The perks of a signature scent

The idea of the signature scent has a long history. In Renaissance Italy, Catharine de Medici’s apartment was connected to the laboratory of her personal perfumer Réne de Florentin to prevent the formulas for her fragrances from being stolen. When she left for France to marry the duke who would later become King Henry II, she even brought De Florentin with her. Fast forward, in the late eighteenth century royal perfumer Jean-Louis Fargeon created a unique scent for Marie Antoinette as an ode to her beloved Trianon gardens at Versailles. It is said that she even kept it with her during her imprisonment in the Temple Tower of Paris.

While during the time of the aforementioned examples perfumes were considered an exclusive luxury product for the wealthy (to hide the odours of unwashed bodies to be exact), nowadays they are sold in almost every price category and accessible to anyone. Which doesn’t make it easy to choose as the number of options seems never-ending. That said, finding your signature scent is almost like the process of searching for a uniform; it may be a long journey but it will definitely be worth your while.

The whole idea of signature scents appealed to me for a variety of reasons. First off, it’s one less concern in the morning. I don’t have to consider my mood to be able to choose from different options. What I own, is just right. For all occassions. Another reason is that I like more exclusive perfumes and money doesn’t grow on trees. Without wanting to sound like a snob, I simply don’t like the fact that I may come across ten other women that are wearing same scent as was the case when I wore Dolce & Gabbana Light Blue, DKNY Be Delicious and so on (can you tell I was easily impressed with salespeople: “This is our most popular scent.”)?

To a lot of people around me Escentric Molecules’ Molecule 01 has become something they recognize me by. In fact, it’s a scent they associate me with even when I’m not around. To be honest, I indirectly stole it from Vogue Japan’s fashion editor and street style star Giovanna Battaglia after reading one of her interviews years ago. They way she described the perfume sounded very intriguing to me. I have been wearing it religiously ever since even though I did need a short break this summer and switched to Jo Malone’s Wood Sage & Seasalt which, like the name suggests, reminds you of the sea and long beachwalks. But I’m back to Molecule 01 once again. It’s definitely an ongoing love affair.

Enough about me, tell me something about your personal perfume history and if you own a signature scent.

MY FAVOURITE SCENTS:

Molecule 01 by Eccentric Molecules / Black Saffron by Byredo / Wood Sage & Seasalt by Jo Malone