Ticket to Ride: 7 Stunning Scents to Transport You This Summer - The Gloss Magazine

Ticket to Ride: 7 Stunning Scents to Transport You This Summer

The finest sun-warmed scents offer an olfactory first-class ticket to elsewhere, says Sarah Halliwell

Can perfume be a passport to farflung places? Overblown press releases often claim a scent is “transportive”. But I do think that some can evoke the spirit of elsewhere; I think immediately of Memo Paris’ French Leather, a sexy, sophisticated rush of intense rose and smoky suede that’s a love letter to Paris. After too much time at home, we want to remember that feeling of travel, and smell is a huge part of that. We want to feel the sun, too: there’s a trend for “solar” scents, sun-warmed and luminous, delivering olfactory vitamin D.

Main featured image via @CecilieBahnsen

Small, intelligent atelier Gallivant conjures intriguing takes on an atlas-full of cities; perfumer Nick Steward wants them to “feel a little otherworldly, memorable – and, above all, to spark pleasure and joy. I think that is when perfume really can take you away somewhere else. We’re trying to capture the feel, the shape, the musicality, the texture of these places … wanderlust bottled.” He can’t keep Naples in stock, while bright and sunny Tel Aviv (a golden blend of jasmine, rose and freesia) was the runaway favourite in Ireland last year. “Perfume is armchair travel” is the mantra of New York-based DS & Durga, whose compelling creations include Italian Citrus and Radio Bombay. Invest in scents centred on mango, lime and mandarin in lieu of a plane ticket. Though some are more private jet; Armani’s latest Privé scents, “inspired by the soul of Africa”, are €300. For budget travel, Jo Malone’s takes on cities from New York to Venice start from €6 at Zara, Liffey Valley. And I’ve just smelled Cloon Keen’s new Énbarr, which dazzles with exotic ingredients – oud, saffron, Indonesian patchouli – yet is balanced with something closer to home; earthy leather, evocative of stables and open fields. Homecoming can be sweet too.

Lancôme Oui, La Vie Est Belle eau de parfum, from €90, at counters nationwide: rich Turkish rose, orange blossom and iris pallida transport us to sunnier climes.

Chloé Nomade Eau de Parfum Naturelle, €69. An explosion of Egytian jasmine that conjures a lingering warmth.

Tom Ford Rose D’Amalfi eau de parfum, €206. A sensual and sun-lit rose brightened with Italian bergamot and mandarin – a celebration of the Italian coast.

DS & Durga Radio Bombay, £148stg, at www.roullierwhite.com and Liberty London; www.dsanddurga.com. Glorious warm sandalwood, iris and wood with a hint of peach – warm perfection.

Gallivant Naples eau de parfum, from £65stg. Order the Nomad sample set (£30stg) to try a variety of city-inspired scents; www.gallivant-perfumes.com

Terre d’Hermès Eau Givrée eau de parfum, from May 15, is otherwordly in an abstract way. Perfumer Christine Nagel sought to express “the intense freshness of a land covered with ice.”

Jo Malone London Sea Daffodil Cologne, €92, at Brown Thomas. Inspired by Sardinia, with a holiday air suggesting warm sun and summer.

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