Latest Features

After more than two centuries of continued use, authorities in the UAE have announced that ouds and traditional concentrated oils will no longer be sold using the historic ‘tula’ system of measurement and instead move to ‘gram/millilitre’ measurement. This move, which came into force at the end of last month, marks…

​Who says perfume can’t be political? In some cases it may just be a pretty glass bottle with a generically pleasant-smelling liquid inside, but amongst the ever-expanding sea of new releases, something that is more than just a pretty proverbial face feels downright refreshing. One longtime crusader for this cause is Geza Schoen.

Over the last two decades - thanks at least in part to the efforts of websites like the one on which you’re reading these words - the role of the perfumer has enjoyed a higher profile amongst the general public. Not only do more people know that - surprise surprise - perfumes are composed by human beings. They’re increasingly …

  Scent Verse is a poetry project curated by Basenotes writer Eddie Bulliqi that seeks to explore scent language and metaphors by publishing poems from contributors across different industries that either take scent as their inspiration or are very evocative of smell. If you are interested in being involved, please send a direc…

Scent Verse is a poetry project curated by Basenotes writer Eddie Bulliqi that seeks to explore scent language and metaphors by publishing poems from contributors across different industries that either take scent as their inspiration or are very evocative of smell. If you are interested in being involved, please send a direct message …

Of all the perfume brands to have hit the market in recent years, perhaps the most innovative - or the most foolhardy, depending on how you look at it - is the London-based Experimental Perfume Club. Founded a mere four years ago by French, ISIPCA-trained, chemistry graduate Emmanuelle Moeglin, its retail product is essentially a make-your-own-blend kit. Called Layers, it consists of an empty bottle, a plastic dropper, an instruction booklet and three scents- a Top, a Mid and a Base - which can be worn as standalone fragrances, but which have also been orchestrated in such a way so that they can be combined with each other in any permutation the customer wishes.

New York City: an endless flow of bright lights, frenetic energy and fast moving crowds clutching onto their grande lattes in a fabulous flurry of big-city madness. The city that never sleeps, where ambitious ingenues come to fulfil their dreams and a whirlwind life plays out amongst the skyscraper landscape. It is this megatropolis that inspired the birth of all-gender fragrance brand KIERIN NYC.

This is the second part of Derek Mohr’s history of Avon’s men’s fragrances. This time, the Swinging Sixties!

If you have a monitor or device made in the last three years you may be able to take advantage of our new Scratch ’n’ Sniff technology.

Top-notch raw materials were the reserve of the industry elite — until now. Ostens is the fragrance house of Laurent Delafon and Chris Yu, who as founders of United Perfumes have worked with brands such as Maison Francis Kurkdjian, Tom Dixon and Diptyque. Together with Laboratoire Monique Remy (LMR), the premium naturals divisio…

Avon as a formerly door-to-door sales perfumer, was the direct-to-you cosmetics company for the average jane or joe. They don't get a lot of love because of their ubiquity, sometimes unoriginal style and price point, but there is a lot more history, creativity and innovation than you would imagine. Part one of a series looking at the history of Avon products for men

On 29th March 2019 the EU will remove UK cosmetics from their database. Sarah McCartney of 4160 Tuesdays is holding a series of workshops to discuss the issue. For the last 40 years all UK cosmetics companies have complied with EU regulations, and since 2013 every single cosmetic has needed a safety certificate and been registered …