Jo's Scent Notes: Santa Maria Novella I Giardini Medicei Eau de Parfums
Should you ever judge a book by its cover, or a fragrance by its box…? That wouldn’t go amiss, actually, with the new range of fragrances by Florence’s extraordinary, historic Santa Maria Novella pharmacy (which, if you ever find yourself in that Italian city, is a must-visit). They are also available online in the UK, BTW – and in their jewel-like boutiques on Piccadilly and on Chelsea’s Walton Street.
Now, normally I’d photograph the images for this section of Sarah’s and my website myself (and I love doing that), but in case you haven’t noticed, the light levels have been on the low side, lately, and besides, Santa Maria Novella’s own images of this beautiful collection are absolutely gorgeous. And, as you can see, each fragrance comes in its own ‘book’ – which I encourage you to keep the bottle in, for lots of reasons.
If you’ve ever had a fragrance which has ‘gone off’, soured or in some way turned light is probably to blame. Along with heat, it’s one of perfume’s greatest enemies. Beautiful as they are, much as we want to display them on our dressing tables, bottles should really be kept snug-as-a-bug-in-a-rug in their boxes, if you want to get the maximum life out of them. This, however, is a case of ‘do as I say, not as I did’, because I’ve learned the hard way, and many a scent has spoiled on me.
These Santa Maria Novella fragrances, though, would make a wonderful ‘library’ of perfumes on a dressing table, with their (protective) bookish boxes. But you’ll be wanting to flip them open often, I’m predicting, because the scents – all referencing plants which flourished in the Medicei gardens, in Florence – are just lovely. A quartet of super-pretty, feminine, luxe-priced scents, they are as follows…
Bizzarria. I sort of love the idea of replying ‘Bizzarria’ to the question, ‘what fragrance are you wearing?’ And they will ask – because this is a gorgeous, fresh citrus scent tethered by cedar and musk to give it staying power on the skin, but something you’ll want to spray again and again for its zestily fresh opening burst. (Bizzarria is a citrus fruit, BTW, a sort of mix of a lemon and bitter orange.)
Magnolia. This white flower has become super-fashionable, in fragrance, and this is a powerful white floral scent offering a heart of Magnolia grandiflora, with white rose and geranium, along with sambac jasmine. One for summer, I’d say.
L’Iris. This actually kickstarted this I Giardini Medicei collection in 2022, showcasing one of perfumery’s priciest ingredients, with a buttery softness and sweet, powdery, Mummy’s handbag quality, teased out further by musk and ambergris.
Gelsomino. Jasmine, jasmine all the way – and if you love that white flower, you’ll adore this. (It’s made its way into the collection of the jasmine-lover in the family, who’s loving it.) If a fragrance can smell ‘celestial’… well, this one is, bright at first with bergamot and tangerine and a nose-tingle of pink pepper, and with ylang ylang flourishes to ramp up the exotic floralcy.
As with so many fragrances, these are not cheap – which is why preserving them in those ‘book’ boxes is all the more important.
£160 each for 50ml eau de parfum – buy here
