The Story
Why it exists.
The beginning
Old Flame was created by perfumer Nikki Sherritt-Lewis for Rebel & Mercury. There are no documented details about the original brief or the place that prompted it, so the composition itself offers the truest account. Lime and Artemisia bring a green, sharpened opening; Coffee Blossom and Tobacco give the heart its roasted depth; Black Tea, Woody Notes, Amber, and Seashells anchor it in a darker, mineral register. Together, the notes move from a crisp green beginning toward roasted warmth and a layered base, combining herbal clarity with tea, wood, amber, and a distinctive mineral accent.
What makes the structure interesting is its controlled collision of opposites. Citrus and green herbs introduce brightness, while tobacco, tea, and amber pull the composition toward smoke and warmth. Coffee Blossom adds a roasted floral register that is less about coffee sweetness than a dry, aromatic quality. Seashells provide the unusual counterweight, placing a marine trace beside materials that normally read as dark and enveloping. The result is a composition that moves between vivid opening notes, roasted heart notes, and a darker drydown shaped by tea, wood, amber, and mineral tones.
The evolution
Old Flame begins with a clean interruption. Lime gives the opening a quick metallic brightness, and Artemisia follows with a bitter green edge, like wind moving through scrub. As those elements soften, Coffee Blossom introduces a dry roasted pulse. Tobacco follows as a darker thread of leaf and warmth. The composition then settles toward Black Tea, Woody Notes, and Amber. That amber glow is the lasting impression, while Seashells keeps the drydown mineral and clean at the edges. As the fragrance wears on, the opening gives way to roasted and herbal notes, while the base develops through tea, woody notes, amber, and the distinctive mineral character of seashells.
Cultural impact
Old Flame is built around a distinctive herbal, roasted, and mineral note combination. Lime and Artemisia establish a green opening before Coffee Blossom and Tobacco introduce the composition's roasted heart. Black Tea, Woody Notes, Amber, and Seashells shape the drydown with darker tea, woody, amber, and mineral facets. The result is a fragrance that invites attention through contrast, moving from bright and bitter to roasted and warm before settling into its layered base.
The House
Rebel & MercuryRebel & Mercury is a Seattle‑based perfume house that builds each scent from botanical ingredients that are grown, harvested and processed without synthetic additives. The brand offers a line of pure‑botanical parfums such as Old Flame, Osmanthus Red and Cerise en Cocoa, alongside candles and organic body oils. Its fragrances aim to capture a moment, a place or an emotion, and they are presented in minimalist bottles that let the scent speak for itself. By keeping the formulae transparent and the production small‑scale, Rebel & Mercury positions itself as a laboratory for scent‑curiosity rather than a commercial fragrance house.
The Creator
Nikki Sherritt-LewisNikki’s signature technique is a slow, tactile blending process. She begins with a crystal‑clear base of carrier oil, then adds freshly distilled citrus peels, hand‑pressed resins, and a whisper of smoked woods.
