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Many people think that summer scent has to be saccharine – trading winter’s rich and redolent aromas for something more blousy and blossomy.
But sun doesn’t have to spell girlish. You can still radiate grown-up, womanly allure. The key is a fragrance that causes those catching hold of it to lean in beguiled. Early summer scents are the perfect perfumes for this.
Let me introduce you to the most sensational scents to conjure with.
Beauteous blooms
Catch Me If I Fall Eau de Parfum by La Pyae Apothecary (£185 for 50ml, lapyae.com) is the creation of beauty journalist and founder of La Pyae Apothecary, Kathleen Baird-Murray, inspired by her mother’s Myanmar homeland. Nine years in the making, it is the work of perfumer Frank Voelkl, who concocted cult favourite Le Labo Santal 33.
Sandalwood is in its base, with jasmine and freesia at its heart, cardamom and green leaves on top. I’m not a jasmine lover, still this is the prettiest thing I’ve smelled in years.
Should this sound too steep, then sandalwood fans can try Beauty Pie’s bestseller, Le Smash Santal (£33 for 50ml for members, £60 for non-members, beautypie.com).
Fruitful fusion
Not only are rhubarb scents a summer trend, they’re a way of embracing fruit without being too syrupy sweet. A winning tartness keeps matters fresh and adult. Prada Infusion de Rhubarbe Eau de Parfum (now £119 for 100ml, sephora.co.uk) layful, yet suavely so. It opens with a beautifully bitter green mandarin note. Tender rhubarb and rose make up its middle, while its base is a clean white musk. Can a fruit fragrance be sexy? In Prada’s hands, absolutely.
If funds won’t stretch, get your hit via Arkive No One Elsie Eau de Parfum (£30 for 50ml, asos.com). Crisp and verdant, it conjures tomato leaf and rhubarb.
Tea tonic
Beauty Pie’s Brazilian Lime, Fig Leaves & Tea Eau De Parfum (£28 for 50ml for members, £60 for non-members, beautypie.com) is a much-loved bestseller, refreshing as iced lemon tea.
There’s a breezy confidence to its spirited citrus opening, ease in the tea and green fig in its heart, and comfort in the warm cedarwood and amber of its finish. Fans of Calyx by Clinique, Miller Harris’s Tea Tonique, and Diptyque’s Philosykos will be entranced.
Garden glory
The latest scent from Floris, Purple Mémoire (£120 for 50ml, florislondon.com), is an homage to an English country garden and the Floris family seat, Ivy Lodge.
It’s a modern concoction, with serene lavender and coriander, iris in its middle and on a powdery, amber bed. As a bonus, it’s also fixed my sleep!
Fresh air
To celebrate its 35th birthday, linen specialists Cologne & Cotton is relaunching the six scents created for its opening. My favourite is Niobe (£85 for 150ml, cologneandcotton.com), the rightful bestseller: an addictively arresting perfume in which the earthy warmth of vetiver combines with aromatic frankincense and bright neroli. Cos Solaire Eau de Parfum (£75 for 100ml, cos.com) has a similar airy spiciness. Try the Cos Perfumery Discovery Set (£19) for minis of its four new fragrances: Solaire, Auburn, Fleuriste and Mythe.
Witchy wonder
Style guru Yasmin Sewell’s Vyrao aromas all boast mood-boosting qualities and Magnetic 70 (£89 for 30ml, vyrao.com) is my peri-menopausal rock.
It is rich in grounding vetiver and positivity-inducing cedarwood, on an iris and juniper-wood foundation.
Spring foot salvation
Race you to it!
For a newcomer to top Victoria Health’s 3,000-product strong catalogue is rare. Yet its Collagen Tripeptide Complex (£45, victoriahealth.com) became its best-seller within two months. Powered by a clinically backed formula, it promises visible results: radiant skin, stronger hair and improved joint health.
Cosmetic craving
Remember Nineties lip, cheek (and nipple, yes, really) accentuator Benefit Benetint Lip & Cheek Stain (£22.50, sephora.co.uk)? It will be 50 next year!
Benetint was concocted in 1976 to imitate the flush of arousal for exotic dancers. Founders Jean and Jane Ford boiled rose petals and carmine to produce the bitten-lip stain that became a mainstay for Winona Ryder, Nicole Kidman – and me.
The original rose hue was too pale a pink for some. So I am pleased to report the brand’s two new shades are its sexiest yet: dark cherry (brownish for cool tones) and raspberry (purplish for cool girls).
Smudge-resistant, humidity-proof, non-drying, a tint sells every 11 seconds. It’s divine.
