I still remember when I first smelled Dior’s Bois ‘Argent. It was 2004, and   was with my friend at Jeffrey, this snobby store at the Meatpacking District in New York City. At the time, they were the only ones carrying these scents, which were created under the tutelage of Hedi Slimane, who was then Creative Director for Dior. The line (which also included Eau Noir and Cologne Royale) was called La Collection Couturier, and that description alone made it sound so exclusive and decadent. I remember of the three, I gravitated towards Bois D’Argent, because at the time it smelled so different from any perfume I had in my collection. The perfume was a dichotomy of soft and hard, of dirty and clean. Vanilla and Honey was set in juxtaposition with leather and incense. Yet, it didn’t feel heavy – it was very ethereal and very personal (the scent sat close to skin)  Today, eleven years or so later, I am transported back to that day.  I still get a thrill as I spray it on me on this late summer day. In some ways, it feels like a nothing perfume: it smells clean, and there’s no sillage that follows. (I find myself over-spraying)  At the same time, I smell it as I move, and my shirt, bathed in it, smells like candied leather.  This perfume is perfect example of scent as art.