We’ve learned all manner of tips and tricks at The Perfume Society, which we’re thrilled to share with you, here. We’ve been privileged to meet some of the world’s best perfumers and foremost fragrance experts over the last seven years we’ve been going, and want to share their advice with you, below.
If you want a fabulous new fragrance to try, need tips on how to smell it as a perfumer does or how to describe what you’re smelling, consider some of these most useful fragrant facts to help you enjoy your fragrances even more…
Your taste in fragrance changes over the years – just as in food preference – and depends on weather, what you’ve eaten recently, your mood and hormones. So, take your time to explore a new scent out of your comfort range.
Spray on a blotter first and come back to it at hourly intervals. Write down your initial thoughts, then re-try a few days (and weeks) later.
Many perfumers trained for more years than a heart surgeon, memorising ingredients by connecting their smell to personal scent memories and images that immediately spring to mind, unbidden.
Smell has no distinct language. If you’re struggling to describe a scent, try likening it to fabric (is it velvety, suede-like, cotton fresh, silken or fluffy?) Perhaps it reminds you of music (played on which instruments? Fast or slow?) Or you might picture a place – imagine the air temperature and scenery it evokes…
Your nose gets used to smelling the same things, so avoid wearing the same thing daily. Try layering to re-awaken your senses or branch out with exciting new discoveries!
Like all artists, perfumers tend to have a certain style. If you fall in love with one (we’re predicting several) of these, research them online: we bet you’ll fall for others.
Scent molecules are volatile and evaporate at differing rates. Citruses are lightest, often found in top notes and disappearing rapidly; florals tend to be in the heart while base notes are heavier, woody or resinous. Make these stages last FAR longer by using matching or unscented body lotion, spray into your hair or on clothes (after testing on tissue!)
Undecided? Spray on a scarf rather than skin: you can take it off and sniff again, later! Spraying on fabric (or your hair) also helps make it last far longer as the molecules don’t warm up so quickly (or evaporate) as on skin. As does…
Use an unscented (or matching) body lotion or oil. Fragrance doesn’t last long on dry skin (or in hot climates). It clings far longer to moisturised skin – so slather up, then spray.
Don’t know what to try next? Use our simple Find a Fragrance tool: just type the name of a fragrance you already know and love, and the so-clever algorithm suggests six new scents with similar characters to try.
Fragrance samples are THE best way to try new things, dive nose-first into a whole new house you’ve never tried or perhaps a differing perfume family than you’d normally go for.
We know that a full bottle can be a big investment and not everyone happens to live near a shop with a great selection. That’s why we put together carefully curated Discovery Boxes. Our Launches We Love Discovery Box is a stunning selection of new names, with gorgeous mini bottles and generous samples from niche and luxury houses we know you’re going to love as much as we do…
Looking for pocket friendly perfumes that smell fabulous but won’t break the bank? They’re the holy grail at any time, but most especially in January – the bleakest time of year – when we most need a little something to perk ourselves up.
Perfume has come to mean so much to so many more people these last few months – we can use it revive flagging spirits or grant us some courage when we need it most. A quick spritz can swathe you in comfort and soothe frazzled nerves, transport you instantaneously to somewhere else in the world or reanimate a long-forgotten memory of happier days.
But perhaps you’re like us and have just paid your tax bill (hello reality) and though you’re not feeling flush, still really, truly, desperately need SOMETHING NICE to look forward to?
Never fear! We have selected some of our favourite fragrant treats – perfumed pick-me-ups that wont break the bank but still smell utterly wonderful. There’s nothing over £50 here, but you’ll still smell – and feel – like a million dollars…
Berdoues Avoine & Coquelicot£25 for 100ml eau de toilette
The cool intrigue of cardamom is warmed with a tingle of saffron and the soothing softness of oats before the fresh bouquet of poppy, jasmine, lily of the valley and violet peek through – a heralding of spring. Sublimely powdery heliotrope swirls with creamy almond, a glimmer of amber and delicate white musk: comforting as cashmere.
Dsquared2 Green WoodGift Set RRP £44, currently £35 for 30ml eau de toilette
Invigorating lemon and aromatic santolina are sprinkled with spicy bourbon pepper, while suave cedarwood and vetiver ripple to the verdant breeze of cypriol; the base resonates with deeply warming notes of ambrox and musk. Although marketed as a ‘masculine’, this is for anyone who wants to feel like they’ve been for a head-clearing walk in the forest.
Miller Harris Lumière DoréeRRP £14, currently £9 for 9ml eau de parfum
Neroli has to be one of our all-time favourite notes – it feels like wearing sunshine – here celebrated with the golden fizz of bergamot, a luminescent jasmine and delicously honeyed orange flower. Luminous amber and reasuringly clean musks makes this a sheer delight, in every sense oif the word, and a so-welcome burst of happiness, bottled.
Yardley Daisy SapphireRRP £20, currently £16.00 for 50ml eau de toilette
Close your eyes and remember what summer felt like – waking up to blue skies, leaving the house without worrying about an umbrella or a coat… Now let the delightful flurry of green leaves and apple flutter to the heart of hyacinth and white rose before drying down to snuggle of sandalwood and musk in the base. Instantly cheering on the dullest days.
Perfumer Antoine Maisondieu invites you on a sunny road trip through the American West. Along the imaginary open road, with the roof down, you’ll encounter notes of bitter orange, juicy pear, cactus flower and gardenia, concluding your journey with notes of Joshua tree and musky Ambroxan. And we adore the apothecary-inspired new bottle!
No round-up of pocket friendly perfumes would be complete without the iconic 4711 – it’s often reached for on hot days, but don’t wait ’til summer to experience the mood-enhancing whoosh! Colognes take on a new aspect in the cooler months; the classic lemon, rosemary, lavender and neroli notes feel like sunlight filtered through unfurling leaves. escentual.com
The La Montaña Discovery Set is a cute wallet of home fragrance samples (to try at home) – a completely genius idea! Find out how to explore them all and use our discount code, below…
We’re all used to the idea of buying a Discovery Set of personal perfume samples – something we’ve been eulogising about for years as the best way to try new scents and be introduced to the style of a fragrance house before buying a full size bottle.
But home fragrances are far more difficult to try before we buy. And as the way our homes smell is such a personal choice, it’s completely genius to have the opportunity of trying the full range in the very home we’ll be scenting with a full size room mist, candle or reed diffuser.
Sustainability is another issue the fragrance industry is (and fragrance lovers) are making a priority right now, and all La Montañga products are sustainable, plant-derived, biodegradable, have a low carbon footprint, and are ‘non-toxic to humans or the environment.’
The La Montaña Discovery Set gives you the opportunity to try ALL NINE of their home fragrances in dinky little room mist form. The La Montaña fragrances are the same across their full range of candles and reed diffusers – so once you’ve tried the room mist samples and found your faves, you’ll know how how the other methods of scenting your space will smell. You can spray them onto the blotters provided, or La Montaña advise you ‘…spritz them into the air, wait a couple of seconds and step into the mist.’ But there’s a number of other ways you miught think of using them….
– Why not keep a set in your car? Much more chic than a garage-purchased novelty air freshener.
– Founder Cassandra says she even spritzes hers on to jumpers to snuggle up in the scent (only dark coloured fabrics, and do a patch-test, first!)
– If you’re lucky enough to be going away on holiday, these are the perfect size to slip into your suitcase to make a hired cottage or hotel room smell like home.
– We think this wallet of home fragrance samples would also be a great stocking filler gift – send to a friend and get them to pick a favourite, which you can offer to buy the full-size of, later.
Usually, the set costs £25, BUT for one week only, you can use our discount code to get it for only £10!
Have a browse of the evocative home scent descriptions – and the incredible reviews – on the La Montaña website – personally, we are huge fans of Winter Oranges to fragrance our homes at this time of year, though First Light is our first choice for the day when working at home, followed by Sacred Roses for a sublime way to wind down. Which rooms will you choose to sample them in, do you think…?
‘It is everything pure, good and evil. It aches, it desires, it is who we are.’ This is how Map of the Heart co-founders Sarah Blair and Jeffrey Darling describe the human heart, and a clue to the inspirations behind the fragrances.
With a creative partnership in writing, design and film, it felt like a natural step to take that expression further in to fragrance – a wearable art form – borne out of their collective need to creatively explore ‘the full atlas of the senses’.
Proudly Australian, each fragrance by perfumer Jaques Huclier has a seam of sandalwood at its core, and it throbs life through the perfumed pulse of this niche house’s scents, using indigenously and sustainably sourced Santalum spicatum. Huclier says that for him, the smell is ‘woody and explosive,’ providing ‘a unique signature of sensuality, texture and deepness to the range—it’s the heart of the Hearts, a beat within the fragrances.’encompassing a passion for telling stories and their understanding that scent can transport the wearer just as words, images and films can whisk us to another world. And oh, those bottles!
Designed by the legendary Pierre Dinand to resemble an anatomical model of the human heart, each piece looks like it’s straight from a gallery of modern art. Each perfume has been carefully crafted to evoke a differing emotion – the perfumer translating the co-founders words and startling imagery in to the notes he uses, the bottle designer evolving the story through the colours that echo the theme. So you will discover that, gilded, brightly coloured or starkly monochrome, the flacons hold juices just as experimental. From burned bush land juxtaposed by snow, forbidden fruits, passion and the essence of bravery, the spirits of rebellion and attraction: all are unique, and utterly wearable.
Map of the Heart fragrances are £150 for 90ml eau de parfum fromharrods.com, but we are thrilled to now stock the Map of the Heart Discovery Set in our shop – try the entire collection for only £25!
Clear Heart v.1 – Australian summer: surfing, swimming, hot days, cool breezes and the salt that hangs in the air promising more.
Black Heart v.2 – Smoky. Impolite. Dangerous. Its smoky heart of mysterious spices is shot through with shards of fresh eucalyptus and citrus to create an impolite mix of opposites.
Red Heart v.3 – Explosive. Seductive. Addictive. A composition of feijoa, tuberose and spices with sensual notes of musk and vanilla.
Gold Heart v.4 – Nurturing. Precious. Ancient. An exotic warm breeze that wraps around to protect and comfort.
Purple Heart v.5 – Brave. Instinctive. Triumphant. Inverting the olfactory pyramid by opening darker and then brightening.
Pink Heart v.6 – Mingles on the skin with the spiciness of the sumac accord and cistus absolute for a mesmerising ride.
White Heart v.7 – The ethereal and sharp opening of French lavender, aldehydes and cardamom coolly invite us into the vast landscape of love.
So now the only thing left for you to wonder is, which fragrance will pull on your heart strings…?
When we were curating the Limited Edition Niche Discovery Box, we wanted to include the most exciting niche fragrances we’ve come across lately. It can be really difficult to find these houses if you don’t happen to live in London or near an independent perfumery – and even if you do, it would take ages to seek out all these scents – FOURTEEN in all! – so we’ve saved your legs and done all the pre-sniffing to find the hottest niche brands right now…
Have a look here to read all about the fragraces, with three huge luxury size samples and the entire contents worth over £75, but costing you only £23 (or just £19 forVIP Club members ); but right now let’s focus on why we think you should be excited about exploring these niche houses, now.
One of the things that truly sets a ‘niche’ house apart is their founders hands-on approach – and the unique personalities they bring to their brand’s creation. At The Perfume Society, we truly believe perfume lovers want to know more than merely ‘this is new’ – it’s one of the reasons we started! – and that’s why we dedicate entire pages to houses’ histories, from tracing heritage and discovering why they’ve embraced niche, to finding out what makes their founders tick, and what drives their perfume passions…
Anima Vinci
Showcasing fragrances created by some of the world’s most renowned perfumers, Anima Vinci is the creative expression of one woman’s strong belief in the power of fragrance and the positive effect it can have on your heart, mind and spirit. With a background at the very first ‘niche’ perfumery house – and years at the creative helm of one of the UK’s most historic fragrance names – Nathalie Vinciguerra brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the table. But it’s her passion for authenticity and sustainability within the world of fragrance that finally drove her to create Anima Vinci.
Atkinsons
Oh, what a wonderful fragrant story this is: a traditional British perfume house, restored to its glory in the 21st Century – with the 2013 niche-focused relaunch of Atkinsons fragrances. A sleeping beauty of a tale, actually, interwoven with the names of heroes and heroines, princes and dandies. And as if that wasn’t enough, a rags-to-riches story, too.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…
BDK Parfums
One of the city’s newest niche perfume house, BDK has its roots firmly in Paris’s perfumed history, while its design is even inspired by an iconic Parisian building. Unlike the names Guerlain, Creed or Dior, Benedek isn’t one you’d immediately associate with perfume. But in its own way, 29-year-old David Benedek‘s family has also played a pivotal role in sharing the love of French fragrance within France and beyond its shores.
E. Coudray
There are few fragrance houses still as ‘relevant’ after almost 200 years as the wonderful Paris-based house of E. Coudray – which can trace its roots back to the reign of Louis XVIII, no less, and the year 1822. The Paris-born founder was a doctor-chemist, Edmond Coudray (the ‘E’ in E. Coudray), who went on to enjoy a spectacular career, creating eaux de Cologne, pomades, creams and soaps for the crowned heads of France, Italy and England – including Queen Victoria, for whom the perfume ‘Reine Victoria’ was made. Now enjoyed by niche fragrance-lovers who appreciate their unerring quality and dressing-table worthy bottles, no wonder this heritage house is proudly thriving.
Fragrance du Bois
With their headquarters in Paris and a number of privately owned sustainable plantations in Asia, Fragrance Du Bois are world experts in the protection and harvesting of oudh – sometimes known as ‘liquid gold’. And they have mastered the blending of this fabled ingredient, using some of the best ‘noses’ in the world. Fragrance Du Bois are, quite unashamedly, so oudh-obsessed. And are we surprised? Derived from the dark resinous wood of the Aquilaria tree, oudh (often spelled ‘oud’) is an utterly fascinating material – a resin that occurs in less than 7% of trees, in the wild. Which explains why the material is so precious – and, sought-after. And not all oudh, it transpires, is harvested with the focus on sustainability that Fragrance Du Bois are renowned for.
Juliette Has a Gun Romano Ricci has perfume in his DNA. His great-grandmother was the legendary couturier Nina Ricci and his grandfather Robert was creator of the equally iconic L’Air du Temps. He launched Juliette Has A Gun in December 2006: a brand devoted to women, offering a new type of elegance within niche perfumery: ‘The innocent Juliet of Shakespeare is transposed to the 21st Century with a gun… Metaphor for the perfume, weapon of seduction, or simple accessory of bluff. “Gun” essentially symbolises the liberation of women towards men… And sometimes with an aftertaste of revenge.’
Kingdom Scotland Imogen Russon-Taylor has created the very first Scottish fragrance house – capturing the history and majestic landscapes of her home country in a portfolio of utterly contemporary fragrances…The worlds of whisky and fragrance have much in common, believes Imogen Russon-Taylor. And she should know: after a distinguished career in the aromatic world of Scotch whisky, Imogen has now gone on to create her own fragrance house – the very first to be based north of the border. ‘Both whisky and perfume are produced by traditional distillation methods,’ she explains. Both evoke a complex sensory experience and both rely upon the innovative use of ingredients or flavours to distinguish themselves from competitors.’
Merchant of Venice
When the princess Teodora Ducas – daughter of the Emperor of Byzantium – married the Doge Domenico Selvo in 1060, it can be said the grand Venetian tradition of perfumery (and the accompanying products with which the royal court liked to adorn themselves) truly began. Later centuries would come to see Venice as a centre for the art of European perfumery – a vibrant city that never shied away from revelling in the finer things life has to offer. Surrounded by such beauty, it seems only natural the aristocrats would wish to look – and smell – just as fabulous. Skip forward several centuries to 2011, and the Vidal family – already renowned in the world of perfumery for more than a century – decided to pay homage to this glorious cultural tradition.
Modernist Perfume
It’s easy to look back and think the timing was spot on,’ says John Evans, founder of Modernist Fragrance and (perhaps somewhat surprisingly) former financier. ‘That was true to a degree,’ he admits, ‘but the rest was like anything you’re passionate about: hard work, perseverance, some setbacks, a bit of luck.’ Through books, involvement with industry organisations, meetings with perfumers, as well as a research to Grasse – global epicentre of perfume creation – he immersed himself in the techniques of fine perfumery, painstakingly experimenting with building his own compositions. ‘Time and space change once compounding begins,’ John explains, ‘like being enthralled by something you’re writing or reading.’
Prosody
Rising star fragrance house Prosody London believe that plants are more than just useful ingredients on which we rely, saying ‘they are the basis of human wellbeing, the silent friends without which our planet would be bare and our lives unthinkable…’ With a green ethos that flows through every fragrance, Prosody London take equal delight in their scents being so beautifully composed, so harmoniously sophisticated, that many people don’t even realise they are – gloriously, unashamedly – all natural and organic… Taking the beauty of plants – their stems, leaves, petals, and even the their cycle of growth and maturing beauty – as their guiding inspiration, Prosody London talk passionately about how ‘some of the earliest cultures saw plants as a grammar, a code and a cosmology.’
Parterre
When David and Julia Bridger decided to combine the ruling passions of their lives – art, gardens, travel and perfume – and gather a team of experts (literally) in their field, they set in motion a series of events that is poised to change the face of British fragrance forever. And put Parterre on the map… Embracing the concept of ‘from seed to bottle’, David and Julia not only set out to to grow, harvest and distil many of their own ingredients – but they also had a longing to try growing crops that had never before been grown on British soil. (Even including – astonishingly – vetiver.) The fragrances, made by world-renowned perfumer Jacques Chabert, evoke the idyllic setting and, in strictly limited, hand-numbered bottles, are truly ‘niche’.
Parle Moi De Parfum Michel Almairac has created award-winning, world-renowned blockbusters for just about every perfume house you’ve ever heard of. And now, to the delight of perfume-lovers, he has launched his own fragrance house (with his family) – and opened a boutique in Paris’s Le Marais. His astounding CV encompassing a literal A-Z of perfumes from Dior Fahrenheit to Le Labo Ambrette 9, via Gucci Rush, Chloe Eau de Parfum (2007), Bottega Veneta Eau de Parfum (2011), Burberry for Woman and Burberry for Men – and so the list of hundreds goes on. But Michel found that he was having literally to shelve his most treasured creations because they didn’t quite work for the corporate briefs. He could never forget about them, however – and sometimes would take a scent home for his family to smell. Now these ‘lost’ fragrances have been completed, and are available for you…
Serge Lutens
Enigmatic, talented and exceptionally creative – it’s no exaggeration to say that Serge Lutens helped pioneer ‘niche’ perfumery. He once told an interviewer that ‘Morocco gave me the taste of perfume. It is very difficult to detach the olfactory sense from the other senses; however, I can say that before my arrival in Morocco in 1968, this fifth sense was largely fallow for me… The aroma of Morocco is linked to a form of life that allows you to be an individual in a dense crowd. The crowd here is a movement, a sound, a laugh, a game. By the end, smell was united with the other senses…’ Today, he lives in Marrakech, Morocco: a city of colour, exotic fragrances and mystery – the place where he discovered the creative potential of the world of scents. And the rest of the world waits eagerly, always, for his next olfactory vision, his next scent ‘dream’.
Tom Daxon
I grew up in fragrant surroundings,’ Tom Daxon recalls. That’s something of an understatement, for Tom began sniffing around the business as a child, when his mother – creative director for a leading fragrance and cosmetics name for over 30 years – ‘would often give me new shower gels to try, fragrances to sniff.’ Where Tom’s story may diverge from most is that he was lucky enough to accompany his mother on many of her working trips to Grasse, the epicentre of perfumery – aged just four, on that first visit. Truly modern, other-worldly, imbued with texture, beautiful ingredients and a wealth of creativity, they’re modern luxury redifined.
Whichever of these fragrances you most enjoy exploring in your Limited Edition Niche Discovery Box, we defy you not to fall madly for at least one, and begin a life-long love affair with these niche houses that we feel everyone deserves to try…
Valentines Day – love it or loathe it – is just around the corner, and it’s still the day that generates the most fragrance sales, peaking at 42% of all prestige beauty products sold. So if you’re thinking of splashing out on a scent for your significant other, follow our guide to ensuring success…
If you already know what they love
Great! Well done you. Why not have a look at matching products available, such as a gorgeously decadent bath oil, rich body cream or even a fragranced hair mist. It’s often possible to find travel-size versions of perfumes at this time of year, and if you really wanted to push the boat out – how wonderful it would be to book a couple of nights in a nice hotel or day spa trip, and add the ticket to the box of mini sizes in a golden envelope!
If you have no idea what they like
A pre-chosen selection box of scents showcasing a range of fragrances with differing styles is your saviour. First, think about their personality, their hobbies, the kind of books they see and films they love to watch.Then have a look at the list below and decide which category they most resemble. Then they can try them all home, taking time to choose their favourites from these stunningly packaged sets…
Are they arty & modern – always wanting to see the latest contemporary exhibitions and staying ahead of the fashion scene? Choose Tom Daxon Discovery Collection One £45
Are they a yoga lover – in to excercise as mindfulness, long walks or simply seeking inner peace and spirituality? Choose the Anima Vinci Discovery Set£15 (PS: It comes with a £15 voucher to buy a full size favourite!)
Are they a travel addict – keen to explore exotic climes, always seeking the sunshine and interested in sustainability? Choose the Sana Jardin Discovery Set £30
If you know what they usually wear, but they’d like something new
Well you’re off to a good start! Now all you need to do is type the name of that scent into our genius Fragrance Finder, and the clever algorithm – based on information we source directly from the fragrance houses and perfumers themselves – will suggest six new fragrances that, while different from the original you typed, share a similar mood, character or key ingredients.It really works!
If you just have no idea where to start
The best idea is to get a Discovery Box of fabulous mini sizes and samples from a wide range of fragrance houses, that way they can start exploring and trying them all in the comfort of their own home, and most importantly, in their own time. Each box is carefully curated to include something for all tastes – so they’re bound to fall for one of these!
Once they’ve found ‘the one’ (or perhaps several) you can then buy a full size, safe in the knowledge they’ve already fallen for it. And we’ve something to suit everyone:
The Velvet Collection £12 comes with a full size chocolate bar from Green & Blacks (so you’re alreadyon to a winner), and features a sumptuously seductive range of new, niche and ‘indie’ scents to try.
The Day & Night Discovery Box £19 includes luminescent, sunshine-filled and lighter style fragrances suitable for any day, and a number of deeper, darker scents to spritz for romantic meals or a night on the town.
The Fragrance Wardrobe Discovery Box £19 is a bumper selection of fragrances from designer fashion houses and cult brands, with a stunning suits-all lipgloss and lovely Molton Brown mini included as extra surprises.
The Treat Yourself Discovery £19 lovingly soothes and delights with body-care treats from Aromatherapy Associates, and whole host of wonderful fragrances, with something from classic houses to new niche.
Did you take the plunge and blind-buy yourself a full size scent in the January sales, only to discover that it really isn’t ‘you’? Or perhaps you were gifted something over Christmas from a loved one who really should have put more thought into the scent they chose?
How to deal with the devastation can be difficult – social ettiquette suggests it’s best not to scream ‘what were you THINKING?!’ at the loved one, and if you’ve only yourself to blame, it’s even worse.
But do not deapair! We present our Scent Survival guide to try before the tears…
1: Are you sure you don’t like it?
This might sound like a silly question, but please don’t make any hasty decisons. Is it simply not your ‘usual’? The idea of a Signature Scent is a wee bit dated these days, plus did you know that after a while, your nose can get ‘used to’ a scent, and you won’t get that fragrant hit you once adored if you wear it every day.
A fragrance takes several hours to fully ‘develop’ on your skin: so many of us immediately discard them after the very first sniff! How about giving it a go on a few differing occasions, tracking its progress throughout the day? It’s only fair…
2: Layer up
It used to be considered a cardinal sin of the scent world, but in the past few years it’s a huge trend we’ve seen fully blossom. Try layering the scent with a differing fragranced body lotion (Top Tip: this also makes any fragrance last longer, as perfume disappears far faster on dry skin), or with one (or more!) other scents you already like.
You might create your own ‘bespoke’ blend and be pleasantly surprised…
3: Wear it well
The heat of your skin can drastically change the way a perfume smells, which is partly why not all scents smell the same on everyone, but how about wearing it a different way?
Spraying perfume on a scarf, or even in your hair, is a wonderful way of trying something new. Also, this tends to prolong the top and heart notes of a perfume, so if it’s the base or ‘dry down’ that’s putting you off, you’re on to a win-win…
4: Changes, changes
Are you aware the weather (along with our mood and even what we’ve eaten several days previous to trying a scent) can hugely alter the way we perceive a perfume?
Cold weather will prolong the top and heart notes on your skin, with warmer days meaning the fragrance will ‘bloom’ (journey through all the notes) on your skin much more quickly. We’re always thrilled to discover something we thought we didn’t like in winter becomes the hit of the summer. There’s still hope…
5: Do some research… and treat yourself!
Look up your favourite fragrance on our genius Find a Fragrance tool, known as FR.eD for short, and you’ll be given several suggestions of other perfumes you’re bound to like. We’re sorry your gift-giver didn’t get it right, but life is too short for perfumes to be gathering dust.
Or why not just re-gift the mistake and treat yourself to something new? Check out our fantastic sale to explore a whole wardrobe of perfumes from the comfort of your own home, and in try-me sizes that mean you can luxuriate in the scents for a few days, to really make sure you love them…
We go by the theory that absolutely nobody can resist a miniature size of something lovely, so whether you’re looking for Secret Santa presents, smaller gifts to give fussy family members or to fill up the stockings of scent-loving people in your life – look no further for a round-up of favourites…
What to buy the fragrance fanatic in your life who pretty much has it all? How about this stunning silver perfume bottle charm necklace – exclusive to us! It’s a limited edition piece from one of the rising stars of British jewellery, and will let them wear their passion with pride. It’s also small enough (and securely packed) to pop in a Christmas card to save on bulky postage! Estella Bartlett Perfume Bottle Necklace £20
Also known as ‘spills’, our blotters are created from a special form of absorbent paper created to ensure that when it’s sprayed or dipped, it gives as accurate as possible a sense of what that fragrance smells like. Invaluable during a scent-shopping trip for eliminating ‘no-nos’ and helping you edit down to a selection of scents you might want to try on the body. Utterly indispensible for perfumistas on-the-go! 2 x Perfume Society Scent Blotter Packs £5
While these next three might be too bulky to fit into a stocking, we think they’re just perfect to split into several gifts (for the same person or different family members), to put inside home-made crackers or give as table/tree gifts – making them absolute bargains!
The opulent and extravagant perfumes in this box include offerings from some of the most interesting names in perfumery – including the most stunning mini bottle of Vince Camuto‘s Amore, the cult Philosophy Purity Cleanser, and a FULL SIZE huge bar of Green & Black’s Velvet Collection Orange & Almond Dark Chocolate. (We won’t tell if you keep that for yourself…) The Velvet Collection Discovery Box (was £19 – now £12 when added to your basket!)
For intrepid travellers and anyone dreaming of sunnier days, with scents from Atelier Cologne to Moschino (in THE dinkiest mini you have to see) via Issey Miyake, État Libre d’Orange, Annick Goutal and more. The travel-friendly ‘extras’ this time are Molton Brown’s brand new (shareable) Coastal Cypress and Sea Fennel Bath & Shower Gel, plus Philosophy’s Exfoliating Facial Wash. The Travel Edition Discovery Box (was £19 – now £12 when added to your basket!)
Curated with a masculine focus, here’s a whopping 13 fantastic fragrances like Creed Viking (winner of TheFragrance Foundation‘s Best Male Fragrance 2018), niche offerings from Nejma, Floris, Jack (Richard E. Grant’s fragrance line) and Shay & Blue King’s Wood. Plus, a FULL SIZE luxury shower gel from the niche house of Escentric Molecules worth £20 on its own! The New Man Discovery Box £19 (£15 for VIPs)
Featuring eight of Molton Brown‘s best-selling eaux de toilette – each one beautifully showcases rare ingredients gathered from all around the world. From the iconic Black Pepper, Heavenly Gingerlily and Orange and Bergamot, to newer incarnations of Mesmerising Oud Accord and Gold plus so much more – there’s truly something for every taste, and this gift is certain to be highly appreciated. Molton Brown Art of Fragrance Box £12.50
Perfect for travellers or those who want to carry fragrance in a handbag without lugging bulky botttles, each stylish, refillable Travalo spray enables you to carry up to 5ml of your favourite scent with you, wherever you go. Both the sleek metal Travalo Classic HD (£12.49) and chic leather Milano Elegance (£28) collections are approved for hand luggage and glass-free, to avoid risk of breakage. PLUS! Each Travalo comes with FREE postage! Travalo Travel Sprays £12.49 – £28 FREE P&P
Mother’s Day comes early this year – Sunday, 11 March in the UK, so don’t miss the chance to treat your mama to some of the most stunning luxury Discovery Sets around, presented in gorgeously gift-worthy boxes.
Fragrance needs to be worn for several hours to truly get the feel of its character, and what could be more glorious than giving your mum – or any woman in your life who deserves a treat – weeks worth of blissful scent contemplation?
Don’t worry, we’ve got Mother’s Day wrapped.
Here at The Perfume Society, we believe the best way to properly try perfumes is to indulge your senses from the comfort of your home, that’s why we like collecting some of the most fabulous Discovery Boxes around, from niche and designer houses we already adore and know she’s going to be excited to explore…
For an extra treat, when your mum’s gift arrives why not take a cake, pop round for a cup of tea and try out some of the scents together? We love hearing the stories of people having Discovery Box sniffing sessions with their mums, for a special moment of sharing scented memories that last forever.
All you need do is choose which of these would best reflect your mum’s character, order and await the outpouring of thanks!
Does your mum dream of travelling the world to exotic locations? Perhaps she’s also the caring, sharing and socially-conscious type? Well this luxury fragrance house works with a sustainability program specifically set up to help the Moroccan women who pick the orange blossoms used in several of perfumer Carlos Benaïm‘s stunning creations. With seven exquisite scents to explore, she can escape with a spritz whenever the mood takes her…
If your mother loves staying in luxury hotels and the finer things in life, we’re betting she’s already a fan of Molton Brown’s opulent body products (they were one of the first ever fragrance houses to understand we like a little luxury every day) but may not yet have indulged herself with their perfumes. Embodying their ‘London via the World’ approach, they source the rarest ingredients and give them a little contemporary twist – eight of their best-selling fragrances are featured here – and when she decides her favourites, you’ll know exactly which matching body products and home fragrance gifts you can lavish her with on other occasions!
If you’d really like to spoil a mum who’s been going through a difficult time, this really has the WOW factor, with seven eau de parfum housed in a keepsake hatbox style set. Besides looking pretty, the fragrances are thoughtfully composed with wellness in mind. Each bottle contains semi-precious stones which enhance the richness of the formula and embody the perfume’s emotion (they’re also beautiful to display and satisfyingly stress-relieving to rattle, we found!) The addition of natural active ingredients helps to encourage the feeling of wellbeing, and the generous travel-sizes are perfect to pop in a handbag for on-the-go de-frazzling. Go on: she’s worth it.
For ladies who like to make an impression, might we suggest the luxe collection of twelve (yes, twelve!) personality-full perfumes by the London-based niche house of Ormonde Jayne? An utterly swoon-worthy set, it comprises some of founder Linda Pilkington’s most lusted-after fragrances, each one a memorable journey to exotic lands and with a signature sense of style that’s once sniffed, never forgotten. Long-lasting and heady florals are offest by richly decadent woods, spices and uniquely distilled ingredients that cannot fail to tempt. We truly believe there’s something for everyone within this collection, beautifully boxed and ready to dive on in…
For mothers who exude classic style and yearn for traditionally made scents that still smell very ‘now’, choose from three differently themed trilogies – each box containing three precious bottles of perfume tied with silk ribbons. The sumptuous Columbia Rose Trilogy showcases three beautiful expressions of the rose – an ingredient at which the London perfumer Angela Flanders excelled, the Noire Trilogy explores the deep, dark and mysterious side of perfumery and the White Florals Trilogy embraces the ultra feminine, seductively sunshine-infused flowers beloved by so many. Whichever you select, she’ll be thanking you for lighting up her life for months to come.
We continually seek out the most exciting and sumptuous perfumes and scented treats for our own Perfume Society Discovery Boxes, with carefully curated selections to tempt every taste. Have a look and find the one that’s perfect for your mum…
Our latest Discovery Box has to be the most sumptuously indulgent yet! The Velvet Collection has just launched, and we couldn’t be more thrilled to share a little more about it with you, here… Prepare to sink into a state of scented bliss!
One of the most incredible powers perfume has is to make us feel swathed in luxury, as though we could reach out and stroke it. So when describing a perfume, we borrow language that evokes how they make us feel when wearing them, and most often those words are textural – suede-like, supple leather, soft cashmere, crisp cotton… and the most luxurious of all: velvet.
So how perfect to use this utterly sumptuous word in the title of our latest Discovery Box – The Velvet Collection…
In our latest curated collection of fragrances and scented goodies – nine perfume samples, two extra beauty treats AND a full-size Green & Blacks Velvet Edition chocolate bar in this one! – ‘velvet’ becomes a stepping-stone into exploring a sensuously scented world. Velvet makes us think of joyous opulence, abundant allure; richly hued and silky to the touch, but with enough of a fur-like feel to make us purr contentedly. Reassuring to wrap around you and reassuringly expensive, velvet also reflects the light with subtle nuances and complexity of character.
We’re so privileged at The Perfume Society to meet and interview some of the top perfumers in the world, and we always ask them what we can do to improve our sense of smell, to enhance the way we perceive a perfume. We feed these tips back to our How to Improve Your Sense of Smell Workshops (see Events section for news of these), and the most consistent advice is that we should try to think of textures, colours and places to envisage and ‘fix’ a scent in our mind.
And we wonder: which of these will become your second-skin, the fragrance you want to reach out and stroke as you fix the scent-sensation in your mind…? Map of the Heart Gold Heart – a warm gleam of comforting spices Avery E – frosted red fruits swathed in swags of flowers Vince Camuto Amore – frozen clementines wrapped in amber Lalique Reve d’Infini – white roses powder-dusted by a swansdown puff Connock London Andiroba – rainforest fruits discovered in lush greenery Valeur Absolue Rouge Passion – precious flowers tingling with ginger Ruth Mastenbroek Firedance – scarlet roses smouldering shamelessly Floral Street Chypre Sublime – bohemian romantics artistically cavorting Atkinsons Pirates Grand Reserve – dashing cads plundering exotic goods
PLUS: the exquisitely scented and ultra-nourishing Cochine hand lotion (in White Jasmine & Gardenia) a handy travel-size of Philosophy’s iconic Purity 3-in-one-cleanser and Green & Black’s scrumptious new Velvet Edition chocolate bar!
All of this can be yours to try in the comfort of your own home – no high-pressure, zero hassle and the time to make up your own mind, and for just £19 (VIP price £15) + P&P
So we suggest you treat yourself, close the curtains and give in to the luxurious allure of The Velvet Collection Discovery Box…
Coach Dreams £35 for 40ml eau de parfum
