I adore my perfumes, scents, fragrances and sprays, whatever your preferred term for them might be. I love discovering new brands, new smells and ultimately I love choosing a fragrance which works for me.
When I am wanting to buy a new fragrance, I don’t want to experience it in a busy shopping centre or department store, I want to try it in surroundings that I frequent regularly. It is very very rare that I would purchase a fragrance from a swatch test at any counter, I’ve been on the wrong end of a bad choice too many times. This is where Pairfum London with their Perfume experience comes in its own.
Pairfum London is a company who specialise in a private collection of fragrances. They offer a selection of fragrance for both the home and as fragrances for you. It is worth noting that all the fragrances are handmade in the UK by artisans and each is designed to be luxury with a conscious as well as being both natural and eco-friendly.
Beautifully presented in a black gift box with exquisite gold lettering, the Pairfum London Experience already gives you that impression of luxury and it is really well made and put together. Opening the lid, inside you are greeted with 12 individual perfume vials, which are full to the top with 2ml of each fragrance. Added to the fragrances is 50 perfume cards, often referred too as blotter for you to trial the fragrances. I tend to use a mixture of the cards and my own skin to try and get a sense of what fragrance I really like.
The fragrances inside this box are all really different, I’d go as far as saying no two are even remotely similar, despite being within the same fragrance family.
The first fragrance Scarlet, Rhubarb and Oakmoss. Part of the floral Chypre family, it is every bit as bold as I was hoping for. With a first spritz, this fragrance opens with a notable blend of fresh Tart Rhubarb, Sun-Dried Fruits and Ripe Strawberries which make up those top notes and it is really beautiful. The heart notes of crisp Apple & Apricot dampen down the tartiness of those top notes whilst not dominating too much because the White Gardenia just gets noticed as it dries down. The base notes of Oakmoss and Sensuous Musk are there to give the fragrance a wonderfully rich and lingering dry down, all whilst giving each one of those notes a chance to catch you attention.
The second fragrance is Pink Rose and Sensuous Musk and it sits within the floral family. This fragrance has top notes of Sparkling Lemon and Lime are with them we also have Peach, together they are fresh, warm and fruity but they don’t really get too long to shine before the heart notes of Pink Rose, Magnolia and Frangipani catch your attention and ultimately dominate the entire fragrance. The base notes of Sensuous Musk, Amber and Precious Woods whilst present, don’t for me break down the heart notes enough, oddly the longer the scent was on my skin, the more I liked it.
The third fragrance Sea Salt, Sage & Amber which sits within the Aromatic family of fragrances. With this scent we have the top notes of Sage, Bergamot, Tangerine and Grapefruit and I loved it from the very first spritz. It’s light and fresh with those citrus scents notable but lurking at the back is that sage and it’s delightful. The heart notes of Kelp, Sea Salt & Minerals are light and fresh, almost like being down at the beach on a sunny day as all those fresh scents intermingle. The base notes for this scent includes Amber, Musl and Cedarwood which are soft enough to not overpower.
Next we have Ginger, Elemi & Vertiver and this one also sits within the Aromatic Family. It opens with notes of Bergamot, Grapefruit and hint of Lavender, combined with Ginger, Elemi, Nutmeg & Cinnamon, for me there is a lot going on with these opening notes because you have the citrus side mixed with lavender which I didn’t find detectable but with those peppery sharp spicy notes, it was almost too much and I had to leave it to dry down and then come back. Whilst I didn’t enjoy the top notes, the heart notes of Geranium, Rose, Freesia, Gardenia, Jasmin and Orange Blossom, alongside the fruity hints of Coconut and Rasberry and these notes really dampen down those top notes as the base notes get their chance to shine and with them you have Vetiver, Guaiacwood, Cedar, Amber, Cashmere Musks, Vanilla & Moss which I really really liked.
Next fragrance is Mandarin Blossom and Sandalwood and it from the Chypre family and is described as being a feminine floral Chypre. It opens with top notes of Mandarin Blossom, Apricot and White Hyacinth and it is really fresh and floral but for me it is the heart notes which steal the show as you get Sweet Pea, Jasmin and Ylang Ylang with the Jasmin really being the dominant scent behind a note of Sweet Pea. The base notes of Sandalwood, Patchouli, Amber and Musk creamy and rich without being too domineering, though I do wonder what this fragrance would be like without the Musk.
The fragrance I was really intrigued by was Spiced Coffee & Oaked Vanilla. I’m not a fan of Vanilla as a dominant scent note, it’s too powerful for me and makes my head ache. From the Oriental Spice family the fragrance has top notes of Pink Pepper, Orange Blossom and Crisp Pear which I really didn’t get a sense of at all, infact to me it smelt so similar to Thierry Mugler Alien, I really didn’t like it all. The heart notes which feature a blend of rich & dark Coffee with the elegance of Jasmin, I also didn’t detect. For me it was the base notes that stole the show and they are Vanilla aged in Oak, Patchouli and Cedar. Definitely not one for me.
The 7th fragrance in this collection is the Black Cherry & Oolong Tea and it belongs to the floral family. It opens with the top notes of Black Cherry, Bergamot, Red Berries and Nutty Almond and it’s quite rich and sweet all rolled together, as it settles down, the heart notes of Oolong Tea, Bulgarian & Turkish Roses and Liquorice come into play but the Black Cherry is still dominating as the base notes of Aniseed, Tonka, Iris and Patchouli are released. Of all the scent notes within this fragrance the Black Cherry and Tonka dominate and it was one of the longest lasting fragrances that I tried.
Next we have Bergamot, Basil & Patchouli and it sits within the Aromatic family. It opens with Bergamot, Lime, Green Leaves and spicy Basil which gives it that fresh woody lean but the basil and lime together it a pairing I absolutely loved. The heart notes are made up of Lily, Freesia, Violet Leaf, Rose and Geranium which come together to wrestle the scent and break it down slightly to allow the base notes of Patchouli, Vetiver, Sandalwood, Cedar and Amber which all give the woody notes their chance to shine and it’s hard not to like it.
The next fragrance is Grapefruit, Pepper and Black Cedar and it sits with the woody family. It opens with top notes of Grapefruit & Bergamot which together are quite zesty and fresh and work well at any time of the year. The heart notes use Leather which is described as being enhanced by the rich spicy elements of Black Pepper and Nutmeg before the base notes of Black Cedar, Patchouli, Tonka Bean and Moss make themselves known. This is definitely the most masculine fragrance within the collection and it’s absolutely stunning, it’s bold and strong, it doesn’t dry down too quickly and it lasts for hours when applied.
The next fragrance is the one I was expecting to be my favourite - Neroli, Musk and Orange Blossom which already sounds like Summer! Sitting within the floral family, it is definitely very feminine and it opens with note of Neroli which I happen to adore as a fragrance note as it’s a light as it is bold depending on what it paired with. In this case, the heart notes are Orange Blossom and Madagascan Jasmine which I also happen to just adore, most of my favourite fragrances feature Jasmine as a note in one of its forms and I could detect and loved it, the Orange Blossom is also there in the background. The base notes of Musk and Cedarwood, add depth and warmth to this fragrance and as expected it was definitely my favourite within the box.
The penultimate fragrance of this box is Cardamon, Tonka and White Oud which sits in the Oriental family. It opens with the top notes of Lime & Mandarin, Cardamom, Nutmeg, Clove and fruity hints of Cassis and for me whilst there is a hint of both Lime & Mandarin it is the heart notes of White Lily, Rose and Orange Blossom which are the most notable until the base of Tonka, White Oud, Cedar, Santal and Amber have their turn and then the White Oud mixed with Tonka dominate. This is definitely more of a masculine scent than a feminine one, but apparently unisex, it smelt better on my husband than on me.
Finally within this box we have Spiced Rum, Lime and Guaiac Wood. This fragrance sits within the Woody family and it opens with the top notes of Rum, Lime & Lemon as well as a combination of Nutmeg & Pepper. The heart notes are made up of Tuberose, Iris and Vintage Leather and the base notes of Guaiac Wood, Cedarwood, Golden Amber, Vanilla Pod and Musk. It’s hard to describe this a fragrance because the Rum is dominant from the first spritz right through to drying down and it is mixed with the lime but also the leather and Guaiac Wood, which makes a fragrance you would immediately describe, as a friend of mine did, expensive and luxurious. As you can imagine, with 12 very different fragrances which are described as being feminine, masculine or unisex, there is a lot of choice. They definitely are not anything like your high street brands or any brand you might even have on your bedside table. They make a statement from the moment the box arrives to the trialling begins and for me, there was just the one fragrance I really didn’t like, but from 12 I think it is quite impressive.
The Pairfum London Experience is priced at just £30 and once you have tried and discovered all of these fragrances and decide you would like to buy the full-sized bottle, then the £30 price of the Fragrance Library from the cost of the full-sized bottle, which I think is a really nice gesture and the only difficulty you might have is choosing your favourite! Each bottle is priced at £120.
If you have a fragrance lover as a friend, this would also made an incredible gift, it comes packaged ready to be gifted and it looks stunning.
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