Tag: literary

Perfumed Pages: Scents That Tell a Story

Because autumn is THE perfect time to get cosy with.a good book, we are celebrating the fact that literature is no longer confined between the covers; it’s seeping out, swirling through the air, and snuggling on your skin thanks to an ever-growing wave of scents directly inspired by novels and writers.

Who knew so many perfumers had a penchant for penning olfactory love letters to literary heroines, rebels, and devilishly dashing rogues? Read on to discover how these perfumes don’t just grab inspo from great prose but bottle the essence of each story. There’s simply no excuse for writer’s block when inspiration smells this enchanting!

So, if you’ve ever fancied a new chapter in your scent wardrobe, why not try weaving a little literary magic through your everyday? Suddenly, getting lost in a good book just became a spritz away. The only question is: which of these perfumed pages would you fancy leafing through in fragrant form, first…?

 

 

 

 

4160 Tuesdays Vianne’s Confession

Plunge headlong into the cobbled streets and gilded shadows of Marseilles in autumn, painted with all the chocolatier’s secrets and soul-searching from Joanne Harris’s Vianne. This isn’t a scent for those who favour sweet treats; instead, Vianne’s Confession is a brooding, confessional blend. Wisps of incense and smoky labdanum marry bitter cacao, rose and geranium, with salt and tomato leaf lending their savouriness. Oakmoss, cypriol and attar mitti (distilled from rich earth itself) root the fragrance in ancient stone and whispered mysteries. The sillage is ‘smoochy’ – a term only fitting for a perfume that seems part velvet, part ritual, all wrapped in moonlit chocolate and literary longing.

£75 for 30ml eau de parfum 4160tuesdays.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

D’Otto 2×4

In true Austenian fashion, 2×4 is less a spritz and more a slow-burn romance between conflicting hearts. Taking its cue from Pride and Prejudice’s Elizabeth and Darcy, each ingredient unfolds like the careful revelation of a well-guarded secret. Wisteria, Indian jasmine, and lily of the valley evoke the freshness of a countryside ballroom in full bloom, while damask rose adds an intimate blush of passion. The heart is an exotic bouquet of Thai orchid, tuberose, ambergris, and cashmeran, echoing the genre’s love for drama beneath decorum. As the novel’s tension deepens, water lily and Mexican tuberose gently melt into a woody, enveloping trail – sensual, enveloping, and designed to linger in memory the way Austen’s prose does.

£245 for 100ml extrait de parfum harrods.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

Marc-Antoine Barrois B683

Named for the Little Prince’s mysterious planet and the designer’s birthday, B683 wears the compelling casualness of a true dandy – and with beautiful assurance. Perfumer Quentin Bisch’s modern leather isn’t flashy; it’s the kind you’d trust for a clandestine rendezvous or hang inside a secret writing nook, richly lived-in. Spicy streams of black pepper, saffron, chilli and nutmeg tumble into violet leaf and musk, conjuring the paradoxical thrill of a story’s first page; both restrained and wild. The whole is grounded in sandalwood, patchouli and oakmoss, lending the stability and gravitas of a prized hardback spine. It’s the olfactory equivalent of finding the perfect phrase; quietly spectacular and effortlessly stylish.

£120 for 30ml eau de parfum selfridges.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

Floris Wilde

Oscar Wilde (a well-known customer of Floris) had a distinct penchant for dandyism and boundary-pushing prose, so artfully rendered in this clever composition. Sparkling bergamot and citrus blossom open with a flourish, just as Wilde himself would enter a room: all charisma and cutting wit. A heart of ginger, green carnation and white jasmine thrums with theatrical passion – for romance, freedom and star-crossed lovers. The base, a warming swirl of sandalwood oil, olibanum and benzoin, cements its decadent legacy. An understated presence disguised in elegant tailoring, Wilde is just as adept at beguiling as a perfectly chosen epigram, a fragrant tribute to living and loving without apology.

£180 for 100ml eau de parfum (also available from £30 for 10ml) florislondon.com

 

 

 

 

 

Ghawali Closer Apart

Inspired by the fevered dreams and desires of Gatsby’s Roaring Twenties, Closer Apart is all about obsession and magnetic allure. It opens on a flirty burst of mandarin oil, pear and ginger, as effervescent as a champagne toast in a glittering mansion. The heart throbs with caramel, rose and lavender – think moonlit longing, whispered confessions, and the ache of unattainable love. Cedarwood, ambrocenide and musk wrap things up in delicious warmth, echoing the story’s undercurrent of yearning and complicated intimacy. Wear it and you’ll embrace Fitzgerald’s decadence with every inhale, hopelessly seduced by the tension between closeness and distance.

£175 for 75ml parfum selfridges.com

 

Written by Suzy Nightingale

Eau de Austen: Regency Perfumery & Modern Interpretations

What fragrance would Jane Austen have worn, we wonder? From delving in to the world of Regency perfumery in England, and exploring the historic houses proudly still thriving today, to exploring a contemporary niche house evoking one of Austen’s most famous heroines, we invite you join us in this fascinating slice of Regency scented reveries.

This year marks 250 years of Jane Austen’s birth, and the Jane Austen Society have a number of fabulous events planned to celebrate. But what perfumes might Jane and her contemporaries (and the characters in the novels) have picked up on a shopping trip in Regency London? You can click on the links to be whisked back in time to explore their brand pages, read their full scented stories and discover some of the original olfactive treats…

 

 

 

In spring 1799, an enterprising young man named James Atkinson set forth from the wilds of Cumberland for London. In his suit pocket were recipes for fine fragrances and toiletries he’d created himself. And next to him sat a generous amount of rose-scented bear grease balm. (Yes, really.) Even more extraordinarily, next to the balm sat a real, live bear who – so the tale goes – was utterly devoted to James. Mr. Atkinson opened a shop at 44 Gerrard Street, with Atkinsons being referred to as ‘that marvellous perfume shop with the most terrifying bear’. And James’s reputation was made… thankfully with rather more fragrant offerings. In 1800 launching a ‘fearlessly English’ eau de Cologne, which was strikingly different from the Italian-style Colognes: fresh, yes – but warm and spicy, too.

 

 

 

Yardley, too, has a proud (and VERY long) perfumed heritage, and happens to be named Yardley for the similarly feisty woman The firm has its formal roots in 1770, when the soap and perfumery firm known to us as Yardley London was established by the father of a man called William Cleaver. It got its so-familiar ‘Yardley’ name after a young woman called Hermia Yardley (daughter of the wealthy and ambitious businessman William Yardley), married William Cleaver – heir to his father’s soap and perfumery business. Young William persuaded Coutts Banking House to loan the business the sum of £20,000 (astonishing for those times), with his father-in-law as guarantor. When he couldn’t repay the loan, Hermia persuaded her father pay up – and thus, because of Hermia’s determinism and belief, Yardley came to be Yardley…

 

There’s some interesting snippets of information about Regency perfumery in the always-fascinating janeausten.co.uk, and they mention one of the U.K’s most famous (and still-thriving) perfumeries…

 

 

Floris. It’s an extraordinary chapter in British perfumery – even if its founder, Juan Famenias Floris, happens to have been Spanish by birth, travelling to London to seek his fortune. Step inside the shop at 89 Jermyn Street, then, and you are truly stepping into fragrance history. This is a house first founded in 1730, which is still operating out of its original premises, run by members of that same family. Many literary luminaries have graced the shop’s infamous customer ledger [Mary Shelley, author of Frankenstein and wife of the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley, wrote from abroad asking a friend to send in her next care package ‘two hairbrushes and a small toothbrush,’ from the store.] And in 1820 – the very end of the Regency era – Floris received its first of 16 Royal Warrants.

Meanwhile, modern perfume houses are very much infused with the spirit of literary inspirations – a subject we have often referred back to, and will certainly cover again, such is the extent of literature’s olfactory influence.

 

 

We were particularly thrilled when the always-creative house of D’OTTO sought scented inspiration in none other than Jane Austen as part of their Harrods-exclusive Literary Collection. [For reviews of the latest two Brontë fragrances by D’Otto, do see our soon-to-be-launched Summer edition of The Scented Letter magazine, and make sure you’re signed up to get your free digital copy as soon as it’s published!]

As D’OTTO explain:

‘The 1×8 Extrait de Parfum draws its inspiration from Jane Austen’s “Emma,” and her iconic quote,“Why did we wait for anything? Why not seize the pleasure at once? How often is happiness destroyed by preparation, foolish preparation!”

1×8 encapsulates the elegance, grace, and intelligence of Emma, the novel’s leading lady. Its lively notes recall the energy and vitality of youth combined with the romance and torment of a young woman as she grows up and her feelings mature.

A drop of this creation offers up lighthearted joy and the desire to discover the world. It is a testament to the irrepressible desire to experience every emotion intensely, with determination, passion, and self-confidence. 1×8 captures the essence of a daring soul, one that does not allow itself to be tamed by life’s challenges…’

Currently £206.50 harrods.com

So, which perfume might you plump for – to join in the costume parties, balls, games and literary gatherings celebrating Jane Austen’s 250th anniversary? (Or, of course, simply to wear when re-reading one of her still-sparkling novels) Might you be tempted by the modern evocation, or also want to explore the historic houses? In the spirit of Emma (and Austen herself), we say: dare to ‘seize the pleasure’ of several!

Written by Suzy Nightingale

 

 

The Secret Ways of Perfume by Cristina Caboni

The Secret Ways of Perfume by Cristina Caboni is the scent-themed book we’re snuggled up with right now – why not make yourself a brew and get cosy while you read our review…?

 

The Secret Ways of Perfume by Cristina Caboni

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Any novel that contains the phrase ‘perfume is the truth’ has us whooping for joy, and in her beautiful novel, Caboni reminds us that scent has the greatest power to ignite our memories – something the main character, Elena Rossini, knows only too well.

Granted a rare gift of a superior sense of smell, Elena’s passion for perfume has been passed down through generations of her family; but it’s a power that can all too often overwhelm her, as this ability means painful memories about her mother are carried on the breeze, and so she can never truly escape her past. When a betrayal destroys her dreams, fragrant events are set in motion when Elena’s best friend invites her to Paris, and she grabs at the chance to start afresh.

Lured by the promise of  immersing herself in the world of scent once again, the ancient art of composing perfume beckons our protagonist. Searching for a secret recipe within her family’s historic archives, Elena’s new goal becomes the replication of a composition noone in her family managed to master. Having met a man who’s harbouring his own clandestine past; before long, she’s following the scent trail toall manner of mysterious discoveries. Because, as she was told all those years ago:

‘Remember Elena, perfume is the truth. The only thing that really counts. Perfume never lies, perfume is what we are, it’s our true essence…’

From the landscape of Florence to the sun-drenched lavender fields, this a book to delight all perfume-lovers – a novel that you’ll dive in to, nose first.

Buy it from Penguin U.K. (BLack Swan imprint, 2016)

In the mood for some more perfume-related books? We have a whole scented bookshelf of Fragrant Reads – from non-fiction historical explorations to contemporary criticism, with a plethora of perfume-related reading you can get your nose stuck in, right now!

By Suzy Nightingale

BeauFort London continue the intrepid scent adventure with Lignum Vitae…

BeauFort London are one of the most intriguing brands we’ve seen in a long time, so imagine our excitement on discovering they’ve just released their latest fragrance – Lignum Vitae – into the wild blue yonder of the perfume world.

Having first encountered them before they’d even properly launched, sometimes you get a sixth-sense tingle the passion behind the perfume will carry a new fragrance house way further than they’d perhaps ever have imagined. This was certainly the case when we first got our noses around the unique triptych of fragrances that began their story – really, quite unlike anything else around, the ‘fume-heads, bloggers and fragrance-buying public agreed; with 1805 Tonnerre (featured in our Secret Sensations Discovery Box) subsequently chosen by Jo Fairley as the Most Exciting New Brand of 2015 in her Telegraph Online column; praised by big-name glossies and highly respected tomes such as the Financial Times, alike.

Although perhaps not entirely smooth sailing (what new company’s launch is?) appropriately enough, these firecely independent, historically inspired yet utterly contemporary fragrances – named for the famous Beaufort Scale of measuring wind strengths – are themed around the turbulent history and intrepid spirit of the British isles, maritime history and notoriously shady characters who have shaped them. It was clear this niche line had quite an adventure ahead of them – indeed they have recently been lauded by critic Luca Turin as one to watch – and with the brand new fragrance Lignum Vitae just launched, it’s another exciting scent trail we were keen to explore…

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BeauFort London Say: ‘Inspired by the innovative use of materials that allowed 18th Century clockmakers to construct the first truly accurate marine chronometers, Lignum Vitae combines elements of wood, metal and salt to produce a truly unique, transportive fragrance.

In combining unexpected and exotic raw materials, BeauFort London celebrates the innovative spirit which brought to an end the search for lost time, and permitted the safe passage of ships across the world.’

Discussing the various inspirations behind any BeauFort fragrance is like a masterclass in maritime history, literary appreciation and a philosophy 101 with a smattering of art criticism for good measure – but fascinating as these influences are, it’s important as ever to not forget the most important thing of all – what it smells like on your skin! Complex, perhaps even slightly unsettling (because of their singularity) to some, BeauFort are not about one size fits all crowd-pleasing sniff-alikes that put you in mind of such-and-such a scent you used to wear. So what does Lignum Vitae actually smell of…?

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An immediate tang of salty air melts mistily to the scent of madeleines still warm from the oven – a Proustian almost-but-not-quite gourmand sense that feels as though it’s going to get huge, but within a while segues seamlessly to a citrus-tinged, freshly-felled woodiness and the silvered glint of cold metal that keeps the whole concoction bouyantly uplifted. Tenacious in perhaps a more tender way than its predecessors, Lignum Vitae is one of those true ‘scent journeys’ on the skin as it warms and settles. Having sprayed this in the early afternoon we could still smell it the next morning, where now it had dried down to a close, warm skin scent that was comforting but with a wonderful whiff of weirdness to it that you cannot exactly place. It seems to constantly fold back on itself, somehow – you think you have the measure of it and then it switches again, still retaining an image of its former self but with a new layer to explore. There’s a point about an hour in, when all the various threads seem to mingle into an intricate knot – you can trace each one, yet they have transmogrified into a new creation…

Were we to draw a map of this fragrance’s journey, we could cite the salt on the breeze, sweetness wrapped within a shady forest, misty darkness, warm skin huddled close against cool, mossy wood and the ever-present, slightly melancholy but ultimately intensely comforting echo of sweetness, wood and salt that carry you onwards to the trail’s end.

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BeauFort London Lignum Vitae £95 for 50ml eau de parfum
Buy it at beaufortlondon.com (or see their website for other stockists)

Written by Suzy Nightingale

Shakespeare’s in a lather with Heyland & Whittle’s commemorative Soap Book

Fans wishing to mark the #Shakespeare400 anniversary of the Bard’s death, may wish to make like Coriolanus and ‘Bid them wash their faces / And keep their teeth clean’ by presenting a loved-one with Heyland & Whittle‘s ‘To Beard or not to Beard’ gift-boxed commemorative Shakespeare Soap.

Shakespeare Soap Book SMALLDelightfully packaged in a book-like gift box, instead of merely including a leaflet describing the soap, Heyland & Whittle have allowed the muses to inspire them and written their own little homage – a playlet called ‘The Two Gentlemen of Castile’ – containing puns, quotations and clever quips for the discerning customer to persuse as they lather up, whether to shave or not to shave…

With natural moisturising properties and a vibrant citrus fragrance including essential oils, herbs and spices, whether they choose to shave or just wash and go, it makes a great gift for would-be whiskery thesps and bearded bibliophiles alike.

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The Commemorative Shakespeare Soap Book £12.00
Buy it at Heyland & Whittle

Written by Suzy Nightingale