GEORGE TOWN, July 6 — What is the scent of days gone by when Nyonyas used to sit at home working on some intricate piece of embroidery while the Babas went off to work? Is it one of sweet flowers and spices? Or is it all about sandalwood and musk? Combining the history of the Straits Chinese and bringing back an era of opulence and age-old customs, fragrance designer Josh Lee recently released Nyonya, the latest in his series of heritage fragrances.

A whiff of the perfume and you are returned to days of genteel charm, perfectly coiffed hair and home-cooked meals redolent of herbs and spices.

It is a light sweet jasmine and rose with a spicy undertone of bergamot and neroli and finally balanced out by hints of musk and the warm woody scent of cedar and sandalwood.

With the tagline "Heritage Through Scent”, Lee’s third fragrance in his Malaysia Heritage Collection is his ode to the Peranakan women or the Straits Chinese women.

"My first two fragrances, George Town and Oud, were unisex fragrances but Oud was considered a masculine fragrance due to its darker, heavier undertones so I decided to formulate one just for women,” Lee said.

‘Nyonya’ by Josh Lee, ode to the rich culture and heritage of the Straits Chinese.

As an ode to the rich culture and heritage of the Straits Chinese, Lee decided to formulate his third fragrance based on the Nyonya.

"Nyonya is a fragrance that celebrates the woman of today who is modern and yet preserves her culture and traditions,” Lee said.

He said the fresh  floral  fragrance  embodies  the  graceful  femininity  of  a  modern  Nyonya who embraces  flowers  as  part  of  her  Peranakan heritage.

"The rose  and  jasmine  symbolise her  eternal beauty, the lotus reflects her purity, the champaca represents eternal love while the peony and  orchid portray her nobility,” Lee said of the mix of florals that went into making the new scent.

Lee first released George Town in late 2012 and it is a light, breezy summery scent and later launched Oud which is stronger and darker to represent the dark and mysterious rainforest.

His line of scents is halal-certified as denatured alcohol is used in the perfumes. Currently, Josh Lee perfumes are available at the duty free counters in airports, gift centres in tourist spots and hotels in Penang, Langkawi, Kuala Lumpur and Sabah.

Find out more about his line of fragrance at www.joshleefragrances.com.