I don't often get starstruck. I'm of the opinion that everyone and their uncle gets starstruck around celebs so it does them good to have the occasional run in with an aloof personality. It's worked thus far in life. That being said, on Tuesday morning of this week, I was entirely starstruck by a woman who may not be easily recognisable, but is responsible for most of the delicious scents you take in on a daily basis on every street around the world. Azzi Glasser, award winning perfume designer, was in Harvey Nichols speaking to press about her latest project with Harvey Nichols. I sat and listened as she casually dropped names like Orlando Bloom (she just said "Orlando" and we all knew who she meant), Johnny Depp, Tom Hardy and Kate Moss, and that's just scratching the service. You see Azzi is actually most well known for her bespoke perfume service. She creates completely unique fragrances for people who are, well, completely unique. And if you have a spare £15,000 in your back pocket you too can now enlist her services for a bespoke creation at Harvey Nichols.
Alright, let's say you don't have £15,000 just laying around on the bedside table. How can you get in there with the famed Azzi Glasser fragrance pairing? Well, this is where the collaboration with Harvey Nichols really shines. While Azzi has created fragrances for the world's leading retailers and partnered with dozens of big names around the globe, she has never before released her own named collection. For the Azzi Glasser/ Harvey Nichols collaboration, Azzi went back into her 15 years of fragrance creation and selected 11 scents to sell in store. There are both men's and women's fragrances available, and several that are considered unisex. In fact, there wasn't one I wouldn't wear myself - whether men's, women's or unisex. They are all delightful, original and absolutely intoxicating. Called "The Perfumer's Story," the collection of 11 fragrances will launch on the 1st of October in store. I bring this up now as I didn't want to wait to tell you that YOU SHOULD be saving for these fragrances starting now. Each bottle will sell on counter for £95 and candles will be available for £45.
Now, here's the kicker. These are fragrances with names that may throw you for a loop. For example, my favorite scent, and the one Azzi matched with me, was Old Books. Never in my wildest dreams would I expect to wear a fragrance called Old Books. But, the compliments I received over the course of the day were incredible. And when I told people what is was called they immediately said it did in fact remind of them of a delightful comfort as found when opening an Old Book. Truly, Azzi Glasser is a mastermind. I reckon the scent that will really confuse you is the one entitled "Ditch." I kid you not, this is a fragrance you will want to scent your whole house in. However, once you really dig deep into the smell you will discover that it does indeed have the whiff of a ditch - a delightful ditch, nonetheless.
I'd say get in there now if you want to go for the bespoke experience. Email stylist@harveynichols.com to prebook an appointment for either the bespoke service or a fragrance fitting on counter. Either way, you're walking away with a part of fragrance history. I'm hooked and that's me saying that after wearing the same fragrance for six years. Yeah, this stuff is that good.
