9 dazzling perfumes to boost your wellbeing

Boosting your wellbeing can be done in obvious ways like drinking enough water, getting decent sleep, eating well and moving your body, but there are other, arguably more fun ways too. And one of my favourites is spritzing perfume. Have you ever tried it when you need a wee pick-me-up?

Full disclosure: these perfumes do not have any proven therapeutic benefits. You spray them and they’re likely to boost your mood; no more and no less. But every time you catch a delicious fragrant waft and realise it’s you, it’s highly likely to improve your wellbeing, even if only temporarily. Life is full of snippets of joy, and it’s fun (and important) to look for them and embrace them when we can.

What you’re looking for when you want your perfume to lift your spirits may be different every time. Yes, mood boosting, but also adventurous? Comforted? Uplifted? It all depends on what you need. 

Having a range of perfume samples to choose from is a great luxury. A fragrant library of scent for you to dabble in. It’s much more economical than buying full sizes too. 

There are plenty of sprays in a sample size for you to get to know the subtleties of each individual fine fragrance. Once you’re familiar with the intricacies of a perfume, that’s the time to invest in a full size bottle. (Or two or three—I’m not judging!)

Pony Boy by Jorum Studio: a perfume for refreshment on hot, sticky days

Neon pink fruit wreathed in a gauzy veil. Pony Boy by Jorum Studio is a contradiction of a perfume, but one that’ll make you smile.

Pony Boy is a perfume of contradictions. Initially bright and juicily sharp with rhubarb and pink grapefruit zest, then it puffs soft white flowers at you, trailing ribbons of musk, vetiver and cedar.

Like eating the most mouthwatering and refreshing fruit salad while lounging on lusciously squidgy down-filled cushions covered in crisp white linen, fine muslin curtains wafting in the gentle sea breeze and filtering the dazzling summer light.

This, to me, is a perfect perfume for hot and humid days when you crave a burst of something bright and crisp, but without any spiky corners. It’s a hard act to pull off; sharp and fresh, but also hazy and diffuse. But then Euan McCall, the perfumer, is a dab hand at unexpected combinations and creating fascinating illusions in fragrance.

Impression:

Rhubarb, Coriander seed, Fig, Pink Grapefruit, Champaca Absolute, Pink Pepper, Beetroot.

Fade:

Pink Lotus Absolute, Vetiver, Ambrette seed, Atlas Cedarwood, Raspberry Leaf, Red Cedarwood, Calamus.

PG20 L’Eau Guerrière: a perfume for calm focus

A softly smoky fragrance—wisps of transparent incense like the finest gauzy silk scarf. Delicately tracing intricate patterns against satin smooth wooden shutters, where thin strips of light dance over the cool tiled floor. Pure serenity.

Key notes:

cinchona bark, frankincense, aloe wood, ambergris, oud

Yachting by Detaille: a perfume for brisk and breezy freshness

Freshly laundered white voile curtains billowing on a breezy balcony

gleaming sun streaming—dancing pennies of light over the deep indigo sea

distant forests breathe tantalisingly spicy ribbons into the salty air.

Orange blossom wafts softly from a glazed pot which sits on

smooth tiles, warm to your bare feet

white gardenia flowers trail idly along the railings.

Lemon zest bounces merrily in a glass of chilled tonic

and glittering ice chimes as you tilt the glass to your lips.

Wear this perfume if you want to feel:

Invigorated, revitalised, uplifted

Key notes:

cardamom, ginger, geranium, jasmine, vetiver, cedar, gaillac wood

Nordic Cedar by Maya Njie: a perfume for crisp, green tranquillity

You’re staying in a luxuriously finished wooden cabin, way, way up in the mountains of Sweden. A friendly person brings a laden breakfast tray, with delicious fruits and pastries. You start tucking into a monumental cardamom bun, but wait. What’s this? Someone’s knocking urgently on your door.

Ah. You’d been so caught up in the beauty of the scenery through your windows, you’d forgotten the time. Your friend is waiting patiently for you to walk with them through the towering forests. 

Hastily you dress—warm layers, big boots. And stuff the delectable cardamom bun in your coat pocket.

Slamming the door behind you, you scamper after them, boots squeaking in the fresh snow. The frigid air tingles in your nostrils, turning more minty and even fresher under the canopy of the majestic pines. They sway gently, loose flakes of snow flutter down and catch on your cheek as you turn, gasping with their magnificence. 

You wander through the towering trees, clutching their magic to your chest and vowing you’ll never forget this experience.

Eventually you both tire. Your friend reminds you that you’re due to sauna soon, so you amble back, your feet scuffing through the deep powdery snow. 

Exhilarated by your frosty trek, you head towards the sauna cabin. As you untangle all your layers of wool in the peppery cedar changing room,  you notice a single rose in a small bottle. You’re just waiting for your friend to join you when you remember your cardamom bun from earlier, drag it out of your coat pocket and tear chunks of the feathery layers with your teeth. 

You share the last piece with your friend and open the sauna door, billowing clouds of steam escaping. You grin at each other. And step inside. 

Key notes:

cardamom, patchouli, musk, cedarwood, ambergris

Chienoir by Bedeaux: a perfume for uplifting elegance

An invigorating, peppery green and minty bright fragrance. Fresh but warm, woody and dry, with lemon balm, crushed herbs and a sprinkling of rich, damp earth. Everything is exquisitely balanced. 

This is one of the most useful and wearable modern classics I’ve discovered. I can’t think of an occasion when this wouldn’t be a great choice to spritz. Unsurprisingly, Amanda Beadle, the perfumer, won an Art and Olfaction award in 2018 for this sparkling jewel of a fragrance.

Key notes:

neroli, sweet orange, bergamot, pink pepper, tobacco, juniper berry, oak moss, patchouli, opoponax, sweet myrrh, musk

Firewater by Jorum Studio: a perfume for bracing confidence

You are a Viking

Languidly sprawling across soft, dry bracken near the

Leaping flames of a birch fire.

Sweat soaked leather armour hangs from a sturdy pine, and high up in its branches 

Tiny birds are twittering and flickering, 

busily gathering soft stuff for lining

Their nests.

The chill breeze shifts direction—a hint of seaweed reaches you,

Mingling with the rising sap of the trees.

Sunlight drips through the high branches 

Big, golden drops of warmth you’ve waited all the 

Brutally cold and dark winter to see again.

Your flask of spirit is near. You pour a libation on the ground,

Raise it to your lips, and 

Rest while you can.

Wear this perfume if you want to feel:

Bold, fearless, invincible

Impression:

Black Tea, Juniper Berry, Nettle, Grapefruit, Beardtongue, Osmanthus Absolute, Ginger, Bracken, Larch.

Fade:

Birchwood, Sugar Kelp, Guaiacwood, Vetiver, Oakwood, Benzoin, Labdanum Absolute, Peat.

1740 by Histoires de Parfums: a perfume for soothing warmth

Spicy, warm and inviting, 1740 soothes and comforts with reassuring hints of vanilla and old leather. A perfect scent to wear on a dark, damp day when you need an olfactory hug.

Bright bergamot gently lifts and balances the warmth of 1740. Fresh green davana offers an enticing bitterness. Tantalising cardamom emerges next, playfully blended with a citrus breath of coriander. All the cosy warmth is here now. A chorus of rich woody aromas; cedar, sandalwood and birch. A smack of vanilla leather, but not sugar-sweet. 

An old-fashioned gentleman’s club with an inclusivity policy.

Cherished leather bound books.

Club fenders and pipe tobacco.

Warm, murmuring voices.

Crackling wood fire.

A soft chuckle.

Wear this perfume  if you want to feel:

Nurtured, comforted, enriched

Key notes:

bergamot, davana, cardamom, coriander, cedar, sandalwood, birch, vanilla leather

Nimitr – Parfum Prissana: a perfume for vintage powder comfort

Rich and sumptuous, Nimitr is an opulently perfumed glimpse into history.

Some of the most beautiful hotels in Europe are converted palaces. Venice, Budapest, Prague or Vienna; the proportions are grand, the floors are marble and the chandeliers dazzle.

Nimitr is the scent of a sumptuous bathroom in one of these hotels. 

Stacks of handmade soap in crisp, waxed paper by the sides of deep basins. Plush piles of hand towels wait patiently for your hands dripping with warm, scented water. Magnificently fat and luscious blooms in an exquisite vase perch on a deep windowsill.

An open window lets the scent of damp, freshly crushed herbs into this tranquil space. Glittering crystal jars with the subtlest hint of vintage face powder line high shelves. The gleamingly polished wooden door swings open momentarily to allow a wafting suggestion of a delicious vanilla pastry to reach you.

Golden Chypre by Grossmith: a perfume for timeless serenity

You’re reclining in a smoothly finished teak chair

Crisp linen suit still looking smart, despite the warmth of the day—

coins of sunlight dance through the branches of an ancient mulberry tree

glinting along the golden trim of your fine porcelain tea cup,

where a curling wisp of steam lifts a hint of bergamot from your Earl Grey into the limpid air.

You lean forward to select a dainty sandwich from an elegant tiered stand and 

some freshly picked flowers nestled in a tiny, crystal vase breathe their scent towards you.

Following a soft thwock of tennis ball on racquet,

a bubble of gentle laughter floats over a neatly trimmed hedge—

long skirts swish and rustle as your

companions return to the tea table

You raise an elegant forefinger, tilting your panama to shade your eyes

And listen to them gaily chattering. 

All is well.

Wear this if you want to feel:

nostalgic, refined, relaxed

Key notes:

bergamot, orange, cardamom, nutmeg, rose, geranium, heliotrope, patchouli, vetiver, woods, amber, labdanum, musk

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I hope you’ve found some helpful suggestions for perfumes to boost your wellbeing here. Remember you can easily grow lots of plants which have fragrant foliage and flowers too. How about taking a look at my best 21 low maintenance fragrant garden plants to create a scented sanctuary?

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