Whether you love or loathe the heat, the summer weather is an opportunity to wear some of the most refreshing fragrances. Certain perfumes become restorative and cooling salves, while others take on unique qualities of their own.
Nothing perfectly defines a summer fragrance. Invigorating and sharp citrus fragrances are a popular choice, cutting through the warm weather - but are not the only option. A floral fragrance might be as fresh and crisp as a citrus, approaching this style in a new way altogether. Aquatics, too, are seemingly made for the summer as they evoke sandy beaches and blue seas. Even certain woody scents, lightweight and clear, are perfect for wearing in the summertime. And if we’re truly being honest, some spices actually sing in the warm weather: the synergy between heat and spice wakes them up, giving them diffusion and radiance.
This article outlines a number of fragrant choices for summer, highlighting the fragrances that adjust your relationship with summer: scents that sing in the heat and cool the body, that coat and lighten the wearer, and evoke our favourite images of summer - selected from across the aromatic spectrum.
Classic Freshness: Citrus and Aquatics
Get the staples right. Everyone should have a citrus in their fragrance repertoire - for its cutting freshness, fleeting luxury, and its ability to instantly bolster one's mood. Citrus notes are highly volatile, and while that makes for sizzling and energetic wear, this means that they're quick to dissipate. Make the most of the situation: this is an opportunity to treat these as refreshing tonics, to be sprayed on abundantly and frequently.
Many of Heeley's fragrances welcome this attitude of abundance, but none more profoundly than Verveine d'Eugene. Its central note, lemon verbena, exists at the nexus of green, citrus, and floral - and starts a beautiful dream of colour, texture, and freshness. It mixes sharp citruses, rhubarb, blackcurrant, and jasmine together to become as bright as a star. It is simple yet exceeding, but it does not overwhelm. As a perfume, it accompanies the wearer, like a weightless and colourful wrapping.
For those who adore their citrus fragrances structured, Escale en Indonesie by Les Indemodables is a dip in the ocean and a rush of citrus freshness. It boasts the use of real ambergris (5%), which drenches the fragrance in unmistakable sunlight. A sparkling burst of Calabrian bergamot, Sicilian lemon, and Moroccan bitter orange leaves charms, and continues to sizzle and glisten on the back of a fine amber and wood foundation.
You or Someone Like You (Etat Libre d'Orange) swaps a central citrus accord for the cooling snap of mint leaves, wrapped in grapefruit, blackcurrant, and green tea. The overall result is a stunning new take on freshness, like warm diffusive light on freshly cut grass. Hints of jasmine (hedione) and white musks ensure length and softness.
Acqua di Scandola by Parfum d'Empire on the other hand dives into pristine waters, a calanque that mixes azure blues and white cliffs. The seaside impression is unmistakable - iodic, aromatic, and mineral - thanks to a real algae extract. The essence of the sea in a blend of juniper, immortelle, lemon, and moss.
Zeste de Gingembre (Heeley Parfums) is a godsend on sweltering days. Its central ginger feature is tempered of its abrasive burn and bite in a svelte cordial of lime and orange, punctuated with the aromatic breath of cardamom and pink pepper, redoubling the effect of a cool fire. Like fighting fire with fire, in this difference of temperatures emerges a flush of flowing cooling sensation.
Florals in the Heat
Wearing florals in the warm weather just makes sense. With radiance and freshness and an unrivalled complexity, florals are great for those looking to expand their horizons. Nice Bergamot (Essential Parfums) blends its namesake note with superb jasmine grandiflora - broadening the aromatic profile of the fragrance. The result is a fresh bergamot fragrance that generously coats and covers the skin, realising a scent that is so much more than a citrus but always centrally so. A fine base of tonka bean and sheer woods ensures longevity. Indeed, a nice surprise.
Corsica Furiosa (Parfum d’Empire) is a riot of green. Intense and wild, it draws tomato leaf, wild mint, and mastic together for a uniquely vegetal, herbal, and grassy freshness, bold with peppery notes. Its finish is mossy but not heavy, green from end to end, and in every possible shade. Its accents are incredible - faint woods, tobacco, resin, and eau de vie - the latter imparting a chilly effect that is gorgeous on a hot weather day.
Libertine Neroli (Francesca Bianchi) embraces the heat, concentrating sunlight in a generous composition centred around neroli. A note typically associated with eau de cologne, here it forms part of a greater mossy wood or ‘chypre’ structure, doubling down on the nostalgia factor, and making for a rich scent still wearable in the summer. Some bitterness and herbs provide relief - making for a generous fragrance with a pure sense of freedom and relaxation.
It’s all contained in the name with Un Bel Amour d’Ete from Parfum d’Empire: ‘a beautiful summer love’. Summer is tropical toned and humid, saturated with the richest florals. Made for the summer heat, it thumps with gardenia, champaca, magnolia, ylang-ylang, and tuberose, sizzling with spices and a hint of animal, finishing on vanilla and sandalwood. An intoxicating summer stunner.
A Hint of Spice
Spices take on a new dimension in the dry heat of summer, transforming wintertime favourites. In the cult-classic L'Air du Desert Marocain (Tauer Perfumes), coriander seed is central, working with a cedar background that glows in the presence of cumin and amber. 'Air' is indeed emphasised here - the balmy gusts that the fragrance captures come alive in hot weather, offering a beautifully refreshing spiciness.