Tag: sunlight

Fragrances For… winter sun & feeling brighter

Looking for some bright, energising and mood-uplifting scents to get you through? Us too – and we’ve curated a list of some scented zingers to put the spring back in your spritz…

As we contemplate packing the tinsel away and the festive glow fades, many of us find ourselves craving a breath of fresh air – both literally and metaphorically. The heavy, spice-laden scents that cocooned us through the winter holidays suddenly might feel a bt much, even cloying, and we yearn for something to lift our spirits and energise our senses. Enter the world of bright, uplifting fragrances – olfactory sunbeams designed to chase away the winter blues and usher in a more optimistic mood.

 

 

 

 

Recent scientific research has confirmed what many of us have long suspected: scent has a profound impact on our emotions and overall well-being. Studies have shown that certain fragrances can stimulate the production of serotonin and dopamine, our brain’s ‘feel-good’ chemicals, effectively boosting our mood and energy levels. Citrus notes, in particular, have been found to have an invigorating effect, while green, herbal scents can promote a sense of calm and clarity.

With this in mind, let’s explore a selection of fragrances that promise to bring a much-needed dose of brightness to the dreary seemingly sun free days of January. Step forth and get ready to seek out these stunning scents…

 

 

Edeniste Lifeboost Discovery Set – £32 for 6 x 2ml in our Shop

This innovative collection is a testament to the power of scent (as well as the sun) on our psyche. Edeniste has harnessed neuroscience to create fragrances that actively work to enhance our mood. The Lifeboost set offers a range of uplifting scents, each designed to evoke a specific positive emotion. From the zesty, mood-boosting Energy to the serene, focus-enhancing Dream, and beyond, this set is like a scent therapy session in a bottle. Perfect for those days when you need an extra boost of positivity.

 

 

sun scents uplifting happy

Thursday Fragrance About Thyme – £80 for 50ml eau de parfum thursdayfragrance.co.uk

As its clever name suggests, this fragrance is all about the invigorating power of herbs. Centred around the bright, clean scent of thyme, this perfume is like a walk through a sun-warmed herb garden. Notes of lemon and bergamot add a sparkling freshness, while a base of cedarwood provides a grounding warmth. It’s the olfactory equivalent of a refreshing gin and tonic – crisp, clean, and utterly revitalising.

 

 

sun scents mood boost uplifting

Fragrance Du Bois Solstis £285 for 100ml eau de parfum fenwick.co.uk

True to its name, Solstice captures the essence of the longest day of the year (thankfully now past! and this radiant fragrance is a scented celebration. Opening with a burst of citrus – bergamot and lemon – before revealing a heart of jasmine and orange blossom. The base of sandalwood and white musk adds a subtle warmth, reminiscent of sun-kissed skin. Wearing Solstice feels like basking in the glow of warm winter sun, even in the depths of greyness.

 

 

sun scents mood boost

Sana Jardin Berber Blonde – From £32 for 10ml eau de parfum sanajardin.com

This luminous joy is an olfactory reverence of orange blossom, that most joyful of floral notes. Berber Blonde opens with a burst of sparkling citrus before settling into a heart of neroli and orange blossom. A base of musk and vanilla adds a subtle creaminess without detracting from the scent’s overall brightness. It’s like bottling sunshine – warm, radiant, and impossibly cheerful.

 

LA MONTAÑA First Light Three Wick Candle – £100 for 650g in our Shop
Why reserve the uplifting joy just for personal perfumes? This candle deserves a mention for its mood-lifting properties. First Light captures the invigorating scent of early morning in the Spanish mountains – a blend of wild fennel, orange, and rosemary. Lighting this candle is like opening a window onto a crisp, clear dawn, filling your space with an atmosphere of renewal and possibility.

 

 

 

 

As we navigate the post-holiday slump, these bright, uplifting fragrances offer a welcome respite from the winter gloom. They remind us that spring is just around the corner, bringing with it longer days and new beginnings.

While we may return to our cosier, more enveloping scents as the year progresses, for now, we’re all about embracing these sparkling, mood-enhancing fragrances. After all, if a simple spritz can help us face the day with a more positive outlook, why not indulge?

Here’s to a brighter, more fragrant 2025!

Suzy Nightingale

What scents to wear & layer for autumnal sunshine?

At this time of year we are clinging on to every scrap of sunshine we can get – and one of the best ways to do this is to wear scents that seem to bottle that particular, golden quality of light we get in autumn. This way, even when the weather isn’t sunny all day, or there’s a chill on the breeze, we can still revel in that gilded warmth all day long.

For the Seasonal Scents subscription boxes, we choose fragrances ideally suited for wearing right now, so your fragrance wardrobe perfectly reflects the weather. But what else can you wear that feels right for right now (or brings that sunlight we’re desperately craving whenever it’s grey and drizzly, and TV weather reports keep promising an ‘Indian Summer’ to make up for the actual summer that never quite happened, here in the U.K.?!)

 

 

If you’re after a quick-hit of uplifting olfactory splendour to bring some sunshine into your life immediately, we have some excellent suggestions. So, if you are in the mood for fragrant joy (and oh goodness, we could certainly all use some at the moment), then here are four of the sunny yet autumn-friendly fragrances we are reaching for at the moment…

 

 

Molton Brown Sunlit Clementine & Vetiver

Capturing the essense of lazy, hazy autumnal afternoons, softly beguiling notes of lavender, creamy fig leaf, and roasted hazelnut conjure cosy brightness, while a sophisticated base of smoky vetiver and amberwood adds depth.

£140 for 100ml eau de parfum moltonbrown.co.uk

 

 

 

Sunny solar scents for summer Floral Street Arizona Bloom 
Floral Street Arizona Bloom

Capturing the heart-soaring feeling of freedom this wide-open vista evokes a desert oasis. Queen of the Night flower lush with Balinese coconut, grounded by woody oakmoss and salted musks.

from £29 for 10ml eau de parfum floralstreet.com

 

 

ESCENTRIC_MOLECULES_MOLECULE_5

 

ESCENTRIC MOLECULES MOLECULE 05

Showcasing pure Cashmeran, a complex note that perfumer Geza Schoen masterfully employs to evoke Mediterranean warmth. This single-note fragrance manages to be simultaneously dry, aromatic, soft, and comforting.

£115 for 100ml eau de parfum escentric.com

 

 

EAU.MG Flor Funk 

Packed full of the brightest orange blossom, swathed in a cloak of earthy moss, soft musk and smooth sandalwood – the creaminess is an addictive layer of warmth. One to swish through leaves while wearing, grinning joyously.

£95 for 50ml eau de parfum in our shop

 

But what if you’re not currently in the market for a new scent, and want to utilise those you already own? The good news is that it doesn’t necessarily mean investing in an entire new collection of fragrances – here are some general tips for layering a sunshine-filled seasonal balance in your choice of perfume:

 

  • Look for notes such as bergamot, orange, mandarin and lemon to add some zing to a scent – uplifting the spirit and reviving energy, these ingredients also cut through heavier notes in a fragrance composition and can remind us of bright sunlight breaking through the clouds. Or close your eyes and imagine the light streaming through amber or red coloured leaves in a woodland setting: citrus plus woody, smoky or resinous notes give this amber-hued olfactory impression.

 

 

  • Floral notes such as rose, iris and even jasmine are still beautiful in autumnal scents – tempered by woody, mossy or resinous bases they feel richer, more texturally akin to velvet, suede or cashmere than summery linen or cotton-centric scents. What’s more, autumn is often the best time of year to try these florals with more density, as in hot weather they can feel too overpowering. Consider looking through your current collection to rediscover scents you may have overlooked in summer – or break out of your comfort zone and try a brand new style of scent you’d previously discounted as ‘not really me’. Temperature and climate can play a huge role in how we wear and perceive a scent.

 

 

If it’s a sunnier autumn day and your choice of scent suddenly feels too heavy (as though you’ve put on a thick jumper or winter-weight coat too early), don’t be afraid to layer your fragrance with a lighter, brighter scent to feel like you’ve taken a layer off and can breathe again! We’ve a simple guide to layering fragrances you can follow to change-up your fragrance as the weather / your mood requires.

 

 

Written by Suzy Nightingale

Light-filled fragrances for Diwali & scents for eternal sun-worshipers…

If you’re anything like us you’ll have been basking in the gloriously golden (and surprisingly warm) sunshine these last few days – we’re hanging on to every last ray, and it’s especially aposite to seek light-filled scents at this time, with the celebrations of Diwali about to begin – and other festivals around the world (and in many religions) in homage to the sun before the darker days truly kick in. Here, we pay our own perfumed tributes, and urge you to seek these out for eternal sunshine of the scented mind…

 

 

NARCISO RODRIGUEZ  Narciso Eau Neroli Ambrée
Neroli is one of the most instantly sunshine-y, happy-making notes on the scentscape (we took an office poll last year, and it came out on top for evoking bright light and happy, holiday memories). The brilliant Aurélien Guichard packs pleasure into every spritz, here – a veritable whoosh of optimism, tempered with comfort, in this slinky, silky dream. Orange blossom and soft woods sigh contentedly to the so-iconic white musk trail.
£65 for 50ml eau de parfum
johnlewis.com

 

 

 


BOUCHERON Patchouli D’Angkor
Here’s proof that patchouli can throw off its deep, dark and sometimes dark past to be reinvented as something sheer, summery and fresh. Here, patchouli has some unexpected bedfellows – pear, Bourbon pepper, jasmine and white musk – as well as more expected notes of bergamot in the top, guaiac wood in the soft base, offering further proof of perfumer Nathalie Lorson’s talent for reinventing notes, the better to delight and surprise our noses.
£175 for 125ml eau de parfum
Harrods.com

 

 

 

JIMMY CHOO Urban Hero Gold Edition
Luscious pineapple and ripe blood orange offer the most welcome kind of bracing opening, perfectly offsetting the more balsamic sweetness of soothing lavandin and rich, creamy tonka bean (think roasted almonds, lapped in milk) at the heart. This fragrance of contrasts, reflecting the inspiration of street art and free-spirited creatives amidst a city environment, is captured in a special edition golden bottle that will steal the show on his side of the bathroom shelf.
£72 for 100ml eau de parfum
johnlewis.com

 

 

 

LA MONTAÑA First Light Three Wick Candle
Don’t only think of perfumes, get ready to light up your life with this unique, utterly aromatic blend of wild mountain flora flushed by the first fingers of dawn breaking. Frosty fennel, bergamot, rosemary, mountain pepper, and rockrose pierce the air, and the inspiration for the scent came from that moment ‘…before anyone starts an engine, or lights a fire, the air is clear, and still, and silent. The first breath of the day carries the perfume of wild mountain herbs, the alchemy of which, blended naturally on the breeze, weaves a magical spell…  A new day, a new life – and a memory we didn’t know we had.’
£150 for 3-wick 650gms candle
In our shop

 

 

JEROBOAM Floro
Jeroboam pioneered downsized flacons: easy on the back, easier on the pocket, now offering this ‘flurry of flowers’ that proves they can bring the sunshine no matter the season. Fruit notes first capture the attention: green and red apples, and luscious pineapple. Then the flowers burst open: jasmine and airy, transparent petal notes, rendered a touch creamy by sandalwood and finished with a flourish of dry woods, white musk and cedar. Eminently shareable, Jeroboam suggest (and oh, we do love these light-filled flowers, on a chap!)
£100 for 30ml eau de parfum
jovoyparis.uk

 

Written by Suzy Nightingale