Shops We Love... Perfumer H on Clifford Street

We reckon Lyn Harris is one of the most exciting perfumers working anywhere in the world, a British-born, Grasse-and-Paris-trained genius (and we do not use the phrase lightly) who will blush shyly at that description, but it happens to be true.

She began her fragrance journey creating some splendid aromatherapy oils, out of a studio in Chalk Farm, three decades ago (Jo well remembers visiting her there for a piece for her YOU Mag beauty column). Following her training as a perfumer, Lyn then founded Miller Harris, which became an incredibly well-known and well-loved brand, before branching out to create Perfumer H.

It was love at first sniff, for us, and many pilgrimages have been made to her workshop and shop on Marylebone’s Crawford Street. There’s also a sliver of a boutique on Chiltern Street; Lyn has always understood the power of retail, with a knack for creating inviting spaces in which to explore perfumes and home fragrances, and from which it is rarely possible to escape without falling in love with something and having it packaged up to take home.

If you follow Lyn’s @perfumerh Instagram, you’ll see that she has lately opened stores in Taipei and Hong Kong, among other Far East destinations. But we are ridiculously excited by one that is much closer to home, on Clifford Street, just off Bond Street, near Dior and Chanel. (Clearly, she is only interested in boutiques with street names which begin with a ‘c’!) This so-central location is incredibly convenient for anyone – like us – in the beauty industry, because so many launches happen within about a half a square mile of Clifford Street. Which means we will be frequent visitors…

We did pop into the packed opening, spending it mostly in the quiet downstairs back room talking scent with Lyn and with Nigel Slater, who is unsurprisingly a massive fan. And Jo popped back for a return visit, last week, to visit such an inviting space, which positively cries out for extended exploration. (It’s a particular joy because this location was previously The Maas Gallery, where many a happy art mooch was enjoyed before it moved to St. James’s.)

Particularly swoon-worthy are the hand-blown bottles and glass candle vessels by brilliant glassblower Michael Ruh, which can be refilled time and again (you don’t need to order the same fragrance as a refill, if you fancy a change). Lyn is also doing a lot to revive the ritual of lighting incense, but this is as far away from the stuff that you get in a hippie shop as you can imagine. And aside from the beautiful upscale hand-blown bottles, there are apothecary-style dark glass versions, which are much more affordable; prices actually reflect the cost of the raw materials Lyn uses, rather than being standard across the range.

They are ALL worth exploring – and there is everything from light citruses to dark woods – but our favourites include…

Patchouli – earthy in a good, not a dirty way, and one that always, always gets compliments (um, including from Simon Le Bon last week, who knows his scented stuff. But that’s another story).

Heliotrope – an incredibly pretty yet soulful, intriguing floral-ambrée scent, with fresh notes of tangerine and neroli, along with iris and sweetish heliotrope, but with a really smoochy base of frankincense and amber. Shades of (dare we say it?) There are shades of Shalimar about Heliotrope, and if you love that, you’ll adore it.

Ink – completely fabulous, this, with woody notes of vetiver, cedarwood, dry papyrus (to conjure up paper), sweetened by Ambroxan. A compliment magnet, and top of our Perfumer H wislist right now.

There are honestly dozens of scents to explore, and really knowledgeable and welcoming, not-pushy staff to help you on your fragrant journey or just leave you to sniff solo.

Such a stunning addition to Mayfair’s scent-map.

15a Clifford Street, London W1S 4JZ