Prada Infusion de Tubéreuse

I am a huge fan of tuberose, the white floral, night-blooming plant prominent in Indian culture. I'll bet you have seen and smelled tuberose in floral arrangements and not realized what it was. My Art with Flowers friends at Tysons Galleria did something so sweet for me about a year ago when they gave me a few stalks of tuberose to take home with me. They perfumed my bedroom for days!

Tuberose has been described as complex, exotic, sweet, floral, and sultry. One of my favorites for many years was Jo Malone's Tuberose. I was bummed when her tuberose bath oil discontinued.

If a fragrance is tuberose-based, I must try it. I jumped for joy when I learned that Prada was introducing a new fragrance with tuberose at its heart. Although I never liked Prada's early fragrance introductions (I thought the one named Prada was a stink bomb), I was swept away by perfumer Daniela Andrier's Infusion de Fleur d'Oranger. I hoped that Infusion de Tubéreuse ($74-135) would be as enticing.

It is! As with most Prada introductions, it's a hot ticket. It is featured in the May 2010 Vanity Fair and the May 2010 InStyle. Infusion de Tubéreuse is also now featured on my body!

Described as an unexpected mix of tuberose from India, petitgrain bigarade, blood orange from Italy, and luxurious dynamone, Infusion de Tubéreuse could be called traditional or modern. It just depends on your nose and your perspective. I'm perfectly happy with traditional.

Here's Prada's description of the composition.

Tuberose from India: Tuberose is a symbol for creation - intoxicating and penetrating. In Infusion de Tubéreuse, the flowers are delicate and young, like morning buds not yet touched by the sun.

Petitgrain Bigarade: Made from the leaves of the bitter orange tree, petitgrain bigarade is reminiscent of fresh green leaves after the rain.

Blood Orange from Italy: Juicy citrus notes of blood orange from Italy are blended with precision to give a sparkling freshness to the tuberose.

Dynamone: A rare and luxurious ingredient in perfumery, dynamone brings sensuality to Infusion de Tubéreuse. Its woody notes bring the citrus and floral notes into harmony, enabling this fantasy infusion.

This tuberose fragrance is lightened by the zippy blood orange and green notes. It is soft and subtle. Give it a try. It smells great!

The design of the packaging and on the bottle cap of the fragrance was inspired by an archive Prada print. It's mauve and a perfect counterpoint to the bottle.

I bought mine at Saks. It came in a set with a matching body lotion for $100, which you can also purchase at Nordstrom. Other department stores and specialty stores that carry Prada fragrances will also have it.

Photos courtesy of Nordstrom and wikio.co.uk