Love this scent—the spice, the way the anise and leather work so harmoniously, LOVE. My single thing to note is that if you go with the 10 ml, as I did, be aware that it’s a rollerball bottle. I am happy with this, but the page doesn’t list this piece of info (that I could see, please lord let reading comprehension be on my side). I think I might have opted for the larger option for the beauty of the Nostalgia spray, but even with the rollerball the fragrance projects beautifully. Thank you, Kismet Olfactive for creating this sceeeeeeent!
basically, this is the first time i’ve ever truly received compliments from friends and family from using a cologne. what’s really funny is that one of my coworkers was like, “oh wow, this smells like something from my past… i just can’t really pin down what it is.”
so to shabnam and her team, i’ll be a diehard user for as long as nostalgia is made. cheers -ardeshir
I love this perfume, it reminds me when I would visit the leather goods/sombrero shops in Mexico.
Just beautiful. It makes me think of the leather from the cover of a well-preserved old book. The anise note is quite unique. A thoughtful fragrance that lingers (politely, not obnoxiously) for hours.
heaven in a bottle! i tried this when visiting a friend, and had to get a bottle of my own. I’m a very modest spender, but SO glad i made this purchase. life is short- wear the good perfume!
i was recommend this by a friend who is a perfume worker/seller and writer. while anise was really appealing to me, i definitely am not normally drawn to the rest of these notes. this is SUCH a beautiful, cozy, warm, beautiful and comforting scent. wearing this really does something to me and brings me so much joy :-) i think everybody needs to smell this at least once in their life! it is definitely nostalgic in such a cool way that constantly has me thinking about this perfume. it also makes me so curious about the rest of this lines collection! i am also a HUGE lover of oil perfumes and am so grateful that i could get this in a roller! 10000/10
Honey, Cola, Cool Leather Chaise. Like all fragrances from Kismet this scent continues to evolve for hours after you apply.
I love this scent so much. It’s a piece of fresh suede that has a whiskey stain on it. It’s so unique and sexy and deeply deeply earthy. I’m obsessed. And have gotten so many compliments.
Such a beautiful scent! Love this brand!!
"As simple as that. I hope they'll create a candle as well, because I'd love for this to become the signature scent of my home."
I first came across Nostalgia at a jewelry store and it become an instant love. The complexity of this scent feels refreshing but familiar to me at the same time. I love warm floral, leather scent, and Nostalgia just hits all the spots I never knew I had. Attention to packaging and design really stands out to me. I will definitely come back and try other scents :)
when i got the discovery set i wasn't expecting my favorite scent to be this one because i didn't think i'd be into leather like that, but as soon as i smelled nostalgia i HAD to keep smelling it like it's just so warm and comforting and i would miss it when it was gone. also the customer service is excellent! Cody was very helpful!
It’s definitely something I feel that is never overpowering. Smells lovely on summer days and winter nights. It’s more fresh than an indulgence of a scent. Very balanced and warm. 10/10 and the hand written note was very thoughtful.