The Story
Why it exists.
The beginning
Kihikihi was created by Tiffany Witehira, with its name and central idea drawn from the Māori term for the cicada. The composition reflects the insect's life beneath soil, followed by its brief emergence and high-pitched song. Bright lemon and pepper lift the opening with a sharp, lively edge, while incense wood and lavender suggest the vibrations of kihikihi song. Violet and rose bring a floral pulse through the middle, then styrax, smoked wood and labdanum carry the scent toward earth, resin and warmth. The result is rustic and woody without becoming conventionally neat, a fragrance built around contrast rather than polish alone.
The unusual part is the tension between aromatic clarity and dark materials. Lemon keeps the first impression bright, pepper adds a clean sting and lavender introduces an herbal floral air. Incense and smoked wood then pull that brightness underground. Violet and rose soften the smoke without making it sweet, while labdanum and styrax add a sticky resinous weight. Cedarwood supplies the woody frame. The result feels less like a single floral than a layered atmosphere, polished at the edges and rougher at the heart.
The evolution
The opening arrives with lemon and pepper, sharp and quick, before incense and lavender widen the air around it. Violet and rose soften the middle without removing the smoke. As the scent settles, cedarwood, labdanum, styrax and smoked wood take over, turning the brighter beginning into something darker, warmer and more grounded. On skin, the early brightness gives way gradually, with lavender and rose often lingering as a hazy floral trace while the resinous, woody materials remain close. The drydown settles into warm earth, smoke and aromatic spice, leaving a layered impression of spice, floral softness, resin and wood.
Cultural impact
Kihikihi draws on the Māori term for the cicada, giving its composition a reference to emergence, sound and life beneath soil. The fragrance begins with lemon and pepper, then brings in incense wood and lavender before violet and rose add a floral pulse. Styrax, smoked wood and labdanum shape the later impression, carrying the scent toward earth, resin and warmth. This structure gives Kihikihi a narrative frame through its cicada inspiration and its contrast of bright, floral, smoky and woody elements.
The House
CurionoirCurionoir is a New Zealand fragrance house founded by Tiffany Witehira that treats perfume as storytelling. The brand draws from Māori traditions and personal memory to explore what Witehira calls "the interesting and uncommon" across perfumery's rich history. Each scent functions as a narrative capsule, embedding historical references within contemporary form. From her Ngāpuhi heritage to her time studying in Grasse, Witehira brings a distinctly Aotearoa perspective to the global fragrance conversation, creating scents that feel simultaneously ancient and alive.
The Creator
Tiffany WitehiraWitehira's technical foundation runs deep. She studied raw materials extensively in Grasse, learning to identify and evaluate ingredients with precision.
