My Beloved French Fragrance House

A lot has been said about French pharmacies and what to buy there. While I do believe that the pharmacies are treasure troves (I’m known to carry 14 toothpaste tubes back home), nothing makes me happier than a Fragonard fragrance. If you’ve been following my blog you must know that I never do an entire post on a single brand. So if I’m doing one today, it’s only because these scents are worth it. Most artisan perfumes have the tendency to be too dry or evaporate too quickly from the skin. Fragonard fragrances stick on the skin all day and the scent is very well rounded and delicious. So the next time you’re in Paris don’t forget to buy this perfume – at just 57€ for 60ml, you won’t regret it.

On their 90th birthday (1926-2016) I’m listing four favourites according to preference:

1. Fragonard Fragonard
Even though it has opulent notes such as jasmine, honeysuckle and amber, the perfume is very fresh. I don’t know what’s in the perfume but it smells like soap. A luscious, expensive, super-chic soap.

2. Fragonard Étoile
This is the perfect example of a well balanced perfume. It has the juiciness of apple, cut through with ginger and lemon. Add to that the warmth of gardenia and lily of the valley with the elegance of cedar and amber. I’ll just call it a sophisticated floral/citrus.

3. Fragonard Miranda
At first whiff it smells like plastic, which in my book is always the sign of a sophisticated scent. Slowly the notes of this feminine fragrance open up. They include coconut, vanilla, rose, amber, and sandalwood. The result: a scent that is dry, sweet, and creamy all at once.

4. Fragonard Belle De Nuit
If you, like me, love ’80s Oriental scents then you will devour this one. A sensual cornucopia of flowers and musk, this is an old-fashioned perfume that is part sweet, part sharp. Perfect to make an entrance into a belle époque party.

Images: https://www.fragonard.com/en/