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FINDING YOUR PERFECT SCENT
+ MY THOUGHTS ON CHLOE NOMADE.

28 March 2018 5 comments


I'm getting excited about Spring now.

We're starting to see signs of warmer weather on the way - I drove past a magnolia tree today with buds almost fit to burst, and it was the first day this year I've put the aircon in the car on! 

I find the change in seasons really exciting - an excuse to refresh and reboot our wardrobes, our makeup and skincare, the foods we eat and ingredients we cook with. And, an excuse to buy yourself a new Spring scent. Because there's nothing like a new perfume to set you up for a new season.





In the incredibly plentiful land of fragrance, it's pretty bewildering knowing where to start in finding a new signature scent. Especially now that 'alternative', 'indie' or 'small-scale' producers are becoming pretty popular, so that's now an extra consideration.


I thought I'd share a few little tips that've helped me in finding scents I love..


one. // Get to know your notes. Notes in perfumery are descriptors of how a perfume might smell upon application. Top notes are what you get immediately, often the fresh, light or zingy, whereas the mid and base notes bring heart, body and depth to a perfume, and it's those that tend to linger. It's worth finding out what notes you enjoy, using something like Fragrantica to separate things out for you. I've learnt I pretty much enjoy all the top notes of a fragrance (which tend to evaporate really quickly!) - peach, blossom, honeysuckle etc, so I try and look for perfumes with those kinds of scents in the mid notes to help them stay a little longer.

two. // Try, test, play. As scents are generally comprised of different levels of notes, all of which blend and change with our individual body chemistries, it's not just well worth, but entirely crucial in my eyes to make sure you test a perfume thoroughly on your own skin before investing - especially as luxury perfumes can really start to soar in price, and there's nothing worse than smelling a scent in the air or on another person and entirely loving it, to find it smells quite differently on you. I'll generally pop in on a few different occasions to try a perfume on my own skin before committing to a purchase. Give them a chance too! The very first time I got my nose around Chloe Nomade, I felt a bit 'meh' about it, but it's become a firm favourite, as you'll see in a bit ;)

three. // Find a knowledgeable representative. There are quite a few services online that are out to help you find scents you love, but I still think there's nothing better than going into a store, especially one with a great assistant who's worth their salt. I've always found Harvey Nichols in Knightsbridge excellent - I'm able to go in with absolutely no idea what I'm looking for and they'll take me round the different brands with 'scents I might like', and it's usually incredibly successful. Harrods' perfume hall is great too - that's how I found Parfums de Marly. (you might feel like a lunatic, but taking a bit of ground coffee with you helps to 'reset your nose' in between smelling each scent).




I'm very picky with scents, but when I do find one I enjoy, I like to wear it incessantly ;) Over the years I've been on Stella EDP, Aerin Rose de Grasse, Parfums de Marly's Meliora and more lately, Burberry Body Tender, but there's a new scent on the block, and the more I wear it, the more I love it.

It seems like everyone has been either talking about Chloe Nomade c/o, or asking me whether I like it! And to the latter, I can safely say, absolutely. It's undeniably tricky describing scents over the internet but hold onto your hats, I'm going to have a go! Nomade is designed to be a mix of softness and strength. Quentin Bisch created it as a floral chypre composition (woody building blocks with generous floral notes), as a 'dirtier' version of the Chloe Signature (you can take a peek at all of Chloe's scents here), with Mirabelle plum and citrus top notes, freesia and rose in the heart and oak moss and sandalwood base notes. In laymen's terms, there's a woodiness to it, but it's lovely and warm and sweet. Not too intense, feminine and rich and earthy, smells like the kind of scent you'd wear during a balmy summer evening. And the bottle is beautiful, although I foresee the blush pink suede ribbon becoming a bit grubby after being thrown in and out of my handbag.


I'd love to hear what your favourite Spring scent is, or whether you're still on the hunt!


xx