IO "Capri" (2000)
by Carthusia

IO Capri’s juicy green fig, lemon, and mint top notes took me by surprise. They’re unusually bright and vivid, and the breezy, tart accord they build practically shouts “Mediterranean!” For some reason, the prominent fig note dispels all toothpaste associations for me, and what I perceive is more broadly herbal in nature. In any case, the mint blends and then subsides within the first few minutes of wear.

As the scent matures on my skin it becomes more emphatically leafy in character, but the lemon briskness persists for some time alongside the greens. Once it fades, IO Capri reads as a more conventional fig scent. While its fig accord seems very natural, it’s less milky than the sap-drenched Philosykos, and lacks the fruity-floral buoyancy of Parfumerie Generale’s delightful Jardins de Kerylos. This leaves it smelling a touch less characterful in its later stages. By the time it’s faded I find myself wishing IO Capri had maintained some of the quirky individuality of its first fifteen or twenty minutes. In short, a nice fig with a fun opening, but far from my favorite.

11th December, 2009.

I'm not normally a great fan of minty fragrances -- always evokes the smell of dentists waiting rooms, but this is a beautiful mint, and mixed with the figs and tea later, even better. IO may not be ultra expensive or fashionable, but it is a fragrance that's way up there with the best and not to be patronised. A really wonderful sleeper.

1st December, 2008.

Green minty woods. Very bitter to me. Very strong. Feels feminine. Reminds me of toothpaste.

6th September, 2008.

IO Capri by Carthusia is a pleasant little fragrance. Basically green, the whole fragrance is centered around fig and tea. It is similar to Philosykos from Diptyque, but IO Capri has less sillage, and longevity. For as simple as it is, Io has more than enough character and refinement to demand serious consideration if one is looking for a green / fig fragrance. I find the fig the dominant note in the opening accord, and, to my nose, it’s as good of green fig note as I have experienced. I think that there is a bit of mint associated with the fig note, but the fig leaf truly rules. The tea is background… it is not an especially identifiable tea note – it seems rather ordinary – but that is not a problem because it does such a good job in grounding the potential “green” excesses of the fig note – a problem I have with several fig leaf fragrances. I totally enjoy the fig note in this fragrance and Io Capri may well be my first “fig leaf” fragrance because I find it so wearable compared to others that I have tested. This is a fragrance by Laura Tonato and her excellence in composing fragrances shines through again.

8th May, 2008.

I just purchased this on impulse during the Chicago "Scent Me" gathering. I love the milkiness of it and find it to be comforting and oddly maternal, even with the tea and the mint. It reminds me of what would happen if you layered Aqua Allegoria Mentafollia atop Premier Figuer. Like Quarry, I enjoy its quiet insistence.

28th May, 2007.

This was not love at first sniff, actually the word "love" may never enter into this relationship, but what a wonderful companion IO is. Its sillage is politely persistent--softly reminding the wearer, "I'm here (wait some minutes), I'm here." A tea scent, gently sweetened by fig and releasing a bit of green mint in the topnotes, it just feels so right during the recordbreaking heatwave we're experiencing just now. For an extra thrill, add a layer of Jo Malone Orange Blossom--a real smile-making combination!

1st August, 2006.