Gifts for fragrance lovers
If we’re lucky, this is the time of year when loved ones remember to buy a bottle of our favourite scent. Opening a beautifully-wrapped box of perfume on Christmas morning is one of the holiday’s greatest pleasures, but there are other ways to spoil the fragrance enthusiast in your life. Here’s our edit of the perfect presents and gifting ideas for friends, family and loved ones who find joy and inspiration in the world of scent.
Isabelle Langlois is a ‘perfume stylist’ who makes the discovery of new perfumes a delightful and unique experience. From selecting your new signature scent to helping you build your fragrance wardrobe, her role is simply to enhance your perfume routine. She puts together perfume boxes, conducts 1-on-1 perfume sessions as well as corporate events, perfume parties (ideal for company ‘away days’ or a hen do) and can even help you select your wedding favours. Find out more here
For those with sensitive skin, it can be challenging to find a way of wearing scent close to the body without irritation. To solve this problem, Kim Brookes worked with a jewellery designer to develop a stylish pendant made from 100% solid recycled silver and 18ct gold vermeil. Inside the pendant sits a lava stone, onto which you can drop an essential oil blend, formulated by Kim.. Our favourite is the ‘deep love’ blend, with bergamot, clary sage, amyris and ylang ylang. Explore the range here
Cosying up with a good book is one of the most enjoyable ways of passing the long winter evenings. Two new titles caught our eye this year: Scented Visions: Smell in Art, 1850-1914 by Christina Bradstreet, and Uncommon Scents: A Social History of Perfume by Susan Stewart. The first documents the important role of scent in nineteenth-century art, ‘offering a powerful model for what it means to “see” smell in our archives of the past’, while the second is a ’sensory journey through time, interpreting social (and political) history through the scents used by people from the Ancient Egyptians to Coco Chanel’. Both are lavishly illustrated, ideal coffee table books for perfume lovers.
For those living in or around London, we recommend trying an authentic banya experience in Belgravia. Choose from a range of invigorating spa treatments including parenie (using fragrant bundles of birch, oak and eucalyptus twigs), organic body scrubs, wraps and conventional massage. Make sure you leave time to have something to eat in the traditional eastern European restaurant before you leave – the menu is sublime. We visited earlier this year and it was a truly fantastic experience. To view the range of treatments and make a booking, visit the Banya London website.
Now for a fabulous stocking filler: when we think of fabric refresher, we might think of harsh chemical sprays. Not so with Norfolk Natural Living’s beautifully scented spritz. Handmade on the Norfolk coast and inspired by the freshness of the English countryside, their natural formula has antibacterial properties, designed to neutralise odours when gently misted over garments or bedding between washes. Buy online here
