The Moment Before the Bloom

Inside the creation of Cut Stems with perfumer Dominique Bouley

Cut Stems is a 100% natural green fragrance from Leland Francis inspired by the vivid scent of freshly cut stems, leaves, and herbs in a garden at dawn.

By Dillon Peña, Founder of Leland Francis

Cut Stems is a 100% natural extrait de parfum inspired by the vivid scent released when stems are freshly cut and green leaves begin to breathe.

It is not the smell of a flower.

It is the moment before the bloom.

The snap of a stem.
The cool breath of leaves and sap rising into the air.
The quiet scent of a garden just beginning to wake.

To bring this idea to life I worked with French perfumer Dominique Bouley, trained in Versailles and known for her thoughtful work with natural aromatic materials. Her work blends scientific precision with artistic restraint, something essential for a fragrance built around a single fragile idea.

The image behind the fragrance

When Dominique first received the brief, she imagined the interior of a florist’s workspace.

A table covered with greenery.
Hands trimming stems.
The sharp snap that releases a burst of watery green aroma.

“In fragrance we often focus on the flower itself,” she explained. “But the full picture includes the stem. That green, slightly vegetal character is part of the wonder of nature.” 

To capture that sensation she turned to galbanum, one of perfumery’s most powerful green materials.

Galbanum can shape an entire fragrance with its vivid green intensity. Used carefully, it can evoke the living structure of a plant.

Used too heavily, it can overpower everything.

The meaning of green

For Dominique, green represents the beginning of nature.

“Green reminds me of growth and vitality,” she said. “Whether a fruit is beginning to ripen or a flower is about to bloom from its bud. That bright green moment is where everything begins.”

Those green notes create a bridge between fragrance and the living world. They allow what you smell to feel connected to a real plant rather than something abstract.

In Cut Stems, green was not meant to be a supporting note.

It was meant to be the entire story.

The challenge of restraint

Designing a fragrance around green materials requires restraint.

Too many green notes and the scent becomes sharp, like freshly cut grass. Add florals and the fragrance quickly becomes something familiar and traditional.

“The design felt like walking across a tightrope,” Dominique explained.

The goal was always to stay within that narrow space where the scent remains green, fresh, and alive without becoming harsh or turning into a bouquet.

Cut Stems was never meant to become a flower.

Expanding the green

Instead of building the fragrance downward with heavier notes, Dominique expanded the green effect outward.

Spearmint and peppermint introduce cool brightness that lifts the green structure of galbanum. Herbal notes such as sage create the texture of leaves and garden plants.

Each ingredient adds another detail to the scene.

Mint suggests fresh air.
Sage evokes crushed leaves.
Woods provide a soft structure beneath the greenery.

Together they create the impression of a living garden.

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Cut Stems

Extrait de Parfum

White eucalyptus, mint, and petitgrain open with cool clarity. Sage leaf and galbanum reveal the vivid scent of freshly cut stems, grounded by cedarwood and amyris.

100% natural fragrance
30 mL

Launching March 16

Explore the fragrance →

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Working within nature

All Leland Francis fragrances are composed using natural aromatic materials.

For a perfumer this changes the creative process.

Dominique compares it to painting with a smaller palette.

“You may not have every color available,” she said. “But by blending materials together you can create the shade you need.” 

Herbal notes, mint, woods, and leafy materials combine to recreate the sensation of a freshly cut stem.

The result challenges a common misconception about natural fragrance.

Natural does not mean simple.

The first moments on skin

When Cut Stems first touches skin, Dominique imagines a scene.

It is early morning in a garden.

The sun is just beginning to rise.
The air is cool.
Dew rests on the leaves.

The scent of greenery fills the air.

Clean.
Calming.
Quietly invigorating.

As the fragrance unfolds it never turns into a floral bloom. Instead it reveals new facets of the stem itself. Mint lifting the green leaves. Sage adding herbal texture. A subtle earthiness suggesting the garden soil beneath.

The details worth noticing

What Dominique hopes people notice most is the complexity hidden inside that green moment.

The stem effect is not created by a single ingredient.

It is built from many small details working together.

Mint.
Herbs.
Leaves.
Woods.

If you follow the fragrance over time, the garden slowly reveals itself.

Not the flower.

But the life that comes before it.

Fragrance Notes

Top
White Eucalyptus
Mint
Petitgrain

Heart
Sage Leaf
Galbanum

Base
Cedarwood
Amyris

Explore Cut Stems

Cut Stems Extrait de Parfum launches March 16.

A green fragrance inspired by the vivid scent of freshly cut stems and living leaves.

Explore the fragrance at lelandfrancis.com