Paris in the time of Tilleul is a moment of peak olfactory sensuality.

Each year, sometime in late spring it arrives — on a breeze.

And although you’ve been expecting it, it always comes as a surprise and an immense pleasure.

It may last a week.  It may last a month.

This year… it was transporting. 

In fact, it’s been one of the most thrilling experiences I’ve ever lived.

To the point that I NEEDED to share it with you.

I sincerely hope I never get over it.

Anyone else completely distracted by the scent of tilleul (linden) blossoms in the air these days?

It literally woke me up this morning—drifting through the open window on a breeze of honey and something inescapably sensual.

I looked out and saw the trees surrounding the café across La Place Cambronne covered in tiny yellow blossoms. I recognized it instantly: The golden heartbeat halfway through the year—the one that makes all the rest worth living.
I kept the windows open and ceiling fan on while working at my desk, sometimes forgetting the fragrance. But every time I paused, there it was again—calling me, reminding me of the sweetness of this season, fleeting as a sigh.

At lunchtime, I was inspired to change out of my jean shorts and T, into a floaty yellow cotton dress. Girly. Carefree. Whatever the reality, this was my mood. I wanted to live it—sitting at one of those tables under the tilleul blossoms.

Only then did Tilleul reveal her dual nature.

If I had to name the perfume that captures the softness of the blossom itself—the one I can reach out and bring to my face—it would be Sol Salgado by Thomas De Monaco Parfums.  Launched in 2023 (perfumer Maurus Bachmann)

And yet the scent that woke me—and an entire city— was something else entirely. Pollen-heavy. Musky. Animalic. A little sticky, like sweat. Grounding as a lover’s embrace. Mysterious as a glance from a passing stranger. The closest bottled echo I know? EAU COEUR, also by Thomas De Monaco Parfums Launched in 2022 (perfumer Maurus Bachmann). Its heart is magnolia, not tilleul, but           It carries the same emotional weight as the fragrance in the Paris air right now.

One flowering tree.

Two scents and sensual experiences.

Both part of the same invisible story

of Paris in the time of Tilleul.

June 17, 2025

Visuals featuring Sol Salgado and Eau Coeur bottles © Thomas De Monaco.
Used with permission of Thomas De Monaco Parfums

Thank you, Thomas, for entrusting me with the precious vision behind your eyes.