For those couples looking for a scent-sational wedding experience to add that special touch, book in for a Jo Malone London's Scent Your Wedding appointment
Recently I found myself clearing out old handbags in a bid to make some space. These were bags that held the remnants of my life pre-pandemic: I found tickets for student nightclubs and receipts for 99p alcoholic beverages, expired lippy tubes and cough sweeties that had become sticky to the touch.
What I didn’t expect was to find my old favourite perfume – when I spritzed it into the air, I was suddenly transported to 9am lectures and evenings in the library (where I definitely did more chatting than essay-writing).
It’s funny, isn’t it, how a smell can do that – take you right back to a certain place or time. It got me thinking: maybe there is something in the idea of choosing a specific wedding scent after all.
I admit I’ve always been a bit sceptical about this notion. Surely you’d just wear your favourite fragrance to get married in and that would be that? But then I read this from Emma South, fragrance and lifestyle expert at Jo Malone London: “Fragrance has a powerful influence on our emotional state. Smell, above any other sense, has greater recall impact. In summary, it sets the mood, frames the moment and makes a lasting memory for all.”
What is the Jo Malone London Scent Your Wedding Experience?
I’d heard of Jo Malone London’s Scent Your Wedding experience, of course – some of our Planning Diaries brides had raved about having the most divine experience at the brand’s boutique on Buchanan Street in Glasgow. So, in the interests of journalistic integrity (and because I do love a good beauty treatment), I headed along with my mum in tow for our complimentary consultation (yes, I couldn’t believe it was free either).
We were greeted warmly and handed a glass of fizz – a lovely treat on a Tuesday afternoon – before being directed to a private area at the back of the busy shop where we were met by the store’s senior stylist, Alice McLaren.
First off, we were invited to take a sniff of some of the brand’s signature scents to see which appealed most. English Pear & Freesia and Peony & Blush Suede are two favourite colognes for weddings, Alice told us. Her next suggestion, scent layering, rocked me to my core. Who knew you could actually mix different perfumes to create something that’s unique to you?
A great way to do this is by layering a body cream and a cologne, we found. Or go one step further and use a body wash too for a deeper combination.
After receiving a glorious hand and arm massage, we tried layering the scents, trying to decide what suited us best. Alice made it clear that you don’t have to decide what you fancy on the spot: many couples go away and see how the fragrances sit on their skin before coming back and deciding what to buy.
And there’s no pressure to make a purchase – although I think you’d struggle not to fall in love with something.
The fun doesn’t end there either. If you buy your special scent in the boutique, things will get personal. Very personal. Jo Malone London very kindly gifted me my choice of fragrance (Myrrh & Tonka Cologne Intense, if you’re interested) and Alice asked me if I wanted the bottle lid to be engraved and the box to be embossed.
Buy for your wedding and you could get your new initials emblazoned on the lid, or have your name and wedding date embossed on the box. You can even personalise the box and ribbon colour before it is all beautifully packaged up and spritzed with one final scoosh of fragrance – no detail is overlooked here.
Scent isn’t just something you wear, of course. The in-store team are happy to advise on everything from reed diffusers to candles to help you pinpoint the ideal fragrance for your venue too. They tell me the personalised gifts are a popular choice for the bridal party, and I can see why. Jo Malone London’s Scent Your Wedding experience certainly left a lasting impression: both on my skin and on my memory.
