So, if you’ve read our advice on the best fragrances for men, women and even teenagers, but still aren’t sure what perfume to buy your loved ones, can we suggest a discovery gift box, where an assortment of (often the most popular) fragrances come packaged in a good looking container. Obviously, the selection is all from the same brand and not everyone does them, but we’re seeing an increasing number of perfumers offer these boxes as an efficient way of discovering a new favourite smell.
Niche brands are particularly good at it, because it allows customers to try a little-known perfumer’s range without spending huge amounts and makes buying over the internet a little less risky. The advantage here too is that the boxes are already rather lovely and make gift wrapping that little bit less stressful. here are a few good ones to start you off…
The brilliantly unisex Precious Miniatures set from Shay & Blue (£65) is a lovely gift set from one of our favourite British brands. It features five good size sprays of Watermelon (fresh, clean, one of the brand’s best sellers), Framboise Noire (red berries anchored in woods) Salt Caramel (as lickable as it sounds), Blood Oranges (rich citrus, one of our favourites) and Atropa Belladonna (a delicious mash up of berries, jasmine and patchouli). it works very well for anyone, young, old, boys or girls. A safe bet.
We had a fabulous time learning about Miller Harris fragrances this year (read more here) and the brand’s gift sets would make an excellent Christmas gift. There are many lovely scents in the range, all are the weightier eau de parfum strength too, try the gentle Fleur Collection of English florals, or the spicy Collection Voyage Pour Lui. Both are great.
The prize for the cutest bottles goes to the Penhaligon’s Miniature Gift Sets for women and men, which are also excellent value. All the Penhaligon’s fragrances are good and we’d happily wear the men’s or the women’s selection box, but you may prefer to match your genders for the purpose of festive gifting.
The delightful Rose Trilogy from Angela Flanders (did you read our interview with her?) would suit anyone with a love of the flower. It includes the just-launched, richly robust Columbia Rose, with its velvety, violet/patchouli finish, the first rose Angela made, Moroccan Rose, with its sandalwood undertones and Rose Poudrée, with its gentle iris-violet. The bottles look adorable too (£55).
If you are feeling really generous (£130 approx), the Fragrance Wardrobe assortment from the perfumer Francis Kurkdjian (we wrote about him here) would be a very lovely gift indeed, there’s a For Her and a For Him although again, we’d settle for either as Francis’s smells are definitely unisex. Byredo has also introduced a lovely gift box that would be the perfect way to introduce someone to this quality cult brand, and is a more reasonable £88.00.
