Jo’s Scent Notes: A Brighton ‘sniffari’

There is little in the world that I like more than day of sniffing and of general immersion in the world of scent. Despite being invited (lucky me) to many, many fragrance launches, nothing beats unstoppering bottles, talking to sales consultants (or boutique owners), and deep-diving into what’s new or noteworthy, at my own pace.

If that’s your idea of a perfect day, too, get onto Trainline now and book a return to Brighton, which is now home to a little clutch of truly exquisite perfume boutiques, run by passionate experts who are showcasing some seriously exciting indie and specialist brands. A couple of weeks ago, in cahoots with my friend Sharon Whiting (who I first met wearing her PR hat more years ago than we care to count), I did a little tour of Brighton scent emporia – and would encourage you to do the same.

Our first stop was Soliflore. I’ve written about this boutique before, in its first incarnation up at Brighton’s Seven Dials, but it’s now found a beautiful and long-term home in Brighton’s North Laines, laid out with open shelving, stripey curtain to close off the back for private consultations (and a comfy ‘husbands chair’, as owner Sarah Reason puts it). This is a wonderful edit, which includes brands like Jorum Studio, Arquiste, Kingdom Scotland, Le Jardin Retrouvé, To My Ships, Chienoir by Amanda Bedeaux, among many others. The central table is gorgeously done, with vintage tins featuring scrumpled fabric scraps scented with some of Sarah’s current favourites – it’s a joy for the eyes, and the nose. Working closely with niche brands, Sarah’s attracted a fantastic cast of fragrance names to host events in her store, with exciting things to come.

My fave new Soliflore discovery is the brightest of summer Colognes, Aube Lumineuse, from a new-to-me African fragrance house Reserve en Afrique 1934 (I am expecting to see more scent brands emerging from that continent, and yay for that). This is incredibly fresh and uplifting and (yes), luminous, vibrant with tangerine, blood orange, orange blossom, a tingle of ginger and lingering, tethering cedarwood in the base. This is a cool morning, bottled, before the sun starts to bake the world; I’m channelling Meryl Streep in ‘Out of Africa’ when I wear this, and rootling around for the broderie Anglaise layers in which to swathe myself, as I loll around on the veranda waiting for Robert Redford to swoop in. (In. My. Dreams.)

There are candles, too, as well as some beauty products by Soapsmith and Austin Austin Organic, both of which I love – but unsurprisingly, it’s the fragrance curation which is attracting a lot of attention). Anyway, I encourage you to follow @soliflore_store on Insta – and NB there’s no mail order so you will HAVE to visit in person! (And do check that Instagram because Sarah’s juggling hospital visits with shopkeeping right now, and updates on that social medium.) It’s about eight minutes’ walk from Brighton station, FYI.

Some of the fragrances you can explore at Brighton’s Wild Iris

A short walk away is Wild Iris, which equally reflects the personality of its owner, Kate Thompson (think statement wallpaper, reclaimed wood and glass cabinetry, exotic floral displays…) At the back of this shop, conveniently, is a room in which workshops are held, so do follow @wild_iris_perfumerie on Insta for updates (or sign up to the mailing list).

There’s absolutely no cross-over between the two stores’ ranges or their style, which is cool. In Wild Iris’s case, the fragrance houses showcased include Eau de Boujee, Eiris, Ostens, Ortir Apothecary (pictured below), Floris London, Laboratorio Olfattivo, Olfactive O and Nissaba; I went home with a bottle of their stunning Malli Nadu (thank you, Kate), created to ‘capture the essence of Tamil Nadu’s floral heritage’, powered by white flowers – davana, tuberose and jasmine – with Indian vetiver, cedarwood and sandalwood for lasting, sensual impact.

The Wild Iris find that I’ve mostly been wearing since my visit, though, is from Astrophil & Stella, a joyous discovery of an Italian brand, with romance written into its DNA (the collection is ‘inspired by Sir Philip Sidney’s 16th-century sonnet sequence about the mythical lovers Astrophil – a mortal – and Stella – a celestial deity; each fragrance channels the magic of their cosmic romance.’ I can’t stop spritzing their Shanghai 1930, a real nostalgic, lipstick scent – one that I like to categorise as ‘Mummy’s handbag’ (and I love these) – with Earl Grey tea and violet leaf, jasmine, champaca, white musk, myrrh, tonka and vanilla. It makes me want to slip into a red velvet banquette in the middle of the afternoon for an assignation with… a Martini.

The scented excitement doesn’t end there, however. A short walk away is the flagship store (above) of British perfumer Nancy Meiland; alas, it’s closed on a Tuesday so I couldn’t visit – but that’s great, because it gives me an excuse for a return visit. What was open, though, was Papillon Living, which is truly terrific for home fragrance (er, also chandeliers), also showcasing scent brands like Eight & Bob, Atkinsons, Bjork & Berries and a new-to-me brand called Gravel (terrible name, lovely fragrances), which is based on the Hudson River in New York. As with everywhere I visited, everyone really knows their stuff.

I have one last recommendation, meanwhile: after you’ve visited Nancy Meiland and Papillon, go next door for an ice cream from Brass Monkeys. It’s almost as if a perfumer created the ice cream menu, with flavours like tonka (it’s astonishingly good), lavender and honey, saffron and rose… (Just beware of Brighton seagulls, who stole Sharon’s ice cream as we walked away down the street!)

I’m incredibly lucky that Brighton isn’t much more than a hop, sniff and a jump from home. But honestly, it's worth a perfume pilgrimage from much further away. Simply follow your nose to the South Coast, for a top day out.

Addresses below – do check out opening days and times on their websites…

Soliflore – 28 Gloucester Rd., Brighton, BN1 4AQ soliflore.co.uk

Wild Iris – 3 North Rd., Brighton, BN1 1YB wild-iris.com

Nancy Meiland – 2 Nile St., Brighton, BN1 1HW nancymeiland.com

Papillon Living – 28 Gloucester Rd., Brighton BN1 4AQ papillonliving.com